The Lead Ministry Podcast

Josh Denhart
  • 4.9 (51)
  • Christianity
  • Weekly

Lead Ministry is here for you, the dedicated people in ministry leadership. Our fast-paced, inspirational podcast offers practical steps in each episode to help you thrive. Our focus: *GET SKILLS - Implement systems to avoid burnout. *GET INSPIRED - Embrace leadership as a path to disciple-making. *GET MOVING - Apply episode ideas to enhance your ministry. Join us on a journey to navigate the challenges of ministry, from volunteer management to team building, and lead with purpose and passion in your service.

  1. 1d ago

    355. Your Meeting Is Full. Your Team Still Leaves Hungry.

    You can fill a meeting with good things and still leave your team without what they need. Prayer matters. So do relationships, preparation, and a clear plan. When one of those takes over every meeting, something else goes missing. People may leave encouraged but unsure what to do - or informed but disconnected from each other. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk use the meeting diet to help ministry leaders notice that imbalance. They talk through purposeful prayer, personal connection, prepared learning, and planning, then show why a healthy meeting also needs a clear next move. Josh and Bill get honest about their own preferences as leaders. They explain how feedback from someone you trust - including what gets said after the meeting - can reveal what your agenda is feeding and what it is starving. They also name a useful boundary: a short huddle does not need every ingredient in the same portion. Key Topics Covered • Recognizing the agenda category you tend to overuse• Beginning with purposeful prayer rather than a routine opening• Making room for people, preparation, and decisions• Checking whether the team leaves connected and clear• Asking for honest feedback about the meeting after the meeting• Adjusting the balance for a huddle, team meeting, or longer gathering Key Quote “Start with purposeful prayer before moving into problems or any decision-making.” Takeaway Look at your last meeting agenda and mark where the time actually went. Choose one missing ingredient for the next gathering, then ask a trusted team member whether people left more connected, clearer about their responsibilities, and ready for the next move. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers Episode 355

    355. Your Meeting Is Full. Your Team Still Leaves Hungry.

  2. Oct 26

    354. Is Your Volunteer Not Ready—or Are You Not Letting Go?

    Hand a role off too soon, and a volunteer can feel abandoned. Hold on too long, and they may never get the opportunity to grow. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk close the training series with a practical question: how do you know when someone is ready to move from shadowing to ownership? They identify observable signs of readiness: the volunteer can explain why the role matters, perform the task, handle a realistic curveball, and recognize when to ask for help. From there, they describe a supported handoff—working together, stepping back while staying available, and keeping a clear path open for questions and feedback. Josh and Bill also address the tension underneath the process: a leader's desire for everything to be perfect can stand in the way of someone else's growth. Drawing on Ephesians 4, they connect a healthy handoff to equipping the body of Christ for ministry, not simply getting another job off your list. Key Topics Covered - The two dangers: releasing out of urgency and holding on out of control - Defining readiness through evidence rather than perfection - Testing the why, the task, a curveball, and when to get help - Growing ownership without disappearing or hovering - Making escalation expectations clear before a problem arises - Celebrating the handoff and scheduling a follow-up conversation - Connecting volunteer development with equipping the body of Christ Key Quote “If urgency releases too early, control releases too late.” Takeaway Choose one role to hand off and name its actual responsibilities. Define what readiness looks like, plan a supported send-off, and book the first debrief so the volunteer knows both what they own and how to get help. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers Episode 354

    354. Is Your Volunteer Not Ready—or Are You Not Letting Go?

  3. Oct 19

    353. No Time to Train Volunteers? Try Micro-Training

    Your volunteers need training. They probably don't need another evening on the calendar. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk explore micro-training: a short, focused opportunity to name one clear win, model the behavior, and let someone try it. From greeting a family to securing the building, they show how ordinary Sunday moments can become opportunities to reinforce the way your ministry serves people. Josh and Bill also explain why memorable phrases only work when you've taught the meaning behind them. “Golden moments” becomes more than a slogan when your team understands how to be present with people—and has seen what that looks like in practice. You'll hear how a simple phone video, a useful prompt, and repeated encouragement can support that work. They also name the boundary: a quick training doesn't replace the judgment, care, or deeper preparation some situations require. Key Topics Covered - Choosing one recurring behavior that fits a short training - Naming the win, showing the action, and inviting someone to try - Connecting practical tasks to the ministry's mission - Teaching the meaning behind memorable leadership phrases - Using a short phone video to prepare and reinforce a Sunday behavior - Returning to the same standard so it becomes part of the culture - Recognizing when a situation needs more than micro-training Key Quote “You cannot say, hey, remember the golden moments unless you have trained on the golden moments.” Takeaway Choose one small gap you've noticed more than once. Explain why it matters, demonstrate the behavior, and coach it in the places where it happens. Bring it back on future Sundays instead of treating it as the idea of the week. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers Episode 353

    353. No Time to Train Volunteers? Try Micro-Training

  4. Oct 12

    352. What If Your Training Calendar Prevented Your Next Ministry Crisis?

    If the same ministry problems come back every Christmas, Easter, or fall launch, you don't have to wait for them to become emergencies again. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk walk through a one-year training map built around the pressure points your team already knows. Instead of letting the latest crisis decide what you teach, they show how to prepare volunteers before the next demanding season arrives. The conversation moves through planning before a season, noticing friction while it's happening, and debriefing afterward while the details are still fresh. Josh also explains how he tests and improves training instructions before handing them off—so other people can train effectively without everything depending on him. This isn't about filling every open space on the calendar. It's about keeping what works, improving what doesn't, and giving the next quarter's training a clear owner, date, and format. Key Topics Covered - Why urgency becomes the training curriculum when there is no plan - Mapping recurring pressure points across the ministry year - Preparing before a season and learning during and after it - Improving reusable training instead of starting over every year - Leaving room for needs you cannot predict yet - Sharing training ownership through clear instructions and a consistent format Key Quote “You are not reinventing. You are editing.” Takeaway Sit down with your core team and name the recurring problems that made last year difficult. Match each pressure point with a needed skill, then assign the first quarter's training an owner, a date, and a shared format. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers Episode 352

    352. What If Your Training Calendar Prevented Your Next Ministry Crisis?

  5. Oct 5

    351. You Explained It. Why Can’t Your Volunteers Do It?

    You explained the job. They nodded. Then Sunday came, and they still weren't sure what to do. That doesn't necessarily mean your volunteers weren't listening. It may mean they haven't had a chance to practice. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk introduce the practice loop: show the standard, let someone try, coach one improvement, and give them another attempt. They explain why hearing instructions isn't the same as being ready—and why slowing down now can save you from repeating the same corrections later. Through everyday examples, Josh and Bill show how to make room for mistakes without making a volunteer feel small. They also identify three signs that training is taking hold: the person can explain the task, perform it, and coach someone else through it. Key Topics Covered - The assumptions leaders make when they explain a familiar task - Why a demonstration needs to include a slower, step-by-step walkthrough - Creating safe practice before Sunday pressure arrives - Coaching one improvement at a time, followed by another attempt - Correcting the task while encouraging the person - Knowing whether a volunteer can explain, perform, and teach the skill Key Quote “If you're only talking to your people, they are not trained. They've just been talked to.” Takeaway Choose one manageable Sunday task where confusion creates a real cost. Schedule two safe practice attempts, coach one improvement, and ask the volunteer to explain the process back to you. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers Episode 351

    351. You Explained It. Why Can’t Your Volunteers Do It?

  6. Sep 28

    350. What to Say When a Volunteer Steps Away

    Retention is not about forcing every volunteer to stay in every role forever. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk talk about the healthy exit: how to honor a volunteer's service, learn from the experience, preserve belonging, and leave room for a future return. They contrast gratitude with guilt, show why leaders should release the role without removing the person from the community, and lay out a practical exit conversation: thank, learn, bless, and name the open door. They also explain a no-pressure follow-up that honors a volunteer's season instead of turning every future conversation into a request. Key Topics Covered Why some exits are faithful endings, not leadership failures Choosing gratitude rather than guilt Releasing the role without removing the person A practical exit conversation: thank, learn, bless, name the open door A no-pressure follow-up that preserves belonging Key Quote “Some exits are faithful endings. They're not leadership failures.” Takeaway Thank the volunteer, learn from the experience, bless the ending, and leave belonging open without turning follow-up into another ask. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers

    350. What to Say When a Volunteer Steps Away

  7. Sep 21

    349. Redesign the Role Before You Lose a Good Volunteer

    A volunteer can still care deeply about the ministry while the role no longer fits the season they are in. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk unpack the volunteer role half-life: the reality that a once-good role can drift as a person's gifting, capacity, or clarity changes. They show how role creep happens, why a larger assignment deserves a new agreement, and how to review the role before defaulting to replacement. The practical path is simple but intentional: look at the role with the person in mind, ask whether it still fits, and test one role change through a 90-, 60-, or 30-day experiment. Key Topics Covered When a once-good volunteer role stops fitting Gift for the work, capacity for the load, clarity for the win Why a larger assignment deserves a new agreement Reviewing the role before replacing the person Trying a 90-, 60-, or 30-day experiment Key Quote “Keep the person. But now you're going to question the shape and you're going to maybe even redesign the agreement.” Takeaway Review the role with the person in mind, then test one clearly defined change through a time-bound experiment. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers

    349. Redesign the Role Before You Lose a Good Volunteer

  8. Sep 14

    348. How Ministry Chaos Drains Volunteer Goodwill

    Every ministry has occasional chaos. The problem is when the same dependable volunteers keep paying for it. In this episode of the Lead Ministry Podcast, Josh Denhart and Bill Van Kirk introduce retention debt: the accumulated trust cost of unresolved ministry friction. They unpack why late changes, surprise asks, broken promises, and rescue mode slowly borrow against volunteer goodwill. Then they turn the framework into a practical reset: audit the last four weeks, retire one recurring rescue, make deposits through earlier decisions and complete preparation, and keep one public promise faithfully for four weeks. Key Topics Covered What retention debt means Why goodwill is the asset repeated friction borrows against How surprise, broken promises, and rescue mode drain trust Three deposits: decide earlier, prepare completely, communicate once A four-week audit and one recurring rescue to retire Key Quote “Retention debt is actually borrowed against the goodwill of your volunteers.” Takeaway Audit the last four weeks, retire one recurring rescue, and keep one public promise faithfully for the next four weeks. Call to Action We hope this episode encourages and equips you. Share it with a friend and stay tuned for more resources each week. Stay Connected for More Resources Visit our website: http://leadministry.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadVolunteers Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadvolunteers

    348. How Ministry Chaos Drains Volunteer Goodwill
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4.9
out of 5
51 Ratings

About

Lead Ministry is here for you, the dedicated people in ministry leadership. Our fast-paced, inspirational podcast offers practical steps in each episode to help you thrive. Our focus: *GET SKILLS - Implement systems to avoid burnout. *GET INSPIRED - Embrace leadership as a path to disciple-making. *GET MOVING - Apply episode ideas to enhance your ministry. Join us on a journey to navigate the challenges of ministry, from volunteer management to team building, and lead with purpose and passion in your service.

Information

  • Creator
    Josh Denhart
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    355
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Josh Denhart
  • Show Website
    The Lead Ministry Podcast

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