How to Have a Healthy Church in One Year
I’m not really a math person – I took pre-Algebra from Mrs. McDade TWICE in Junior High. I was okay when it was numbers, but when they threw in letters, I was done. So when I went to college, I majored in English…the farthest I could get away from math! But I’ve seen a math…
Read MoreThree Tips for Preaching Fantastic Sermons in 2014-Sermon Preparation
French chemist and scientist Louis Pasteur once said that “luck favors the prepared mind.” I think we could replace the word luck with the Holy Spirit. I think the Holy Spirit favors the prepared preacher. Obviously, there are moments when the Holy Spirit shows up in spontaneous ways. But the Holy Spirit can show up…
Read MoreThree Tips for Preaching Fantastic Sermons in 2014-Create a Preaching Calendar
What am I going to preach on? That’s a question we all ask at times. One of the best ways to determine what you should preach on is to look back on the previous year or two, and reflect on what you DID preach on. This usually reveals our favorite topics to talk about, as…
Read MoreThree Tips for Preaching Fantastic Sermons in 2014
Tip #1: Less is More. 52 Sundays. That’s a lot of preaching. As a preacher, the question you have to ask yourself is, “How many sermons do I have in me this coming year?” I think the answer is different for many of us. I’ve often said I am beyond amazed at the people…
Read MoreIt’s Not too Late to Plan a Christmas Offering
When I was pastoring a local church in the Atlanta area, the Christmas offering was one of the most fun things we did. I know the words “offering” and “fun” are not often used in the same sentence, but it really was a great experience. Over the years, pastors have asked me how to do…
Read MoreHow to Turn Volunteers into Leaders
A few months ago, I worked with a local church to help them overcome a specific problem. This particular church had a leadership issue. Specifically, they had a lot of people to do things but was having trouble turning volunteers into leaders. They could get a lot of people to show up to a work…
Read MoreWhat Percent of Your Adults Serve (and what SHOULD it be)?
It’s 7 days until Get More Volunteers. Click here to sign up before registration closes. The average church engages 45% of their adults and students in some kind of serving role. Here’s the breakdown: Is your church average, below average or above average? What percentage of your adults and students serve? Would you like…
Read MoreWhen to Give Up the Pulpit (and how often)
How many weekends a year do you preach? 45 or more? Fifty? All of them? Preaching every week can be emotionally and spiritually draining. I know you’re called to communicate the Gospel and you love sharing God’s Word with people, but a drained pastor isn’t a good preacher. Get intentional about taking a few weeks…
Read MoreBest Practices to Increase Giving in Your Church
There’s an ice cream shop in Venezuela that sells more than 900 flavors, including Spaghetti and Cheese. Now I like spaghetti, and I like ice cream, but those two things just don’t go together. A Gourmet French Ice Cream company sells Caviar Ice Cream. I’m pretty sure that’s a French rouse to get people to…
Read More19 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Exponential ’13: Derwin Gray
On October 29th, The Rocket Company will be putting on a FREE online called Get More Volunteers. The purpose of this event is to learn from great church leaders like Perry Noble and Chris Hodges how to gain, train, and retain volunteers. Another one of our speakers is the senior pastor of Transformation Church Derwin…
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