Picture the average church in America on a Sunday morning. It is not the one with the lighting rig and the coffee bar. It is a building that has stood for decades, with a parking lot that fills about halfway. A volunteer runs the slides. The pastor knows every name in the room, and he likely spent Saturday at a second job.
About 70 people will worship there this weekend. That’s the typical American congregation, and it looks very little like the mega churches most of us see publicized.
The gap between the the typical church and the mega church influences almost everything about ministry in the US: who gets hired, whose advice gets followed, which churches grow, and which pastors go home on Sunday afternoon wondering what they are doing wrong.
“Christianity at a Crossroads”
Churches and those interested in reliable and engaging resources to explore major trends and issues challenging religious institutions today have a fine new source. Its format invites conversations within congregations and among communities of faith and beyond.
“Christianity at a Crossroads” is a documentary by Martin Doblmeier, the filmmaker known for his documentaries on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dorothy Day, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Reinhold Niebuhr, Howard Thurman, as well as pressing theological and ethical themes. Producer Deryl Davis is adjunct faculty in religion and the arts at United Methodist Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC. To view the documentary, check your local PBS station to learn when they are airing it. However, it is also available free for viewing at the Journey Films website.
Church of England announces £13.4 million fund to revitalise parishes for mission
The Church of England has announced plans to invest £13.4 million across three dioceses into mission and ministry projects.
The Dioceses of Winchester, Chelmsford and Worcester are all set to receive funds following an agreement with the Church’s Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB).
Parishioners Rescued During 1,000 Year Flood Event in Tennessee
Four parishioners of St. Mark’s Church in Copperhill, Tennessee, along with their friends, had to be rescued by boat in the middle of the night on November 5, when the Ocoee River surged by more than 18 feet.
The catastrophic 1,000-year flood event, as described by the National Weather Service, heavily damaged the shared main street of Copperhill and McCaysville, Georgia.
Anglican diocese elects new bishop months after deadlocked vote
An Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) diocese based in Texas that previously deadlocked on electing a new bishop has elected a new leader for its regional body.
The Anglican Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast elected the Rev. Paul Donison as its bishop ordinary on Saturday, the ACNA announced Wednesday.
Reformed evangelical
For 170 years, Moore College has operated as a theological college preparing candidates for Christian ministry in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney.
Since the sixteenth century, Anglicanism has been a Protestant denomination with a moderate Reformed theology (as testified to by its formularies, the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion and The Book of Common Prayer). The evangelical revival associated with Wesley, Whitefield, Newton, Simeon and others in the 18th century ensured that the desire for conversion and the salvation of souls would give energy and direction to the life and ministry of many Anglicans. It was this blend of Reformed theology and evangelical practice that came to Australia with the First Fleet, and it would be nurtured in particular by the colony’s second bishop, Frederic Barker.
When Families Sit Together in Church: The Missional Opportunity
Most pastors I know are working on a common problem: How do we better serve the people who come to church and feel like everyone has a family group and no one is genuinely welcoming?
In a recent article, Dave Moore argues that for the sake of the Great Commission, you should stop sitting with your family at church. He writes that “church is for others” and says we should think of our church attendance in terms of deployment for mission.
The article appeared on The Gospel Coalition’s Australian site. TGC’s international coalitions have their own independent editorial teams. All agree to publish resources that align with TGC’s Foundation Documents, but individual writers, staff members, and Council members often disagree on matters that fall outside our Confessional Statement and Theological Vision for Ministry. In this case, I respectfully disagree with Moore.
Can’t You Just Be Like Me? Assumptions of Unhealthy Churches
Tribalistic churches and Christians demand conformity to their broad range of preferences, believing they are inviolable God-ordained principles. So they strive to silence or coerce other Christians to assimilate, or they quietly despise these brothers and sisters. This inevitably leads to dark consequences. Instead of loving other Christians who have the same primary biblical convictions but differ over tertiary issues, tribalistic Christians feel justified in waging war against them.
How to Grow a Super Team: Is AI Making Your Team Lazy (and how to fix it)
Ron Friedman on the three traits that separate high-performing teams from average ones, starting with something as basic as a shared goal.
Plus, Ron and I discuss why your best people quietly use side gigs to sharpen skills they can't develop at work, and the uncomfortable truth about AI: everyone wants to use it; nobody wants to receive it.
4 Warnings About Pride in Leadership
God opposes the proud, meaning He sets Himself against pride wherever it exists in our lives — personal life, business, ministry, family.
“Christianity at a Crossroads” is a documentary by Martin Doblmeier, the filmmaker known for his documentaries on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dorothy Day, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Reinhold Niebuhr, Howard Thurman, as well as pressing theological and ethical themes. Producer Deryl Davis is adjunct faculty in religion and the arts at United Methodist Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC. To view the documentary, check your local PBS station to learn when they are airing it. However, it is also available free for viewing at the Journey Films website.
Church of England announces £13.4 million fund to revitalise parishes for mission
The Church of England has announced plans to invest £13.4 million across three dioceses into mission and ministry projects.
The Dioceses of Winchester, Chelmsford and Worcester are all set to receive funds following an agreement with the Church’s Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB).
Parishioners Rescued During 1,000 Year Flood Event in Tennessee
Four parishioners of St. Mark’s Church in Copperhill, Tennessee, along with their friends, had to be rescued by boat in the middle of the night on November 5, when the Ocoee River surged by more than 18 feet.
The catastrophic 1,000-year flood event, as described by the National Weather Service, heavily damaged the shared main street of Copperhill and McCaysville, Georgia.
Anglican diocese elects new bishop months after deadlocked vote
An Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) diocese based in Texas that previously deadlocked on electing a new bishop has elected a new leader for its regional body.
The Anglican Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast elected the Rev. Paul Donison as its bishop ordinary on Saturday, the ACNA announced Wednesday.
Reformed evangelical
For 170 years, Moore College has operated as a theological college preparing candidates for Christian ministry in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney.
Since the sixteenth century, Anglicanism has been a Protestant denomination with a moderate Reformed theology (as testified to by its formularies, the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion and The Book of Common Prayer). The evangelical revival associated with Wesley, Whitefield, Newton, Simeon and others in the 18th century ensured that the desire for conversion and the salvation of souls would give energy and direction to the life and ministry of many Anglicans. It was this blend of Reformed theology and evangelical practice that came to Australia with the First Fleet, and it would be nurtured in particular by the colony’s second bishop, Frederic Barker.
When Families Sit Together in Church: The Missional Opportunity
Most pastors I know are working on a common problem: How do we better serve the people who come to church and feel like everyone has a family group and no one is genuinely welcoming?
In a recent article, Dave Moore argues that for the sake of the Great Commission, you should stop sitting with your family at church. He writes that “church is for others” and says we should think of our church attendance in terms of deployment for mission.
The article appeared on The Gospel Coalition’s Australian site. TGC’s international coalitions have their own independent editorial teams. All agree to publish resources that align with TGC’s Foundation Documents, but individual writers, staff members, and Council members often disagree on matters that fall outside our Confessional Statement and Theological Vision for Ministry. In this case, I respectfully disagree with Moore.
Can’t You Just Be Like Me? Assumptions of Unhealthy Churches
Tribalistic churches and Christians demand conformity to their broad range of preferences, believing they are inviolable God-ordained principles. So they strive to silence or coerce other Christians to assimilate, or they quietly despise these brothers and sisters. This inevitably leads to dark consequences. Instead of loving other Christians who have the same primary biblical convictions but differ over tertiary issues, tribalistic Christians feel justified in waging war against them.
How to Grow a Super Team: Is AI Making Your Team Lazy (and how to fix it)
Ron Friedman on the three traits that separate high-performing teams from average ones, starting with something as basic as a shared goal.
Plus, Ron and I discuss why your best people quietly use side gigs to sharpen skills they can't develop at work, and the uncomfortable truth about AI: everyone wants to use it; nobody wants to receive it.
4 Warnings About Pride in Leadership
God opposes the proud, meaning He sets Himself against pride wherever it exists in our lives — personal life, business, ministry, family.
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