Sometimes we find ourselves trying to win at church. We don’t like to admit it, but since we’re among friends, we can be honest in this space. We track all kinds of data attempting to paint a picture of positive progress and success in ministry....
At a recent cohort gathering (thank you, Denver) a question arose: “It’s good to dig deeper in church board meetings, but what are the implications for what we do between meetings?” Practically, if monthly board meetings are going to provide enough time for prayer, Bible study,...
As we go about our church board business—building agendas, leading meetings, showing up for worship and programs, recruiting volunteers from a dwindling list, solving budget crises, and on and on—we need to be attuned to a voice crying, Stop! That voice may sound counterintuitive. In the...
In a recent post, Seth Godin retells what he terms a “magical story.” A Gurkha rifleman escaped from a Japanese prison in south Burma and walked six hundred miles alone through the jungles to freedom. The journey took him five months, but he never asked the...
Our mention last week of the recent Pew Forum report about the decline of American Christianity drew a lot of response, suggesting that many church boards and pastors are pondering their congregations in the harsh light of its findings. The Pew report is deeply researched, and...
What do people in your community care about? What are their values? What are their aspirations? What are their hopes? What are their goals? What are their needs? What are their interests? What are their challenges? Where do they experience joy? Where do they experience belonging? Where do they find deep community? How do they experience...
Recent survey results from the Pew Forum on the decline of Christianity in America have brought forth responses from across the spectrum of faith communities. Reactions have ranged from panic and despair to renewed resolve about the power of the gospel. No matter where your...
Because, contrary to all evidence, we treat disruption as the exception rather than the rule. While life experience overwhelmingly indicates that attaining perfect stasis and equilibrium is a myth, we continue – often unconsciously – to relentlessly pursue such conditions. On the other hand, we know...
… is crucial, as a church board discerns God’s activity, or as a faithful congregation discerns its way forward. Hopefully we have established that polling or surveying a congregation is among the worst of the options. But what are some wiser options for discernment? Today...