Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 170
January 23, 2018
Four Keys to a Successful Church Year in 2018 – Rainer on Leadership #400
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We celebrate our 400th episode by discussing four keys for how churches can be successful in their ministry this year.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
We have mission drift in many of our churches.
You cannot make incremental adjustments to become outwardly focused. It must be a major shift.
If your church is focused on outreach, it will likely have fewer distractions and arguments about inward issues.
The greatest distraction in churches is often disunity.
The body of Christ is designed to work together in unity.
The four keys we cover are:
Increase your efforts to reach your community by fourfold.
Focused your congregation to pray John 17:20-23 as an ongoing prayer effort.
Make a concerted effort to abandon the entitlement mentality.
Pray for hearts that would be willing to accept new paradigms.
Episode Sponsors
Vanderbloemen Search Group is the premier pastor search firm dedicated to helping churches and ministries build great teams. Their Fall Lead Pastor and Executive Pastor Coaching Networks are now open for registration, and our very own Dr. Rainer will be speaking at the Fall Lead Pastor Coaching Network.
So if you’re a Lead Pastor or an Executive Pastor looking for peer roundtable coaching, check it out at vanderbloemen.com/coaching. It’s limited to 16 folks, so apply today before it fills up.
Midwestern Seminary is interested in helping you get to the field faster. And they’re serious about training leaders for the church. That’s why they’ve created the all-new Accelerate Program. In Midwestern’s Accelerate Program, students earn both Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Divinity degree in just 5 years of intensive study. That’s a B.A. and an M.Div. at the same time. This innovative residential program combines rigorous academic training with practical ministry preparation, resulting in one of the most effective programs around, so that you can pursue your ministry calling as soon as possible.
Two degrees in five years – all in one program: Accelerate at Midwestern Seminary. Take the next step by visiting mbts.edu/accelerate.
Feedback
If you have a question you would like answered on the show, fill out the form on the podcast page here at ThomRainer.com. If we use your question, you’ll receive a free copy of Who Moved My Pulpit?
Resources Mentioned in Today’s Podcast
Webcast: 4 Major Reasons Churches Fail to Reach People
Invite Your One
I Am a Church Member
January 22, 2018
Eleven Specific Ways to Pray for Your Pastor
We all need prayer.
We all need to pray.
Pastors specifically need prayer. The Enemy will do whatever he can to destroy the ministry of your pastors. Will you consider praying for your pastors in these specific areas?
Pray for wisdom for your pastor. These leaders are often confronted with incredibly challenging situations and decisions. They need God’s wisdom to continue to be the leader of the church God has called them to be.
Pray for your pastor’s protection. Your pastor will be attacked in so many different ways. Your pastor will be tempted again and again. The Enemy seeks to destroy. The Enemy wants your pastor’s ministry destroyed.
Pray for your pastor’s family. They too are attacked, criticized, and sometimes bullied. They often feel isolated and alone. They need encouragement. They need prayer.
Pray for your pastor to withstand the critics and bullies. Some of the critics and bullies are overt and aggressive. Others are passive aggressive. All are painful. And every pastor has them.
Pray against discouragement from comparison. Before this week is over, a church member will likely tell your pastor to listen to a podcast by another pastor “to learn how to really preach” (actual words spoken to a pastor). Other pastors will hear numerous comments about the other great church in the community. The message is real and painful: You don’t measure up, pastor.
Pray against discouragement from members leaving. It’s hard for your pastor not to take it personally. It’s really hard when the departing member tells your pastor to take it personally.
Pray against discouragement from decline. Two out of three congregations in North America are declining. That is a painful reality for your pastor. That is a discouraging reality for your pastor.
Pray against discouragement from disunity. “I wish I had every minute back I had to spend refereeing church members.” Those are the actual words of one of the Church Answers’ pastors I serve. The Enemy loves it when church members fight one another.
Pray for discernment for “yes” and “no.” Pastors are pulled in a multitude of directions. They are expected to be in so many meetings, so many social events, and so many pastoral situations. They are really expected to be omnipresent. Pray they will be able to say “no” more often. Pray for their families who often get the scanty leftovers of the pastor’s time.
Pray for financial pressures. Many pastors are underpaid. They struggle day by day with financial challenges. Actual quote from a deacon: “I like for our pastor to be underpaid. It keeps him humble and dependent on God.” That deacon is enjoying a life of leisure from inherited wealth.
Pray for gospel opportunities. Pastors are energized when they have the opportunity to share the gospel. Unfortunately, many of them are too busy to take time to do so. The demands of the church are just too great. These pastors live lives of inverted priorities and frustrating days.
Do we really want healthy churches? Do we really want to defeat the Enemy in these battles?
Pray for your pastor.
Start today. Take five minutes of each day to pray for your pastor.
It may be the greatest contribution you can make to your church.
January 21, 2018
Pray for Sunset Forest Baptist Church
Location: Gastonia, North Carolina
Pastor: Jeff Hicks
Weekly Worship: 11:00 AM, Eastern
Fast Facts: Sunset Forest Baptist Church was founded in 1947 as an extension of the mill villages of that time. The church has grown through the ages, adding a fellowship hall and parsonage. Sunset host typical outreach ministries such as VBS and a Fall Festival, but also operates a food pantry and clothes closet in an attempt to better reach the community
in a spiritual sense by meeting physical needs. Each year when kids go back to school, the church provides backpacks with school supplies to help kids in need. Each backpack also has a Bible in it. Last year, the church began a “drive thru” prayer gathering each month. Several members gather in the parking lot flagging those passing by to come in and receive prayer. They’ve had success with people stopping by but it is their hope to use this as an outreach tool to reach the lost and unchurched as well as to offer love to those in spiritual need.
Website: Church Facebook Page
“Pray for . . .” is the Sunday blog series at ThomRainer.com. We encourage you to pray for these churches noted every Sunday. Please feel free to comment that you are praying as well.
If you would like to have your church featured in the “Pray for…” series, fill out this information form..
January 20, 2018
Notable Voices and the Week in Review: January 20, 2018
Five Common Barriers to Becoming a Simple Church
Virtual Culture and the Church – Rainer on Leadership #398
Is the Digital or Internet Church Really the Church?
How to Explain to Guests That You’re Replanting a Church – Revitalize & Replant #024
Should You Count Online Viewers as Worship Attendees? – Rainer on Leadership #399
Join me January 29, 2018
6 Reminders on the Importance of Pastoral Leadership — Erik Reed
I have pastored The Journey Church for twelve years. In that time, I have found it easier to focus on theology and put leadership as a secondary matter. I created a list several years ago to remind myself how important it was for me as pastor to lead the church well. The list is not exhaustive, but it helped me. I hope they can be of help to others too.
Why Worship Pastors and Lead Pastors Should Meet Weekly — Sam Rainer
Every Monday at 4:00 p.m., I meet with both my worship pastors. We review the previous Sunday. We discuss the upcoming Sunday. We laugh together. We hold each other accountable. Sometimes I sing their worship set back to them because I have the voice of a senile cat and it annoys them. This meeting is critical for several reasons.
12 Reasons People Stay in a Struggling Church — Chuck Lawless
In our consulting work, we often talk with people who are seriously frustrated with their church – but who stay there anyway. Here are some of the primary reasons folks give us for staying when they don’t like all that’s happening in their church:
How Pastors Can Model and Teach What God’s Word Says About Financial Stewardship — Randy Alcorn
How we manage God’s money is a central biblical subject of extreme importance. Hence, financial stewardship should be unapologetically addressed by Christian leaders—we who are called upon to declare “the whole counsel of God” to the people He entrusts to our care.
4 Reasons for Pastors to Guard Their Hearts — Jason Allen
Upon sober reflection, we are reminded of how dangerous our sin nature truly is; and that Total Depravity is not just a theological point, but a malignancy within each one of us. Therefore, we must intentionally guard our hearts, and one way of doing that is to meditate on the catastrophic ruin that accompanies sexual sin.
The Best Preacher in the World — David Murray
Every church needs two preachers. We need a human preacher, one who is visible, audible, tangible. But we also need a divine preacher, one that is invisible, inaudible, and intangible. I’m speaking of the Holy Spirit, without whom the work of the human preacher is in vain.
January 19, 2018
Should You Count Online Viewers as Worship Attendees? – Rainer on Leadership #399
SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio • Google Play • iHeart Radio
After the discussion surrounding a blog post earlier this week, we look at the pertinent question surrounding the topic of the internet church: should you count them in your weekly worship number?
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
If you lower the importance of gathered worship, don’t be surprised if people attend less often
There is a high correlation of attendance and giving.
People who attend worship more regularly give more regularly and give more per person.
The digital church is more relatable to digital natives (younger generations).
You should not count online viewers as worship attendees—but you should track them.
A church’s online community is not nearly as engaged as its physical community.
The six considerations we cover are:
Any church can have digital worship services with technology today.
More church leaders are asking if the virtual or Internet attendance should be counted.
The theological debates about the digital church are increasing.
Some churches are reporting a decline in physical attendance as they provide virtual attendance venues.
Churches are reporting mixed results about giving among virtual attenders.
This issue will be generational to some degree.
Episode Sponsors
Midwestern Seminary is interested in helping you get to the field faster. And they’re serious about training leaders for the church. That’s why they’ve created the all-new Accelerate Program. In Midwestern’s Accelerate Program, students earn both Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Divinity degree in just 5 years of intensive study. That’s a B.A. and an M.Div. at the same time. This innovative residential program combines rigorous academic training with practical ministry preparation, resulting in one of the most effective programs around, so that you can pursue your ministry calling as soon as possible.
Two degrees in five years – all in one program: Accelerate at Midwestern Seminary. Take the next step by visiting mbts.edu/accelerate.
Vanderbloemen Search Group is the premier pastor search firm dedicated to helping churches and ministries build great teams. They’ve helped hundreds of churches just like yours find their church staff and are uniquely geared to help you discern who God is calling to lead your church.
Find out more about Vanderbloemen Search Group by visiting WeStaffTheChurch.com.
Feedback
If you have a question you would like answered on the show, fill out the form on the podcast page here at ThomRainer.com. If we use your question, you’ll receive a free copy of Who Moved My Pulpit?
Resources Mentioned in Today’s Podcast
ChurchAnswers.com
Is the Digital or Internet Church Really the Church?
January 18, 2018
How to Explain to Guests That You’re Replanting a Church – Revitalize & Replant #024
When you’re replanting a church, it can sometimes be difficult to explain that to guests. Today we discuss how to have those conversations and what to tell guests about your church’s journey.
Today’s Listener Question:
FROM STEVE
I pastor a replant and always feel the need to tell guests that we are in the middle of a replant. Should I be doing this? And if so, what’s the best way to do it?
Episode Highlights:
You should never feel the need to apologize to guests for the size of your church.
As a pastor, don’t point out what you don’t have; point out what you do have.
When a church changes, it should be changing into what Jesus wants it to be.
A replant is not something to be ashamed of or to run away from. God is doing something new in something old.
God’s not done with you, and he’s not done with His church.
The five considerations for communicating that your church is a replant are:
Explain that the church is engaging in an exciting new future
Explain that the community is ever-changing
Convey the excitement of being on the team
Don’t be ashamed of the fact that the church needs replanting
Remind guests that the replanting movement is gaining traction across the country and this church is part of that movement.
Resources mentioned in this episode include:
ChurchReplanters.com
ChurchAnswers.com
Replanter Assessment
Find more resources at the Revitalize & Replant page at ThomRainer.com
Revitalize & Replant is sponsored by the North American Mission Board and ChurchReplanters.com. More than 10% of churches in North America are at risk of closing and the North American Mission Board is committed to reversing this trend by decreasing the death rate of existing churches while simultaneously increasing the birth rate of new churches. To learn more about what it means to become a replanting pastor or to explore resources for replanting and revitalization in your own church, visit ChurchReplanters.com.Submit Your Question:
Do you have a question about church revitalization or replanting for us to use on the podcast? Visit the podcast page to submit your question. If we use it on the show, you’ll get a copy of Autopsy of a Deceased Church and Reclaiming Glory.
January 17, 2018
Is the Digital or Internet Church Really the Church?
Some call it the digital church.
Others call it the Internet church.
In either case, it refers to people joining worship services, and even groups, virtually or digitally. They are not physically present.
I am watching this trend closely via hundreds of churches, and I am seeing more and more chatter and a lot more disagreements about the nature of the digital church. Let me share with you some of the major shifts taking place.
Any church can have digital worship services with technology today. There are many options for churches today, most of them free. Facebook Live is the most common option, and it is free for the churches that use it. Just a few years ago, only the large churches with greater resources could live stream their services. Now any church with an Internet connection can do so.
More church leaders are asking if the virtual or Internet attendance should be counted. The question they are really asking is: Is a virtual attender the same as a physically present attender?
The theological debates about the digital church are increasing. There are some really strong opinions being articulated. And since we Christians tend to love a good theological debate (fight?), I anticipate the discussion will grow more heated.
Some churches are reporting a decline in physical attendance as they provide virtual attendance venues. There are church members who are beginning to view attending church virtually as just another option, much like they can choose among multiple worship services where they would be physically present.
Churches are reporting mixed results about giving among virtual attenders. Though the information is anecdotal for now, church leaders report some pretty decent offerings among the virtual attenders if they give them the opportunity to give. But they are also reporting a decline in per capita giving when a member shifts from physical attendance to virtual.
This issue will be generational to some degree. Millennials and, even more so, Gen Z, see virtual communities as real communities. Some of them can’t understand why churches can’t have vibrant virtual communities in lieu of being physically present.
Though this issue is not new, it seems to be approaching a tipping point. I will continue to keep you updated on developments regarding the virtual church.
In the meantime, let me hear from you. I suspect some of you have a strong opinion or two.
January 16, 2018
Virtual Culture and the Church – Rainer on Leadership #398
SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio • Google Play • iHeart Radio
Bryan Miles returns to the podcast to discuss how the virtual work environment is affecting churches and how churches can benefit from virtual workers.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
Culture is equally important to revenue in the workplace.
You don’t have to have a physical office to be successful in your work.
Churches will soon have a huge opportunity as space is left behind by commercial office downsizing.
About Bryan Miles & Virtual Culture
Bryan Miles is CEO & Co-founder of BELAY. Bryan (alongside his wife, Shannon) lead a US-based virtual solutions company that has over 550 people on payroll … all working from home, virtually. BELAY provides business-grade virtual services such as assistants, bookkeepers, copywriters, and webmasters – to leaders and fast-paced organizations and churches across the country. Their robust selection of services allows your organization to scale when and where you need it most.
It’s the twenty-first century, yet most companies maintain a twentieth century corporate culture. Despite instant communication and collaboration through wireless computers and smartphones, employers needlessly rent or own office space. Bryan Miles has a reality check for you: the future of business is virtual, and it’s going to take more than technology upgrades for you to upgrade your workplace environment. In Virtual Culture, visionary entrepreneur Bryan Miles champions the benefits of remote working, which will save your company tons of money and create an atmosphere of trust between you and your employees. Productivity comes from people completing their tasks in a timely, professional, adult manner, not from mandatory daily attendance in a sea of cubicles and offices. When you recognize and respect your employees’ time inside and outside work hours, giving them the freedom to work from home, you will retain amazing talent and create a result-oriented virtual culture as a forward-thinking employer that embraces the future of work.
Episode Sponsors
Vanderbloemen Search Group is the premier pastor search firm dedicated to helping churches and ministries build great teams. Their Fall Lead Pastor and Executive Pastor Coaching Networks are now open for registration, and our very own Dr. Rainer will be speaking at the Fall Lead Pastor Coaching Network.
So if you’re a Lead Pastor or an Executive Pastor looking for peer roundtable coaching, check it out at vanderbloemen.com/coaching. It’s limited to 16 folks, so apply today before it fills up.
Midwestern Seminary is interested in helping you get to the field faster. And they’re serious about training leaders for the church. That’s why they’ve created the all-new Accelerate Program. In Midwestern’s Accelerate Program, students earn both Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Divinity degree in just 5 years of intensive study. That’s a B.A. and an M.Div. at the same time. This innovative residential program combines rigorous academic training with practical ministry preparation, resulting in one of the most effective programs around, so that you can pursue your ministry calling as soon as possible.
Two degrees in five years – all in one program: Accelerate at Midwestern Seminary. Take the next step by visiting mbts.edu/accelerate.
Feedback
If you have a question you would like answered on the show, fill out the form on the podcast page here at ThomRainer.com. If we use your question, you’ll receive a free copy of Who Moved My Pulpit?
Resources Mentioned in Today’s Podcast
BELAY
Four Keys to Creating a Healthy Staff Culture featuring Bryan and Shannon Miles – Rainer on Leadership #321
Virtual Culture
January 15, 2018
Five Common Barriers to Becoming a Simple Church
Yes, many of our churches are too complex.
You’ve heard my advocacy of the simple church on more than one occasion. Too many congregations are wasting precious time, money, and energy doing too much.
Simply stated, many of our churches are complex churches. In fact, the churches are so complex that they have ceased to do ministry effectively.
Too many programs. Too many meetings. Too many events. Too many ministries.
You get the picture.
Now the question is: Why? Why do we allow our churches to become complex churches? Or to state it differently: What are some common barriers to becoming a simple church? I see five of them again and again.
Traditionalism. We do the same things we’ve always done because we’ve always done them that way before. If that sounds redundant, it is. We just can’t get out of our boxes of comfort and false security.
Lack of clear vision. We pile on program after program and meeting after meeting because we have no clear plan or vision. A good vision will lead the church to say “yes” or “no” in a healthy fashion.
Fear. Many leaders fear the consequences of even suggesting the elimination of some programs, ministries, or activities. I know of no simple church without courageous leaders.
Coasting. This barrier is similar to fear. Some leaders don’t want to rock the boat. They just want to hang on to their jobs or their peaceful existence. But the courageous leader is never a coasting leader.
Failure to evaluate. I have encouraged churches to consider a zero-based ministry every year. Ask the question: What ministries, programs, and meetings would we have if we had a clean slate? How would it look differently than our current schedule? Too many churches are eager to add but fearful to subtract.
Complex and busy churches are normative for too many congregations. And, ironically, the complex church is a church that is simply too busy for its members to minister effectively.
The simple church gives members the time they need to minister to their families and to the communities in which they live.
And those are the churches that are truly making a difference.
P. S. — I will be doing a FREE Facebook Live event on Wednesday at 12:00 PM, Central, on “The New Normal for Church Guests.” Sign up below for more information about the free masterclass.
January 6, 2018
Notable Voices and the Week in Review: January 6, 2018
Four Unique Characteristics of Churches That Will Breakout in 2018
Why 2018 Is so Different Than 2008 in the Local Church – Rainer on Leadership #394
Understanding Where Your Church Is on the Congregational Life Cycle
Organizing a Replant from Within – Revitalize & Replant #022
Humor and the Church with @ChrchCurmudgeon – Rainer on Leadership #395
Parents, Please Don’t Let Your Kids Watch Logan and Jake Paul — Chris Martin
On YouTube, and really in the world of social media in general, the year 2017 belonged to two brothers who compete for the attention of same audience (preteen-to-teen boys and girls): Jake and Logan Paul.
5 Benefits of Pastoring a Rural Church — Jay Sanders
It wasn’t my plan to be the pastor of a church with a name that I couldn’t pronounce in a town with more cows than people but I’m glad that it worked out that way. Here’s why.
3 Reasons Churches Must Be Concerned about Mental Health — Eric Geiger
Thankfully, in recent years church leaders have developed a better understanding that struggles with depression and battles with mental health are not solely spiritual issues. Just as godly people can struggle with physical sickness, godly people can struggle with mental sickness. Both are a result of our fallen and broken world. While we have made progress in this area, according to a recent LifeWay research project on 1,000 people, there is still work to do. You can read the whole research project here; the research points to at least three reasons pastors must be concerned about mental health:
The Best CCM Debut Albums — Tim Challies
I recently began thinking of bands and artists within Christian Contemporary Music whose debut album was so good that it immediately established them as exceptional. Here are the ones I came up with.
Your New Year’s Resolution Cheat Sheet — Art Rainer
Identify 3 money goals to chase this year. Make sure the goals are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely. And then go for it!
4 Assumptions Pastors Can No Longer Make About Church Giving Patterns — Karl Vaters
The way people give is changing. If your church hasn’t felt the results of those changes yet, you will soon. If you are feeling them, you may be scrambling to figure out what’s happening, why, and what to do about it.
