About four years ago, I was a student heavily involved in collegiate ministry, growing in my understanding of Scripture, and being discipled by a woman in our church. However, even as I grew and learned more about the church, I remember asking myself, “Where do I fit in to all this?”
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Ronald Reagan once humorously repeated a story often referred to as the “Texas Sharpshooter Fallacy.” The tale involves shooting a gun at a barn, then painting “bull’s-eyes” around the bullet holes. For the uninformed, the aftermath makes the shooter appear to be an expert marksman, when in reality he only managed to hit the side of a barn.
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This month, I celebrated 43 years in full-time ministry. It’s hard to believe I’ve been at this work that long—maybe because most of the years have been great joys. Here are some things I would do differently, though,
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Last month, my church hosted an event called “Together for the Nations” put on by the International Mission Board (IMB). The purpose of this event was to introduce churches to the work of the IMB and encourage them to consider ways to join these mission efforts around the world. Several topics were addressed at this event, but the one from which I gleaned the most was about mobilizing God’s people for mission work.
I’m not looking for a new church home. We love our pastors and the church’s vision, and we have no intention of going elsewhere. At the same time, though, I’m often in correspondence with people who are looking for a new church. They most often turn to the website to determine whether to visit a church, even when someone has invited them.
Recently, I led a collegiate conference at a local church. Every time I speak to college students, I’m reminded of two things: (1) they bring enthusiasm and potential to a local church, and (2) many, if not most churches—unlike the church where I did the conference—do a poor job of reaching these students. In fact, many churches lose their high school graduates when they go to college and don’t regain them (if they do) until they get married and have children.
Just look at the post titles, though, and you’ll see I’ve had a tendency to focus on addressing the negatives after a given Sunday. That’s not the best direction, so I’m repenting today to move in a more positive direction. Here are some reasons to rejoice today – even if yesterday was a tough day.
Just this week, I had a conversation with an aspiring pastor asking about the importance of pastors staying at a church even it’s tough. Our studies over the years have indeed shown the value of longer pastoral tenures. When staying at a tough church is challenging, maybe these reasons below will challenge you to hold on...
I love preaching the Word. That’s my calling, and I can’t imagine not doing it. So, I’m deeply grateful for the opportunities I get to speak in different churches, and I’m especially thankful to worship with believers around the country. Moreover, I’m always pumped when . . .
Let me be honest with you. I’m busy. Too busy, in fact. I go to bed with things to do on my mind, and I wake up with even more things to do on my mind. Somedays it feels like I’m on the proverbial hamster wheel, wearing myself out while getting nowhere.
I’m just opening my heart to my readers. I’ve been burdened recently about identifying, confessing, and overcoming things in my life that I sometimes elevate to the level of idolatry – meaning, I sometimes let these things distract from my time with the Lord, dominate my thinking, or rob me of my sleep. Here are some of those things I allow to grip my heart too often:
Here are some of my fears for a young generation of church leaders who’ve grown up with the Internet.
I still struggle with that issue, and I’ve learned that many pastors share that struggle. Here are some reasons we’re susceptible to this sin:
Over the years, I’ve seen churches divide. What I’ve learned, though, is that no division happens overnight; every church has some kind of previous problem that no one addressed. To help you evaluate your church’s possibility of division, here are some of those warning signs to consider:
