Thursdays Catch: "Killing Sacred Cows in a Replant" and More

Killing Sacred Cows in a Replant - Revitalize & Replant #26

Sacred cows exist in every church, but in dying ones and those in need of replanting, they problem is exacerbated. Today Thom Rainer, Mark Clifton, and Jonathan Howe tackle how to deal with sacred cows in a replant. Listen Now

First-Time Guest Gifts: 26 Lessons From 33 Churches

Recently, I connected with church leaders from 33 churches from across North America and asked them to share with me what they are doing for gifts for their first-time guests. This continues in a series where I’ve asked other church leaders to help us learn what is happening at their church … earlier I’ve done posts on church bulletins, adding new services and the “other holy days.” Read More

15 Lessons from 17 Different Church Bulletins

How are you leveraging your bulletin (or program … or worship folder … or whatever you call it) to communicate with your people? Read More

14 Hints on Adding New Service Times from 13 Church Leaders Who Did It

Is your church thinking about adding new service times in the future? We recently interviewed a number of church leaders within the unSeminary community who have led their churches through this change to help extract some helpful hints for you. Read More

How do churches celebrate the “other” holy days?

Throughout the Christian calendar there are days that it seems like the community is more likely to accept an invitation to come to church. For our church it’s Christmas and Easter … but what about those “other” holy days? You know … the one’s that our culture (and greeting card companies) have made super important for people to celebrate. Read More

5 Common Mistakes in Preparing Church Budgets

If you talk to most pastors and ministers about their church budget, they usually respond with either a sigh or a groan. Much like a conversation on personal budgeting. But, a church budget is a powerful tool, so it’s important that we pay attention to them and how they are created. Read More

God’s Letter to Us

How evangelicals read Scripture. Read More

How Not to Do Theology

When the stakes are high, it’s important to know the right way and the wrong way to do things. The stakes are highest when it comes to our theology—our ideas about God, Christ, how we can be saved, among others. Our theology will determine what happens to us for all eternity, so it is important to engage it rightly. That means knowing how not to do theology as much as knowing how to do it. So, what are some ways that we should not do theology? Read More

The Spirit-Led Leader

The world sees as leaders those who are full of confidence in themselves, who know the right answers, who always know what to do in every situation. Jesus’ view—and the example he sets—of leadership is much different. He models a leadership that relies heavily on God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Read More

11 Worst Practices for Email

Email has become endemic to our culture. Without it, it would be difficult to communicate as frequently as it seems the ministry and the marketplace require. I receive scores of emails every day, and I know some pastors and leaders who get over 100. YIKES! It can be a useful tool if used correctly, but it can also be a deadly tool if used poorly. If you want to make matters worse with people you know or within your organization or church, these 11 worst practices will definitely get the results you want. Read More

Six Ways to Support and Challenge Those Who Leave Church

How churchgoers can journey with their “done” brothers and sisters. Read More

Evangelism, Meet Soul Care

Why we need to love ourselves to effectively love our neighbor and share the gospel. Read More

The Greatest Gospel Opportunity in a Generation—Lost

With the dramatic restriction of refugee admissions to the United States over the past year—the result of public-policy changes supported by most white evangelical Christians—I fear that we may have lost the greatest opportunity in a generation to advance the cause of Christ, forfeiting a unique avenue both for evangelism and for personal discipleship because we have embraced our culture’s idolatry of safety. Read More