take it from Jim

Hi everyone. I've been out of the country for two weeks - not slacking off. It's good to be home, and its been fun trying to catch up.

Jim Wideman posted his "Top 10 List for Life and Ministry Management" while I was gone. Several are good tips for building project management:

8. KEEP YOUR PRIORITIES IN ORDER
For a lot of ministries, this comes after actually identifying your priorities and that's okay. Once you get a healthy assessment of your church's situation and realize, for example, that there's a community college across town, keep your priorities in order.

6. PLAN FOR INTERRUPTIONS
Avoiding interruptions is nice, but don't count on it. A permit may take longer than you hoped, or your building committee will refuse to agree on how many restrooms you need, etc.

3. GET SOME HELP
Talk to other pastors who have been through this, talk to us, read a book. "Don't try to reinvent the wheel."

2. PLAN FOR GROWTH
"Remember, people follow people with a plan." People also follow people who are going somewhere. If you're not moving, no one can follow. If your church is building/expanding its building it's probably because you're growing. Think big.

1. PRAY
Amen.