Why You Need a Preaching Calendar in 2021 Read More Of the pastors we surveyed, we found that most of them did not plan their preaching more than two weeks out. In fact, only 9% of them planned more than two months out. We think having an entire year’s sermon calendar planned out is a…
Much of the theme in the book of Daniel has to do with the pride of King Nebuchadnezzar. I mean, when you dream about statues of yourself that the entire world can see and bow down to, you’ve got a pride problem. Daniel enters the story as a captive in Babylon. He is good-looking, top…
The financial difficulties many churches are currently facing can be traced directly back to the pastors who are leading them. If you’re a pastor of a church that’s struggling financially, you probably don’t want to hear that, but in most cases it’s true. The pastor sets the financial tone for the church. Some pastors have…
A.A. Milne, the creator of the Winnie the Pooh series, wrote a short conversation between Piglet and Pooh. “I’m scared,” said Piglet. “A story will help,” said Pooh. “How?” “Don’t you know? Stories make your heart grow.” Church Leader, Look for the Stories In his simple, childlike way, Winnie the Pooh reminds us of the power…
A few weeks ago, my wife and son and I were waiting in a doctor’s office. Being a pediatric office, the staff obviously knew the struggle to keep a little toddler occupied while they waited to see the doctor and had placed a foosball table in the waiting room. Having only seen a foosball table…
Have you ever been in a situation and you knew the right thing to do, but that was the last thing you wanted to do? If you’re a leader of any kind, you face enormous decisions every day. Decisions that determine the path your church will take, decisions that will alter people’s livelihoods financially. The…
Do you remember where you were the first time you saw an “I love my church” t-shirt? I can’t remember the first place I saw it, but I know I loved the idea. What a great way to market the church, and express our love. We called up our t-shirt company right away and got…
Leadership is messy. You don’t have to have a degree in leadership or work a long time with people to figure that out. This isn’t just within the Church, but pretty much everywhere. Ask anyone who is leading other people if they think it’s easy and neat, and they’ll tell you that it’s not. People…
Recently, Pope Francis released a letter to Chilean Bishops. While I think there are serious issues left in the Catholic Church that must be reconciled and restored, I thought there were some powerful statements in this letter and lessons I can learn. Read the full letter here. Here is the excerpt that jumped off the page…
I’m sure you’re leveraging social media to further your ministry. If you’re not, you should be. Jesus hung out at wells because wells were the social gathering places in ancient communities. He knew He would connect with people there. Social media is today’s digital “well.” It’s where our people are, so it’s where we need…
People leave churches for all kinds of reasons. They might move, their kids get older, their schedules change, the church moves to locations. They also leave for theological reasons. Maybe a new pastor has a different bent on an important theological point. They may have changed the version of the Bible they preach from (not kidding…
Have you ever asked yourself that question? It’s obvious that not all pastors are the same. We all have different gifts and different experiences that have shaped us into who we are. Sure, each one of us has similarities but we’re also unique in our own way. I think that’s one of the things that…
It’s time to retire the old mantra, “If you want it done right, you’ve got to do it yourself.” No doubt this includes ministers and pastors. We are not called to get it right and do it on our own. We are clearly called by God to equip His people for works of service. Now these…
In elementary school, I won first place in the 4-H baking contest. My mom didn’t have time to make homemade cornbread, so she took out a box of Jiffy Cornbread and the rest was history. I actually had no part in the actual making of the cornbread, but regardless, I still received the coveted blue…
This is the third and final post in my short series on Leading Change (Part 1 | Part 2). Leading change in the church isn’t easy. It requires great boldness. But that boldness must be born out of brokenness. We must be broken by the gap between what could be and what is. That brokenness…
All of us build our lives on something. All leaders are building their ministries and leadership on something. And that something is the thing that determines what our lives become. The people we become, the places we go, and the impact that we make. The problem for us is many of us never stop to…
My senior year of high school was a good year for me. It was spring of my senior year and I had worked hard at my football craft. It paid off when I was invited to the Central Illinois All-Star Football Game. I played wide receiver but split time with players from all over the…
Picture this: you and your team have a full day with a few church leaders you respect the most. They don’t live in the same area as you do, so this is a rare occasion. So… What do you ask them? Maybe the situation is a bit different and you’re at a conference and there’s…
Many preachers aren’t administratively minded. I know that is a total over simplification of people and pastors, but generally speaking, my experience finds that to be a true statement. It seems as though, when your brain is wired to be a story teller and inspire people, it’s not wired to manage tasks or projects. On…
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Jealousy. Envy. We all feel it. We look at people in our field of work, we look at other parents, other athletes and wish we had what they had. We want someone else’s career, their platform, notoriety, success. But do we? Why is that such a big deal? The longer I think about this and…
I have had the privilege of leading a church of 220-250 partners through two three-year capital campaigns which raised over 1.2 million dollars for the sake of major building renovations and improvements. Privilege… Privilege? Depending on the day, that may or may not be the word I would use to describe this experience. Some days…
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There is an explosion happening to how people consume content. Many people’s commutes, exercise sessions, and grass mowing is accompanied by audio in the form of podcasts. As an avid podcast listener and on-and-off-again podcaster, I know the power of podcasting. But what used to be something people were unfamiliar with has now become a thing…
Ministry is a full plate. And sometimes it can be overwhelming. Counseling session here. Sermon prep there. Develop some leaders here. Board meeting there. Future planning here. Staff coaching there. Volunteer coaching here. The list, as you know, can go on and on. If you feel like you struggle to get the most out of…
This is the second in my short series of articles about leading change in our churches. In my first post, I talked about how brokenness and boldness are always connected. You can be broken without being bold, but you can never be bold without being broken. Boldness without brokenness is arrogance. Arrogance never builds God’s…
You know the drill. You set a goal. A really big one. One that will stretch you, challenge you. It’s hard. Really hard. When we stretch ourselves, often we believe that we will succeed. We see a goal: losing weight, a promotion, saving money, starting a business or a church, and we think, “I can…
If you’re anything like me, you need to focus. There are times when you need to hunker down and get things done. Yet, your mind wanders. You daydream or think about what will happen later today or tomorrow. It could be a conversation, a meeting or a vacation you can’t wait to start. Your lack…
Leadership is difficult. Leadership isn’t for the faint of heart or the person who wants to have everyone like them all of the time. It requires a solid backbone and a solid sense of security and confidence. Leading in a church may be the most difficult. Depending on church structure, leading at a church could…
Target left bunch, Philly special. That’s the name of the play that the Philadelphia Eagles ran near the end of the first half in Super Bowl LII. It’s the play that shocked the New England Patriots, not to mention the rest of the world. It was fourth down. Eagles coach, Doug Pederson, decided to go…
What is leadership? We all have a word image that pops into our minds when we hear that word. Maybe it’s someone you’ve admired from a distance that, when you think of a leader, you think of them. Maybe that someone who comes to your mind is a mentor you had in the ministry. Someone…
You want to reach the unchurched. At least I hope you do. Isn’t that why we got into this ministry gig in the first place? To love and reach people with the gospel? If that’s not what it’s about, then let’s just get out now. There have to be easier ways to make a living,…
At some point, we are tempted to quit something. It might be a job, a church plant, a team, a diet or workout plan, a book, a degree program or even a difficult marriage. Why? Because we’re human, and when things get difficult, many of us want to pack up and go home. When You’re…
Leadership isn’t only about reacting to what happens, but it’s, more importantly, about anticipating what will likely happen. But how do we do that? Even more, how do we as church leaders avoid the allure of the pendulum swing when it comes to ministry strategy? How do we navigate a rapidly changing world that will…
Many pastors and churches like the theology of the Apostle Paul but not his drive and urgency. Let me explain before you get mad. The Drive of the Apostle Paul (and a Pastor) In many church circles, the Apostle Paul is held up as a theologian of theologians. In the reformed world, the book of…
I started vocational ministry as an idealist. I was young; still a teenager, actually. I was naive, not understanding the harsh realities of church work. Now, 21 years later, I’m a grizzled veteran. I’ve seen the church at her best. I’ve seen the church at her worst. And I’ve come to realize that there are…
Christmas Eve (and the Christmas season in general) has surpassed Easter as the most likely time for first-time guests to visit our churches. We need to plan accordingly. Going through Advent this Christmas? Click here for everything you need to know about preaching an Advent Sermon Series. Here are five tips to help us all…
It seems like everywhere you turn in the Christian world right now, someone is talking about the Enneagram. There are books, podcasts, and blogs popping up everywhere. I was first introduced to it two years ago as part of a leadership training I did with Katie through Crosspoint. If you aren’t familiar, here’s a helpful…
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