Clarence E. Stowers, Author at Clarity for Your Second Act

My Vision…My Dream…My World

by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 29, 2010 | Goals, Leadership, Personal, Vision

Vision is a “preferred picture of what could be and what should be” according to megachurch pastor Bill Hybels. Furthermore, He goes on to say, “when you put the right words to a vision or principle, it becomes axiomatic. It begins to live! It becomes memorable and powerful!”

I converse with leaders from all walks of life and they ALL wrestle with words to frame their vision. Honestly, they wrestle with words until they are able to communicate their big ideas in a way that captures the imagination and lifts spirits. Personally, sometimes words cannot explain how I feel. However, when they’re linked to music and video, something magical happens. I invite you to take a peek and see what’s swirling around in my mind. I decided to let the music speak and frame a reality I dream of. Enjoy!

My Vision…My Dream from CE Stowers on Vimeo.

What’s your vision…your preferred picture of what could be and what should be?

Top 5 Black Friday Shopping Suggestions

by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 26, 2010 | Accountability, Fun Stuff, Money and Finance, Self-Leadership, Top 5

What is Black Friday you might ask, It’s the day after thanksgiving, the kick off of the holiday shopping season, a day you will find great deals, and lots of people. If you have never done a black Friday before you will need to have a plan in place. You can’t control your job, investments or home value, however, you can control how you spend.

Therefore, before you hit the stores (you may already be out there by the time you read this), ask yourself the following questions:

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Friday's Top 5 Success Tips

by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 19, 2010 | Leadership, Mind Dump, Success, Top 5

I am a voracious reader. In fact, I love to read and I never pass up an opportunity to visit bookstores. I will literally sit for hours, scan book & magazines, and fill my Moleskine notebook with pertinent information. This week I invite you to join me and take a peek in my notebook and see my thoughts.

As promised, every Friday I’ve decided to share my “Top 5.” I’ve thought a lot about success and what it takes to be successful. Since success is hard to conceptualize and is subjective, I’ve discovered there are similar costs most are willing to pay in order to be successful.

Here’s what’s swirling around in my mind this week:

You can’t be CHEAP and successful at the same time. College costs money. Books cost money. Conferences & Seminars cost money. Putting yourself in a position to be stretched and grow cost money. One of the qualities that I’ve always noticed in successful people is that they were personally willing to pay a financial price.
You can’t be LAZY and successful at the same time. You must be willing to put “some skin in the game. This means you get your butt out of bed and make it happen! Also, remember that rest is essential because success is a LONG journey.
You must be mentally strong. Your success journey will be one of the most emotionally draining things you will EVER do. You will discover that you can go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows with one email or phone call. Your heart and motives will be called into question. Critics will attack. Haters will hate (that’s what they do).
You must devise a plan to combat spiritual warfare. The enemy IS NOT happy about what you’re trying to accomplish. His strategy is to kill, steal, and destroy. He attempts to kill the dream in the beginning…before the seed takes root. The more successful you become the greater the intensity of spiritual attack on your life.
You will bear scars. Jesus asked His followers to count up the cost before they decided to follow Him. Why? Those who God uses greatly, He scars them deeply. Behind every successful person are scars they’ve accumulated along the journey. Success will cost you something!

Questions:

Are you ready for the journey?

Have you considered the costs?

The Request Lines Are Now Open

by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 18, 2010 | Christian, Christianity, Communication, Preaching, Sunday Worship Experience

I grew up in an era when radio stations would open their request lines (usually late night) for listeners to call in and hear their favorite songs. Listeners would share what’s on their hearts or dedicate special songs to their loved ones. Lately I’ve noticed how many cable stations such as BET, MTV, & VH1 allow their viewers to do the same.

Well, since it works for radio and Cable TV stations, I thought it would be a great to hear from YOU! Each year in November our team breaks away for our annual teaching calendar planning retreat where we lay out a general idea of where we sense God wants to take us over this next year in terms of teaching and subject matter. For two weeks, we will spend the next several hours focusing on praying, planning, and brainstorming. So please pray for us!

But here’s my BIG question for all of you….

What topics/subjects would YOU like to hear teaching on?

I’d love to hear your ideas! So please leave a comment!

Maybe your feedback will spark a great idea for Mars Hill or even others over this next year!

FYI…YOU DON’T HAVE TO ATTEND OUR CHURCH TO RESPOND!

Why Are Churches Still Segregated In 2010?

by Clarence E. Stowers | Nov 16, 2010 | Christian, Christianity, Church Issues, Current Affairs, Race, Relationships, Teamwork

A couple of years ago, I wrote a blog series entitled “Jungle Fever.” This series took a look at the racial differences between African-American and White churches. This series touched on how churches are still segregated and it appears this dynamic won’t change soon. Additionally, I shared the differences between black preachers and white preachers. Finally, I touched on how remarkably different blacks and whites dress when they attend worship. It was a great series that generated several comments. You can read more about it HERE.

There are many reasons why Sunday mornings continue to be the most segregated day of the week. This video excerpt from the documentary, “Baptists and Racism,” attempts to address some of them.

Why do you think the Body of Christ remains segregated so many decades after the civil rights movement? In my opinion, any time you call upon the majority group to divest themselves of power and influence, you’ll have fear, insecurity, and skepticism. In short, they’ll passively sabotage any progress towards inclusion and multiculturalism.

Question: What do you believe are the fundamental reasons churches are segregated?

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