Wednesday's Catch: 'The One Thing that Solves Most Church Problems (Only 1% of Churches Actually Do This)'

The One Thing that Solves Most Church Problems (Only 1% of Churches Actually Do This)
Church health will not improve until ongoing evangelism returns. A recent Church Answers poll found that only 1% of churches have an ongoing evangelism effort. This finding corroborated a more extensive longitudinal study we’ve been conducting since 1996, in which the lowest church health score across denominations is in the category of evangelism. The trend is alarming, and it is getting worse. We are seeing it across denominational lines and in non-denominational churches.

Want to Grow the Church? Understand Your Cultural Soil
Good gardening includes cultivation, which is all about culture. For any leader, and especially for church planters in the first quarter of the 21st century, to ignore the state of the soil in our culture is to risk their efforts and energies at planting the seeds of the gospel. The hard work of cultivating and planting must be mixed with an understanding of the culture we are planting in.

Orthodoxy in Exile: Church as an Alternative Community
How can the church thrive in a city that sees it as outdated, irrelevant, and morally offensive? It must be an alternative community that is different from the city but also seeks its good.

Study Finds Americans’ Understanding of ‘Family’ Is Changing
What does the idea of “family” mean anymore? According to a new national research, Americans’ ideas of marriage and family are changing and people have mixed feelings about how that will affect the future.

Half of Pastors ‘Very Concerned’ Younger Christians Not Supporting Church Financially: Study
While young adults have been found to be more generous with their time volunteering than older generations, just over half of pastors say they're “very concerned” that younger Christians don't support their local churches financially, a new study shows. The finding comes from research presented in Barna’s latest and final report in their The State of Generosity series—Investing in the Future, created in partnership with Gloo and Kingdom Advisors.

High Court Orders Church-Exit Suits Be Dismissed
The Oklahoma Supreme Court has struck down two decisions by a lower-court judge who sided with churches seeking to exit The United Methodist Church with property. The state’s high court ruled that the judge had no jurisdiction in cases that entangle the court in internal religious disputes. The Oklahoma rulings could have implications for other cases around the United States dealing with United Methodist disaffiliation rules.

Fire Destroys Small Episcopal Church in South Dakota in Suspected Arson: 'We will rise from these ashes'
A small Episcopal congregation in South Dakota is mourning the loss of their historic church building after it burned to the ground last weekend in an act of suspected arson.

Also see: Fire destroys small Episcopal church beloved by Rosebud Sioux community in South Dakota

3 Reasons the Old Testament Remains Relevant
If we keep these three truths in mind, we will better prepare ourselves to benefit from the Old Testament according to what it is.

Dare to Be a Daniel: Reflections on Seeing Moral Examples in Old Testament Stories
Maybe you’ve been exposed to the kind of teaching from the Old Testament that uses its stories to highlight moral examples. Is that kind of teaching bad? Should we do such a thing? Should it be avoided for the sake of christological interpretation?