Leadership
Decline in the Megachurches
Sightings 6/7/10 Decline in the Megachurches — Martin E. Marty Schadenfreude, or rejoicing in others ¢â‚¬â„¢ misfortunes, is abundantly evident in responses, blogged and otherwise, to the bad/sad news about the decline of the famed Crystal Cathedral, a megachurch founded in the mid-1950s in California. Publicity has been constant, for over a year, concerning the church ¢â‚¬â„¢s […]
The Leadership Ellipse
Robert A Fryling, The Leadership Ellipse: Shaping How We Lead By Who We Are (Downers Gove: IVP, 2010) Sharpening our leadership and nurturing our Soul The wisdom of The Leadership Ellipse is not just to focus on sharpening leadership skills, nor just centre on spiritual formation, but to be shaped by both. Robert Fryling has […]
The Apostle Paul: “Rejected”
Based on Bill Britton’s classic; modified and expanded by Dean VanDruff. MYSTERY BABYLON DENOMINATION FOREIGN MISSIONS BOARD To: Rev. Saul Paul First Christian Church Antioch, Syria Dear Mr. Paul: I have your application for missionary appointment before me, and will be as frank as possible concerning your qualifications as a foreign missionary. We have to […]
Leaders and their weaknesses
Study of Leaders Identifies Their Weaknesses Effective leaders are expected to possess a variety of skills that produce measurable results. A new study from The Barna Group shows that most leaders are at their best when it comes to using existing resources – and at their worst when it comes to developing needed resources. The […]
Asking Questions in Church: comments
One of the comments made to me when I took a student who had grown up in an atheist household to church for the first time was that the sermon was very interesting but he would have appreciated the opportunity to ask questions. This is what students are used to in tutorials, but many traditional […]
Christians who don’t go to church?
Note from Rowland: The Barna Research people told us a couple of years ago that for the first time in history a majority of Western ‘confessing Christians’ are not in church on any given Sunday. My theory: it’s complex, but something to do with our commercial culture, and especially pastors who can’t compete with TV. […]
Church Renewal
Wise words from a Facebook friend: Just some other thoughts to throw into the melting pot; Modern contemporary christianity is a little like Dr Phil with a bit of spirituality thrown in. It’s all about living a successful life based on changing one’s thinking and behavior. Its context is a consumer culture, so it is […]
Eugene H Peterson, The Contemplative Pastor
Eugene H Peterson, The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction (Grand Rapids Eerdmans, 1993 [1989]) Reviewed by Darren Cronshaw Peterson has written my favourite book on parenting, especially preparing to parent teenagers (Like Dew Your Youth), one of my favourite books on vocation (Under the Unpredictable Plant), and my favourite book on […]
Ending Well
Finishing Strong/Ending Well: Leaving Congregational Ministry at the Top of Your Game Pastoral Resources From the Alban Institute By Roy M. Oswald Pastors nearing retirement often find themselves living the paradox of possessing a rich reservoir of accumulated wisdom and yet feeling constrained by a depleted spirit. But the 5 to 7 years prior to […]
Asking Questions in Church
As an educator it has always amused/astonished/annoyed me that sermons/homilies in most churches are the only public pedagogical occasions in the Western world where no one is expected/allowed to ask questions. This phenomenon is not only inimical to responsible learning, it is also incompatible with the example of Jesus and the apostles. Anyone else share […]
Categories
Articles may be reproduced in any medium, without applying for permission
(provided they are unedited, and retain the original author/copyright information - and a reference to this website :-)!
26,756 articles online.
Protected by Akismet, Digital Ninjas and an Ion Cannon. Really.
Blog with WordPress