Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 252
October 31, 2015
Notable Voices: October 31, 2015
3 Ways Social Media Can Help Curb Church Decline — Sam Rainer
I’ll be addressing several points related to church decline in my webinars next week, but in this article Sam points to social media as one step churches can take to turn around declines in church attendance.
Ditch the Preaching “Rules” For Principles — Erik Reed
Too often, pastors get intertwined in a strict set of rules regarding their preaching. Erik pushes against that preaching trap with some helpful words of advice.
Five Leadership Books You May Not Have Read, But Should — Eric Geiger
Those who lead are those who read, and leaders who are constantly improving are leaders who are constantly reading. In this post, Eric shares five books essential to growing as a leader.
Beware of the Selfie-Preacher — Erik Raymond
Don’t be this preacher. Just say no to selfies…and selfie preachers.
13 Posters to Celebrate Reformation Day — Aaron Earls
Today is Reformation Day as well as Halloween. So here is a little humor for your holiday.
Five Church Trends to Watch for 2016 — Church Answers Live
On this week’s episode of Church Answers Live, I discussed five church trends to look for in 2016. Don’t forget to join us every Thursday at 3:00 PM Eastern for Church Answers Live.
The post Notable Voices: October 31, 2015 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 30, 2015
Why Churches Are Stuck in the Past – Rainer on Leadership #170
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On today’s episode, we discuss a recent post on churches who are stuck in the 80’s. We also chased a rabbit and ended up discussing a few sitcoms.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
Culture change scares people to death, especially when it moves away from their moral values.
Church programs are not the easy answer anymore.
You can’t plug and play the Holy Spirit.
Programs can often become an excuse for people not to do what they should be doing outside of the program.
Many church members want a me-focused church because it is comfortable to them.
We shouldn’t be asking what we can do to stop culture change, but how we can meet people with the gospel in a changing culture.
Some churches would rather die than to get out of the comfort of the past.
The eight ways churches are stuck in the past are:
They are trying to shelter themselves from culture.
Programs were easy answers.
Churches largely catered to the needs of church members in the 1980s.
Change was more incremental.
Church growth was easier.
Denominations provided solutions.
Others did evangelism for the members in the 1980s.
Some churches would rather die than to get out of the comfort of their 1980’s paradigm.
Episode Sponsors
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.
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a dynamic community of learners who are serious about ministry preparation biblical studies theological reflection and cultural engagement. Their faculty are gifted men and women who minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for students. Find out more about TEDS at Divinity.TIU.edu.
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 I Will.
Resources
I Am a Church Member
Simple Church
Autopsy of a Deceased Church
The post Why Churches Are Stuck in the Past – Rainer on Leadership #170 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 29, 2015
Four Major Ways Pastors Hinder Church Revitalization
Nine out of ten churches in North America are declining, or they are growing slower than the community in which they are located.
Nine out of ten churches need revitalization.
Many times the pastor is a major contributor to the failure to revitalize.
I really did not like writing those three previous sentences. I don’t want to be a naysayer about local churches. I don’t want to say anything negative about pastors, because I am so thankful for them.
But these four hindrances are factual because pastors shared them with me. They let me know they are blockages. They let me know these four issues are a major challenge for them everyday. Here they are in frequency of comments from the pastors.
They spend too much time trying to placate nagging critics. Ministry is totally draining if it’s spent trying to appease the constant naysayers. But the tendency of many pastors is to spend inordinate time dealing with these critics. And such time is thus taken away from leading the church forward and positively.
They fail to be an example of an outward focus. One pastor shared the issue succinctly: “When I was not personally outwardly focused and evangelistic, my church was not either.” It is sometimes called “the principle of the leadership lid”: People will rise no higher than their leader.
They do not emphasize member expectations in an entry level or membership class. If there is a key characteristic of declining churches it is that the members are self-serving. They have a “me attitude.” It’s all about their preferences and desires. Too many pastors do not lead a new members’ class where expectations are clear and precise. If church leaders expect little of their members, that is exactly what they will get.
They fail to focus on corporate prayer. I don’t know a pastor who will not affirm the power of prayer. But I know a lot of pastors who do not emphasize corporate prayer in their churches. I know of one church that took five to seven minutes of their worship services every Sunday to pray that God would use them as instruments of revival and revitalization. He did.
About a year ago, we offered a detailed resource on revitalizing churches. Jonathan and I have had so many church leaders tell us that the resource was used of God to turn their churches around. That is one of the most rewarding things I hear about this ministry. We are now making the resource available again for a short while through an organization I have come to love, Revitalized Churches.
So next week, we are offering several webinars to give you a high-level view of what it takes to move your church toward revitalization. These free webinars will cover the four secrets of church revitalization and when you register for one of the webinars, you will immediately get two bonus downloadables—50 Internal Barriers to Growth in Your Church and 114 Things You Need to Know About Revitalizing Your Church. So sign up today and join us next week for a webinar as I share the secrets to revitalizing your church.
I’m looking forward to hearing from you.
The post Four Major Ways Pastors Hinder Church Revitalization appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 28, 2015
Six Reasons Why Pastors and Church Leaders Must Be More Courageous Today
If I could choose one more course for ministry training and preparation, it would be “Courageous Leadership.” I hear from so many pastors and staff who are trained well in the classical disciplines, but who are ill-prepared for the real world of church ministry.
Though there have certainly been more difficult times in the course of Church history for pastors, leading a church today is much tougher than it was 20 and 30 years ago. There have been some demographic and cultural shifts that reflect this reality. But some of the challenges can only be understood in the context of spiritual warfare.
So, what are some of the specific reasons pastors and church leaders must be more courageous today? Though my list is far from exhaustive, allow me to name six of the key factors.
There have been dramatic shifts in culture, most of them adversarial to biblical Christianity. Church leaders can no longer assume that biblical values are normative in culture today. To the contrary, many of the cultural mores are antithetical to Christian truth. The pastor must take a stand in this adversarial environment while remaining pastoral and compassionate.
The position of pastor is no longer held in high esteem in many communities. When I was a pastor in the 80s and 90s, I could count on some level of respect from community members because of my vocation. That is not the case most of the time today.
Church critics can be vicious. Have you noticed that, throughout the Bible, the greatest harm to a believing community comes from dissension among the believers? Opposition from the outside is a challenge; dissension from within can be devastating. And church critics today seem to have gone wild!
Pastors must push against the “me” mentality of many church members. For reasons I have noted for years, many of our church members see church membership as tantamount to country club membership. They pay their way and get their perks. Pastors who push against this pervasive and unbiblical mentality often do so at great cost.
Good church leaders must say “no” often. The best church leaders say no to the good so they can say yes to the best. But those who receive a “no” don’t often receive it well.
Ultimately church leadership is spiritual warfare. Paul leaves no doubt to this reality in Ephesians 6:13: “Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the Devil.” Pastors and church leaders are truly engaged in spiritual warfare. They must have courage, a courage that can only come from God.
I am not certain about the mindset of Joshua before he led the people of God into the Promised Land, but it seems like he needed an extra dose of courage. Repeatedly in Joshua 1, God tells him: “Be strong and courageous . . . “ (Joshua 1:6).
Church leaders need to be reminded of the need for courage today. Serving as a pastor is an impossible job without the strength and courage that comes only from God.
Church members: may I encourage you, even exhort you, to pray that your pastors and church leaders will have the courage they need to lead God’s churches? Let me hear from you.
The post Six Reasons Why Pastors and Church Leaders Must Be More Courageous Today appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 27, 2015
How to Increase the Number of Volunteers in Your Church – Rainer on Leadership #169
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Volunteers are crucial to many ministries in the church. Without volunteers, many ministries would simply not function. So what do you do to get more volunteers in the church? We cover that and more in this episode.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
Spontaneous, informal recognition often means more to volunteers than planned, formal recognition.
One of the toughest things to do is find a volunteer for an activity that has no end date.
You have to show the need for volunteers to generate interest from potential volunteers.
Starting new groups typically enhances assimilation, provides new venues for leaders, and should increase evangelistic effectiveness.
Too many leaders focus on what’s wrong instead of what’s right.
I know of no other organization where volunteers are more important than they are in the local church.
The eight ways you can increase volunteer involvement in your church are:
Publicly recognize them
Involve current leaders in recruitment of new leaders
Offer them breaks
Show interest in their ministry
Start new groups – show the need
Spotlight successes in the church
Train them well
Equip them well
Episode Sponsors
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a dynamic community of learners who are serious about ministry preparation biblical studies theological reflection and cultural engagement. Their faculty are gifted men and women who minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for students. Find out more about TEDS at Divinity.TIU.edu.
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 I Will.
Resources
MinistryGrid.com
SmallGroup.com
GroupsMatter.com
Explore the Bible
Bible Studies for Life
The Gospel Project
The post How to Increase the Number of Volunteers in Your Church – Rainer on Leadership #169 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 26, 2015
Seven Thoughts about Retiring Pastors Who Stay at Their Churches
Every seven seconds a baby boomer retires, about 10,000 a day. That is the pace of potential retirement taking place every day since January 1, 2011. At the pace will continue until the end of 2029.
A lot of baby boomer pastors are retiring. Concurrently we are seeing many of these pastors retire and stay in the church where they retired. Frequently, I am asked my thoughts on this issue. Allow me to share seven of those thoughts in this post.
Don’t expect retired pastors to sever all of their church relationships. That would not be a fair expectation. That is one of the primary reasons pastors hang around post retirement.
If the relationship is healthy with the new pastor, the advantages of having the retired pastor in the church can be numerous. The retired pastor can offer wisdom and experience that can benefit the new pastor. The retired pastor can also be the advocate of the current pastor.
Because the church needs to allow the new pastor to develop an identity as the shepherd/leader, it is advisable for the retiring pastor to take an extended break from the church. I typically advise retired pastors to take at least a year off from attending the church where they retired. This will give new pastors time to establish their leadership and personal approach to ministry.
The longer the tenure of the retired pastor, the longer the break should be from the church. While I recommend a break of at least one year for all retired pastors, that break should be longer for those who had long tenure at the church. I define long tenure as more than seven years.
Retired pastors should not try to be the pastor to church members. That is the role of the new pastor. Though a cry of help from a church member may be tempting to answer, retired pastors should point church members to the new pastor. Otherwise, a true transition will not take place.
The retired pastor should not be perceived to be second guessing the current pastor. Retired pastors create an “us vs. them” scenario when they express displeasure at something the current pastor is doing. Members then are compelled to take sides. It is disastrous for churches.
The current pastor should not denigrate the former ministry of the retired pastor. Again, this approach creates the division noted above. It is a classless act.
I know this topic is on the minds of many of you readers because you share that with me via comments and social media. Now is the opportunity for you to weigh in on this issue. Let me hear from you.
The post Seven Thoughts about Retiring Pastors Who Stay at Their Churches appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 25, 2015
Pray for Fairview Baptist Church
Location: Grand Prairie, Texas
Pastor: Carl Allen
Weekly Worship: Sunday 11:00 AM, Central
Fast Facts: Fairview Baptist Church was founded in 1948 as a neighborhood church to reach out to aircraft factory workers in the area following World War II. Through the years, the church has seen a major shift on demographics in the surrounding community. Fairview is currently trying to make changes to continue serve the new demographics in the community surrounding it. The church is small in number but is active in missions and outreach in the area. Please pray for new growth in the church, and that the Lord would rekindle the fires of the church and use it to great things for his glory in the city.
Website: FairviewBaptistGP.com
“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.
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October 24, 2015
Notable Voices: October 24, 2015
Four Powerful Outcomes of Sharing Your Pain with the Church — Erik Reed
Pastors are often hesitant to publicly share the difficulties or struggles they may be enduring. Erik explains the blessings that can come through sharing your hurts more openly.
The Most Common Ministry Priority Neglected by Pastors — Brian Croft
Since Brian’s subject of this post is not only a ministry priority but a personal spiritual discipline, I’d assert that it’s not only neglected by pastors but by many others as well.
Four Warning Signs You’re Approaching Burnout — Eric Geiger
Leaders are often so focused on the task at hand, they miss the obvious signs of burnout in their lives. Eric shares four quick topics to personally assess whether a leader might be headed toward burning out.
75 Incorrectly Used Words That Can Make You Look Dumb — Jeff Haden
Many of these are well known and I rarely see or hear them used incorrectly. Others are used incorrectly in some of the most egregious ways. Please give this a quick scan. I would guess we all use one (or many) of these words incorrectly.
Five Ways for a Church Member to Leave a Church Well — Carey Nieuwhof
Sometimes church members leave. Often, they leave angry, upset, or hurt. Sometimes they fade away from attending church altogether. Obviously, none of these ways are an example of leaving well. If a church member must leave, Carey provides five tips for leaving well.
Five Most Effective Outreach Approaches — Church Answers Live
On this week’s episode of Church Answers Live, I discussed five highly effective outreach methods for churches. Don’t forget to join us every Thursday at 3:00 PM Eastern for Church Answers Live.
The post Notable Voices: October 24, 2015 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 23, 2015
Transitioning a Senior Adult Church to One Who Reaches all Generations – Rainer on Leadership #168
SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio
On today’s episode, we discuss a recent post on senior adult churches who are wanting to reach a younger generation and the consequences of not being willing to change to do so.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
True power in a church comes from God through the prayers of His people.
Any successful ministry in a church begins with the power of prayer.
Two areas in which churches often lack intentionality: evangelism and prayer.
Churches who are reaching young adults have seniors who are intentionally making relationships with younger Christians.
If you expect young families to come to your church, your children’s area needs to be ready before they come.
Unfortunately, when faced with a life or death choice, most churches end up choosing death over change and life.
The five ways churches comprised mostly of senior adults can reach younger members are:
Praying for younger people to come to the church.
Being willing to change.
Expanding their social circles to younger people.
Starting Bible studies with younger adults.
Asking younger adults to be “missionaries” to the older-adult congregation.
Episode Sponsors
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.
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a dynamic community of learners who are serious about ministry preparation biblical studies theological reflection and cultural engagement. Their faculty are gifted men and women who minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for students. Find out more about TEDS at Divinity.TIU.edu.
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 I Will.
Resources
Do Churches Practice Age Discrimination in Hiring Pastors and Staff?
Pastoral Leadership and Missions with David Platt
The post Transitioning a Senior Adult Church to One Who Reaches all Generations – Rainer on Leadership #168 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
October 22, 2015
Seven Ways to Involve Older People in Your Church
I’m not that old – I’m 54 – but I increasingly realize that I’m not young, either. Sometimes I, too, long for what I thought were the “good old days.” At the same time, I realize the importance of being involved in a local church today. I may not speak for all older folks, but here’s how you could get me more involved in your church’s ministry:
Understand that I’m not opposed to change. I’m honestly not. I may not like change, but it’s more because everything seems to be changing than it is my opposition to church change. Help me understand the change, and I’ll be with you. What I’m opposed to is change that’s not well thought out.
Ask me to serve. Sometimes it easy for me to think I’m not as needed as I used to be. I realize the church needs younger leadership at some point, and I don’t want to get in the way of that transition. I’ll help in any way I can, but you may need to recruit me directly.
Trust me with some of your prayer concerns. Some of us have spent decades trying to figure out how to pray, and many of us have more time than others to pray. I want to pray specifically and intentionally for you as my spiritual leaders. Share a bit of your heart with me, and I’ll be on board with you.
Invite me to join you on a ministry visit. I know that would take more of your time, but I’d be genuinely honored to assist you. If I can, I’ll even clear my calendar to help you. I’ve been around long enough to know not to take your invitation lightly.
Keep reminding me that you want to reach my kids and grandkids. I want them to be faithful to God, yet I don’t always have the answers to lead them. They really are a different generation. If you can help me figure out how to help them walk with God, I’ll be willing to overlook little things that tend to bug me.
Help me understand that younger folks really do want older folks in their lives. I’m learning that young people understand the importance of cross-generational relationships much better than my generation has. They even like to listen to my stories about black-and-white TV’s, dot matrix printers, and computer modems that sounded like an airplane. Connect me with young people who like to hang out with me, and I’ll have new life in church.
If you’re a church planter, recruit me. I’d want you to talk to my pastor also, but you might find that I’m praying about and looking for a new adventure. The older I get, the more I want to make sure I’m maximizing my gifts for the kingdom. I can tell you for certain that I’ll be your friend if we’re walking together for God’s glory.
Older folks, what would you add? Younger readers, what do you think? Let us hear from you.
Be sure to check out Dr. Lawless’ daily blog posts at www.chucklawless.com. Chuck Lawless currently serves as Professor of Evangelism and Missions and Dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Seminary. You can connect with Dr. Lawless on both Twitter and Facebook.
The post Seven Ways to Involve Older People in Your Church appeared first on ThomRainer.com.
