Recently, I dreamed I was named pope of the Protestant church, and given sweeping powers to instigate any changes/adjustments/new expectations that I chose. When I awakened from my fantasy, I jotted down some of my plans.

When a congregation wants to get, stay or remain healthy, one of the key questions it asks has to do with the balance between its internal and an external focus. One excellent congregational exercise to help with this question is…

If your church constantly allows your memories to overrule your imaginations, you will die. It really is that simple.

One of the pressing concerns of 21st-century individual and congregational spiritual life is the question of depth. To be blunt, there isn’t much. Study after study has revealed the sad truth that much of what we call faith and commitment…

My colleague Bob Dale often asks me a simple question: “Bill, what are we hearing out there in the churches?” He knows that every week members of our team are fanning out across the country to work in dozens of…

Easter changes everything. Like no other part of the Christian faith, the story of Easter is at the heart of what makes our faith unique and life-changing. Death is overcome by life.  Not even the grave is immune to the…

Building a congregation’s life around a clear vision and purpose is an easy thing to believe in. Aligning that purpose with biblical teaching and witness is an agreeable notion. I seldom encounter a leader or leadership group who resists the…

When our grandson was 10 months old, he underwent a medical emergency. His immune system was compromised and his body was under assault from an infection. He needed immediate treatment and the diagnosis called for him to receive intravenous immunoglobulin….

I recently heard an interview with George Lois, a leader in the advertising world in the 1950s who helped revolutionize the industry. His innovations transformed advertising and made several of his clients into household names. I found his comments about…