A leadership coach I know once had a conversation with a client who was lamenting a history of bad ministry situations. According to the client, each church in his ministry journey had some type of problem and things just never seemed to work out. After listening for some time, my friend finally pointed out that the client was the constant in all of these situations, and perhaps he was more responsible for all of his bad experiences than he wanted to admit.

In a recent column, I suggested that many leaders may have a "shelf life" to their ministry effectiveness. It could be because of a specific stage in their church's lifespan or a unique set of personal gifts, but many leaders appear best suited for a particular type and length of ministry. Few leaders possess the ability to lead an organization through many sizes and stages of growth. A wise leader will look at passion, giftedness, and past experience to learn where and when he will find the best chances of success.

That said, I've found ...