Daniel Grothe

The Power of Place, Staying Rooted and Transitioning Well

About The Episode

There is both fulfillment and fruitfulness in staying in your current leadership role and in transitioning well to something new if God calls you to go. “We don’t always have to leave to build a life of
significance.” Meet Daniel Grothe from New Life Church, Colorado Springs, CO who shares his personal story of the road that led him to stay at New Life. If you are in a season of difficulty at your church, you will be inspired by Daniel’s story. He will encourage you that these are the moments where the spirit of the Lord will empower you to live a vow of stability, so you can stand and stay.

Welcome to Episode 048 of the Leaders in Living Rooms Podcast with Sean Morgan.

Insights From Daniel

1. Technology has caused both discontentment and confusion.

Social media is showing us everyone else’s highlight reels. That makes our own stories feel so normal, clunky, and every day.
We’ve confused the idea of what it means to be “rich.” We’ve confused the difference between financial capital and social capital.
We are pathologically busy. Daniel says he jokes that being an adult is saying to other people – “we should hang out” over and over again until we die. We are missing out on the things that would make us deeply happy. Regular meals with our people. People who show up at our house unannounced with a favorite drink, people who watch our kids so we can have a date night. We’ve filled up our calendars so much, we can’t actually do the things that bring us great joy.

2. People are the great purifiers.

When life gets difficult, the easiest thing to do is run. But the truth is, wherever you go, there you are. You can’t run from it. You have to look at yourself in the mirror and wrestle with your own demons.
You want to become a saint, you want to become holy, you want to become more mature, you want to have deep roots in the community? The only way to do that is to press through the difficulty of relationships.
Daniel shares the concept of “transplant trauma.” The greatest images and metaphors for the Saints throughout the bible from Genesis to Revelation are about becoming like trees. Cedars of Lebanon, Oaks of Righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. For a tree, you might be able to move it once or twice and it lives, but after that point, you are starting to introduce it to transplant trauma, and it’s a crapshoot on whether or not it will make it.

3. Advice for those in the transition process.

Start with your smallest concentric circle of influence and pray that through with them to get in unity. Don’t make an announcement to your closest people, start the process with them.
Is it possible for you to be sent? If so, it will be more fruitful by a factor of 10. You’ll take the strength of the place you’re leaving to the place you’re going.
Listen to the full episode for more.

4. Advice for developing leaders well.

Do the front end work of being a safe place for your people.
If you will show your people that no matter where they end up, who they end up being with, you’re going to leverage every bit of strength and spiritual authority you have for their good, you will be their first phone call.
Listen to the full episode for more.

Episode Links

Don’t miss the Ascent Leader’s new lineup of transitions cohorts for 2022. Check them out today at https://theascentleader.org/cohorts/

Find Daniel at DanielGrothe.com

Get Daniel’s New Book: The Power of Place: Choosing Stability in a Rootless Age

Check out Brady Boyd’s (Senior Pastor of New Life Church) Book: Addicted to Busy

Find Angela Duckworth’s Book: Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

Barna Study shows that 80% of lead pastors who transition to another church, move. Only 20% are raised up within their home church.* This study was commission by CDF Capital and can be made available to you by contacting sean@theascentleader.org

*(higher for smaller churches, and skewed by denominational data)

Who is Daniel Grothe?

Daniel Grothe is the associate senior pastor at New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he’s been for sixteen years. Daniel and his wife, Lisa, live on a hobby farm outside of Colorado Springs with their three children, Lillian, Wilson, and Wakley, and a thriving throng of happy animals. Daniel is currently pursuing his doctorate from Western Theological Seminary.

https://danielgrothe.com/
https://north.newlifechurch.org/
Instagram: @mrdanielgrothe
Twitter: @mrdanielgrothe

Quotes From Episode

“We’ve lost the thing that truly makes us rich.”

“We are pathologically busy. We’ve filled up our calendars so much, we can’t actually do the things that bring us great joy.”

“Plan first what matters most. What kind of life do you want to live and can you start to build it?”

“This isn’t the moment that you cut and run, it’s the moment you earn your title.”

On transitioning well… “Take the strength of the place you’re leaving to the place you’re going.”

“Maybe the most fruitful thing we can do is to live the long-haul where we are.”

Listen to Recent Episodes

About the Host

Sean Morgan is a coach and speaker with a national reputation as a catalyst of fresh vision. His passion is to help ministries navigate obstacles and turn them into opportunities.

Throughout his career, Sean has pioneered initiatives impacting thousands of leaders across the country. He started out serving as Executive Pastor and CFO at New Life Church in northern California.

As host, Sean gives you access to amazing conversations, hard-won wisdom, and poignant insights from world-class leaders in intimate “living room” settings.

Your Host

Sean Morgan

Leaders in Living Rooms
Craft & Character

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