Throughout the holiday season I’ve been in the learner’s seat for a very practical lesson, but one that has large implications. It’s time I had some classmates.
All tagged elders
Hiring a Minister: Five Suggestions for Churches
There are various methods that churches can use to search for and hire ministry staff. Regardless of which process is used, all of us in the kingdom of heaven benefit when we share our best practices for hiring.
Stay in the Room
Don’t miss out on the best things because you won’t get in there and deal with difficult things. Sometimes, if people will just stay in the room, it will be enough.
Thoughts on Elders as Shepherds
Many elders are frustrated because all they do is act as a board of directors. Instead of being in the lives of their flock, they’re spending time in meeting after meeting.
Five Spiritual Resources for When You Need Help
As leaders in our communities of faith, we need to make sure that our people know the resources available to them when they are in spiritual need.
Event Spotlight: Cruciformity and ElderLink Houston
As we prepare for our first ElderLink of 2022, we wanted to whet your appetite for our time together. We recently sat down for virtual conversations with our speakers and host.
Thinking About Church Leadership in a Different Way
Many of us talk to churches about how to rethink our approach coming out of the pandemic. This is a chance to do things differently.
Praying Without Ceasing
Where does prayer fit in? Is it simply the customary thing we do at the beginning or end of a meeting? Or is prayer something more?
Developing Resilience
Of all the challenges and crises that exist in congregations today, the one that I want to name here resides with leaders themselves.
Reflection Roundup: All Is Prayer
Unity with God means moving through the world in constant communion: every bit of news, each conversation, every gaze met, offered up in prayer.
Diversity of Perspective
A truly multiethnic, multigenerational, and multi-perspective church values, discusses, encourages, supports, and implements ideas and dreams that flow from all echelons of the congregation.
Congregational Mission: A Report From the Field
I commend these three core beliefs to all leader teams. Hope in God’s preferred future, practice non-anxious courage, and exercise prayerful imagination.
Five Steps to Restore Your Church’s Vitality
Sometimes, a health crisis hits a church squarely in the face. If the church possesses enough self-awareness, it then faces the choice to either make dramatic changes or else permanently lose health and vitality.
Visiting the Sick
As more things open up, many hospitals are once again allowing visitors. But some Christians are not sure how to visit the sick. They feel a little intimidated.
Turning Toward Resiliency
Sometimes being faithful is the order of the day. And for those of us who practice leadership in congregations, we may need some different practices.
Church Leaders, Optics, and Why They Matter
I am convinced that, for most church leaders, optics simply reinforce the truth that we care. That we do show up. Optics reflect our hearts.
A Time to Speak, Part 1: Guilt
Many of the necessary components in addressing guilt are implicit in Christian community. Acceptance, forgiveness, compassion, and perspective are all necessary companions for this topic.
Three Things You Cannot Do When Your Church Splits
At some point your church will split. It may not be official, but it will happen. Leaders decide not to change certain things and people leave. Or you decide to change things and people leave.
Four Fears and a Christian Response
These four fears stifle creativity and appear so commonly in congregations that I want to share them with you and offer a theological response.
Anxiety and Its Antidote
Far more contagious than the coronavirus, anxiety is actively infecting our congregations and those who lead and serve them.