Be a Great Host

On May 22, 2008, we will host Dr. Gary L. McIntosh at the Kentucky Baptist Convention building for a one-day conference that will focus on assimilation. The event will be the final stop of the 2008 Assimilation Tour that we will conduct across the state. In his book, Beyond the First Visit, Gary…

Continue reading

Marks of an Assimilated Person

How can we know when a person is properly assimilated into a church? How does an assimilated person look? How does he act? What does he do? Charles and Win Arn provide the following helpful list called, Nine Marks of an Assimilated Person: Identifies with the goals of the church.…

Continue reading

Relationships = Glue

The importance of helping members develop friendships within a church cannot be overemphasized. Relationships are the glue that keep people connected to a church. Naturally, friendships are important in obtaining new members, but they are the key to retaining them. One pastor took a survey in his church. When he…

Continue reading

Helpful Discipleship Tools

Through the years, LifeWay Christian Resources has been on the leading edge in producing great discipleship materials. In addition to helpful materials, LifeWay developed several planning and assessment tools that provide help to discipleship programs of any size. I have copies of each of these tools and will provide them…

Continue reading

Top 5 Reasons to Disciple 1-2-1

Many effective discipleship approaches exist, but one of the simplest, most rewarding methods is 1-2-1 Discipleship. This method is also called life-on-life or mentoring. Since my college days, I have personally utilized this method as one of the ways I have sought to obey Matthew 28:19. Here are five reasons everyone…

Continue reading

What Is Assimilation?

There is a lot of talk about assimilation in the church world today, but what exactly does assimilation mean? Ron Jenson and Jim Stevens describe assimilation as “absorption.” They define absorption as “the process by which people are taken into the life of the church and by which a strong…

Continue reading

What is a disciple?

Jesus commissioned His followers to concentrate on making disciples, but what is a disciple? What does a disciple look like? Gary Tangeman defined a disciple as “one who has come to Jesus for eternal life, has claimed Jesus as Savior and God, and has embarked upon the life of following…

Continue reading

Professional Wrestling

A few years back we had some good friends over for supper and we watched professional wrestling on TV.  I am not a wrestling fan, but I am intrigued by one particular question, is it real or is it fake?  At times it looks fairly real and at times it…

Continue reading