With Skillful Hands – Page 15 – A Leadership Resource

The Big Ask

August 19, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

If you are going to be successful in church planting, you can't be afraid to make what I call "the big ask" of people. That is, you can't be afraid to ask people to make huge sacrifices and join what you're doing. One of my favorite "big ask" examples comes from Acts 16:1-5. "Paul went first to Derbe and then to Lystra, where there was a young disciple named Timothy...Timothy was well thought of by the believers...so Paul wanted him to join them on their journey. In deference to the Jews of the … [Read more...]

Handwritten Thank You Notes

August 14, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

When someone writes a check or makes a donation that hits or exceeds $1,000 I always write a handwritten thank you note. I always have custom New Day thank you cards ready in my drawer for just such occasions. Someone recently sent a check in for $4,000. Here's what I wrote in the note I sent them: Thank you so much for your recent gift of $4,000. We are launching a new tween ministry and this money will really help with the associated start up costs. So far in the first half of 2014 … [Read more...]

How to Make Purchases

August 12, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

Back in 2008, in preparation for our very first service, there were lots and lots of purchases to make. I was crippled by how many choices I had. For example, not only were there a hundred different kinds of speakers to choose from, but each brand then had about ten different tiers of speakers. I shared this problem with a pastor named Dave Highlander and he shared with me this purchasing principle: Quality, not extravagance. I found this so helpful! I would go to Guitar Center (or wherever) … [Read more...]

It Takes Courage to Lead

August 7, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

Growing up my mom taught my siblings and I that courage isn't the absence of fear; it's doing the right thing even when you're afraid. And this is the kind of courage it takes to lead; courage that will act despite how you feel. Here's a couple for instances: It takes courage to do the right thing, even when it might cost you something (i.e. like letting a bad volunteer or staff go without knowing who God will raise up to replace them). It takes courage to stand before your congregation … [Read more...]

Is the Sabbath for Today?

August 5, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

The Sabbath is God's burnout prevention plan. Here's six reasons we know the Sabbath is important to God: God modeled it. In Genesis 1:3-2:3 God rested on the seventh day after creating the world and everything in it. God commanded it. In Exodus 16:23 and 20:8-10 God commanded the Israelites to work for six days and then rest on the seventh day. God gave extra attention to it. In the list of ten commandments found in Exodus 20 God dedicated 99 words to the Sabbath. In comparison, murder … [Read more...]

The Sermon Run-Through

July 31, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

Every Thursday at 1pm I preach Sunday's sermon to my staff. When I'm done I go through each page of the message and ask for their input (i.e. What parts need more work? What parts were confusing? What parts were boring?). We call this the sermon run-through. Here are two main benefits of doing a sermon run-through. It gives you the chance to get feedback, so you know how to improve your message before Sunday. It ensures you aren't practicing on your congregants. By the time you preach the … [Read more...]

Someone Will Pay the Price

July 29, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

Someone will pay the price for your sermon. Either you pay the price in preparation or the people will pay the price on Sunday. Here’s a couple things I do to ‘pay the price’ so the people of New Day don’t have to: If I’m teaching on divorce for example, I will look up all the verses in the Bible that relate to divorce. Then I’ll usually read a book or two on divorce. Then I’ll usually listen to a sermon or two by other preachers that have taught on divorce. This of course requires you … [Read more...]

I now present you for the first time…

July 24, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

I recently did a wedding for a Spanish couple who are friends with someone who attends New Day. I met the couple for the first time the day of the wedding. We hit it off pretty good, and everything initially went off without a hitch. By my estimation things couldn't have been going any better...until... At the very end of the ceremony when it came time for the presentation (the part of the ceremony where, having declared the couple husband and wife, I present the couple for the first time). … [Read more...]

Is this your Mom?

July 22, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

From time to time I'll be posting lessons learned from my failures. Today I want to share a funny one. One Sunday morning I walked up to someone on our worship team who was with a woman I had never seen before. Like an idiot I led off with "Hey Tim, is this your mom?" Tim said "Nope. This is my girlfriend." You won't be surprised to learn that Tim and his mom...I mean girlfriend...no longer attend New Day. Lesson learned? Everyone should be slow to speak! (James 1:19) Be sure to check … [Read more...]

How We Use Planning Center

July 17, 2014 By Mike Sorcinelli

We use Planning Center to: Schedule musicians and singers for Sunday. One month out the songs are chosen for each service and added within Planning Center. Then a request is sent to each volunteer, who can either confirm or deny availability for the week(s) they are needed. Schedule our production team (the people who run the computer, soundboard, lights, video cameras, etc.) Each week a request is sent to each volunteer, who can either confirm or deny availability for the upcoming … [Read more...]