Author: Administrador

Anna Vander Stel photo – Unsplash By Cheryl Paden Maybe your youth director just resigned. Or maybe your church never had one in the first place. Perhaps the missions committee in charge has fallen apart. Or you might simply not have enough sponsors, time, money or ______ (fill in the blank) to send mission your … Continue reading “5 Steps for Successful Local Student Missions   “

By Chris Hulshof As the new year begins, Christians often decide to read through the Bible starting in Genesis. But by the second week of January, many of those same readers begin to get off track. Reading habits that may start well in Genesis and Exodus often go astray when the assigned readings move into … Continue reading “3 Ways to Navigate Difficult Passages of the Old Testament”

Jonathan Petersson photo – Pexels By Thom S. Rainer Despite the tough reality many congregations face today, I remain an obnoxious optimist as we move into 2019. Recently, I received an email about a church that I thought was headed for closure. Through a series of God-blessed events, the church has turned the corner and … Continue reading “10 Reasons to Be Optimistic About Churches in 2019”

Aaron Burden photo – Unsplash Rachel Sinclair One of the most popular New Year’s resolutions among Christians is to read the Bible through in a year. YouVersion, the most popular Bible app for smartphones, says its number of daily active users jumps around 20 percent in January. On January 1 this year, YouVersion users began … Continue reading “7 Tips for Reading Through the Bible This Year”

Desiring God photo By Jonathan Howe David Platt may be known for his radical ways, but when he stepped to the stage January 5 at the 2019 CROSS conference, no one expected to get a 50-point sermon. Platt, who preaches for nearly six hours during his annual Secret Church events, made it through the entire … Continue reading “David Platt Drops 50-point Sermon from Revelation at CROSS Conference”

By Craig Thompson In my last article, I encouraged pastors to work toward a long tenure in their ministry settings—to hang around for the long haul. That article prompted a good bit of debate, several good conversations, and a few disagreements. Those who pushed back against my argument followed two patterns: “But, some churches are … Continue reading “4 Good Reasons to Think About Quitting”

Martin Sattler photo – Unsplash Consider this research as you plan ahead on how to reach your community and grow your congregation this new year. 1. 81 percent of church attenders say becoming closer to God is one of the primary reasons they attend The vast majority of people in your pews are there because … Continue reading “19 Vital Stats for Ministry in 2019”

Lisa Fotios photo – Pexels By Karen Swallow Prior Literature is art that uses words. Literary writing is different from everyday writing in the way that a Van Gogh painting in a frame differs from a coat of Sherwin Williams painted on the wall. Leaders don’t need to be accomplished painters, but they do need … Continue reading “6 Reasons Leaders Should Read Literature”

Will Bostwick photo – Flickr When Alabama and Clemson face off in the college football national championship, plenty of Christians will be in the stands or watching their TV. But plenty of Christians will also be on the field playing and coaching for the Crimson Tide and Tigers. Here are some of their stories. Clemson … Continue reading “4 Faith Stories to Watch in the College Football National Championship Game”

By A.B. Vines Ecclesiastes 4:12 says, “And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.” When you have a threefold relationship with brothers in Christ, you’re not as easily broken because you have the stability of accountability. Such a threefold relationship also helps ministry leaders … Continue reading “3 People Every Pastor Should Seek Out”