The absence of adequate and regular field support makes for casualties and AWOLS on the spiritual battlefield of rural missions.
All in Church
Boxing Day Sermon
So, the question before us on Dec. 26 (or on any other day) is, “What does Immanuel (God with us) mean today?”
When God Shows up for Christmas
The story of Jesus entering into the world is a story of God disrupting the lives and plans of those God chose.
Living Stones: Recognizing the DNA of Your Church
A living and missionally-focused congregation must attend to all of its being – relational and programmatic. Ignoring one dimension or the other will diminish the whole!
Envisioning the Dream of Ministry
We must have a vision of possibilities for the future. Local congregations ought to consider how they are helping others develop a vision for ministry.
Advent: A Season of Vulnerability
The season of Advent culminates in the arrival of God in the form of a very vulnerable Jesus.
3 Steps to Keep Your Children's Ministry Clique Free
My focus for this post is not why cliques are created, but how to dismantle a clique and how to create a culture in your ministry where bullying and cliques are unacceptable.
The Crossroads of Life and Death
The nearness of death fills the room, yet somewhere there is the joy and promise of a new beginning.
Do Not Let Baby Jesus Become Jesus Lite
If baby Jesus is all we present, we are showing a “lite” version of Jesus, and babies do not demand that you deny yourself, take up a cross, and follow them.
Going to Church on Christmas
Christmas on Sunday puts church leaders in a Solomon-type predicament where we fear our only option is to make people decide between Christmas at home or keeping their commitment to church worship.
Ministry in Turbulent Times
With so much craziness in the air, what are leaders to do? Hand-wringing or trying to retreat to some happier time will not serve the people of God or God’s mission in the world.
Dear Sunday School Teachers
You are the ones who often find yourselves on the frontlines of ministry, navigating tricky pastoral issues, coordinating care, and offering compassion.
An Invitation for Children to Participate in Worship
I will submit to the importance of the entire body of Christ (yes, this includes children), meeting on a basis that is in congruence of the health of the congregation.
Once Bitten, Twice Shy
The book itself is a type of spiritual memoir, which seems to never really go out of style as a genre, but is also a brutal commentary on evangelical Christianity.
Social Media to Sanctuary: Moving the Conversation to the Pews
Jesus calls us into the uncomfortable to lift the voices of those previously unheard—so that when we hear #metoo, we can boldly respond with #nomore.
Small Church: Big Work
We were always at churches that employed two of fewer ministers, and this led us to find creative ways to accomplish the goals before us.
Relationships and Leadership
How might elders and ministers develop stronger relational ties with each other and their congregations?
The Way of The Cross
We must join Christ on the cross and see the world and all of humanity through the event of the crucifixion. We see the world from the cross, just as Jesus did.
Small Churches and the God of the Poor
Small churches can be a part of this meaningful ministry, and faithfully reflect Jesus’s own ministry is what we are called to--nothing less, nothing more.
Unarmed Empire: A Book Review
It must be written by someone who loves the church with the clear-eyed vision of a prophet, the quiet confidence of a mystic, and the careful delivery of a preacher.