Report of decline – what to do
Friday, April 24th, 2009Ed Stetzer is an unassuming individual who deeply cares about the body of Christ and specifically about the local church and poured his entire career into helping them grow. He has posted a most insightful blog post about the recent annual church profile of the Southern Baptist Denomination. This post entitled “denomination in decline” is worthy of your time to read and while it reflects Southern Baptist data, there are lessons to be learned by churches with other labels.
Oops, I missed one
Friday, April 17th, 2009You can hide eggs in really cool places in the house, like under the recliner, between the seat cushions on the couch, and inside flower vases. Finding them indoors took a lot longer because of the tricky hiding spots. I loved hiding them indoors. About the Friday after Easter we often began noticing a distinct odor in the living room. [More...] We quickly determined that I had missed finding one of those eggs. It is amazing the stink that can come from one small elusive colored “fowl egg.”
April 15 – Go ahead, ignore the deadline!
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009April 15 is a deadline no wise taxpayer can ignore. Various people view deadlines differently. Deadlines are not very compelling and this results in their starting task just hours before it is needed. This lack of preparation and forethought causes mistakes that are often costly. For others the deadline holds no real fear because they knocked out the task long before the looming deadline got close.
“A friend loveth at all times”
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009I began to think about how should we respond when someone falls on the spiritual battlefield. If you are like me, [More...] first emotions often are shock, hurt, anger, disappointment, or being indignant. We often begin to distance ourselves from them, talk about them rather than to them, and we play the role of the Holy Spirit. At times, we do this in the name of protecting our reputation by disassociation. We, as men, are really good at defining our lives by our professional role and if anything jeopardizes that role we shy away from it. Sadly this leaves people suffering on the battlefield alone. Even pastors’ kids suffer from their fathers being immersed in ministry success roles and earning good professional reputations without regard for personal collateral damage.
What is critical in local church ministry?
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009Lifeway research shows – “Congregations with fewer than 100 in worship attendance are significantly more likely to list evangelism/outreach as an important ministry (72 percent) than churches with 250 or more in attendance (60 percent). On the other hand, midsize churches (worship attendance between 100 and 249) are significantly more likely to list children’s or youth ministry as critical (90 percent) than churches that are smaller (83 percent) or larger (81 percent).”
