Sam Rainer's Blog, page 11

How Your Church Can Help the Overlooked Children Affected by Abuse and Neglect

The turning point for me occurred at a funeral. I was holding a four-year-old child I did not know. His mother had passed away after overdosing on a dangerous mix of fentanyl and cocaine. The family contacted our church and asked for a pastor to officiate the funeral. I’ll never forget the young boy’s words.

“Are you going to help bring my mommy back?”

I didn’t have words for him. Only tears.

He was placed in a foster home. Thankfully, it was one full of love and support. At about the same time ...

One of the Most Powerful Ways to Revitalize Your Church that Almost No One Does

Prayer walking can revitalize a church. At Church Answers, we’ve heard some incredible stories of how a church started a prayer walking ministry and experienced revitalization. The problem is not enough churches are emphasizing this spiritual discipline. Those that do are seeing powerful results. 

What is prayer walking?

The concept is simple and can be done with one person or a group of people. You walk a neighborhood with the intent of praying for those who live there. During the prayer walk, ...

Leading a Church When the Wrong People Hold Power

Can you lead a church without proper authority? Yes, but it is more challenging and complex. 

I’m assuming most church leaders would rather not step into a situation where they have the responsibility to shepherd without the corresponding authority. But there are churches with misaligned power structures in desperate need of good pastors. What if you end up in such a situation? Leading without power requires informal authority.

Informal authority is earned through social skills, emotional intell...

Churches Are Getting Less of Total Charitable Giving—Here’s Why (And What You Can Do About It)

For decades, the church has lost ground with overall charitable giving.

Charitable giving is up—a near record of $485 billion in 2021, despite surging inflation.Giving to churches has dropped even though giving to non-profits is up by 4%.In the early 1980s, churches received over half of all charitable giving.Today, churches receive less than a third of all charitable giving.

Churches are getting less of the total charitable giving. Overall, charitable giving is on the rise in the Unite...

The Public Nature of Pastoring and the Inescapable Reality You Always Represent Your Church

“. . . because you’re the pastor.”

Most pastors have heard the end of this sentence at some point. Perhaps you bristled at hearing it. Maybe your feelings were justified, depending on what preceded the phrase. But there’s truth in “because you’re the pastor.” The call to shepherd a church is a call to shepherd a community. People expect you to represent your church. And you should. If you’re a pastor, you’re also a statesman—there’s no way around it.  

I use the term “statesman” not in a politic...

Five Ways to Honor the Past While Not Losing the Future

I once caught a deacon throwing choir robes out of the second-story window into a giant fire on the ground below.

“What’s going on?”

“Fire hazard.” 

By the look and smell of the robes, I agreed and went about my business. 

There were probably one hundred burning robes in the fire—enough for every person in the church to take home three or four. I wondered if the choir was ever that large, or if the church ever had a choir. No one knew. The remnant of my first church numbered six on my first Sund...

What You Are Likely Missing in Your Church Membership Class

At Church Answers, we’ve researched membership classes for over two decades. Every one of our projects reveals the value of these classes. Here are some research highlights from our findings.

In the late 1990s, less than 20 percent of churches required someone to attend a new member class to join. Through our anecdotal observations, we are seeing figures over 80 percent today.

The two most essential items to teach in the class are doctrine and expectations.The most effective church membershi...

The Shortcomings of Extroverted Pastors and How to Overcome Them

Both extroverts and introverts can lead well. Both can lead poorly. Personality is only one part of leadership. However, your personality as a leader comes with intrinsic advantages and challenges. The extroverted pastor tends to work a room better than an introvert. The introverted pastor tends to listen better one-on-one. 

Partly because they are more outgoing, I believe extroverted pastors will get the benefit of the doubt—more so than introverted pastors. Many have tackled the subject of how...

Seven Ways to Be a Better Servant Leader for Your Church

The best leaders for the church are those who demonstrate a willingness to serve first. Is servant leadership necessary for every situation? No, but pastors and church leaders should have a default posture of service. If you’re not willing to be a servant leader, then you are not fit to have authority and influence within the body of Christ. 

Serve first; lead second. It should be the leadership theme of every pastor. I understand the tension with servant leadership. Serving a church means sacri...

Fifteen Ways Lead Pastors Can Drive Their Staff Nuts

Lead pastors can have two personas. The congregation knows one. The church staff knows the other. While the goal is to be the same person around everyone, it does not always occur.

Most lead pastors will act differently around the staff they work with for hours each day compared to other congregants they may see in passing once or twice a week. This dichotomy is not necessarily bad. But things go sideways when the lead pastor plays nice with the congregation while poorly leading the staff.

Mistr...