Church Leadership
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We’re Still Studying That
I cannot begin to remember all of the times I’ve heard somebody say, “We’re still studying that.” Those who know my background have probably already assumed (correctly) that this is usually said in a religious context. In other words, what is still being studied is what the Bible has to say about some doctrine, practice, etc. I am, in no way, opposed to the practice of studying the Bible. In fact, I firmly believe that all of us, including me, could benefit greatly from doing more of that. Many will remember this very positive description of people who lived in Berea and to whom the gospel had been preached: Now…
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Turning a Spiritual Ship is Harder
If you’ve read many leadership books or articles, you have likely heard a very common illustration. It has to do with changing the culture of a business, organization, or even congregation. It is the illustration of trying to turn around a large ship. The picture is meant to remind you that you simply cannot turn those large ships on a dime and it takes awhile for them to get turned all the way around. As it pertains to leadership, then, that picture is meant to instill in the leader the idea that you cannot just change everything overnight and expect it to be successful. Changes have to be thoughtful (of…
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And Their Voices Prevailed
If you have a copy of God’s Word handy, you may want to read the twenty-third chapter of Luke before you read the rest of this post. In that chapter, we can read Luke’s inspired account of some of the events concerning the arrest, interrogation, condemnation, and crucifixion of Jesus. Other details are in the other gospels, but we will focus our comments to those recorded by Luke – along with a few details gleaned from the other gospel accounts. I find the words that are used as the title of this post to be extremely interesting and informative. They play a major role in the narrative that follows. A…
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Sometimes It’s Tough
Now, there’s a wide open topic for you! Let me narrow it down just a bit by saying it is sometimes tough to be an elder’s wife. I’m aware that it is sometimes tough just being a wife, even if your husband doesn’t serve in this capacity. I also am aware that it is sometimes tough being married to a preacher. I’ve lived that life for a long time. However, being the wife of an elder has its own challenges and I would like to share some of those with you. He can’t share everything with me. Before he became an elder one of the greatest qualities of our marriage was that…
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The Message of a Pulpit to the Preacher
Pulpits are interesting things. They come in all kinds of shapes, sizes, configurations, etc. In my experience, the basic function of a pulpit is to provide a convenient place for a preacher to lay his Bible and whatever notes he may have. Some pulpits may have additional things that seemed to be designed to help. There may be a light placed in such a way so as to help the preacher read the material he has placed on the pulpit. There could be a microphone to help amplify his voice. In recent years, some churches have installed screens in pulpits so that the preacher can look down and see the PowerPoint…
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Building Up the Preacher’s Wife
She–along with elders’ wives–holds one of the most difficult “roles” in the Lord’s Church. It is difficult because it is not defined in Scripture, but is often “defined” by each member of a congregation, and she’s just expected to know that. From talking with dozens and dozens of families over the years, allow me to let you in on a little secret. You may not believe it at first, but I promise you it is true. It is this: there is a very high likelihood that your preacher’s wife feels very lonely. Her husband has dozens of people come up to him each week and basically tell him how great…
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An Influencer
Having all of our family home for the holidays was simply wonderful. We even had a few extra days to relax and enjoy one another’s company. One of those days was spent with the girls going shopping at our mall. We enjoyed browsing through the stores without all of the hustle and bustle of trying to find just the right gift. When it was time for lunch, we decided to just eat in the food court and our guys joined us. While eating lunch I noticed that our youngest granddaughter (she’s 15 now) got a stunned look on her face. She was staring at someone with utter awe. I asked her…
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A Valuable Scripture When Teaching
I’m teaching a Wednesday night Bible class right now to some of my favorite students. I have 10th through 12th grade girls in a class on “The Roles of Women in the Home and the Church.” The class is designed to teach them leadership as God would have it. Whenever I am privileged to teach teen girls’ classes, I usually have a theme song and a prayer before we get into the actual study. The girls do a great job of leading in both of these areas. However, I changed things up a little bit this quarter. We still have our opening prayer, but this time I put a “theme” verse up…
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4 Words That Should Express the Attitude of Every Leader (And That’s All of Us)
I was recently asked to present some material for the Cedar Springs church of Christ in Louisville, Kentucky on the book of Zechariah. It was difficult to condense fourteen chapters into one forty minute presentation, but I tried to at least hit the high points of the particular aspect of the assignment given to me. There was one point that was outside the scope of my assignment that I think is important enough to discuss here. The point is made in just four words, but those four words are, at least in my mind, very powerful. When Donna and I returned home, I resumed teaching a class I’ve been teaching on Wednesday…
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When the Preacher Responds
I remember it very well. I was preaching a sermon on the subject of being a Christian husband and, as the sermon went on, I realized that I had not been the type of husband that I was preaching about. So, at the conclusion of the invitation song, I motioned for people to be seated even though no one had walked down the aisle. After that, I walked back up to the pulpit and publicly repented of not being the type of husband I needed to be, asking God and my wife for forgiveness, and seeking prayers of encouragement. It was the only time I had ever responded in that…