When a Church Stops Reaching Its Community
The following is a guest post by Dr. Thom Rainer. Thom Rainer is the president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources, and my boss. Other than leading LifeWay, he is a respected researcher, former pastor, and author of more than 20 books, including many best sellers, such as I Am a Church Member and his […]
What NOT to Get Your Pastor for Pastor Appreciation Month
October is fast approaching, which means so is “Pastor Appreciation Month.” Very few folks celebrate Pastor Appreciation Month, and I am not pushing for it to become a more prominent holiday on our calendars. As I shared last week, pastors should be appreciated all the time, and not just one month a year. Pray for […]
5 Gifts for Your Pastors for Pastor Appreciation Month (and all the time)
October is fast approaching, which means so is “Pastor Appreciation Month.” Very few folks celebrate Pastor Appreciation Month, and I am not advocating that it become a more prominent holiday on our calendars. While I am grateful for those in our churches who express appreciation to pastors during October, it is far better for the […]
Creating a Discipleship Culture in the Local Church
The following is a guest post by Pastor Robby Gallaty. He is the author of Growing Up, a book about discipleship, and the senior pastor of Brainerd Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He is also a good brother in the Lord, a strong leader, and wisely appreciates good New Orleans seafood like I do. I am grateful for Robby and how […]
7 Lessons for Leading a Growing Church
The following is a guest post by Pastor Derwin Gray. Derwin is the founding and lead pastor of Transformation Church. After graduating from Brigham Young University, Gray played football in the NFL for five years. He graduated magna cum laude, earning a M.Div. with a concentration in apologetics from Southern Evangelical Seminary. He is an author […]
2 Essentials for Effective Ministry to New Believers
A local church is on the planet to make disciples, not merely help people “make decisions” for Christ and then leave them alone and uncared for. Sadly, in some churches people are led to “receive Christ” but are not challenged to grow in their new journey with Him. In these churches, leading someone to faith […]
The Never-Ending Need of Multiplying Leaders
The following is a guest post by Ed Stetzer. Ed is the Executive Director of LifeWay Research and he blogs daily at Christianity Today. Ed and I recently co-authored Transformational Groups on how to create effective small groups. Pastors of growing churches know all too well the old adage of there being two sides to every […]
A Tale of Two Mars Hills
Pay close attention to your life and your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will save both yourself and your hearers. (1 Timothy 4:16) When I was in my late twenties, serving as an executive pastor, two young pastors suddenly seemed to burst on the evangelical scene. Their churches, both […]
5 Current Church Views of “Discipleship”
I have been in many settings with church leaders where the question was posed, “What is your church doing for discipleship?” I am grateful that church leaders are asking questions about the church’s fundamental mission—making disciples. After all, a church can excel at anything and everything else, but if the church fails to make disciples, […]
3 Reminders About Students from “Youth Camp”
This summer I was honored to serve as camp pastor at Fuge Camps for a week. Fuge is one of our summer events for students and student ministries, alongside Student Life, World Changers, and P2 Missions. We are grateful for the opportunity to serve student ministries in their mission of making disciples. Student ministry is […]