Christmas Ideas
It’s not too early to begin thinking about what you’re going to do to capitalize on the pagan holiday known as Christmas. Yes, you heard me correctly – Christmas is a pagan holiday. But contrary to what you might think, its status as a pagan holiday makes it an even more valuable evangelism tool than you think. […]
Why Most Church Consultations Don’t Make a Long-Term Difference
We at 21st Century Strategies have been doing church consultations for over twenty-three years and we’ve had the opportunity to study why some churches thrive after a consultant has done their job and why other churches fail. Conversations with other church consultants reveal a lot of the same data. Here’s the bottom line: for most […]
UMC Portal Report
My tribe just conducted a survey of 36,000 United Methodist Churches (UMCs) only to find what many of us have been teaching for over two decades. Here is a quote from the report from the UM Portal survey. “United Methodist congregations that are thriving have a few things in common—whether large or small, urban or […]
How Effective Is Your Church’s Website?
The number is climbing, but here’s the most commonly reported stat: at least 85 percent of first-time church guests visit a congregation’s website before they make their initial visit. For some of you, this should be a terrifying thought. Recently, I’ve visited church websites that are still advertising Easter Sunrise Services, introducing their new pastor […]
Responding to First-Time Visitors
There is an old myth that says it is best if lay people make the first call to first-time visitors. Well, that’s just what it is – a myth. Up until a church reaches 500 or 600 in worship, it should be the pastor. Many effective pastors like Adam Hamilton and yours truly made sure to […]
Heads Up about The Nines
This is a heads-up about a great event coming up on September 9 called The Nines. This is its second year. The only change is that every video will be under 6 minutes and they will be from some of the best church leaders in the country – and yes, I am one of the speakers. […]