CMA Management Monthly e-Newsletter
January 2007
Issue No. 106
FROM THE CEO
CMA’s MISSION is to equip our member organizations with management information, leadership training, and strategic networking relationships so ministries are led and managed in God-honoring ways. One of our most essential tools is the Annual Conference, which is just around the corner. We’re so pleased at how the array of speakers and workshops has come together and are certain that this single event can work mightily in the lives of Christian ministry leaders and businesspeople around the country.
In addition to providing management and business insights, we at CMA believe it is our duty to continually point each other to Christ and ensure that all that we do brings Him glory and honor. And that’s why we’re so pleased to have all of our days at the Annual Conference framed by the teaching of Alistair Begg as he leads us in daily devotions.
If you haven’t already done so, sign up today to learn from industry leaders, network with leading peers from around the nation and be inspired and uplifted by solid teaching from God’s Word.
Pastor Begg is just one of the top-notch speakers and seminar leaders ready to teach, engage and empower you at this year’s Annual Conference. Other speakers include Gordon MacDonald, Patrick Lencioni, Lee Strobel, Patsy Clairmont, Dr. Henry Cloud, Israel Gaither, Priscilla Evans Shirer and others.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER HIGHLIGHT: Alistair Begg
We’re delighted to have Alistair Begg lead us in daily devotions for the duration of the Annual Conference. Managing Our Private World is impossible without a keen focus on our devotion first to Christ and then to the building of His Kingdom.
Alistair has been in pastoral ministry for 30 years. Following graduation from The London School of Theology he served eight years in Scotland at both Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh and Hamilton Baptist Church. For the last 22 years he has been the senior pastor at Parkside Church near Cleveland, Ohio.
A renowned author, Begg has written several books and is heard daily and weekly on the radio program, Truth For Life. He was recently awarded an honorary doctorate from Cedarville University. He and his wife, Susan, have been married 30 years and have grown children.
CULTURE WATCH
Impact your life with a renewed sense of wonder
Christian evangelist and philosopher, Ravi Zacharias, talks about how popular culture kills our energy to “wonder.” On this podcast, hear Ravi tell how a renewed sense of wonder can impact your life for the better in 2007. Go to:
http://www.rzim.org/radio/archives.php?p=LMPT&v=detail&id=911
Who really needs another Rocky movie?
This way too long sequence may have saved the best for last and culture watcher Dick Staub blogs why we probably shouldn’t pass this movie up. Go to:
http://www.dickstaub.com/culturewatch.php?record_id=1081
MANAGEMENT INSIGHTS
Did you end 2006 with a feeling of being stuck?
New years resolutions aren’t likely to carry you very far—without a plan. For a good book on the subject, check out Unstuck, a small but excellent book on the subject at:
http://www.amazon.com/Unstuck-tool-Yourself-Your-World/dp/B0007XWMW4/sr=11/qid=1167781219/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/105-6025819-5629236?ie=UTF8&s=books
Present your 2006 results with greater impact
If you are looking to present your 2006 results with greater impact or take presentations of data and results to a compelling level, check out this software. At www.xcelsius.com/promo1, you can see a demo of a low cost ($195 to start) tool that can turn Power Point, Word and pdfs into easy and compelling “dashboards”, scenarios, etc.
Take your management skills to a new level
This new book of essays by Blanchard, Senge, Covey and others will help you take your management skills to a new level in the new year. Check out The Leader of the Future 2: Visions, Strategies, and Practices for the New Era at:
http://www.josseybass.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0787986674,descCddescription.html
FOR YOU PERSONALLY…
Schedule the following (“I don’t have time to do that”) reviews
Get rid of that guilt! Early in January, schedule the following (“I don’t have time to do that”) reviews throughout 2007:
A review of:
· Your charitable giving to your local church and other causes (Are you where you want to be?)
· Your latest credit rating/credit worthiness by ordering credit reports (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian)
· All the insurances you carry, including locating the hard copies of your policies (health, disability, life, auto, home, etc.)
· Your mortgage on your home if you have one (Should you refinance?)
· Your will and last wishes (Up to date?)
· Medical diagnostic tests
Lies we tell ourselves about retirement
OK, baby-boomers we know the word is not in your/our vocabulary. But for a good review of the latest lies we tell ourselves about retirement (and the truth that we need to hear) read the Wall Street Journal’s excellent article on the subject at:
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB1165443258244426990s0D8G0aHg50EEN_z6_rpnSNZx8_20061221.html?mod=blogs
FINALLY, TAKE THIS WITH YOU…
Leave space for nothing
Just before you cement those 2007 resolutions into place, hear what Henry Nouwen says about the value of “leaving space for nothing” in the New Year.
“Recently I spent some time walking in New York City. I realized how most places are filled up with other things. So much is crowded into that place! We seem to have a fear of empty spaces.
The philosopher Spinoza called this a horror vacui. We want to fill up what is empty. Our lives stay very full. And when we are not blinded by busyness, we fill our inner space with guilt about things of the past or worries about things to come.
Perhaps part of our fear comes from the fact that an empty place means that something may happen to us that we cannot predict, that is new, that leads us to a place we might not want to go. I might not want to hear what God has to say.
To be contemplative means to peel off the blindfolds that keep us from seeing His coming in us and around us. It means to learn to listen in the spaces of quiet we leave for God and thereby know how better to relate to the world around us.”
--Henri Nouwen
from Turn My Mourning Into Dancing
ASSOCIATION NEWS: The Latest on CMA
Membership Renewals for 2007
It’s time to renew your Christian Management Association membership for 2007! Renewal packets were sent in early December. This year we’re offering you the option of renewing your CMA membership online. Check us out at www.CMAonline.org. You’ll be blessed!
CMA Palm Springs 2007
CMA’s 30th Annual Conference - March 12-15, 2007
Be Inspired by the beauty and desert calm of Palm Springs, California, for a time of spiritual renewal and personal reflection.
Be Uplifted by Dove Award-winning artist Kathy Troccoli, multi-talented comedic sensation Anita Renfro, and praise and worship by the anointed team of Dick and Mel Tunney.
Be Connected during networking time with ministry colleagues.
Be Challenged by Gordon MacDonald, Priscilla Evans Shirer, Patrick Lencioni, Israel Gaither, Dr. Henry Cloud, Patsy Clairmont, Lee Strobel, Alistair Begg and many other powerful speakers, as they focus on how we can develop greater authenticity and live out our Christian values.
Register online at www.CMAonline.org
CMA CALENDAR & DIRECTORY OF SERVICES: Everything You Need to Know
2007
Jan 10-13 - Christian Stewardship Association Annual Conference (Dallas, Texas)
Feb 1-4 - Council for Christian Colleges and Universities Annual Presidents Conference (Washington, D.C.)
Feb 17-20 - National Religious Broadcasters National Convention (Orlando, Florida)
Mar 11-13 - 7th Annual CMP Summit (Palm Springs, California)
Mar 12-15 - CMA Palm Springs 2007 (Palm Springs, California)
CMA Directory of Services
CMA Website: www.CMAonline.org
Audio Recordings: (800) 874-8730
Membership Info: (800) 727-4CMA, ext. 1
CMA Chapter Meetings: www.CMAonline.org
CMA Sponsored Programs
Envoy Financial (a Christian Retirement Coalition Company) provides group benefit and retirement plan design and implementation for ministries and churches. Info: www.envoyfinancial.org.
CMA Management Monthly
The Management Monthly eNewsletter is sent 12 times a year to all CMA members. Editorial material may be reprinted if credit is given. David Schmidt, editor (David@wiseplanning.net) and Suzy West, production and circulation (Suzy@CMAonline.org). Copyright, 2007, Christian Management Association. CMA is a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability and has adopted “The Peacemaker’s Pledge” of Peacemaker Ministries.
CMA Job Market
Management classified ads are updated every Monday noon (PST) on CMA’s website. To run an ad or to review the latest job opportunities, go to www.CMAonline.org/jobmarket.
CHRISTIAN MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION
P.O. Box 4090
San Clemente, CA 92674
Phone: (949) 487-0900, Fax: (949) 487-0927
Email: CMA@CMAonline.org, www.CMAonline.org
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