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Loving Your Enemies, In Church

January 14, 2025 By Brian Thorstad

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:43-45a We all know this simple command.  It’s challenging enough when we think in terms of […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

Taking On The Crowd: 23 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Rebuking Your Congregation

January 8, 2025 By Brian Thorstad

Sooner or later, most pastors will sense that it’s time to “take on,” confront, rebuke or correct their congregation. Some combination of (1) his people’s words or behaviors (2) a compelling teaching of the Bible (3) the constraint or leadership of the Holy Spirit, or (4) the pastor’s own impassioned spirit, will convince him that […]

Filed Under: Healthy Pastors, Seriously Troubled Churches

The Advantages Of Getting Old And Tired

January 1, 2025 By Brian Thorstad

I don’t want to sound pathetic.  I’m not that old and I’m not that tired either, but I’m older than I used to be (and so are you) and I’m less energetic than I used to be (and you probably are too). This world which we all live in views this as tragic.  Youth is […]

Filed Under: Healthy Pastors, Theology

Exposing Ten Church Revitalization Myths, Part Two

December 26, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

In my last post I launched into exposing ten myths about the revitalization of churches.  I began with this “googled” definition: Revitalization is the “action of imbuing something with new life and vitality”. In light of this, admittedly, secular definition, instead of asking if every church needs revitalization, maybe we should be asking if any church doesn’t need […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization

Exposing Ten Church Revitalization Myths, Part One

December 18, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

rēˌvīdələˈzāSH(ə)n,rēˌvīdlˌīˈzāSH(ə)n Noun – The action of imbuing something with new life and vitality. “The city has seen revitalization of its economy” Thanks to Mr. Google for the above. The idea of church revitalization assumes that at some point in time the congregation in question was teeming with life. While this is clearly not the case with every church, […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization

How To Not Get Fired Next Time

December 5, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

This is going to be a long post.  I know it’s not for everybody but it might be for you, or someone you love, so please read the next paragraph. A couple of weeks ago I read a new post by Thom Rainer, founder and CEO of Church Answers and the author of over 40 […]

Filed Under: Church Boards And Staffs, Church Health/Revitalization, Church Structure, Healthy Pastors, Seriously Troubled Churches

“I trust that everything’s okay with you?”

November 26, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

Just between you and me, I hate that question. It’s almost as thoughtless as the “How ya doin’?” question you get on the way into the convenience store from perfect strangers who have no intention of waiting to hear your answer. Worse yet, “I trust that everything’s okay with you?” – usually spoken with more […]

Filed Under: Healthy Pastors, Theology

“Pastor: How’s Your CHURCH Doing?”

November 20, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

I have many conversations with pastors which include this question.  We talk about lots of other things, from illnesses to children to football, and then I invariably get around to the “How’s your CHURCH doing?” question. Some pastors have the privilege of leading churches which are building the Kingdom of Christ with some real God-given […]

Filed Under: Book Reviews, Church Boards And Staffs, Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

Models of Board Member Ministry – Brian’s Notes

March 26, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

Two weeks ago, in a post called, Models of Board Member Ministry, I wrote about the endless variations in expectations and assumptions among incoming board (council, consistory, session, elders, deacons) members. Working through my post – as a group exercise – can be a helpful way to movefrom board confusion, disunity and dysfunction to clarity, […]

Filed Under: Church Boards And Staffs, Church Structure

Models of Board Member Ministry

March 7, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

Almost every church has some variety of leadership team which meets regularly (or occasionally) to make decisions and help and/or hinder the work of the congregation’s professional staff.  These groups are variously called: the board, the elders, the deacons, the consistory, the session or the council.  The degree of authority which they wield varies greatly.  […]

Filed Under: Church Boards And Staffs, Church Health/Revitalization, Church Structure

Internships: An Old Practice Getting A New Look

February 28, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

I’m excited to see a growing interest in the practice of churches employing interns: recent college or seminary graduates – or even their own budding “home grown” church members – to short-term opportunities to serve and grow. In my childhood in a Lutheran church, we typically had an intern on staff: a young man, right […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Pastoral Transitions

When The News Is Terrible

February 20, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

Back in 2022, I wrote some posts which touched on one of my favorite Old Testament prophets, the sensitive, justice-loving, heartsick, singer-songwriter (I think), Habakkuk. (He mentions his stringed instruments in chapter three, verse nineteen.) The writer of the fifth to the last book in our Old Testament was a contemporary of Jeremiah, and a […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Theology

Crazy Love: The Family Affection God Is Looking For In Churches

February 15, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

There’s something a little crazy about family love.  My wife Donna and I listen to podcasts about missing people.  No matter how far apart the family members were living when the individual disappeared, no matter how many difficulties they had had in getting along during their formative years, no matter how many family challenges they […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization

Seven Reasons To Not Publicly Criticize Your Pastor

February 6, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

Here’s something that never ceases to amaze me.  Church members sit in their favorite spot in the worship service on Sunday morning.  They pray, praise, sing, listen and, through the words of hymns, creeds, prayers and covenants, they commit themselves anew to following Jesus and loving the brethren. The service ends, there’s a ten-minute break, […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Church Structure, Seriously Troubled Churches

Even More Of The Devil’s Plans For Your Church

January 31, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

“He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.”  I Timothy 3:6,7 “Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Seriously Troubled Churches

Three More Of The Devil’s Plans For Your Church

January 24, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

“He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. 7He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.”  I Timothy 3:6,7  “Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization

Three Of The Devil’s Plans For Your Church

January 17, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

“Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”  II Corinthians 2:10-11 “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization, Theology

Welcome Home!  Meeting The Assimilation Challenges of 2024, Part Two

January 10, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

I hope you like the “horror” genre, because I have an assimilation horror story for you: A pastor friend of mine was visiting a congregation which was joyfully celebrating the ordination of the young man who was about to become his associate pastor.  During the service, the pastor announced that there would be a potluck […]

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Welcome Home!  Meeting The Assimilation Challenges of 2024

January 3, 2024 By Brian Thorstad

“People aren’t looking for a friendly church, they’re looking for friends in church.” Anonymous Most evangelical churches today sincerely desire to be friendly. Most evangelical churches today believe that they already are friendly. Most, in fact, believe that theirs is the “friendliest church in town,” and, of course, as a statistical reality, most have to […]

Filed Under: Church Health/Revitalization

A Christmas Story

December 26, 2023 By Brian Thorstad

Christmas of 1978 was turning out to be a tough one.  My dad had died suddenly in April.  My wife Donna had been “found to be with child” in September; bad news at first, but we got over it quickly, suspecting, in fact, that Donna was “with” 2 children, not just one.  As fall fell, […]

Filed Under: Theology, Uncategorized

The Menu From The Pastor Café, Part Two

December 13, 2023 By Brian Thorstad

“You can’t always get what you want. But if you try sometime, you’ll find, you get what you need.” The Rolling Stones Last week I began describing a tool that I developed a number of years ago to help pastoral search committees come to grips with what I term, “pastoral humanity,” or “pastoral limitations.” No […]

Filed Under: Pastoral Search Teams, Pastoral Transitions

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Testimonials

Pastor Darin Kirkman
I am so grateful to God for Brian, his ministry, and his friendship. As a result of his assessment and coaching, my church has experienced unmistakable, God-given renewal. We are increasingly living out our church's mission which is to love and glorify God by making disciples of Jesus Christ. This is clearly showing in terms of spiritual depth (i.e. more people are maturing as Christian disciples) and spiritual width (i.e. more people are becoming Christian disciples). Our communication is clearer, our structure is stronger, our leadership development process is better, our facility stewardship is more proactive, and our cultural mindset is now set on eagerly advancing the kingdom of God. I strongly recommend the Church Whisperer to you.

Pastor Darin Kirkman
Elder Jim I wanted to let you know that we have really made some huge changes in the last few months.  We are seeing new people every week and we had a leadership meeting with 23 in attendance. Pastor ______ is doing well and God is doing amazing things.  Thanks for your support, prayers and love for the church!
Elder Jim
A New Church-Goer ...thank you for your messages at [our church] over the past weeks.  I just started going to _____________ while you were there and hadn't been to church in decades.  Your messages kept me coming back...  Thank you for helping me find my way back to God.
A New Church-Goer
Pastor Trey Turner "Brian is an experienced and insightful investigator of church systems.  He has real skill in looking at and diagnosing some areas needing attention.  I benefited greatly from his insight.  As a result, our church is benefiting greatly.  The process Brian took us through gave it the encouragement it needed to begin coming out of the 2020 difficulties.  We will work on the insights Brian provided as a roadmap back to better health."
Pastor Trey Turner
Pastor Greg Lund I've appreciated so much Brian's very practical coaching as he's guided me and the leadership of our church as we've sought to become more effective for God's kingdom. His extensive experience in assisting churches navigate a variety of issues makes him highly qualified to help lead churches through congregational change.
Pastor Greg Lund
Pastor Bruce Jahnke
"Our church is extremely grateful for the insight, adaptability and wisdom Brian so graciously contributed to our needs as we transitioned.  Our pastor transition was from Father to Son, which is by definition, difficult.  Yet Brian was able to foresee issues, feelings and responses with high accuracy.  Brian is personable, yet can direct when he needs to help us be reasonable and vision-oriented."

Pastor Bruce Jahnke
Andy Shanholtz I had the privilege of co leading a pastor’s training group with Brian. Brian’s wealth of knowledge and practical experience was an asset to all of us. The interaction with the group and the relationships built was a great value. I highly recommend having Brian facilitate a group to provide invaluable resources and practical knowledge.
Andy Shanholtz
Pastor Jed Manders
Leadership development within cohorts and peer groups has become increasingly popular, and rightfully so. Being involved in Brian’s leadership training group allowed me the opportunity to work through challenges, develop strengths and learn from both reading and peer development.


Pastor Jed Manders
Pastor Mark Pitroff "I have been so privileged and encouraged to be ministered to by Brian Thorstad as I have served as an Interim Pastor here in central Wisconsin.  He has been such a help and encouragement to me and especially, to this church I have served - Faith Community Church of Waupaca.  His leadership in helping us develop the “Journey Wall” enabled us to look back on the church’s history, the high points as well as the difficulties faced, especially in recent years.   Brian has helped FCC recover from a very difficult time…  Brian was such an encouragement to us, especially in the early months of recovery and preparation."
Pastor Mark Pitroff
Pastor Dan Norman “I enjoyed getting to know the guys in the group [and] I appreciated the thought, mind and spiritual challenges presented… I found many things that I was able to immediately apply, and I am still developing next steps that much of the discussion and training of this class helped to build a foundation for. [The handouts on strategic planning] will continue to be helpful in trying to guide our church to being more intentional. This [was] exactly what I was looking for at exactly the time I needed it.”
Pastor Dan Norman
Pastor Steven Boyd  "This course showed me that I, as a solo pastor, have to do things that don’t come naturally to me and has given me some tools to do the hard things.”
Pastor Steven Boyd 
Pastor Brian Schley “I found value in our meetings and am grateful you invited me to be part of it as a ‘future senior pastor.’ I enjoyed being able to be part of the conversations and glean from those beyond me. Thanks for your leadership with the group and your heart for pastors!”
Pastor Brian Schley
Pastor Todd Sauve "It was a privilege to have been a part of a pastors group led by Brian Thorstad. It's always great to learn from other pastors, and someone needs to provide leadership to make that happen. I'm thankful that Brian was willing to do that, and to share from both his successes and failures in ministry. He's honest, humble, and cares about people."
Pastor Todd Sauve

Brian A. Thorstad

Call: 651-319-1953

Email: churchwhisperer@gmail.com

1931 Cook Avenue
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494

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