Nuggets and Nuances: A Lesson in Careful Interpretation—Luke 8:52-53
Introduction I recently had the opportunity to preach from Luke 8:40-56 (yet again), the story of Jairus and his daughter. I do not usually like to re-preach sermons, but this was a last-minute fill-in for a pastor who was ill. I have had plenty of time to meditate on this text, having written the initial […]
A Plea for Preachers to Teach–Part 3
Introduction I have pushed off writing for several weeks now but would like to finish a series of three articles I began weeks ago. I have been writing about the idea of using sermons as teaching opportunities. In my first article, I highlighted ways preachers can teach by giving tangible next steps for listeners to […]
A Plea for Preachers to Teach—Part 2
Introduction I have been writing about the idea of teaching. I opened the discussion by emphasizing how many preachers, in their zeal to declare the word of the Lord, fail at teaching their congregations how to apply the text. They struggle to teach their listeners practical and tangible next steps based on the exposition of […]
A Plea for Preachers to Teach–Part 1
Introduction I do not mean that pastors need to be the sole teachers of the church who teach on Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, and lead the Friday Bible study; few men can sustain such a pace! What I am referring to is the tendency to think of preaching as taking place in one […]
Looking Back At Ministry
Introduction I have been pondering this article: Five Reasons Some Pastors Regret Quitting Their Churches. I have been thinking if I should share or what to say if I did. I think there are some important points here regarding pastors who look back and question whether they made the right decision to leave a church. […]
True Grit and Motherhood
Introduction As a young man, I particularly enjoyed watching western movies. My favorite star, of course, was John Wayne. Wayne had a way of saying things in a movie that showed he meant business, and I always thought he portrayed the character of a “man’s man” regardless of his role. One film, in particular, remains […]
Paradigm Shifts for Churches in 2022 and Beyond—Part 8
Introduction We have come a long way over the past few months. We started eight weeks ago, with an introduction to the issue at hand. We began by discussing paradigm shifts that churches need to make for growth. If churches are to survive the everchanging culture which has been made even more volatile following the […]
Priorities for Churches in 2022 and Beyond—Part 7
Introduction We are continuing our series on paradigm shifts for the church. We began several weeks ago with an overview of eight different paradigm shifts that will help churches navigate the coming years. You can find that article here. This week we look at the seventh paradigm shift for churches: a shift from understanding the […]
Paradigm Shifts for Churches in 2022 and Beyond—Part 6
Introduction Our discussion over the past several weeks has been over paradigm shifts for churches. We have been discussing how churches can navigate the difficult years ahead and experience fruitful ministry. For an introduction to the discussion, you can go here. We have evaluated five paradigm shifts that need to take place in churches; today […]
