Browsing: Leading Ideas

Leading Ideas
Delivered every Wednesday, our free e-newsletter Leading Ideas offers articles by thoughtful, cutting-edge leaders on subjects you care about — navigating change, reaching younger people, financing your ministry, communicating effectively — to help you be the leader God is calling you to be.

The Lewis Center is committed to helping congregations and denominations thrive and grow by providing ideas, research, resources, and training for vital and fruitful leadership. Through Leading Ideas, we share vignettes of leaders and congregations, book reviews, leadership quotes, and helpful “right questions” built around the premise that leaders don’t need answers — they need to know the right questions.


Leading Ideas
0 How to Be Authentic in Public Ministry: An In-Depth Interview with Sarah Bereza

How can professional Christians be their authentic selves when in the spotlight of public ministry? Jessica Anschutz speaks with Sarah Bereza, church musician and author, about the challenges of being authentic, knowing how much to share, and how to avoid oversharing when in a public ministry role.  Listen to this interview, watch the interview video on YouTube, or continue reading. Jessica…

Leading Ideas
0 10 Tips for Building Genuine Connections with Your Neighbors

Kay Kotan says we can no longer wait for people to come to church. The church must go out into the community and meet its neighbors. She provides ten easy strategies for your church to build genuine connections with your neighbors. What church doesn’t want to form new relationships with their neighbors, right? Desire is not the issue! More often…

Leading Ideas
0 Before You Rent Church Space, Calculate the Costs

Churches often struggle to determine a fair price when they rent space to community groups. Partners for Sacred Places, an organization helping congregations develop creative community partnerships, says the hard costs of maintaining any shared space is an objective factor that must be considered in determining the rental value. To celebrate the Lewis Center’s anniversary, we are highlighting Leading Articles…

Leading Ideas
0 8 Key Questions to Shift Pastoral Counseling Encounters from Reflection Toward Action 

Alan T. Baker identifies eight questions that help shift pastoral counseling encounters from reflection toward action. While written for use by chaplains, these questions can be used and adapted by pastors to help gain clarity and identify expectations while simultaneously building trust and confidence in pastoral counseling.    1. Why are you telling me this? Why is it important for you…

Leading Ideas
0 What to do When a New Church Comes to Town

Pastor Eric Daniel describes how he overcame feelings of jealousy and competitiveness when committed members of his congregation started drifting to a new, better-resourced church. He built a relationship with the new pastor, concentrated on the strengths of his own church, and kept inviting new people to the worship table.   About eight years into being a lead pastor, a…

Leading Ideas
0 The Changing Contours of Youth Ministry: An In-Depth Interview with Deech Kirk

What new approaches to youth ministry are emerging in our post-Covid era? Ann Michel interviews Deech Kirk of the Center for Youth Ministry Training. He describes some of the common challenges confronting youth ministry today and some of the characteristics of the newer, innovative ministry models that are taking shape. Listen to this interview, watch the interview video on YouTube, or…

Leading Ideas
0 4 Steps for Developing a Digital Community Strategy

Deanna Bartalini and Claudia McIvor say gathering people virtually is not that different than gathering in person. Both require intentionality, as well as a plan, a place or platform to help execute the plan, advertising, and engaging with the people who gather. They outline four key steps in developing a digital community strategy. Technology is a means to an end.…

Leading Ideas
0 4 Ways Preaching Can Boost Worship Attendance

Popular preacher and author Charley Reeb shares four preaching strategies to grow your church, all based on the notion that we have to connect with people’s interests and meet them where they are. To celebrate the Lewis Center’s anniversary, we are highlighting Leading Articles — some of our most popular posts of the past 20 years. We are pleased to…

Leading Ideas
0 4 Tips for Experimenting with Change This Summer

Lewis Center Director F. Douglas Powe says that the summer is the perfect time for a congregation to test possible changes through short-term experiments. He offers four considerations to guide an experimental approach to implementing new ideas. This article by F. Douglas Powe Jr. was originally published on July 18, 2018. We are pleased to share these practical strategies again. An…

Leading Ideas
0 7 Ideas for Making Vacation Bible School an Evangelism Opportunity

How can you deepen your relationship with the children and families participating in a Vacation Bible School and stay connected with them throughout the year? Lewis Center Director Doug Powe outlines strategies to make your Vacation Bible School a meaningful and effective evangelism opportunity. This article by F. Douglas Powe Jr. was originally published on June 13, 2018. We are…

Leading Ideas
0 3 Key Skills for Leading in Today’s Argumentative Climate

Joel Snider says church leaders need new skills to move people toward common goals in a time when conflict surrounds so many church decisions. Rather than leading by force, he suggests building consensus one person at a time, probing ideas through questions rather than criticism, and responding respectfully to the ideas of others. Leadership comes hard these days. Everyone wants…

Leading Ideas
0 7 Tips for Sharing Your Congregation’s Story on Social Media 

How do you effectively share your congregation’s story via social media to reach new people? Tim Welch offers seven tips for sharing your congregation’s story on various social media platforms.  One of the best forms of communicating with church members is through digital platforms. Most of your congregation has immediate access to web-based content or smartphone apps. This makes spreading…

Leading Ideas
0 The Hidden Impact of Rural Churches: An In-Depth Interview with Bob Jaeger and Rachel Hildebrand

What is the economic impact of small congregations on their communities? Jessica Anschutz of the Lewis Center staff speaks with Bob Jaeger and Rachel Hildebrandt of Partners for Sacred Places about their report on the “Economic Halo Effect of Rural United Methodist Churches in North Carolina.”  Listen to this interview, watch the interview video on YouTube, or continue reading. Jessica Anschutz:…

Leading Ideas
0 Small Church Big Impact

Blake Bradford shares how smaller congregations can use their unique giftedness to fulfill their mission. He says smaller churches can enhance their vitality by clarifying their purpose, engaging their community, leveraging relational intimacy to reach people and build disciples, and rightsizing their leadership and governance structures. To celebrate the Lewis Center’s anniversary, we are highlighting Leading Articles — some of…

Leading Ideas
0 Keep Your Bucket Full of Energy and Compassion

Alan Baker highlights the importance of self-care for pastoral care providers to keep their personal buckets filled so that they are not emptied by burnout and compassion fatigue. He offers ways for church leaders and chaplains to enhance their practice of self-care and build resilience.   Your personal health is an important aspect of self-care. Christian chaplains strive to sustain healthy…

Leading Ideas
0 13 Do’s & Don’ts for Incoming Cross-Racial and Cross-Cultural Pastors

How can an incoming pastoral leader lay the groundwork for successful ministry in a congregation where most members are from a different racial or cultural background? The United Methodist General Commission on Religion and Race shares “Do’s and Don’ts” to help new clergy leaders in cross-cultural ministry partnerships begin on the right foot. 1. Honor your predecessor and the history…

Leading Ideas
0 Who are The Nones?: An In-Depth Interview with Ryan Burge

The rapid growth in the percentage of Americans claiming no religious affiliation is drastically reshaping the country’s religious and cultural landscape. Ann Michel of the Lewis Center interviews Dr. Ryan Burge, a leading expert on the “Nones,” about the characteristics of the growing cohort of Americans who say their religion is “nothing in particular.”   Listen to this interview, watch the interview…

Leading Ideas
0 Engaging Children Through Active Wondering

Tanya Campen describes how engaging children through active wondering creates space for them to share freely and nurtures honest conversation. She equips teachers and guides to shepherd children in the holy work of active wondering. Active wondering creates space for authentic and honest conversation. “I wonder” questions present an invitation into holy conversation. They create a space for children to…

Leading Ideas
0 5 Essential Qualities of Effective Evangelism

Priscilla Pope-Levison’s book, Models of Evangelism, studies eight influential approaches to evangelism, everything from visitation and revivalism to social media. She finds that regardless of the method deployed, five qualities are essential to effective evangelism — hospitality, relationships, integrity, sharing the Christian message, and rootedness in the church. To celebrate the Lewis Center’s anniversary, we are highlighting Leading Articles —…

Leading Ideas
0 Who will be God’s Agents of Pastoral Calling?

Many pastors recall that it was another pastor who first invited them to consider their call to ministry. Yet it seems fewer and fewer pastors today feel comfortable initiating these conversations. This paradox has promoted the Lewis Center’s Religious Workforce Project Research Team to wonder who will be God’s agents of pastoral calling? In interviews with scores of pastors, we…

Leading Ideas
0 5 Guideposts for Reshaping Your Staff Team

Susan Beaumont says many churches see a need to reconfigure their staffing in this new era. She outlines five guidelines to frame a better conversation about the design of your church’s staffing structure. The pandemic unraveled staff team structures. Resignations and retirements were at an all-time high. Downsizing was necessary for some congregations. Others hired new staff to respond to…

Leading Ideas
0 Effective Pastoral Transition: An In-Depth Interview with Lee Kricher

How can a seamless pastoral transition lead to a more effective leadership transition? Jessica Anschutz of the Lewis Center staff speaks with Lee Kricher, author of Seamless Pastoral Transition: 3 Imperatives — 6 Pitfalls, about shared leadership, nurturing future leaders, leading with humility, and more.  Listen to this interview, watch the interview video on YouTube, or continue reading. Jessica Anschutz: Lee,…

Leading Ideas
0 The Importance of Holy Friendships

Victoria Atkinson White says that pastors and Christian institutional leaders cannot do their holy work without the support of holy friendships. Mutual, sacred relationships deeply formed in God’s love combat loneliness and isolation, promote spiritual health and emotional wellbeing, and enable God’s servants to remain fruitful in ministry. An institution cannot thrive if its leaders are not healthy, so my…

Leading Ideas
0 4 Characteristics of Biblical Evangelism

To celebrate the Lewis Center’s anniversary, we are highlighting Leading Articles — some of our most popular posts of the past 20 years. We are pleased to share again this article by Doug Powe, originally published on December 5, 2018. Lewis Center Director Doug Powe says biblical evangelism is characterized by four key practices — proclamation, community, service, and witness.…

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