The First Memorial Day

Memorial Day is when we honor the men and women of our Armed Services who have made the supreme sacrifice giving their lives for their country.

Today I am reminded of the film “Saving Private Ryan” in which James Ryan, now in his seventies, has returned with his family to a military cemetery in Normandy […]

No Summer Slump Here

For most of my life as a Chicago Cubs baseball fan I have had a problem.
My team would start off every season full of hope and expectation, only to come crashing down painfully by the end of May. In years past I would say to myself,” I guess it’s just a summer slump.”
Summer slumps […]

Dinosaurs to Rabbits: Turning Mainline Decline into a Multiplication Movement

Mainline Christianity has been in a free fall decline since the mid 1960s.  Some want to blame it on a changing culture; others say it’s the way all organizations go sooner or later; while others just throw up their hands and give up the ghost.

The truth is, we don’t believe any of these excuses […]

The Six Most Common Mistakes Pastors Make and What to do About Them

Over the years I’ve seen pastors make the same mistakes over and over. Every time I see these mistakes I can almost bet their church is declining. So I thought I would share with you the six most common mistakes I see pastors doing and what to do about it.

Mistake Number One: Not making […]

The Basic Law of Congregational Life

Over the past twenty-five years I’ve worked with almost seven hundred churches of all sizes and locations. Most in the U.S. but some in Canada, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, and Ghana. And one overarching truth has emerged from my experiences in these churches – I call this truth  The Basic Law of Congregational Life. […]

Is Christmas Becoming Like Easter?

It’s an exciting time to be a pastor.  It’s equally exciting to be a consultant.  You have to stay on your toes.  These times are changing from moment to moment.

For some time, the Effective Church Group has referenced Easter as Alumni Sunday, meaning that it’s a time when members who rarely attend worship may […]

6 Essentials of Church Hospitality

My wife and I went on our first cruise.  It was a well oiled machine.  They were prepared for serving meals to 2800 people.  “Free” ice cream almost 24/7!  A staff member always in sight to make your experience great.  A highlight was the towel art on our bed each evening which was in […]

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? […]

Church of Tomorrow – Invested and Committed

My wife and I just completed a trip that we wanted to do since we were kids.  We went to Alaska, land of 10,000 blogs (BTW – Alaska has 3 million lakes; sorry Minnesota).

The first part of the trip was a cruise up the inside passage.  There’s a reason that you are told to […]