Helping Churches Thrive

A Ministry of Church Health Consulting

Solo Pastors: Here Are 7 Ways To Keep Your Church From Killing You

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I’m not trying to be sensational: honest. Nor am I suggesting that churches deliberately, literally, kill their solo pastors. I am saying that churches with solo pastors often, inadvertently, “kill” their pastors, in the sense of rendering them unable to continue effectively in local church ministry. Here’s one line of evidence for this: health insurance.  […]

Thriving In The Midst Of Chaos

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Last week I tackled the ominous question of whether or not America is being judged by God, right now. I gave you ten ways in which this might be happening here at the beginning of 2023. I know.  This is serious stuff.  So serious that, I’m sorry to say, many churches just won’t “go there.” […]

Ten Ways God Might Be Judging America Right Now

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Let me make this clear right away: I’m neither prophet nor the son of a prophet. I am a lover of history, an observer of current events and – above all else – a worshiper of God and a student of the Bible. I’m not making prophetic pronouncements on God’s behalf, but I think we […]

Churches And Politics: Part Four: Realistic Expectations

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This is my fourth in what will be a series of five posts, through which I’m seeking to offer congregations some hands-on help with the thorny issue of churches and political involvement. I’m hoping that church leaders will study my propositions, debate the details, and come up with their own, unity-enhancing resolutions for their congregations. […]

Churches And Politics: Rethinking The Issue, Part Three

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The following is my third post in a series, through which I’m seeking to offer church leaders and congregations, some hands-on help with the thorny issue of churches and political involvement. I’m hoping that church leaders will study my propositions, debate the details, and come up with their own, unity-enhancing position papers for their congregations. […]

Churches And Politics: Rethinking The Issue, Part Two

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Perhaps you’ve noticed that it’s becoming increasingly difficult for pastors and churches to simply “stay out of politics.”  As our nation strays farther and farther from a Judeo-Christian world view, an increasing number of Biblical-moral-ethical issues have become societal and even political issues. Our church members are grappling with these developments all week long, and […]

The Ill-Fitting Staff Member: The Best Solution For Many Situations

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“A change will do you good” From the song by Sheryl Suzanne Crow, Sheryl Crow, Jeffrey Trott and Brian Mcleod  “…dig up your unplowed ground…” From Jeremiah 4:3 and Hosea 10:12 I’ve written two posts now on the subject of ill-fitting staff members: church employees who – however gifted and dedicated – never were or […]

The Ill-Fitting Staff Member: How Does This Happen?

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Like an ill-fitting pair of shoes, ill-fitting staff members make for painful experiences for both the staff members themselves as well as the churches they serve.  It’s not easy to address these situations, but it’s important that we face the facts and get these individuals re-trained or re-deployed. Today’s post will be the first of […]

Full Disclosure Vs. No Disclosure: Part Two

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Last week I wrote about the conundrum of what to tell a congregation when a staff member has resigned or been dismissed under less-than-ideal conditions. We explored the options of: Full disclosure – Telling a congregation the gory details of the departed staff member’s failures, or No disclosure – Saying nothing publicly about the departure, […]

Full Disclosure Vs. No Disclosure: How Much Should We Tell?

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Here’s the scenario: Your church’s youth director has just resigned.  He was well-liked and seemed to be effective.  Most of the church has no idea what went on behind the scenes.  Only a few leaders know that there were character issues, accountability issues, communication issues, philosophy-of-ministry issues and eventually, personal issues between the senior pastor […]

What We Can Learn From “New Pastor Revivals,” Conclusion

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Last week I wrote about “new pastor revivals,” those wonderful seasons of new enthusiasm and excitement that follow the installation of a new parson in an old parsonage. I mentioned that while it’s not usually a “revival” in the historic sense of a powerful movement of the Holy Spirit among a group of Christians, it’s […]

What We Can Learn From “New Pastor Revivals”

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Many years ago, my wife and I observed that churches with new pastors frequently experience new excitement, new enthusiasm and new growth.  At some point we coined the term, “new pastor revival.” Of course, it’s not usually “revival” in the historic sense of a powerful movement of the Holy Spirit among a group of Christians […]

Four Ways To Reform Your Killer Committees

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Criminal justice experts debate whether those guilty of homicide can be reformed. Conservatives tend to say “no,” liberals tend to say “yes,” and Christians often say that since regeneration transforms the worst of us into new individuals, that fact should at least be taken into consideration by parole boards. But that’s not my area of […]

Testimonials

Brian A. Thorstad

Call: 651-319-1953

Email: churchwhisperer@gmail.com

1931 Cook Avenue
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494

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