“Show me a spiritually healthy church and I’ll show you a spiritually healthy pastor. Show me a spiritually unhealthy church and I’ll show you a spiritually unhealthy pastor. “If you’ve been the pastor of your church for five years or longer, it’s time to stop blaming your predecessors, your circumstances and your congregation. Like it […]
Small Church Problems? The Answer May Be Closer Than You Think Read More »
We don’t measure the things that matter. We measure the things we manage. That’s the essence of a comment I made this week in response to a short blogpost written by Artie Davis, entitled Disciples? If You Mean It, Measure It! UPDATE: Check out the gracious response to this post from Artie, below. Artie’s blogpost
How Do We Measure the Things That Matter? Read More »
We are on the same team. I’m grateful when you are there to help me and other Small Church pastors. But I also want you to know that we are here to help you too. There is a lot we can learn from each other. When megachurch pastors hold conferences, I know they do it
To My Friends Who Pastor Big Churches Read More »
Why are you doing this alone? That question is printed on a card that sits on my desk every day. It reminds me not to fall into the trap that too many Small Church pastors get caught in. Being a Small Church pastor is one of the loneliest, most stress-filled positions in the world. We have
Hey! Small Church Pastors! Stop Doing This Alone! Read More »
In a strong, healthy Small Church, chronic complainers can cause a lot of stress on the pastor and other leaders. If the Small Church is weak and/or unhealthy, complainers can kill a pastor’s and church’s spirit, sometimes without intending to. In Part 1 of this series, we saw some things we can do to move
Chronic Complainers, Part 2 – When Win-Win is a No-Go Read More »
Chronic complainers aren’t a huge issue in a big church. Very few congregation members will know them, and even the pastor may only be aware of them by email (but so many emails!). In a Small Church their voice is loud. They know everyone – and everyone knows them. The challenge for Small Church pastors
Chronic Complainers, Part 1 – Creating a Win-Win Read More »
“The gatekeepers are gone”, said stand-up comic Patton Oswalt in a talk that has huge implications for pastors and other communicators. Oswalt continued as he held up his iPhone to a crowd of comedy bigwigs. “In my hand right now I’m holding more filmmaking technology than Orson Welles had when he filmed Citizen Kane. I’m
The Gatekeepers are Gone: Unlikely Wisdom for Pastors from a Stand-Up Comic Read More »
All my life I’ve heard preachers talk about a coming worldwide revival. But it’s never happened. There have been pockets of excitement, from the Jesus Movement of the 1970s, to the church growth movement of the 1980s. The 1990s brought local spiritual outbreaks in places like Toronto and Florida, along with controversy over their genuineness
Is the Era of the Megachurch Over? Read More »
I spent too many years telling good people that the way they wanted to do church was wrong. These people weren’t heel-draggers or vision-killers. Not all of them. Not most of them. They weren’t the grasshoppers. I was. They were followers of Jesus who attended the church I was pastoring because they found their spiritual
Don’t Despise the Size Read More »
One of the best characteristics of many Small Churches is that everyone wants to pitch in. One of the worst characteristics of many Small Churches is that everyone wants to pitch in. Sometimes that volunteer spirit has great results. Sometimes…not so much. The split-screen photograph in this post is an especially hilarious example of the
The Over-Enthusiastic Volunteer Syndrome Read More »
