I preach in a lot of churches. Sometimes the portion of worship prior to the sermon is superb, and sometimes it’s not so good. I admit that my assessment is entirely subjective.
I started full-time ministry at 20 years old, and I quickly grew enamored with the excitement and the perceived prestige of ministry. I would never have admitted it then, but I made ministry my idol – and I confess that I still run that risk this many years later.
Most of our churches have at least one – that is, a program that’s not working anymore. The activity goes on, but it’s now more a habit than a transformational ministry. Here are several options to address this kind of ministry:
It won’t surprise me if this post is not a popular one. Its topic is not a fun one. I get that.
The healthiest churches I know have small groups that are intentional about reaching non-believers. They set that goal, and they seek to reach lost people and then disciple new believers. At the same time, though, I’m reminded of reasons unchurched or newly-churched folks may be uncomfortable attending your small group.
Like every year for the past several years, I watched in 2024 as more church leaders fell into the trap of pornography. Here are some steps to defeating it.
Based on more than 25 years of working with church leaders, here are some characteristics of the most effective leaders I’ve known.
Here are some simple ways to move your congregation in that direction.
If you haven’t done a spiritual self-reflection yet this year, I encourage you to review the questions in this post to look at your life at an even deeper level.
Be aware of these signs that your church might be in trouble …
