Why Excellence in Ministry Matters
Michael White and Tom Corcoran say excellence in ministry is essential to capturing the time and attention of your congregation and community. More importantly, it…
Browsing: Lessons for Leaders
Articles
Developing New Leaders through Shared Leadership
How can shared leadership develop the next generation of leaders? Lee Kricher explores the importance of shared leadership when developing a pipeline of new leaders.…
Moving Beyond a Congregational Identity Crisis
Asking “Who are we?” helps congregations gain clarity in the midst of an identity crisis. Lewis Center Director F. Douglas Powe Jr. offers three priorities…
Know What Season You’re In
Michael White and Tom Corcoran say people in your community are influenced less by the liturgical season and more by cultural seasons that define the…
Every Church is a Work in Progress
Is your church imperfect? Youth ministry expert Deech Kirk says “welcome to the club.” Successful church leaders need to accept that every church is a…
Doing Planning Differently
What if you focused on making already-planned ministry events better rather than creating new events? Olu Brown offers three planning strategies for Doing Church Differently™…
5 Hospitality and Stewardship Lessons from a Homecoming
How are visitors to your congregation greeted and welcomed? Ken Sloane outlines five lessons for extending hospitality and engaging new givers. While traveling earlier this…
What to Do When People Leave Your Church
Ron Edmondson writes that people leave churches for all kinds of reasons, but it’s still hard not to take it personally. He shares five tips…
Understanding and Honoring Your Congregation’s Unique Culture
Roy Spore says every church has its own culture and a unique set of accumulated values. Productive leaders know how to identify these values and…
The Power of Storytelling in Ministry: An In-Depth Interview with Jee Hae Song
How can storytelling impact your ministry? And how can you inspire others to share their stories? Jessica Anschutz of the Lewis Center staff interviews Jee…
“The Power of Storytelling in Ministry” featuring Jee Hae Song
How can storytelling impact your ministry? How can you inspire others to share their stories? Jee Hae Song believes we all have gifts for storytelling and shares part of her story to inspire others to share how God works in their lives.
The Resilient Small Church
We often think of large churches as strong and small churches as weak. But Lovett H. Weems Jr. shares a powerful example of how size…
How Perfectionism Gets in the Way of Ministry
Does perfectionism keep you from leading in the most impactful way? Margaret Marcuson describes the nature and origin of perfectionistic tendencies, how they can limit…
Centering Marginalized Voices to Lead Change
What practices can help church leaders learn from failures and address conflict in ways that lead to fruitful ministry? The Lewis Center’s Jessica Anschutz interviews…
“Centering Marginalized Voices to Lead Change” featuring Tyler Sit
What practices can help church leaders learn from failures and address conflict in ways that lead to fruitful ministry? We speak with Tyler Sit about centering marginalized voices, meeting the needs of the community, managing conflict, and other leadership lessons he has learned as a church planter.
5 Signs I Need to Put on My Desk
Often the best way a leader can improve things is to focus on his or her own actions and behaviors. Carey Nieuwhof outlines five simple…
Episode 83: “Leading Like Nehemiah” featuring Lovett H. Weems Jr.
How does the story of Nehemiah guide leaders today? Lovett H. Weems Jr. explains why Nehemiah is so relevant to leaders in today’s church and how the book of Nehemiah informs our understanding of a leader’s calling and tasks.
Leading Like Nehemiah — An In-Depth Interview with Lovett H. Weems Jr.
How does the story of Nehemiah guide leaders today? Lewis Center Director Doug Powe interviews Dr. Lovett H. Weems Jr. They discuss why Nehemiah is…
What Can Churches and Businesses Learn from Each Other?
What can churches, nonprofits, and businesses learn from one another? Lewis Center Director Doug Powe interviews Randy Casey-Rutland, a theologically educated business executive, who shares…
Do You View Your Church as an Organization or a Movement?
Sue Nilson Kibbey says churches often focus so much on organizational maintenance that they lose sight of the church’s ultimate spiritual mission. She challenges us…
The Myth of the One Big Idea
Scott Cormode explains how change efforts often fail because we risk everything on one big idea. Innovation flourishes within systems that generate lots of ideas.…
Top Leading Ideas Articles of 2020
Each December we take a look at the most popular Leading Ideas articles of the year and give our readers a second chance to glean…
5 Suggestions for Managing Conflict in Polarized Contexts
Effective leadership is the critical variable that holds an institution together when conflict threatens to tear it apart. David R. Brubaker says a high level…
What Is Your Narrative?
Is your church dwelling in a story of woe and discouragement? Or does it see current circumstances through the lens of change and new opportunity?…
8 Factors that Make You a More Influential Leader
A leader needs influence to move a community in the right direction. Eight key factors can help you gain and keep influence writes F. Douglas…
Good Administration is Good Leadership
Bishop Will Willimon says competent, efficient, hands-on administration is just as important as the “big picture” leadership skills of inspiring a vision and nurturing theological…
8 Steps for Moving from Protest Moment to Social Action Movement
Anthony Hunt writes that recent social movements raise the question of how protest moments can lead to substantial, sustainable social change. He outlines eight steps…
Leading between Faith and Patriotism
Lovett H. Weems Jr. writes that preaching at the time of a national holiday offers opportunities and dangers. He says it is important to approach…
Why Reopening a Church is Different
Alex Shanks says the question of whether to reopen is different for a church than for other institutions. Rather than just reacting to what others…
How Should Leaders Respond to an External Shock?
Leaders need to focus on core mission and values in the face of a powerful external shock says Meredith McNabb of the Lake Institute on…