Is Church a Verb or Noun?
Is the word “church” a noun or a verb? How you answer this question explains whether you understand the Gospel or have totally missed its point. So let’s start by asking a question –“Which image best portrays a church?” Which one did you pick? By the conversations of most Christians it would appear to be […]
Live by Consensus and Die from Constipation
I don’t know how long it has been going on; it started before my time. But it has become honed in the past fifty years. I’m referring to the passion for consensus in many of our churches today. So many are afraid to act without finding out where everyone in the church stands on the […]
4 Ways Your Greeters Make Guests Feel Welcome
When it comes to first-time visitors, you may be surprised to learn that perhaps the most influential person your guests will meet isn’t your worship leader. It’s not the choir director, Christian education leader, or the board chair. It’s not even your pastor. Believe it or not, probably the most influential person your first-timers meet is your church greeter. […]
The Secret to Effective Ministry
The world is changing dramatically. Pastors have been trained to do spiritual care. But now the goal is leadership – whatever that really means in a church. Do you struggle with what it looks like to be a leader in the church? Do you have secret moments when you feel like a failure, when you […]
Put an End to Zombie Ministries
No, I’m not talking about pulling your support from zombie runs (though hopefully you have better things to do with your church’s resources). I’m talking about those ministries that probably got started years and years ago but have failed to bear sufficient fruit (but that keep on going and going and going anyway). The children’s […]
Selma
Last night I watched Selma. It’s hard to believe our country was ever like that. But I remember when I was a young kid of 17 or 18. In the summers I drove an 18-wheeler cross country to help pay for school. On the really long trips there would be two drivers, and usually I would be […]