I pretty much grew up in church. When I was a kid our family went to church three times every Sunday - Sunday morning, Sunday afternoon and Sunday night. When I was nine years of age (back in 1970), my family travelled to America where my dad was one of the speakers for multiple church … Continue reading My Church
Six Mega Themes for the Church in 2010 (Barna Update)
A recent report by the Barna Group highlights six mega-themes in the church that have emerged in 2010. Click here to read the full report. Here they are: 1. The Christian Church is becoming less theologically literate. 2. Christians are becoming more ingrown and less outreach-oriented. 3. Growing numbers of people are less interested in … Continue reading Six Mega Themes for the Church in 2010 (Barna Update)
FOCUS: What People Need from their Pastor
What People Want from their Senior Pastor REVEAL also included research about what people expect from the Senior Pastor (or Senior Minister – SM). People view the Senior Pastor’s responsibilities as: 1. Serving Advocacy. The SM is expected to be the chief promoter and champion of serving opportunities. They identify and encourage the use of people’s gifts and … Continue reading FOCUS: What People Need from their Pastor
FOCUS: What People Need from their Church
What people want and what they need may be the same thing or they may be different. Sorting out wants and needs is an important task for any church leader. Understanding what people really want from their church is an important starting place. We need to understand why motivated people show up every week. What … Continue reading FOCUS: What People Need from their Church
FOLLOW ME: What’s Next For You?
There is nothing more difficult to gauge or measure than spiritual growth. However, we must do our best to try. After conducting the REVEAL survey with over 6000 of their own church members and another 300 people who had left their church within the previous year, Willow Creek started involving other churches in the research. … Continue reading FOLLOW ME: What’s Next For You?
REVEAL Survey (Part 3)
Twelve bonus discoveries were made from the survey: Growing up in a church is the leading reason people begin to explore Christianity. Other reasons relate to personal feelings of emptiness or struggle. People begin attending their church primarily because of a personal relationship or recommendation. Expressions of gratitude toward God and dependence on God rise … Continue reading REVEAL Survey (Part 3)
REVEAL Survey (Part 2)
Willow Creek were shocked with the findings from this survey and spent more than two years assimilating the research. The results have led to a total rethink as to how Willow Creek is coaching Christ-followers. Specifically, they have made three strategic changes: 1. They Changed Their Message to the Congregation. They realized that they had been … Continue reading REVEAL Survey (Part 2)
REVEAL Survey (Part 1)
Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago, led by Bill Hybels, has conducted surveys every three years to assess the quality and impact of their ministry. After moving into a new 7,200-seat auditorium in 2003, they conducted one of their most extensive surveys ever. Their focus in the survey was less on “how many?” but more … Continue reading REVEAL Survey (Part 1)
7 Prophetic Shifts
God calls his leaders to create movement by guiding His people forward towards God's purposes for their lives (see Deut.1:6-7; 2:3). To do this, leaders need to talk about where we have come from (the past - history and heritage), where we are now (the present - what God is saying today), and where we … Continue reading 7 Prophetic Shifts
Ancient Future Church
How did the early church grow from as few as 25,000 people at the end of the first century (100 AD) to as many as 20 million people two hundred years later (310 AD)? Now that's a question worth thinking deeply about. While considering this question we must note that Christianity was an illegal religion … Continue reading Ancient Future Church
The Global Shift
Rick Warren recently said ... The last 50 years has seen the greatest redistribution of a religion ever in the history of the world. There is nothing even to compare to it. For instance, at the beginning of the 20th century, in 1900, 71% of all, quote, "Christians" lived in Europe. By 2000 only 28% … Continue reading The Global Shift
Pentecostalism (Pt.4)
A few final thoughts for my Pentecostal friends ... I recommend that we continue to be unapologetic about our Pentecostal roots and its distinctive values, while clearly communicating the strengths and weaknesses we see in this movement and our response to them. Referring to ourselves as “Pentecostal” can be helpful for those Christians who are … Continue reading Pentecostalism (Pt.4)
Pentecostalism (Pt.3)
I also see a number of weaknesses in some of the Pentecostal movement. Obviously, not all of these weaknesses are limited to Pentecostals nor do all Pentecostal churches necessarily exhibit them. 1. Extreme Prosperity Teaching. Many Pentecostal churches have embraced the prosperity gospel which promises riches for those who love and obey God. One of the … Continue reading Pentecostalism (Pt.3)
Pentecostalism (Pt.2)
I see a number of strengths in the Pentecostal faith tradition. Here are a few of the main ones. Obviously, these strengths aren't limited to Pentecostals nor do all Pentecostal churches necessarily exhibit them. 1. The Holy Spirit. The Pentecostal expression of the Christian faith presents God as someone who is not only known by faith and through the … Continue reading Pentecostalism (Pt.2)
Pentecostalism (Pt.1)
The Pentecostals are a relatively new section of the Christian Church. For many years they have been considered to be outside mainstream Christianity; but, more recently, due to their phenomenal growth, they have begun to be noticed and heard. Here in Australia, they are the fastest growing of all the churches and their wider influence … Continue reading Pentecostalism (Pt.1)