Afghanistan and Declining Churches
I’ve noticed a comparison between what is going on in Afghanistan and what happens in most dying churches. Dying churches usually have some money saved up. In fact I have helped close some churches with money in the bank. The problem is that the leaders will slowly dole out just enough money to keep the […]
Never Enough Leaders
It seems that the leading cause of flagging small group ministries is the consistent lack of available small group leaders. Depending on the size of the church, we always recommend starting a new small group (or Sunday school class) between semi-annually and monthly. These new groups are necessary to accommodate new people who would find […]
Why Do Churches Wait until It’s Almost Too Late?
One of the things I’ve noticed over my years of consulting is that most declining churches wait until it’s almost too late to try to stop their decline. They will watch their worship attendance decline some 50-60% over a ten-year period and do nothing about it. But here’s the kicker – they won’t do anything about it until the […]
You Reflect Yourself Better Than You Think
I’m in the final throes of writing a recommendation report for a congregation I did a consultation with. While making a recommendation for the church to better define their values, I got distracted by discussing the difference between one’s beliefs and one’s values. I’ve long said that beliefs drive values and values drive beliefs, but […]
Three Fatal Staffing Mistakes
There aren’t many mistakes staff can make that are cause for immediate termination. However, when I was a pastor and we had a staff of 68 people, there are three mistakes, that no matter what the circumstance, that would cause me to fire the staff person without any conversation other than, “you’re fired!” Here are those three reasons: A serious […]
Hijacked by Modernity, Democracy, and Robert’s Rules of Order
What ever happened to the guidance of the Holy Spirit when it comes to making decisions in the church? Do we really believe that voting on something is the way to go? Shouldn’t we be trying to discern God’s will rather than the will of the congregation? Are academic credentials really more important than charismatic, […]