![[GIVEAWAY] Steps: Gospel-Centered Recovery](https://ericgeiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Wed-resource-6-2.jpg)
I am honored to lead the Resources Division at LifeWay and serve with a team of leaders who are passionate to serve the Church in Her mission of making disciples. Each Wednesday, I share the heart behind one of the resources our team has developed and give an opportunity for you to register to win a free copy of the resource. This week’s resource is Steps: Gospel-Centered Recovery, the newest Bible study from authors Matt Chandler and Michael Snetzer. This study is robust and is designed to help a small group identify root sin struggles and apply the gospel to those deep heart issues. Steps can also serve as the… [Read More]
Four Reasons Burnout Is More Prevalent in Ministry Leadership
I recently recorded another 5 Leadership Questions podcast on the subject of burnout. We talked about leadership, burnout, and caring for yourself. One of the questions was “Is burnout more prevalent in ministry leadership?” I believe burnout is more common in ministry leadership for multiple reasons: 1. The burden of ministry Serving others in ministry is a blessed burden. It is a blessing because you are honored to steward the grace of God and serve people, but it is a burden because the responsibility is so incredibly massive. In 2 Corinthians 11, the apostle Paul lists the persecutions and sufferings he has endured. The list is brutal and includes being… [Read More]
We Are Excited…
I love serving the Church in my role at LifeWay. It is a deep honor to partner with authors and church leaders, serve alongside the incredible team the Lord has graciously allowed me to lead, and work for Thom Rainer (CEO) and Brad Waggoner (Executive Vice President) who I have respected for many years. I believe the Lord has me in this role for this season, and I am as excited as ever to serve as one of the vice-presidents of LifeWay and lead the Resources Division. Yet, God has still made me a preacher. Just over four years ago, we moved to Nashville from Miami and, in God’s providence,… [Read More]
3 Reasons Student Pastors Make Great Senior Pastors
First Baptist Church in West Monroe (First West) is a great church that has served North Louisiana well for a long time. A year ago they asked their student pastor, Michael Wood, to serve as their senior pastor. Not only were the people convinced of his character, as they watched his life for several years, but Michael is a great teacher and a strong leader with a passion for the Lord and people (full disclosure: My niece served on his team in the student ministry and still serves on staff there. She and others rave about his leadership in both contexts). Michael is just one example of a student pastor… [Read More]
When They Won’t Follow Your Leadership
The following is by Jared Moore. Jared currently pastors New Salem Baptist Church in Hustonville, KY and is married with four children. He’s the author of 10 Sacred Cows in Christianity That Need to be Tipped. This post originally appeared on LifeWay Church Leaders. What if I shared with you that I’m thinking of leaving my church because they aren’t “following my leadership”? Upon further investigation, you find out that I’ve only been serving this church for a week. How would you respond? You might think, “You’re being ridiculous!” What if I told you that I’ve been serving a church for 10 years, and they still don’t follow my leadership? Is my… [Read More]
Fighting Blue Monday: Be Helpful, Not Great
The following post is by Doug Hankins. Doug Hankins is the Teaching Pastor at LifePoint Church, an American church historian, and an author of Dawson Trotman: In His Own Words. Doug holds a PhD From Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He blogs at doughankins.com. This post originally appeared on the LifeWay Church Leaders blog. Blue Monday. If you are a ministry leader at any level of the local church, then you are familiar with something like a “Blue Monday.” In a preaching ministry, Blue Monday is the Monday after Sunday when a pastor reviews the past Sunday’s sermon and begins to think about next Sunday’s sermon. In a Sunday school ministry, it… [Read More]
Values, the Vine, and Kids Ministry
In children’s ministry, teaching children how to behave can seem attractive. I know this personally, as sometimes I just want my kids to behave, obey their mom, and be sweet to our friends. Teaching children values and virtues to pursue and emulate can be really appealing. I mean—who would say they do not want their child to be caring, kind, responsible, or creative? No sane person wants to teach kids to be mean, lazy, and boring. So many find activity pages like this one somewhat appealing: Friendship. Compassion. Respect. Empathy… All good things. All good traits. Perhaps one would wonder, “What is wrong with that?” But it is very possible… [Read More]
A New Role? Consider the Push and the Pull
When leaders ask me about pursuing or considering a new ministry role, I ask them about the “push” and the “pull.” The “push” is those things that cause you to want to leave the role you are currently in. The “pull” is what excites you about the new opportunity. Lessons I have learned about the “push” and the “pull”: God may use some things in your current context to push you—to cause you to be open to a new role. But be careful here. There will always be something you don’t like about your current context. There will always be challenges and difficult days. If you bolt every time there… [Read More]
What happens when your discipleship pastor goes missing?
Leaders and organizations make decisions all the time. They choose a direction, allocate resources, and execute. Often there are unintended implications, sometimes good and sometimes bad. The unintended implications don’t necessarily reveal themselves immediately but are often more understood as time passes. In the last 6-8 years, the role of “minister of education” or “discipleship pastor” has been diminishing in many churches. For those unfamiliar with the role, for many years, in churches of 200 or more, a minister of education/discipleship pastor was often hired to lead all the “education” or discipleship ministries of the church. The staff member typically provided direction to the adult groups either directly or through… [Read More]
Avoiding a Moral Fall
Every year dozens of pastors fall, and it’s almost always because of a moral failure. Not an ethical one, not a doctrinal one – a moral one. Why? Mike Minter shares why this happens – pastors “get used to the dark.” That is, pastors become accustomed to the lower moral standards of the culture. Minter explains why this is so dangerous and calls pastors to a high moral standard then teaches some particular ways to maintain this. Learn more about Ministry Grid and how it can help your church flexibly and effectively train volunteers.