Is the “Church” truly in decline?
As the spiritual leader of a local congregation, I spend much of my time reading and staying up to date on the latest trends in all things church. One of the most amazing things to me is this desire to…
Peter Preble
Faith • Grief • History • Hope
Peter Preble
Faith • Grief • History • Hope
Tag Church Growth
Reflection: “I am the bread…”
“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” John 6:35 In the 19th century, China hungry people were coming to Christian Churches in large numbers.…
Core Issues and Casting a Vision
For any organization to grow, they need to cast a vision. The process of determining that vision can be tedious but the result, hopefully, will set that group up for success and the church is no different. Churches that have…
When People Leave the Church
There are hundreds, perhaps thousands of books available on the concept of Church growth. There are as many strategies for growth as there are books. Church spend hundreds of thousands of dollars every year on books, seminars, consultants and all…
Leaning into the future
I serve as an Intentional Interim Minister in the United Church of Christ, and as such, I am only with a congregation for a brief period. My task is to work with a congregation as they prepare to call a…
Predictions of the Future Church
As a follow-up to my last post, I am reaching back to a post from February of 2015 written by pastor and blogger Carey Nieuwhof. I mentioned in previous posts that one of the jobs of pastors in the 21st…
Thom Rainer’s Major Trends for 2017
The church of the 21st century is going to require pastors to acquire a new set of tools. The church, and by that I mean all churches, has never been very good at reading the trends in society. Sure we…
The Next Reformation
October 31st saw the 499th anniversary of the day that Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg church in Germany and, as some would say, lit the fuse that started the Reformation. I would argue…
Characteristics of a Healthy Church Community
Here is a question, are we more interested in large communities or healthy communities? This is an important question for those of us in leadership in the church to ask ourselves. We can have both but if we build…
3 Characteristics of the Church
Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil…