Earlier this week, Jim Sheppard shared excerpts of a conversation he had with two members of the Vanderbloemen Search Group, which seeks to help "churches and large parachurch ministries find the right senior leaders." William Vanderbloemen (pictured at right), founder and CEO, has fifteen years experience as a Senior Pastor as well as human resources experience with a Fortune 200 company. Justin Lathrop, Executive Search Consultant, has ten years of local church ministry Read More …
Evolution Weekend: Worth Celebrating? (#0269)
You may be surprised to learn that this weekend, February 11-13, is the sixth annual Evolution Weekend. While not found on any liturgical calendars, it affords congregations of all faiths a focused opportunity to consider the compatibility of religion and science. Meet the Founder Michael Zimmerman (pictured at right) is the founder and director of The Clergy Letter Project , which is the international organization of more than 14,000 religious leaders and scientists that sponsors the Read More …
Avoiding Common Ministry Mistakes (#0268)
Scott Williams is the Campus Pastor of the Northwest Oklahoma City Campus of LifeChurch.tv, which launched three years ago and already has an average weekly worship attendance of over 3,500. To connect with Williams, read his blog, watch him on YouTube, follow him on Twitter, or friend him on Facebook. Previously, I have written posts based on or inspired by Williams on the topics of effective leadership and tweeting in worship (here and Read More …
The Presbyterian (PCUSA) Church is Deathly Ill (#0267)
"Where Have All The Presbyterians Gone?" could be the title of a denominational funeral hymn for the 2.3 millionmember PCUSA, but is actually the title of a recent Wall Street Journal article by Russell Moore. Moore (pictured at left) is a Southern Baptist minister who currently serves as the Dean of the School of Theology and Senior Vice-President for Academic Administration at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and as a preaching pastor at Highview Baptist Read More …
Dramatic Increase in Church Foreclosures (#0266)
Local churches often finance the purchase of a new "house of worship" (or expansion of an existing one) with a mortgage much like their parishioners do when purchasing their own homes. Historically churches have had low default rates, but more recently high unemployment and easy access to funding have contributed to increases in distressed (see image at right) properties. Foreclosures have also risen dramatically. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article Read More …
A Christian Way of Being Present in the Digital World (#0265)
On January 24, Pope Benedict XVI shared his message for World Communications Day: "Truth, Proclamation and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age." Writing for the Associated Press, Nicole Winfield, noted, "The 83-year-old Benedict is no techno wizard: He writes longhand and has admitted to a certain lack of Internet savvy within the Vatican." His speech and actions, including significantly enhancing the Holy See's online presence, are signs that while he may not Read More …
Do Americans Share a Common Morality? (#0264)
Yesterday I wrote a review of America’s Four Gods: What We Say About God - & What That Says About Us by Paul Froese and Christopher Bader. One of the book's more interesting findings hints at a common American morality, which is shown in the chart below (p. 66). The authors write: But note the relative ranking of moral issues for all believers -- they are exactly the same. Specifically, no matter what kind of God a person believes in, he ranks the comparative Read More …
Review of America’s Four Gods (#0263)
Paul Froese and Christopher Bader. America's Four Gods: What We Say About God - & What That Says About Us. Oxford University Press, 2010. ISBN: 9780195341478. Meet the Authors Paul Froese and Christopher Bader both serve as assistant professors of sociology at Baylor University. America's Four Gods: What We Say About God - & What That Says About Us (2010) is the first book they have written together. Froese (pictured at left) specializes in Read More …
Religious Under and Over Representation in the 112th Congress (#0262)
The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life posted "Faith on the Hill: The Religious Composition of the 112th Congress" last month. This article explores the religious makeup of both chambers, compares the religious preferences of newly elected officials and incumbents, and provides historical data. Shown at right is a chart showing how varying religions are represented in the 112th Congress and in the American adult population as a whole. So What? While some variance between the Read More …
The Structure of an Effective Blog Post (#0261)
Michael Hyatt is the Chairman and CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, the largest Christian publishing company in the world and the seventh largest trade book publishing company in the U.S. You can connect with him by reading his Intentional Leadership blog, following him on Twitter, or liking him on Facebook. Earlier this week he shared the basic components of his blog template in "Anatomy of an Effective Blog Post" Lead Paragraph Relevant Image Personal Experience Read More …