Series: e2: Effective Elders

Church & Ministry Church Growth

How Do I Know If My Church Is Healthy?

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By David Roadcup A doctor examining a patient looks immediately for signs of vitality and health. When the signs are present, the doctor knows the patient is doing well. When the signs are absent, it

October 12, 2018

God’s Grace to Make Decisions

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Dick Wamsley I was beginning my eighth year as dean of students and professor of pastoral care at Nebraska Christian College. The college was in the first phase of a leadership transition. The president

October 5, 2018

Decisions, Decisions

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Rod Nielsen Decision-making in a church can be a blessing or a curse. Often, the decision itself is not as problematic as the process of coming to a decision. Major decisions—such as entering into

September 28, 2018

Richard Baxter: Timeless Advice

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Larry Carter Richard Baxter, a preacher who lived in the 1600s, wrote a book to help church leaders understand the nature and task of ministry. Among his many wise instructions and observations in The

September 21, 2018

Jim Estep

Change

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Jim Estep Putting it simply: Change is hard. We try to change our diet, exercise more, adapt to new technology, change our routines . . . but it’s hard to take the risk of

September 19, 2018

Church & Ministry Church Leadership

‘Feed My Sheep’

By David Roadcup It was probably one of the most impactful moments of Peter’s life. John 21 tells the story. After Jesus’ resurrection, while the disciples are fishing from a boat, Jesus appears on the beach, starts a fire, and fixes breakfast for them. After another fish-producing miracle, Jesus calls the disciples in for breakfast. After they eat, Jesus engages Peter in a powerful discussion. Three times, Jesus asks Peter if he loves him. Three times, Peter emphatically states that he does. Three times, Jesus exhorts Peter to fulfill a specific task. Jesus concludes round one of this exchange by

September 14, 2018

Ken Idleman

Christian Living

Legacy

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Ken Idleman My father lived a very full life of 94 years. He started out as the youngest of four boys—not an enviable place in the “pecking order.” He grew up in a two-bedroom,

September 7, 2018

Church Leadership

Do the Right Thing

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Dick Alexander Elder work can be hard work, involving gut-wrenching decisions. On the one hand there is great joy in seeing lives changed and God honored. It’s an undeserved privilege to be used by

August 31, 2018

Jon Weatherly

Christian Living

Differences

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we will publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. This is our third installment. We are publishing it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Jon Weatherly When asked to be an elder, I knew only one thing about the job for sure: I didn’t know what I was doing. That might

August 27, 2018

Three ‘Plays’ for Elders in Urban Churches

By Gary L. Johnson The very first church was in the heart of a world capital. Thousands of people were part of “First Christian Church—Jerusalem.” In every sense of the word, FCC—Jerusalem was an urban church. Members worked and lived in close quarters, on streets teeming with thousands of people who were not fellow believers in Jesus Christ. These first-century believers were strong salt and bright light to their family members, neighbors, coworkers, and friends who had rejected Jesus. Some things never change. Many of us live in cities teeming with people who are far from God. The churches we

August 24, 2018

Faith vs. Sight

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we will publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. This is our second installment. We are publishing it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Larry Carter I often tell people that Great Lakes Christian College is “a faith-based organization.” We believe that we exist because of God’s faith in us and

August 17, 2018

Church & Ministry Church Leadership

From Unanimous . . . to Unity

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Starting today, each Friday we will publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We are publishing it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site every Friday. As you may know, the leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! We are grateful to the leaders of E2—Gary Johnson, David Roadcup, and Jim Estep—as well as operations director Jared Johnson for their ministry partnership. Both

August 4, 2018

Church Leadership

Back to School

By Gary L. Johnson It’s a busy time of year when tens of millions of students return to classrooms. The cycle of learning ramps up in the late summer every year. Student recruitment, by contrast, is one practice in higher education that never seems to slow. Universities invest time, money, and effort to recruit students who exhibit tremendous potential as scholars, artists, and athletes. Competition for outstanding students is fierce among universities; all schools want to fill their dormitories and classrooms. It’s never ending. Recruit. Vet. Educate. In the church, elders need to recognize that a similar focus on recruiting

June 20, 2018

Five Best Practices for Restoration Movement Elders and Leaders

By Jeff Faull “Look to the rock from which you were hewn and to the quarry from which you were dug” (Isaiah 51:1, New American Standard Bible). The Old Testament prophet Isaiah was not writing about church leadership or the Restoration Movement, but his words could easily be appropriated for Restoration church leaders. It is both refreshing and profitable for us to “look to our quarry” and gratefully consider the noble and admirable beginnings, underpinnings, and the future of our Restoration heritage. But could we start with an admission? Some inherent pitfalls come with our simple plea and its accompanying

June 9, 2018

Elders Leading through Prayer

By David Roadcup An elder’s job description includes numerous responsibilities. Teaching, managing, leading a small group, attending meetings, listening, and making decisions fill an elder’s time. Two of the most important responsibilities an elder can fulfill are in modeling a life of prayer and leading his church in a powerful, impacting, and continuing prayer experience. Prayer is the greatest untapped source of power in the life of the church today. God calls his leaders to prayer. It is important that the church leadership team—paid staff and elders—be in constant contact with our Father. In warfare, every military battlefield commander knows

April 4, 2018

Church Life

An Every-Day Resurrection Day Church

By Gary L. Johnson Another Easter weekend has come and gone. Packed worship services were exciting. Music and preaching stirred our celebration of Jesus raised from the dead. And we reveled as we witnessed people being baptized into Christ. It’s no wonder Resurrection Sunday is considered the pinnacle weekend of the year for Christians. What if we could experience Easter weekend every weekend? It seems the first-century church in Jerusalem had a Resurrection Sunday experience not only on the Lord’s Day, but every day, as “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47). Can

February 28, 2018

Jim Estep

Leading Through Conflict

By Jim Estep Elders are no strangers to church fires, and by that I mean the conflicts that occur far too often in our congregations. Whether the conflicts involve leaders, staff, individuals, or groups, we often find ourselves ill-prepared to understand them and ill-equipped to respond to them. As elders, we need to understand the fires of conflict so we can ease confusion and help extinguish them when they flare up. Understanding Conflict in the Church Here are some facts about church conflict. Fires are inevitable. No church is immune to conflict, so be aware of it and alert

January 27, 2018

Young Ministry Staff and Elders—Connecting Together

By David Roadcup The summer of 1966 was a watershed time for me. I was 19 years old and going into my sophomore year at Lincoln (Illinois) Christian College. I had accepted my first summer youth ministry in a rural church in central Illinois. I remember my first day. I knew I had been called to this, my life’s work, but that first day was daunting. Where do I start? How is this going to go? Who are these people in my new church family? Will I be liked? Will they work with me? It was a challenging and impactful

January 7, 2018