There are only two forms of the church that ultimately matter. The universal church and the local church. Everything else is an add-on. Including buildings, furniture, styles of music, types of preaching, curriculum, and the subject of today’s article, denominations.
There are only two forms of the church that ultimately matter. The universal church and the local church. Everything else is an add-on. Including buildings, furniture, styles of music, types of preaching, curriculum, and the subject of today’s article, denominations.
Everybody has an opinion. And everyone is entitled to one. But not every opinion is of equal value. Including mine. After having participated in online conversations for several years, including in this blog, I have developed four questions I ask myself before putting my opinion out to others. Online or in person. These are especially …
4 Questions To Consider Before Commenting On A Controversial Subject Read More »
Last week, Aaron Earls wrote a very helpful article entitled The Church Growth Gap: The Big Get Bigger While the Small Get Smaller. In it, he outlined the results of a recent survey taken by Lifeway Research. There’s a lot of data in the survey and the article, much of which will take more time to …
6 Takeaways From “The Church Growth Gap” LifeWay Research Survey Read More »
In a big church, the pastor will have name-recognition relationships with a very small percentage of the people they’re communicating to on a weekly basis. When you add writing, podcasting and other forms of communication, it’s typical for the pastor of a large church to have a personal relationship with fewer than one percent of …
Put People First: Why Many Small Church Pastors Can Spend Less Time On Sermon Prep Read More »
In a small church, the pastor will know most, if not all of the congregation members personally. Our lives are intertwined. So how does that affect our time management on the weeks when our schedule is especially tight (as in every week for a bivocational pastor)?When a small church pastor has to choose between spending time …
Small Churches Are Stuck (But Not The Way You Think) Read More »
One year ago this month, I stopped being the lead pastor of our church. This weekend our church will celebrate the one year anniversary of that transition. So, as I think about all that’s happened over the last 12 months, here are 7 reasons we knew it was the right time for a pastoral transition.
One year ago this month, I stopped being the lead pastor of our church. This weekend our church will celebrate the one year anniversary of that transition. So, as I think about all that’s happened over the last 12 months, here are 7 reasons we knew it was the right time for a pastoral transition.
More church leaders are asking hard questions about the church growth movement. And this time, it’s not just the usual cynics, it’s leaders who previously would have – or did – embrace those principles with open arms. This is not because there’s something inherently wrong with the church growth movement, but because it’s been around long …
Why Is There An Increasing Pushback Against Church Growth Principles? Read More »
There are two churches in America. The church inside the Bible Belt and the church outside the Bible Belt. The ones inside the Bible Belt often look at the ones outside as compromised and soft on sin because of their rejection of long-held traditions. Meanwhile, those outside the Bible Belt often look at those inside …
Inside And The Outside The Bible Belt: A Schism The American Church Must Address Read More »
