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I’m Sorry for How the Church Has Sidelined Women

By
Marc Alan Schelske
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

I’ve been a church kid since the day I was born, deeply steeped in the culture of this community of people who follow Jesus. My belt is well-notched with church services, church camps, retreats, altar calls, Bible studies, church volunteer roles and years of Christian education.

As I reflect on all those years and all the associated people who have shaped my life, I’m surprised at one thing. My life, as a Christian, has been shaped more than anything else by women.

Yes. In spite of everything.

It’s a surprise, I think, because of how often the language, policy and even doctrine of the church downplay the contribution of women. Those outside the church think of Christianity as a tribe that marginalizes women. They’re not wrong. While there are local congregations, even denominations, where women are invited to use their gifts and even participate at all levels of leadership, the sad truth is that in many, many churches, the opposite is true.

Many churches teach that women occupy their God-given role when they raise children, tend the home, and quietly submit to the wisdom of their husbands (and, of course, their male pastors). Even today.

There are arguments some Christians will make against women in leadership. They’ll quote the Apostle Paul’s words, “I forbid a woman to teach a man,” as if that statement has no precipitating context and is the end of the conversation.

Careful and thoughtful study of the Bible finds women in the strangest corners. Women were judges, military leaders and prophets. They were ministry partners for the Apostle Paul and leaders of home churches. This blog isn’t the place for deep dives into theology, first-century culture and hermeneutics. That’s been done well in other places. So, here I will just make this observation.

For every man in a pulpit who has impacted me, there were 10 women who taught, encouraged, corrected or comforted me. I’ve had no lack of male leaders in my church experience, but it’s been women leaders who have been the most willing to challenge me, call me to be a better version of myself, and who offered me the most care and support when I was in hard or painful places. Some of these women were in positions of leadership. Some were teachers, professors, even pastors. But most of them were women without a title, women who just did what they did, caring for their community, encouraging kids that needed it, serving with their gifts regardless of what their system said they could do.

And still, there are Christians still fighting over this. Well, not everyone is fighting it. Unable to be their full selves, some women have left. More and more families are refusing to raise their kids in an environment that treats women as second class citizens. I understand why and feel the same way.

I am profoundly sorry for the way the church—and men in the church—have limited the participation, ownership and growth of women. This is not what I see in the life of Jesus, who went out of his way to speak with women, who taught them the same way he taught men—even though that was against the common Rabbinical practice of the time.

How might things be different?

When women can’t bring their full selves into the church community, there are serious consequences, both for them and for the church.

I imagine that the crisis around child abuse in the church would not have dragged on like it has if more women were in leadership. I wonder if, in fact, it would ever have become a crisis to begin with.

3 Things Christians Can Learn From West Africa’s Historic Mud Mosques

By
William Haun
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Winding through narrow passages between cinder-block homes, I finally emerged into a clearing. There, standing before me, were the white-washed walls of Ghana’s ancient Larabanga Mosque. It shined brilliantly in the sun, and its two minarets towered up toward the blue sky. I had never seen a structure quite like it.

The Larabanga Mosque in Ghana

The Larabanga Mosque is believed to be the oldest mosque in Ghana and is built in the traditional Sudano-Sahelian architectural style. All photos by William Haun.

In my mind’s eye, I traveled back in time over five hundred years and imagined how much more impressive this mosque must have been when the only other buildings in the vast grasslands would have been simple mud huts with thatched roofs. Back then, village dwellings lasted at most a decade before they collapsed and were rebuilt. But when a new religion from a faraway land made its mark, its followers erected this massive building that has stood for centuries.

Sudano-Sahelian mosques were constructed using simply mud and timber.

Imam Sheik Al Hadji Saban (left) and his assistant Al Hadji Nachio (right) in the Woriyanga Historic Mosque in northeastern Ghana. Sudano-Sahelian mosques were constructed using simply mud and timber. Massive columns on the interior and large external buttresses keep the roof and walls from collapsing under their own weight.

When Islam Came to West Africa

Over 1,200 years ago, the ancient West African empire of Ghana received the first Muslim visitors. Over the centuries, Islam slowly spread along trade routes that went south to the coast all the way to the region now known as Senegal and Mali.

As Muslim traders from the north carried loads of salt, gold and kola nuts back and forth, they sowed the seeds of their religion along the way. For that reason, five of the six remaining historic mud mosques in modern-day Ghana are found along one of those north-south trade routes of a bygone era.

After seeing Larabanga’s famed mosque, I decided to tour Ghana’s three northern regions and see the others. These six buildings testify to the arrival of Islam in West Africa, the region where my family lives and serves. Islam changed this part of the world forever, and the way the Muslim faith took root in African soil has lessons for Christians who pray that churches will be planted here. Visiting these mosques reminded me of three things—the way trade opens doors for evangelism, the danger of syncretism, and the value African communities ascribe to places of worship.

The historic mosque in the village of Nakore just southwest of Wa in Ghana's Upper West Region.

The historic mosque in the village of Nakore just southwest of Wa in Ghana’s Upper West Region. The mud-brick structure is one of six remaining Sudano-Sahelian style mosques in Ghana that are still in use.

How Trade Opens Doors for Evangelism

First, it is important to note that Islam arrived via traders, not missionaries or militaries. Muslim traders interacted with local communities, eventually settled among them, and shared their faith. Long before the current emphasis on “business as mission,” and centuries before the lay-led Moravian missionary movement, the Muslim faith was spreading rapidly into new regions of West Africa because of business people, not clergy.

An elderly Wala man inside the ancient Nakore Mosque near Wa, Ghana.

An elderly Wala man inside the ancient Nakore Mosque near Wa, Ghana.

There Is a Fine Line Between Contextualization and Syncretism

Sudano-Sahelian mosques testify to the power of contextualization, but they are also a cautionary tale of syncretism. These mosques met strict Islamic regulations for worship and prayer while being built with the materials and construction methods of the local people—that combination makes them a textbook case of contextualization. The architects took the mundane mud hut and elevated it to a monument for the ages. They made the familiar fantastic.

Mossi women gather for Friday prayers at Wuriyanga Mosque in northern Ghana.

Mossi women gather for Friday prayers at Wuriyanga Mosque in northern Ghana.

However, the impressive mosques quickly inspired myths and stories of magic. It is said that before military coups in Ghana, soldiers visited the Larabanga mosque for special blessings before attempting to overthrow the government. They believed that a visit to the site could impart spiritual powers.

Early on, the mosques attracted African diviners and priests who adopted Islamic ideas and practices and mixed them with traditional beliefs and customs. These leaders became a new class of syncretic spiritualists known as marabouts or mallams. Larabanga is known for its many Islamic spiritual healers who claim to have mystical knowledge. They create magical amulets with combinations of qur’anic verses and traditional ingredients to protect and empower their wearers. These syncretistic practices are rejected by orthodox Muslims and are the reason Islam in West Africa is often referred to as “folk Islam.”

A wooden tablet used to practice writing and memorizing Qur’anic verses stands outside a mosque.

A wooden tablet used to practice writing and memorizing qur’anic verses stands outside a mosque. Water used to wash the ink of these tablets is believed to have mystical powers for healing and good luck.

All this reminds me of the care we must take as cross-cultural missionaries not to add nor take away from the Word of God—an explicit command we receive in the Scriptures (Deut. 4:2; 12:32; Rev. 22:18–19). Syncretistic practices usually don’t emerge overnight but creep in over time and become justified as “tradition” even though they are contrary to Scripture.

Valuing Places of Worship

Finally, I was reminded of how important a designated gathering place is to the culture of West African believers. While holding fast to an understanding of the church as the body of Christ—a gathering of baptized believers, and not a building in which they gather—we can recognize that in some cultures places of worship are valued.

Often I’ve been guilty of criticizing my West African brothers and sisters’ desire for a church building. But they’ve taught me that there can be value in a local church body pooling their resources, time and energy to build a place where they can worship and fellowship together. A building can legitimize a church’s presence in a community as it facilitates corporate worship, ministry and outreach.

Kolinvaai Baptist Church in northern Ghana

Kolinvaai Baptist Church in northern Ghana where IMB missionaries William and Heidi Haun have been members for the past four years. The church is very proud of their building which they are now outgrowing. They have recently begun construction on a larger structure.

Reflecting the Beauty of Christ

Just a few decades ago, Ghana had nine historic mosques but some have since crumbled into ruin. Only six are left. Their historical legacy is fading away as the traditional West African structures are being replaced by larger mosques that are cookie-cutter copies of architectural styles imported from abroad. The new designs have mostly lost the beautiful art and engineering that made them unique and suited to this particular cultural context.

Join me in prayer for the church in West Africa. May local congregations continue to reflect the unique beauty of the body of Christ.

  • Pray for African Christian lay people to passionately take up the task of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with their families, neighbors and colleagues. May they be a powerful witness to their communities (Rom. 10:17).
  • Pray that African church leaders will teach sound doctrine and be bold in refuting syncretistic and false gospels (Titus 1:9).
  • Pray for African churches as they gather together in their places of meeting. May they be encouraging to one another and glorify God in their worship (1 Cor. 14:40).

An ancient mosque falls into ruin in Wechiau, Ghana.

An ancient mosque falls into ruin in Wechiau, Ghana. It has been replaced by a new mosque pictured on the right.

This article originally appeared here.

6 Reasons You Should Preach Through Amos

By
Nathan Loudin
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

In this series, certain books will grab a preacher’s attention without much convincing. And then there are books like Amos that often go unnoticed and unpreached. Has anyone had a church member recently ask, “Hey, when are you going to finally preach a series through Amos?” Anyone…anyone?

At just nine chapters, Amos is deceivingly short, but his message includes a vast array of subjects and many difficult passages. Some might make members wince when they’re read aloud (like when he talks about babies being ripped out of pregnant mothers in 1:13).

But we should preach this book. We should sit in it with our congregations. We should understand its place in God’s revelation. Here are six reasons you should preach through Amos.

1. Preach Amos to preach justice.

The announcement of judgment on the nations surrounding Israel and Judah contains God’s displeasure with injustice in the world. This offers a chance to show God’s anger toward societies that don’t care for the helpless and take advantage of his people. To those who often wonder, “where is God in all the pain and suffering in the world?” Amos makes it clear: God sees, and he will judge!

Nowadays, justice is a hot topic. Some preachers tend to preach about it from suspect texts, which causes people to be suspicious. However, if you address the topic as part of your exegesis of Amos, then you’ll give your church a chance to put justice in its place biblically.

2. Preach Amos to preach repentance and forgiveness.

Time is almost up for Israel, and so Amos calls them to repentance, exhorting the peoples of the world to seek God’s forgiveness before it’s too late. Just when you think Amos is preaching only to people out there, he focuses in on his own people—Judah and Israel. Israel in particular has severely sinned against God. This is why he calls them “cows of Bashan.” Though it’s lost on us, this is a serious insult! Judgment is coming unless they seek the Lord and his forgiveness.

3. Preach Amos to clarify what biblical worship requires.

Does anyone still think that worship is just singing songs? Sure they do. Hypocrisy is as ripe in churches today as in any other generation. Thankfully, Amos gets to the heart of worship when God says he hates their songs and music because behind the words on their lips are lives marked with sin.

4. Preach Amos to warn comfortable sinners.

Amos preaches to the people of Israel as they enjoy relative comfort. Assyria’s pressure has been relieved for the moment. And so all is well, right? Not so fast. Amos declares the coming judgment of God to an otherwise comfortable and wealthy people. Why? Because Israel has grown too comfortable in their wealth and their sin. Amos seeks to arouse them to repentance. This is the major theme from beginning to end of the book.

5. Preach Amos to unpack the Davidic covenant.

Though you probably won’t have to wait until Amos 9 to mention it, the final chapter of this book offers an opportunity to preach clearly on the Davidic Covenant, a prominent topic throughout the Scriptures. The Davidic covenant is in the angel’s word to Mary. It’s central to Peter’s sermon at Pentecost. In fact, Jesus himself took several opportunities to claim David’s promise, including his words on the cross (Psalm 22).

You can’t preach Amos without preaching Jesus’ coming kingdom. You could sit in Amos 9 for a few weeks if you wanted, connecting its prophetic hopes to Christ and the church.

6. Preach Amos as an introduction to other prophets.

Preaching the prophets seems like a daunting task. While Amos does include visions and prophecies that require careful interpretation, the book doesn’t contain the tangled web of apocalyptic literature found in other prophets like Daniel and Ezekiel.

In fact, once you understand the historical setting, the original audience, and Amos’ reason for writing, you’ll find his message to be relatively straightforward. All of this makes Amos a great on-ramp to prophetic canon. By familiarizing yourself with certain historical settings and prophetic themes, you’ll build up confidence to preach other, more difficult books. After preaching through Amos, I suspect you’ll even be hungry to preach through more of the prophets!

RESOURCES

I’m going to assume you already have the go-to commentaries in series like the New International Commentary OT/NT, Word Biblical Commentary, John Calvin and the commentaries that come with Logos. Here are a couple of additions that I’d recommend along with the typical commentary series.

Kingdom Through Covenant, by Peter Gentry and Stephen Wellum

This book only references one verse of Amos and it’s very technical at times. But this volume will help you learn the prophets’ role in the history of redemption. Their chapter on the Davidic Covenant (a major prophetic theme) will help with the last chapter of Amos tremendously. This is an excellent, albeit challenging, aid for biblical theology in the prophets.

God’s Glory in Salvation Through Judgment, by Jim Hamilton

An incredible biblical theology with a helpfully narrow scope. Chapter 3 covers God’s judgment in the prophets, and at least briefly covers all the prophets individually. The imminence of God’s judgment is a central matter in the book of Amos, and Hamilton puts it in its proper biblical-theological context.

The Prophets as Preachers, by Gary V. Smith

Smith devotes a chapter to each prophet in chronological order as he helps the reader understand the collective prophetic message. His short address on Amos is a great summary, and helpful to get a quick grip on the purpose of the book.

This article originally appeared here.

5 Low Cost, Effective Ways to a Secure Network

By
Steven Sundermeier
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

The highly requested and briefly treasured gifts that were unwrapped on December 25 are already collecting dust on the shelves. Your family (like mine) possibly missed the important lesson of contentment. Contentment is defined as a state of happiness and satisfaction. It might also be defined as a secure network.

Do you have “happiness and satisfaction” with the gifts you received? Do your children? It seems a naturally learned tendency for kids to observe the sizes, quantity, and perceived value of the presents they have received, but then to also compete and compare with the presents given or talked about by siblings, friends, and classmates. The truth is, sometimes-basic things fulfill all of our needs, and the bells and whistles just clutter the experience. For a true life of satisfaction, preaching contentment to our little-loved ones is essential. And it’s not just about our children: this is true for us, too.

Contentment, of course, goes way beyond gifts at Christmas. With the fallen world constantly bombarding us with false subliminal and not-so-subliminal messages on what “success” looks like or how our bodies should be shaped, I believe I speak for the majority of us when I say that I need to constantly pray for contentment. 1 Timothy 6:6 reads: “But godliness with contentment is great gain.” And yet, I’ve seen first hand how struggles with contentment can also seep into our IT Ministries at churches.

Churches across the U.S. come in all sizes (thank God!), and so it makes sense that IT budgets would therefore also vary in size. If you are an IT Director of a smaller church, at times, one can quickly get disheartened at seeing the technical advancements: lighting, sound, and IT infrastructure on glaring display at a “big” church.

While maximizing your network security should be a critical priority, it doesn’t have to be an expensive endeavor. In my 20+ years of experience, I’ve seen many organizations overpay for the latest, trending hardware, appliances, and software that they don’t need or that they purchase and then leverage less than 10 percent of the included fancy modules and features they paid for.

Here are a couple inexpensive, critical ways to protect your church and its staff securely without having to take up a special ‘love offering’ to meet your IT needs.

  1. Install strong client-based anti-virus and firewall software. Thirtyseven4 Endpoint Security incorporates both + much more and is priced fair and honestly.
  2. Manage regular backups. With hundreds of Cloud-based backup solutions competing for your business, backing your data to the Cloud is easy and inexpensive.
  3. Keep all OS and software applications up-to-date. Software updates are free and essential to keeping your devices from threats.
  4. Invest in your staff. Security is as much knowing where the issue may come from as it is fixing any potential holes. Educate your staff on (simple) safety tips, and the real dangers of not being vigilant (and clicking on things we should not).

It is easy to look at what we don’t have as opposed to what we do. As I peruse our living room and basement and see forgotten items that were “must have”, expensive Christmas gifts just a few weeks ago, I see the parallel into our Technology whims. Seek contentment. Whether you manage a large or small network environment, there are inexpensive and logical ways to adequately secure your network.

Wishing you a happy and satisfied 2019!

Teen Finishes the Bible One Day Before Her Death, Inspires Others

By
Jessica Lea
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

A Kansas teen who challenged herself to read the Bible in a year met her goal the day before she died in a car crash on August 10, 2018. In an interview with Fox 4 Kansas City News, Hannah Foy’s mom, Jennifer,, said:

She turned to me and she said, “Guess what, mom?” …She had this excitement in her eye, and I said, “What?” and she said, “Mom, I finished the Bible.” That was really exciting because she’d finished a week early, and in that moment I was just so proud of her, and then I told her when she got back we would celebrate.

Hannah was only 14 years old when she and two other teens died in a car accident while on a trip with the youth group from Faith Chapel Assembly of God in Overland Park, Kansas. A couple hours into the trip, the back left tire of the van blew out. The vehicle then went off the right side of the road, flipped and crashed into a tree. Thirteen people, two of whom were adults, were in the van when it crashed. Besides the three teens who died, 10 other people involved in the accident sustained minor to serious injuries.

“Best Year Ever”

Earlier that summer, Hannah had told her mom that the past year had been “the best year ever.” Jennifer believes the reason Hannah had had such a good year was partly because she had been faithfully reading the Bible, a book that changes people’s lives. Jon Clayton, the father of Hannah’s best friend, Chloe, said that Hannah was “a girl of radiance.” She was dedicated to following God and always “had a smile on her face.”

When Jennifer heard the news that Hannah had died and realized her daughter was gone forever, she cried out to God: “How could it be? How could it be that I saw her the day before and now she wasn’t there? And now I’ll never get to see her again.”

Jennifer says that God responded by calling her to encourage others to read the Bible like Hannah did. She obeyed, and at Hannah’s memorial, challenged people to follow her daughter’s example.

Quite a few have taken up the challenge, posting on social media with the hashtag #HannahsBestYearEverChallenge and messaging Foy to let her know they are following in Hannah’s footsteps.

Foy says, “It gives me a lot of joy to know that through Hannah’s death something good is coming from it, and I think that she would love nothing more than to know that so many people are in God’s word every day.”

Pastor’s Congregation Loses Faith in Him Over Divisive Sign

By
Stephanie Martin
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church sign sayings
Screengrab Youtube @ FreedomProject Media

A California pastor who used his church signboard to “rebuke sin” is out of work. Earlier this month, Justin Hoke, pastor of Trinity Bible Presbyterian Church (TBPC) in Weed, California, posted: “Bruce Jenner is still a man. Homosexuality is still sin. The culture may change. The Bible does not.”

The message, which references the transgender individual now known as Caitlyn Jenner, sparked protests by LGBTQ supporters and divided Hoke’s congregation. In a January 12 Facebook post, the pastor announced he’d decided it was best to “part ways”—for the sake of the church and his family. Although Hoke “did not want to leave,” he was told he’d lost the support of the bulk of his congregation. All but one couple reportedly said they’d leave TBPC if Hoke remained.

The Reason Behind the Controversial Message

The sign’s “ultimate purpose,” Hoke says, “was to say that while the culture may change, the Bible does not. The culture is now demanding that we call ‘good’ what the Bible calls evil.”

For seven years, Hoke has used the signboard “to provoke reflection or make a strong point about a single truth,” he says. Yet few people have cared about messages that didn’t “rebuke sin or call anyone to repentance.”

About the Jenner message, Hoke says, “The church has lost its saltiness, and I fully expect to get as much or more [flak] from the visible church as I am getting from the world.” He adds, “The response we’re receiving from this sign proves that it was posted way too late. If a conservative mountain farming community is no longer a safe place to call sin, sin, then is anywhere in this country still safe for real Christians?”

On Facebook, the pastor writes that he’s received offers of financial assistance but doesn’t want to “capitalize” on his moment in the spotlight. “The Lord has taken care of my needs,” Hoke says. “Please pray that God would open more doors for me to preach the gospel.”

Protesters Call the Message Hateful

For two Sundays, protesters held signs outside TBPC, encouraging love and acceptance of all people. Organizer Amelia Mallory says, “We’ve really had to refine our message to be one strictly of love and support for anyone who feels like they are the target of the sign. Debating religion is unproductive, for one, and we also don’t want anyone to feel like we are against Christianity as a whole. People are welcome to their own beliefs but can’t be surprised if people take action against such a public display.”

Several protesters said the sign’s message could negatively impact young people. “Kids have a hard enough time growing up,” says teacher David Villarreal. “They don’t need to see a sign…putting them down.”

Charolette Kalayjian, another protest organizer, says the church sign doesn’t reflect the community’s values. “We’re all born with the right to be who we are without hate, judgment or ridicule,” she says. “Loving your neighbor means your gay, straight, Christian or atheist neighbor.”

After the sign was damaged—either by vandals or a windstorm—protesters raised money to get it fixed.

The Biggest Key to Having Sundays Run Consistently Smooth

By
Brandon Horst
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Do you ever have Sundays where it seems that one crisis after another pops up?

Where you wonder what’s gonna happen next?

Where you’re constantly scrambling and don’t have time to really connect with kids, parents or volunteers?

I’ve had those Sundays at the church where I serve, and it wasn’t until the past year that I realized it didn’t have to be that way.

And the biggest change that helped me escape that cycle was very simple.

Before I share the change, I want to say that while it’s a simple concept to share, implementing it is much more difficult.

We’re about a year into it, and we still aren’t completely there.

OK, now here’s the change that made the biggest difference: For each service, we found (are still finding) someone whose only job is to manage volunteers and handle crises.

I still remember the Sunday where I was scheduled as the Large Group leader, and before the service began one person after another came to me asking where is [blank], and if I could troubleshoot [blank], and could I fix [blank], and if I could direct [blank] volunteer.

After putting out all those little fires, I ran into the Large Group room 10 minutes late and hurriedly called the kids to sit down.

Then during the Small Group time, I was running around in a frenzy again.

The whole service was thrown off.

By the end of the day my head was spinning, and I knew something had to change.

I’d missed opportunities to have conversations with parents and kids, I didn’t slow down to ask how any of our volunteers were doing, and I rushed through our Large Group.

Maybe you’ve had some Sundays like that, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here’s the Crisis Management and Volunteer Coordinator job description:

  • Lead a short huddle with volunteers letting them know our every week goals and Small Group service projects, and collecting prayer requests.
  • Collect prayer requests of all volunteers who weren’t part of the huddle.
  • Check in on Small Groups throughout the Small Group time to see if anything is needed.
  • Give Small Group leaders a five-minute warning before parent arrival for pickup.
  • Troubleshoot any issues that come up with technology or any other crises.

The role requires taking on a good amount of responsibility, which is why it will take time to find someone and train them to be able to handle it.

But as you find people to fill the role of Volunteer Coordinator and Crisis Manager, you’ll begin to notice that you aren’t running around like a chicken with its head cut off anymore.

You can be in the moment with parents at drop-off and pickup.

You can lead the Large Group or Service without feeling rushed or wondering what crisis is coming next.

You can be present with kids during the Small Group time.

Your volunteers will feel cared for and valued because there’s someone pouring into them and available to help with anything they need.

At first, this might be a role you have to take on yourself.

But my guess is there’s someone in your church or ministry who has a heart to care for other volunteers and would find joy in putting out fires; you just have to find them.

If you’ve lost some of your joy or feel stretched too thin, this is a great way to protect yourself from burnout because you can only run 100 mph for so long before you can’t.

I hope this post was helpful to you!

This article originally appeared here.

It’s Not Always You: Why People Leave Your Church and How to Keep Them

By
Church Fuel
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

There are people who think they want to leave your church.

In fact, according to one study, 15 percent of church members have thought about leaving their church in the past six months.

These losses might not sound huge on the surface.

But take a moment to consider what would happen if you lost 15 percent of your members.

Would you need to stop a ministry?

Would you need to reduce your church’s budget?

Would you need to cut staff or decrease salaries?

Losing 15 percent of your members is a big deal.

The reasons people will leave your church range from good, bad and ugly.

There are times you’ll lose people due to life or church transitions.

There are others times when people will leave your church over a difference of opinion.

But there are times when you’ll lose people because your church didn’t do well at keeping people connected—and these losses hurt because you know you could have done something different.

To help make your church “sticky,” I’d love to share with you the best practices in keeping people connected to your church.

In this post, I’m going to cover:

Five unsurprising reasons why you’ll lose people

  • The two most common reasons why people will leave your church
  • Four pillars of building Christian community
  • Four key next steps you must provide visitors

Get out your pen and paper, and let’s get to work!

5 unsurprising reasons why you’ll lose people and they’ll leave your church.

You will experience change in your church.

Over the years, you can expect your church to go through seasons of growth, times of decline or stagnation, and transitions.

Before digging into why people choose to leave a church, it’s essential to know that some people will leave your church over the years for unsurprising reasons.

Said another way, when life in your church or the life of your church members goes through a change, expect to lose people.

Here are five unsurprising reasons why you’ll lose people:

  1. Life changes
  2. Church relocation
  3. Pastoral transitions
  4. End of church programs
  5. Change in beliefs

Let’s take a look at these reasons.

#1 – Life changes

At some point, the members of your church will experience significant change.

When your church members undergo transition, oftentimes, these life changes will lead them to find a new church home and leave your church.

Here are a few examples of significant changes to anticipate:

  • Relocation
  • Divorce
  • Marriage or remarriage

When a member of your church moves to a different community, they’ll leave your church.

Celebrate members who make these life-altering decisions, and help them to find a church home in their new community.

When a married couple divorces, expect at least one partner to find a new church home.

Regardless of what transpires during this difficult season, strive to provide ongoing support and counsel to help them gracefully walk through this transition.

What’s more, when someone gets married or remarried, there’s a chance he or she will leave your church to join the church of his or her partner.

#2 – Church relocation

If your church moves into a new building, you will likely lose some people.

According to research, when you move your church into a new building, you will lose people just because you’re in a new location.

Did you move to the other side of town?

If so, the distance may be too great for some people to travel. When this happens, they’ll be forced to find a new home church closer to where they live.

#3 – Pastoral transitions

At some point during the life of your church, you’ll go through a pastoral transition.

Pastoral transitions are common, and according to one survey, the average tenure for a full-time pastor is six years.

When your church experiences a pastoral transition, you will lose people in the process.

Whether it’s because of the difference in preaching or the loss of a friend in the change, some people in your church will leave when a member of your senior leadership moves on.

#4 – End of church programs

If you stop a ministry, there’s a small chance you’ll lose people.

This isn’t the case for every program in your church.

However, it’s likely people in your church have grown fond of programs and ministries you’ve run for years. So, when there’s a decision to end a long-lasting program, you’ll likely run into tension with members or see some of them leave.

#5 – Change in beliefs

Many churches don’t make big changes to their beliefs.

But if your church goes through a significant shift in your doctrine, then expect to lose people.

According to one survey conducted by LifeWay Research, 85 percent of respondents said they would leave a church if there were a fundamental shift in their beliefs.

Feel free to tweak your style of worship, and perhaps redecorate your worship space. But know that if your church messes with the tenants of your faith, you should expect to lose most of your church in the process.

These are some unsurprising reasons why people in your church will leave.

Now let’s turn our attention to common reasons why you’ll lose people.

5 Times NOT to Love Your Students

By
Tim Gough
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Let’s start with the elephant in the room. Of course, you should love your students —and all young people—unconditionally as Jesus taught us; however, that is assuming we all mean the same thing by the word ‘love.’

Love is unconditional, but that doesn’t make it inexcusable. Love is tolerant, but that doesn’t make it unaccountable. Love is forgiving, but that doesn’t make it negligent.

There are times when how we express love for young people could actually create an unloving environment for others. At worst, misapplying love to your students can create a dangerous, imbalanced and even hostile environment where the community of God just cannot be grown.

Love is love, but sometimes we need to dial back what that means exactly in a practical way for our projects. For instance…

 

  1. When it poses a safeguarding risk

Unconditional love still needs safe boundaries. Love doesn’t mean we can keep secrets, ignore risks or waive boundaries.

Loving a young person doesn’t mean that they can come on camp without a parent’s consent for instance. Loving a young person doesn’t mean you won’t tell anybody what they disclosed. Loving a young person doesn’t mean you won’t keep them in line with the rules.

 

  1. When it creates a dangerous environment

When you love your students in some instances could mean tolerating their behavior without posing discipline or boundaries—for fear that it may come across as ‘unloving.’ But what if this young person is prone to aggression and violence? What if they create a safety risk for your team, yourself or other young people?

As God disciplines those He loves (Heb. 12:6), we need to provide consistent consequences, correction and challenge to those who become violent or aggressive.

 

  1. When it is enabling

Sometimes it’s easy to love your students by just agreeing with or accepting everything they say without challenge. However, many young people that I have worked with have had a problem with self-esteem and so regularly make up stories and fabricate adventures to make themselves look more impressive. Not challenging this enables these habits and actually unhelpfully allows them to keep building shallow value in their lives.

Enabling is not love, but sometimes it’s just easier! But if we keep granting the premises and rules they set, then the following becomes an issue.

 

  1. When it becomes dependent

It’s easy for your students to get too overly attached to a leader. Loving a young person is creating boundaries where they can exercise their independence and grow in wisdom without needing you.

Counselors all plan an exit strategy where the client does not become overly dependent on them. This often includes protecting family time, turning off your phone and not giving out your home address. The popular ‘incarnational’ model of youth work has a lot to answer for here.

 

  1. When you’re trying to be God

One of the top reasons good youth workers burn out is that they’re trying to be God. It’s great to exercise Christ-likeness in our ministries—but we are not God and cannot do the work of the Holy Spirit.

Having an unconditional openness, sacrificial approach, and constant care and attention approach to every single young person who crosses our paths without healthy boundaries is trying to be God. We’re not—and it’s God the young people actually need, not us.

This article originally appeared here.

9 Common Sense Practices That Are Challenged When the Pressure Is On

By
Dan Reiland
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

It’s speed and pressure that can cause you to lose sight of some of the basics that are vital to the sustainability of your leadership. It might be in the church, in your home or maybe in a business venture.

As leaders, we usually talk about things like vision, strategy, staffing, etc., and they are incredibly important. But you and I can blow it, even with the best vision and strategy, if we mess up on the “simple” stuff—the things that are considered common sense.

It’s not hard to do.

You’re on the run, maybe take a few things for granted, tension hits the fan, and you compromise some of the basics that cause people to like you, and more importantly, trust you.

The smart question isn’t, “Do I know the stuff on this list?” The smart question is, “How much of it do I practice consistently—like breathing?” In other words, you don’t need to remind yourself; they just come naturally to you.

Now let me push just a little. How well do you stay consistent with these nine when you’re under pressure? That’s when it counts.

There are moments when relaxing in your favorite old T-shirt, jeans and wearing your new Happy Socks™ while watching TV is precisely what you should be doing. But let’s be honest, there is no real pressure there.

So, how about the next day when you are back in the game? Are you ready for it?

Here’s a quick list of nine practices that are common sense; read the brief content for each one to see if you are consistent in your practice.

(If you have a minute, add a #10 in the comment section below.)

9 Common Sense Practices:

1) Lead with sincerity.

Very few leaders drift from sincerity to hypocrisy overnight, it happens from a slow drift of compromise. Perhaps you back off of a tough scripture in a sermon just a little, or hire someone for slightly political reasons, or post your attendance with a creative flare (hey, there are lots of ways to count right?). There is no malice or sin, but a slow slide toward compromising what you really believe is the right thing.

To lead with sincerity is to lead from your values, focused on truth, always authentic and true to your heart. Sincerity doesn’t make your leadership perfect, but it’s trustworthy, and people can get behind that.

2) Possess a positive attitude.

Every time I read another negative headline, I’m more convinced than ever that a positive attitude is essential for successful leadership. Doom and gloom may garner website clicks all day, but hope and faith win the future.

What is a Prophetic Word and How Should It Be Shared?

By
Kevin Francis O’Connor
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

A prophetic word, also known as a “word of knowledge,” is a prophecy given by a worshiper for the congregation. Biblical prophecy is a message that reflects communication from God to humans. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 14:1 to “pursue love and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.” These words come in the form of exhortation, correction and other revelations that equip and edify the body of Christ.

How can we be assured when someone speaks into our lives? We who are pastors, teachers and Bible study leaders must be confident in knowing God’s voice. God most often speaks through Scripture. That is why it is imperative that we are familiar with it. But he also speaks through creation, visions and dreams; open or closed doors of opportunities; other people; and, once, even Balaam’s donkey and a burning bush.

Not everyone believes in modern-day prophecy, but in my years of ministry, I’ve had experiences that lead me to believe differently. Let me share my perspective.

Joel, the prophet, describes a future where prophecy is a regular part of life and “old men will dream dreams.” I’m not an old man, but in my own life I once had a horrible dream about a friend whose life was in danger. In my dream, my friend was in his basement, very distraught, with a gun in his lap. He picked up the gun and put it in his mouth to shoot himself. All day long I had an overriding feeling that I needed to take action. I asked God to give me the same dream again that night if he wanted me to contact that person. The dream came back, and the details still haunt me. Immediately, I sat up in bed, raced to the phone, and called my friend. He was stunned. Since learning of his wife’s extramarital affair two days before, he had been pleading for God to reveal himself while sitting in his basement with a gun in his lap. The power of God-given dreams saved a life that day. It wasn’t the first, nor would it be the last, time that God used dreams to talk to me.

In the bleakest days of my adult life, through divorce and singleness, he used another dream to guide me. No supernatural knowledge validates divorce and the destruction it brings to a marriage and a family. It does, though, reveal an all-knowing God who gives hope even in the darkest settings. In my dream, I received details about a brunette that loved God and ministry. The most remarkable part is that God prophesied to her a year before I would meet her. She was dealing with the most painful trial of her life—her husband was dying of cancer. When God spoke to her heart, he said, “If I had a broken pastor who had lost his wife and his church, could you come alongside and encourage him?” When she shared this experience with her husband, he laughed and reminded her how much she enjoyed sitting in the front row at church. I’ve been married to that brunette for over 12 years now.

Using a prophetic word comes with a caution. Some dangerous people pretend to speak on behalf of God. They use a prophetic word only to seek personal gain. Too many times charlatans have used a prophetic word as an act of God to control others. If what’s shared is not based on Scripture, it could be a form of manipulation. A person who has an agenda with a prophetic voice is unsafe. When God gives a prophetic word, he trusts us as his holy messengers to intervene in people’s lives. We should only see ourselves as servants, not superiors.

I once encountered a “prophetic word” from someone at our church during a confrontational moment. We were about to ordain a man who, in his early years, had a moral failure. He had repented and was being used mightily by God. The morning we were going to ordain him, a board member’s smiling spouse announced that God had told her “now is not the time” and was sure we would know what to do with the information. Her smile faded when I told her I knew exactly what God was trying to tell us. I told her God was affirming what we were doing that morning and that ”now is not the time” to question this man’s anointing. This happened over 10 years ago, and this man has been traveling all over the world with a passion from God and for God. The woman left the church. Her heart could not justify a man with a failure being used by God.

God will work with any person as a vessel, even when it is difficult to believe because of past failures. Learn to seek his wisdom, his heart and knowledge of his Word. Does God give insight into people’s lives as a prophetic word? I think the answer is yes!

This article was adapted from All Knowing: The Omniscient God by Kevin Francis O’Connor

How Hospitality Creates Multiplication

By
André Schalitt
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

“Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined  (Titus 1: 8 NIV). In this letter to Titus, the apostle Paul talks about necessary qualities of Christian leadership. Hospitality, according to the apostle, is a critical quality. This means that the practice of hospitality is not a secondary factor, but an inherent part of the leader God uses. Therefore, it is necessary to understand three facts:

First, Christian leadership is first and foremost servant leadership. Larry Kreider, founder of Dove Fellowship, said it well, “Leaders who are secure in the love of their heavenly Father are free to serve, expecting nothing in return. They do not need their egos caressed to function as leaders. They have a healthy confidence in themselves and do not seek approval or acceptance from others. They are happy to serve because they know they are deeply loved by God.”

The practice of hospitality makes us better servants. It challenges us to overcome pride and hardness of heart, and helps us to be like Jesus and to serve his church.

Second, hospitality is taught emphatically in Scripture: When Paul directed the Romans to “practice hospitality” (Romans 12:13), his desire was to help Christians cooperate with one another in love. The apostle John taught that hospitality is the duty of those who serve Christ, being “cooperators for the truth” (John 1: 8). The Apostle Peter, however, was very strict in his writing: “Be hospitable to each other without complaint” (1 Pet. 4: 9). The author of Hebrews tells us, “Do not forget the hospitality; (Hebrews 13: 2), letting it be understood that some of those we welcome produce blessings for us. Further on the author directed: “Do not forget to do good and to share with others what you have, for God is pleased with such sacrifices” (Hebrews 13:16), making it clear that the practice of hospitality pleases the Lord. And Jesus Christ himself left a promise to those who practice hospitality: “For I was hungry, and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in… I say to you, that you have done it to me one of these my brethren” (Matthew 25: 35-40).

And finally, hospitality is an effective means of multiplication. Hospitality turns strangers into acquaintances, enemies into friends, acquaintances into comrades and members into disciples. The benefits are diverse:

  • It makes us more and more like Christ.
  • It makes us a stronger, united church.
  • We acquire a servant’s heart.
  • It makes discipleship more engaging.
  • It makes people who come into our homes feel valued and loved.
  • It builds new relationships and promotes existing relationships.
  • It produces multiplication in our leadership.
  • It makes us referential.

Always remember that a successful and multiplying cell is the result of hospitable leaders and hosts. The practice of hospitality as well as being biblical is also an efficient means of growth. It is a key that opens many doors.

This article originally appeared here.

The Tech-Wise Family: A Conversation About Parenting and Family

By
Russell Moore
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Russell Moore: One of the top questions that I get from parents is navigating technology, whether that is smartphones, social media or television time. That’s why I wanted to talk with my friend Andy Crouch. He is the author of a magnificent book called The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place.

I specifically like this book because it is not a Luddite rejection of technology; it is not a shaming book for parents who may have too much technology in their lives or their children’s lives. You won’t read this book and have someone screaming at you.

Good, Practical Wisdom and Counsel About the Tech-Wise Family

Andy, you talk about the use of nudges in our lives and how smartphone technology, especially, has kind of moved us into a tyranny of nudges. What do you mean by that?

Andy Crouch: Yes, the tyranny of the notification—that little buzz in your pocket or blip of audio that says, “Pay attention to me.” I think of nudges as small things that steer us in a certain direction—either a beneficial direction or a direction that’s really distracting. We know how distracting these notifications can be for us as adults, let alone for kids. When you think about all of those nudges that technology provides, I think it is a problem.

On the other hand, what I suggest in the book is that we can build in healthy nudges. We can make some choices about the way we shape the space we live in and the way we use our time—certain times of day where we actually nudge ourselves toward a more healthy use of technology that’s not at the expense of being present with other people in the real world.

RM: Sometimes when people talk about technology as it relates to family life, all they are really talking about is porn or dangerous situations with people on the other end of the Internet. But you give a great deal of attention to many other things. One of the primary things that you talk about is the relationship to time. I was especially interested in the sorts of ways that you and your household have tried to redeem time from the smartphone. Can you give some counsel for people who are trying to figure that out?

AC: Well, one of the real challenges about our whole technological age, much deeper than screens and computers, is that everything is always on. The power grid is always on, the telephone is always there, and machines can run 24/7. In fact, many machines run at their best if they are on all the time. It is hard to shut it all down, and it is really hard to shut down our world of Wi-Fi and cell phone and cell data and so forth.

Over against that, we have this fundamental commandment at the heart of the Bible to imitate God in having this rhythm of work and rest in the way that we structure our time. Human beings cannot run 24/7. We need sleep every day, which is, I think, one of the most perplexing and humbling things about being a creature like we are.

So, our family has decided we need to be serious about a couple of things with these always-on devices. Basically, we need to do the thing they are not designed to do easily, and that is turn them all off. We do that one hour a day, one day a week, and at least one week a year.

Also, we realized we need to be careful about bedtime and morning. We did some research for this book, and over 80 percent of parents sleep with a phone next to them, a similar number for teenagers, and a little less for younger kids. So, we’ve started putting our devices to bed before we go to bed.

Actually, the bigger discipline for me is when I get up in the morning. I grew up before all of this technology was so readily available. I remember getting up in the morning and praying. What a thought! Now what do I do? I walk downstairs, and the first thing I am inclined to do is pick up my phone and see whatever nudges have come in. I really want to reclaim that morning time. What I’ve started to do is walk outside every morning before I will let anything glow at me. I just open the door no matter what and feel the air before I immerse myself in this technological world.

RM: You mentioned the guide that you all have [for age] is no screens before double digits of time. I thought that was a helpful way to put it.

AC: [One] dimension of time is human growth and development. I think it is short-sighted to have our children spend a lot of time with screens before they are at least 10 because, honestly, we are all going to spend the rest of our lives staring at these things. I spend a huge amount of my life with this rectangle glowing at me, and childhood, especially the early years of childhood, is this time when we are absolutely wired for three-dimensional, full-body, full-contact engagement with the world and all its sights, sounds, smells and experiences.

To have our kids already chained to those devices is robbing them of the unique moments of those single-digit years that they will never get back. [Their] brain will never be the same; it will never be as open to experience and learning. [They] have the rest of [their lives] to swipe back and forth on a screen, but [they] don’t have the rest of [their lives] to be a child.

RM: I laughed out loud when I came across the section on boredom because it was right after I was talking to my wife and said that I desperately needed time to be bored. What I meant by that was, so often, the ideas that come to me tend to happen in some situation where there is nothing going on. You have an entire section in your book on boredom as a good thing. How do you convince a 10-year-old that it is a good thing to be bored?

AC: Our parenting philosophy was: Some things I can’t convince you of, but they are still true, and we are still going to act on them. I think there are two sides to boredom. I think boredom is, in a way, a sign of what I would call frustrated image-bearing. We are meant to be creative, and we get bored when we are in situations or in environments that don’t seem to allow for creativity. Our reaction is to feel a sense of frustration.

But there is another sense in which it is actually the quiet and the waiting out of which real image-bearing creativity emerges. We need to convey to our kids that on the other side of this frustration is something really amazing that they won’t experience if we just solve their problem of being bored. The great danger about our devices now is that they always offer to solve our boredom problem.

It’s Time to Regain First Generation Faith

By
J.D. Greear
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Many years ago at The Summit Church, there was a group of people who said, “Jesus and his mission will be first.” That was expressed in two primary ways: They were willing to do whatever it took to reach the lost (even if it was uncomfortable), and they were willing to do whatever the Holy Spirit said.

But here’s what happens: When churches like ours get big and “settled,” so to speak, they experience a natural inertia. Within a generation, they move from mission to maintenance. They go from being reckless in the mission to being comfortable in the institution.

Here’s the difference in first generation and second generation:

  • First generation does “whatever it takes.” Second generation does “only what I’m asked to do.”
  • First generation assumes personal responsibility. Second generation assumes someone else will do it.
  • First generation expects personal sacrifice. Second generation expects personal comfort.
  • First generation sees problems and seeks solutions. Second generation sees problems and complains.
  • First generation sees possibilities and dreams about what could be. Second generation sees barriers and reasons to quit.
  • First generation hears the voice of God firsthand and owns the vision. Second generation inherits the vision secondhand and questions every decision.
  • First generation steps out with bold, reckless trust in God. Second generation sits satisfied in the stability of the institution.
  • First generation fears holding anything back from God. Second generation fears commitment.
  • First generation feels privileged to be a part of the movement. Second generation feels entitled to the benefits of the institution.

Which of those two lists best describes you? What about your church?

Jesus is preeminent—the foundation, the center of everything. He is why we exist. We were created by him and for him. That means he can never be merely an important commitment in our lives. He must be first (Colossians 1:18).

Years ago, when the Summit was still Homestead Heights Baptist Church, we were able to host a Monday night basketball ministry at our facility. One of the men who showed up was 6’5” and nicknamed “Air,” because he could dunk like a fool. (My name, unsurprisingly, was “No, don’t shoot.”)

I had the joy of leading this man and his girlfriend to Christ and baptized both of them shortly after. As far as I could remember, he was the first African American we had baptized in our church. He gave the most incredible testimony at his baptism about how God had brought him from darkness to light, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the room when he was done.

After the service, one of our older members pulled me aside in the lobby and said, “Son, you know I don’t like a lot of these changes you’re making in our church.” As I braced myself for what he would say next, he got choked up as he pointed to the baptistery and said, “But if that’s what we’re going to get right there, you can count me in for all of them!”

That’s the kind of first-generation faith I’m talking about. On the other hand, I have a number of emails on file from the last few years that pretty thoroughly represent the second generation in our church.

The Summit Church is now experiencing the fruits of the bold, reckless, hear-from-God-and-put-his-kingdom-first faith of others. We are the fruit of their audacious faith, yet we too easily trend toward the mindset of second-generation believers.

Second-generation faith is death to any movement. It is time for us and every church like us to regain first-generation faith, because God is not finished with his church.

One of our staff members recently told me,

I realize that all I enjoy here is because of someone else’s bold, sacrificial faith. But I was reading how when Moses passed leadership on to Joshua, Joshua had to hear from God and own the vision for himself. I want to be like Joshua, who inherited the accomplishments of the previous generation but showed his own faith in going after the Promised Land. Our Promised Land is the people we are supposed to reach, and we can’t take possession of it through Moses’—the first generation’s—faith. We need to be the second wave of the first generation, showing the same first-generation faith.

This is a matter of life and death for God’s church and our communities. There are new people to reach. Another generation of children. New nations to impact through church planting.

The faith of the previous generation was awesome, but it’s not enough to take us there. As we look to the Promised Land, let’s do whatever it takes to put God and his mission first in our churches and in our lives.

This article originally appeared here.

Switchfoot’s Answer to Prayer: Keyboardist Jerome Is Cancer Free

By
Megan Briggs
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Just days before Christmas, Christian band Switchfoot posted an alarming update to their fans. Their keyboardist, Jerome Fontamillas, had cancer and needed to undergo surgery. Just a few short, yet nerve-wrackingly uncertain, weeks later, they have a new announcement: Fontamillas is cancer free.

On his Instagram account, Fontamillas shared he is “extremely grateful” for everyone who prayed and offered words of encouragement. “I am floored by your kindness and love. Thank you all!”

Fontamillas’ Cancer Diagnosis

On December 20, 2018, Switchfoot broke the news to its loyal fan base. Jon Foreman, the frontman for the band, wrote an update posted to the band’s site. Foreman wrote:

I got a call from Jerome a few weeks ago. He was calling with sobering news: he has cancer. One of Jerome’s kidneys has a large mass on it that has been growing for quite some time. The good news is that the cancer has not spread to his other organs. Removing one of his kidneys will hopefully be the first and final cure for Jerome’s fight with cancer. The surgeons and the medical team have been incredibly accommodating, making sure that the surgery was scheduled as soon as possible.

Fontamillas included a note to fans in this announcement, in which he expressed his disappointment at not being able to be involved with the launch of the band’s newest album, Native Tongue. “It’s hard to think about being on the sidelines while we release this album. But the songs have meant so much to me, even through this experience,” Fontamillas said. Even before the surgery, the keyboardist was thankful for the support of fans. “Thanks again for years of love and support.”

Indeed it has been years that Fontamillas has seen fans respond to Switchfoot’s music. He’s been involved in the band since 2000, after allegedly leaving a “‘real job’ in one of the tallest buildings in LA,” according to Foreman, who invited the former Fold Zandura bandmember to join Switchfoot.

Foreman describes Fontamillas as “one of the finest humans you could imagine.” By Foreman’s account, his bandmate is kind and slow to anger. “He is kind when I’m grumpy. He remembers names and faces when I forget. He eats healthy when I don’t. In decades of knowing Jerome, I have never once seen him angry (and I’m in a band with him!),” Foreman wrote.

Surgery Was Successful 

On December 28, 2018, Fontamillas underwent the surgery to remove one of his kidneys. The day before the surgery, he thanked followers on Instagram for their support and prayers. “I have been flooded with texts, messages and phone calls from my family, friends and the bigger music community all around the world offering support and prayers,” his post reads.

A week after the surgery, Fontamillas was able to announce he is cancer free. And his latest post sharing about his recovery process (which included the removal of 30 staples), indicates he might join the band on the road for the tour of the new album. “Excited to start playing new music for you guys out on the road,” Fontamillas wrote.

Switchfoot fans can only hope and pray to see Fontamillas this year. And thank God for the relatively swift answer to prayer they have witnessed.

New Hebrew Bible Translation Took 24 Years of Painstaking Work

By
Stephanie Martin
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

Literary scholar Robert Alter’s three-volume set of the Hebrew Bible (known to Christians as the Old Testament) has been released after almost a quarter-century of work, all done by hand. Alter, 83, says he tackled the 3,000-page project because the Hebrew language has a “very high level of artistry”—and because the “existing English versions simply didn’t do justice to [its] literary beauty.”

While incorporating Hebrew rhythms, poetic structure and syllable use, Alter also removed references to Christ that occur in English translations. “In trying to be faithful to the literary art of the Hebrew Bible,” he says, “I certainly edged it away from being merely a precursor to the New Testament, which is a different kind of writing all together.”

A recent New York Times Magazine feature says Alter “has helped carve out a dignified place for the Hebrew Bible as the Hebrew Bible…and rescued it from second-class status” as books that were “primitive precursors to the enlightened New Testament.”

In a Bible Translation Comparison, Alter’s Work Includes Notable Changes 

The King James Version of 1611 uses “magnificent language,” Alter says, but scholarship has shown that some of its translation work is in error—and that it doesn’t reflect certain traits of ancient Hebrew. Some experts also say the KJV has a Christian bias in the use of words such as soul.

Removing that word from his translation is one of Alter’s most notable decisions. “The Hebrew word translated very often as soul means something like life breath,” he says. “It’s a very physical thing, and there is no concept among the biblical writers in a split between body and soul.”

Psalm 23 also has new wording. Verse 5 is now “You moisten my head with oil” because the Hebrew verb that’s used doesn’t mean anoint. And in the story of Sarah giving birth to Isaac, Alter’s translation emphasizes that Sarah is being laughed at, which helps explain why she later lashes out at Hagar.

When compared to English, Hebrew is more compact and uses fewer syllables, so translating poetry posed a challenge. “Words squeeze together” in Hebrew, Alter says, so he often cuts words that seem unnecessary. The results sometimes sound a bit strange in English, due to his use of foreignization, a translation style that makes it clear text is originally from another language.

Alter’s Impact on Biblical Literary Scholarship

Alter, author of the influential 1981 book The Art of Biblical Narrative, has taught at the University of California, Berkeley, for more than five decades. His Hebrew translation attempts to restore the language’s “original colors and shadings,” which he says have “faded under the accumulations of theological and historical readings.”

During Alter’s upbringing as an American Jew in the Bronx, he fell in love with Hebrew—unlike many of his peers, who rebelled against having to learn the language. Despite the time and effort his translation required, Alter recognizes that future improvements are bound to be proposed. He envisions future scholars saying, “That’s awkward. I can see he’s trying to get the literal sense of the Hebrew, but it sounds goofy in English, and I can do better.”

What Is the Church?

By
Josh Weidmann
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Father’s Day program ideas for church

What Is the Church

And why are the reforming markers of the church (preaching and ordinances) so crucial for understanding what the church is?

The church is a group of Christians (those partaking in the New Covenant with God by believing in Jesus Christ) who, together, identify themselves and others as followers of Jesus through regularly gathering in His name, preaching the Gospel and celebrating the ordinances. While there is a global church, united in belief and atoned for by the blood of Christ, there are local expressions of the church in communities throughout all the nations. The local church is the focal point for displaying God’s glory to the surrounding people group. It reflects the character of God. It is God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ that produces the church, and it is the church that then protects and promotes the Gospel.

For those in the local church, there is a relationship between the message of the Gospel and the life of the church. The message of Jesus Christ gives life to the church, which in turn calls for a faithful dedication to protect, display, give credibility to and argue for the message of Christ. The church is portraying a future hope to the world that can only be found in Christ. We see it as our mission to go and tell the world of this hope, not just wait for them to come to us. We have a narrow focus of calling and making disciples, while maintaining a broad mindset of fulfilling the Great Commission and teaching all that entails in being a disciple of Christ.

The church has a corporate function to be in unity with one another, promoting and preserving the body of peace (Ephesians 4:3). This is also lived out in the life of each believer as they are unified in their message, efforts and convictions. The most urgent task of the church (individual and corporate) is to make disciples, because this addresses the world’s most urgent problem, theologically. Making disciples is a crucial responsibility of the church, because the most important part of a person is their view of God.

God does not call us to transform the world, rather He calls us to live like a transformed people in the world. As new creations in Christ, we bear His image as redeemed people who are living right with God. Therefore, the church’s mission is to be the representation of God on earth. We image the glory of God by listening and acting upon His Word. The local church accomplishes its created purpose when we display the wise, holy and loving image of God for all the world to see.

The reforming marks of the church are important for equipping individual members to live in accordance with God’s will, and also for the church to fulfill the mandates given by God for the corporate body of believers. The preaching of God’s Word (Romans 10:14–17), baptism and the Lord’s Supper are vital elements for a church to be the church. Without any of these, the group is just a gathering of believers; they are not the church. Yet, when a group of believers choose to have God’s Word preached and faithfully adhere to it by partaking in the acts of baptizing and sharing communion together, that group is now a church.

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper serve as a means of protecting the Gospel and marking individuals as Christ’s own, no longer belonging to the world. The ordinances of baptism and communion bring individual believers into the fold of God’s flock by making them united as one (1 Corinthians 10:16–17). Baptism is the initial public pledge to Christ and His people, while partaking in the Lord’s Supper is the believer’s ongoing oath to be committed to Christ and the church. It is impossible for the church to exist without the preaching of God’s Word and the ordinances. It is also impossible for a Christian to experience true life in Christ without maintaining a connection to the church.

This article originally appeared here.

All About Multisite // The 2019 Multisite Predictions

By
Rich Birch
-
Father’s Day program ideas for church

I’m chatting with a group of multisite ninjas and answering your questions about the ins and outs of launching new campuses. Our group is as follows:

Natalie Frisk is our family ministry expert. She is a key leader from The Meeting House. This church has 19(!) locations and is doing all kinds of great stuff, including a killer kids’ & youth curriculum that they give away for free. Natalie’s a lot of fun and will have so many great insights around leading in a thriving multisite church.

Greg Curtis is our guest connections and assimilation expert. He leads at Eastside Christian Church, one of the fastest growing churches in the country, and, literally, is the “go to” source for getting people to stick and stay in the church. (Eastside has assimilated something like 1,500 people in the last 18 months!) His coaching practice around assimilation is amazing.

Ben Stapley is our communications and service programming expert. Ben is one of the most helpful leaders I know. His day job is the Weekend Experience Director at Christ Fellowship in Miami, but he does so much to help other leaders with the “big show” part of church world.

And I, Rich, have been involved with 14 different campus launches over the years and enjoy helping churches that are thinking about multisite.

We are here to answer your questions about running a multisite church and are excited to be here today with our ninth episode.

Opening Question: What was a favorite (NON-CHRISTMAS) memory from your church this year?

  • Natalie – We launched our very own kids’ music for the first time this year. Another sweet memory that’s just fresh: I taught at a retreat a couple weekends ago and I was the junior high speaker. It was so awesome to see kids hungry and seeking after Jesus.
  • Greg – It was a panel our lead pastor did in a worship service. He asked the question “Is the God of all religions the same God?” He put a panel together and the results wowed me because he had a Muslim Imam, a young Rabbi, a Buddhist monk and a Mormon bishop. They were all there for five services and had not met each other before. Two things make this my favorite moment for the year: By the end of it the Muslim Imam and Rabbi hugged each other on the stage, and the Mormon bishop said they could not believe how they’d been received by our church and they loved being here. They each articulated a very different understanding of God, but what was beautiful was how they all felt so welcomed at our church as a Christian community.
  • Ben – This past summer we launched a special baptism service at the beach. We thought maybe we’ll get a few people. Five hundred people signed up for beach baptisms, which was going to be happening two weeks from that date. So when the Holy Spirit pleasantly surprises you it’s always beautiful. And then to see the staff pulled together in that scramble mode and worked together as a team was a beautiful thing. And lastly I had a chance to baptize my daughter at the beach as well.
  • Rich – I’ve been back at Connexus Church just north of Toronto and we finally launched a third location. I’m so glad that we launched and am really proud of the team there. The last two weekends I got a chance to be a part at the campus for a little bit and with hosting and that has been a real highlight for me.

Today’s show is a bit different. It’s the last episode of 2019 so we thought we would make some 2019 multisite church predictions!

All About Multisite // The 2019 Predictions

Rich’s Predictions:

Rich’s prediction is that we’ll see two to three name-brand churches that everyone knows take a foray into a virtual reality campus. Facebook Spaces is a technology that continues to mature. It can provide a good opportunity for those who can’t physically get to church to still attend church from home or the hospital or nursing home.

Another prediction is that major (maybe two) multisite churches will pull apart. Multisites are a matrix by definition, and so with every decision you make, you not only have to worry about what one person at one location thinks, but also what someone else thinks. From a leadership point of view, that creates inherent tension between people in the central roles and campus pastors, and can lead to multisites pulling apart from each other. 

Greg’s Predictions:

Greg predicts that there may be a gradual switch of churches from being primarily a physical presence with an online expression to being more of an online presence with a physical expression. People can watch the services online, and then come to the church for the things they need, such as baptism.

Another prediction is more texting and less phone calls in assimilation follow up. Greg points out that a common theme among us today is when an unfamiliar phone number comes across our cell phones, we often let it go to voice mail instead of answering.

Over the last 15 years, Greg has noticed the vulnerability of the mid-sized church. More churches have become less than 100 and more churches have become over 1,000. Greg says that large churches will start to look the same regardless of their heritage, tradition or denomination, whereas the smaller churches will keep their distinctives.

There will also be more scalable solutions rather than one size fits all. When people develop a resource to the church, it will have to be something that can fit into the small church of less than 100 and help it, while also being totally usable in the large church environment. Anything we have to share has to work in a different culture and size.

Natalie’s Predictions:

There will be an increase with more than simply the adult teaching content online. There will be a move toward more content on a digital platform. Also, there will be more of an online experience available on the church’s website for kids and youth in order to make them interested in the church and give them reoccurring experiences online.

If kids aren’t sure, it makes it more difficult for parents to decide to go to the church. Sixty-five percent of adults are visual learners and so using images is important to draw them, and Rich suspects that the number is likely higher when it comes to kids. Therefore the kids actually seeing a picture of what they’ll encounter at the church before they go is very likely to increase their interest in going; using the church website to gain their interest will be a good win.

Cities and regions will be connected as churches look beyond denominational lines in order to do things together. We’ll see more of that, specifically in mid-sized cities in North America, to look beyond denominational lines to link arms.

Ben’s Predictions:

Prediction podcasts and blogposts are so much fun—you can make wild assertions without any accountability! Ben predicts an increase in social media from a staffing perspective and so multisite churches will start to hire a social media manager or a digital developer. He has heard from many people already that they have increased their own social media and so he predicts that churches will move on from volunteer based web designers and social media managers to staff members.

Another prediction is that we will see fewer multisite churches trying to go across state lines. They will scale back and continue to be more regionally or geographically focused with less national aspirations. Churches will focus more on who they are, what they’re trying to do, and who their target is.

There are a lot of succession plans in the works with mega churches, but a lot of pastors are still holding onto leadership when they should be letting go. It should accelerate in the next few years and a lot of megachurch Boomer pastors pass the baton. Lastly, after the high profile case with Bill Hybels and Willow Creek Community Church and their succession plan not going successfully, there could be a lot of churches that respond to that and over-course correct in how they have their male and female employees interact with each other. Possibly too many boundaries may be set, and if females can only have conversations with men in a group environment, it limits the leadership pipeline for a lot of females if there aren’t other females established on staff in leaderships positions.

Predictions from Facebook:

Rich crowdsourced this question on his personal FB page and the Church Communication page and found the results interesting. Those results are below.

  • Keri Ladouceur – Box store to boutique / Less celebrity pastors / Transformation over information / More women empowered / Multiplication movements over mega
  • Wes Gay – I think you’ll start to see a shift away from video venues and toward autonomous churches, like the Village Church shift.
  • Nik Goodner – I think you’ll see a lot of churches moving away from in-house designers as companies/freelancers become more accessible with the creative role evolving into a more strategic position/managing contractors and less of a creator position.
  • Dave Adamson – People will realize that personal is more important than personality / Omnichannel will be more important than multichannel
  • Lewies Vander – I hope that the value and power of well-designed conversational church chatbots will be considered and implemented!

This article originally appeared here.

How to Create Small Group Curriculum

By
Randy Grimes
-
Father’s Day program ideas for church

Want to create your own small group curriculum? Discover these five steps to creating small group curriculum.

#1. Always start with the end in mind.

  • Where do you want to lead your group members?
  • What steps do they need to take to get there?
  • Make each step a lesson.

#2. Back each lesson with Scripture.

#3. Use a template and format all lessons the same.

  • Introduction
  • Applicable Scripture
  • Discussion questions
  • Application
  • Preview and assignment for the next week

#4. Always use open-ended questions to bring more discussion.

  • The first questions should focus inward, toward their personal walk.
  • The second set of questions should focus outward, how are they relating this to others.

#5. Keep the lessons simple.

  • The most rewarding lessons are ones that have a small assignment for their members to do during the week, then share with the group at their next meeting. The more each member puts into the weekly lesson, the more they will get out of it.

This article originally appeared here.

Alan Hirsch: Are You Obsessed with Safety and Security?

By
Megan Briggs
-
Father’s Day program ideas for church

Alan Hirsch shares a problem that he believes will eventually kill the church: an “obsession with safety and security, comfort and convenience.”

The following video poses the question: Are you stuck in a rut? According to Hirsch, we don’t take the risks we should be taking if we want to be creative and truly embrace the gospel. “If you want to be creative, you have to risk failure,” Hirsch argues.

Hirsch highlights the fact that in America particularly, many churches are stuck in the “stifling status quo.” Because of our middle-class culture, we’ve turned our churches into a sort of “country club atmosphere” where we practice a “civil religion that affirms my lifestyle.” Hirsch warns this mindset is dangerous to the gospel.

Instead of experiencing “adventure or journey or quest” inside the church (taking risks), we strive to keep everything “nice and safe.” However, if we were to take real risks, we would be invested in the outcome of the church. Hirsch implies that if the church were truly embracing the gospel, we would be risking things more important than membership in a club.

And while “risk doesn’t always have to be death-defying,” a bit of risk is good for us. What do you think of Hirsch’s words?

Alan Hirsch – Are You Stuck In A Rut? from Verge Network on Vimeo.

Hirsch has also graced us with his presence on the Church Leader’s Podcast. You can listen to his interview on how the church can fulfill the mission of God here.

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