#BestOf2014: 10 Under-Read Posts That Deserve Another Look

Have you ever preached or written something that you thought would really click with people, only to have it ... not do that? Me too. The great thing about blogging, as opposed to preaching, is that it's easier to give overlooked posts a chance at a second life than it is with an old sermon. That's what I've been doing for the last 10 days. Re-posting articles that didn't get the readership I expected, but I still think are some of my #BestOf2014. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you've already seen each of these re-posted. But if you only subscribe to my emails, this may be the first you're hearing about this list because I want to keep my promise of respecting your inbox. So here they are, all in one email and in one post for you to browse through at your convenience. Check out the excerpts, then click the links to those you'd like to read again - or for the first time.

10Have you ever preached or written something that you thought would really click with people, only to have it … not do that?

Me too.

The great thing about blogging, as opposed to preaching, is that it’s easier to give overlooked posts a chance at a second life than it is with an old sermon.

That’s what I’ve been doing for the last 10 days. Re-posting articles that didn’t get the readership I expected, but I still think are some of my #BestOf2014.

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you’ve already seen each of these re-posted. But if you only subscribe to my emails, this may be the first you’re hearing about this list because I want to keep my promise of respecting your inbox. So here they are, all in one email and in one post for you to browse through at your convenience.

Check out the excerpts, then click the links to those you’d like to read again – or for the first time.


 

Are You Serious about Worldwide Church Growth? Support Small Churches

The reason I support healthy Small Churches isn’t because I’m settling for less and denying the value of numerical growth. I support Small Churches because that is where most of the global church growth is taking place.

More people are led to Jesus, discipled and sent back out into ministry through the ministry of Small Churches than by any other means.  >> Read More

Why Successful Churches Aren’t Turning the World Upside-Down – But the Outcasts Might

Jesus was the most culture-challenging, paradigm-shifting, tradition-breaking, change agent who ever lived.

How did his followers become so boring? We’ve taken the life- and society-transforming message of Jesus and we’ve made it about … success. Trying to maintain that success has made us safe. Safe is boring.  >> Read More

No More Angry Christians Please – We’re Full Up

We don’t need any more angry Christians. I think we’ve reached our quota with plenty to spare for at least the next 1,000, maybe 2,000 years.

Love is stronger than anger.  It has a longer shelf life than anger. It’s more multi-purpose than anger. Love is just all-around better than anger.  >> Read More

 

Want a Great Church? Emphasize What You’re For, Not What You’re Against

No one ever built a great church by emphasizing what they’re against. (Well, no one but Jesus ever built any church, but you get what I mean.) After all, the word “Gospel” means good news. What you’re against may be really bad. And opposing it may be very important. But what you’re against isn’t good news.  >> Read More

 

We Can Whine About the New Generation Or We Can Minister to Them – But We Can’t Do Both

Why don’t people wear their Sunday Best for church any more? A lot of older churchgoers (that is, my generation) seem to be worried about that lately. I’d like to respond to that question with a couple of my own.

When did the members of my generation become such old fogeys? And why do they care so much about something that matters so little?  >> Read More

 

How to Tell If Your Small Church Is Strategic Or Stuck

What if Small Churches aren’t a problem to be fixed, but are part of a strategy God wants to use?

If Small Churches are a part of God’s strategy, how can we tell the difference between a strategic Small Church and one that’s just stuck?  >> Read More

 

Big Cities Need Great Small Churches, Too

To all the pastors itching to do something other than church-as-usual. To all the potential church planters asking God to show them where to plant. Take a serious look at planting a healthy, innovative, friendly, outward-reaching Small Church in a big city or suburb. Or leading an existing big city Small Church in a much-needed turnaround towards innovation and outreach.  >> Read More

 

Wanted: New Church Methods for New Church People

There’s nothing wrong with traditional methods of doing church. As long as you want to minister to traditional church members. But if we truly want to change the world with the Gospel of Jesus, that is less likely to be done using traditional church methods with every passing year.  >> Read More

 

 

Why Some Great Churches Grow Big, But Most Don’t

Too many good pastors of good churches have been living in guilt, frustration and self-condemnation because their church isn’t getting bigger. They’ve been told that a healthy church will always grow. But there’s an entirely separate list of skills, assets and exterior circumstances needed for the kind of consistent church growth that leads to bigness.  >> Read More

 

My Church Is an Endangered Species – Unless…

There’s a cultural and financial storm underway. Unless we anticipate, acknowledge and respond well to it, small to mid-size churches with a mortgage and a pastoral salary in large metropolitan areas will soon be about as rare as printed newspapers, land-line phones and brick-and-mortar bookstores.  >> Read More

So what do you think? Are any of these posts worth reading again and/or passing along?

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(10 photo from Yoppy • Flickr • Creative Commons license)

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