In this episode I interview Brad Roth, a Mennonite pastor in rural Kansas, blogger at DoxologyProject.com the author of God’s Country: Faith, Hope, and the Future of the Rural Church.
Brad and I talk about four of the main emphases of his book, namely:
- The importance of rural church
- Acedia (the spiritual “blahs”)
- The significance of place
- A new way to measure growth
There’s also an important conversation about replacing the typical metrics of demographics and attendance with what Brad calls “getting weird” as we assess church health and growth. Specifically, Brad raises the idea of using “rule” rather than metrics.
This episode will encourage you who serve in rural areas, and hopefully will inspire pastors in transition to keep small towns on your list of ministry options.
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Credits
Producer
Veronica Beaver | [email protected]
Editor
Phil Vaters | [email protected]
Music
Composed and performed by Jack Wilkins | JackWilkinsMusic.com
Logo
by Solomon Joy
Correspondence
Shelley Vaters | Shelley@KarlVaters.com
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Author
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Karl produces resources for Helping Small Churches Thrive at KarlVaters.com.
He's the author of five books on church leadership, including his newest, De-Sizing the Church: How Church Growth Became a Science, Then an Obsession, and What's Next. His other books include The Grasshopper Myth and Small Church Essentials.
Karl also hosts a bi-weekly podcast,The Church Lobby: Conversations on Faith & Ministry, featuring in-depth interviews about topics that concern pastors, especially those who minister in a small church context.
Karl has served in small-church ministry for over 40 years, so he speaks and writes from decades of hands-on pastoral experience. He and his wife, Shelley have three children and two grandkids.