I was away this weekend at my nephew’s wedding in Highlands, North Carolina. It’s a pretty spectacular place and the wedding itself kept pace with its surroundings. But when I checked back in to church on Sunday night, I noticed that some of the blinds in the Worship Center had been fixed. They had been Read the full article…
Things Jesus Never Said has been a hit. In fact, this series has brought more people into my office for prayer and advice than any other series. That increase is behind Tuesday’s post. This Sunday, the thing he never said is “store up for yourselves treasures on earth.” There’s something with music and drama combined Read the full article…
For years, Good Shepherd attempted to do small groups the conventional way. You get some leaders, get some groups going, and when new people express interest in getting in a group, you try and get leaders to contact and invite them. Or try to get them to contact leaders and get themselves invited. The problems Read the full article…
For years, I preached conventional three- or four- point sermons. Those of you from Good Shepherd remember me saying “you can put that in your outline” several times during a given message. Then about two years ago, thanks to Andy Stanley’s book Communicating For A Change, I began preparing and delivering sermons with one point. Read the full article…
One of my biggest struggles as a pastor is to distinguish between the important and the urgent. Things that are important have more of a long term value: strategic planning, creative brainstorming, sermon writing, staff development and mentoring. All those take time. Things that are urgent press in on me and other pastors today: visiting Read the full article…
