March 13, 2026
David Wright urges church elders to move beyond agendas into genuine friendship. He names common barriers, calls for humility and grace, and offers practical ways to build trust, unity, and a stronger leadership witness.
August 17, 2018
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
April 25, 2014
By Eddie Lowen “Can I speak to you, confidentially?” A church leader is asked some form of this question at least several times a year. Normally it comes from within the church, but it can also be voiced by nonattendees. For relationally gifted leaders with a pastoral bent, requests for confidential conversations are more frequent. The most important response to a request for confidentiality is the initial one. Many church leaders feel an ethical or pastoral obligation to grant the request without qualification. With no clue about what will be reported or confessed, many church leaders indiscriminately reply by saying,
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April 21, 2026
David Faust
April 21, 2026
Quentin Davis
April 14, 2026
James Thompson