David Odom, Executive Director of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity School, recently blogged about the increasing tendency of shoppers, including church shoppers, to shop online. When it comes to those who are looking for a church, Odom notes that they "frequently visit the congregation online by watching services, reading about services and asking questions." This activity is a part of the screening process many now use in making a decision about whether or not to attend Read More …
Pastoral Longevity & Growing Churches (#1318)
Charles Arn, President of Church Growth Inc., has written extensively on the topic of church growth. One such article, written for Wesley Seminary's Wesley Connect site, focuses on the link between pastoral longevity and church growth. Multiple studies have found that the vast majority of growing churches are led by pastors who have been serving in their current role for five years or longer. Arn's own informal study of the largest 25 Wesleyan churches revealed an Read More …
The Great Decline (#1317)
Tobin Grant, political science professor at Southern Illinois University and associate editor of the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, recently shared a graph that illustrates what his research suggests has happened to religion in America over the last 60 years. Grant terms this period "The Great Decline," due to the significant decline in religiosity. The Graph The graph is based on the results of Grant's analysis of existing data sets. More specifically: We start with Read More …
How Americans Buy Stuff (#1316)
According to a new study by the the Boston Fed, the "average American exchanges money for goods or services 73 times a month." When it comes to how Americans prefer to pay, the results may surprise you. By percentage of transaction the actual spending happens in this manner: 50% with plastic (debit 31%, credit 18%, prepaid 1%), 41% with paper (cash 29%, checks 11%, money order 1%), 9% electronic, and 1% other. So What? It seems hard to believe, but the statistics Read More …
Sermon: For the Love of God (#1315)
Sermon Text: John 4:19-24 Sermon Excerpt Today we focus on passionate worship as one of the five practices of fruitful congregations. Passionate worship isn’t about music style or volume or instrumentation. It isn't a one size fits all experience. Passionate worship sounds like a nice ideal, but how does it compare to what is really happening each week at the services held at America’s many houses of worship? How has worship changed in recent years? Are there any research based best Read More …
Climbing the Economic Ladder (#1314)
On any given day it is easy to encounter news about the increasing income inequality in America. Interestingly, a new study by the National Bureau of Economic Research finds that even as the gap between the rich and poor was widening the opportunities for the poorest Americans to climb the economic ladder remained stable. More specifically: 9 percent of children born in 1986 to the poorest 20 percent of households were likely to climb into the top 20 percent — little-changed Read More …
United Church of Christ Tribute Song (#1313)
Currently, I serve two churches affiliated with the United Church of Christ. After writing yesterday about reasons why some clergy are leaving their denominations, today I am suggesting that all who are part of a denomination invest some time in learning more about the history and polity of that denomination. I would love to hear the ways you have done so in the past, and any plans you make for deepening your understanding in 2014. Whether or not you are a part of the United Church Read More …
Leaving Your Denomination (#1312)
Recently, the United Methodist Church has been in the media spotlight over the departure of clergy. Most such publicity has focused on those who have chosen to perform same-sex weddings despite the denominations official position prohibiting such. While such acts are likely to continue to attract attention and may ultimately help lead to reform, the denomination's position on who clergy may marry is not the only reason clergy are leaving the denomination. Jack Kale, pastor of the Read More …
Education & Low Wage Work (#1311)
It is a widely held assumption that higher levels of education are associated with higher paying jobs. This data has long been used to argue for the vale of higher education. A new study by the Economic Policy Institute finds that low-wage workers (those in the bottom 20% of income) have far more education now than they once did. More specifically, the percent of low-wage workers with varying levels of educational attainment has shifted a great deal from 1968 to 2012, Read More …
Drop the Churchy Talk (#1310)
Addie Zierman, author of When We Were on Fire: A Memoir of Consuming Faith, Tangled Love and Starting Over, recently wrote about churchy phrases that scare off millennials (those born from 1981 to 2000) or keep them from more seriously considering participation in the church. Zierman, herself a millennial, writes about the topic as one who has recently returned to church while raising two young boys. She returned not because the church was so wonderful, but because she Read More …