A recent report that I saw on the CBS evening news and heard on the radio says atheists know more, on average, about the Bible than those who claim to be Christians! A Pew Research survey asking questions about religious history, scripture and religion’s role in public life revealed that…
Audrey Barrick writing for the Christian Post reported an interesting new study by the United Methodist Church on what makes some churches healthy. Here are the key findings in that study. Churches with a high number of small groups, effective lay leadership, faithful pastors, and both traditional and contemporary services…
Have you noticed how many things have gone retro… clothes, cars, furniture, appliances. Vinyl records are making a comeback. I wish I had kept my leisure suits because I am sure they will return soon! Maybe even my bell bottom pants I wore in college. Some are nostalgic and want…
When you think of descriptive passages of Scripture that relate to discipleship, what comes to mind? Maybe Mathew 28:16-20 where Jesus said “make disciples,” or Jesus’ description of what a kingdom person is and does in the Sermon on the Mount or in one of the Gospels like Luke 9:23,…
Are you driven or are you led? Not in reference to whether or not you are a leader or a follower, not your personality type (we driven, high D folks know who we are!), but from a spiritual context… are you driven or led? If we walk by the Spirit…
Okay, do I have your attention? Everyone is talking about the Cooperative Program these days. Suddenly the CP is headline news. It’s in all our state papers and there are lots of opinions about where CP giving will go in the next five years. My intentions are not to debate…
Evangelism or Discipleship? For which will your church be known? I have heard the debate before…do we want an evangelistic church or a disciple making church? Which is more important: discipleship or evangelism, and where should a church put their energy and focus? Are we to just go deep in discipleship…
We looked last week at the term plateau, church health, and church growth. Let’s think some about how to get off the plateau. Kirk Hadaway has conducted much research over the years with Southern Baptist churches in particular. He also attempted to determine the characteristics of plateaued churches and what…
We use these terms all the time when we are attempting to share about how our churches are doing, so let’s define what we mean by these three terms: plateau, health and growth. Plateaued: A plateau is a relatively level or stable period in the life of an organization. The…
What can your church do to be even friendlier? Consider the following 7 steps: 1. Teach your members the difference between “having friends at church” and “being genuinely friendly to guests.” People come to church looking for a friend not looking for a friendly church. Churches are friendly but it…
Two encounters are critical. First, the leader encounters God in His Word and is changed. Second, the leader guides the group to have a life-changing encounter.
In John 13:34-35, three times Jesus said, “Love one another.” Your group is the ideal place to practice and launch the kind of love for one another that shows the world that we are His disciples.