Author: Administrador

Photo by Jack Sharp on Unsplash By Aaron Earls What will help my church be as spiritually healthy as possible? As pastors and church leaders ask that question, they often and rightly concentrate on relying on the Holy Spirit, developing spiritual disciplines in congregants, and teaching right theology. Beyond those foundational issues, however, thriving churches … Continue reading “5 Surprising Aspects of Spiritually Healthy Churches”

What can you do to get people to dust off their Bibles? By Ken Braddy America has a literacy problem. Almost 14 percent of the adult population cannot read. But illiteracy isn’t just a problem in secular society. A far worse kind of illiteracy affects the church: Biblical illiteracy. Only 20 percent of Americans say … Continue reading “Discipling in an Age of Biblical Illiteracy”

By Daniel Im Have you ever judged the effectiveness of your ministry by attendance at church? On Easter Sunday, after setting up extra chairs, perhaps you had to pull out even more to accommodate the influx of people. It may have felt good to preach to a full room. Lives were changed and there was … Continue reading “A New Way to Measure Discipleship?”

What working in Christian retail taught me about engaging the person inquisitive about the church. By Aaron Wilson For more than 16 years, I served in some capacity as an employee of Lifeway Christian Stores. Because of this, I regularly engaged with people who are dabbling with the idea of church. These bookstore visitors range … Continue reading “4 Types of People Curious about the Church”

An interview with Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey, co-authors of Steal Away Home By Carol Pipes Steal Away Home is the story of the unlikely friendship between the world’s most famous preacher, Charles Spurgeon, and Thomas Johnson, who spent 28 years as a slave in the United States before training at Spurgeon’s college and being … Continue reading “The Unknown Story of Charles Spurgeon and Thomas Johnson”

By Aaron Earls The future of American religion is increasingly being driving by the nones and nons—the religiously unaffiliated and the denominationally unconnected. A new Gallup study finds the percentage of Americans who identify with a specific Protestant denomination has fallen from 50 percent in 2000 to 30 percent in 2016. That can be tied … Continue reading “What Does the Growth of Nondenominationalism Mean?”

By Aaron Earls The most Bible-minded city in America also happens to be the city that shows up most to church. According to Barna Research, Chattanooga, Tennessee, has the highest percentage of its population who are very active in church. Almost 6 in 10 residents (59 percent) are regular churchgoers. For six of the last … Continue reading “What Are the Most Churched (and Unchurched) Cities in America?”

By Bob Smietana Small churches can make a big difference by sticking to the basics. New research with the Billy Graham Center and the Caskey Center for Church Excellence identifies at least 13 effective ways small churches can attract and retain more new converts, including many practices churches have used for years. The research, additionally … Continue reading “Small Changes Can Make a Big Evangelism Impact for Small Churches”

Rather than looking back at the end of your life, wishing you had praised God more, start now. Here are seven reasons why you must not wait. By Todd Gaddis The Duke of Wellington, the British military leader who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, proved to be an extremely difficult officer under which to serve. Brilliant … Continue reading “7 Reasons to Praise the Lord”

By Dr. Jamie D. Aten “I looked up two days before Hurricane Katrina and I said, ‘All right team,’ talking to my church board, ‘what’s our hurricane plan?’ And they looked at me and said, ‘What hurricane plan?’” — a Biloxi, Mississippi pastor Major disasters present unique challenges to pastors and churches, according to new research … Continue reading “Bracing for Impact: How to Prepare Your Church for a Natural Disaster”