Author Archives: Tom Shefchunas


Tom Shefchunas

About Tom Shefchunas

Tom (also known as "Coach Shef" or just "Shef") is the co-founder of Uthmin.net and the North Point Ministries Multi-Campus Director of Transit, their Middle School Ministry. Tom’s passion involves working with campus directors and their teams, as well as recruiting and developing the hundreds of volunteer small group leaders it takes to pull off Transit at the five churches of North Point Ministries. He also co-wrote Lead Small with Reggie Joiner, a resource for children and student small group leaders. Tom and his wife Julie live in Cumming, Georgia, with their three children, Mac, Joey and Cooper. You can find him on Facebook and Twitter.

My Only Piece of Good Parenting Advice

by on in Parents.

I have worked with students for twenty years now. In those twenty years, I’ve had many parents ask me for parenting advice. Until recently, I used to cringe. I never knew what to say.

When I was younger, the easiest response was to shrug and say… ”I don’t know… I’m not a parent.” But then that changed, and I became a dad. Once I had kids of my own, I assumed I would eventually have a good answer. But even after 10 years of being a dad… I still didn’t know what to tell those parents.

Sure, I could have given a general “checklist” of things to do in order to be a great parent. But, I knew, unless the heart was behind it, none of that would really matter in the long run.

READ MORE

Strategic or Spiritual?

by on in Strategy.

I don’t know where this comes from…

Sometimes it’s a question about the business books on my reading list.

Sometimes, after a discussion about strategy, people ask… “but where does prayer come in?”

Very few people, if any, have ever framed it this way but it seems they want to ask me…

Are you strategic or are you spiritual?

Over the years I have developed an answer to that question.

READ MORE

8 Simple Steps for Remodeling Your Calendar

by on in Leadership, Strategy.

Have you ever remodeled your kitchen?

Think for a second about when you moved into your current home. Think about what it was like to unpack your kitchen.

That looks like a good place for the silverware… the cleaning stuff should go there… let’s put plates and bowls over here.

But then life in your new kitchen started. You loaded and unloaded the dishwasher a few times, you got up early for the morning routine of packing lunches and getting the kids off to school, you cleaned up a few times at the end of the day, and then you realized…

There was probably a better way to organize this.

READ MORE

North Point’s Strategy for Communicating to Students (Part 2)

by on in Experience.

There are great talkers… and then there are great talks.

As a director of a student environment, I want our ministry to have both. I want great talks, delivered by great talkers.

You might be a great talker, but that doesn’t mean you always give a great talk.

You might be entertaining.
You might be funny.
Your middle schoolers might have listened.
They might have even applauded as you walked off the stage.

Those things might be good qualifications for a good Vegas show. But they do not mean you did a great ministry “talk.”

READ MORE

North Point’s Strategy for Communicating to Students (Part 1)

by on in Experience.

North Point is an interesting place to work. There are so many great things about it.

But there are also some things I would put in the category of “freakin’ hard.”

For instance, in a church that is led by Andy Stanley, the “bar” for speakers is unbelievably high. It’s almost impossible to feel like you did a great job. And that’s hard.

If you are speaking in a children’s environment, a student environment, or even just leading a volunteer meeting… you need to be on your game! (Not to mention what it’s like to talk in “Big Church.” But that’s a topic for another time.)

The bar is high.

I felt that pressure this weekend.

READ MORE