By Bob Allen Members of a Florida Southern Baptist church expressed shock and dismay at Wednesday’s arrest of a lifelong church member and trusted volunteer with youth and the choir on charges of sexual battery against a child. William Allen…
Congregations need sabbatical and jubilee
Congregations need a hopeful learning season that will help them see the same things they have seen for many years in a different way. This gives them insight into what it will take to continually transform congregational life. Likely this…
They want their next pastor to do what?
Beyond the ability to be faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, what else do congregations want from their next senior or solo pastor? At the request…
‘Intentional’ Christians live among poor
By Daniel Wallace In one of northern Philadelphia’s most-dangerous neighborhoods, a 20-person Christian group thrives, embracing a lifestyle of radical community. Shane Claiborne, leader of the 10 households in the Kensington neighborhood, helped found The Simple Way in 1995 as…
Lessons about church conflict from the government shutdown
Now that the USA government shutdown is over–at least for a while–let’s reflect on the lessons churches can learn from the shutdown about conflict. Many of these are lessons of what not to do. These lessons are also politically neutral….
Arrest made in Charlotte church arson
By Bob Allen Police in Charlotte, N.C., have arrested an 18-year-old in connection with an arson-related fire this summer at the city’s Providence Baptist Church. Local media reported the arrest of Jonathan Paul Dover on charges of setting fire to…
A committee-run church can be ugly
A ministry friend recently posted a request on Facebook for the job descriptions for church committees. That is a very legitimate request. If a church is going to have committees, those committees need to have a clear understanding of their…
Ministry as tug-of-war
By Terry Maples Did you play tug-of-war as a child? I did. It was lots of fun, except when the rope burned my hands. The game was even more exciting if a mud pit or some other unpleasant obstacle separated…
Church budget choices reveal ethics
By Robert Dilday & Ken Camp It may not feel like it to number-crunchers huddled around a Sunday school classroom table, fine-tuning annual financial proposals for an upcoming church business meeting. But church budgets are moral statements that reflect ethical…