As his career as an author and speaker took off, Mark Batterson was faced with so many requests for his time that he couldn’t keep up. The insane pace eventually led to his wife, Lora, telling Mark that she “didn’t sign up for this.”
Mark talks about how Lora’s concern led him to scale back radically and the impact that’s had on him, how innovation keeps fueling his 23 years in leadership, and why the subject of blessing isn’t just tied to the prosperity Gospel.
Welcome to Episode 296 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.
Guest Links
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Website | Double Blessing
Episode Links
Check out this special offer from Pro WebFire for listeners of The Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast. They’re offering a monthly special of 30% off for life, new website every three years, weekly updates and they’ll manage your Facebook, Instagram and YouTube pages. And all you have to do for that is go to ProWebFire.com/Carey.
What if, in 40 days, you could grow your small groups in your church by 40%? Based on Pastor Zach Zehnder’s book, The Red Letter Challenge is a 40-day turnkey church campaign that centers around making more effective disciples of Jesus. Go to RedLetterChallenge.com/Carey to find church packages ready to go for you.
The Pioneers by David McCollough
Leadership in Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin
The Wright Brothers by David McCollough
The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson
CNLP 242: Frank Bealer on How to Seriously Boost Your Productivity During High Demand Seasons
CNLP 165: Mark Batterson on How to Hear God’s Voice (and God’s Will for Your Life)
CNLP 128: Mark Batterson on Chasing Down Your Dreams Without Fear
Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald
3 Insights from Mark
1. Read more books
Early on in Mark’s ministry, he learned that the average author puts two years of life experience into a book. Mark did the math and realized that if he were to read 250 books in one year, he would be able to gain 500 years of life experience in that year. This motivated him to read as much as he possibly could.
How did Mark have time to read that many books? He credited a couple different things:
- He didn’t have social media or a smartphone. These devices are taking up so much of our time without adding very much value to our lives.
- He was pastoring a church of 19 people, so he had a lot of extra time on his hands!
2. As leaders, we need to do new things to reach new people
Mark and the whole National Community Church team have been the first to do a few major innovations for the Church. They were some of the first to do church in movie theaters, Mark was one of the earliest Christian podcasters, and they are still innovating by exploring ideas like opening a shared workspace as a church.
So why have they been the first to do so many innovations? Mark credits it to one of their values as a team: “There are ways of doing church that nobody has thought of yet.” When they keep this phrase on their radar, they think “outside the box” and it leads to new innovations.
3. We aren’t blessed by God just for us; We are blessed to be a blessing to others
A common temptation for anyone when they receive a blessing is to assume that it is just for them. Mark has learned that God doesn’t bless us just for us but to be a blessing to the people around us. When we live like this, we have a lot more fun with the money we have been given because it truly is more blessed to give than to receive.
One phrase that Mark and his wife use often is to “flip the blessing.” This is their mindset whenever they are given something. It doesn’t have to be money, it could be time, influence or connections. However the blessing comes is how he “flips the blessing.” If someone gives him time, he will give someone else more of his own time.
Quotes from Episode 296
Every “-ology” is a branch of theology. @MarkBatterson Click To Tweet It’s hard to be famous at home when you aren’t home. @MarkBatterson Click To Tweet The Church belongs in the middle of the marketplace. @MarkBatterson Click To Tweet If you want to reach people who are outside the box, you need to do some things that are outside the box. @MarkBatterson Click To Tweet God doesn’t bless us to raise our standard of living, but to raise our standard of giving. @MarkBatterson Click To TweetRead or Download the Transcript for Episode 296
Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?
Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.
Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube
Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our new YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen. We’ll add select episodes to YouTube as time goes on.
Subscribed Yet?
Subscribe for free and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, Nancy Duarte, Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni, Francis Chan, Ann Voskamp, Erwin McManus and many others.
Subscribe using your favorite podcast app via
Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review
Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?
The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.
Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.
Thank you for being so awesome.
Next Episode: Gordon MacDonald
Gordon MacDonald has written books read by millions, spoken to almost as many and has left a lasting impact on the leadership and heart of several generations. In this wide-ranging interview, Gordon talks about his own wounds from his father, counseling President Bill Clinton, the dangers of drivenness, and the crisis most leaders go through between ages 32 and 42, and again at ages 48 and 62.
Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 297.
