Never Fail to Attend Because You Can’t Contribute
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., explains that while only a few members of your church may be currently experiencing hard times, most of the others live…
Browsing: Congregational Care
Articles
7 Ways Congregations Can Respond to the #MeToo Movement
The #MeToo movement has been a wakeup call regarding the pervasiveness of sexual harassment and misconduct in virtually every sector of society, including the church.…
Helping Families Embrace the Importance of a Church Funeral
Sarah Dorrance describes the pastoral challenge of helping surviving family members who do not attend church to understand that a Christian funeral is appropriate for…
Pay Attention to People Who Stay
Mobility has been an historic characteristic of people in the United States. Mobility, opportunity and adventure have tended to go together. There was the massive…
Small Churches, Belonging, and the Harley-Davidson Funeral
There is much confusion among churches today resulting from the painful reality that much of our sense of belonging was dependent upon the status and…
Tapping the Gifts of Homebound Leaders
People who must remain at home because of physical limitations have often been seen by the church as recipients of ministry rather than as active…
Ministry with Veterans
They can be skittish, untrusting, and resistant to offers of help, as well as sometimes stubborn and skeptical. They are the veterans of American wars…
The Transformative Power of Listening
Religious leaders are often socialized to be better at speaking than at listening. It is understandable that preachers want to preach, teach, and lead with…
Small Churches as Healthy Family Systems
Lewis Parks examines basic concepts of family systems theory as a positive framework to understand the dynamics of small membership churches. While teaching pastoral care…
Coaching New Leaders
Steward Perry describes a simple process of on-the-job coaching to help new deacons get familiar with the ministry of visitation. Getting new people involved in…