I don’t remember where I was or what I was doing when I got the news, or even who it was who shared it with me. But when I heard that the church that I’d helped to start in the 1970’s had closed its doors it saddened me greatly. At only twenty-two years old, I…
Solo Pastors: Here Are The Rest Of Those Ways To Keep Your Church From Killing You
I wasn’t trying to be sensational last week when I wrote about how churches with solo pastors often “kill” their pastors, in the sense of rendering them unable to continue effectively in local church ministry. I wasn’t trying to be confusing either, but it would have been better if I had clarified that I was…
Solo Pastors: Here Are 7 Ways To Keep Your Church From Killing You
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, Part Two
Two weeks ago we took on the question of whether or not America is being judged by God. I gave my readers ten ways in which this might be happening here at the beginning of 2023 and asked them to reach their own conclusions. Last week I followed that up with some thoughts about thriving…
Thriving In The Midst Of Chaos
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
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 Five – Working with God (And Some Proposed Resolutions)
Here at the end of 2022, I’m hearing the pain in the voices of news-following American Christians as they plaintively ask, “Where is God in all this? I want to see God working again!” It’s no coincidence that my friends are sounding a lot like the prophet Habakkuk. The seventh century BC prophet was deeply…
Churches And Politics: Part Four: Realistic Expectations
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
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
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…
Churches And Politics: Rethinking The Issue, Part One
For a number of years, I’ve urged pastors and churches to stay out of politics. While writing for a mega-blog, I tried twice to write posts about this subject. The editors were so concerned about staying away from politics that they wouldn’t print my posts about staying out of politics! (A bit extreme, I thought.)…
Three Ways To Engage Seniors In Your Ministry
With help from Pastors Mark Phillips, Scott Ehle and George King “Rise in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly, and revere your God. I am the LORD.” Leviticus 19:32 “Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as…
Pastors And Churches: Prepare Your Board For The Future
“…men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do-“ I Chronicles 12:32 “Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them.” Acts 6:3 Nobody wants to prepare for a crisis. It’s a lot of…
Too Big For Your Britches: How To Kill Your Small Church By Acting Like A Big Church
“God must love poor people; He made so many of them” Anonymous, but attributed to many sources Grownups had a saying when I was a child: “Don’t get too big for your britches!” It meant, “Don’t get too high an opinion of yourself” or “Don’t be proud and arrogant” or “Don’t pretend to be something…
The Ill-Fitting Staff Member: The Best Solution For Many Situations
“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: Four Possible Solutions
“It was he [the risen Christ] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers…” Ephesians 4:11 “…speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.” …
The Ill-Fitting Staff Member: How Does This Happen?
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
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?
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…
The Myth Of The Young Pastor
I’m not picking on young pastors. Not by any means. Young pastors (and their families) are wonderful. Nor am I picking on churches which like young pastors. Good for them. In fact, I want to commend every church on the planet which is aging but interested in younger pastors because they’re concerned about reaching the…
What We Can Learn From “New Pastor Revivals,” Conclusion
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…
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