Five Steps to Revitalization
For the life of me I don’t understand why anyone would try to revitalize a church. But I did and I’m glad I did. Still, when I consider that the vast majority of pastors who try either fail or lose their job, I have to wonder why they would try, or why I tried? I […]
Are 14 Steps for Making Disciples Too Daunting?
My wife and I were just not that “into” jewelry. Had nothing against jewelry. Just not interested. That is, until our Alaskan cruise. Due to masterful “discipleship” from several people, I am now a jewelry “believer.” I marvel at how intentional and insightful these people are at paving the way for bringing people from no […]
The Number One Problem with Western Christianity: McGavran and Disciple Making
We all know 85% of churches in the West are in decline, so I wont go into that other than to say I know the cause for this decline. The number one problem with Western Christianity rests on its misunderstanding of the Church Growth movement and the liberalization of the Western Church. Let me explain. […]
Our Changing World and the Church and Education
I was fortunate enough that my formative years experienced incremental change. I saw lots of changes, TV, commercial air travel, atomic bomb, A/C, cell phones to name just a few, but each of these changes took place slowly enough for me to adapt easily to them. I spent years watching black and white TV through […]
The Missing Piece for Making Disciples
It’s common for church people to resist the “ways of the world” when it impacts how we do church together. At The Effective Church Group, we are always ready for push back when we express practical advice which arises from the reality of how human nature works. We hear “It’ll never work; or it’s not […]
10 Things to Do to Lead a Turnaround
I was recently asked what advice I’d give to a pastor getting ready to start a new transformation effort in a small church that’s been in decline for years. Here are the top 10 things I recommended. Hand off everything you possibly can. Hand off regular hospital visitation, shut-in visitation, member care, etc. Instead, build […]