Monday's Catch:'Disowned for Jesus' and More

Disowned for Jesus: What I Lost and Found in Christ

Afshin Ziaphat who converted from Islam to Christianity and now pastors a church in Texas shares his very moving testimony. Read More

5 Lessons from Persecuted Christians in China

For the watching world, including believers who share the same faith with our brothers and sisters in China, we have much to learn from them. Here are five lessons we can learn through their sacrifices. Read More

How God Gives You His Vision for Your Church

Charisma doesn’t make a great leader. Vision does. In fact, communicating vision is your number one job as a leader. As a pastor, you need to continually clarify the vision of your church. It gets harder and harder (but more and more important) as you grow. But where do you get vision that will propel your church forward in the new year? Read More

Just Because You are Competent to Develop a New Competency, Should You?

In other words, how can we discern when to give time, resources, and attention to learning something new, working on a personal deficit, or developing a new skill or competency? Consider these questions as you discern a potential new direction. Read More

How to Listen Like a Counselor

This post makes two assumptions: (a) that counselors are good listeners, and (b) the manner in which a counselor listens to a counselee is – at least in some ways – different from how one friend listens to another. There are plenty of exceptions to these assumptions, at least by stating them you know where I’m coming from. Read More

Listening is a skill that we all should take time to learn. It is a critical skill for pastors, counselors, and others in the helping professions. It is a skill that I found invaluable when I worked as a social worker.

No, Your Synthesizer Is Not the Holy Spirit In recent decades, ambient sounds have become omnipresent in church gatherings. Meetings start with a synth swell and every song after that is connected to the next with musical glue. Synth pads play softly behind prayer, Scripture readings, song intros, communion and, in some cases, the preaching. If you don’t have someone who can produce the necessary sounds, no worries. “Worship pads” in every key are available for purchase to smooth out the transitions. Which raises the question: What’s going on? Read More

While it may be appropriate to play music before a service in order to set the tone of the service and during communion if the congregation is small and the communion procession is too short for a communion song, it is my considered opinion that playing music under prayers, Scripture readings, and sermons draws attention away from the spoken word and should be avoided. Rather prayers, scripture readings, and sermons should be followed by periods of silent reflection and prayer. It is not necessary to fill every space in a service with music.