We have all heard it said that timing is everything. And when it comes to God’s timing, it’s perfect. In the Bible, the prophet Habakkuk understood that well. He speaks words of hope and inspiration to God’s people, amidst a period filled with daunting challenges. Despite the difficulties, Habakkuk sees God poised and ready to […]
For a few years now we have been consistently preaching and teaching about the value of faith-sharing groups we call Small Groups. A while back we started using the mantra that we don’t just want to be a church with Small Groups, we want to be a church of Small Groups. Why? Well, it’s not […]
Probably the number one question we receive in speaking, nearly any place we go, revolves around the question of people leaving the church. Inevitably, church folk will ask us, with sincerity and innocence, “If we change our church strategy, if we change our church’s direction, won’t people complain, maybe even leave?” Sure they will, and […]
All this week we have been in Denver for the first ever Amazing Parish Conference, and it was, well, amazing. The brain child of several Catholic lay leaders including, most notably, best selling author and business consultant Patrick Lencioni, the basic idea was to bring together parishes from across the country to share ideas and […]
Greetings from Sydney Australia. Tom Corcoran and I have been here all week at the invitation of the Australian Bishop’s Conference. Sydney is a big city. But also beautiful, clean, safe, and friendly. There is, as far as I can see, nothing not to like here. Did I mention that it’s beautiful, clean, safe, and […]
I’ve mentioned before that there was a Protestant Church here in our community (our very vibrant community) that recently closed. The congregation got too small to sustain the place and they agreed to close up shop and put the place up for sale. The thing about this particular church is that it sits on one […]
Everybody is already saying, where did the summer go? We get to August and it seems like fall is staring us in the face. It sure feels that way around here. Anyway, this seems like a good opportunity to bring my faithful readers up to date on what is going on around Nativity and also […]
If you are leading a church, or anything really, it is a good idea to reflect on the characteristics you want to cultivate as a leader. Here are some I am thinking about currently, in no particular order. #1 Authenticity Good, bad, right, wrong, successful or otherwise, whatever kind of leader you are going […]
If you are a church leader probably you have given thought to your mission and vision, perhaps a lot of thought. And that’s great, you should. Perhaps you’ve even gone ahead and given flesh to those bones with specific strategies and goals to fulfill your mission and vision. But there’s another piece that still needs […]
A leader is anyone who has followers. As any kind of church minister or volunteer minister you are a leader. The question is, are you a leader worth following? Do people actually want to follow you and go where you are going, under your leadership and direction? Here are three questions to ask yourself: #1 […]
