A new report by Christianity Today's Kate Shellnutt details the results of an investigation into the Southern Baptist Convention's handling of abuse survivors within its churches.
From the report: "Investigation: SBC Executive Committee staff saw advocates’ cries for help as a distraction from evangelism and a legal liability, stonewalling their reports and resisting calls for reform."
It's a heartbreaking report that shows abuses and cover-ups going back decades within the SBC and its Executive Committee.
In this video, we'll dive into the report and draw out some lessons we can learn as church leaders and pastors.
A recent survey finds over half of all pastors say they're overworked and struggle with time-management.
This is a topic I'm passionate about because I think churches can do so much better when the pastor is in a healthy place.
In this episode, we'll dive into this issue and I'll give you some things that I have found to be helpful with overwork, overwhelm and time-management.
We are now solidly two years into the pandemic. With most restrictions lifted and churches back in full pre-pandemic operation, one thing is still lagging behind - attendance.
A recent study shows that attendance patterns have plateaued over the last six months with very little increase even as churches are back in full swing.
What does this mean for church leaders? What can we do about it? We dive into all of that in this episode.
Developing your skills as a preacher is a lifelong endeavor. You never "arrive" and that's part of what makes preaching such a challenging, but incredibly rewarding task.
This is why I love talking about how to find your voice as a preacher. Your voice is the only one God gave you. My voice is the only one God gave me. However, as preachers, it's tempting to try to fit someone else's voice into our own. This results in us being a less effective version of (insert your favorite preacher here).
In this episode, Mike Ash discusses how to find your voice as a pastor and how to best serve your listeners with what God has equipped YOU with. We dive into a plethora of other topics as well including sermon prep, preaching teams, research and study and the various trends and waves in evangelical Christianity over the last few decades.
There is a lot packed into this one, and I know you're going to enjoy it.
When it comes to fulfilling your church's vision and impacting your community, you won't get far without funds.
This is why giving is so important to churches. But the method in which we receive donations has changed over the last few years - especially in these last two years of the pandemic.
In most churches, we've seen a shift from a long-standing tradition of in-person, pass the plate style giving to some form of digital giving online.
There are many benefits to this shift and some cautions. We'll get into all of it in this episode.
It would be fair to guess that someone in your church or someone you know has been going through a deconstruction process.
What is deconstruction and why does it seem like everyone is talking about right now?
And what's the difference between deconversion and deconstruction? And how does this affect our ministries day to day as we're leading our churches?
In this episode, we will dive into all of these questions and aim to get a better understanding of what's going on in our culture right now.
In this episode, Lantz Howard of Champion Hope joins me to discuss how to be calm.
In a season of chaos and stress, as leaders we must manage ourselves well. Self-management and self-leadership include training ourselves to be calm even in times of stress.
As 2021 is coming to a close and 2022 is right around the corner, putting into practice what Lantz reveals in this episode will serve you and your ministry well.
According to a recent article in Christianity Today, worship songs do not last as long as they used to.
Thirty years ago a worship song would be sung in church for a decade or more.
These days, that time is cut by two-thirds or more.
Why has this changed and what does it mean for the way we select songs for our congregations?
In this episode, we'll dive into all of the *fun* surrounding music, worship styles and song selection in church.
A recent Barna survey revealed that 38% of pastors want to quit ministry. Many of them would if they had any other way to make a living.
What has led to this trend? Why are so many pastors burned out, tired, frustrated and wanting out?
There are many facets to this, and we'll dive into all of it in this video.
I was a youth pastor for several years and I still believe this to be true: If you can communicate clearly with teenagers and children, you can communicate with anyone.
Kids and students only pay attention if you have something worth listening to. And by the way, this is actually the case with adults too - it's just that adults are more subtle about ignoring you.
So whether or not you speak to students on a regular basis, knowing how to communicate truths to them is vital.
This is why I'm so excited to have Kyle Smith on the podcast this week. He's been in student ministry for nearly two decades and has a lot to say about how to speak to students effectively and what leads to life-change in students.
I know you're going to enjoy this one! Be sure to let me know what you think of today's episode.
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