One of the most engaging and invite-friendly types of sermon series you can preach is one where you answer the questions everyone is asking in their heads. If you want people to invite their friends, if you want people to talk about the sermon with their co-workers, You Asked for It is a great sermon series…
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…
Wade Bearden thought he had faith figured out. But after watching friends die, losing two jobs, and seeing his own father diagnosed with cancer, Wade found his faith failing. Somehow, along the way, he had traded an ancient, powerful Christianity for a Christianity made in the image of success and well-being. In his book and…
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…
No preacher will ever say, I don’t want another sermon illustration to add to my toolbox. Why? Because sermon illustrations show and tell. They bring flavor and color to a point of truth. Lane Sebring of PreachingDonkey.com says that you need to teach, illustrate, and apply every point you make. Most preachers have no trouble with teaching and…
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…
Every youth pastor knows that middle school and high school are times of serious spiritual warfare. Everywhere students turn, they are being confronted by evil and that evil is always seeking to lure them in. We want to help. That’s why we put together our new youth sermon series, Reality: The Battle Between Good and Evil….
It feels like more and more our culture is becoming more and more divisive. Whether it is politics, religion, sexuality, race. Everyone has a take, an opinion and we shout it as loud as we can from every corner of our lives and social media. One of the saddest things for me is watching the…
Whenever we see a villain in a movie, in a book, or in real life, we rarely think, that could be me. Instead, we often let the pendulum swing the opposite way and think, that would never be me. But what if becoming the villain is easier than we really think? In our new sermon series called, Becoming…
By Scott Magdalein, founder of TrainedUp If the fuel of leadership is vision then the engine is communication. A compelling vision without great communication is like a bus full of fuel with a busted engine. It’s not going far. Humor me on this engine metaphor for a moment. If you’ve ever popped the hood of…
In Christ, we have been set free. But what does freedom in Christ mean? Does that mean we can do whatever we want? That’s what freedom is. Or is it? For many people, these questions are swirling around in their minds and hearts. And you can address them through our new series, Snapshot. This four-week series…
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…
Have you ever encountered false teaching? Of course, you have. The apostle Paul did too and he spent a good bit of the New Testament addressing it. So what if your congregation was able to thoughtfully evaluate bad theology in a way that is consistent with the New Testament? What if your congregation was able…
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…
The book of Ezra is powerful. In it, we see God do what only He can do: reclaim and redeem His people. In our sermon series, Reclaim: The Book of Ezra, you’ll be able to walk your congregation through this powerful book and apply it to their lives today. This five-week series addresses what God did…
Friendship. This is a subject that many adults don’t do well in. Many men admit that they don’t have many if any good friends and admit to being lonely. Many adults just don’t know how to do the friend thing. But being a good friend is important as followers of Christ. This is why we’re…
I believe that every leader wants to create a healthy culture in their environment, whether they are in the ministry or church world, or they come from a business background. You are no different. You want a healthy church culture. I don’t know any ministry leaders who say, “Yeah, I’m fine with an unhealthy culture…
People want community. Look no further than the host of social networks we hear about seemingly on a daily basis and you’ll see that people want to be with other people. People are searching for community and what it brings in to their life. The truth is, it’s a godly thing to want community. God…
God’s love is extravagant. He pursues those who are lost. He welcomes those who return to him. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares deeply for His sheep. And when someone encounters that truth, their lives may change forever. This is why we’re excited about our sermon series, The Pursuit: God’s Steadfast Love. Using Jesus’s parables of…
On any given week of the year, thousands of people will be making the walk from their car to the entrance of a church for the very first time. For some, it will be the first time they’ve ever set foot in a church, and for others, it will be their first time trying out…
Leadership blogger and author, Brian Dodd, has partnered with Ministry Pass to provide a fantastic resource for pastors. His book, Timeless has been turned into a powerful sermon series on leadership. I got to sit down with him and talk about his heart for pastors, his book, his partnership with Ministry Pass, and why all pastors…
Over the years I have worked in a small church, a medium church, and now at a 1,500 person multi-site. As I struggled at times trying to get the thing to grow, my list of needs was long. Usually, my needs were coming from my own guessing and at times from well-intentioned people around me….
Do you want to get Ministry Pass for a year for FREE?!?! (Value $499) We are giving away a one year, unlimited access membership to Ministry Pass. With this membership, you get access to our library of sermon series, sermon illustrations, church media and so much more! To enter this contest is very simple: Register…
What happens when our emotions get the best of us? Does the Bible speak of joy, sadness, anger, and sorrow? If so, what does that look like? These are questions that all of us ask. And thankfully, the Bible speaks to our emotions. In our new sermon series, Songs of the Summer, we’re diving right in…
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…
What if more Christians were able to see evangelism, not as some intimidating task, but as part of the rhythm of following Jesus and loving people? Our new sermon series, One Small Step can be an enormous aid in seeing that come to pass. This four-week series explores how evangelism relates more to our identity and…
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…
Life is full of change and transitions. Oftentimes, transition exposes cracks in our faith – those places where we’re not fully trusting God. But through the difficulty of change, we can still rely on God and that’s why we’re excited about our new sermon series, In Transit. This five-week series explores characters from the Bible who…
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…
The New Testament makes it clear: we don’t need to try and level up, we need to hit game over so that we can live a new life. When the crowds followed after Jesus, he would turn to them and tell them they must deny themselves in order to be His followers. We know His…
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…
What if more students were telling their friends about what Jesus was up to in their lives? What if more students had a holistic picture of what evangelism really is all about? That would be powerful and this is why we’re excited about this new youth sermon series: Followers. This four-week student series explores how evangelism…
Much of Jesus’ preaching and teaching was showing his listeners his points rather than just saying them. He used sermon illustrations all the time. And we should too. Often times, though, it can be a struggle to come up with good sermon illustrations. But it doesn’t have to be that way. The Prerequisite for Finding…
Humility. Wisdom. Servanthood. Imagine if more people were characterized by those qualities. In a time when social media is at its peak, self-centeredness is common across all ages. That, combined with all the challenges students face can create a recipe for a perpetual focus on oneself. But that’s not the way of Jesus. Jesus calls…
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…
What does it look like to follow Jesus? It looks like grit. It looks like radical obedience in a world that is radically disobedient. It means going against the grain, against the tide, against the direction of the raging river of culture. That is why we believe this new series for students, Grit: Radical Obedience,…
