As we enter the last stretch of 2020, we want to share what we’re seeing and learning about pastors and congregations across the country. I’m sure we’ll get into to some nuts and bolts analysis of these themes in the coming weeks, but I simply...
Over the past week, many of us have held our breath as we awaited results from the election. In the agonizing period between Tuesday and Saturday, I must have hit refresh on the blue-and-red map a thousand times. Never have four days felt longer. Yet, many...
One of the strong impressions this year has made on me is the growing distrust – or disdain – of words. There are active attempts to undermine the words of those in positions of responsibility. But there is something more personal involving so much hard...
Macedonian Ministry Foundation has received a grant of $1,000,000 from Lilly Endowment Inc. to help establish and build collaborative, adaptive, and joyful congregations. The program is funded through Lilly Endowment’s Thriving Congregations Initiative. The aim of the national initiative is to strengthen Christian congregations so they...
Growing up my mother always warned us, “There’s no safe place down here.” Whenever we went to her for an explanation of something crazy happening in the world she reminded us that this world is not our home and safety wasn’t hers to give. Yesterday...
2020 is one for the books for sure. We have all been riding this ridiculous rollercoaster for months now and are likely worn thin by worry and anxiety. Our souls are disquieted by the uncertainty of the times. But amid these crises, I offer you...
Half-hearted ministry is killing us. Every bit as much as half-hearted living leads us into dead ends, half-hearted ministry is leaving congregations adrift and clergy and other church staff looking for, as more than one pastor has said to me lately, “a ticket out.” This half-heartedness...
“The antidote to exhaustion is not rest, it’s wholeheartedness.” – David Whyte. This simple yet profound statement has captured the imaginations of The Ministry Collaborative (TMC) staff since we discovered it last spring. At that time, we were all new to pandemic life and experiencing the...
“The antidote to exhaustion is not rest, it’s wholeheartedness.” – David Whyte. This simple yet profound statement has captured the imaginations of The Ministry Collaborative (TMC) staff since we discovered it last spring. At that time, we were all new to pandemic life and experiencing the...