If you are going to attempt to lead your church in growth, you will be criticized. Period. If the Apostle Paul was ruthlessly criticized at every step of his journey, you can pretty much assume that you will be too. What I tell Senior Pastors that I coach is that the good news is that criticism and leadership pretty much go hand in hand, so no matter what you do you’ll be … [Read more...]
How To Pick Which Missions To Support
One of the things I usually discover when I’m brought in to coach a Senior Pastor is their church has a convoluted mission’s strategy. Most churches don’t understand why they support the missions they do, nor do they have a clear process for adding new works. Recently a good friend of mine at CCV actively involved in helping a school in the Dominican Republic emailed me … [Read more...]
Why Senior Pastors Have Affairs (And How To Prevent Them)
In 1995 my wife and I helped launch a new church in Dayton, Ohio. Five and a half years later when we felt called to move to Philadelphia, the church was thriving, in its own building, and looking at very bright future. Finding the right pastor to follow me was essential. After an exhaustive search we felt God brought us the right replacement. He was a leader, full of … [Read more...]
7 Must-Do Items For Your Church Growth Calendar
One of the essentials for leading an outreach-focused, growing church (and likewise RARELY present in a stagnant one) is a detailed 12-month church growth calendar created six months before that calendar year begins. What I mean by this is the Senior Pastor and team must create a roadmap for the congregation to follow, which, when executed, will ignite church growth. I … [Read more...]
How Churches Actually Grow
If you’re at a loss as to why the church you serve is no longer growing, you’re in good company. Every week I hear from highly gifted Senior Pastors whose churches have grown in the past, but for some reason have stalled. When I get permission to look under the hood and poke around a bit, asking questions and analyzing data and trends, I tend to hear the same response to … [Read more...]
8 Things To Keep In Mind When Budgeting
Recently a Senior Pastor friend of mine attempting to lead his church of 180 in growth asked if I had any thoughts I could share with his governing board about crafting an effective budget for their church. Since I know this is something many of you are thinking about right now, I thought you might appreciate listening in on the conversation. Here goes… Dear Governing … [Read more...]
How Time With Another Church’s Staff Ahead Of Your Growth Stage Can Save Your Soul
When I was leading a church that was stuck, one of the most important things I did to find my way forward was spend time with pastors who had led through the stage that had me stuck. One of them was Charlie McMahon, Senior Pastor at Southbrook Christian Church in Centerville, Ohio. Charlie had led Southbrook from 150 to 1,500 and had been through some rough stretches and … [Read more...]
How Should Senior Pastors Dress On Sunday Mornings? (Or “Who Is This Church For?”)
Recently a Senior Pastor emailed me and told me that his governing board requires all staff to wear suits and ties on the stage. He personally likes dressing up, but wonders how doing so affects outreach. He wondered what I thought about that, and how he should go about changing this practice if he felt led to do so. Since the question itself touches on so much more than … [Read more...]
3 Ways To Take Your Preaching To The Next Level
One of my biggest problems in sermon writing is what people call “analysis paralysis” – I get so involved studying for a sermon that, eventually, the more I study, the worse it becomes. 1. Do a Two-Minute Warning. To cure this I started implementing something I call my “two-minute warning.” I stole it from my high school head football coach. Our high school football team went … [Read more...]
Why Increasing Church Attendance Matters
Contrary to what contemporary church thinkers might say, church attendance is absolutely an important spiritual indicator in the life of the church. Church attendance matters because… The Book of Acts tells us that the corporate church continuously met together (Acts 2:42-47) and Luke made it a point to count it as a way of marking progress and participation. God … [Read more...]
Why We Procrastinate On Writing Sermons (And How I’m Trying To Fix It)
I procrastinate on writing my messages. I plan lots of time at the beginning of my week to study and write my message but inevitably something arises leadership-wise that causes me to take the time I planned for sermon development and devote it to some other worthy cause. Why do I keep doing that? Let me pull the lid off this thing and examine it. The Cause of … [Read more...]
The Difference Between Amateur And Professional Senior Pastors
Amateurs wait to write their sermons until they feel inspired. Professionals work on their sermons on a schedule, focusing on creating consistent writing habits that lead to inspiration. Amateurs take criticism about various aspects of the church they serve personally. Professionals seek feedback, even if it is negative, and view it as necessary to growth as an … [Read more...]
What To Do When Your Sermon Bombs
A few weeks ago, my sermon in our first service completely bombed. It was the worst in recent memory. Between first and second service, I re-wrote it and it turned out pretty good for the second and third services. The total time went from 26 minutes to around 21 minutes. Needing to quickly re-write made me ask myself three questions that I am going to end up asking … [Read more...]
Chuck Swindoll On Senior Pastors Being Themselves
17 years ago I wrote Chuck Swindoll, seeking his advice regarding preaching and church leadership. At the time Chuck Swindoll was one of the most popular and beloved Senior Pastors in the United States. I wrote him because I had become convinced that I was not cut out to be a pastor – I didn’t have the right personality, and instead of slick self-help sermons, I simply … [Read more...]
Three Ways To Increase Staff Meeting Effectiveness
Here are three thoughts for making staff meetings work better for your team: 1. Know that the larger your church gets, the smaller your staff meetings must become. At first, all new or smaller churches are like start-up companies in someone’s garage. The problem is Apple would have never become the organization it is today by staying at that stage. Each stage of church … [Read more...]
10 Characteristics Of An Amazing Leadership Team
Last night I walked out of the room shaking my head. God, I don’t know how you pulled this off, but this team is simply amazing. Unified. Visionary. Encouraging. Fun. Passionate. Gifted. Transparent. Gracious. These are just a few of the words I’d use to describe the people who faithfully serve on CCV’s Leadership Team. Your church may use a different name – Leadership … [Read more...]
The Fatal Mistake of Senior Pastors Who Don’t Like Preaching About Hell
At first glance you’d probably think I’m resistant to change. I don’t drink Starbucks coffee. I’m still not used to women having tattoos. I’m not getting an earring any time soon. And my wife says I still have the same haircut I had when I was in fifth grade. I assume she thinks that’s a bad thing. By all appearances you’d think I’m someone that wants to keep things just the … [Read more...]
The Incredible Paradox of Comfortable Christianity
In a letter historians call, “The Epistle To Diognetus,” an unknown 2nd century disciple wrote to a skeptic named Diognetus to answer his questions about this strange new religion called “Christianity.” The opening lines of his letter capture what people must have found so appealing about followers of Jesus roughly 1,750 years ago. “I have noticed, my lord Diognetus, the deep … [Read more...]
Why Churches Should Never Advertise To Christians (Like In The “Christian Yellow Pages”)
Since the first day we started CCV, until now, we’ve faithfully abided by one enduring value: we will grow our church through conversion growth only. Never transfer growth. The Mission of the Church To us the reason is simple – Jesus came to earth, lived, died, and was resurrected to send the Church out into the world to reach people who aren’t Christ followers yet. That’s … [Read more...]
Be Careful How You Blow Off Steam With Your Staff (Or, Pursuing The Spiritual Discipline Of Joy)
A few years ago I was in a meeting with a group of Senior Pastors from the East Coast. Someone thought it would be a good idea to get all of us together and suffer for Jesus in Orlando for a week. Amidst the great food and laughter, we broached some serious topics related to leading a growing church. One issue that struck me in particular was the way we senior leadership … [Read more...]
