Almost every church leader understands that the congregation is called to be faithful to the Acts 1:8 command to be witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. The practical application of that, of course, is to send members into our communities and, ultimately, throughout the world.
The good news is that more churches are indeed sending members throughout the country and the world. The bad news is that fewer and fewer churches are highly intentional about reaching their “Jerusalem,” or immediate community.
There is a direct connection between the demise of traditional outreach and the decreasing effectiveness of reaching the respective communities. Spending time in someone’s home was a highly effective connection that usually led to other relational opportunities. But, as noted, this type of outreach is highly problematic in most communities. What’s the solution?
America is becoming less neighborly, and it’s hurting Gen Z and millennials’ chances at economic mobility
Americans have grown far less likely to strike up a conversation with a stranger or get to know people living closeby, and it could be costing the country a lot more than neighborhood quaintness.
The average American now finds themselves living next to strangers. Around 25% of adults age 18 to 29 say they talk with their neighbors at least a few times a week, according to a survey released earlier this month by the American Enterprise Institute, down from 59% in 2012. That has implications for the country’s declining social engagement and rising rates of loneliness, but there’s an economic cost to losing neighborhood ties, too.
7 Signs Your Church Will Never Change (And What to Do About It)
You can feel it before you can name it. The same faces around the table. The same arguments, the same meeting, the same non-decision. If you’re leading a church that feels permanently stuck, you’re not imagining it. And you’re not alone.
A leader’s job is to move people from where they are to where God is calling them to be. That requires disruption. But some churches have built invisible walls against exactly that, and those walls have outlasted more than a few good pastors.
The mission doesn’t change. The message doesn’t change. The methods have to. Here are seven signs your church may be more committed to the past than to the future, and what you can actually do about it.
A growing number of Protestants say others don’t know they’re Christian
A growing share of Protestant churchgoers in the US say many people aren’t aware that they’re Christians. Still, a majority of them wouldn’t hesitate to let non-Christians know where they stand on their faith, according to a new Lifeway Research study.
In the study, 2025 State of Discipleship Living Unashamed, Lifeway researchers highlight the beliefs, desires and actions of Protestant churchgoers in the U.S. around living unashamed. Living Unashamed is one of eight signposts in Lifeway’s Discipleship Pathway Assessment used to measure spiritual maturity.
After a Minnesota church protest, states are toughening penalties for disrupting services
At least four states have adopted laws this year making it a crime to disrupt worship services, a reaction to a high-profile protest inside a Minnesota church that prompted outrage from faith leaders.
The Republican lawmakers sponsoring most of the legislation say those gathering at sacred sanctuaries deserve protection beyond what existing trespassing laws provide. They also say these new laws will prevent escalating clashes between congregants and protestors as many churches, mosques and synagogues remain on edge over recent mass shootings and acts of violence targeting religious groups.
Beth Moore: To Object to a Woman ‘Discussing a Sermon’ on a Podcast Is ‘Beyond Scripture’
Dr. Albert Mohler is facing backlash—including from high-profile leaders like Beth Moore—after asserting that a woman sharing sermon insights on a church podcast is “functioning as a pastor,” a situation Mohler believes is a “problem.”
“I’ve never pastored a church. Couldn’t pay me a jillion dollars to. Never been ordained. Have no desire to. The only paid staff position I’ve ever held in a church was as an aerobics teacher in our church gym,” said author and Bible teacher Beth Moore, Tuesday, May 26. “But how in heaven’s name a woman discussing a sermon on a podcast could be objectionable to some is beyond me and what I believe to be beyond scripture.”
'Mind-bogglingly crazy': Europe's deadly, early heatwave is smashing records
Temperature records are being smashed across Europe as parts of the continent swelter in a heat wave that is bringing extreme temperatures alarmingly early in the year.
The continent is grappling with a powerful heat dome, a persistent high-pressure system which acts like a lid on a pot, trapping hot air and pushing it downward. It can remain in place for days or even weeks and is a weather phenomenon made more likely and more intense by human-caused climate change.
As grocery prices climb, Trump rolls out a bad idea that won’t work
For reasons that have never been altogether clear, Donald Trump has repeatedly boasted that he’s successfully lowered the price of groceries. American consumers know better, and their perceptions are bolstered by real-world data. The Hill reported last week, “Federal inflation data confirms what you may have been feeling already: Groceries are getting more expensive. Unfortunately, things may be about to get a whole lot worse, economists are warning.”
'Insect apocalypse' is already fueling malnutrition in some regions, first-of-its-kind study reveals
Insects are disappearing, and they are leaving global food security gaps in their wake. Over the past three decades, bugs have been declining at an alarming rate across the globe — up to 1% per year, by some estimates. The drop has been so intense that some scientists have dubbed it an "insect apocalypse."
Because many insects pollinate crops, lower insect abundance has hurt everything from ecosystem health to crop yields. But historically, such consequences have been tough for scientists to measure directly. Now, in a new paper published May 6 in the journal Nature, researchers have quantified the impact of insect pollinator declines on human health for the first time.
Trump administration bans disease experts from speaking to WHO about growing Ebola outbreak: Report
The Trump administration has banned top federal health agency experts from weighing in on the ongoing Ebola outbreak, as the U.S. continues to step back from its former leadership role in global health issues.
Also See: Ebola epidemic spreading rapidly and outpacing containment efforts, US CDC seeks staff for Ebola screening as outbreak response expands, and North Texas once faced Ebola: A look back at the 2014 outbreak, what to know nowShowing Up with Questions: Listening in a New Setting
Strong leadership in a new ministry setting begins not with quick answers, but with intentional listening. Luke Edwards shares the key questions he plans to ask as he begins a new pastoral appointment at Huntersville United Methodist Church, offering a practical framework for leaders navigating transition, discernment, and community engagement.
Burnout Warning Signs I Missed: Burn Out 20 Years Later, Part 1
Twenty years ago this month, I almost became ministry road kill. After 11 years of 30%+ annual growth, I burned out—hard.
In Part 1 of this solo episode, I share 5 honest insights from two decades of reflection: why dysfunction gets rewarded in the church, how denial accelerates the crash, and why grieving your losses matters.
If your passion is fading, this episode is for you.
Pope warns of ‘digital neocolonialism’ and calls on Church to defend human dignity in age of AI in first encyclical
Pope Leo XIV has used his first encyclical to warn that artificial intelligence and emerging technologies risk deepening global inequality, concentrating power in the hands of a few and creating what he described as “colonialism in another form".
The new encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas (“Magnificent Humanity”), was signed on May 15 and officially released at the Vatican this week, coinciding with the 135th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s landmark social encyclical Rerum Novarum.
Also See: In ‘Magnifica Humanitas,’ Pope Leo delivers on a people-first vision for AI; What is an encyclical? Inside Pope Leo's urgent warning about AI and the 'culture of power'Why Youth Group Involvement Is Down (and What to Do About It)
I’ve served in youth ministry for 18 years. There’s always a temptation to look back through nostalgic, rose-colored glasses to the good ole days when things were easier and the sun shined brighter. But most veteran youth pastors will agree that leading a successful youth discipleship ministry is harder today than it was a decade ago.
Andrew Root’s book The End of Youth Ministry? Why Parents Don’t Really Care About Youth Groups and What Youth Workers Should Do About It validates this notion more empirically. Root echoed my sense that many youth pastors now struggle to get access to kids or garner regular attendance at youth group events. And when kids don’t attend consistently, it’s hard for youth ministers to connect relationally, build community, or disciple effectively.
What factors have led to this struggle, and what can we do about them?
What Does Evangelism Look Like in the Church?
Invite a friend to church.
What could be so hard about that right?
But we all know it’s more challenging than it appears. Culture has shifted, and while it is true that there is a resurgence of interest in God and spiritual life, it is also true that popular culture does not see a need for regular church attendance.
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