Articles for tag: Ministry:Specialized Leadership

June 14, 2015

By Jim Putman Our facilities were jammed. Our leaders were overextended. Our growth was stymied. We had three choices: Build larger. Create multisites. Or plant new churches. This is why we chose the third option. Eight years ago the church I lead, Real Life Ministries, was averaging 8,500 people in five weekend services. We were far past the 80 percent rule in our main services (i.e., our auditorium was beyond 80 percent full; we wouldn”t grow any larger in those services). And the times of the other services were not convenient enough to be attractive to newcomers. Our staff and

September 12, 2014

Christian Standard

Church Leadership

Are We Moving?

By James Riley Estep Jr. All the steps of moving from one home to another find their parallel in the progress a church must make. It”s never easy, but the new destination is worth the thinking, planning, and hard work. “We”re moving.” These two words evoke a wide range of emotions. Announcing this to family and friends only adds to the challenging experience. A new job, new prospects, a better house, or a future possibility””all available only elsewhere. The decision to move is often greeted with the exuberance of new opportunity.Â But the exuberance soon changes to despair when dealing

May 29, 2014

Christian Standard

Church Leadership

Why Jesus Wouldn”t Work for Your Church

By Eddie Lowen We both know I can”t really speak for Jesus. But you have to admit””my title makes a compelling claim, and for the moment, I stand by it. If Jesus had to suffer being an employee at many churches, there would be more than one table-throwing incident credited to him. Before you conclude I”m one of those hipster church haters, wait. I don”t hang with that crowd. People who love the church more than me are tough to find. I even loved the church during the mauve-colored pew era, but that”s a theme for another article. Do you

June 20, 2012

Christian Standard

Church Leadership

A Young Minister”s Heartbreak

By Darrel Rowland At 38, Jon Weece, senior pastor of Southland Christian Christ in Lexington, Kentucky, is one of the younger leaders of our megachurches. But listen to him speak his heart with the wisdom of years on why long-term ministries can be so difficult: I fear what our limited metrics do to many faithful servants in the kingdom. For those servant leaders who are experiencing explosive numeric growth in the ministries they”ve been entrusted with, I fear a loss of humility may visit their hearts. For those servant leaders who are not experiencing explosive numeric growth in the

June 19, 2012

Christian Standard

Church Leadership

Playing Hurt

By Wayne Smith The greatest thrill, the greatest dream, the greatest goal of a football player”s career is to play in the Super Bowl. To be able to wear the ring of a Super Bowl champion is the greatest accomplishment of all. I”m told that being tackled in an NFL game is like running into a brick wall. In spite of their unbelievable conditioning, nearly all of these players play hurt. The question begs to be asked, “Why do these fellows do this?” Some do it because of the money, but for most of them, football is in their blood

May 19, 2012

Christian Standard

Church Leadership

What Every Leader Needs

By Kent E. Fillinger A national study1 of pastoral leaders by Austin Presbyterian Seminary asked the questions: “Does participation in a pastoral leader peer group make a difference? And does participation in a pastoral leader peer group make a difference in congregations?” The APS study found that in the last five years, 72 percent of the pastoral leaders polled participated regularly in a small group of peers for continuing education and support. Christian Standard”s survey showed that 76 percent of the 232 senior ministers surveyed participated regularly in a peer group last year. The APS study found that leaders in