It’s hard to imagine any church board meeting in the next couple of weeks in which we don’t discuss handshakes or hand sanitizers. Or how to visit the most vulnerable members of our congregations. Or how the peace can be passed without human contact. Or...
For the past couple of weeks my colleagues Adam Borneman and Mark Ramsey have been posting our reflections, observations and findings from a recent gathering we held on the economics of ministry. The fact that we are still mining nuggets of wisdom is proof of...
Last week in Atlanta, we convened about two dozen pastors, lay leaders, and other church leaders from around the country to talk about the pressing challenges of ministry economics with a focus on property, space, and buildings. Now if that doesn’t get you amped up...
Recently, Stacy Williams-Duncan of the University of Virginia (Wahoowa!), addressed ministry leaders on the topic of digital culture. Among a score of important insights, one sentence stood out: “Sharing on social media is not the same as curating information for your audience.” It may be rare...
9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” John 6:9 In our previous post, Rev. Jennifer Watley Maxell, used the phrase ‘shared consumption’ as a form of collaboration. It stuck with me. ...
A friend who sometimes calls herself a ‘serial parishioner’ tells the story of visiting churches in her midwestern community some years ago. I went to the United Church of Christ for several months. When I expressed interest in joining, the pastor replied: We’re so glad you’re...
“The hard thing when you get old is to keep your horizons open. The first part of your life everything is in front of you, all your potential and promise. But over the years, you make decisions; you carve yourself into a given shape. Then...
Pastors and church leaders are quick to assert that they are not in competition with other churches. But most will admit that, while they aren’t trying to compete, they do feel pressure to “keep up.” This leads to many spiritual ailments: distraction, envy, disappointment, and—most...
One of the traps we see ministries falling into revolves around this set of assumptions: We have the youth ministry lane, the worship lane, the adult education lane, the missions lane, the communications lane, and so on. And then an individual, group, or committee is...