Reaching More People, Younger People, More Diverse People
The United Methodist Church faces a looming adaptive challenge that can only be addressed by major learning, innovation, and prayerful discernment. United Methodists in the…
Browsing: Congregational Revitalization
Articles
Take the Next Step: Reaching More People, Younger People, More Diverse People
“There is no future for a church or denomination that cannot reach more people, younger people, and more diverse people,” according to Dr. Lovett H.…
Does Your Faith Community Live out of Memory or Imagination?
Bill Wilson, director of the Center for Healthy Churches, says that while memories of the past are vital, they must be balanced with a creative…
5 Steps to Church Vitality and Turnaround
Baltimore Pastor C. Anthony Hunt outlines a five-part process helpful to churches or non-profits looking to renew their vitality. He shares how this process helped…
The Case of a Small Church in an Oversized Building
Lewis A. Parks, author of Small on Purpose, describes how smaller congregations can easily squander their last resources for ministry attempting to keep up with…
Missional Church: More than a Catchphrase
What does it really mean to be a missional church? Lewis Center Director Doug Powe says it’s more than a catchphrase for activities aimed at…
Staying Attuned to Your Community
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., writes that congregations all start not for themselves, but to serve other people. But with the passage of time, they tend…
Preparing for the Shift
Incoming Lewis Center Director Doug Powe says that demographic shifts will bring increased diversity to the neighborhoods around most churches in the coming decades. Rather…
The Importance of Why
Healthy churches know why they do what they do, says pastor and author Graham Standish. When what we do is based on a clear why,…
Why Some Ministries Need to Die
Every ministry has a lifespan, according to pastor and author Graham Standish. When a church forces dying ministries to stay alive, it prevents new ministries…
10 Qualities Your Church Doesn’t Need to Grow Young
What types of churches attract young people? Kara Powell, Jake Mulder, and Brad Griffin, the authors of Growing Young, dispel a number of common myths. Their…
Some Old Handbells Became Our Fish and Loaves
Pastor Rosario Picardo tells how selling two old sets of silver handbells that hadn’t been used for 20 years provided a surprisingly large infusion of cash…
Do Your Church Events Serve a Healthy Purpose?
Is your church calendar crammed with one event after another? Church consultant Tony Morgan says many congregations just keep scheduling the same events without ever…
The 75 Percent Rule to Reach Younger People
Lee Kricher, pastor of Amplify Church in Pittsburgh, says it’s unlikely that younger adults will be drawn to a service where the people in visible…
The Power of Core Values
Anthony Hunt, pastor of Epworth Chapel in Baltimore, describes how discerning and naming core values can help a church stay focused and on track. Clear…
6 Ways to Jumpstart Leadership Formation
Pastor Mike Slaughter says one of the key factors determining the effectiveness of a congregation is the presence of principled leaders who demonstrate a vital…
Living Through a Church Renovation
Daniel Hilty says that any large-scale facility renovation requires a congregation to tolerate a tremendous amount of change and disruption. It’s critical to share information,…
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.…
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…
11 Characteristics of Effective Smaller Churches
What are the qualities of effective smaller churches? David Ray explores eleven key qualities of dynamic and faithful smaller churches that he observed across 21…
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.…
Cool Church Isn’t What It Used to Be
In a rapidly changing culture, churches cannot stay relevant by simply adopting the latest trend, says Carey Nieuwhof, especially as indifference to church grows. The…
Becoming a Leader Who Says Yes!
During my tenth year as pastor of a large multi-staff church, the laity offered me a twelve-week study leave for rest, renewal, and learning. I…
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…
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…
Sifting Our Inheritance: What to Keep and What to Let Go
A few years ago, my mom passed away after having lived a good life. Dad asked us to help him sort through my mother’s possessions.…
Celebrate to Build Your Church’s God-Esteem
Dying churches are often churches with low self-esteem. Your task as a leader is not to build up the church’s self-esteem but to build up…
When is a Proposed Change a Deal Breaker?
God told Jeremiah “to uproot and to tear down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” These biblical directions are the definition…
Lovett Weems Briefly Reviews Three Books of Interest to Church Leaders
Rebuilt: Awakening the Faithful, Reaching the Lost, Making Church Matter by Michael White and Tom Corcoran, Ave Maria Press, 2013. This book will surprise…
Levers of Change for Congregations
Bishop Robert Schnase, author of the popular Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations (Abingdon, 2007), has inspired thousands of congregations to focus on what is most…
