Author Archives: Erik Bennett
Can You Spell Team?
Team. There is nothing better than leading one or being effectively led while on one. If you lead a team of at least five people I want you to be a guest blogger on this site. The rules are simple and look like this:
- The subject of the post must be Team Leadership.
- The post must tell us the practical side of your work.
- The post should teach us from failure as well as success ie… be honest.
Once you submit your post, I reserve full editing rights (grammar, spelling and, length if needed). Your submission is your agreement with these rules.
Remember these things when writing:
1. Keep your post under 650 words.
2. Your post must be original.
3. Your post cannot appear elsewhere.
4. You agree to have your post linked/appear on Twitter and Facebook.
Email all posts to erik@legendlabs.org I will respond within one week with a simple yes or no. Please include in your post a short bio, twitter name, and pic if you wish.
Thanks. Looking forward to seeing how you lead teams.
How to Get Toilet Paper Out of Your Tree
I am a former 15 year veteran of Student Ministry. Some people call it Youth Group. I hate that term. It’d take another post to understand why. In 15 years my house has been the subject of pranks. One morning I woke up and there was a goat tied to a tree in the front yard. I live in the ‘burbs. Then they forked my lawn. Google it. They post-it noted my car. All of it. No that glue doesn’t come off easy. They Christmas wrapped my car. They shaving creamed a message on my garage. They snuck into my house while I was on vacation and rearranged the whole house. The living room was in the kitchen. The kitchen was in a bedroom and so on… The thing I actually dislike the most is when they toilet paper my house. Its the most boring. The easiest to clean up. So here is how you clean it up:
- Pick up all the stuff off the ground you can roll
- Rake up all the other big pieces…if it gets dirt in it it actually helps.
- Get out your hose. Turn on high. Blast everything else out of the trees. TP dissolves in water.
- Take a picture. Maybe this should have been #1.
That’s pretty much it. Not rocket science. Imagine you could do the same thing in your life with interruptions. What if you had a simple strategy for reacting to a mess. Maybe you could use the TP method?
- Respond to what you know must be done first. Eliminate clutter. The big pieces. Start with the easiest of the hardest.
- Get some tools to help you cope with what remains of the clutter. Tools look like people, God, a Bible, counselors, friends, mentors…
- Have some fun with the problem. Blast away and play. (yep the hose part)
- Remember your trial for it is sure to find you in some form again.
If you are in a mess now. Let me know. The best thing I can do for you is to pray for you.
How do you handle a surprise mess?
Boba Fett. $15K. Really?
Do you have an extra $15,000 available? Didn’t think so. However. If you by some chance answered yes than I have a deal for you. You can buy a never released prototype Boba Fett action figure from Star Wars. You remember those little toys. Han Solo, Luke Sywalker, C3PO, Darth Vader – the gangs all here. The beauty of the prototype is the real firing missile! Only the coolest bounty hunter of the future has that. Most models sold did not have the missile due to potential choking hazards. Still interested? Heres a picture of 15k added value:
Value is a crazy thing. Today, instead of telling me why this is sooo worth the investment, think about things in your life that have value. Measure them using these three questions:
1. How will this (thing, person, object, ideology etc…) help my community to flourish?
2. How will this help my faith to strengthen?
3. How will this bring glory to God and not me?
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. – Philippians 2:3 and 4
The guy who bought a similar prototype did so at Comic Con for 17K. 17. Yes. Se-ven-teeeen. Thousand. Dollars. Here’s what he said post purchase, “my girlfriend is going to kill me”. Well, probably not kill but pretty sure she is re-valuing her profile at match.com right about now. Today, know what you value and why. Here’s my working standard measuring tool. Not perfect. Not always met. But in place:
1. Family over work.
2. People over programming.
3. Humility over pride. Still working this one out :)
4. Bonus: Han Solo over Boba Fett ;)
How do you measure value?
Goodbye, fairwell, and that other word from Sound of Music I can’t spell…
(On Sunday , after 11 years of ministry, I officially announced my departure from FBC Weston. Heres why.)
All,
On behalf of the Bennett Family, I want to thank you for the last 11 years of ministry. I am truly blessed to have served you. I don’t have enough words to express my gratitude. You have helped reach students and families with the gospel. You have helped disciple and evangelize a generation. I would challenge you to continue to pursue Christ, live out the gospel, and rescue a generation of students and help them to become like Christ.
It’s an amazing paradox isn’t it? Christ joins us as believers through the bond of salvation. A justified family of brothers and sisters in Christ. That same ‘family’ bond also breaks us apart as God leads us to pursue the cause of Christ for the world. I am incredibly excited about the next phase of ministry. Pray for us as we transition. Love you guys. You will be in my prayers and in our hearts always.
As I stated to the church on Sunday morning, the Bennett’s will be continuing to live in Weston and our children will finish the semester at WCA at the end of the school year. Many have asked, ‘where are you going?’. So, in order to not have to continue to answer so many emails and texts and twitter messages:), Here are the details: I am pursuing a few different things this next year but the majority of my time will be spent on developing a new ministry called Legend Labs which is a mentoring group to churches with my friend Adam Bond.
Last year Adam asked me to be on his board of directors of his new group. Later in the year when he learned of transition plans he asked me to pray about resigning my board position and coming on as a ministry partner full time. After wrestling with God for quite a few months I finally committed in January 2012 to one year time frame to help him and see from there where it all lands. Very exciting times.
- check out what we do here: www.legendlabs.org
- my new email is erik@legendlabs.org
Christ Alone,
Erik, Jill and the rest of the Bennett’s
