MIM Ezine, June 19, 2007

-- "Dysfunctional computer relationships (Inspirational)" by Charles Marshall.

-- Book Review: "Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards" by Richard P. Chait, William P. Ryan, Barbara E. Taylor, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2005,reviewed by Tom Hanover.

I apologize for being late with this issue of the DBMIM E-Zine. (A son to Church Camp for the summer and a daughter to Russia for the year will do that.) Things will get caught up with back-to-back issues in June. dm- Site Publisher

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My husband and I hurried out of the car and past the old clock tower. We made our way across the brittle grass and down a narrow footpath to a point of land that looked out across the Carquinez Strait. Ahead were the steel arches of the Benicia Bridge. A growing crowd was gathering and straining to see past the bridge. Overhead flew a news helicopter stirring the water below us with its propellers. On the other side of the bridge a few boats waited.

“No,” came several answers. “Not a sign.” Thus began the waiting game: the whales were coming! Jeff and I stood baking in the sun hoping to catch a glimpse of a couple of 20 ton mammals.

Several weeks ago, two wounded wayward whales made an amazing trek. They threaded their way from the Pacific Ocean, up through the San Francisco Bay area, through San Pablo Bay, across the Carquinez Strait, through the Suisun Bay and into the fresh water near the mouth of the Sacramento River. Authorities believed the two whales —a mother and her calf-- had been wounded in a collision with a ship’s keel.

As they lingered in the fresh water, concerns for their welfare grew along with the ever-increasing crowds. The ailing whales, unaccustomed to fresh water, were starting to show signs of distress.

If you know anything about Californians, you are probably already aware that they are real nature lovers. So it wasn’t surprising when plans were put into action to try to save the whales. Local radio stations joined in the act with “Name the Whale” contests, and authorities tried a variety of things to turn the mammals back towards the direction where they had entered the river. Whale recordings were played underwater, and pipes were banged among the clustering boats in order to attract the stranded animals. The question on most everyone’s lips was: How do you herd whales? But there were no concrete answers.

Time was running out, as the whales continued to linger in this foreign environment. Meanwhile, Memorial Day approached, and with it concerns of the heavy boat traffic which could further harm and confuse these creatures.

One day, word spread that the whales began to miraculously and voluntarily travel back toward Benicia Bridge and the Strait. This is where our waiting game began, but to no avail. The whales seemed to outsmart the ingenuity of the authorities and throngs of spectators alike because they crossed the Strait early one morning, retraced their tracks, and at last account were headed for the Pacific Ocean. All done without the attention that they had stirred up earlier. We had missed our chance at a glance of these magnificent mammals.

Maybe this story is a living object lesson. How many times have we tried to influence someone we know to take the right path, the one that leads to the cross? How often do they go their own way, so obviously lost? We can see where they are straying, but they can’t and will often not heed our warnings. We do what we can to help them find the right way, but we cannot make their choices for them. All we can do is try to point them in the right direction and be there for them if they need help.

Are you are waiting for someone to find the right direction, to turn to God for their salvation? Be diligent. Don’t give up. Keep praying, and allow God to work in their lives. You might be surprised; when you least expect it they decide to turn around and move in the right direction.

Teena Stewart is a published writer, a ministry consultant and coach, and a product developer for DreamBuilders Ministry in Motion. Her new book Successful Small Groups from Concept to Practice (Beacon Hill) is scheduled for release in November, 2007. To learn more about Teena, her writing, coaching and consulting services, click here. Email Teena at smartwords@sbcglobal.net

This is actually my second computer. My first computer was an older model with stone components made by the Flintstone Corp. It worked fine unless I quit pedaling.

I’ve been seeing the computer I have now for about three years, and a more dysfunctional relationship one could not imagine. I can’t stand my computer, but I can’t live without it either.

The problem we’re having lately is that it works fine when I don’t need it but whenever there is something important to be done, it decides to check out on me.

I know that this is very likely my computer’s cry for attention. It knows that I’m losing interest in it so it constantly makes pathetic attempts to get my attention. “Um, excuse me, Sweetie, I’ve got updates. Would you like to install them now?”

This, of course, is a diabolically manipulative question because if I say “yes,” then my computer is tied up for fifteen minutes while I wait for the updates to be installed. If I say “no,” then the computer crashes, blames me for not updating it when it asked me to, and we get into this huge fight. It’s a no-win situation.

On top of my twisted relationship with my computer lies the additional layer of dysfunctionality that my Internet service provider brings to the table, which, for fear of legal action, I’ll just call United States OnLine (USOL) and trust you know who I’m talking about.

Having USOL is like being in a relationship with someone who never does what you want them to unless you don’t need them to do it anymore.

USOL: Yes, I’ll be with you in a moment but right now I’m busy frustrating the other two trillion people dumb enough to use my services.

USOL: I have no doubt that you would and I’m enjoying your aggravation immensely. Please, stand by.

Me (twenty minutes later): Never mind. I can’t wait the rest of my life just to check my e-mail. Abort the process.

USOL: Oh, you wanted to check your e-mail? I had no idea. Let’s see now... nope, you don’t have a thing. That’ll be $25.

I know what you’re thinking — if I have so much trouble with USOL, why don’t I just dump them? Because it’s impossible, that’s why. USOL is like the mob. You never get out. Just try to stop the service and they lure you back by giving you months and months of free service — a tactic that I always fall for.

USOL representative: How about this instead — you agree to stay with us and we’ll give you even more of the lousy service that you despise at absolutely no charge.

It’s true, though, that a computer is a machine and machines have problems. It’s part of life. When you stop having problems, you need to check your pulse because you may not be on planet Earth anymore.

I think this is because we’re living in Plan B. Plan A involved a garden, an almost-all-you-can-eat buffet, and a very relaxed dress code. That plan went awry and here we are in Plan B.

One of my favorite Plan B verses is “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry.” (Psalm 34:15 NIV)

I like it because it reminds me that God didn’t abandon mankind even in our folly and remains ready to come to our aid in the most trying of times such as tragedy, illness, and distress — or in the most ridiculous of situations such as computer relationship problems.

I realize now that I shouldn’t have begun a relationship so soon after breaking up with my old computer. These rebound relationships never work. Is there such a thing as human/computer relationship counseling?

Book Review: Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards by Richard P. Chait, William P. Ryan, Barbara E. Taylor, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2005, 198 pages, ISBN 0-471-6420-1

Nonprofit board governance does not generally fit the framework of many local churches. However, many leaders are engaged in ministries that function as nonprofit boards. These range from a community childcare center to senior services to community development corporations.

A nonprofit board that governs well will add immense value to the ministry and services provided. However, there is no guarantee that well-meaning people will automatically understand how to lead a nonprofit well.

Nonprofit ministries are growing rapidly. The number of 501c3 incorporations, named after the IRS tax code that covers nonprofits, has increased dramatically in the last several years. More and more people are engaged in nonprofit ministries as volunteers, staff, and board members.

Chait, Ryan, and Taylor collaborated on this research in partnership with BoardSource, an organization that resources nonprofits. Chait is a professor of Harvard Graduate School of Education. Ryan is a research fellow at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Harvard. Taylor is a senior consultant with Academic Search Consultation Service. Among them they have authored a number of books and articles.

This book analyzes three modes of a nonprofit board: the fiduciary, the strategic, and the generative. In the fiduciary mode a board will practice proper stewardship in examining the careful use of resources such as finances, leadership, and reputation of the organization in the community. In the strategic mode the board will work with staff to develop vision and goals. In the generative mode the board is working to answer the questions of purpose and mission.

The authors raise the observation that many boards function well at the fiduciary level and some even work at the strategic. However, few boards engage in discussions clarifying the mission and purpose of the organization. A healthy board will intentionally engage in work at all three levels.

In addition to the two chapters on generative thinking and generative governing, the authors include a helpful chapter on working capital. Often capital is measured in financial terms. But an effective board will bring far more capital to the table: intellectual capital, reputational capital, political capital, and social capital. Boards that are intentional about utilizing this capital as well as they manage their financial capital will multiply the effectiveness of their ministries and services.

The book is well written with a number of practical examples from the authors’ experiences. It is a useful resource for leaders engaged in nonprofit ministries and services.

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DBMIM Ezine- June 19, 2007