Church Category
Jesus Brings People Together
Posted on December 29, 2013 Leave a Comment
Isn’t it weird how, when something is on your mind a lot, the topic seems to come up more than usual? Maybe it’s just that we are more aware of it; I’m not really sure why it seems to happen that way. But it has been happening to me quite a bit recently. The thing […]
Thinking of Home Like a Foreign Mission Field
Posted on December 27, 2013 Leave a Comment
In North America, we are fond of sending missionaries overseas. Nothing gets a church fired up like sending people on short or long-term mission trips. But anyone who has participated in cross-cultural missions knows that it is not easy. There is a lot of preparation that makes missionary work successful. Learning a new language, studying […]
The Battle Against Compassion Fatigue
Posted on December 9, 2013 Leave a Comment
Compassion fatigue, according to Wikipedia, was first recognized as a medical condition in the 1950’s. It is essentially the gradual lessening of compassion a person has towards those in need. It happens most often in people who are professional caregivers in some sense: doctors, nurses, first responders, counsellors, and even ministry leaders. The way compassion […]
Why You Shouldn’t Be Freaking Out That Young People Are Leaving the Church
Posted on October 3, 2013 Leave a Comment
I hear about it and read about it all the time: young people are leaving the church. Usually the language used is meant to create some sort of panic among Christians. It’s said that there is a “mass exodus” and a “sharp decline” among faith in young people. They leave “never to return” and because […]
Singing For an Audience of One
Posted on September 12, 2013 Leave a Comment
Worship is more than singing on Sunday mornings – it is something you do all day, everyday, in everything you do and every attitude in which you do it. Our whole lives are offerings to God, whether it is in a formal church setting or not. That said, musical worship is still really important stuff. […]
No Superstars Allowed!
Posted on September 4, 2013 Leave a Comment
What makes someone a great youth leader? How you answer that question will make a great deal of difference in determining how healthy a youth ministry is. One of the most common perceptions of a great youth worker is what I would call the “superstar” mentality. A superstar youth worker is one who has a […]
Make Kids Ministry Fun!
Posted on August 18, 2013 2 Comments
This past week we wrapped up our annual Adventure Camp at our church. What a great week it was! The kids just had a blast and, truth be told, so did the volunteers. It sure is a lot of hard work, and everyone is worn out by the end of the week, but there is […]
Principles vs. Methods
Posted on July 8, 2013 Leave a Comment
No two churches are alike. If you have been a Christian for any length of time, especially one that has attended more than one church, this reality is self evident. Isn’t it interesting that all (true) churches acknowledge the same God and the same Bible but can differ so greatly from one another? Often the […]
The Power of an Organized Youth Leader
Posted on February 16, 2013 Leave a Comment
This post also appears on the great youth ministry blog morethandodgeball.com. ———————– One of the joys of working with youth is how spontaneous and creative the ministry can be. It feels so free flowing and easy going. Most youth pastors cherish this aspect of the ministry, but there is another side that a lot of […]
Three Views of Church
Posted on February 6, 2013 Leave a Comment
In North America there typically seems to be three ways people view church in relation to culture. Having only three categories may be oversimplifying it, but the more simple we break it down, the easier it is to see the differences. View 1: Church as a Bomb Shelter This view sees the primary purpose of […]
Canadian Bible Guy 