The Christian Leader Made Simple Show

I had just gone through several stressful days at work, and I wasn’t feeling well physically. I’d helped counsel someone through a crisis in his life, and I was mentally exhausted.  On top of these challenges, someone with good intentions had given me some “constructive criticism.” Though this normally wouldn’t have bothered me, for some reason, this time it caused me to spiral emotionally. Under...

Character is the point where emotional health, leadership, and discipleship converge. I'm curious, have you ever noticed that life is really hard at times? Of course, you have. Everyone experiences hard life. There are many challenges and painful circumstances that come at us, and it's usually during the toughest of times that the worst comes out of us. I know that I've witnessed th...

1.33  Believe it or not, rest is a difficult concept for many of us to grasp. I have struggled with the idea of rest for most of my life. Even though the Lord established a pattern of work and rest throughout scripture, many leaders who are driven to succeed do not adequately maintain a healthy work-rest balance.  God initiated a pattern for work and rest when He rested on the seventh day at Creat...

1.32 I'm so excited to introduce the new tool I’ve created, The Christian Leader Blueprint! This resource is something that I've been working on for years. It's not so much the guide that I'm excited about but the model, the concept, the big picture that this tool creates. It has taken me years of personal experience, education, self-study, and trial and error (what most people...

1.31 I am a forward-looking person. I love to dream about the future. I like to envision goals and then work hard to pursue them. I love to put wheels on a dream; that’s fun for me. I really think that’s a healthy part of my personality. It’s a gift that God gave me, but sometimes even our greatest gifts can become hindrances when we use them in unhealthy ways.  My problem is that I get so focused...

1.30 I want you to close your eyes (unless you’re driving, of course). Imagine that you’re ninety years old sitting in your recliner thinking about all of the years you’ve lived. You ask yourself, “Did I do anything significant? Did my life really matter? What did I live for? Did I fulfill what the Lord wanted me to do? Why was it important that I lived my life?”  The Lord isn't going to forc...

1.29 As human beings and especially as leaders, we’re often required to tell people difficult things. The only way to avoid having tough conversations is to live in seclusion, which is not really healthy or possible. We may not want to have these difficult conversations because our natural inclination is to avoid conflict; we know the news we’re delivering is hard to hear, or we want to escape del...

1.28  Unhappiness, fear, anxiety, uncertainty, anger, loneliness, confusion, depression, emptiness, disconnectedness – these are all real feelings; and if you’re like me, you’ve probably experienced some or all of these emotions and others as you’ve walked uncertain paths and experienced changes in life. God made us so that we could feel our feelings; He never intended us to ignore them. We’re nat...

1.27  There is a deep sense of emotional exhaustion and physical fatigue among our leaders as we realize there's not really an end in sight for the current chaos in the world. Every time we turn around there are new mandates, social norms, and contentious subjects. We make a change to how we’re doing things, and the next month we’re forced to change again. It’s difficult to know what to do in...

1.26 The temporary disruption to most of our lives that began in March of 2020 has now become a way of life. Although many of us believed things would get better, they’ve actually, for the most part, stayed the same. In fact, in some cases, things have only gotten worse. People are divided on masks and vaccinations as well as other world issues. For church leaders, daily life has become extremely...

1.25 What is the worst chaos you’ve ever been through in your life? Go ahead. Think about it. The thing that comes to your mind is probably something that was incredibly tough and life-altering. I’m guessing that many of you are potentially going through circumstances right now that feel like the toughest thing you’ve ever been through. I know we’re all impacted by the effects of COVID-19, the sic...

1.24 Sometimes doing nothing is the most productive thing you can do in your day. Now, if you read that first line and you were excited because you now have permission to sit on the couch and play video games, this post is not for you. I’m writing to all of you workaholics out there (you know who you are) to whom work is like a drug. The thought of just doing nothing gives you the heebie-jeebies....

1.23 For a while now, one of the best things I’ve done to help me increase productivity is to pause once a week for about fifteen minutes and give vision to my week. It's literally revolutionized the focus that I have in my week, and I think it could help you tremendously as well. I call it “Start of the Week Sight.”  This has the potential to be one of the most impactful subjects I’ve writte...

1.22 NOOOO… I SAID NO… NO NO NO.🙂 “No” is not a bad word, but it surely does feel that way sometimes when you have to use that two-letter phrase. In fact, the word “no” can sometimes have a uniquely overwhelming effect on the person saying it. But it doesn’t have to be that way, especially if you know how to say it well. There’s an art to saying no without losing influence. Stay tuned, and I’ll s...

1.21 Most of us think of delegation as a relief of our own pressure. We think of it almost in a selfish way. Sure, it is a relief to us, but we also need to consider the fact that it’s just as important for the other members of our team.  If we don’t release things into the care of others, then we, as leaders, don’t give them the opportunity to be strategically involved in the vision of the church...

It’s amazing how life can just get cluttered with too many things. And when life gets cluttered and there’s so much going on that you don’t have time to breathe, we sometimes tend to eliminate the things that actually bring relief to us. The stress builds and turns into anxiety and emotional tiredness. Then, those things begin to manifest in ways like moodiness, passive aggressive behavior, cynici...

Time management is one of the leading problems that we all face today. It’s one of the major obstacles that keeps us from accomplishing great things in our lives. I’m speaking of routine time management. How are you doing on a routine basis before you get to the final hours of the deadline? How are you doing with time management in your daily and weekly habits? I realize time management is a beast...

1.18 Personalities and character traits play a huge role in whether a person thrives or struggles with personal organization. Some people, like myself, love this subject, and other people dread it. Regardless of what side of the spectrum you’re on, I believe that personal organization will directly impact the effectiveness of your ministry. I'm launching a brand-new series today that’ll be fi...

1.17 The pain in our lives has shaped us to be the people the Lord desires us to be and to fulfill the plan the Lord desires of us.  Pain is part of the process that helps us make progress.   I have no idea what you’ve had to endure in your past or perhaps are enduring right now.  I am definitely not saying the Lord made you go through those things. However, I am saying the Lord is using those thi...

1.16 Sometimes pain can surface in negative ways in our lives.  It may be embarrassing to us; it could be hurtful to ourselves or others. Sometimes the pain of our past, especially early childhood, can actually create barriers in the way we interact with others in our leadership opportunities. Usually, these things come to the surface when we are tired or stressed or at our emotional limits. They...

1.15 The Lord is very calculating and intentional in His actions. When you feel the Lord call you to a specific task, there is usually a purposeful reason. The Lord trusts you are able to accomplish what’s at hand. He wouldn’t have called you, if He had not already prepared you and equipped you for the task at hand. Hey there, I’m Ryan Franklin and this is Church Leader Made Simple. I’m here to he...

(NUMBER 1.14) Many times the Lord grows us through His word and through prayer; other times He chooses to use our pain to provide us opportunities for growth.  Not all of the time, but many times in my life, I probably could have avoided this pain if I had been a better person or better leader or if I would have made better decisions. Regardless of the reason, though, the Lord used these situation...

(NUMBER 1.13) It's amazing how many church leaders go through life with people all around them, yet they feel a loneliness that just won't go away. It is actually fairly common to find a leader who is easily triggered by emotional circumstances.  These individuals find themselves in a negative state of mind for a whole day or sometimes even days at a time as a result of one of these trig...

1.12 In the last session, we unpacked some thoughts on productivity versus relationships. It is possible to have a good, healthy rhythm in your life, where you’re accomplishing great things and attending to all the important relationships in your circle of influence. Hey there, I’m Ryan Franklin and this is Church Leader Made Simple. I’m here to help YOU get the clarity needed to move your church...

1.11 My hardwired nature is to sacrifice relationships at the expense of productivity. I love to work. In fact, you can probably consider it my drug of choice. Fortunately, however, I know exactly where that comes from and I’ve learned to manage that tension within myself. I have learned – am learning - to create a balance of relationships and productivity in my life.  It wasn’t easy, but for the...