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The Next Time Your Ministry Feels Like a Failure, Remember This
Jesus never wrote a book or erected a building for his followers to rally around.
His trial was a farce, but his torture was real. At his death he hung naked, and bleeding. His flesh hanging in strips from his barely-recognizable body. As he died, he didn’t just feel forsaken by God, he actually was forsaken by God.
Jesus’ ministry was a failure.
Until…
Online Church Is Great, But It’s Not Enough
The church needs to be more digital. For Small Churches especially, the digital world can level the playing field and give us a broader reach and wider ministry than we currently have.
We need more churches taking advantage of online services, podcasts, livestreaming, social media, blogging, you name it.
But church will never be digital. Screen-to-screen is no substitute for face-to-face. Digital reality cannot replace actual reality.
A Fun, Free Way For Church Members to Invite Friends for Easter (Or Any Time)
For years, we used to spend a lot of time and money to create an Easter invitation flyer. Then we’d spend way too much money to print it and run it in a neighborhood magazine or newspaper. But we received very little benefit from all that work and expense.
With social media, we changed our tactics. We started creating our own flyers and making them available for church members to post on their social media pages. Not only was it free but, since people are always putting stuff like that on social media anyway, it felt less like advertising and more like chatting with friends.
This year, we’re taking it a step further. In addition to creating an Easter flyer for the church, we’re helping everyone at the church create their own personalized invitation. In today’s post, I’ll show you how we’re doing it.
Why I Don’t Go to the Bible to Find a Text to Preach On
When we treat the bible like a collection of sermon texts, we lose the wonder and the beauty of it. When we read it to find material to preach from, we stop hearing God speak to us. And when that happens, we start dying spiritually. It’s all output and no inflow.
That’s a dangerous position for a pastor to be in. And it has killed many great ministries. Don’t let it kill yours.
Pastors, We Don’t Expect a TED Talk, But We Need a God-and-You Talk
Pastors face a lot of pressure to perform. Some of it, admittedly, is self-imposed.
One of the main places this pressure is felt is in the demand to research, write and deliver a great sermon every week. In fact, several times in the last few months, I’ve read blog posts that have suggested that every Sunday sermon should be like a TED Talk.
In today’s post, I’d like to do two things that may seem impossible to accomplish simultaneously. Relieve some of the performance pressure and challenge us all towards something better.
7 Steps to Start Becoming a Church People Want to Commit To
People are not less committed than they used to be. They just commit differently. But too many churches haven’t caught up to that reality. So how do we get people to commit to the church we pastor? Especially when our church is small and struggling?
I don’t have all the answers, not by a long shot. But I’ve learned a handful of principles over three decades of ministry that have helped our church become a place people are excited to be committed to.
These steps won’t cost you any extra money and very little extra time – the extra time because of the learning curve. It’s not about adding to your already limited schedule and overtaxed budget. It’s not about doing things bigger. It’s about focusing on doing church better. Working smarter, not harder.
People Aren’t As Loyal to Their Church Anymore – Good For Them
The so-called “good old days” when a person committed to a church, then stuck with it no matter what, have come to an end. Many churches just don’t know it yet. Maybe that’s why I keep hearing ministers harping on the same old complaints. “My church can’t get good volunteers any more!” “People aren’t as faithful as they used to be.” And, my personal [ahem] favorite, “What’s wrong with this generation? You can’t count on them for anything.”
If those complaints sound familiar (as in, you’ve heard them come from your own mouth) please take this in the way I’m giving it – with all the love in my heart. Stop whining about people’s lack of commitment to your church and give them something worth committing to!
Do You Have to Be Crazy to Go Into Full-Time Ministry? (An Overdue Conversation)
You’ve heard of someone Going Postal? Maybe we should be more concerned about them Going Pastoral.
Ministry is not for the faint of heart. The stats mount up every day about how hazardous it can be for our emotional, financial, even spiritual health. But, according to Forbes magazine, it may not be that ministry makes you crazy, as much as it attracts people who are crazy. Clergyperson is #8 on the list of jobs most likely to attract psychopaths.
Is It Wrong If I Don’t Want My Church to Grow?
One of the foundational beliefs of the church growth movement is that every church should desire to grow. And if you don’t want your church to grow, there’s something wrong. Probably something wrong with you. So let me get right to it and answer the question in today’s title.
Is it wrong if I don’t want my church to grow? YES. Always. Without reservation. No excuses allowed. No “buts” added. It is always wrong when a follower of Jesus, and especially a church leader, doesn’t want their church to grow.
