Should we forgive apart from repentance?
I have written on this question a number of times. This one offers a comprehensive and compelling answer.
25 Lessons on Money and Church Leadership
I appreciated these bullet points. I don’t (as the article highlights will probably be the case) agree with them all. But I did find them provocative.
Missing Mentors
I re-posted an old article on this same topic this week. Al Gooderham has his say on mentors (or the lack thereof) here.
Research and Pastoring
Some interesting thoughts on research, academia and speaking as a pastor in this one. Much to chew on.
A Defence of 20 hours of Sermon prep
Another interesting one with much to chew on. I suspect it will divide opinion.
Healthy Organization Isn’t Optional for Local Churches
‘When pastors and ministry leaders teach on church health, we first talk about biblical marks such as preaching, prayer, discipleship, polity, and evangelism. These all matter deeply. No church thrives without them. But a church can have faithful teaching and vibrant relationships and still trip up if it neglects to manage finances, facilities, and people well. We tend to overlook the organizational skills needed to lead in these areas, because they aren’t glamorous. Nobody posts pictures of clean budgets or systems for tracking members online. We rarely talk about such tools from the pulpit. But when our church operations systems are weak, our ministry is fragile.’
From the archive: Things I have learnt from our social media campaign
‘We have tried to offer a range of videos either telling the stories of members who have come to faith, apologetic videos answering common questions or ‘opportunity’ videos, like our one related to Halloween. You can see most of the videos here on our YouTube channel. But it bears saying what, if anything, we have learnt from our social media campaign. What are some of the positives and negatives? Are there things that have been more or less useful? What have we found out from doing it? Here, in no particular order, are some things.’
I appreciated Darren’s post on preaching prep. I would note that on those occasions where we step in last minute that whilst yes God’s providence is on it (but why is this along with calling, the only time that non Charismatics go s bit charismatic? Doesn’t God always step in? ) actually tht reality is that we have done significant preparation, in those cases more than 20 hours because those sermons come out of a life find of preparing. Indeed, which zi think is Darren’s point, kind of, one reason that I don’t need as long to prepare now is that I’m drawing on past study. We’ve just completed a series on Luke, I’ve preached through just book a few times in the past and spent much time in it for personal devotion. We are now into Exodus. This is the first time I’ve preached through it in a team. In fact it’s the first time I can remember being in a church going through it (that raises its own questions). I will need a bit more time on it that Luke. Though even still, I’m doing a lot of extra work up front to support our preaching team. Thus means probably I’ll need less time when I get there. I note Darren’s article also seems to presume Greek and Hebrew. This will be true if some, not all. Thanks for sharing, definitely thought provoking
I found the ‘25 lessons on money’ thought provoking.
On the subject of money I seem to have a controversial view. Before proposing a new elder to the church, the current elders should be made aware of that person’s financial giving to the church. Why? Because it is usually a fair reflection of a person’s commitment to the church. If they’re willing to be an elder but less willing to support the church financially, it provides an interesting insight into their motivation.
Yes I think that is controversial. I think we should be careful about adding criteria not in Scripture. Financial circumstances will differ person to person. Crucial is the elder’s commitment to hospitality
I take your point. I don’t suggest this should replace the scriptural criteria, but suggest that it could be a means of providing evidence of some of the scriptural criteria. And clearly, the existing elders should take account of the person’s circumstances.
The suggestion arises from some negative learning experiences …. And I don’t think anyone will take it on board. Though, were I an elder I would suggest it!
I think there is a case to be made for that from the biblical criteria for eldership, ‘not a lover of money’. There are lots of ways that might work its way out, but I think if they aren’t giving to the work of ministry themselves, it’s fair to ask why and to assume it may be down to a greater love for money than an elder ought to have. How can any elder call others to give and to generosity if they aren’t being generous themselves? It’s minimally a question worth asking.