Sam Rainer's Blog, page 12

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...

Five Leadership Resolutions for Your Church in 2023

New Year’s resolutions are often self-focused. It’s understandable. Successful people often reflect on who they are. They try to be more self-aware, and they desire to develop themselves. So, good leaders often make resolutions involving individual goals, desires, and objectives.

But what about the people around you? Good pastors will consider those around them. This year, rather than making resolutions about you, make them about the people around you. Here are five areas to consider in making s...

Why Churches Resist Change from New Pastors (and What You Can Do About It)

“It’s my first week. What should I change here?” Perhaps new pastors don’t vocalize the question, but I know they think it. The default setting to change something is only natural for a good leader. Having a vision means being dissatisfied with the status quo. 

“The search committee said they were bringing me on to make needed changes. Why is the church resisting the obvious?!”

Why have so many pastors’ honeymoons ended after the first few months? Resistance to change is one of the largest hurdl...

What Is an Appropriate Severance for Pastors on Their Way Out of a Church?

A power group surprisingly forced out Pastor Timothy after four years of successful ministry. Pastor John was caught embezzling funds and was fired immediately. After ten years, the board removed Pastor Ed because they believed he was not a leadership match for the congregation. 

Should these pastors receive a severance? It depends.

Severance pay is a common practice in many industries. Some employers will offer severance as a gesture of goodwill to those laid off, but it is not required by law ...

Five Important Demographics Churches Fail to Know About Their Communities

Pastors and church leaders often miss the basic demographics of their communities. Why?

Demographics tend to change gradually and often go unnoticed.Keeping an existing circle of friends is easier than deepening our relationship with others. We tend to go to places where people are like us, which means we often do not see the areas where demographic changes are occurring in the neighborhood. 

Perceived demographics may not match actual demographics. You may think you know your community, but...

How to Be More Vulnerable Without Freaking Out Your Church

How to Be More Vulnerable Without Freaking Out Your Church

Vulnerability is a two-edged sword. Many appreciate the honesty of tender leaders revealing their secret struggles. Overshare anxieties, however, and you can disrupt the church with unnecessary angst.

Jesus was vulnerable. The incarnation demonstrates the vulnerability of God. Someone had to change baby Jesus’ diaper. Someone had to teach God to speak and walk—it was His mother, Mary. Vulnerability is not something to avoid. God was inte...

What I Learned from Being a Bi-vocational Pastor

Bi-vocational pastors serve outside the spotlight. Though estimates vary, at Church Answers, we estimate there are around one million part-time pastors and staff in North America. They are many, but they get only a fraction of the attention given to pastors of larger churches. They receive little recognition, but they are the workhorses of churches who do much of the heavy lifting.

I served as a bi-vocational pastor of a tiny church in central Kentucky. We started with six people. It was my firs...