Sermon Text: Matthew 24:36-44 Sermon Excerpt I am good at many things, but waiting isn't one of them. Once I determine I want something, I work to achieve it. Simply waiting and allowing things to happen in good time seems unthinkable. Perhaps this is why I graduated from high school at the age of 16. It may well be why I purchased my first house while still a teenager. And, I suspect it played a role getting married to Susan less than a year after we first Read More …
Church Giving Decline Continues (#1251)
In 2011 (the most recent year for which statistics are available) the percentage of a church member’s income given to the church was 2.3%. This percentage reflects a decline for the fourth consecutive year, marking the longest decline since the Great Depression. Additional research from Empty Tomb, including reports from 2011 and prior years are available online. As one might expect, the overall decline is impacting congregations affiliated with denominations all across the Read More …
Church-In-A-Pub (#1250)
Last month the regional council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America approved “Church-in-a-Pub” in Fort Worth, TX, as a synodically authorized worshiping community. Pastor Philip Heinze serves as pastor at Calvary Lutheran (Fort Worth, TX) and oversees this new venture, which is formally known as Kyrie. His approach is focused on connecting people to Jesus rather than to church: “I’m not interested, frankly, in making more church members,” Pastor Philip Heinze said. “I’m Read More …
A Thanksgiving/Hanukkah to Remember (#1249)
For the first time in 125 years, Thanksgiving and the first full day of Hanukkah occur on the same day this year. This will be the only time we ever experience a shared day since the next occurrence will not happen for 76,000 years. So What? Most of my readers are Americans who follow the Way of Jesus. As such, most will celebrate Thanksgiving. I encourage you to set aside some time today to learn more about Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, and to share some of what you learned. Read More …
Support Your Pastor (#1248)
October was clergy appreciation month. November includes Thanksgiving. Next Sunday a new church year begins. During this time of year, I encourage you to consider how you can support your pastor. Emily Heath, pastor of West Dover Congregational Church (West Dover, VT), recently blogged about the topic. Her post features 10 practical tips, including: make sure your pastor has sabbath time, remember that you called your pastor, not their whole family, and Read More …
What I’ve Been Reading (#1247)
While I have written about one book review a week on my blog for the last several years, I find that there are times (examples: 1, 2, & 3) I simply want to let you know what I've been reading and offer a rating rather than a review. Here are the four atop my pile of recently read but not reviewed (listed by rating, on a scale of 5.0): (5.0) My Neighbor's Faith: Stories of Interreligious Encounter, Growth, and Transformation (2012), edited by Jennifer Howe Peace, Or N. Rose and Gregory Read More …
Prodigal PKs? (Pastor Kids) (#1246)
David Kinnaman, president and majority owner of Barna Group, recently directed research on pastors' kids. According to the results of that survey, many children of pastors experience significant doubt regarding their faith and/or have left the church entirely. More specifically, pastors with children ages 15 or older indicated that the following accurately describes their child(ren): 7% - no longer a Christian, 33% - no longer actively involved in church, and 40% Read More …
Sermon: Your Healing Touch (#1245)
Sermon Text: Luke 8:40-56 Sermon Excerpt For the last eight weeks we have been exploring the priorities of Jesus. This morning, we conclude our journey with what appears to be Jesus’ top priority: healing. Did you realize that the Gospels contain three dozen different healing events? For those of you who appreciate statistics, healing lands in first place by quite a margin. Jesus is associated with 36 unique healing events, which is 50% greater than the priority that Read More …
Economic Benefits of Churches (#1244)
Peter Haas is best known for planting an arts-oriented multi-site church called Substance, which has become one of the fastest growing and most youthful mega-churches in the United States. Recently he blogged about some of the economic benefits of churches to their communities. His list includes: An average sized church congregation adds “community services” equivalent to $115,009 per year. (e.g., Elderly care, Addiction recovery programs, after-school mentoring, Read More …
Your Phone Will Be Smarter than You (#1243)
The market research firm Gartner recently released their latest analysis suggesting that smart phones will be smarter than their users by 2017. This will happen as cognizant computing matures to include four phases: sync me, see me, know me and be me. More specifically: Sync me includes the ability to store copies of digital assets and sync them across devices. See me includes the ability to track history and context, such as where a user is and has been and his or her Read More …