Articles
Donald Trump To Take The Whitehouse: What It Means For The Church
Concerned citizens cast their ballots yesterday, and let their voices be heard, and America spoke. When the results came in during the wee hours of the morning it was clear: history had been made. Now that the confetti has fallen, the concession calls have been...
Hey, Pastor. Who’s Looking Out for YOUR Marriage?
As a pastor, it could be said that your job boils down to one simple word: relationships. First and foremost, the personal relationships that those in your church and community have with Jesus. The relationships built between the individual members of your church...
Be the Multiethnic Church Your Community Needs
More than likely, when you were young there was something you really wanted to be when you grew up. Maybe a professional athlete, a police officer, a movie star, or the always popular fireman. Now, there are any number of reasons why that one-time dream of yours...
Experiencing Joy in Ministry
In September, God gave me the privilege of traveling to Nepal where I provided Bible teaching at two conferences for rural church leaders and pastors. My husband and I ministered there with the United Mission to Nepal (UMN) from 1982-85, so I felt like I’d returned...
Get Your Congregation Involved
If your church is like most, your volunteer base reflects something close to the 20/80 rule: 20% of the people are doing about 80% of the work. My guess is those same 20% of the people are doing 100% of the complaining about why the others 80% aren’t stepping up and...
Battling Low Church Attendance
Chances are strong you are already quite familiar with the term “seeker-sensitive church,” which typically describes the type of church that strives to have a weekly worship service that appeals to both the churched and unchurched, making everyone comfortable no...
Clinton vs. Trump: The Church Leader’s 2016 Election Survival Guide
Is it just me or are you tired of all the political ads, robotic phone calls and social media posts bashing the two candidates? With all the mud slinging, name- calling and character bashing the two main candidates have stooped to over the past year, I need a serious...
Through A Child’s Eyes: What Makes a Christian
I remember as a boy seeing a man from our church having a beer at a restaurant. My immediate thought was something along the lines of, Wow! I thought he was a Christian. Later as a teenager in the youth group, I had a conversation with who I had thought were the kind...
Latest Issue Cover: Do Not Change
5 Ways to Help Others Choose a Translation
My husband and I are asked at times what Bible translation is best. If you visit a Christian bookstore, the selection of translations and bindings is overwhelming, so people may ask the pastor for his preference. Friends and family who do not attend your church may...
It’s Time to Eject Your Mixtape
I want to talk now about mixtapes. They were the 1980s version of a playlist, but instead of living in iTunes, they lived on good old-fashioned plastic cassettes. When a cassette broke, you didn’t take it to the Apple Genius bar. You took a number-2 yellow pencil,...
Pastor John Iskat on Living Through a Church Split
Often Christians step down from a calling before seeing God accomplish his will, as the pain and suffering that usually come first are too much to bear. Facing a church split and several years of turmoil and ministry stress, Pastor John Iskat of Faith Baptist Church...
Counseling Not Your Thing? You Got This.
Often, one of the toughest jobs a pastor has to do is counsel others. Preaching? It’s in the bag. But counseling . . . “Um . . . I’ll pass,” you say. Why is that? Oh, kindhearted pastors would probably offer a variety of reasons, but let’s be real: With preaching, you...
Curing the Messiah Complex
Hannah Anderson A few years ago, I found myself going through a period of intense anxiety and stress. From the outside, my life looked fine. Besides serving in my local church, God was opening up more and more opportunities to serve through writing and speaking. I...
Am I Equipped to Minister to the Dying?
The local church is confronted with death and the resultant grief on a consistent basis. There are approximately two million funerals in America per year or about 5,479 funerals that take place per day. What does the God and church leaders have to say to those who are...
Pastor Cubello Almost Stepped Down, but His Congregation Wouldn’t Let Him
After a devastating family loss, Pastor Tony Cubello of Branch of Life Christian Fellowship in Cape Coral, FL was ready to walk away from ministry. The overwhelming love and support he and his family received from their congregation in the months that followed were a...
Why Ministries of Greeting and Hospitality Matter
The ministries of greeting people and showing hospitality may be two of the least recognized areas of church ministry. In fact, many people may not think of them as ministry at all, but they are vital to your church. You will notice I am referring to them in the...
Peacemaking 101: Biblical Conflict Resolution
Most of us don’t like to deal with conflict—it can be messy. Yet Jesus encourages His people to not put off dealing with conflicts. We are told that to be reconciled to God we must first be reconciled to others: "...leave your gift there in front of the altar. First...
Aleppo: What You Need To Know (And What Gary Johnson Didn’t)
In the midst of one of the tightest and most divisive elections in our history, Gary Johnson, a third party candidate for president, made a huge error when being interviewed on one of the most influential news stations on television. On CNN, Gary Johnson stated he had...
Quick Recap of Catalyst 2016
For those who work in ministry (or truly any leader looking for inspiration) Catalyst is an event that will rejuvenate you and give you incredible insight that you can take home and use to influence your daily walk. The theme of this year’s event dives into how Jesus...
