Saturday Lagniappe: The Essence of Pastoral Ministry and More

The Essence of Pastoral Ministry

If forced to summarize the essence of pastoral ministry into one word, I’d go with delight. That’s a far different answer than I would have given in my younger years. Pastoral ministry is about delight. Specifically, it’s about delight in God, Scripture, and his church. Read More

How to Lead a Church That Can't Agree on Anything Right Now

This is probably one of the hardest seasons you’ve ever led through. One of the things that’s making this season particular challenging is that, regardless of ideology, theology or viewpoint, we are more divided and adamant than ever. People don’t agree on masks, social distancing, schooling, reopening church, online church politics or whether there’s even a real threat. Read More

3 Reasons I Began Using A Sermon Manuscript

"I used to always enter the pulpit with outline in hand; but no longer. I now preach from a full manuscript — 2,500 words or so." Read More

I was using a manuscript when I preached. However, one church member kept complaining that my sermons were too long. His wife complained that his sermons were too long. He also used a manuscript. But the church member who convinced me to preach without a manuscript was the church member who sat in the last row of pews and always fell asleep during my sermons. When I preached without a manuscript, he stopped nodding off when I was preaching. My advice to anyone who preaches--pastor or lay preacher--is do what works best for you.

8 Ways to Use Social Media for God

There are many ways to misuse social media. It is so easy spread information that is incomplete, to join a nasty mob taking down someone, or to engage in unproductive arguments. Too often we violate James 1:19’s admonition to be “quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.” And yet it doesn’t have to be this way. The Internet isn’t going anywhere, so we can either complain about how corrosive social media is or we can use our voices to elevate what is good and true and beautiful. So just as it is easy to press “send” on another nasty tweet or post, it is easy to press “send” on content that brings joy. Read More