Unclutter Your Church
What needs to die in your church? We begin the journey of restarting your church by allowing for, even encouraging, places of death. We choose…
Browsing: Change
Articles
Surmounting Leadership Defeats
How do we rebound from setbacks to our best-laid attempts to exercise responsible leadership in ministry? I recently returned from a large denominational gathering where…
A Keystone Habit for Our Time
A much-talked-about book currently is The Power of Habit. The author, Charles Duhigg, attempts to answer the questions, “Why do habits exist, and how can…
Continuity and Change: Two Tunes All Leaders Must Know
It is exciting to hear of the energy and vitality with which so many churches are planning for the future. Many of you report changes…
Religion Census Reveals Changing Trends
While about 80 percent of people in the U.S. identify themselves as Christians, just under half of those belong to a local congregation. This is one…
Rocking the Boat without Capsizing
In the late 1980s, rhythm and blues group Midnight Star climbed the charts with a sensational hit called “Don’t Rock the Boat.” Have you experienced…
If Churches Can Change, They Can Grow
An exceptionally revealing report on church growth is now available from the Faith Communities Today research project. Drawing on extensive survey data, noted researcher C.…
Evangelism Today Requires New Wineskins
Churches are struggling with their evangelistic outreach. What worked in the past doesn’t seem to work today. In studying African American churches, I have come…
Essential Acts of Leadership
Donald L. Laurie, in his book The Real Work of Leaders (Perseus, 2000), focuses on what he calls “The Seven Essential Acts of Leadership.” Leaders…
New Wine, New Wineskins: How African American Congregations Can Reach New Generations
God wants to do a new thing in the African American Church. Author Douglas Powe suggests that the African American church, while once the bedrock of…
