Contextualization is at the very center of the church’s mission. Christian congregations must know their context as they live out the gospel of Jesus. In other words, church leaders should understand why their church exists and what their God-given mission really is. This is not some fringe part of a church’s existence but is central to its very purpose.
All tagged vision and mission
The Surprising Power of Hopelessness
What is needed today is a kind of revolution in thinking and imagination. Churches need a radical change in the way they see their mission.
It’s Complex!
The reality for most of us in congregational or ministerial contexts is that things are not just complicated – they are complex.
Humbler Church, Bigger God
If there were one lesson most churches ought to learn right now, it would be this: we should become humbler so that God might seem bigger.
Leadership in Complex Times
What sort of leadership is needed in this time of complexity and uncertainty? I want to explore some implications of Complexity Leadership Theory (CLT) for congregational life.
Sheep Respond to Nurture
This week I saw a sheep with an adopted master, following close because it knew familiarity and care. It had everything it needed and responded simply in acceptance.
Is it Time to Quit My Church?
For me, perhaps the saddest aspect of the pandemic has been the polarization and consequent sorting of churchgoers.
Reflection Roundup: Gratitude Shines its Light
A Grateful Haiku:
Gratitude unties
resentment’s tangle leaving
fresh eyes for God’s gifts.
Praying Without Ceasing
Where does prayer fit in? Is it simply the customary thing we do at the beginning or end of a meeting? Or is prayer something more?
Reflection Roundup: Pandemic Realities
Scott Sauls writes, “Christians possess resources in Christ to pursue harmony between individuals and groups who could not possibly come together, let alone love one another, outside of Christ.”
Congregational Mission: A Report From the Field
I commend these three core beliefs to all leader teams. Hope in God’s preferred future, practice non-anxious courage, and exercise prayerful imagination.
On Reading the Bible
What I am about to say will sound so elementary that I risk losing you, my reader, before I even get to the end of this paragraph. But here goes. I want you to read your Bible.
Five Steps to Restore Your Church’s Vitality
Sometimes, a health crisis hits a church squarely in the face. If the church possesses enough self-awareness, it then faces the choice to either make dramatic changes or else permanently lose health and vitality.
Turning Toward Resiliency
Sometimes being faithful is the order of the day. And for those of us who practice leadership in congregations, we may need some different practices.
Leadership for Innovation
We have spiritualized or prioritized the methods over the mission to the point that we think they are one and the same.
Four Fears and a Christian Response
These four fears stifle creativity and appear so commonly in congregations that I want to share them with you and offer a theological response.
New Books for Church Leaders
As the year comes to a close, I’d like to recommend six brand new books that you might find particularly helpful as you pursue God’s preferred future in 2021.
Braving the Wilderness or Returning to What Is Known?
When we aren’t sure what to do or where to start, we go back to what is familiar, comfortable, “normal.”
Pertinacity and General Grant
I’m more inspired to think about we are going to do ourselves, rather than what circumstances are going to do to us.
Be the Church: An Onsite and Online Congregational Initiative for COVID-19 and Beyond
We are asking everyone in our church family – whether onsite or online – to do three things each week: love, grow, and worship.