Small Group Quotes That Motivate … In Less Than 280 Characters

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September 13, 2022

I am a tweeter, and I share small group quotes on Twitter. On an almost daily basis I will tweet as many as five statements that pop into my head. Some of them are about leadership but most of them are small group quotes. While on the road leading training or consulting, I’m sometimes asked by those who follow me on Twitter if they could have the list of quotes. I thought I’d list a few of the small group quotes here in case you might be able to use them to motivate your team.

Small Group Quotes That Motivate … In Less Than 280 Characters

· Too many small groups worry too much about doctrine and too little about building Christian community.

· When a small group leader loses passion for their group the small group loses their passion for group life.

· Great small groups celebrate success, suffer with one another, and expect
God to do more than they can do themselves.

· Biblical discussions make disciples. Unresolveable doctrinal debates create a climate of confusion and dysfunction.

· Small group leader, the most important small group member is the one who is in your presence.

· When leading a small group the most important meeting may be the meeting after the meeting.

· Grace demands looking beyond someone’s failure and seeing them as you did before you became aware of their sin.

This list of small group quotes originally appeared here, and is used by permission.

Speaking in Tongues Is Now Part of Max Lucado’s Regular Prayer Time

By

Jessica Mouser

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September 12, 2022

Speaking in Tongues Is Now Part of Max Lucado’s Regular Prayer Time — Image courtesy of Max Lucado

Speaking in tongues is something that pastor and author Max Lucado now does as part of his regular prayer time with God. Lucado shared this news in an interview with the Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast, where he discussed his new book on the Holy Spirit.

“When I was 64 on a July morning, as I was praying, I began praying in tongues,” Lucado shared with host Ed Stetzer and co-host Daniel Yang. “I had not done anything different, except I came across the passage where the Apostle Paul said, ‘Eagerly desire the spiritual gifts’…I prayed that every morning for two or three weeks. And then one morning, early in the morning, I began praying in a heavenly language.”

Listen to the full interview with Max Lucado below:

Max Lucado: The Church Needs the Holy Spirit, Not Another Program or Trend

Max Lucado on How To Seek the Holy Spirit

Max Lucado is teaching minister at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio and the author of more than 145 million products in print. His latest book is, “Help Is Here: Finding Fresh Strength and Purpose in the Power of the Holy Spirit.”

Lucado shared that as a young person growing up in church he did not really learn about the Holy Spirit, so he was not familiar with how to relate to him. But in his senior year of high school, Lucado encountered an evangelist who was part of the Jesus Movement and who was the first person to teach him about the Holy Spirit.

“I was invited even to receive the gift of praying in tongues,” said Lucado, who at the time was open to that invitation, “but nothing happened.” Lucado was not following God at this point in his life and subsequently went back to his “old ways.”

In his twenties, Max Lucado returned to God and went into ministry. Yet in his early thirties, Lucado found the pressures of ministry to be overwhelming. “That’s when the wheels came off again,” he said. “I was that pastor who wanted to do everything just right and solve every problem, answer every question, and developed insomnia, stressed out. My wife was depressed, clinically depressed. I was a mess. I couldn’t sleep at night. And that’s when I began to understand John 14 of the Holy Spirit as a friend and a comforter.”

David Emmanuel Goatley Named President of Fuller Seminary

By

Dale Chamberlain

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September 12, 2022

David Emmanuel Goatley Fuller Seminary — Photo courtesy of Fuller Theological Seminary

Fuller Theological Seminary, headquartered in Pasadena, California, has named David Emmanuel Goatley as its sixth president.

Goatley will be the first person of color to hold the position of president at the seminary.

Prior to his appointment as Fuller’s new president, Goatley served as associate dean for academic and vocational formation at Duke Divinity School, as well as Ruth W. and A. Morris Williams Jr. Research Professor of Theology and Christian ministry and director of the Office of Black Studies.

Goatley holds an M.Div with an emphasis in pastoral care and counseling and a PhD in theology from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

“A constructive theologian and globally recognized missiologist with a background in pastoral counseling, Goatley brings a unique blend of experience and expertise that aligns with Fuller’s major disciplines of theology, missiology, and the psychological sciences,” Fuller said in a statement. “Having studied or worked in more than 35 countries, he brings a global perspective to his leadership and vision for Fuller, believing the gospel of the kingdom is truly good news and hope for all of the world, transcending politics, denominations, and single nations.”

“David Goatley will be able to blend an innovative vision for how Fuller trains leaders with a proven ability to execute plans and mobilize a team. He represents the right synergy between a deep passion for the church and an ongoing commitment to research and teaching that Fuller needs in this next season,” said Kara Powell, author, Fuller professor, and executive director of the Fuller Youth Institute.

Compassion International CEO Santiago “Jimmy” Mellado, who served as chair of Fuller’s Presidential Transition Discernment Team, said of Goatley’s appointment, “It never ceases to amaze me how God works in people’s lives…always moving in powerful, life-giving, and transforming ways as we choose to follow him. David Goatley’s life stands as testimony to this reality. Blessed with an extraordinary collection of life experiences, healthy drive, innovative spirit, relevant capabilities all seasoned with wisdom, he brings a track record of building up diverse leaders for Jesus across the globe. Dr. Goatley stands uniquely prepared to further propel Fuller’s mission right into the heart of the opportunity our present reality demands.”

“Dr. Goatley is going to be a superb and ground-breaking leader of our vision to provide indispensable formational education for Christian leaders everywhere,” said Fuller Board of Trustees Chair Dan Meyer.

Goatley will be inaugurated in January 2023. Until then, Mark Labberton will continue his term as president of the seminary.

Pastor: ‘Disgusting’ Cartoon Wages Spiritual Warfare Against Kids

By

Stephanie Martin

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September 12, 2022

A New York pastor is alerting parents that the controversial new TV cartoon “Little Demon” is targeting their children. During an interview with CBN News’ “Faithwire,” Mike Signorelli, senior pastor of V1 Church in New York City, warns that “kids will be the casualties” of the animated show, which glorifies and normalizes paganism.

As Church Leaders has reported, “Little Demon” features a woman (Aubrey Plaza) who gave birth to the antichrist, now 13, after mating with Satan (Danny DeVito). The series recently debuted on FXX, which is owned by Disney.

‘Little Demon’ Targets Children, Says Pastor Mike Signorelli

Because the cartoon’s main character is in middle school, Signorelli says the show is “highly relatable to kids” who are “making decisions about their identity.” The “disgusting” goal, he says, is to “desensitize us and our kids to the demonic.” Biblically, however, this material is “not normal,” he adds, because “God clearly opposes” it.

“Little Demon” is proof of ongoing spiritual warfare involving “a fight over a generation,” says Signorelli. “As a Christian, I believe that the enemy is after our children.” Although the show’s creators will “tell you it’s an adult show,” the pastor adds, “we all know that children want to watch what they’re not supposed to watch.”

Despite the show’s humorous tone, desensitizing viewers to paganism, violence, and other disturbing images has serious “repercussions,” warns Signorelli. “The Bible says, ‘Satan comes as an angel of light,’ and so he’s not going to come as a complete and total opposite, because we would all discern that…We have to uncover what I believe are the works of the enemy.”

Signorelli points to other disturbing “normalization” of the occult, including books about tarot cards that target kids. Such practices are no longer “fringe,” he notes, and in the process, Christ is getting “lost.”

Media Expert Urges Parents to Instill Christian Values Early

In a separate interview with “Faithwire,” media expert Ted Baehr, founder of Movieguide, also addresses the troubling new cartoon. Baehr says the content of “Little Demon” is “not surprising,” because “the whole culture is in the midst of a satanic revolution.”

As a result, says Baehr, parents must be proactive and diligent, teaching children “to have the right values to understand they’re not going to get self-esteem by becoming a satanist.” Because kids are saturated with entertainment options and parents are busy, Baehr says, early training about media choices is key.

Most US Pastors Don’t Believe Tithing Is a Biblical Mandate: Barna

By

Dale Chamberlain

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September 12, 2022

Recent research conducted by Barna has found that only a minority of Christian pastors believe that tithing (giving 10% of one’s income to the local church) is a biblical mandate.

The data is found in “Revisiting the Tithe & Offering,” which is part of a series of reports published by Barna titled “The State of Generosity.” The research was conducted in partnership with Gloo and Generis, church consultant agencies focusing on outreach and generosity, respectively.

According to the study, 33% of U.S. pastors surveyed believe that Christians are required to tithe to their local congregation. 70% said tithing doesn’t need to be strictly financial, and 21% of pastors didn’t recommend a set proportion of income for Christians to give, only suggesting that it should be enough to be “sacrificial.”

The report further revealed that the concept of tithing is not as broadly understood as it perhaps once was, as only two out of five U.S. adults surveyed were familiar with the term and its meaning. 59% of practicing Christians said they had a clear understanding of the concept of tithing.

Twenty-one percent of Christians surveyed give 10% of their income to their local church. Twenty-five percent don’t give to their church at all.

“Church leaders and Christians may wonder whether it matters if the tithe falls out of the mainstream. After all, church giving should not be reduced to an equation, and heartfelt, reverent generosity can be accomplished with or without deep knowledge of the tithe,” the report stated. “Still, as a fundamental, scriptural idea of Christian stewardship becomes a hazy concept, it appropriately raises questions—about how modern ministries approach funding and resources, and, more importantly, about the broader culture of generosity being nurtured among Christians.”

Generosity is an evergreen topic of discussion among church leaders, with Christian pastors and scholars often disagreeing on whether tithing is a biblical mandate for followers of Jesus.

In 2017, The Gospel Coalition published a pair of articles arguing for and against tithing as a requirement for Christians.

Pastor and theologian William Barclay argued, “The same is true of the tithe. The basic tithe, supporting the work of ministry, remains, even while ceremonial aspects fall away. Yet the tithe is a minimum; Christians are always to give to the poor and support other works that extend God’s kingdom (cf. 2 Cor. 8–9). The basic tithe is to be given to the church, to support its work and mission, as seen in Malachi 3.”

Max Lucado: The Church Needs the Holy Spirit, Not Another Program or Trend

By

Jessica Mouser

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September 12, 2022

The Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast · Max Lucado: The Church Needs the Holy Spirit, Not Another Program or Trend

Max Lucado entered the ministry in 1978 and has served churches in Florida, Brazil, and Texas. He currently serves as teaching minister of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio. Max is America’s bestselling inspirational author with more than 145 million products in print. His latest book is, “Help Is Here: Finding Fresh Strength and Purpose in the Power of the Holy Spirit.”

Other Ways to Listen to This Podcast With Max Lucado

► Listen on Apple
► Listen on Spotify
► Listen on Stitcher
► Listen on YouTube

Key Questions for Max Lucado

-What is the unique role of the Holy Spirit and how does he empower us?

-How do people cultivate the friendship of the Holy Spirit?

-What expectations should pastors and church leaders have as they walk in the power of the Holy Spirit? How does the Holy Spirit guide you personally?

-How do we as pastors and church leaders help other people access and walk in the power and the gifts of the Holy Spirit?

Key Quotes From Max Lucado

“I was not taught a lot about the Holy Spirit. I don’t fault the little church where I was raised, the small West Texas congregation. I owned a Bible. I could have read about the Holy Spirit, but had you asked me, I could have explained God, the Father and God the Son, but ask me to explain the Holy Spirit and I would have given you a blank stare.”

“I was that pastor who wanted to do everything just right and solve every problem, answer every question, and developed insomnia, stressed out. My wife was depressed, clinically depressed. I was a mess. I couldn’t sleep at night. And that’s when I began to understand John 14 of the Holy Spirit as a friend and a comforter.”

“The Holy Spirit came to me as a friend more with a whisper than a shout, and I began to sense strength in my day-to-day life.”

“My more recent fascination with the Holy Spirit or pursuit of an understanding of the Holy Spirit comes out of a desperation as I look around in society.”

“Given the political climate lately in the last three and four years or five or six years, where churches are really becoming increasingly known for their political stance more than their spiritual position, that was frustrating and continues to be for me…What do we need to revisit? Where do we need to go back as a movement, as a people? Well, the answer to that for anybody who’s read the teachings of Christ, is he sends the disciples back to the upper room and says, ‘Go and wait on the Holy Spirit.’”

ERLC Trustees Set To Meet for First Time Since Roe Overturned

By

Scott Barkley

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September 12, 2022

NASHVILLE (BP) – Even as they celebrate significant gains such as the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission trustees will learn at their upcoming meeting that there is still plenty of work to do.

At their Sept. 12 gathering at the ERLC office in Nashville, trustees are expected to hear updates on several ERLC initiatives and could potentially receive a recommendation for a new president from the presidential search team.

Baptist Press reached out to search team chairman Todd Howard and ERLC board chair Lori Bova for an update. Howard declined to comment and Bova had not responded at the time of publication.

Howard told Baptist Press in July that the team was “working through the process with an active candidate.” The ERLC has been without a permanent president since Russell Moore resigned in May 2021.

Jan. 22, 2023, marks the 50^th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, which the ERLC will recognize with The Road to ROE50. An estimated 61 million unborn lives have been lost through abortion since the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision made the procedure legal throughout the country.

ERLC’s Elizabeth Graham said The Road to ROE50 will look “to unify and accelerate effective strategies through pro-life work leading up to and following the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

With the overturning of Roe, the focus of the battle has now moved to state legislatures. Several groups look to push back on pro-life measures as has happened in Kansas.

Pro-life discussions will include the Psalm 139 Project, which places ultrasound machines in pregnancy care centers. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee took part in one dedication earlier this year, and former NFL great Benjamin Watson continues to be an ardent supporter.

Discussions will also involve the ERLC’s Digital Public Square, a project designed to provide resources for working through “complex ethical challenges with biblical wisdom and insight.”

‘Called to Care’: Southern Baptist Nursing School Addresses Nursing Shortage

By

Diana Chandler

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September 12, 2022

Southern-Baptist-Nursing-School- — William Carey University, a Southern Baptist-supported school based in Hattiesburg, Miss., has instituted several programs to address the nursing shortage in Mississippi, Louisiana and nearby states. Photo courtesy of Baptist Press.

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (BP) – Addressing the shortage of nurses that has worsened in the U.S. since the COVID-19 pandemic is a mission and ministry of William Carey University (WCU), a Southern Baptist-supported school based in Mississippi.

For Janet Williams, WCU vice president for health programs, healthcare and ministry are naturally complementary.

“Who better to witness than the nurse who’s with you as you’re critically ill? Who better to help make sure that they take your hand and pray with you?” Williams posed to Baptist Press. “It’s in everything we do and everything we teach.”

In the two states WCU’s three campuses are located, Mississippi and Louisiana, there are 13.88 nurses per 1,000 people and 11.6 nurses per 1,000 people, respectively, according to a 2021 study from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences. To address the shortage, an additional 1.2 million nurses will be needed by 2030, the study said, a number more difficult to reach as nurses retire or leave the field for more prosperous careers, and nursing programs turn away students because of the lack of faculty.

“It’s bad enough now,” Williams said, “that if we don’t do something about the supply of nurses out there, that you’re going to start seeing hospitals close because of it. We’re already seeing hospitals that are shutting beds down. That’s a big deal.

“The key to the nursing shortage is supply has to equal demand. There’s no doubt that that’s the only way to fix it,” Williams said. “And the way we’re doing it, we’re also trying to find other pots of students that would like to be nurses but who had never really considered it because of the finances or because of opportunities that were not there.”

WCU created a new scholarship this summer for students with bachelor’s degrees in other fields to attract them to nursing, and operates an advanced placement program to enable licenses practical nurses (LPNs) to become registered nurses (RNs) and thereby earn larger salaries.

A year ago, WCU opened a new 67,000-square-foot facility to house the William K. Ray College of Health Sciences on its Hattiesburg campus, allowing the university to increase its annual admission of incoming nursing students from 75 to 124, Williams said. She puts annual nursing enrollment, encompassing pre-nursing through doctoral programs, at 525-550, including campuses in Hattiesburg, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and in Baton Rouge, La. In WCU’s last graduating class, nurses numbered 72, but that number is expected to grow with the new facility, Williams said.

WCU increases its nursing outreach through memorandum of understanding agreements with seven of Mississippi’s 15 junior colleges, helping students transition to WCU health programs, transfer credits and provide academic advisors and support. And the university places as much emphasis on the quality of education received as the number of students enrolled.

In February, WCU’s nursing graduates earned a 100 percent pass rate on the National Council Licensure Examination, which Williams said is the only bachelor’s degree nursing program in the state to earn the distinction.

“Healthcare in Mississippi has always been ranked so low. We look at it and we say, if somebody’s going to change healthcare in Mississippi, it has to be us,” Williams said. “We’re the ones that have to do it. We have to educate the students in a way that they’ll be excellent practitioners.”

Williams expresses WCU’s commitment to its mission as a Baptist institution, evidenced in its community mission requirement in the nursing curriculum. It’s part of WCU’s emphasis on care.

“There’s a certain level of empathy you have to have as a nurse. You have to feel the need. We call it ‘called to care.’ If you come to nursing at William Carey you’re called to care,” she said. “You have to care about your patients. It has to make a difference to you that you have helped someone.

“Mission is one part of that, working with missions and doing the community service and all of those types of things. And it goes along very well with the mission of William Carey, the fact that William Carey is a Baptist university and … we try to be very much appropriate in our approach.”

Students complete missions at local facilities and in foreign countries.

“Because we also have a medical school, we can join together with our medical school and do a medical mission where you have physicians and nurses, and then physician students and nursing students go,” Williams said. “And that’s huge. To take that to a country that needs the healthcare so desperately, you can see an awful lot of patients and do an awful lot of good that way.”

Williams expresses appreciation for the support of Southern Baptists, and encourages prayer and contributions to endowed scholarships.

“Southern Baptist churches are doing a good thing for us. The Mississippi Baptist Convention (Board) gives us funding. We thank them very much for that.”

This article originally appeared at Baptist Press.

Former SC Youth Pastor Named in Sexual Abuse Lawsuit

By

Brandon Porter

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September 12, 2022

abuse_lawsuit — Photo via Unsplash.com @diegosan

LEXINGTON, S.C. (BP) – A South Carolina-based law firm has filed a lawsuit against former South Carolina Baptist Pastor Michael D’Attoma. The suit also names Northside Baptist Church in Lexington, S.C., the South Carolina Baptist Convention and the Southern Baptist Convention, according to a report by the Baptist Courier.

The suit alleges that D’Attoma began a relationship with “Jane Doe” at the age of 15 in 2009 and continued “grooming her” until 2012.

According to a June 16 release from McGowan, Hood, Felder & Philips, the minor “did report suspicious behavior she witnessed between D’Attoma and another member of her youth group, in 2010.”

D’Attoma is accused of soliciting video chats and texts from the girl which eventually led to “touching our client inappropriately,” the firm’s release said.

In a statement, the South Carolina Baptist Convention leaders said they are “still processing the allegations to determine if and how they may apply to the South Carolina Baptist Convention,” adding that they are “deeply concerned for survivors of sexual abuse and pray for all involved.”

Current Northside Pastor Rocky Purvis said he learned about the allegations on June 16, 2022, according to the Baptist Courier report.

“With regard to the civil lawsuit that was filed, we are still reviewing it and cannot comment until we know more details,” Purvis told the Courier.

“Our hearts break for all victims of abuse, and we ask that you join us in praying that the truth will come out and healing will take place.”

In a statement to Baptist Press, Gene Besen, counsel to the SBC Executive Committee, called individual acts of abuse “heinous and intolerable,” adding: “[W]hile the Southern Baptist Convention is committed to vanquishing all incidents of abuse, the SBC cannot be liable for the conduct of an individual it was never even aware of who was employed by a church it cannot control.”

“Every Southern Baptist church is autonomous,” Besen wrote. “The SBC plays no role in selecting, appointing, promoting, moving, or terminating pastors.”

The release from the South Carolina law firm attempts to make a connection between the firm’s case and the May 2022 report from Guidepost Solutions on the mishandling of sexual abuse claims by the SBC Executive Committee.

“While the plaintiff’s legal filings make much of Guidepost Solutions’ report, these incidents and allegations are neither reflected nor addressed in the report,” Besen said. “The SBC simply had no knowledge of the abuse outlined in these legal filings (the report itself corroborates this truth) until it was served with the complaints.”

There is no statute of limitations on criminal charges related to sexual abuse in South Carolina.

Editor’s Note: In support of the sixth strategic action of Vision 2025 adopted by messengers to the 2021 SBC Annual Meeting, Baptist Press will continue to report every instance of sexual abuse related to Southern Baptist churches or leaders of which we are made aware.

If you are/have been a victim of sexual abuse or suspect sexual abuse by a pastor, staff member or member of a Southern Baptist church or entity, please reach out for help at 202-864-5578 or SBChotline@guidepostsolutions.com. All calls are confidential.

This article originally appeared at Baptist Press.

Pastor Recounts Day at Flight 93 Crash Site

By

Scott Barkley

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September 12, 2022

flight93 — The field in Somerset County, Pa., where Flight 93 crashed. From Wikimedia Commons

DUNCANSVILLE, Pa. (BP) — Doug Pilot remembers the crater. He remembers the blackened trees and hearing that there was nothing left bigger than a phone book.

Pilot, pastor of New Hope Baptist Church, was serving as the director of missions for Conemaugh Valley Baptist Association on Sept. 11, 2001. He was about to leave for a meeting with church planters in Harrisburg when his wife, Jeanne, called him back to the house.

A plane had just hit the World Trade Center. Pilot went back inside the watch the coverage. That’s when both saw the second plane hit the South Tower.

“I told her we were being attacked, so she decided to go with me to Harrisburg,” he said.

On the way, news came that another plane had crashed, this one in a field near Somerset.

“We had church planters down there and I immediately wanted to check on them,” Pilot said. “I tried calling them, but the lines were tied up. So I called Harrisburg and told them we were going to Somerset.”

On the way, they learned the plane actually went down in Shanksville, about 5 miles from Somerset. News also broke over the radio that yet another plane had hit the Pentagon.

“We got to Somerset and found out they were OK. That’s also around the time Baptist Press called and asked if I could be eyes and ears for them on the scene,” he said.

Pilot would be on the scene as a reporter, but also for his expertise in crisis management. At the time, he was a chaplain for local emergency management personnel as well as The Laurel Highlands Critical Incident Stress Management Team.

The crash site was in a reclaimed coal mining area and only about three miles from where he stood.

Nearing the site, Pilot identified himself to state troopers related to his training, gaining access both in that role and as a reporter. Eventually he was sent with others to the local fire department that was serving as a staging area. Soon thereafter he was directed back to the work site near the crater.

“It smoked for days,” he said. “The trees on the far side of the crater were blackened from the fire. They were saying they couldn’t find a piece of the plane bigger than a phone book.”

FBI investigators testified that the initial crater only went about 15 feet deep, though the black boxes would later be found at 25 feet. A misty smoke hung in the air from the jet fuel that had set the woods on fire.

Pilot stood on a slight rise that went above the crater, but not high enough where he could see the bottom of it. The day was clear and warm, he said. A Pennsylvania state trooper helicopter patrolled above, tasked with identifying onlookers trying to get near the site.

“When you drove in there were state troopers posted about every 75 feet. They were trying to keep people out of the crash area, but some still slipped in and they were using the helicopter to help find them and get them out of there.”

A sense of shock and disbelief permeated the scene. It came from asking how an entire passenger jet could hit the ground with such force that no identifiable part of it remained. It came knowing that similar states of incredulity prevailed in New York and Washington, D.C.

Pilot would spend about seven hours there that day, leaving close to sundown.

From Shoeboxes to War Zones: How Samaritan’s Purse Became a $1 Billion Humanitarian Aid Powerhouse

By

Yonat Shimron and Bob Smietana

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September 12, 2022

NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. (RNS) — Each week, in a hulking warehouse in this small, western mountain town, Samaritan’s Purse employees load semi trailers full of supplies for the people of Ukraine: medicines, food, tarps, blankets, hygiene kits and school bags for kids.

The trucks are then driven 80 miles east to the Piedmont Triad International Airport where they are loaded onto the nonprofit’s DC-8 aircraft specially configured to carry up to 84,000 pounds of cargo. From there the goods are airlifted to Poland and then trucked across the border into Ukraine.

This week, Samaritan’s Purse, headed by evangelical leader the Rev. Franklin Graham, made its 30th airlift since Russia began its offensive against Ukraine in February.

The Christian relief organization estimates it has helped 5.5 million Ukrainians with medicine, food and water. Earlier in the conflict, it also operated an emergency field hospital and outpatient clinic in Lviv, treating an estimated 17,758 patients. It now supports 30 medical facilities across the war-ravaged country.

The organization’s 160,000-square-foot warehouse in North Wilkesboro employs 385 people who buy, repair, maintain and retrofit millions of dollars’ worth of medical equipment, generators and water filtration systems, much of them donated. The warehouse has six emergency field hospitals ready to ship, four with tents, hospital beds, anesthesiology equipment, X-ray machines and surgical suites — all engineered to fold into a plane’s fuselage. There are also miles of plastic tarps, mountains of used clothing and boxes full of small brown teddy bears with the Samaritan’s Purse logo — a cross inside a circle.

Samaritan’s Purse, now in its 52nd year, has become a powerhouse of faith-based international relief.

The sanctuary of Central Baptist Church in Dnipro, Ukraine has been turned into a shelter for Ukrainians fleeing their homes because of the Russian assault. Central Baptist Church receives regular shipments of food and medicines from Samaritan’s Purse. Courtesy of Samaritan’s Purse

Ukraine is now drawing on much of that relief, but in any given year, the organization aids people in 110–120 countries. It sent supplies to Pakistan after unprecedented flooding from monsoon rains this past month. It has a mobile medical team at 11 different sites across civil war-torn Yemen. It is helping farmers in Iraq’s Sinjar Mountains plant strawberries.

And then there are multiple U.S.-based recovery efforts. Samaritan’s Purse volunteer teams recently sawed off tree limbs and cleared damaged homes in Kentucky and Missouri where a rash of disastrous floods ruined homes and businesses.

The nonprofit’s mission is based on the parable of the Good Samaritan as told in Luke’s Gospel, in which a man is stripped, beaten and left for dead on the side of the road. He is rescued, not by those with power or authority, but by an outsider — a Samaritan — who bandages his wounds, takes him to an inn and pays the innkeeper to look after him.

To many, Samaritan’s Purse may be best-known for giving shoeboxes full of toys to needy children around the world. But over the past 10 years, it has grown into one of the largest U.S. faith-based nonprofits, with annual revenues last year of $1 billion.

A review of its annual 990 IRS form shows Samaritan’s Purse’s revenue has doubled since 2014, and its assets have quadrupled. It now ranks at No. 23 in the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s 25 largest U.S. charities, a list that includes mostly non-religious charities.’

Franklin Graham visits Samaritan’s Purse disaster response specialists and programs on the ground in Ukraine. The international Christian relief organization is aiding families impacted by conflict through the operation of medical facilities and distribution of food and other relief items. Courtesy of Samaritan’s Purse

Today, Samaritan’s Purse is in a league with the American Red Cross, Catholic Charities and Lutheran Services in America. In 2020, it surpassed in cash revenue the Christian charity World Vision, with whom it shares a founder: former missionary and evangelist Bob Pierce, Franklin Graham’s inspiration and mentor.

At World Council of Churches Gathering, Russian Church Keeps Its Membership

By

Jack Jenkins

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September 12, 2022

(RNS) — After a sometimes tense week that included passionate exchanges, the 11th assembly of the World Council of Churches approved a statement on Thursday (Sept. 8) regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that denounces the war but does not single out the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, who has been widely criticized for supporting the invasion.

The statement condemned “this illegal and unjustifiable war,” and specifically rejected “any misuse of religious language and authority to justify armed aggression and hatred,” while calling on all parties to refrain from military action around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

But the document produced by the assembly, meeting in Karlsruhe, Germany, is unlikely to satisfy critics who in recent months have called for the group’s leadership to strip the Russian church of its membership in the ecumenical body.

Moscow’s patriarch has already been sanctioned by the United Kingdom because of his rhetoric. The European Union also discussed similar sanctions, but they were reportedly abandoned after Viktor Orbán, the prime minister of Hungary and an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, intervened.

Kirill has spent years outlining what is widely seen as the spiritual foundation for the invasion, inserting a religious justification for reclaiming Russia’s sphere of influence in Ukraine and elsewhere with references to “Holy Rus” or “Russian world.” Earlier this year, hundreds of Orthodox theologians and scholars declared the concept a heresy.

At an opening press conference on Aug. 31, outgoing WCC General Secretary Ioan Sauca, a Romanian Orthodox priest, announced the group’s central committee had rejected efforts by critics to expel the Russian church earlier this year.

“The WCC is a free space for dialogue, and we come together not because we agree with one another but because we disagree,” said Sauca, saying the proposal to expel the Russians was unanimously defeated.

Sauca said he and others had visited Ukraine this year and that observer representatives of Ukraine would be present for the assembly. But in the days that followed, any hope of brokering formal dialogue between the Ukrainians and ROC members during the proceedings appeared to dissipate.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier addressed the assembly Aug. 31, singling out the Russians in his remarks. He noted that while a number of Russian Orthodox priests have spoken out against the war and faced legal action for it, church leaders have actively supported the Russian government’s military actions.

“The heads of the Russian Orthodox Church are currently leading their members and their entire church down a dangerous and indeed blasphemous path that goes against all that they believe,” said Steinmeier.

FILE – Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill applaud during the unveiling ceremony of a monument to Vladimir the Great on the National Unity Day outside the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Nov. 4, 2016. President Vladimir Putin has led ceremonies launching a large statue outside the Kremlin to a 10th-century prince of Kiev who is credited with making Orthodox Christianity the official faith of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

“We have to speak out, also here in this room, in this assembly, against this propaganda targeting the freedom and rights of the citizens of another country, this nationalism, which arbitrarily claims that a dictatorship’s imperial dreams of hegemony are God’s will,” the president said.

Acknowledging Russian Orthodox delegates in the room, Steinmeier asked that other assembly attendees “not to spare them the truth about this brutal war and the criticism of the role of their church leaders.”

In his own address on Sept. 2, Archbishop Yevstratiy of Chernihiv and Nizhyn of the independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine accused Russian soldiers of atrocities. Two weeks into the war, he said, troops opened fire on unarmed civilians manning a checkpoint just outside of the village of Yasnohorodka, killing a local parish priest who had raised his cross as he tried to protect civilians.

“Today, Ukrainians are the ones attacked by robbers,” Yevstratiy said in his condemnation, invoking the biblical parable of the Good Samaritan. “Do not pass by our suffering and our pain, as the priest and the Levite of the parable!”

Yevstratiy thanked WCC members for speaking out against Kirill’s support for the war and recommended that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which declared itself independent of Moscow in 2018, be granted full WCC membership.

Tensions flared again days later when the proposed statement on the invasion of Ukraine was introduced to the assembly. Roman Sigov, who identified himself as part of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church observer delegation, stepped to the microphone, urging WCC leaders to respond to his group’s submitted comments. (Leaders ultimately accommodated only two minor wording changes in the final document.)

The Typical Pastor’s Wife Is Dead

By

Lori Wilhite

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September 12, 2022

I think the typical pastor’s wife is dead. You know, that woman who had it all together, never seemed to struggle, played the piano, attended every event and met everyone’s expectations, although she could have had some help with her wardrobe.

I’ve heard, read and said “I’m not the typical pastor’s wife” so many times, I’ve started to wonder if she really ever existed at all, or if she really only existed in people’s minds and expectations.

Some ladies say that as a badge of honor. Most, like me, say it with the guilty knowledge that we aren’t measuring up, that somehow God messed up when He called us to leadership because we just aren’t “typical.”

We spend mass amounts of time, energy, emotion and effort comparing ourselves to a myth. And the problem is … I fall short. My attention turns to my shortcomings and failings instead of staying focused on God and who He created me to be.

But the truth is God knew exactly what He was doing … exactly who He was calling. He knows my shortcomings and my struggles, and He has extended His call to leadership and ministry anyway.

Maybe “typical” isn’t what I thought … maybe there is a new typical. Maybe I’m typical.

The more I talk to pastors’ wives, the more I realize how alike we are.

Regardless of: Age. Location. Denomination. Church Style. Church Size. I’ve noticed that we all seem to have the same questions. The same struggles. The same difficulties.

We are trying to serve God to the best of our abilities while navigating the challenges of leadership and the pulls of life.

Sure, it looks different for everyone, but we are working it out.

So I think I’m just going to let what I thought was the “typical” pastor’s wife go by the wayside and link arms with other Christian women, who like me, are just doing our best trying to figure life and leadership out.

I’m going to embrace the knowledge that maybe I am typical … a woman wanting to know Jesus, support my husband, love my children, care for our church, wrestle with my own shortcomings, grow in love and grace, keep my head up during the tough times, acknowledge that I won’t be all things to all people, be available to fellow strugglers, and embrace who God made me to be.

I am not prefect. But I may well be typical … and that is fine by me.

How to Make Your Church Stickier

By

Geoff Surratt

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September 12, 2022

Make Your Church Stickier — Adobestock #249073170

For the first time in our lives, Sherry and I have the freedom to choose what church we attend. When we lived at home, our parents chose for us, and after we got married, we always attended the church I (and sometimes she) worked at. But now we are free to visit any church we want, so over the past couple of months, we have visited nine different churches. In most cases, we have gone as anonymous visitors, and it has been an eye-opening experience. We have been surprised how difficult it is to fit in and connect at a new church. (If you know we attended your church recently, I’m obviously talking about one of the other eight.) I thought I’d share some tips on how to attract, connect, and retain new attendees with the aim to make your church stickier.

None of these ideas are new or revolutionary, but I bet you think your congregation is a LOT better at how to make your church sticker than you really are. Trust me on this; they’re not.

How to Make Your Church Stickier

1. Make your church friendlier

I’m sure you assume your church gets a pass on this one; your church is one of the friendliest churches on the planet. When you walk in, everyone says hi, you have a built in greeting time in your service when all the new people feel welcomed, and after church, people hang around forever laughing and connecting. You’ve got the friendly thing down.

Let me give you an outsider’s perspective on the friendliness of your church. When I arrive, one or two assigned people with big nametags smile and say “Hi.” (At some churches, the assigned greeters are either engaged in conversation with someone else, grunt hello or just frown and hand me a bulletin.) Once I navigate past people in the lobby talking to people they already know, I am placed in an isolation bubble called the auditorium.

I sit with people who don’t acknowledge my presence in any way until the forced greeting time. “Turn and greet your neighbor before you sit down.” At most, someone might crack a half smile, give their name and shake my hand. Normally, I get a grimaced look, a quick handshake and a short, “Hi.” I don’t realize it at the time, but that is the last time anyone will make any contact with me at your church.

After service, I again have to navigate the lobby where people who already know each other have exclusive parties with other people who already know each other. Sometimes, I stand in the lobby looking bewildered and feeling as out of place as a bikini in a Denver snowstorm, but no one sees me.

Finally, I find my way back to the car feeling more alone than I did when I arrived. And in case you think it’s because I’m an introvert, my extroverted wife feels the same. Feeling alone and disconnected is the one experience we’ve had at almost every church we’ve attended.

So how do you make your church sticker? Here are a couple of ideas (most of these I stole from others):

1. Teach on hospitality.

Take a weekend (or a month) and teach your congregation how to be hospitable at church, in the workplace and at home. Hospitality has always been a hallmark of Christianity, so we need to teach on it.

2. Create a “gorilla greeter” team.

Get as many people as possible to be gorilla greeters. Their job is to make sure they talk only to people they don’t know for the first ten minutes after they arrive and for the first ten minutes after the service is over. They don’t need lanyards or nametags (in fact, that would defeat the purpose). Their job is to find people who seem disconnected and figure out how to connect them.

3. Adopt a “neighborhood.”

Divide your auditorium into sections and get leaders to adopt a section as their neighborhood. They commit to attend the same service each week, sit in their neighborhood, and watch for new people who sit in the section. They become the small group leader of that section.

4. Give the greeting time a purpose or kill it.

Find a way to make the greeting time in your service purposeful. Why are you doing this? How can you make it more effective? Is it accomplishing the purpose you designed it for?

How has your church worked on friendliness? What has worked and not worked?

How an Overemphasis on Loyalty Is Hurting Churches

By

Phil Cooke

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September 11, 2022

During many years as a consultant to churches and ministries worldwide, one of the most frustrating challenges I’ve discovered within Christian organizations is an overemphasis on loyalty. I know – we all grew up with the understanding that loyalty was good – one of the most important virtues. I was an Eagle scout, and number two on the Boy Scout law was loyalty.

That’s probably why so many churches and ministry organizations value loyalty far more than expertise – to the extent that they would rather hire or promote an extremely loyal person over someone more qualified. As a result, many churches and ministries are filled with employees who are very loyal, but sadly, incompetent as well. That’s why I think it’s time we took another look at the concept of loyalty – particularly as it relates to employees.

How employees view their jobs has changed dramatically over the last 10-20 years. My father’s generation were the “men in the gray flannel suits.” They were team players, and kept their jobs for life. Most of my family worked in cotton mills throughout North Carolina, and worked at the same company their entire lives. It was understood that corporate loyalty overshadowed their own personal sense of fulfillment.

But different generations view their working life through a far different lens. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average worker currently holds 10 different jobs before age 40. Job tenures now last less than four years. Some estimate that today’s youngest workers will hold 12 to 15 jobs in their lifetimes. For a generation that’s grown up with technology upgrades and media change, multiple variations of work environments comes easily. The bottom line? Especially since the pandemic, the world of work has changed dramatically in this culture, and as a result, employee expectations are different as well.

Today, employees care less about loyalty to an organization, and more about accomplishment. Finding a place where they can grow, utilize their gifts and talents, and pursue significance, are far more important than blind loyalty. That doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t value their employer – they just value accomplishment far more.

So in the new world of work, how can a pastor or ministry leader change their attitudes toward employee loyalty?

First – understand that when an employee leaves your organization, it’s not necessarily about you. He or she is not being spiteful, shunning your friendship, or disrespecting your authority. Today, only the most insecure ministry leaders should feel hurt when employees move on to another church or organization. In fact, one pastor I know takes pride in the fact that his employees leave. He feels like he’s training a new generation to go out and grow other churches and ministries.

Second – today, loyalty happens when employees can grow, exercise their gifts and talents, and explore possibilities for the future. For them, it’s not about how long they stay at a single company, it’s how much they can grow and expand their career. Their goal is not the organization. Their goal is impact.

Third – Don’t be offended if you discover an employee has been looking at other opportunities – even if they’ve actually interviewed at other organizations. It’s natural to wonder what’s on the other side of the fence. Besides, if they discover a better fit somewhere else, why would you want to keep them? What’s the point of forcing an employee to stay who’s unhappy? Further, why lose the potential of a future relationship by firing them in anger? On the flip side, they might actually discover just how good their present job is, and re-commit with new energy and enthusiasm.

9 Leadership Strategies to Avoid Becoming a Growth Barrier

By

Gavin Adams

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September 11, 2022

Every leader hates growth barriers.

The Internet is full of suggestions on breaking through barriers.

Some of these articles, blogs, and books are good. But too few focus on the leader as the barrier.

Here are 9 ways to remove yourself as a growth barrier.

Often, we are tempted to look around and cast blame when we bump into an issue or problem. At times blame should be cast elsewhere, but as a point leader of any team or organization, there is always an element of accountability that should fall back on our shoulders. After all, we are the leader.

Looking in the mirror is more demanding than looking through a window, though. Discovering and owning our part in any problem is painful at best, but if we desire to build the Kingdom more than OUR kingdom, a mirror moment is necessary.

It’s about to get all personal up in here, but it’s worth the introspection because the church and the people in our community are worth us being at our best.

Let’s start by acknowledging a truth for every leader: “In some way, I am a potential growth barrier.” In fact, just pause for a moment and read that aloud. Do you believe that? I hope so because every leader has something in them that can impede growth. I’ve yet to meet a leader who doesn’t have the potential to become a barrier. The best leaders both acknowledge this potential and embrace proactive solutions.

While I can’t diagnose every possible leadership deficiency, I can give you some specific things to consider that will overcome almost every leadership-driven growth barrier. Or at least I can give you the ones I’ve learned (and am learning) the hard way.

Quick Note: Each of the below ideas could be a full post in and of itself. I’ll give you more than one sentence on each, so feel free to skip what you do well and study what you don’t in more detail. Whatever you do, though, read number 1 so you know what to skip!

If you want to proactively remove yourself as a barrier to growth, make sure you:

1. Solicit feedback about your leadership — often.

The best and worst thing I have ever done as a leader was survey those around me about my leadership. The people around you are most likely talking about you amongst themselves already. You might as well find out what they are saying.

Leaders are notorious for seeing deficiencies in others without knowing their own. Since you can’t improve what you don’t know needs improvement, a leadership evaluation could be the most important step you can take to ensure you are not an artificial barrier to your organization’s growth.

Any sort of survey via SurveyMonkey can be fruitful so long as it’s anonymous, but if you want to go deeper, leverage a professional service, like RightPath 360. Just a word of warning: Set up a counseling appointment to coincide with your feedback review. Trust me on this one.

Question for Introspection: Do I really know what others think of my leadership?

2. Surround yourself with great leaders.

This is so important to create a path for continuous growth, but it takes a self-aware and secure leader to pull it off. If you are the smartest person in your organization, your organization is in trouble. If you struggle to attract or retain great people, you are the problem, and your organization is in trouble. If you look around and your organization is full of doers, not leaders, you’re in trouble.

During the early years of Woodstock City Church’s growth, I mistakenly hired too many doers. I hired doers because we had so much to do. They were great people who became my friends, but their ability to lead at the time was weak, and we collectively suffered as a result. We need some doers, but doers without leaders stunt organizational growth.

What I learned the hard way is, while doers might get a job done, leaders will attract other leaders and doers, get the job done, and move the organization forward in the process.

Attracting and retaining leaders is our preference, but it can only happen if we become a leader worth following and are willing to bring leaders into the organization.

Question for Introspection: Am I afraid to work with people better than me?

3. Systematically replace yourself.

If you replace yourself, what will you do? If you are tempted to ask that question, you’re probably not actively replacing yourself. Great leaders replace themselves because great leaders understand the health of any organization is ultimately only measured after a leadership transition has taken place.

As a leader, if you are not actively and systematically replacing yourself, you are not setting up your organization for continuous growth because you are the growth lid. While every leader is unique, one thing we all have in common is none of us wants to lead an organization small enough to be managed alone. We also don’t want to leave the organization worse than we found it. Replacing ourselves is the most effective way to prevent either of these two growth barriers.

Question for Introspection: Who am I actively replacing myself with?

4. Discover your natural strengths.

No leader is the best at everything necessary to lead an organization. God has given each one of us a unique set of strengths, and it is within these strengths where we find our greatest success and fulfillment. As a leader—especially a point leader—we owe it to our organization and ourselves to lead out of our strengths.

This concept is so problematic for church leaders, and it is equally damaging to long-term growth. If you are the point leader, you are called to lead in your strength. That means, if you are not the best communicator on your staff team, you should not preach every week even if you have the title of Lead Pastor. If you are not the best vision-caster in the church, you should stop casting vision alone. If you are not the most organized or detailed person on your team, you should not be responsible for the financials.

On the other hand, when you solicit feedback about your leadership and skills, pay attention to what you are great at doing. Leaders who don’t know their strengths operate from other’s expectations. On the other hand, leaders who know themselves and have embraced their strengths can lead more effectively toward continuous growth.

Quick Note: A great way to discover your strengths and unique abilities is to pay attention to compliments. We tend to shrug off compliments, but in humility, pay attention to what others say about you. Complements are as revealing as critiques.

Question for Introspection: Do I know where I thrive and where I struggle?

5. Delegate more than you do.

This is related to discovering your strengths. Leaders who refuse to limit their organization’s growth delegate more than they do, because, in their delegation, they free themselves to do what only they can do while empowering others to share the burden of leadership.

Delegation is an art, though. To be done well, a leader must possess a keen understanding of the leaders around them, provided great clarity, and pass along a level of authority and responsibility necessary to accomplish the task.

A leader who does not delegate is a leader who becomes the lid for their organization, and no leader wants an organization small enough to be managed alone.

Question for Introspection: What am I doing that someone else should be doing?

Do the Old Testament Promises of Prosperity Apply to God’s People Today?

By

Randy Alcorn

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September 11, 2022

In some circles, the abundant life Jesus promised His followers has been confused with material wealth. Prosperity theology says that God’s plan is always for us to be wealthy—and to spend our money primarily on ourselves. Jesus, who didn’t even have a place to lay His head and who owned nothing but a robe and sandals (Matthew 8:20), clearly didn’t live a money- and possessions-centered life. Surely that’s not what He wants for us either.

So how can we explain the apparent contradiction between the words and lifestyle of Jesus and the apostles, and the Old Testament prosperity passages? Can God’s people today lay claim to those Old Testament promises of prosperity? The answers to these questions lie in the fundamental differences between the Old and New Covenants. Suffice it to say that the New Testament reflects a fuller picture of the true, eternal wealth that is ours in Christ.

Material Wealth = God’s Blessing?

The portion of truth that makes prosperity theology credible is that some Old Testament passages link material prosperity with God’s blessing. For instance, God gave material wealth to Abraham (Genesis 13:1-7), Isaac (Genesis 26:12-14), Jacob (Genesis 30:43), Joseph (Genesis 39:2-6), Solomon (1 Kings 3:13), and Job (Job 42:10-17) because He approved of them. He promised the Israelites He would reward them materially for faithful financial giving (Deuteronomy 15:10; Proverbs 3:9-10; 11:25; Malachi 3:8-12).

In Deuteronomy 28:1-13, God tells the Israelites that He would reward their obedience by giving them children, crops, livestock, and victory over their enemies, but He also tacks on fifty-four more verses describing the curses that would come upon the nation if they didn’t obey Him—including diseases, heat and drought, military defeat, boils, tumors, madness, and blindness. The teaching is double-edged: prosperity for obedience, adversity for disobedience (Deuteronomy 28:14-68).

The Old Testament also warns against the dangers of wealth—especially the possibility that in our prosperity we may forget the Lord (Deuteronomy 8:7-18). Furthermore, the Bible recognizes frequent exceptions to the prosperity/adversity doctrine, noting that the wicked often prosper more than the righteous. The psalmist said, “I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in its native soil” (Psalm 37:35), and “I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. . . . This is what the wicked are like—always carefree, they increase in wealth” (Psalm 73:3, 12). Solomon saw “a righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness” (Ecclesiastes 7:15). Jeremiah, a righteous man who lived in constant adversity, framed the question this way: “You are always righteous, O Lord, when I bring a case before you. Yet I would speak with you about your justice: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?” (Jeremiah 12:1).

Are material wealth, achievement, fame, victory, or success reliable indicators of God’s reward or approval? If so, then He is an evil God, for history is full of successful madmen and prosperous despots. Was God on the side of Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and other prosperous butchers of history during their rise to power and at the apex of their regimes when they were surrounded by material wealth? Is God also on the side of wealthy cultists, dishonest business executives, and immoral entertainers? If wealth is a dependable sign of God’s approval and lack of wealth shows His disapproval, then Jesus and Paul were on God’s blacklist, and drug dealers and embezzlers are the apple of His eye.

Was George Whitefield a Christian?

By

Jared C. Wilson

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September 10, 2022

The following is an expansion of a lecture delivered to Midwestern Seminary students on the recent New England Study Tour at the Old South Church, Newburyport, Massachusetts, which stands today, in part, as an historical monument to George Whitefield and where he is buried “beneath the pulpit.”

What are we to make of evangelicalism’s historical “heroes” who carry with them still a tainted legacy of sin? Such is the question constantly facing the American Church as we contemplate the theological and evangelistic impact of men like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield, both of whom owned and, at points, defended the sinful institution of chattel slavery.

Who Was George Whitefield? Was He A Christian?

Both of these men leave behind an incredible record of gospel-rich theology and preaching. There is a reason we still study their work today and why many of us find much in it that edifies and stirs our affections for Christ. Many are reluctant to admit the great sin of these figures, believing that doing so may eradicate their contributions to church history. Many of course readily admit the great sin of these figures for the very purpose of indicting their contributions to church history. Still others assert we must accept all of their contributions, good and bad, as the consequence of honest historical appraisal. We must admit the good and the bad, because both the good and the bad we do leave their own legacies. Certainly the historical evil of slavery continues to impact American society today.

It is common sometimes to hear the defense that these were “men of their times,” as if to apply a kind of ignorance born of their cultural milieu, an unenlightened naiveté, in hopes of seeing their good “outweigh” their bad. But this kind of defense doesn’t work.

In the case of George Whitefield, English evangelist to the American colonies, whose ministry attracted tens of thousands, occasionally in one visit, to hear his extraordinary preaching gift and passionate and dramatic articulation of the grace of God, we find no remedy in “man of his times” ignorance. Early in his ministry, Whitefield spoke out against slavery and against slave-holding. Unlike many of his contemporaries at the time, he expressed concern for the souls of slaves, urging that they not just be treated kindly, but also evangelized, and their children catechized and raised in the church. Which is to say, Whitefield’s earliest expressed positions stand in prophetic witness against his later and longer-held expressed positions. The man knew better.

Something happened or changed in his disposition toward slavery, and it puts him beyond the excuse of simply being a “man of his times.” Perhaps it’s as simple as the growth of his platform. As his popularity grew, so did his prestige and power. Some of his admirers—perhaps in a way to court favor, perhaps out of genuine admiration, perhaps out of a strategy to sway his position—actually gifted him slaves.

Whitefield also began to see the economic advantage in implementing slave labor at his burgeoning orphanage in the Georgia colony. This may be difficult to believe, but Georgia originally did not allow slavery. Whitefield actually advocated for it there. There’s even good evidence that he brought slaves there two years before slavery was legalized! Therfore, Whitefield was not merely a slave-holder or a slavery-advocate—he was instrumental in the institution of slavery in the Georgia colony. He was complicit in this great evil.

How can someone who apparently knew the gospel so well not see his own duplicity? Or, perhaps seeing it, not care? We cannot rightly say this was a “blind spot” in the man’s life because of his contrary views previously. How might we wrestle with the tainted legacy of George Whitefield? Perhaps you’ll allow me a few reflections:

Rote Discipleship Is Spiritual Window-Dressing

By

James Scott Jr.

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September 10, 2022

Part of the Great Commission Jesus gave His church of going into all the world and making disciples, is the assignment to, “Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you …” (Mt. 28:20a).

We don’t have a very good track record of doing what Jesus told us to do. When we try, we often settle for limited, rote teaching, thinking if a new disciple can parrot back what they’re told, they’ve learned.

No.

They’ve just learned to parrot, not to understand.

Kind of like this story from Gen. Douglas MacArthur in the book, Reminiscences:

It was a bad moment for me, but I did not hesitate in replying, “No, sir.” You could have heard a pin drop. I braced myself and waited.

And then the slow words of the professor: “Neither do I, Mr. MacArthur. Section dismissed.”

An accumulation of knowledge without understanding is an empty accomplishment; but teaching someone to the degree they gain understanding and even wisdom, that is deeply life-changing!

For example. let’s take just two lines of scripture that help us understand why and how we human beings exist:

For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen. (Romans 11:36)

For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, “We are his offspring.” (Acts 17:28)

Our lives can be deeply changed and satisfied by plumbing the depths of what is taught in just those two sentences of scripture. But for that to happen, we can’t settle for the spiritual window-dressing of rote discipleship; rather, we must strive for understanding from the knowledge we gain from God’s Word, and the wise application of it.

At the earliest stages of discipleship, a little rote learning, such as learning the books of the Bible in order, can be beneficial, but certainly not sufficient. Are you settling for a rote-level discipleship? Are you growing in knowledge and understanding from the Word of God? If you’re a Bible teacher or discipler of other Christians, do you teach for understanding?

This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.

Generous Church: Ten Top Characteristics

By

Brian Dodd

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September 10, 2022

I recently had the privilege of speaking to over 150 church leaders about the role generosity plays in allowing local bases of ministry to impact, serve, and change their communities. During that time together, I discussed The Top 10 Characteristics of a Generous Church. I want to make that content available to you.

A problem currently exists in American churches that we as spiritual leaders need to address. As a whole, our congregations are not generous. Let’s look at some facts.

Christians are giving at a 2.5% per capita or tithe. During the Great Depression, they gave at a 3.3% rate. Today, 33-50% of church members, those who claim they have bought in at a deep level to your ministry, give nothing.

If we were able to have our people increase their giving from 2.5% to 10% of their annual income, an additional $165 billion would flow into the Kingdom. To show the global impact those resources could make, consider the following:

$25 billion would relieve global hunger, starvation, and deaths from preventable diseases in 5 years.
$12 billion would eliminate illiteracy in 5 years.
$15 billion would solve the world’s water and sanitation issues, specifically at places in the world where 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day.
$1 billion would fully fund the Great Commission.
$100 – $110 billion would still be left over for additional ministry expansion.

(These statistics were provided by www.generouschurch.com.)

The Following Are Questions Church Leaders Then Need to Be Asking Based Upon This Current Reality

Where can we get a roadmap to help us effectively communicate our need for financial resources to continue fulfilling our ministry vision?
How do we focus people and leadership on the responsiveness and the generous heart that honors God?
How do we help our leaders discern the importance of best practices and the role of faith in making decisions for the ministry of the church?

What a Generous Church Looks Like

1. Righteous Regret

The pastor and senior leadership must be broken about the condition of those around them and have a vision of what financial resources could do to bring aid to the hurting and suffering. This begins with senior pastors as the platform/pulpit drives ministry initiatives.

2. Ethos

Most churches have a vision statement that includes honoring God, reaching people for Christ, and serving others. However, if I visit a church three consecutive weekends, I know what your church actually celebrates. Church leaders, if I came to your church three weekends in a row, would I say that you celebrated generosity?

3. Defiant

A generous church is non-apologetic about asking for resources. They understand that ministry costs money, and the more money you have, the more impact you can make.

4. Poverty Centric

A generous church is focused on the under-resourced, hurting, orphaned, poor, and those in need rather than ministry maintenance. They care deeply about improving human life.

5. Crusade

A generous church is on a quest to serve those around them. Is it unacceptable that probably 10% of your city lives below the poverty line or children to go to bed cold and hungry or for families to lose their homes or…

6. Partnerships

A generous church works with other groups such as Samaritan’s Purse, World Vision, and Convoy of Hope who do things better than they do. By working with these groups, churches can multiply their impact. It is true that one can put a thousand to flight but two can put ten thousand. That’s the value of partnerships.

7. Call to Action

A generous church knows that how you ask people to give and serve makes a big difference in their level of engagement. These churches make requests of their people in a way that is clear, crisp, and compelling.

8. Clear Instruction

Generous churches communicate what the needs are in their sphere of influence and how resources utilized effectively can be a solution to these problems. In addition, they creatively weave generosity into each service, allowing people to participate.

9. Easy Accessibility

Generous churches create multiple points of entry for their donors. All churches should have automatic draft, online giving, and kiosks in their lobbies. Churches are one of the few places left where people still write checks, but that is diminishing greatly.

10. Corporate Commitment

Generous churches know that everyone (young, old, male, female, rich, or poor) can and does make a difference. Each is engaged, cultivated, and enlisted in a manner God has equipped them to behave.

I trust this list helps you create a culture of generosity that serves others and relieves human suffering. Pastors and church leaders, what additional strategies are you implementing to increase generosity in your churches?

Small Group Quotes That Motivate … In Less Than 280 Characters

· Too many small groups worry too much about doctrine and too little about building Christian community.

· When a small group leader loses passion for their group the small group loses their passion for group life.

· Great small groups celebrate success, suffer with one another, and expect God to do more than they can do themselves.

· Biblical discussions make disciples. Unresolveable doctrinal debates create a climate of confusion and dysfunction.

· Small group leader, the most important small group member is the one who is in your presence.

· When leading a small group the most important meeting may be the meeting after the meeting.

· Grace demands looking beyond someone’s failure and seeing them as you did before you became aware of their sin.

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How to Make Your Church Stickier

1. Make your church friendlier

1. Teach on hospitality.

2. Create a “gorilla greeter” team.

3. Adopt a “neighborhood.”

4. Give the greeting time a purpose or kill it.

Here are 9 ways to remove yourself as a growth barrier.

If you want to proactively remove yourself as a barrier to growth, make sure you:

1. Solicit feedback about your leadership — often.

2. Surround yourself with great leaders.

3. Systematically replace yourself.

4. Discover your natural strengths.

5. Delegate more than you do.

Material Wealth = God’s Blessing?

Who Was George Whitefield? Was He A Christian?

The Following Are Questions Church Leaders Then Need to Be Asking Based Upon This Current Reality

What a Generous Church Looks Like

1. Righteous Regret

2. Ethos

3. Defiant

4. Poverty Centric

5. Crusade

6. Partnerships

7. Call to Action

8. Clear Instruction

9. Easy Accessibility

10. Corporate Commitment

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· Great small groups celebrate success, suffer with one another, and expect
God to do more than they can do themselves.