Growing up in Southern Appalachia, I was reared on what the mountain and foothill people called Jack Tales. Stories involving a young protagonist who finds himself in a world that sounds familiar but is filled with the unfamiliar. Jack’s adventures…
An invitation to younger pastors
Young pastors, please pick the brains of older pastors. Because you don’t have to make every mistake in the book. We older, retired pastors in your area can help you avoid a few of the pitfalls of the ministry. We…
The one thing that most predicts a pastor’s success
Of all the things I’ve learned through a few decades of mentoring young writers and pastors, one predictor of success stands out above all. This one thing rises above raw talent, education or privilege — all of which may play…
Q&A with Meredith Stone about Baptist Women in Ministry
Meredith Stone is the new executive director of Baptist Women in Ministry, coming to the role from a faculty position at Logsdon Seminary at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas. She succeeds Pam Durso, who has gone on to become president…
Religion Notes: Fellowship Southwest seeks volunteers for the border; BWIM seeks women for mentor program
Fellowship Southwest appeals for volunteers to help churches on U.S./Mexican border A Cooperative Baptist Fellowship organization focused on the U.S.-Mexico border said it has mission and ministry opportunities for volunteers interested in serving asylum seekers on both sides of the…
The gift of mentoring: Making the unbreakable chain stronger and wider
A mentorship relationship is a gift that makes us better people because it involves sacred moments of trust, belief, generosity and empowerment.
How to keep youth engaged with church and faith? Pay them.
Frustration transformed into innovation for a Washington State youth minister tired of losing young people to other activities and smartphones. His solution: pay them. It all started for Matt Overton with a growing trend of absenteeism in his youth group…
Tapping into vitality with congregational residencies
It’s a sociological axiom of congregational life that what we see indicated in North American megachurches functions as a “canary in the coal mine,” signaling what’s coming for the rest of U.S. congregations. With that in mind, here’s some of…