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“Can You Imagine A Church Where….”

“Can You Imagine A Church Where….”

I don’t know about you but sometimes I forget why I got into this in the first place. Sometimes I find I can lose my way and get focused on the wrong things. Sometimes it just seems like we are busy being busy and have forgotten the business we’re actually in! Ever felt that way?! Fortunately there are other times too though… Times where I can imagine and see a different reality, a church that is growing people into mature followers of Jesus and truly experiencing the power o

Are we embarrassed? The Under Use of Marketing in Congregations

Are we embarrassed? The Under Use of Marketing in Congregations

Congregations undoubtedly do amazing work. We have health services, food banks, children’s programming, leadership development, summer camps, long term care facilities, and programming to support every subsector of society with almost any challenge (not to mention supporting our communities with spiritual grounding, emotional support, and connection). If we were for-profits with these fantastic results, we would be shouting this from the rooftop. Our people would brag about

Confessions of a Church Drifter

Confessions of a Church Drifter

I sat at the table in Starbucks across from Tara. From the start, I knew I was not in a welcoming conversation when she refused to order anything though she had chosen the venue. So I dutifully got myself a coffee to legitimize our occupation of a space in this citadel of transient community. Drifting as a Disastrous Pattern Tara had come to our church from another about two years or so ago, seeking what she called "meaningful connections" among believers her age. She was i

The Attributes of Strong Leadership & Tilling the Soil

The Attributes of Strong Leadership & Tilling the Soil

Jim Collins writes that it’s not just good leadership that moves organizations or communities toward excellence, but “Level Five leadership creates the shift.” According to Collins, the two primary attributes “Level Five” leaders possess are professional will, and personal humility. By professional will, Collins is referring to both the vision a leader has of where the organization is going, and the passion to make that vision come to life. Level Five leaders hold an outward

Ebb and Flow Decision Making*

Ebb and Flow Decision Making*

Congregations within our Baptist family lean towards one of two poles while making decisions. Some elect leaders to give spiritual leadership but then reserve the right of veto through grumbling and mistrust. Others, sit back and abdicate decision making to those in the back room. In each case, outcome ownership is limited. Scripture teaches both the principle of spiritual eldership and the principle of the priesthood of believers. Healthy congregations practice both, rhythmi

THE SAFEST PLACE IN THE WORLD

THE SAFEST PLACE IN THE WORLD

Some years ago a friend told me that he had asked his 16 year old daughter what she considered to be the safest place in the world. She pondered this question for a few moments, and then replied, “it would have to be last month at our annual congregational retreat, when we ended by forming a large circle, holding hands, and singing “Bind us Together” acapella. I had been part of that same circle, so I spent quite a bit of time pondering her response. What was it about our co

The Church as a City of Refuge

The Church as a City of Refuge

This June, my wife and I visited the village of La Chambon sur Lignon, in the mountains of France near the borders of Switzerland and Italy. It is small hamlet in a remote place, surrounded by deep valleys and dense forests, with a shallow reedy river bending through it. It is far from any major centre. Which was what made La Chambon perfect for its one claim to historical significance: it was the only community in Europe that sheltered Jews during WWII. There were individual

God Doesn't Always Say ‘Go’!

God Doesn't Always Say ‘Go’!

I’m a pretty active guy. Can’t sit still. Always on the go. So, I love preaching Genesis 12:1 and Matthew 28:19! These verses provide the most concise sermon title, which just happens to double as the application: “GO!” After all, God commanded Abraham to ‘pack up and get moving’ and Jesus commanded all of us to ‘shake off our tendency to settle and move on’, right? Our assumption is that we’ll flourish when we move. So you can imagine the surprise when we felt like G

The Practices of a Flourishing Rural Church

The Practices of a Flourishing Rural Church

While over eighty percent of Canada’s population live in urban centers, 90% of our diverse landscape is ministered to by rural pastors and their church families. Often misunderstood and definitely underappreciated, rural churches go about their ministries faithfully serving their regions without notice nor fanfare. While many may reduce rural churches to small, second class and behind the times, nothing could be further from the flourishing truth! Throughout the country, the

Beyond “Love It or List It”

Beyond “Love It or List It”

In my work as a consultant for mission and capital planning I have become drearily familiar with the church version of a popular real estate show, “Love It or List It”. - Some congregations hunker down in their cherished but decaying facilities, renting derelict empty space out to anyone who’ll take it in a pattern reminiscent of the tenement landlords in Charles Dickens’ England. The members keep gathering in smaller and smaller groups, disconnected from the community around

Space and Place Speak

Space and Place Speak

In our first blog, Dr. Joel Thiessen outlined five aspects of flourishing congregations that will inform much of what we do together over the next few years of research and writing. Early in his blog, Joel made the following comment: “What binds the following together is intentionality. Like cultivating habits in one’s life, congregations do not flourish, develop, or thrive without intentionally seeking to do so.” If ever there was an element in the life of any congregation