Be An Encourager Part 1

As Mother’s Day approaches I have been thinking about what an encourager my sweet mother, Lorraine was to me. From the time I was a small boy she told me that God had great things planned for me and she supported me, sacrificed for me and every day encouraged me in an attempt to […]

Reader Question

Sometimes we get questions from our Contact Us page. When we do, we try to answer the query. Sometimes, the question is broad enough that it warrants a blog post of its own. Such is the case with this query …

“I read your target audience post and it made sense to me. Given our […]

Is Your Worship Pre-Christian Ready?

Few churches know how to offer adequate hospitality to a non-Christian visitor. Being nice, loving, warm, and friendly isn’t the same thing as being hospitable. For instance, does your church bulletin use any of the following words:

InvocationBenedictionDoxologyPrayer ResponsePastoral PrayerHymnOfferingIntroitPreludePostludeor a host of others)

If so, then the bulletin isn’t pre-Christian ready because a […]

Thanksgiving Reclaimed

As church leaders there are a few holidays that must be observed faithfully and treated with the utmost respect they deserve. There is Christmas, the celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Then there is Easter, the day we recognize Jesus’ resurrection three days after being crucified. These are momentous […]

If You’ve Got to Herd Cats

You’ll Need a Big Mouse

It’s been six years in the creating, but it finally made it to print. Written by church consultant, pastor, and author Bill Tenny-Brittian, Big Mouse is the adventure of Pastor Kent Clark, a not-so-super pastor who’s been called to the Springfield Community Church.

It’s a great church.
It’s a great call.
Just […]

Halloween Outreach

Many churches have taken a stand against any kind of the celebrating Halloween because the darkness the day and night may promote. “Because Halloween can be traced to distinctly pagan sources, it is reasonable that many believers would find some aspects of its celebration disturbing”. According to Focus on the Family’s founder, Dr. James […]

The Future Of Your Church

Is the future of your sitting in your pews?

Maybe
… but probably not.

The future of your church isn’t the legacy generation. Your seniors, whether Boomers or Builders, have largely brought your church to where it is – for better or worse. But they won’t be around in a few years, most haven’t invited anyone to […]

Make This Father’s Day Service Special

Let’s face it, Father’s Day is the Rodney Dangerfield of holidays. It’s the, “I get-no-respect” little brother to Mother’s Day. Interestingly, the American version of Father’s Day was first proposed in 1909 by a grateful daughter, Sonora Smart Dodd. Her father, a Civil War veteran, singlehandedly raised six children after his wife died in […]

Disciple More by Leveraging What You’re Already Doing

Every week, thousands of pastors spend hours and hours creating a sermonic masterpiece that will be heard once by fewer than 60 people.
Every week, tens of thousands of Sunday school classes will meet to educate and ostensibly disciple less than a dozen people.

The same goes for Bible studies, small group studies, and so on.

All […]