Category Archives: Church

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The Power of the Right Questions

Back in October we took a group of our staff and volunteer leaders to the Catalyst One Day conference in Pennsylvania. The last time this conference was in the area I took a smaller group and the entire time I kept kicking myself for not bringing more people. The content from Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel is that good!

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Anyway…one of the sessions by Andy Stanley, was on how great leaders ask great questions. The big take away for me of that session was that stories and questions are the best way to reinforce values. So I started a list of questions that I gathered from that session and from others to get me thinking. I put them in the back of my journal and have been adding to them as more questions come to mind.

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God Only Gives You Two Choices

Do you ever feel like there are too many choices? I often feel that way. My wife asks me to pick up laundry detergent and I’m so glad she is specific on which brand she wants because the choices are overwhelming…and that’s just the first thing on the grocery list!

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When it comes to following Jesus we like to believe there are equally as many choices as there are brands of detergent, but in reality there are only two.

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How Did Jesus Support His Ministry?

Did you ever stop to think about how the ministry of Jesus and His disciples continued? How did it happen? How were they able financially to minister full time? We remember from the gospel that Judas was the treasurer, but where did the resources come from? Did they sell Jesus memorabilia? Hold bake sales? Sell BBQ?

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They did a lot of traveling, teaching, miracles, and eating in 3 years of ministry. The resources did not just “appear” and Jesus didn’t turn water into wine every night. Luke gives us a glimpse of how the ministry of Jesus continued.

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The Power of Travel

Why You Should Go on a Short-Term Missions Trip Soon

Have you ever visited a foreign country? I’m not talking about visiting one to see the famous landmarks or wonders of the world. I’m talking about visiting a third world country so people can see and hear the love of Jesus.

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I believe you should regularly visit a third world country. If you’ve never been, put it at the top of your list immediately.

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How to Miss Out on Your Destiny

I find myself faced with needing lots of amazing and gifted people to do the work God has called me to do…establishing a church. If I can be honest, sometimes I wish that wasn’t the case and I could do it all myself. The job would be so much easier, but then it wouldn’t be the job at all (Eph. 4:12).

The problem is people misunderstand, people get hurt easily, people can be selfish, people can be fearful, people at times are too needy and even greedy…things I’ve all seen in myself.

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Should You Make Your Child Go To Church

If you aren’t a Christian, first let me thank you for checking out my blog, secondly know that I’m directing this post toward those who say that they are.

Being a pastor I never get asked, “Should I make my child go to church?”

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Instead, I’m usually told by parents why they aren’t making their child go to church anymore. The subject comes up when I ask them casually about how their child is doing, and then they misinterpret the question to mean: “Why isn’t your child in church?” The answers usually boil down to two:

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Why You Won’t Find Great Friends At Church

...or anywhere else.

How many friends do you have? I’m not talking about your Facebook friends…FB really should call those acquaintances and not friends, because there is no way you can have 884 really close friends.

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The type of friends I’m talking about are the ones that if you lost your job they would help you pay your mortgage or let you move in with them. The type of friends that if you died in a freak accident would raise your kids like you would. When you start classifying people like that…it’s easy for your friend list to shrink maybe even to zero.

Which creates a big question in my mind…How do you get friends like that? How do you find friends like that? Well, I tell you right up front that you won’t find friends like this at church. Yep! It’s true. You won’t find friends like that at work, on a sports team, in the gym, or with your children’s friend’s parents. In fact, you can’t find them anywhere because…

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A Poor Formula for J.O.Y.

When I was a kid I was taught a simple acronym for finding and living with “joy.” The idea was that if you get certain relationships in the right hierarchical order you would experience joy. The acronym was J.esus O.thers Y.ou. Jesus first, Others second, and You last.

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The longer I’ve been a pastor the more harm I’ve seen come from people who use that as a formula for joy. I’ve seen people harm themselves and their most significant relationships all the while wondering when the “joy” would kick in.

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Dreaming of the Weekend

Lots of people wish the week away waiting for the weekend. When the weekend finally rolls around they don’t have a plan to make it count and they face Monday morning feeling more drained and tired than they did the week before. Is it possible to spend your weekend in a way that actually charges you up instead of wearing you down? Is it possible to actually face Monday on FULL instead of empty?

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