My education at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky was one of the highlights of my life; truly a season of significant spiritual formation. Like many Asbury grads, I love that place. I have many great memories about my courses, professors and...

In my travels among churches, it seems as though the idea of recruiting is "old school" and the new wave is "releasing people into gift-based ministry." I support that 100 percent. I certainly believe in helping people to find their way into the ministry that God...

Gathering, in plain language, is "collecting people." That sounds kind of funny, but I don't mean it like collecting stamps, baseball cards or Beanie Babies. Please don't create a mechanical image in your head of categorizing people on the collector's shelf of your...

"Tell your boss what you think of him, and the truth shall set you free." Unfortunately, there is just a little too much truth to this! Very few of us enjoy being evaluated, but deep down, we all want to know how we're doing, and the team will never perform to its...

In the past, I've dealt with the question, "How much will your people commit to"? It is based upon an assumption that people do make commitments. Today, I want to focus on practical ideas to help you cultivate your congregation's willingness to make commitments. I...

"What? What do you mean, 'You'll get more when you ask for less'?! That flies in the face of all that we know about the 'big ask' and challenging people to big dreams!" This was the response of a pastor when I offered a different, more intentional and strategic...

One church I worked with was having some financial difficulties, so we studied the budget together. I'm no financial expert by any means - I can barely calculate the tip in a restaurant - but I do understand some basic principles. One of those principles was being...

I don't know if I should laugh or cry as I write this article. Maybe a little of both! I have made all of these mistakes over the last 20 years, but I have learned from them as well. The landscape and culture of ministry continue to change, so I still make...

One thing that troubles me when I see churches become larger is that the communities in which they serve don't seem to change much. I've been asking myself why? Am I just idealistic? Perhaps even naive? I don't think so. But if I am, I will remain that way with...

In the business world, mergers and acquisitions area common part of the landscape. When they go well, everyone wins. When they don't go well, fear-driven positioning, scrambling, and general panic sets in over the potential of a hostile takeover.Unfortunately, in...

Churches are targets for criticism. That seems like one of the grandest of ironies. The God-ordained institution that offers the love, grace and peace of Jesus Christ gets shot at on a regular basis. Maybe it's not so ironic, Jesus was criticized too.The size of...