I write this letter with an aching heart. I have heard the pain in the voices of so many of you, wondering if it is time to “shake the dust off” and leave your local church. As your bishop, I cannot ask you to stay in a place where your soul cannot be at rest. However, I will share with you why I, a
Daybreak Fellowship blends language of addiction recovery with Christian worship
How can your church help millennials see the value in church as a way to grow closer to God?
What makes us happy? A United Methodist pastor and a professor agree that it is not about externals we receive or achieve, but an 'inside job.'
Are you looking for inspiration for how to volunteer for Heifer International with your church? Need some direction in how to impact the fight to end hunger and poverty even though you may live very far from your closest Heifer representative? Look no further than a church that has been working with Heifer for the past 72 years, and yet still continues to surprise us with their generosity and spirit of compassion.
Like it or not, consumer culture has shaped people’s expectations for church, and this is more true for Millennials than any other generation. So what do they think of church? What pushes them away and draws them in? And when they do visit a church, how are they hoping to be approached?
In an era of evangelicalism where there are church ministries built around the idea of “family,” marriage has become the focus of countless books and sermons and “family friendly” entertainment has become synonymous with “Christian” entertainment, is there a risk of distorting what the biblical inte
I grew up in the Church. No really, I grew up in the church.<br>As a pastor’s kid, I spent countless hours in church and doing church activities. I am a church native and familiar with all its quirks and cultural oddities, with all its strengths and all its failings. As the son of prominent evangelic
Is our obsession with big churches rooted in mission our just our desire for “big”?
So how do you engage older church attendees… say people over age 50? The question’s been around a long time. And, as most church leaders could tell you, it’s a bit of a loaded question. It’s also a question I’m...Read More→
Every church should be thinking about how to reach the dechurched
Churches must understand—and move toward—an outward focus
And while they don’t want to go to church, they’re likely up for attending other church activities with you, LifeWay reports.
Through research and real stories, this guidebook offers church leaders a plan for developing and nurturing church environments that are psychologically and spiritually healthy.
When leadership changes, so do churches. A pastor who has been there before shares lessons learned and tips to make things work well right from the start.
Many actually don’t want the church to be like a sceney bar or a stylish boutique.
“I just don’t feel like people take me seriously.”<br>I’ve heard this statement a lot lately. Recently, I was talking with a friend who is burnt out and just plain tired of church. She said, “I’m done trying to get people to take me and my faith seriously.”<br>I kind of don’t blame her. Our church cultu
It is a simple question. What do you hear from your church members that gives you the greatest encouragement?
I used to go to church to make fun of Pastors. No joke. I would take notes as they preached and wait behind to tell them the 15 ways they were wrong. Not o