You Cannot Revitalize a Church That Has Lost Its Why
The church isn’t just about helping those who are seeking, but also about inspiring everyone to ask deeper questions. It’s a place that nurtures curiosity and encourages personal growth.
Is the Era of Christian Mission Over? Redefining the Church’s Purpose
What do we really mean by mission? Is it biblical? How central is it to Christianity?
Barna warns of 'definitive failing' to instill biblical beliefs in churchgoers amid release of new data
New data shows most Americans and emerging Christians lack alignment with a biblical worldview.
Bible Society withdraws 'Quiet Revival' report as it admits data was 'faulty'
Bible Society has pulled its controversial 'Quiet Revival' report which claimed that Gen Z was returning to church in surprising numbers.
The report was based on polling conducted on its behalf by YouGov and sparked much interest at the prospect of a resurgence of interest in Christianity after years of falling church attendance.
Also See: Christian group withdraws 'flawed' claim of Gen Z-fuelled revival
Mullally Installed as 106th Archbishop of Canterbury
It was four seasons in an hour as more than 2,000 people gathered at Canterbury Cathedral for the installation of the Most Rev. Sarah Mullally as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury on March 25.
Also See: Archbishop Sarah: A Biography with Andrew Atherstone
The glaring absences from the Archbishop of Canterbury's installation
It would appear that twelve primates, more than 25% of them, had refused to attend the service. It was the primates of Alexandria, Chile, Congo, Indian Ocean, Kenya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Rwanda, SE Asia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda who absented themselves. Given this, the reason is clear, for these are the leaders of Gafcon and the Global South Fellowship of Anglicans (GSFA).
Paganism is on the rise in Britain – this is why
...scrape away the myths and projections, and modern Paganism is revealed as a serious, significant religious position within British society – and one that is particularly fast-growing. The census tells us that there has been a near 30 per cent increase in adherents since 2011 (from an admittedly low base), and yesterday a report from the Institute for the Impact of Faith in Life revealed that Paganism is the most popular spiritual destination for people dropping out of Christianity.
ACNA Commissions Postmortem of Ruch Title IV Process
A third-party law firm will conduct a review of the Anglican Church in North America’s administration of its Title IV disciplinary process against the Rt. Rev. Stewart Ruch III, the denomination’s Executive Committee announced on March 24. The review will examine the role the church’s provincial office played in the investigation, indictment, and his controversial ecclesiastical trial.
Catholic Church won’t survive without ordaining women, cardinal warns
Unless the Catholic Church breaks its 2,000-year tradition of ordaining only men to the priesthood, Archbishop of Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich doesn’t believe it “can continue to exist.” And the majority of Catholic women agree with him, he claims.
What Is Justification? Stephen Westerholm
How is a person made right with a holy God? Join Kirk E. Miller and New Testament scholar Stephen Westerholm for an in-depth discussion on the vital doctrine of justification. They explore the biblical basis for justification, including primary Old and New Testament passages, key terms like “works of the law,” and various interpretations old and new, such as the New Perspective on Paul.
The Will of God Isn’t a GPS
...how can God’s Word help us discern the will of God?.
Stop Scrolling and Start Singing!
Where is your heart right now? Is your attention trapped in a man-made screen, or has creation stirred you to marvel at the Maker of the lake and sky? Psalm 96 invites you to look up from your phone, remember the Lord’s salvation and splendor, and shout a new song to the Lord.
How Church Leaders Are Using AI (And What Concerns Them Most)
New Barna research from Technology for Missional Impact: State of Church Tech 2026, produced in partnership with Pushpay, suggests that while some churches are experimenting with AI, most leaders are still in the early stages of understanding how these tools may shape ministry. The findings reveal a church landscape marked by curiosity, caution and discernment.
How to Start a Men’s Ministry in Your Church
Here are three principles for a church wanting to start a men’s ministry with its best foot forward toward overall church health.
Why we need daily repentance
Lent is often spoken of as a season of renewal, reflection and deeper devotion. Many Christians use these weeks to pray more intentionally, fast from distractions, or refocus their hearts on God. Yet genuine spiritual renewal does not begin with outward discipline alone. It begins with repentance.
Tiny changes, massive payoffs
"There seems to be a real health benefit even in making relatively small changes to lifestyle and behaviour," writes Stephen Kneale. He goes on to conclude that there also may be a spiritual benefit.
Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows.
This Thursday evening, we continue our Lenten series on the means of grace, the different ways we spend time with God, presenting ourselves to God so God can renew us and transform us. The topic of this Thursday evening’s message is “searching the Scriptures.”
Next week is Holy Week and next Thursday Maundy, Thursday. Following this Thursday evening’s service are two suggestions on how a worship group, a family or some other small group might observe the occasion.
Reading: Acts 17:10-15
Message: Take a Lesson from the Bereans
Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/thursday-evenings-at-all-hallows-march_26.html
Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.
If you are new to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:
-It is recommended that after reading or hearing a lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows the lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.
-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.
-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.
-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.
-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.
May Thursday Evenings at All Hallows be a blessing to you.
When Church Growth Isn’t Worth the Cost
When our energy is going into a better Sunday morning show we’re creating passive audience members instead of converts and disciples.
In small churches Sunday worship plays an important role in making converts and forming disciples. Those planning and leading Sunday worship will need to regularly evaluate that worship and how well it is fulfilling that role and to make necessary changes. They should not let Sunday worship become a sacred cow that cannot be touched if it is to fulfill that role.
Sarah Mullally celebrated as the Church of England's first female leader, in photos
Sarah Mullally waves as she leaves after the Enthronement Ceremony installing her as archbishop of Canterbury in Canterbury, England, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, the first woman ever to lead the Church of England.
Why the church’s ‘safe’ new archbishop may end up pleasing no one
For a woman who has risen to the top of two of Britain’s most prominent institutions, Dame Sarah Mullally has managed to remain remarkably tight-lipped about herself. As a result, the Church of England’s clergy and congregants know little about the woman who was officially installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury this afternoon – other than the fact she will be a very different leader from Justin Welby, her predecessor.
Philip Larkin’s dark prophecy about England’s churches might be coming true
A recent survey by the National Churches Trust found that five per cent of all places of worship fear they will “definitely” or “probably” be closed by 2030. Many of these are rural; 900 such churches are threatened with closure in the next five years.
One in ten require urgent repairs within 12 months, and one in five say that their building has deteriorated over the last five years. Church of England parishes have a £1bn repair backlog, and need £150m a year for regular maintenance.
Prince William’s Christian journey: Big on the church, hesitant about God
n September 2022, the new Prince of Wales paid a visit to a church. It was his second of two engagements on a day out in Swansea, notable for being Prince William’s first trip to Wales under his new title.
He did not pray. There was no theological discussion of the Christian faith. Instead, he spent time at St Thomas’s “thriving community hub”, including a food bank, facilities for homeless people and a kitchen training up the next generation of chefs.
Also See: Brits Debate Prince William’s ‘Quiet Faith’
Mexico Elects First Female Primate
The Rt. Rev. Alba Sally Sue Hernández Garcia, Bishop of Mexico [City] was elected March 21 as the first female primate of the Iglesia Anglicana de Mexico, the Anglican Church of Mexico.
Already a pioneer, as the church’s first and only female bishop, Hernández assumes her new role against the backdrop of a bitter schism that dates to two disputed episcopal elections in 2022, including that of her successor, Archbishop Enrique Treviño Cruz.
Catholic converts reach 20-year high in US as Gen Z leads new wave of spirituality
Conversions to the Roman Catholic religion have overtaken Evangelical Protestantism in the USA, with Gen Z being behind the new spirit of religious feeling, according to a survey.
Data collected by the Cooperative Election Study (CES) shows that in 2023, 21 percent of Gen Z adults identified as Catholic compared to 19 percent who described themselves as Protestant. According to the Catholic news site Zenit, this is the first time in American history that any generation of Catholics has surpassed the numbers of Protestants, including Baby Boomers, Gen X or Millennials.
Bishop plans to ordain married men by 2028 despite Catholic rules
A Catholic bishop in Belgium has announced plans to ordain married men to the priesthood by 2028, despite the Roman Catholic Church’s requirement of clerical celibacy.
Bishop Johan Bonny of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antwerp recently released a pastoral letter claiming that “the consensus on this question is almost total” among Church leaders.
Far-right MAGA fundamentalist draws scathing rebuke from Christian pastors
On Sunday night, March 22, CNN aired reporter Pamela Brown's documentary "The Rise of Christian Nationalism." And one of the far-right Christian nationalists Brown examined was Pastor Doug Wilson, who preaches at Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho.
For most of his life, Wilson — now in his early seventies — was a marginal figure within Christianity. And his views are extreme even by religious right standards. Wilson, a proponent of "Christian reconstructionism" and "dominionist theology," believes that women should never have been given the right to vote, that wives should be totally submissive to their husbands, and that the federal government should be a Christian fundamentalist theocracy based on strict biblical law.
It’s not just oil and gas. The Strait of Hormuz blockage is rattling another vital commodity Food insecurity warnings as Iran conflict constricts fertilizer supply and prices soar.
Around one-third of the global seaborne fertilizer trade passes through the Strait of Hormuz.
Your Sermon Was Never Meant to End on Sunday
What if the Sunday sermon was never meant to be a moment? What if it was meant to shape the entire week?
Mystery humming noise heard across US states
Americans across several states are reporting hearing a strange humming noise in their neighborhoods, and residents think they know the culprit: data centers.
We have yet to fully appreciate the impact that AI is having on us!
Who Will Disciple Them? Practical Ways to Foster Special Needs Inclusion in Your Church
Church leaders often want to serve families raising children with special needs but don’t know where to begin. The good news is that meaningful inclusion doesn’t require a large budget or a fully developed special needs ministry. Small, intentional shifts can make an immediate difference.
Measuring Evangelism Health: Where Do You and Your Church Stand?
There are moments in history when God’s activity becomes unmistakable, not because the world is suddenly righteous, but because people are suddenly hungry. I believe we’re living in one of those moments right now.
We’re standing on the crest of a modern awakening, and it’s unfolding in plain sight. The tragedy would not be that the moment passed, it would be that the church didn’t see it. This isn’t hype. It’s measurable.
American Nones: What to Expect and How to Reach Them
Maybe the bigger question for us isn’t whether American Nones want to hear the gospel message but whether we love them enough to share it.
Thousands gather for installation of Sarah Mullally as 106th Archbishop of Canterbury
Dame Sarah Mullally is being formally installed today as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury and the first woman to hold the role in the Church of England’s 1,400-year history.
The installation ceremony takes place at Canterbury Cathedral on the Feast of the Annunciation and marks the official beginning of her public ministry as the head of the Church of England and spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion, which includes around 85 million members worldwide.
Also See: Watch Live: Anglican leaders gather for installation of Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally; Where can I watch Sarah Mullally's installation as Archbishop of Canterbury?
For the first time, the Anglican Communion will be led by a woman. Here's how women are celebrating
Mullally's selection as archbishop of Canterbury comes as a joy and a surprise for many female priests in the Episcopal Church.
Meet the African women bishops attending the archbishop of Canterbury's installation
The five are attending in defiance of the wishes of GAFCON bishops, who rejected Mullally’s appointment at a gathering in Nigeria in early March.
Video: Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe speaks from archbishop of Canterbury’s installation
Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe and several other Episcopal bishops are joining church leaders from across the Anglican Communion in Canterbury, England, on March 25 for the ceremonial installation of Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally.
In the following video, Rowe speaks with Episcopal News Service about the significance of Mullally’s historic installation and what it means for the Anglican Communion.
Analysis: Mexico’s new primate and the price of imported “unity”
The Anglican Church of Mexico has elected the Rt. Rev. Alba Sally Sue Hernández García as its new primate at an extraordinary synod held in Mexico City in March 2026. International offices have presented this as a historic step for women’s leadership and provincial stability, but the election sits on top of a disputed legal and canonical foundation that the Rt Rev. Julio César Martín and his allies have spent years documenting in detail. Their case raises a more basic question: when the Anglican Communion “recognises” a primate or a province, is that supposed to describe what has been lawfully done, or to prescribe what must now be accepted regardless of unresolved defects?
Two primatial lines and a contested legal person.
Why 1 Timothy 2 Is A Universal Normative Guide
In the debates over women’s ordination, a historically decisive passage in the New Testament is 1 Timothy 2:11-15. It is so direct that critics call it a “clobber passage.” And indeed, some critics argue that it says much more than even very conservative traditionalist churches are willing to admit today. As such, they say it should be viewed as cultural or historical, limited to the conditions of the late-antique Mediterranean world. Even the most careful and pious representatives of this outlook maintain that 1 Tim. 2 is “particular” rather than “universal.” But we should not concede this ground. 1 Timothy 2 is the Word of God, and its scope and intent is indeed universal in principle. It is good for teaching and correction, even for us today.
What defines a Christian in the age of Christian nationalism? Although different denominations will set different requirements, what it means to be a Christian often comes back to the Apostles’ Creed. It means believing in the deity of Jesus, his death and resurrection, the Trinity, and the final judgment...
However, there is an issue with this definition of what it means to be Christian. What happens when a group of people can say they believe every element of the Apostles’ Creed, but their ethics and morals are not just in tension with Jesus but are actually the opposite of what Jesus taught?
Also See: For Doug Wilson's neighbors, CNN documentary a reminder Moscow is Christian nationalism's ground zero
The Gospel Is All about Jesus
Tragically, many reject God because of the behavior of those who profess to be God-followers. I do know many honest and loving and gracious and generous Christians. Unfortunately, you will rarely see them in newspapers and on television, and in my experience, I don’t see all that many online either. This is very sad. I believe it grieves the heart of God....
Author traces Book of Kells to a different place of origin
...new research by Victoria Whitworth is challenging the Book of Kells’ Irish identity. In The Book of Kells: Unlocking the Enigma, Whitworth draws on her expertise in early Medieval sculpture, research from other art historians and the results of a recent archaeological excavation to argue the manuscript with its fanciful animals, intricate spirals and ornate script is the product of a Pictish monastery in Northeast Scotland.
To Solve Their Loneliness Problem, Gen Z Needs the Church
The paradox of our culture is that the things promising connection often isolate us
Everyone Else Forgot Gen X. Has Your Church Done the Same?
They were the latchkey kids. The skeptical middle children of modern history. The generation that learned independence early and distrust slowly. And now, as the Church in America strains to understand Millennials and chases Gen Z, a quieter question lingers in the background: Whatever happened to Generation X?
Born roughly between 1965 and 1980, Gen X occupies a narrowing but critical corridor in the life of the Church: old enough to lead, young enough to adapt, and yet almost always overlooked in both strategy and conversation.
Infrequent Churchgoers’ Theology Lags Behind More Frequent Attendees
Infrequent churchgoers are often less likely to embrace the theological positions of those who attend worship services more frequently.
Anglican Communion prepares to celebrate new archbishop of Canterbury at her installation
Anglicans and Episcopalians around the world are preparing to celebrate Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally on March 25 at her formal installation at Canterbury Cathedral, which will be attended by Anglican leaders and livestreamed to the Anglican Communion’s 42 provinces.
A Warm Welcome from Latin America for Archbishop Mullally
Across many dioceses in Latin America the news of Sarah Mullaly’s appointment as Archbishop of Canterbury has been met with enthusiasm. From Cuba through Mexico, Central America, Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador, lay people and clergy from the various Anglican communities celebrated.
How a network of ordained women got Sarah Mullally to Canterbury
Mullally’s sometimes twisting journey to Canterbury may never have been completed if it hadn’t been for an Anglican organization called Leading Women.
Quakers Republish Historic Book to Honor Abp. Mullally
While Sarah Mullaly is the first woman to serve as the Archbishop of Canterbury, she is part of a long lineage of English female preachers that includes Margaret Fell, the cofounder of Quakerism, who wrote the first lengthy defense of women’s preaching in English in 1666. English Quakers published a modern translation of Women’s Speaking Justified in March to celebrate Mulally’s appointment.
Rowan Williams ponders Anglican Communion's survival
Former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has warned that his newly appointed successor faces a near impossible job and has questioned whether the Anglican Communion can survive.
In an interview with the Clerical Whispers blog site, Williams, who served as Archbishop from 2002 to 2012, said he would not be attending Dame Sarah Mullally’s upcoming installation as he did not wish to “be Marley’s ghost”.
Save democracy from the SAVE America Act The president continues to keep pressure on his party to pass the SAVE America Act after a 51-48 vote on March 17 bringing it to the Senate floor for further discussion. This bill would disenfranchise millions of voters and suppress the votes of millions more.
The Moral Reasoning Gap in American Christianity
How education, church attendance, and tradition shape whether Christians rely on faith or science.
Check Your Guns at the Door: Responding Like Christians to Social Media, Blogs and Web Forums
When reading through responses on social media, various blogs and faith-based forums, I often wonder if those who are outside the faith are looking on. What do they think about the sometimes mean and vindictive words that are used? Or what do new believers think? When they read that tart, angry or demeaning language, are they really being helped toward Christ? If it doesn’t smell good to us, it certainly is rancorous to the alert souls looking over our shoulders. At best they find comfort for their own acrimony in our unguarded words; at worst, they reject our beliefs as those which produce little change in a person.
4 Powerful Questions to Engage Your Small Group in Any Bible Passage
Helping your small group respond to God as you dig into the Bible together is largely a matter of asking the right questions. The most common mistake that group leaders make is to ask too many questions. If you ask too many questions, you don’t delve deeply into any of them and the same two or three people answer the questions again and again. By asking fewer, more strategic questions, you go deeper and involve more people in discussing and responding to God’s word.
There are four key questions that will guide your group to encounter and respond to God’s word no matter what Bible passage you are studying. Give all four of them sufficient time, perhaps asking a couple of them in different ways. Taking more time on fewer questions takes your group deeper into the Scripture and allows your introverts enough time to gather their courage and step into the conversation with their insights and struggles.
Small Group Structure: 3 Effective Ways to Organize for Youth Ministry
You can structure small groups in many different ways. No one format is perfect. Every student ministry looks different, and small groups look different in every ministry. However, I’ve been part of three different structures of small groups in student ministries that I believe are effective. Let me share those with you.
How Do I Make Disciples?
In this episode of the New Churches podcast, host Tony Merida is joined by Matt Smethurst and Daniel Santander to discuss one of the most essential tasks of a church planter: making disciples. As part of a season focused on answering common questions from planters, the conversation explores how to faithfully pursue discipleship in a new church in 21st-century North America. The hosts talk about how to disciple new believers in a church plant, why church membership should be a priority from the beginning, and how to wisely launch key ministries like small groups, children’s ministry, and men’s and women’s discipleship. Listeners will gain practical guidance and pastoral wisdom for cultivating a healthy culture of disciple-making in the life of a new church.
How your church can partner with your community
How can your church partner with your community? It may feel challenging, even impossible, especially if your congregation is set in its ways. But it’s worth doing. Forming partnerships with your community opens the door for both your town or city and the church to be blessed beyond expectation.
Five Leadership Decisions That Quietly Kill Church Momentum
Momentum in a church is fragile. It builds slowly, but it can dissipate quickly. Often, the loss is not dramatic. It is quiet. Subtle. Incremental.
Here are five leadership decisions that can quietly kill church momentum.
The Most Rev. Sally Sue Hernández García is new primate of the Anglican Church of Mexico
On March 21, the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Mexico elected the Most Rev. Sally Sue Hernández García as its new primate, succeeding the Most Rev. Enrique Treviño Cruz.
‘Sydney got their way’ a reporters’ verdict on the Gafcon meeting in Abuja, Nigeria
The impression that Sydney foisted on the conference, a view only they held about what the new structure should be, should be resisted. Synodical structures are common throughout Anglicanism and might be regarded as a characteristic of this branch of Christianity. But significantly, the Anglican Church in North America has placed great power in its bishops, rather than balancing them with a synod, which might have influenced the views of Americans in Abuja.
The polity of the Anglican Church in North America has been strongly influenced by the Roman Catholic hierarchical view of church governance with low ranking clergy and laity in a largely consultative role. It is not at all surprising that Bob Duncan and other ACNA bishops would favor the appointment of an Anglican pope!
Why Am I Still United Methodist?
The short answer: Because the denomination has become irrelevant.
And, as a traditional Wesleyan living in Northern Virginia, as would be true in most large metropolitan areas, there are few alternatives.
The United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Church, and other progressive mainline denominations contain a number of people who, while they are not enamored of the direction of the denomination, remain out of loyalty to a local church or due to the lack of alternatives in their locality.
In many countries, people see others as morally good - but not in the US
Across 25 countries, people tend to see their fellow citizens as more morally good than bad, but there are sharp differences between nations and continuing divisions over issues such as abortion, homosexuality, gambling and divorce.
The study by Pew Research Center explored how adults judge the morality and ethics of others in their own country, as well as their views on a range of personal and social behaviours.
The dilemma of war for Christians
With wars constantly in the news, it is good to reflect on the biblical ethics of conflict.
The Great Need of Reformed Churches Is Not Great Preachers
“While only one man in ten may have the talent to become a very great preacher, the other nine, if they love Christ and love human souls, can become great pastors.”
These observations are relevant to pastors of other theological traditions.
Love the Hard Ones
Christ has filled his church with many kind, generous, and gracious people.
His Spirit is clearly at work in them. But the Spirit is working in others too, even the opinionated and ungrateful. These men and women may not be a joy to pastor. They like to argue, or they’re grumpy, or they chronically complain—or all of the above.
They might be cantankerous, but they’re still God’s. And he calls us to shepherd them as well.
Help! I Don’t Like My Church’s Music
...we’re all called to sing and to lift our voices in wholehearted worship, regardless of the style. Assuming the lyrics are biblical, when we don’t immediately or constantly like our church’s music, we need to commit to participation, preparation, and perseverance. In doing so, we can go beyond musical style to more deeply grasp the heart of worship.
The Bible isn’t a smartphone.
Obvious enough, except we’re increasingly wired to treat it like one.
The ancient Christian tradition of pilgrimage
For centuries, Christians have gone on pilgrimage to seek God, to remember the faith of those who have gone before them, and to encounter the Lord in a deeper way - a physical journey that also nourishes the soul. Though the form has changed across the ages, pilgrimage remains a living and meaningful part of Christian devotion. So, let’s dig into its meaning, origin, and relevance.
Create, Implement, and Sustain a Discipleship Strategy in Your Church
What steps should pastors and leaders take to create a lasting and effective discipleship strategy in their churches?
Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows.
This Sunday, the Fifth Sunday in Lent, is traditionally called Passion Sunday. It is the last Sunday before Holy Week. Next Sunday is Palm Sunday and marks the beginning of Holy Week.
Next Thursday is Maundy Thursday. Early in the week l will post suggestions for families and other small groups wishing to observe occasion with an agape, or Christian love feast.
In this Sunday’s message we will take a look at the role of the Holy Spirit in the Christian life.
Readings: Ezekiel 37:1-14, Romans 8: 6-11, and John 11: 1-45
Message: How the Holy Spirit Makes the Difference
Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/sundays-at-all-hallows-march-22-2026.html
Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.
If you are new to Sundays at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:
-It is recommended that after reading or hearing each lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows each lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.
-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.
-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.
-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.
-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.
May Sundays at All Hallows be a blessing to you.
The Top 10 Immovable Traditions in Many Churches (Part 1)
Not all traditions are bad, but some can hinder the work of the church. Jess and Thom share the most common church traditions based on an extensive survey, and why they can be difficult to change.
Also See: The Top 10 Immovable Traditions in Many Churches (Part 2)
WCC invites global ecumenical community to prayers for peace
The World Council of Churches (WCC) invites people and churches to join in global prayers for peace, starting with the Middle East on 26 March.
Anglicans in Cyprus and the Gulf, caught in Iran war’s crossfire, nurture hope in troubled time
The Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf is one of the geographically largest dioceses in the Anglican Communion, spanning from the island of Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea to Yemen on the edge of the Arabian Peninsula. Much of that region is now engulfed by war.
Since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, even countries that are not parties to the conflict face constant danger and threat of destruction from airstrikes. In many of those countries, Anglicans and their faith communities are among those on heightened alert for Iran’s latest retaliatory bombardments.
As conflict continues, Nowruz holds new meaning for Dallas’ Iranian Episcopalians
Nowruz, the Persian New Year, is Iran’s largest holiday and a symbol of cultural pride for Iranians worldwide. It marks the arrival of spring and symbolizes the rebirth of nature and of hope.
That message holds especially true this year for members of Grace Community Episcopal Church, a church plant of the Diocese of Dallas in Plano, Texas, that’s believed to be the only Farsi-speaking Episcopal congregation in the U.S. This year, Nowruz began March 20, 20 days after the United States and Israel launched a series of attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, and nearly three months after deadly protests erupted in Iran over the country’s worsening economic crisis. Even though most members have had little to no communication with their loved ones in Iran in recent weeks, and the death toll continues to rise, they still have reasons to celebrate the new year and maintain hope.
Sarah Mullally and the evangelical past she doesn’t talk about
The new Archbishop of Canterbury is seen as a liberal, yet her faith is rooted in a long history of conservative Christianity.
The Log In Our Eye: Data, Anecdotes, and Loving Our Neighbors
This week, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that UC Irvine Professor Charis Kubrin received the Stockholm Prize in Criminology — an honor often compared to the Nobel Prize in the field — for her research into the relationship between immigration and crime.
Kubrin is one of several researchers who have published repeated studies showing that immigrants are, on average, responsible for less crime than native-born citizens. The big takeaway? Crime rates tend to decline when immigration increases in a community.
How to kill a rogue AI
It’s advice as old as tech support. If your computer is doing something you don’t like, try turning it off and then on again. When it comes to the growing concerns that a highly advanced artificial intelligence system could go so catastrophically rogue that it could cause a risk to society, or even humanity, it’s tempting to fall back on this sort of thinking. An AI is just a computer system designed by people. If it starts malfunctioning, can’t we just turn it off?
5 warning signs in the American church that church leaders around the world must note
In a nation where Christian heritage runs deep, the inaugural 2025 SALT Index from Back to the Bible offers a sobering yet hopeful snapshot of spiritual formation among U.S. adults.
What Every Christian Should Know
...knowing Bible trivia isn’t the same thing as knowing the Bible. A person can remember scattered facts but still struggle to know what the Bible is, how it fits together, or what its message is. The Scripture isn’t given to us so we can win a game. It’s given so that we can read, meditate, understand, and be trained in righteousness and holiness. With that in mind, there are certain things every Christian should know about the Bible — not obscure details or academic debates, but foundational truths that shape how we read, study, and receive God’s Word.
What Growing Churches Actually Do to Reach and Keep People
How does a church grow without relying on people transferring from other congregations? Thom and Sam take a dive into this topic.
The Problems and Promise of Denominations
Are denominations still relevant—or are they slowly fading away?
The Red Flags Driving Women Out of Church (and How to Fix Them)
Recent data shows that while young men are coming to church in record numbers, women are leaving. Why? Kadi Cole shares the #1 reason women are leaving church (lack of trust) and outlines numerous other red flags that are alienating women.
Plus, she discusses how to address them and how to create an engaging environment for women, whether you lead a complementarian or egalitarian church.
Across US, churches plan Palm Sunday protests
United Methodists plan to join with thousands of other Christians on March 29 in taking their Palm Sunday processions outside church walls and into the streets.
Their goal for the Palm Sunday witness: Challenge notions of earthly power and domination with Christ-like humility and neighborliness.
Great Lakes Ministry Assists Tornado Victims
Four people died and 20 were injured when a tornado ripped through several counties in southwest Michigan on March 6. Trinity Church in Three Rivers was spared the brunt of the twister, which had estimated winds of at least 160 miles per hour. The congregation reported no fatalities or injuries, and its building was undamaged.
The parish is part of the Diocese of the Great Lakes, which encompasses 58 counties in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula.
Why is the Resurrection Important?
Most of those in your pews believe in Christ’s resurrection, but what might change if they grasped what that meant for their eternity?
Your Church Makes Christianity Credible
When Paul writes from prison to the Christians in Ephesus in the first century, he addresses a group of believers who, like us, live in a world overwhelmed with false information. They too can be “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine” or be taken in by “human cunning, by craftiness” for the purpose of “deceitful schemes” (4:14).
Paul seems to write to them, at least in part, to provide them with much-needed reorientation. With the shifting winds of disinformation blowing strong, he wants to remind them of their identity in Christ and of the way of life this identity entails. We need these reminders too.
Pastoral Burnout: Why Rest Isn’t Enough
Before we can counter our burnout, pastors and ministry leaders need to confront our own self-deception. In this respect, two forms of self-deception play a particularly significant role.
Legacy Over Platform: Six Things That Will Outlast Your Sermons
Long after the sermon manuscript is lost and the recording disappears into the internet archives, what remains is the quiet, everyday realities of pastoral life that shape people far more than we often realize.
Scientists discover what age children start becoming cunning little liars
Scientists may have just identified the age at which children begin to understand and practice deception for the first time—and it is a lot younger than you might think.
8 Critical Signposts of a Healthy Church
Christians should grow in these discipleship signposts. Conversely, if you’re not seeing growth in these areas, discipleship may have stalled out.
An Inclusive Church Will Be a Growing Church
Healthy churches pay attention to the people God has placed around them. When ministry reflects the realities of the surrounding community, congregations bear fruit; when it does not, decline often follows. In this piece from his new book An Aura of Hope, Lovett H. Weems Jr. challenges leaders to ask a simple but revealing question: Who is missing—and how is God calling us to reach them?
Churches Are Targets for Predators (Here's Why)
One of the biggest mistakes church leaders can make is assuming that abuse won’t happen in their churches. The belief that “it can’t happen here” is dangerously naïve. Any organization that works with children and other vulnerable individuals can be a target for predators. Satan specifically aims to attack churches and seeks to harm children and vulnerable people. Josh and Sam discuss this very important topic of safety.
How 'Christ is King' became an internet weapon
In recent months, a strange pattern has appeared online. Under posts about Jews, Israel, or antisemitic conspiracy theories, the same phrase repeatedly shows up in the comment section or on social media profiles: “Christ is King.”
King Charles called upon to defend Christian heritage
A bishop from the Confessing Anglican Church (CAC) has called upon His Majesty King Charles III to end the “erosion of Britain’s Christian inheritance” and to live up to his title as “Defender of the Faith”.
Mexican Anglican schism enters its fourth year
The internal crisis in the Anglican Church of Mexico has solidified into a durable schism, with rival structures and competing claims to authority. What began as a dispute over teaching and discipline has become a struggle over how power is exercised, how leaders are chosen, and how truthfulness and due process are handled in the life of the province.
Maryland Episcopal church faces city fines for letting unhoused people sleep on its property
An Episcopal church in Ocean City, Maryland, is facing fines of up to $5,000 a day if it continues to allow people to sleep in church-provided tents on its property.
Stop Being Shocked When Christians Disagree with You
...when differences arise, we question not only the maturity or faithfulness of a brother or sister but also the sincerity of their faith. Hidden motives get attributed to those who, because of their background, their location, or the particular way they’ve applied biblical reflection to their cultural context, simply read the moment differently than we do.
The Art and Science of Making Disciples, with Peyton Jones (Ep 124)
The stats are troubling. In a recent survey, pastors acknowledged that discipleship is the aspect of church ministry that they do least well. And when church members are surveyed, only 23 percent of Christians say they were ever discipled one-on-one.
In this conversation with Peyton Jones, we talk about the severe need for our churches to become better at the main command Jesus gave His church: making disciples.
Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows.
This Thursday evening, we continue our Lenten message series on the means of grace, the different ways God meet us and works in us. The topic of this Thursday evening’s message is prayer.
Reading: Matthew 6:1-15
Message: In the Way of Prayer
Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/thursday-evenings-at-all-hallows-march.html
Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.
If you are new to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:
-It is recommended that after reading or hearing a lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows the lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.
-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.
-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.
-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.
-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.
May Thursday Evenings at All Hallows be a blessing to you.
Beyond the Small-Town Stereotype: Rural Churches Are Growing
What do rural churches and their growth look like?
Research suggests young Canadians showing greater openness to religion
A new research report suggests that young Canadians may be showing greater openness to religion, even as overall religious affiliation in the country remains low.
Jailed Rwandan Bishop Pleads for Justice
Former Rwandan Bishop Samuel Mugisha Mugiraneza, said by many of his former flock and several of his fellow bishops to be unfairly imprisoned, will now have his day in court this week. A hearing on his appeal of a sentence of three and half years in prison for pasturing his cattle on church property is scheduled for March 18.
5 Ways Churches Risk Losing Their Tax-Exempt Status
Here are five of the most common ways churches put their tax-exempt status at risk.
Relief as Scottish Parliament rejects assisted suicide in historic vote
Liam McArthur has lost his bid to to legalise assisted suicide in Scotland after an hours-long final debate in which more MSPs stood up to speak against the proposals than for.
The Challenge and Opportunity of Metamodern Christianity
Gone are the days of coherent systems of belief we inherit from our parents. Gone are the days of stable religious adherence across time. We’ve simply seen too much.
The Pastor’s Betrayal: A Hidden Trauma Many Church Leaders Carry
For most pastors, betrayal is not an abstract concept. It is a lived experience. Sadly.
Here We Are Now ... (Entertain Us)
This blog post isn’t really a plug for Nirvana, although they were the anthem of my youth. But it does capture an instinct that some of us can have when we approach sermons. At our worst, and more often than we would like to admit, we can be people who seek after novelty, stylistic excellence, and ear-tickling preaching. We passively consume sermons and worship services with little effort.
Young adults turn to Quakers' silent worship to offset — and cope with — a noisy world
At the Arch Street Meeting House in Philadelphia's Old City, more and more young people are seeking respite from a clamorous technological age in the silent worship of a centuries-old faith.
The Danger of AI Isn’t Misinformation. It’s Mis-Formation.
The spiritual danger of AI is that it might condition us to take shortcuts in the means God uses to form disciples. Here are three ways this can quietly compete with biblical spirituality.
6 Ways to Encourage Commitment to Small Group To combat apathy among small group attendees, here are six ideas to help encourage commitment to small groups.
Regular church attendance associated with lower likelihood of mental health diagnoses
“Conservatives who attend church weekly are the least likely to have ever been diagnosed with a mental health condition,” sociologist Ryan Burge reported Thursday on X.
By contrast, he added, “liberals who have low attendance are the most likely to have a diagnosis.”
[Book review] The other half of church: Christian community, brain science, and overcoming spiritual stagnation
Lots of churches in the Global North are cerebral, shaped by the impact of the Enlightenment on culture. Other churches (non-white, Global South) are often more ‘spiritual,’ prayerful, and expectant. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all learn from each other’s strengths and find more common ground? It’s just possible that this book could help us do that.
Does Your Church Have a Discipleship Culture? How to Cultivate It
Discipling others is essential to ministry. As one pastor well explains, “Churches don’t need programs so much as they need cultures of discipling, cultures where each member prioritizes the spiritual health of others.”1
But if this is the case, how can a church build that culture of discipleship?
The Great Unmooring: How Cultural Upheaval Is Creating a Gospel Opportunity
Unmooring is also an accurate description of the complexities and confusion of our moment. People—even whole communities—are becoming disconnected from the realities that held previous generations together.
While this “Great Unmooring” is certainly true of American society, it can also be felt throughout the world. Its impacts are multifaceted, creating turbulent times, division and uncertainty. But it also presents tremendous opportunity for the gospel.
Denominations That Are on Red Alert for Rapid Decline
Using a recent study by Ryan Burge, Jess and Thom examine the sobering reality of demographic decline in two groups: the Southern Baptist Convention and non-denominational evangelical churches.
Two Denominations That Are Surprisingly Young
In the previous podcast, Jess and Thom examined the aging and dying denominations. In this podcast, they discuss the two youngest denominations.
Church of Ireland marks St Patrick’s Day with worship, music and pilgrimage
Church of Ireland dioceses and cathedrals have prepared a wide programme of worship, music and community events to mark St Patrick’s Day on Tuesday.
The commemorations are in honour St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, who is remembered for bringing Christianity to the island in the fifth century.
The story of St Patrick’s Day
On March 17 every year, people in Ireland and across the world celebrate St Patrick’s Day. What began as a religious feast has grown into a global celebration of Irish culture, history and identity.
But who was St Patrick, and why is he remembered centuries later? His story is one of hardship, faith and a remarkable mission that changed the course of Ireland’s history. So, let’s dive right into it.
Disestablishing Church of England 'will not be a priority' at next election, says Green Party
The Green Party has responded to claims it wants to disestablish the Church of England by saying that this will "not be a priority" at the next General Election.
The Daily Mail reported that it had seen the plans in a Green Party policy document stating that the Church would be disestablished and instead become "self-governing" so that future appointments of offices like the Archbishop of Canterbury would be done without involvement from secular government officials. Bishops would also be removed from the House of Lords under the alleged plans.
Why Harassment Training Is Essential for Small Churches (And How to Protect Your Ministry)
For many pastors and church leaders, the idea of “workplace harassment training” can feel like something designed for corporations, not congregations. After all, churches are communities built on shared faith, trust, and service. They’re supposed to be immune to things like this. Right?
But the reality is that most churches are also technically workplaces, too. Staff members, volunteers, and ministry leaders interact daily, often in emotionally intense environments. And like any workplace, misunderstandings, poor boundaries, or inappropriate behavior can occur.
The Afterlife Isn’t Going Away
One thing I am always probing the edges of is how deeply religion is embedded in each one of us. There’s a saying that bounces around the sociology of religion: “you may be done with religion but religion is not done with you.” I really like how Daryl van Tongeren describes this phenomenon: religious residue. You may not have gone to church in a decade and have no plans of raising your kids in a religious household, but there are probably parts of your psyche that are still impacted by religious concepts and frameworks.
I think that the idea of the afterlife is one of those things. It seems pretty common to reject the idea of Moses parting the Red Sea or to question whether Jesus died and actually resurrected. Lots of folks cast serious doubts on those types of miraculous events. But then when surveys include questions about concepts like having a soul and what happens to your existence after you die, that religious residue reemerges, and you can see that lots of Americans do tend to have some type of supernatural belief.
How Pastors Can Lead Through Culture Wars and Political Division
Picture this: You preach on caring for the poor. After the service, a longtime deacon named Harold corners you in the hallway by the coffee table. “That sounded pretty liberal,” he says, and walks away. Next Sunday, a young couple stops you at the door. “We love that you’re speaking up about justice,” they say. “We’ve been looking for a church that actually cares.”
Same sermon. Opposite reactions. Welcome to ministry in a culture war. This isn’t a guide for making everyone happy—that’s not possible, and chasing it will hollow out your ministry. It’s something harder and better than that. Jesus calls his church to rise above worldly divisions, uniting in his truth. Understanding America’s culture wars isn’t optional for pastors—it’s essential.
Actually, You Do Have Time to Read
Literacy in the Western world is in freefall. A study from the University of Florida found that the time Americans spend reading for pleasure declined 40 percent between 2003 and 2023. Pleasure reading among children is now at the lowest level on record. After 300 years of becoming more literate, more intelligent, more communicative, we in the West are regressing. Like Miller’s mobs of Simpletons, we’ve ceased to see the value in books. It seems to not be something we did intentionally, unlike the mobs, but that we just sort of let happen to us.
I probably don’t need to tell you that the decline in literacy tracks with the introduction and widespread adoption of the smartphone, a device that may as well have been developed by a Simpleton to ruin our capacity to read. All previous technology that could (and did) displace reading for pleasure—television, movies, even radio—was designed to get and keep our attention for extended periods of time. But the smartphone and its accompanying software is the first device that is purpose-built for minimizing attention and maximizing distraction. We flip between apps, scroll between videos, and receive notifications of things that seem to need our attention right away.
Relational Ministry in a Technology-Dominated World
Why is relational ministry so important? Read on to find out!
Ground Rules for Counseling Students
If it hasn’t happened already, it’ll happen soon enough:
The late night phone call from a student or parent dropping a bombshell. “Tim, my dad just beat me up. What should I do?” “Tasha, my mom just left my dad, and I don’t know where I should go now.”
For years, Tasha has worked as a counselor, and Tim has served with students. Their experience in these areas has helped them develop ground rules when it comes to counseling students.
Does the World Notice When Christians Fight with One Another?
While I have interacted with Celsus quite a bit over the years, I was recently reading through his True Doctrine again. And I was surprised by one of his critiques that I had never really noticed before.
Celsus did not reject Christianity merely because he found historical problems in the Gospels or found the idea of incarnation to be incoherent. He found the Christian religion to be problematic also because of the degree to which Christians fought and argued with one another.
For Celsus, these were no minor squabbles. He saw the early Christian movement as characterized by their in-fighting....
The divide tearing America apart just hit a new extreme: Conservative
The word "polarization" was being used to describe the United States' political environment long before Donald Trump launched the MAGA movement with his 2016 campaign. During the 2004 presidential election, quite a few political journalists stressed that liberal and progressive urban Americans and rural Republicans were living in two different worlds. And 12 years before that, during his 1992 presidential campaign, paleoconservative Patrick Buchanan (a major influence on Trump and MAGA) said the U.S. was in the middle of a "culture war."
But Never Trump conservative David French, in his March 15 column for the New York Times, argues that the United States' political polarization is entering an even more dangerous phase than before.
MAGA churches are flouting the law with impunity: report
President Donald Trump and his supporters are engaging in “more overt” defiance of laws prohibiting nonprofits like churches from explicit partisan activity — and this is because, one journalist alleges, MAGA is run by Christian nationalists.
The little-known story of the woman who rescued Mothering Sunday
15 March 2026, or the fourth Sunday in Lent, is Mothering Sunday in Britain and Ireland. The tradition nearly died and was rescued by a determined vicar’s daughter about a hundred years ago. This is the story....
Mother’s Day: reflecting the serving heart of God
March 15 marks Mother’s Day in the UK - a special day set aside to honour the love, effort and sacrifice of mothers and motherly figures in our lives. It is a moment to pause and recognise those who have nurtured us, cared for us and quietly carried burdens for our sake.
Motherhood reveals something deeply profound about the nature of love. In many ways, being a parent is one of the closest human experiences to God’s heart for mankind.
Mother’s Day: Love that stands
Mother’s Day is a beautiful pause in the calendar. Cards are written. Flowers are bought. Restaurants are fully booked.
And somewhere, I suspect, heaven smiles because whenever we honour sacrificial love, we are echoing the heart of God.
Motherhood is one of the clearest reflections of divine love on earth. Gentle and strong. And when I think of a mother in the Bible who embodies that strength wrapped in surrender, one name rises above the rest: Mary, mother of Jesus.
Who Is Watching Out for You?
Pastor, you probably know what it’s like to watch over others while quietly feeling unseen yourself. You help people stay steady in temptation, grief, conflict, and doubt. You pray for them, counsel them, and carry burdens you cannot always share.
So here is a Monday-morning question worth asking: Who is watching out for you?
Plan an Abundant Holy Week with Your Neighbors
Last year, six Episcopal churches in our corner of southern Virginia advertised 37 services between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. The year before, it was 34. We did everything: the Proper Liturgies, Monday to Wednesday in Holy Week, Stations of the Cross, Tenebrae, and one shared Great Vigil of Easter. To someone seeing our collective Facebook posts or shared fliers at the coffee shop, we didn’t look like a dying tradition struggling to keep the lights on. We looked alive, full-throated, like we offered something worth people’s attention.
This didn’t happen because any one of our parishes is particularly large or well-resourced. It happened because we sat down together in late January, opened our calendars, and hammered out a schedule. We already live and worship near each other, so why not pool our energies in the holiest week of the year?
I’m writing to invite you—whether you’re clergy, a senior warden, a retired priest doing supply work, or anyone who loves your church and wants to see it thrive—try this. This year. Start now. Not because it’s easy, but because it’s faithful. Not because you have spare energy, but because this is the mission.
Sam Sheridan has point.
Making the Leap: Is It Time to Add Another Worship Service?
A new worship service will either thrive under healthy systems and culture or be strained by its fragility.
Pipe organs could be extinct by 2070 Pipe Up, a charity devoted to the preservation of organs, has warned that every year over 400 church organs are going unused or even being scrapped every year.
A spokesperson for the group said, "A cultural catastrophe is staring Britain in the face: the imminent loss of its pipe organs," reports the BBC.
Five Hidden Costs of Digital Convenience in the Local Church
...convenience is a helpful tool. It is a dangerous foundation.
When convenience becomes central, something subtle begins to shift in the culture of a church.
Let me share five hidden costs I am seeing.
Many US adults are skipping parenting or having fewer kids – and it’s forcing schools to close
At a February board meeting for Memphis-Shelby county schools in Tennessee, a parent of five children who currently or formerly attended Ida B Wells Academy, an alternative education school, asked board members a question.
“This is a high-performing school. This is not a school in crisis,” she said. “So I respectfully ask, why are we considering closing a school that is working?”
What Singles Need from Married Friends
While it’s true some singles struggle with contentment, plenty find joy and fulfillment.
Singles’ accomplishments can easily go unnoticed without a spouse to share them with. The same can be true of grief.
Does Attracting A Crowd Make Discipleship Harder?
Drawing a crowd to church may not be the best way to start people on a path to discipleship.
In fact, it may hurt our discipleship efforts more than help them.
When a person’s first encounter with the gospel (and their second, and their one-hundredth) is as a member of a crowd they can get a twisted perception of what discipleship means. They start to think that Christianity is about being a passive observer, consumer, and judge of religious content.
When we try to make the shift from that to discipleship it can feel like the ol’ bait-and-switch.
Implement Intergenerational Discipleship in Your Church
What might it look like to cultivate intergenerational discipleship for children and youth in your local church?
The World After Reading
We’ve all seen the headlines: Johnny can’t read anymore. Reading scores are plummeting. Forty-six percent of Americans didn’t read a single book in the past year. Young people no longer read for pleasure. The ability of most college students to comprehend even a paragraph of decent English prose is all but non-existent. We don’t even need to click the links or read the studies. We all have plenty of our own anecdotes to back them up at this point.
And we all know why: It’s the screens, dummy.
8 Things Caregivers Should Know About Dementia
Dementia can drive a caregiver either to exasperation or to the cross.
From Titles to Teamwork: Strengthening Your Staff With 5 Clarity Questions
Most often, staff challenges are rooted in a lack of clarity. There are five clarity questions that will help strengthen your staff team.
>What Happened to Our Pastor?
In recent years, the church has suffered numerous reports of catastrophic moral failure by some of its most talented and visible leaders. But it isn’t only famous, highly regarded pastors who falter. It happens to all sorts of pastors from churches large, small, and mid-sized. They hail from every nation and every branch of Christendom. Their sins violate all sorts of biblical standards—and not just the most obvious ones of abuse of power and sexual sin; some leave the faith, dishonor authorities, take their own lives, break vows, misuse funds, plagiarize, covet, and more. Why are so many pastors failing in these ways? Is moral failure among pastors really as much of an epidemic as it seems? How can we have confidence in our leaders amidst all the bad news?
As we consider these questions, we’ll discuss here four potential explanations that have been offered. Two of these, while having some merit, I believe fail to get at the heart of the matter; the other two, I think, come closer to helping us understand the real issues affecting how and why pastors fail, and the church’s own role in that process.
Understanding AVoIP
Keeping up with changes in technology can be a challenge for churches of all sizes even at the best of times. But for those churches that don’t have dedicated staff who have expertise in audio, video and lighting (AVL), it is especially hard.
Because there’s a big change that is already happening in the church tech world, I want to set you on the best path to adapt your equipment so that you don’t have to catch up later—and spend a lot of money to do it.
How to Repent of Sin and Rejoice in Christ Together with a Discipleship Group
How can we fight the good fight of faith? I want to explain the concept of “discipleship groups” as a way for all disciples to fight for what is noble and beautiful. My hope is that discipleship groups will help you experience victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil and enjoy Jesus Christ.
Discipleship groups are small, simple groups of two to four people who meet regularly to repent of sin, rejoice in Christ, and reproduce disciples. Men meet with men and women meet with women in order to effectively address gender-specific issues head-on. I have been in discipleship groups for years. Some have been better than others. Along the way, I’ve discovered groups that make the gospel central are much more effective and enjoyable.
What Does It Mean to Exhort One Another?
You know the experience. Someone in your church or among your friends says something distasteful, does something concerning. A little alarm bell goes off inside you, but you decide not to say anything. Surely it’s an anomaly....
Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows.
This Sunday is the Fourth Sunday in Lent, also known as Laetare Sunday, Mid-Lent Sunday, or Refreshment Sunday.
In the Church of England and some other Anglican Churches, it coincides with Mothering Sunday, a Sunday on which Christians have historically visited their mother church—the church in which they received the sacrament of baptism.
Regrettably I am unable to observe this custom as my mother church is St. Mary the Virgin in Therfield, in Hertfordshire, in the United Kingdom, a goodly distance from where I now live.
Among Mothering Sunday customs are the baking of Simnel Cakes and Mothering Buns, "plain yeast-leavened buns, iced, and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands,” for the occasion and children gathering and presenting their mothers with bouquets of violets.
The topic of this Sunday’s message is spiritual blindness.
Readings: 1 Samuel 16: 1-13, Ephesians 5: 8-14, and John 9: 1-41
Message: Born Blind
Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/sundays-at-all-hallows-march-15-2026.html
Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.
If you are new to Sundays at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:
-It is recommended that after reading or hearing each lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows each lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.
-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.
-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.
-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.
-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.
May Sundays at All Hallows be a blessing to you.
