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Is Ecclesiastes Messianic? Preaching Christ from the Vantage of Vanity
Preachers and teachers of God’s Word carry an immense responsibility. We must handle Scripture faithfully with the goal of pointing our listeners always to Jesus, the true hero of the entire Bible. This goal feels particularly challenging when we open a seemingly dark book like Ecclesiastes. Major themes of Ecclesiastes are futility, meaninglessness, absurdity, and […]
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5 Steps to Starting a Prayer Ministry in Your Church
What if the very discipline Scripture commands us to practice “without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17) is the one many Christians find hardest to sustain? Prayer is an integral part of Christian life and ministry. Yet, especially for new believers, it is often accompanied with awkwardness: “What words do I use? Is there a formula? Am […]
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7 Challenging Personalities & How to Lead Them in Small Group
What have I gotten myself into? Most of us who lead small groups have had that moment. Leading people is a bit like parenting: It doesn’t come with an instruction manual. It’s rife with unforeseen scenarios that are as unique as the people who make up the group. Some situations are garden variety that become […]
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Does Your Church Have a Discipleship Culture? How to Cultivate It
At its simplest, Christian discipleship means helping others believe and obey Jesus. A culture of discipleship emerges when it becomes normal for a church to collectively value helping one another follow Jesus. This shared value will consequently shape the norms, expectations, and practices in a congregation. The aim will be to see every member (disciple) discipling and being discipled—leaving behind no undiscipled disciples.
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What Is Worship Music For? 5 Reasons to Sing
Singing has always played a key role in the church’s liturgy. In Old Testament times, King David organized prophet-musicians to glorify Yahweh with lyres, harps, and cymbals (1 Chron 25:1). The apostles of our Lord Jesus sang psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, and encouraged their use in the church (Eph 5:19). Song lyrics became the topic of heated disputes in the early Christological and Trinitarian controversies of the church, and they’re often a point of contention in contemporary worship wars.
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Easter Sermon Ideas: 40 Passages for Proclaiming the Resurrection
Many have called Easter the Super Bowl Sunday for pastors. It’s the biggest Sunday of the year for churches, with attendance numbers often at their highest. Pastors want to bring their A-game every Sunday—but especially on Easter. Each year, we proclaim the same message: Jesus’s resurrection. But how do we preach the same message year after year without preaching the same sermon year after year?
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How to Lead Change in Your Church (Without Losing Your People)
Growing up in rural Northern Ireland, I spent many long summer days helping on our neighbor’s sheep farm. One sunny Saturday morning, the shepherd told me we’d be moving the sheep from the lower field to the upper field, where fresh green grass awaited them. It sounded simple enough—until he added with a knowing smile, […]
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Pastor, Sharpen Your Axe: Why & How to Take a Sabbatical
Early in my ministry, I stumbled upon this little parable of two woodcutters. It goes something like this: Two wood cutters decided to hold a competition to see who could chop more wood in a day. The rules were simple. The next day they would chop wood from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and whoever […]
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5 Steps to Align Your Church’s Theology & Ministry Philosophy
Clarity is charity. Without clear expectations in our jobs, our marriages, and in the life of a church, we or others will find ourselves frustrated. This is particularly true when it comes to a church’s theology and philosophy of ministry. Without a clear vision of where the church is going and how it is to […]
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How to Conduct Christian Premarital Counseling: 6 Essentials
Pastoral counseling can be tough. Premarital counseling is no exception, offering its own unique set of challenges and opportunities. Your job is to help a couple prepare for a lifetime of covenant faithfulness. These conversations can shape how a couple will come to understand marriage, love, conflict, and forgiveness for years to come. Every session […]