Steve Caton has been building teams and nurturing innovative growing organizations for over 30 years, successfully expanding a variety of companies such as The Giving Crowd, Newdea and Christianity.com. Steve is most recognized for his work at Church Community Builder where he assisted in catalyzing an eight-year period of double-digit growth and service to over 4,800 churches. Steve is passionate about Kingdom causes and has authored hundreds of articles and ebooks about effective leadership and organizational health. Currently, Steve is the Chief Growth Officer at Generis where he works alongside a team of over 45 generosity and leadership experts to increase their reach and impact.
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There’s a word that crops up and plagues churches in the media far too often, a word nobody ever wants to hear associated with theirs: scandal.
Whether it’s a staff member embezzling funds, a pastor acting inappropriately toward a child, a bad accident, or even just a leadership transition gone awry, these stories come out — and the churches they come out of almost never saw them coming.
Like most church leaders, you probably spend a lot of time thinking about your ministries, your people, your budget and operations, next Sunday’s service, and a million other things. Keeping all of those things on track is more than a full-time job — so how much time do you have to focus on your church’s culture?
In working with thousands of churches over the years, I’ve found that you can be ‘doing the right stuff’, but without a healthy church culture your ministry will never reach its full potential for the Kingdom.
Some advice lasts the ages, while other advice can seem outdated very quickly. There was a time when it was good advice to get out there and go door-to-door when looking for a job. We used phrases like ‘pound the pavement’ and ‘open doors’. Now? If someone came to our office unannounced looking to meet with me about a job, well, let’s just say that wouldn’t go well for them.
On the other hand, some advice stands the test of time. In fact, one of my favorite adages predates Plato and Socrates: ‘know thyself’.
Over the years I’ve held a variety of positions, both in the business world and in the church world. Even today, I have my feet firmly planted in both. As a member of the leadership team at Church Community Builder, I wear the hat of a businessman, making decisions, looking at trends, and providing leadership of my team. On the other hand, because our business is focused on helping churches make a lasting impact, I am always thinking of how to do ministry better and interacting with church leaders.Â
I was recently walking through one of those two-acre, we-have-everything-you-will-ever-need-plus-ten-thousand-things-you-won’t, megaplex type stores. Strolling down the endless aisles of shiny trinkets, I found myself...