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What do you cheer for? Sports teams? Your child getting good grades in school? What about your church? What do you celebrate? I’ve celebrated numbers of attenders on any given weekend. I’ve cheered when we baptize people in our services. I’ve gotten super excited when people respond to God’s invitation to salvation. What would it…

Years ago I came across this powerful quote from Charles Swindoll: “Organizations tend to lose vitality rather than gain it as time passes. They also tend to give greater attention to what they were rather than what they are becoming. It is easier to look back into the past and smile on yesterday’s accomplishments than it…

We have been introducing the five myths that are stalling disciple-making movements. Week 1: The 5 Ministry Myths  Week 2: The Engagement Myth Week 3: The Expertise Myth Week 4 : The Equipping Myth EMPOWERMENT MYTH: Filling Spots = Empowering People “I want to make a difference. What should I do?” If a faithful church member asked your staff…

Healthy things grow. I have marks on a doorframe in our house where we charted the growth of our girls. Just outside my office window, I have an oak tree that has grown over the years. My yard grows. Animals grow. organizations grow. Things that are healthy naturally grow. And the same is true spiritually….

In his book, The Never Alone Church, David Ferguson states, “When we fulfill the church’s mission to make disciples within the context of sincere love for God and for others, ministry is relevant.” He goes on to say, “For example, Paul harshly confronted the fallenness in some members of the Thessalonian church when he wrote, ‘if a man will…

“I was afraid to meet with you because I still had so many struggles and didn’t even know where to find things in my Bible,” Steve said as the waitress cleared the table. “But, as we spent time together, you shared your own struggles and I realized you were just a guy like me.” He went on to…

Sandwiched in the middle of the fruit of the Spirit is the word “faithfulness.”  It’s not the most well-known fruit in the group.  Love, joy, and peace tend to steal most of the attention.  It’s not the flashiest fruit of the group either. If faithfulness were an actual fruit, I imagine it tasting more like…

God has already chosen a person to help you. I had not been at the church for long when I met the head coach of our local high school. He attended our church, and we struck up a great friendship. One day, he invited me to share a devotional thought with the team before the…

When we think of conflict for many negative thoughts or emotions arise. Followers of Jesus Christ are called to respond differently than the world, which can seem totally foreign to those around us. Conflict provides incredible opportunity to glorify God, serve other people, and grow to be more like Christ. We must change the way…

There are many pastors who refuse to set any kind of goal at all. “How can you put a goal on what God wants to do?” they will say. They may even get biblical and say something like, “Neither Jesus nor Paul ever set goals!” But I disagree. I think Jesus and Paul both set clear, huge, audacious goals….

We have been introducing the five myths that are stalling disciple-making movements. Week 1: The 5 Ministry Myths  Week 2: The Engagement Myth The EXPERTISE MYTH: Ministry Excellence = Excellent Ministry    Are your staff and key leaders exhausted? Does it feel like they are the only ones executing ministry while the congregation seems to be content…

What is the big need that motivates to make disciples? As I have reflected on what motivates me in ministry and more specifically in disciple making, I seem to be obsessively concerned with the lack of solid foundations in most self-professed believers in Christ. I have used two images for many years to capture this…