“We have been called to plant and water so that God can grow the harvest – and not to plant and water haphazardly, but to the best of our abilities as we are laboring for His kingdom. We must do the work to ensure a connection with our guests. God promises us that if we step toward Him, He will … Read More
J. Frank Norris on a Literal Salvation
“Whenever you find a preacher who takes the Bible allegorically and figuratively…that preacher is preaching an allegorical gospel which is no gospel. I thank God for a literal Christ, for a literal salvation. There is literal sorrow, literal death, literal Hell, and, thank God, there is a literal Heaven.” – J. Frank Norris, “The Texas Tornado” and first megachurch multi-site pastor … Read More
Keys to Worship Planning: How Well Are You Doing Right Now?
“When people aren’t internalizing what they experience in your services, their lives won’t change. The question then becomes, how do you preach in a way that truly engages people and leads to radically transformed lives? The first step is to figure out how well you are doing right now. Are you preaching to share information or to foster transformation? … Read More
Ten Reasons Christianity is Declining
Today’s guest post comes to us from David Gushee for ReligionNews.com. The number of Christians and cultural strength of Christianity are both declining in the United States. This decline is noticeable and is affecting church life, culture, and politics. It is also deeply disturbing to most Christians, including me. I could now spend several paragraphs inviting a debate over whether … Read More
The Magic Seven: Before the Service begins do this… – Part 2 of 4
Last week in Part 1 of this series, I introduced you to The Magic Seven – the seven minutes before your Sunday service begins and the seven minutes after the Sunday service ends. We continue our post today on ways you can connect with your guests. Here are a few more ways you can focus your time on the first seven minutes … Read More
John Bunyan’s Tips on Knowing if You’ve Been Called to Preach
Today’s guest post comes to us from Will Graham for Evangelical Focus.com. John Bunyan’s (1628-88) classic ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’ is perhaps the best-known book of the Puritan era. Although millions of believers are familiar with the valiant exploits of Christian on his onward march to the Celestial City, few know much about the wonderful man of God behind the book. … Read More
Monday is for Follow-up: The Communication Card is Key
“Effectively using Communication Cards is key to a healthy Assimilation System. If this area fails, your Assimilation System itself fails. Of course, God will bring some of your guests back on their own, but He has called us to ministry for a reason. A large part of ministry is knowing how to do our part to keep the people He … Read More
Charles Spurgeon on Preaching the Whole Gospel
“It is the whole business of the whole church to preach the whole gospel to the whole world.” – Charles Spurgeon
Keys to Worship Planning: Connecting God’s Truth
“You stand in front of your people on Sunday mornings for one reason and one reason only: to connect God’s truth to real life in a way that leads to radical transformation.” – Nelson Searcy and Jason Hatley The above quote is from p. 53 of Engage: A Guide to Creating Life-Transforming Worship … Read More
Charismatic movement gaining traction in England
This guest post comes to us from Trevor Grundy for Religion News Service. Church closings are nothing new in England. In the past six years, 168 Church of England churches have closed, along with 500 Methodist and 100 Roman Catholic churches. “Christianity in Britain has seen a relentless decline for over 100 years,” says Linda Woodhead, a sociologist at Lancaster University. … Read More