As part of my commitment to healthy churches-people who faithful and fruitful in kingdom ministry; I try connecting you with some articles to help you in the journey. These are some of the best I have read in recent days.
When a Church’s Committees are Out of Control by Chuck Lawless. Chuck provides some key questions to identify problem areas. As an Intentional Interim Transition Specialist I have found far too many to be true in toxic or dying churches.
Truth in Pagan Places by Dan Masshardt Dan is a personal friend who often asks provocative questions to comfortable Christians. In an age where people prefer shouting at one another instead of listening, or closing out any troubling questions; witness is inhibited because we think ONLY WE have ALL the truth.
The Myth of the Silver Bullet by Dan Rockwell What do you do when progress has slowed? A desire for easy solutions makes things worse.
Why Giving Stays Strong While Attendance is Dropping by Sam Rainer Rainer is a solid researcher and observer of church culture, especially the traditional church. Along with data, he issues a warning: “On the surface, the above figure looks good. The numbers are going up! But scratch the surface and you’ll find it’s more a problem for the church than anything else. Strong giving is masking the underlying issue of an inward focus. Obviously, this trend comes with many other dangers, like how a church can become complacent since the money is there even when the people are not.”