Why Are We Here?

What business are you in? It seems like an obvious question. But many businesses, organizations–and churches–have faltered and failed because their people were not clear about their true mission. This cloudiness of mission contributed to the eventual fall of the Eastman Kodak Company. As digital photography began to rise, Kodak’s leaders started and stopped and […]

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The Anti-Business Church

Someone always inevitably blurts the Old Statement: “The church is not a business.” When a lay person uses a metaphor from the business world in a church meeting, you can count on someone chiding the person with the Old Statement. “The church is not a business.” When someone suggests the church employ sound–and legal–employment practices, […]

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The Upside of Church Decline

Just as we received more bad news about church health in America, the analysts have found a positive spin. The Association of Religion Data Archives released the latest downward data in the U.S. Congregational Life Survey, citing “stark evidence of the aging and shrinking of many congregations.” But the organization’s news release carried the headline: […]

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“It’s about Sunday, stupid.”

A friend visited the large, famous church on a typical Sunday. The worship band performed with precision. The lighting and fog effects were state of the art. The pastor presented a polished sermon amidst specially built staging. Later in the week a pastor from this church shared their ministry secrets in a seminar. He described […]

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Ministry Newsletters: The Good, Bad and Ugly

What does your newsletter really communicate about your ministry? What impression does it leave? I recently invited churches around the country to send me samples of their newsletters. They responded with an assortment of newsletters–printed, emailed, and web-based–from all kinds of churches. I found some good examples, some bad examples, and some ugly examples. Here’s […]

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