Four Questions for Congregations
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., says vital congregations are clear about their mission, outwardly focused, oriented toward the future, and concerned more with results than processes.…
Author
Lovett H. Weems Jr.
Lovett H. Weems Jr. is senior consultant at the Lewis Center for Church Leadership, distinguished professor of church leadership emeritus at Wesley Theological Seminary, and author of several books on leadership.
A Simple Planning Process
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., outlines a simple planning process that churches can use to identify issues and concerns and develop realistic plans to address them. Key…
Building Attendance through Special Focus Sundays
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., and Tom Berlin discuss how congregations can reach more members and visitors through Special Focus Sundays that emphasize a particular cause…
Predictable Surprises in the Church
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., encourages congregations to uncover and prepare for their “predictable surprises.” Leadership is about the future, so leaders must take the future…
Why Typical Groups Miss Typical Members
Lovett Weems reports on research suggesting that it’s possible for the less engaged to become more engaged in your church, but not by asking them…
Changing Congregational Trends
Every five years Faith Communities Today provides a marvelous service to all churches through their very thorough survey of religious congregations across the United States.…
Next Sunday is Not a Presidential Primary
Following the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, a remarkable focus emerged among churches. We know there were instances of…
Should We Go From Two Worship Services to One?
Just as some churches are adding worship services, others are considering reducing the number of worship times they offer. The most common circumstance is a…
Quiet Leadership by Public Leaders
Dale Bumpers was a very public leader for most of his adult life — as governor of Arkansas for two terms and then United States…
When Higher Giving May Not Be Good News
As a new year begins, there will and should be a careful review of the past year. Perhaps there will be reports made to the…
Spiritual but Not Religious. Really?
A common phrase used in recent years to describe some people is “spiritual but not religious.” It sounds good and believable given our modern individualistic…
Collective Genius
Much conventional wisdom about leadership has assumed a sole visionary providing primary leadership for a group. The temptation, likewise, is to think that the answer…
Fresh Expressions
“Fresh expressions” is a movement that began in the Church of England and British Methodist churches but soon spread to other denominations in England and…
50 Quotations Series
Why a collection of quotations? The right phrase or succinct quotation can sometimes carry more power than long essays or intense discussion. Capturing the essence…
Young Clergy Numbers Grow Among Young Clergywomen
For over ten years, the Lewis Center in partnership with the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits has reported annually on Clergy Age Trends in…
The New Realities of Engaging Newcomers
This five-minute video by the Lewis Center’s Lovett H. Weems, Jr., provides an overview of how new people are coming into church communities in different…
Cultivating a Feedback-Friendly Congregation
Think of a time when good feedback or a helpful suggestion made a big difference for you or for your church. Think about what you…
Right Questions for Church Leaders
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions. These two sentences introduce “The Right Question,” one of the most popular features in…
Fostering Conversations That Connect
Does it seem that you still see the same people in worship on Sunday but not as often? For a number of years, declines in…
What is “Adjacent Possible”? Can It Benefit Your Church?
Business scholar Rosabeth Moss Kanter has completed a two-year study of the nation’s infrastructure with a special focus on its transportation systems. Many of these…
Leadership Lived: Clementa Pinckney and Open Doors
As soon as I saw the television images of Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Charleston on the early morning news, my heart…
Assertive and Humble Leadership
Columnist E. J. Dionne, Jr., reported on Senator Chris Coons of Delaware speaking to the Secular Coalition of America (“A Senator’s Faith — and Humility,”…
Check Your Website Immediately
Many people can remember when the telephone Yellow Pages or the sign outside your church were likely to be the first places people looked to…
Commencement Season Lessons for All Leaders
Next Monday is Commencement for Wesley Theological Seminary of which the Lewis Center for Church Leadership is an integral part. Commencements are happy and glorious…
When Silence Isn’t Golden
I was once pastor of a church where the Sunday morning worship service was broadcast live on radio. I never dreamed what a difference that…
Baseball and the Simplicity of Leadership
The new baseball season is upon us, and hope emerges anew in major league cities across the country. Baseball fans and some who had paid…
Look for Options, Not Solutions
Leaders are constantly faced with problems. They engage such challenges with energy because they know that these issues represent what stands between their current reality…
Are You Glad When Passing the Peace Ends?
I once had a friend who attended church regularly with his wife, but he would wait in the narthex until after the “passing of the…
Leaders Learn from Their Failures
The Super Bowl in January had the highest viewing audience ever — a record of over 114 million. Those who attended the first Super Bowl…
Could Your Church Have Developed WD-40®?
The church today requires innovation, not improvement. Making things better through improvements is always welcomed, but we are past the time when merely improving what…