455 Leadership Quotes Lessons From 2012’s Top Christian Conference

Speakers

A Free Leadership Resource From Brian Dodd and www.BrianDoddOnLeadership.com

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455 Leadership Quotes:

Lessons From 2012’s Top Christian

Conference Speakers

Introduction

You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth! Or can you?

How much leadership can you handle? How much can you process? More importantly, how

much of this leadership knowledge can you actually implement?

As a member of Injoy Stewardship Solutions, I am privileged to have a unique seat into which to

watch how the Christian community carries out its unique calling. My job each day is to speak

with pastors of growing churches and discuss their successes, challenges, and dreams. I have

learned how many high-capacity leaders think while also marveling at their passion and love for

those in their churches. I deeply love, admire, and respect pastors and church leaders.

I also attend a number of popular Christian conferences.

No one can take in all that God is doing. I don’t have to tell you that He is simply too big, too

awesome, too powerful for anyone to take it all in. Our finite minds simply lack the capacity for

the size and scope needed to understand such things. However, I have tried to be a good steward

of what He has revealed in my life. That act of stewardship has been made available for you in

this eBook.

The following pages contain 455 quotes from 10 conferences featuring over 20 of the world’s

most effective Christians leaders. The names read like a Who’s Who of Christian leadership –

Chan, Stanley, Hybels, Giglio, Noble, Ortberg, and Groeschel just to name a few. Many of those

featured are people I know personally and they are leaders worth listening to and following.

It will take you about 10 minutes to read this eBook, at least 10 months to fully process its

lessons, and a lifetime to implement.

It is a price worth paying because the redemptive work of the local church is worth it. So enjoy

and let’s get started!

Finally, if you are not a regular reader of Brian Dodd On Leadership, please know we would be

honored to join our tribe of like-minded leaders who are hoping to maximize our potential, live a

life of significance, and change the world.

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Table Of Contents

Event Page

Passion Conference 4

17 Inspirational Leadership Quotes By Francis Chan

The Giving Rocket Tour 5

33 Lessons On Tribal Leadership From Casey Graham

Velocity Conference 6

15 Quotes By Mountain Lake Church Senior Pastor Shawn Lovejoy

The 25 Greatest Leadership Quotes On Cross-Cultural, Multi-Racial, Multi-Generational

Ministry I’ve Ever Heard By Transformation Church Senior Pastor Derwin Gray

Unleash 2012 8

25 Leadership Quotes From NewSpring Church Senior Pastor Perry Noble

Catalyst One Day 9

28 Leadership Quotes From NorthPoint Community Church Senior Pastor Andy Stanley And

Life Church Senior Pastor Craig Groeschel

15 Leadership Quotes From Passion City Church Senior Pastor Louie Giglio

Funded And Free Conference 11

8 Quotes From Injoy Stewardship Solutions Owner Joseph Sangl

WCA Global Leadership Summit 12

35 Leadership Quotes From Willow Creek Community Church Senior Pastor Bill Hybels

51 Leadership Quotes From Condoleeza Rice And Jim Collins

41 Leadership Quotes From Carly Fiorina And Craig Groeschel

20 Leadership Quotes From Patrick Lencioni

18 Leadership Quotes From John Ortberg

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Event (cont.) Page

17 Leadership Quotes From Bill Hybels Closing Session

NewSpring Leadership Conference 19

11 Leadership Quotes From Perry Noble

An Extraordinary Example Of Customer Service From NewSpring Church

Catalyst 2012 21

23 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Andy Stanley

11 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Perry Noble

RightNow Conference 23

14 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Austin Stone Church Senior Pastor Matt Carter

21 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Jen Hatmaker

37 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From The Summit Church Senior Pastor J.D. Greear

20 Additional Leadership Quotes From The RightNow Conference 2012

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17 Inspirational Leadership Quotes By

Francis Chan From Passion 2012

January 4, 2012

Francis Chan delivered one of the most powerful and moving messages I have ever heard to over

40,000 students. The following are just some of his leadership quotes that were deposited into

the lives of these young Christian leaders:

1. “I don’t like calling it human trafficking. I like calling it little kids are being raped right

now.”

2. “We must be completely undignified and give our life to this (solving slavery).”

3. “Go home and read this book (the Bible). Read it over and over again…Get consumed by

this Word.”

4. “The greatest thing that could happen is that many of you leave here serious about this

book, seriously believing in the promises of this book.”

5. “People will lie to you, even people who sit in church services. Unless you read this

book over and over again you won’t be able to tell who is lying to you.”

6. “People are going to lie to you your whole life and it will be easy for you to fall into a

trap.”

7. “I get scared because you follow because they say they’re a scholar…Look at their lives.

Do they remind me of Jesus?”

8. “If you have a desire in your heart you can justify about anything.”

9. “Be careful of your own heart. We just fight for what we desire.”

10. “It sure seems like when God says He’s going to judge it’s going to happen.”

11. “From the beginning Satan lured them in and said, ‘Do you think you’re really going to

die?’”

12. “We try to beautify everything…I doubt your parents painted all the people drowning (in

your room as a child regarding Noah’s Ark).”

13. “Do you take the Word of God literally? Do you really believe God commanded you to

go and make disciples?”

14. “We talk about human trafficking. The solution to human trafficking is making

disciples.”

15. “Some people in your schools will be victims of human trafficking. Some will be culprits

of it.”

16. “Has it always bothered you that you’d read the Bible and then go to church and it didn’t

match up?”

17. “While other people are hiding, you’re going to say, ‘I think God can do something

through me.’”

As convicting a message as I’ve ever heard.

For more from Passion 2012 check out 20 Lessons All Christians Can Learn From Passion 2012.

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33 Lessons On Tribal Leadership I Learned

From Casey Graham And Giving Rocket

February 2, 2012

“Funding Is A Front For Friendship.” – Casey Graham

Casey Graham, Founder and CEO of Giving Rocket, is a dynamic leader and entrepreneur! I

just spent the last two days with him on the Giving Rocket Tour. This nationwide series of events

helped church leaders experience victory in the area of weekly giving.

Casey does not have customers and clients. He has a very loyal following. Casey has a tribe.

After watching him interact with these leaders, the following are the lessons on tribal leadership

that I learned from him. Though not quotes, these lessons will make you a better leader.

1. Casey serves the tribe.

2. Casey resources the tribe.

3. Casey is accessible to the tribe.

4. Casey enables the tribe.

5. Casey was formerly part of the tribe as CFO of Mountain Lake Church in Cumming, GA.

6. Casey has a diversified tribe. All church cultures, sizes, streams of faith, and geographic

locations are represented.

7. Casey creates new rules for the tribe.

8. Casey changes tribal behavior as the culture changes.

9. Casey makes things easy and practical for the tribe.

10. Casey does great research to understand his tribe’s behavior.

11. Casey practices honesty with the tribe. He teaches the tribe that there are no silver bullets

or shortcuts to success.

12. Casey offers special products and pricing only for the tribe.

13. Casey builds a great team to help him serve the tribe better.

14. Casey has great energy which inspires the tribe.

15. Casey is accountable to the tribe offering full money-back-guarantees if they are not

satisfied.

16. Casey does not expect the tribe to come to him. He goes to where the tribe is.

17. Casey expands the thinking of the tribe.

18. Casey surprises the tribe with humor.

19. Casey helps prepare the tribe for what they will be facing the future.

20. Casey provides and changes systems and procedures for the tribe.

21. Casey appreciates the tribe. He says, “Thank You”.

22. Casey leads the tribe digitally.

23. Casey identifies leaders within the tribe.

24. Casey leads the leaders within the tribe.

25. Casey addresses the issues the tribe is facing.

26. Casey brings solutions to the issues the tribe is facing.

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27. Casey makes the tribe take action.

28. Casey connects with the tribe on Twitter.

29. Casey helps the tribe prioritize their time, energy, and resources.

30. Casey helps the tribe go farther, faster.

31. Casey wakes up dreaming about what keeps the tribe awake at night.

32. Casey plans to grow the tribe.

33. Casey prays for the tribe that they will experience breakthroughs in their ministry.

15 Quotes By Mountain Lake Church Senior

Pastor Shawn Lovejoy From Velocity 2012

February 27, 2012

Shawn Lovejoy, Senior Pastor of Mountain Lake Church in Cumming, GA and founder of

ChurchPlanters.com gave a sobering dose of encouragement and realism to those attending the

Velocity Conference. The following are his thoughts:

1. “We’re entrepreneurs. We’re activators…We love moving fast. We all love speed.”

2. “Why do we love speed? The church has tons to do.”

3. “The fastest moving pastors lead the fastest growing churches (right?)”

4. “My greatest assets and talents become my greatest liabilities.”

5. “Telling a church planter to be patient is like telling John MacArthur to be seeker

sensitive.”

6. “Lack of patience brings pain into your life.”

7. “Speed can kill us…Our inability to slow down, to shut down, can kill us.”

8. “We all struggle with taking a day off.”

9. “The reason many are depressed is the vision isn’t being fulfilled as fast as we would

like.”

10. “If I finish without my family, I don’t finish.”

11. “If we try building this church faster than Jesus has called us to build it, it will cost us.”

12. “What matters more to God than fruitfulness, is faithfulness.”

13. “Fast Growing Church lists encourage the 100 and discourage the 100,000.”

14. “Most pastors quit right before the harvest.”

15. “God is all about fulfilling His vision.”

Great words Shawn. Thanks for being a friend and mentor to so many leaders. To assist pastors

in helping grow their churches, I want to make the following video interview series I did with

another great mentor to pastors, Dr. Ike Reighard, Senior Pastor of Piedmont Church in Marietta,

GA available to you.

The Type Of Leader God Uses To Grow A Church

How To Grow A Church Through Community Ministry

How To Grow A Plateaued Or Declining Church

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The 25 Greatest Leadership Quotes On

Cross-Cultural, Multi-Racial, Multi-

Generational Ministry I’ve Ever Heard

February 28, 2012

I was just exposed to the finest teaching on effectively delivering cross-cultural, multi-racial, and

multi-generational ministry that I’ve ever heard! Pastor Derwin Gray of Transformation

Church located in Rock Hill, SC conducted this incredible session as part of the Velocity

Conference put on by www.ChurchPlanters.com.

Pastor Gray is an absolutely AMAZING leader!!! As a former NFL player and now pastor, he is

being used by God to serve others and transform the way we view those around us, especially

those who might look different than we do.

This is not an over-exaggeration that I am about to give you. I have been going to breakout

sessions at conferences since 1997. His session is the best I’ve ever heard. Now, on to the

quotes:

1. “If you’re starting something for God that doesn’t scare you, it is too small and too

centered on man.”

2. “Your future activates your present.”

3. “If I don’t like my today, I need to look into the mirror because I shaped it yesterday.”

4. “A picture of the future transforms how we live in the present.”

5. “Don’t lust after another person’s miracle.”

6. “You know what a hot wife is. A wife who Honors, Obeys, and Trusts God.”

7. “The NFL is the epitome of conditional love.” He went on to add that God’s grace was

the epitome of unconditional love.

8. “It’s better to be hurt attempting to love, than not to love at all.”

9. “Over 95% of bible-believing churches are segregated.”

10. “Churches are 10 times more segregated than the schools. 20 times more than

neighborhoods.”

11. “What sense does it make to save people in segregated churches to go on to an integrated

heaven?”

12. “Don’t be programmed. When you preach the gospel, the people are ravaged by it.”

13. “Discipleship is not informational. It’s transformational.”

14. “You must live the vision before you ask anyone else too.”

15. “Your vision must be taught over and over, and over, and over in everything!”

16. “Your vision must be the framing story that shapes your philosophy of leadership

development.”

17. “People hear what they want to hear. Is your vision written down not only on paper but

also on their hearts?”

18. “Narrow your focus. We accomplish a lot because we do a little.”

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19. “It is easy to be critical. It takes courage to create.”

20. “You must have a Clear, Compelling, and Challenging God-sized vision.”

21. “Great systems and processes will outpreach great preaching.”

22. “Are you servant leaders or self-serving leaders?”

23. “Does your vision bless other people’s lives?”

24. “Our (multi-generational, multi-ethnic) staff was built through prayer…It began on my

knees.”

25. “If you ever invite me to speak, don’t have someone carry my bags.”

25 Leadership Quotes From NewSpring

Church Senior Pastor Perry Noble From

Unleash 2012

March 8, 2012

Perry Noble, Senior Pastor of NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC, just opened the Unleash

Conference in his normal humorous and unfiltered fashion. Here are the quotes:

1. “Your church can do exactly what God said your church can do.”

2. “Some of the biggest mistakes I’ve made is when I’m not paying attention.”

3. “If you are a pastor, shut up and do what the camera man tells you to do.”

4. Your life can change with one phone call.”

5. “How do I know God is done with me? He kills you.”

6. “If God did not tell us to let go, church leaders would climb mountains to find what God

used to bless.”

7. “We have to talk way more about our dreams than our memories.”

8. “What is going on in your church that drains the life out of you?”

9. “People think you’re crazy because they can’t see what you see.”

10. “Pastors shouldn’t have to apologize for having big vision.”

11. “The church isn’t in trouble.”

12. “Every number has a name. Every name has a story.”

13. “Church leaders need to be passionate about the numbers God is passionate about.”

14. “When you have wind and fire together, you can’t control it.”

15. “Show me one disciple who wasn’t an evangelist. A disciple who isn’t an evangelist is a

Pharisee.”

16. “We feel alone because we focus more on our worry than the presence of God.”

17. “Pastors spend more time in Facebook than having their face in the Book.”

18. “If you have a bunch of pretty people in your church, your church sucks.”

19. “Moses cared more about his people than his position as a leader.”

20. “Pastors receive a lot of attention. They don’t receive a lot of care.”

21. “If you have a resume on your computer, destroy it or send it out because it has no place

in this church.”

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22. “If you’re more excited about hearing a podcast of another pastor than yours, leave the

church and go serve that pastor.”

23. “Show me other than Jesus anyone who knew what was going to happen.”

24. “You can’t chart the book of Acts.”

25. “Christians are the only people who apologize for celebrating victory.”

28 Leadership Quotes From NorthPoint

Community Church Senior Pastor Andy

Stanley And Life Church Senior Pastor Craig

Groeschel At Catalyst One Day

March 26, 2012

At the Catalyst One Day Conference Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel just completed the first

session. Few can communicate leadership as effectively as these two. The following are their

comments:

Andy Stanley

1. “You can’t fix cultural issues with a meeting.”

2. “Leaders shape organizational culture whether they intend to or not.”

3. “If you love the organizational culture, (ask) what have we done accidently to create a

great culture?”

4. “If you have been somewhere six months or a year, you inherited a culture.”

5. “Have a ministry. Don’t hire a ministry.”

6. “The longer you are somewhere, the less you are aware of the culture.”

7. “All of our employees get a list of questions after their first three months and after six

months (asking about the culture). Here is what a new person experiences.”

8. “Healthy cultures attract and keep healthy people.”

9. “Healthy people are productive people. Healthy people are about the future. Healthy

people are about advancement.”

10. “The healthier the organization, the quicker the unhealthy people are identified.”

11. “The culture of an organization impacts its long-term productivity.”

12. “Unhealthy cultures are slow to adapt to change.”

13. “The healthier your culture is the more open they’re going to be to change.”

Craig Groeschel

1. “(In the early stages) All we had was God’s Word, faith, and a dream.”

2. “Healthy cultures never happen by accident. They are created.”

3. “The number one force that shapes your culture is your values.”

4. “What we value determines what we do.”

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5. “Something that was great was no longer great because of lack of values.”

6. “If everything is important to you, nothing is important to you.”

7. “If you can’t tweet your values, they’re too long.”

8. “If your values don’t move you emotionally, they’re too dry.”

9. “Shape your culture and build your people around your values.”

10. “Organizations don’t change, people change.”

11. “You can teach skills. You can’t teach values.”

12. “Remove people with distinctly different values.”

13. “If you don’t like where you are going, change directions.”

14. “Hire and recruit for your values.”

15. “To reach people no one’s reaching, you have to do things no one’s doing.”

15 Leadership Quotes From Passion City

Church Senior Pastor Louie Giglio At

Catalyst One Day

March 26, 2012

Andy Stanley interviewed Passion City Church Senior Pastor Louie Giglio, his friend since the

6th grade. I feel Louie leads the most influential church in America today. His insights about

planting a church at age 50, when most do it in their 20s, was insightful and a must read.

1. “I am on a track that when I was younger I didn’t aim for.”

2. “I spoke here (NorthPoint Community Church as part of the 722 program) for 11 years

every Tuesday night.”

3. “God showed me I’m an OK pastor.”

4. “There’s nobody that speaks about leadership like Andy does.”

5. “The upside to planting a church at 50 years old – 1. You care less about what other

people think. 2. You have more confidence in your ability to hear from Jesus.”

6. “We had 15 years (of Passion Conferences) of history on our side.”

7. “The wind is blowing us along and we’re happy with that. We’re not rowing.”

8. “I don’t know what our distinctive is.” *Note – I would like to give my thoughts about

what I think makes Passion City Church distinctive. I have never seen a church so

radically passionate about and in love with Jesus.

9. “You don’t need a mission statement.”

10. “Our team believes our church exists for the glory of God.”

11. “This step for me (planting a church in the city in which he grew up) is the promotion of

my life.”

12. “This church gives cohesiveness and stability to the (Passion) movement.”

13. “We’re driven by the ‘what’ and not a framework.”

14. “Hear Jesus as a family and serve Him. Care about people and love people.”

15. “Who did I give a blank about today? That’s leadership.” – Louie said this because when

he planted PCC, a long-time unchurched friend of his said the church will do well

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“because Louie gives a ‘blank’ about people.” Louie used the word “blank” and did not

tell us what it was but let your imagine figure it out.

8 Quotes From Injoy Stewardship Solutions

Owner Joseph Sangl From The Funded And

Free Conference

April 19, 2012

Today, Injoy Stewardship Solutions (ISS) put on a special conference for church leaders called

Funded And Free. Joe Sangl, ISS President and CEO, just gave an inspiring message on what

is needed from church leaders to have a fully-funded vision. The following are his thoughts:

Church Leaders Who Have Fully-Funded Visions:

1. Have a Clear Vision and Keep Saying It. - The #1 barrier to maximum giving is unanswered

questions. The #1 question pastors will get is “What’s next?”

2. Believe In People.

3. Value Relationships - When pastors love their people, their people know it.

4. Maintain Financial Margin - No church should ever serve as a non-profit. Having margin

allows you to focus on the vision.

5. Teach People to Win with Their Money God’s Way - 70% of people in churches are broke.

When you ask these people to fund your vision, they’re ashamed. Are you helping to people to

fund their personal vision before you ask them to fund yours?

6. Clearly Demonstrate The Need.

7. Create Multiple On-Ramps to Giving - Use kiosks and digital giving.

8. Partner With Experts

For more Joseph Sangl, please click 33 Leadership Quotes From Joseph Sangl’s New Book

Oxen.

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35 Quotes From Willow Creek Community

Church Senior Pastor Bill Hybels From The

Global Leadership Summit

August 9, 2012

Bill Hybels opened the annual WCA Global Leadership Summit with a message on sowing more

seed, energy bursts, and succession planning. The following are his life-changing comments:

1. “The first move of a great leader is to clarify vision and values.”

2. “Great leaders always go the extra mile to ensure success because the vision is worth it.”

3. “Everyone wins when a leader gets better.”

4. “I believe everyone’s life would be better if God were at the center of it.”

5. ”Whether you like it or not, your whole organization takes its seed sowing guidance from

you.”

6. “One of the fundamental requirements of a leader is to stay curious. Stay courageous.

Always experiment.”

7. “Incessant tinkerers. People who wake up every day figuring out how to sow more

seeds.”

8. “Nothing would please Heaven more than to say, ‘I ought to get better too.’”

9. “Trees are worth it. Transformed lives and eternities are worth it.”

10. “You are the most difficult person you will ever lead.”

11. “Many leaders incorrectly assume the most important leadership asset is their time…The

most valuable asset is their energy and their ability to energize people.”

12. “What would be the greatest half-dozen contributions that I could make to the church that

you and I deeply love?”

13. “I can’t sprint for six months. But I can sprint for six weeks.”

14. “This was the greatest breakthrough of my leadership life – Putting energy bursts against

overwhelming odds to see God do amazing things.”

15. “All the senior leaders work by 6X6 initiatives.”

16. “God didn’t make you a leader to respond to stuff all day. He made you a leader to move

stuff ahead.”

17. “Your leadership matters more than you think it does.”

18. “I don’t like the term Mega-church.”

19. “Hey Bill, do you ever see yourself dying? (If so) Do you see yourself being the senior

pastor of Willow to the day you die?” – Willow elder and friend of Bill’s named Mike.

20. “These conversations can’t be rushed.” – On Succession Planning

21. “Board members have to understand how deep feelings run in the hearts of senior pastors

and founding pastors.”

22. “Don’t assign people (to speak to the pastor on succession planning) who have low

emotional intelligence.”

23. “Senior pastors…make sure your greatest legacy is how it’s led after you leave it.”

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24. “God doesn’t make you a leader to preside over something…He makes you a leader to

move people from an unacceptable reality to a preferred future.”

25. “Make the case that you can’t stay here.”

26. “Visions are extremely vulnerable in the middle (of the journey).”

27. “God protected during this area (middle part of his ministry). He just carried me.”

28. “There is nothing like the local church when the local church is working right.”

29. “What a privilege it is to be a leader.”

30. “Only a very small percentage of the human race get to lead.”

31. “Thank you God that you placed me in a family so I could watch Howard Hybels.”

32. “Thanks God. One day You entrusted me with a vision to start a church in a movie

theater for people who are far from God.”

33. “We leaders get to dream dreams and see them become reality by the power of God.”

34. “The worst days of leadership beat the best days of being a spectator.”

35. “Enjoy every single day you get to lead because it will be over in a blink.”

51 Quotes From Condoleeza Rice And Jim

Collins From The Global Leadership Summit

August 9, 2012

Condoleeza Rice

1. “If you were in leadership on September 11th your concept of personal security was

never the same.”

2. “The economic shock of 2008 changed people’s concept of prosperity and personal

security.”

3. “The Arab Spring taught us that authoritarianism is never stable.”

4. “Anger is a terrible way to make political reform. That is what we are seeing in the

Middle East…Revolutions are notoriously difficult to control.”

5. “No man, woman, or child wants to live in tyranny.”

6. “Democracy is the institutionalization of freedom….With freedom comes responsibility.”

7. “Democracy cannot mean the tyranny of the majority…The strong cannot exploit the

weak.”

8. “Every life is worthy.”

9. “Every life is capable of greatness…We have a responsibility to make sure the

opportunity is there.”

10. “Our Lord Jesus Christ died for each and every one of us.”

11. “There is a lot the government can do but it cannot deliver compassion.”

12. “Delivering compassion to an AIDS orphan has got to be done by people who think every

life is worthy.”

13. “The best thing you can do for a person is to give them control over their own future and

you do that through education.”

14. “With education it doesn’t matter where you’re coming from. It matters where you’re

going.”

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15. “The greatest responsibility…Leadership is helping people see their own leadership

capabilities.”

16. “The most important characteristic of a leader is that they are irrepressible optimists.”

17. “Out of struggle, very often comes victory. That is the message of our Christian faith.

After Friday, comes Sunday.”

18. “What seemed impossible seemed inevitable in retrospect.”

19. “Never accept the world as it is. Accept it as it should be.”

20. “I like debate. I don’t mind verbal combat.”

21. “Today’s headlines and history’s judgment are rarely the same.”

22. “When someone is brutal to their own people, it’s a proxy for something else.”

23. “When things become tough, people become more of who they are.”

24. “Don’t play the resignation card unless you plan to carry it through.”

25. “He may be your friend but he’s the President…Use the relationship to be a truth teller.

When you’re in positions of authority you need truth tellers around you…Say difficult

things in private.”

26. “Friendship should be the place where you can have difficult conversations.”

27. “I have always allowed for guidance through ambiguity.”

28. “I want a message (from a pastor) that makes me think ‘I never heard it that way.’”

29. “Music is inspirational to me…How can you not believe the Lord inspired this?”

30. “I love policy. I don’t love politics.”•

Jim Collins

1. “The X Factor of great leadership is humility combined with will.”

2. “Fanatic discipline is also not going too far and being over-exposed.”

3. “A 20-mile march turns good intentions into great works.”

4. “The signature of mediocrity is chronic inconsistency.”

5. “Comparison (companies) don’t fire enough bullets, little things, to figure out what will

work.”

6. “The marriage of creativity and discipline.”

7. “Creativity is natural. Discipline is not…The challenge is not to become creative. The

challenge is to remove what is preventing you from doing that.”

8. “The only mistakes you can learn from are the ones you can survive.”

9. “Paranoia must be transitioned into preparation.”

10. “Preparation makes you strong for when people need it.”

11. “The greatest danger is not failure. The greatest danger is being successful without

understanding why in the first place.”

12. “Luck is not an aura. Luck is a specific event that meets three tests – You didn’t cause it.

It has potentially significant consequences. It is a surprise.”

13. “The great winners are not luckier.”

14. “What is your return on luck? What will you do with it when it comes?”

15. “What is your return on bad events?”

16. “Superior performance in moments of distortion…that is a very special brand of

leadership.”

17. “Greatness is not primarily a function of circumstance. Greatness is primarily a matter of

choice and discipline.”

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18. “Three signs of a great organization. Superior performance relative to your mission.

Distinctive impact – what would be lost if we disappeared? It achieves lasting endurance

beyond any single leader. No organization is great if it cannot be great without you.”

19. “Bill Hybels has always extended to me a hand of friendship…He has always made me

feel useful in your world.”

20. “Is there a better sign of friendship than I will always be here for you. You will never be

alone.”

21. “It is impossible to have a great life without a meaningful life.”

41 Quotes From Carly Fiorina And Craig

Groeschel From The Global Leadership

Summit

August 9, 2012

Carly Fiorina – Former CEO, Hewlett-Packard, Author of Tough Choices

1. “As we prayed (her and Bill), my anxiety left me and I felt an unusual sense of calm.” 2. “I had come to see God as a super-CEO over a massive universe.” 3. “It was his (Bill Hybels) persistence that kept me pondering the contours of my faith.” 4. “Because God knows us so well, His care was manifested in His Son.” 5. “I had been afraid of dying since I was a little. Now, faced with the real possibility of death, I

was not afraid. Cancer had brought blessings.” 6. “It is in the nature of life to ebb and flow. Life is flowing now.” 7. “Life is not measured in time. Life is measured in love and contribution and moments of grace.” 8. “The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.”

Craig Groeschel

1. “I would not be speaking to you today if it were not for those who went before me.”

2. “Whenever you’re speaking, if you forget what you’re going to say, just repeat what you

just said and walk back to your notes.”

3. “Don’t resent, fear, or judge the next generation. Believe in them.”

4. “God values maturity. If you’re not dead, you’re not done.”

5. “You young guys all think so small.”

6. “You do not just delegate tasks to the next generation. If you delegate tasks, you create

followers. Delegate authority because then you create leaders.”

7. “Embrace the season you are in.”

8. “The younger generation can smell a fake from a million miles away…Be yourself.”

9. “With the younger generation, authenticity trumps cool.”

10. “You need those who gone before you more than you know.”

11. “The word ‘entitled’ describes the next generation.”

12. “When I was a kid, you had to win to get a trophy.”

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13. “Because you feel entitled, you overestimate what you can do in the short run. You will

also underestimate what you can do in a lifetime of faithfulness.”

14. “Honor publicly results in influence privately.” – Andy Stanley

15. “Because of entitlement, the younger generation is not showing honor.”

16. “We don’t show honor to people because we don’t show honor to God….When we learn

to honor God for who He is, we will begin to show honor to others.”

17. “Respect is earned but honor is given.”

18. “When I ascribe honor to you, you will become more honorable.”

19. “If you ever want to be over, you need to learn to be under with integrity.”

20. “For the generations to work together, it must be intentional.”

21. “Leadership teams naturally age. Churches naturally age.”

22. “Create on-going feedback loops from both generations to connect with a larger

audience.”

23. “Create specific mentoring moments…You have to plan for them. If you are not

intentional, they will not happen.”

24. “Learn how leaders think.”

25. “Create opportunities for significant leadership development.”

26. “Put the next generation up on the stage.”

27. “How many 16-year-olds have written a book? Those who have been told they can write

a book!”

28. “To those who have gone on before me, I honor you with all of my heart.”

29. “I honor my mom and dad publicly before you for working multiple jobs…I honor the

sacrifices my parents made.”

30. “With all of my heart, I honor Bill.”

31. “He took more bullets than anyone will ever imagine and took them with integrity.”

32. “You are the most cause-driven, mission-minded generation in recent memory.”

33. “You can do way more than my generation if you humble yourself and learn from those

above you.”

20 Quotes From Patrick Lencioni From The

Global Leadership Summit

August 10, 2012

“If the pioneers don’t prevail, the churches in that area won’t prevail…Pioneering leaders learn

best from each other.” – Jim Mellada

Patrick Lencioni

1. “People need reminded more than instructed.”

2. “The things that make Southwest great, other organizations think it is beneath them.”

3. “Organizational health is the single greatest competitive advantage in any business.”

4. “Organizational health must be smart. Strategy Marketing, Finance, Technology”

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5. “In addition to being smart, organizations must be healthy. Minimal Politics, Minimal

Confusion, High Morale, High Productivity, Low Turnover.”

6. “In today’s nano-second world, it’s hard to distinguish your company on the left (smart).”

7. “The stuff on the left (healthy) is the differential.”

8. “Cohesive Leadership – Results, Accountability, Commitment, Conflict, Trust.”

9. “Healthy organizations must be intellectually aligned.”

10. “A mission statement is not a good way to develop clarity.”

11. Six Critical Questions - Why do we exist? How do we behave? What can we actually do?

How do we succeed? What is most important in our organization right now? Who must

do what?”

12. “Aspirational values. Values we wish we had but we don’t.”

13. “A core value is something you’re willing to be punished for. If the market is not

rewarding you for it, you will do it anyway.”

14. “To violate your core values is to ask you to sell your soul.”

15. “Churches struggle with core values because they confuse them with Permission To Play

Values.”

16. “To work at a church, you should never do it because you have to have a job.” – John

Ortberg

17. “Strategy should be accessible to everyone…The myriad of intentional decisions that

allow you to succeed and differentiate yourself from your competitors.”

18. “You have to hear something seven times before you believe it in an organization.”

19. “If your team can’t mimic you when you’re not around, you’re not doing a good job

communicating.”

20. “I wish organizational health were a standard.”

18 Quotes From John Ortberg At The Global

Leadership Summit

August 10, 2012

“Without humility there is no healthy organization.” – Patrick Lencioni

John Ortberg

1. “Too often we argue about Christianity rather than marvel at Jesus.”

2. “Leaders need to expand their view of Jesus’s Kingdom impact.”

3. “Jesus gave the world its most influential movement.”

4. “Where before the church was there a movement that wished to include everyone?…It

was His idea.”

5. “No Jesus. No 12 Steps.”

6. “Jesus changed how we think about history.”

7. “We give our kids names like Peter, Paul and Mary. We give our dogs names like Caesar

and Nero.”

8. “Jesus expressed how we shape compassion.”

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9. “The Jesus movement shaped education.”

10. “Education honors God and allows us to think God’s thoughts of us.”

11. “”Jesus revolutionized the arts.”

12. “The Jesus movement changed political theory.”

13. “Jesus changed about how we think about human rights and dignity.”

14. “Jesus has a way of refusing to stay submerged.”

15. “Jesus uniquely taught to love your enemies.”

16. “The discoverer of the role of forgiveness in human affairs was Jesus.”

17. “The question is not who was this man? The question is who is this man?”

18. “The reason we marvel at this man is His work is not done yet.”

Bill Hybels then gave some closing remarks about the impact of John’s message.

“I don’t understand people who tell me they feel alone all the time. I’m never alone.”

“I wouldn’t take a paycheck to get people involved in organized religion. But I’d work

for free for the rest of my life to introduce people to Jesus.”

17 Quotes From Bill Hybels Closing Session

At The Global Leadership Summit

August 10, 2012

1. “Everyone wins when a leader gets better.”

2. “The first 18 years of my life I would have given the church one word – Hopeless.”

3. “My church was so hopeless in my view I wanted to protect people from coming to it.”

4. “From 18 to 35 in my life, I was feeling – Hopeful.”

5. “It was one thing to see a vision. It’s another thing to be seized by it.”

6. “Vision propels people forward.”

7. “People die for visions. Such is its power.”

8. “I taught 15-year-olds how to be filled with the Holy Spirit…I taught those high school

kids about the beauty of community.”

9. “There is so much more where that came from” – God to Bill Hybels after reaching 250+

youth for Christ in a single night.

10. “The local church is the hope of the world.”

11. “The message of Jesus Christ is the only message on earth that can radically change the

composition of a human heart.”

12. “If every church reaches its full redemptive potential we will see the cloud of darkness

give way to the light of Jesus Christ.”

13. “Will the local church, the hope of the world, be able to sustain itself to the end of time?”

14. “What gives me confidence it will outlast any empire or business is Who is building it.”

15. “One of the greatest privileges in all of life is when Jesus taps you on the shoulder and

says, ‘I have a critical role for you to play in my church.’”

16. “For God’s sake, how do you say ‘No’ to an invitation like that?”

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17. “In this gathering all around the world, there is more latent talent and gifts aggregated

than probably more than anytime in human history.”

Everyone wins when a leader gets better. Therefore, I want to make the following

resources available to you - 13 Books Every Christian Leader Should Read In 2013.

11 Leadership Quotes From Perry Noble

From The 2012 NewSpring Leadership

Conference

September 6, 2012

The following are the leadership quotes from an incredible first session by Perry Noble.

1. “2 things I’m praying for personally – 1. That Jesus will enable me to continually renew

my focus and love for Him. 2. That Jesus will give me an increasing measure of faith.”

2. “When we fall in love with Jesus, we will fall in love with people.”

3. “When we lose focus it can hurt and hurt a lot of people.”

4. “Maybe the reason people are running away from church is that we are arguing over

things that don’t matter.”

5. “Wesleyans – it’s like someone smoked weed and went to church. Charismatics must be

on crystal meth.”

6. “Fighting the good fight sometimes means knowing which fights to walk away from.”

3 Things We Argue About We Don’t Need To:

1. Morality – “Are you willing to fight through your problem?…Only in the church can the huge

condemn the homosexual.”

2. Theology – “Messed up theology leads to messed up lives…Most people who love theology

love theology more than Jesus…I will not end a friendship over theology.”

3. Methodology – “I care way more about reaching lost people in this community more than I

care about what other churches think…Sometimes in the church Jesus is going to do things we

don’t like.”

“The lie the enemy wants you to believe about your church is that your best days are

behind you but that’s not true. “

“Do your people want to follow someone who believes great things?”

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An Extraordinary Example Of Customer

Service From NewSpring Church

September 9, 2012

As mentioned previously, I had the privilege of attending the NewSpring Leadership Conference

(NLC) at NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC. Whenever I visit Anderson, I usually stay at one

of about five hotels located at exit 19 on I-85. Hotels are usually uneventful but something

extraordinary was happening in the hotel’s parking lot as I arrived.

Before I get to my parking lot experience, let me tell you about NewSpring Church. With seven

campuses and two more launching in the near future, NewSpring, led by Senior Pastor Perry

Noble, now runs over 15,000 in weekly attendance. It is one of America’s largest and fastest

growing churches. They also have some of the greatest volunteers I have ever seen.

Specifically, they have THE greatest parking ministry I have seen. This leads me back to my

hotel stay.

I arrived at the hotel about 7:00 PM. It was a long day and I was tired. But waiting outside the

hotel were about a dozen people wearing NewSpring t-shirts! They were there to welcome those

arriving for the upcoming conference. Did you get that? They were welcoming people…not just

at the church but AT THE HOTEL! Unbelievable! That was over-the-top service by a local

church.

To the staff and volunteers of NewSpring Church, thank you for making the NLC such a

wonderful experience. And a special thank you goes to those wonderful volunteers who

welcomed me to my hotel!

For more stories and resources on effective church volunteers click the following links:

11 Practices Of The Most Effective Volunteer Your Church Could Ever Have

5 Reasons Your Best Volunteers May Be Thinking Of Quitting

10 Things Every Church Staff Needs To Know About Volunteers

13 Things Anyone Can Do To Support Their Pastor

How A Sunday School Teacher Changed My Life

10 Signs Your Christianity Has Become Too Comfortable

10 Signs Your Christian Faith Has Become An App

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23 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From

Andy Stanley At Catalyst 2012

October 4, 2012

I was pumped to be at this year’s Catalyst Conference. As is the Catalyst custom, Andy

Stanley opened the conference with a message for NextGen leaders. His best quotes from the

session are listed below.

1. “Information and insight alone do not a leader make.”

2. “What makes a man or woman a leader? 1. Unexpected Opportunity 2. Unavoidable

Adversity 3. Unquestionable Calling.”

3. “Leaders seize opportunity.”

4. “A leader has an unusual response to adversity.”

5. “This (the three items mentioned in point #2) needs to be a story worth telling.”

6. “The younger you are the less consequential this will feel.”

7. “You have no control over this except how you respond.”

8. “God has a plan and you don’t want to miss it.”

9. “My dad refused to make decisions for me. ‘You need to pray about it.’”

10. “There was a sense of destiny my dad spoke over me and my sister.”

11. “Parents, the greatest thing do as a leader may not be what you do but who watches what

you do.”

12. “Actions not only speak louder than words but they also echo into the next generation.”

13. “I have a position. I have a title. But you have influence.” – Youth Pastor Sid Hopkins to

a young Andy Stanley

14. “Your greatest work in life is to glorify the Lord.”

15. “It’s better to make a difference than to make a point.”

16. “Pay attention to tensions because that’s what births a calling.”

17. “We walk toward the messes.”

18. “Here’s what the truth of what God says is but everyone is welcome.”

19. “Have you ever been just scared as an adult?”

20. “God gets more mileage out of adversity than anything.”

21. “There is something very shaping that God does when He takes things out of your hand.”

22. “The only way God can make you an open-handed leader is by taking things out of your

hand.”

23. “Leaders are made one response at a time.”

For more from the ministry of Andy Stanley and NorthPoint Community Church click:

11 Facts About NorthPoint Community Church Raising $1.5 Million In A Single Day

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11 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From

Perry Noble From Catalyst 2012

October 4, 2012

Perry Noble, Senior Pastor of NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC just brought a message

to challenge and encourage leaders who are frustrated. The following are his quotes:

1. “There’s no progress unless we embrace the process.”

2. “If being discovered is our goal, we will never become the leader God wants us to be.”

3. “Anointing is not an excuse to not go through the process.”

4. “If you are gifted, use your gift and the world will notice.”

5. “There are churches who don’t like how you reach people or who you reach.”

6. “We don’t have to discover how to reach the next generation. They’ll discover that

themselves.”

7. “We get paid to do what traditionally others gave their lives to do.”

8. “Good leadership requires great stewardship where you are.”

9. “It’s time to go when the leader tries to destroy you.”

10. “How David knew he was a leader? He went somewhere (and) people followed.”

11. “The deepest wounds lead to empty tombs.”

For more great church leadership posts click the links below:

Just 10 Of The Reasons Jesus Is The Greatest Leader Ever

The Top 10 Christian Women Bloggers You Should Be Reading

10 Habits Of Highly Effective Stewardship Pastors

15 Proven Ways To Prevent Hecklers In Your Church Services

4 Truths About Godly Male Leadership

20 Habits Of Highly Inspirational Leaders

15 Common Threads Of Prevailing Churches

One Year After The Affair

The 10 Last Words Of A Dying Church

17 Signs Of A Fast Growing Church

10 Habits Of Great Leadership Writers

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14 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From

Austin Stone Church Senior Pastor Matt

Carter From The RightNow Conference 2012

November 7, 2012

Matt Carter, Pastor of Preaching and Vision at Austin Stone Church, challenged and inspired the

3,000 pastors and church leaders in attendance on suffering and being a gospel-centered church.

The following are their thoughts and insights that all leaders can learn from:

1. “When we aimed at community we did not get mission. When we aimed as mission we

got mission and community.”

2. “We want to engage in missional community because of the love of Jesus Christ.”

3. “The gospel of Jesus Christ is a message of a battle that is already won.”

4. “Every other religion (other than Christianity) is defined as rules of someone trying to

please God.”

5. “The gospel is God is pleased with you because of what Jesus has done for you.”

6. “Religion says, ‘I obey because I can be accepted.’ The gospel says, ‘I am accepted so I

obey.’”

7. “Are people following a religion we placed on them?”

How to know if your people are walking in Religion or the Freedom of the Gospel:

1. “Are people confessing and repenting and being restored from their sin? The religious

community runs from sin and church when they sin because they fear the wrath of the

church more than the wrath of God.”

2. “For the people in your church does following Christ feel like a burden?”

3. “What is the motivation for my people’s obedience? A gospel-centered repents and

obeys because of the unimaginable kindness the Lord displayed on the cross.”

4. “What is the spiritual temperature of the worship of my church?”

5. “The community of faith that has been impacted by the gospel knows the gospel is never

powerful through them if the gospel is not powerful in them.”

6. “If Jesus is not the center of your church, He says, ‘I am removing my manifest presence

from your church.’ The last thing I want to do is pastor a church that does not have the

presence of Jesus.”

7. “If you love your mission more than your Savior, He will not be part of your mission.”

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21 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Jen

Hatmaker From The RightNow Conference

2012

November 7, 2012

Jen Hatmaker, well-known conference speaker, blogger, and author, brought one of the Top

5 most challenging messages for Christian leaders I have ever heard.

The following are their leadership quotes that all pastors and church leaders can learn from:

1. “We were simply serving saved people in a city that is completely lost.” (Austin, TX is

93% unchurched.)

2. “We had a ‘come-to-us’ paradigm in a city where no one was coming to us.”

3. “We were blessing blessed people.”

4. “We were churning out untransformed people, including ourselves…Folks were leaving

mostly unchanged.”

5. “Failure is a fantastic teacher and in this area I am rich.”

6. “I really believe consumerism is a cancer to missional communities…It is unsustainable.”

7. “If we develop a church geared toward the saved, blessed people will come wanting more

blessings.”

8. “Only Christians want a church with 49 programs.”

9. “The church has a limited amount of resources. If saved people consume them all, we

have nothing more missional activity.”

10. “How do we teach people to live missionally? Do it yourself first. Live it or you have no

hope in leading it.”

11. “With a click of a button we can cherry-pick leadership from 10,000 guardians/nannies.”

12. “A nanny has no responsibility. A father is charged with raising his children for Christ.”

13. “Leaders, we cannot possibly lead a missional community if we are not on mission

ourselves.”

14. “What can people look at in our lives and say, ‘That, that is worth following?’?”

15. “We are leading in a time when ‘Well done’ out trumps ‘Well said.’”

16. “Conservatantly, the church is America is losing 150,000 a week…40% cite distrust and

lack of respect for the pastor. Churches built on the charismatic personality of the pastor

are going to struggle to reach the cynical.”

17. “Should we consider ourselves not as leaders but rather as influencers?”

18. “Heaps of well-spoken theology only impresses Christians who are in to that sort of

thing.”

19. “We are nothing if not disciples first. We do not get to shirk that responsibility because

we wear the ‘Christian hat.’”

20. “To tell a better story we are going to have to live a better story and be watched first.”

21. “If we live a life worthy of being followed, we will earn a hearing for gospel we never

intended to.”

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37 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From The

Summit Church Senior Pastor J.D. Greear

From The RightNow Conference 2012

November 8, 2012

J.D. Greear, Senior Pastor of The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, opened with an

incredible session on creating a Sending Culture, specifically unleashing Christians and

business leaders to be on mission through their jobs.

The following are his thoughts and insights that all leaders and business leaders can learn from:

1. “Sending is a culture you create at your church.”

2. “Our prayer changed from ‘God, let us grow a great big church’ to ‘God, let us bless

those in our city.’”

3. “For my prayers of ‘Thy Kingdom come’ there was a lot of ‘My Kingdom come.’”

4. “Being an effective church requires sending out your best…You must value the Kingdom

more than you value your own church.”

5. “College students travel in herds…In two weeks our attendance tripled and our offering

went up $13.48.”

6. “We tell college students that the first two years of your professional career needs to

happen in a city where a new church has started.”

7. “We have got to good at discipling people again. Church growth is not as important as

discipling people so as they go carry the gospel.”

8. “Everyone is called.”

9. “If your life was a party, who would it be thrown for…In your business, is your goal to

build your business or the Kingdom of God.”

10. “We talk about finding God’s will. It’s not lost.”

11. “The church should not be people gathered around a leader. It should be a leadership

factory.”

12. “39 out of 40 of the miracles in the Book of Acts happened outside the church.”

13. “When I became a pastor I left the ministry because I took a backseat to those who

perform the 39 of 40 miracles that happened outside the church.”

14. “The Great Commission is going forward not through apostolic ministry but ordinary

people throughout the church.”

15. “The gospel’s greatest advancement is not through pastors but business leaders carrying

the gospel throughout the world.”

16. “Our business people can get the gospel into places we can never dream of.”

17. “The 10/40 Window is a door they (business leaders) are invited to walk through.”

18. “70% if those in the U.K. state they never intend to attend any worship service. They

must be reached through their community. “

19. “Mega churches are fighting over a rapidly shrinking pie. We need a bigger pie.”

20. “Church leaders must challenge our people to be better leaders.”

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21. “The week is more important than the weekend.”

22. “The battles an aircraft carrier faces do not take place on the aircraft carrier.”

23. “We must empower our people to be leaders. Church leaders, we must take on a servant

role.”

24. “Most church leaders are more worried about recruiting volunteers rather than training

leaders.”

25. “The best ministry ideas come from the congregation, not the offices of the church.”

26. “We must have the courage to send out our leaders.”

27. “Pushing out leaders creates more leaders…Leaders are attracted to places they see they

can grow to their potential…God multiplies your resources whenever you give them

away.”

28. “For every leader we send out God replaced them three-fold.”

29. “We must measure our success not by seating capacity but by sending capacity.”

30. “Guidance in the mission comes from the Spirit.”

31. “The pressure is not on you to build the Kingdom…You are not the Messiah.”

32. “Have you ever asked as a leader, ‘What am I supposed to do?”?’

33. “Motivation for mission comes from the gospel…Where would you be without Jesus?

Where would you be had Jesus chased the American dream?”

34. “The death of 1 is a tragedy. The death of a 1,000 is just a statistic.” – Joseph Stalin

35. “Who are you throwing your party for because Jesus threw His party for you.”

36. “The gospel itself is the only thing planted in us that creates a sending culture.”

37. “Church leaders preach the gospel. Business leaders embrace the gospel.”

20 Additional Leadership Quotes From The

RightNow Conference 2012

Scott Williams – author, blogger, consultant and hosts the site Big Is The New Small

“Little known fact - The Obama campaign out-tweeted the Romney campaign 8-1.”

“If it’s not consistent, it’s not of value. If it’s not of value, why are you doing it?”

Tim Ross - Associate Pastor at Gateway Church

“The Holy Spirit does not give ambition. The Holy Spirit gives a burden.”

“Good things are one ‘Oh’ too many from being a God-thing.”

Todd Wagner - Senior Pastor of Watermark Community Church

“All of life is a leadership test. The reward of faithful service is the opportunity to serve

more.”

“Some of us are called to have well-done ministries that the world may never know about

except Him.”

“You cannot keep selling something you are not convinced you (personally) need to

buy.”

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“Just because I’m a pastor doesn’t mean I still can’t be a Christian.”

“The greatest evil in this country is that which God has called salt and light and to dispel

darkness is not doing our job.”

Tara Russell - CEO and Founder of Create Common Good

“When you work with women in prostitution your work never ends…It’s a constant

churn.”

“The more people you manage the less you care about people.”

Eric Mason -Lead Pastor of Epiphany Fellowship in Philadelphia

“As parents we often look at the sinfulness of our children’s sin but now our own.”

“A deeply repentant person knows the collateral damage their sin caused to those around

them.”

“As men we tend to want people to just get over it…Instead of flowers we need to give

the gift of repentance.”

“It’s wonderful to have a friend who doesn’t judge the mess, but helps us clean it up.

That’s what Jesus does.”

Afshin Ziafat - Lead Pastor of Providence Church in Frisco, TX

“In America a book called Radical would be called Normal in the scriptures. It’s only

called Radical because we live in America.”

“When the tough times come, that is when your faith will most reveal itself.”

Bill McCartney - former head football coach of the Colorado Buffaloes and Founder of Promise

Keepers

“The strongest form of motivation is encouragement.”

“Mom comes to faith there is a 19% chance the family will come to faith. Dad comes to

faith there is a 93% chance the family will come to faith.”

Allen White

“Facebook is the 3rd largest nation on the earth. China, India & then Facebook.”