Our current virus pandemic has forced all of us to face some harsh realities. One of the benefits of experiencing a seismic shift in our world is the ensuing time of introspection and the questioning of our assumptions. Most churches…
What will we see less of and more of in America’s churches in the 2020s?
Even with all the uncertainties around and within us, there appear to be some broad truths and trends emerging that are going to define our work in the Church for the foreseeable future.
Confronted by crises, we and our churches need to cultivate a holy curiosity
I believe the current crises in our churches, our communities and our nation will only be transformed into avenues of blessing when we humbly adopt a commitment to cultivate a spirit of holy curiosity.
Now what? Some thoughts about what’s next for the scattered and gathered church
Like retailers, universities and hospitals, churches will be having conversations around this question: Are buildings a necessity for delivering our services and ministries? In our new normal, physical location may be only one of many expressions of church.
A tale of two futures for your church | #intimeslikethese
Every day brings increasingly urgent instructions to retreat physically away from others. While that is a physical necessity, a corresponding relational move toward others is a massive opportunity to show the difference we make in our communities.
Live by the clock or the compass? Clergy and churches must wrestle with this question
Jesus knew that if his followers were going to make any difference in the world, they would need a laser-like focus on a compass, not on a clock. Sadly, congregations and clergy often abandon this truth.
Are our churches and their leaders ready for the 2020s?
Rather than thinking of turnaround as simply a reversal of numerical decline, the real turnaround for congregations that thrive in the next decade will be a move from irrelevance to relevance in the lives of their constituents and their communities.
When the church you lead is the Titanic
Traditional, established congregations that are more than 40 years old are in steady and persistent decline. Now is the time to speak the truth, reclaim our hope and launch a realistic and thoughtful plan for our future as God’s people.
When a church or minister is in need of an intervention
What are the signs that an intervention may be called for? And what should that look like?
Jason may be an obscure biblical character, but he offers insight for today’s church
The spirit of Jason is one of adventure and a willingness to embrace the possibility of the new, a spirit that embraces the upside-down way of Jesus. Maybe the church today needs more upside-down ways of thinking.
Why I don’t buy the gloomy forecasts about the church’s future
I believe there has never been a better day to be the church. Indeed, I believe the 21st century will find the church of Jesus Christ emerging from decades of slow decline to rediscover authentic community, witness and vibrancy.
The essential skillset for a 21st-century pastor: turnaround leadership
Out of my work at the Center for Healthy Churches, I have discovered four core leadership principles for pastors of congregations that are facing decline and longing for turnaround.