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Tuesday, April 23, 2024

Tuesday's Catch: 'Doing More Together' And More


The way churches are affiliated has changed over the past 20 years. We used to identify churches according to their denominational affiliation; now we are more likely to find a church that affiliates with a network in the place of or in addition to a denomination. To understand how we got to this place, we need to wind back the clock to the late 1990s when two parallel trends emerged, danced around each other and finally intertwined.

The church could increase resilience in survivors
Communities can enhance resilience with supportive measures such as deliberate action to decrease stressors, educational programming or effective interventions. However, when the community (think congregation for the case of this article) does not provide supportive measures, social support and assistance after disaster (domestic violence in this instance), it impacts not only the well-being of the survivor and any children, but it also impacts how that survivor understands the congregation to be the body of Christ.

Supreme Court hears case that could empower cities to fine people for being homeless
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments April 22 in a case that could decide if homeless people can continue to be fined or jailed for sleeping outdoors even when shelter space is unavailable. Under review are rulings by the U.S. Ninth District Court of Appeals that punishing people for sleeping in public spaces violates the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
Also see: Do homeless people have constitutional rights?
Demographic decline is upon us — what’s next?
Without immigrant families producing children, U.S. population might fall by 107 million between 2022 and 2100.

The post-evangelicals take their next step forward
Many post-evangelicals would say that, in their widespread embrace of MAGA-evangelicalism and frequent turns toward misogyny and xenophobia, evangelicals were the ones that have done the leaving; that is, they have left behind the very faith and values they had once attempted to live and to teach their children. That is to say this: The preponderance of post-evangelicals are the disillusioned children and grandchildren of evangelicals.

Leading Beyond Likes: The Challenge of Decision-Making in Leadership
If you like to be liked, leadership will be a challenge. Discover how to lead effectively, even when your choices aren't popular.

The Art of Extemporaneous Preaching: Lessons from Charles Spurgeon
Spurgeon once delivered a lecture to his students on extemporaneous speaking, summarizing his approach on sermon delivery (“The Faculty of Impromptu Speech” in Lectures to My Students). He divided extemporaneous speaking into two categories: “speech impromptu” and extemporaneous sermon delivery.

When a Bad Group Launch is Worse Than No Group Launch
An ill timed launch is nearly as bad as no small group launch at all. You probably launch groups along with everything else in the fall and in the New Year. Those are great windows to launch groups, so what’s the problem?

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