Tag «Monday/Wednesday Featured»

The New Golden Handcuffs for Pastors (It’s Mortgage Rates)

The real estate market is encouraging some pastors to stay put. For now. Rising interest rates produce a “golden handcuff” effect on the housing market. Golden handcuffs refer to a set of financial incentives that employers use to encourage certain employees to remain with a company. These incentives are typically tied to some conditions that…

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Do I Really Need to Be a Member of a Church?

This question and its ensuing discussion continues. Do I really need to be a member of a church? We need to first separate the concept of church membership from other types of organizational membership. Church membership is not like civic club membership, even though many civic organizations do have altruistic purposes. Church membership is definitely…

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Making the Decision to Go to Seminary: Six Considerations Before Going

They inevitably find their way into my office, excited about God’s calling on their lives. I’ve had several conversations with people wanting advice about attending a seminary (or a similar institution). God has called them to ministry. They feel seminary will add clarity to this calling. Perhaps. But before a seminary education can help with…

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10 Things that Surprise Rookie Pastors

I’ve worked with students and graduates in their first pastorates for almost three decades. Over the years, I’ve often asked them, “What’s most surprised you about the work of pastoring?” In no order of priority, here are some of their responses: “How hard it is to prepare a sermon week after week.” What was so…

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The Great Leadership Shortage in Churches: Five Ways to Address It

One of the most common challenges we hear from church leaders, particularly pastors, is the need for more leaders in the church. The vacuum seems the greatest among elders, deacons, and teachers. Many churches lost not only members in this post-pandemic world, but they also lost leaders as well. Of course, it is likely that…

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How to Discern If a Church Member Is Guilty of Gossip

Gossip is a destructive force in the church. Once the rumors of gossip spread, it’s hard to correct if they are false. Even if partially true, gossip is always wrong because what is shared is inappropriate and hurtful. Gossip fosters an environment of distrust and suspicion. Instead of focusing on productive work or conversations, individuals…

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Five Hero Pastors

One of the greatest joys of my life is working with pastors. At Church Answers, we hear from tens of thousands of pastors every year. Most of these church leaders are unknown to the world except for their immediate church and, perhaps, their community. The pastors I know serve selflessly. Most of them are grossly…

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Five Hero Pastors

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Reflections on My First Sermon after Twenty Years of Ministry

I preached Philippians 1. After standing in the pulpit for a few awkward moments, I said, “Hi.” “Hi.” The congregation responded. It was a Sunday night service on a holiday weekend. My pastor was on vacation. The smaller crowd was the core. They knew what they were getting. I was twenty-three years old. Only now…

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Why We Need to Ask More Numerical Questions about Our Church

I’m well aware that it’s easy to get focused on numbers when evaluating church growth. Too many church leaders report “butts in the seats” and “bucks in the plate” more than anything else—without really evaluating even those numbers. For example, we might report a significant attendance increase without pointing out that most of that growth…

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