by Joel Snider | May 19, 2020 | future
I read a story recently by a man who lived in Houston during the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. He and his neighbors felt a deep, intrinsic reward the first few days of shoveling muck from their homes, hosing off belongings, and saving their...
by CHC | May 12, 2020 | Adapting
Like many at the start of this pandemic lockdown I went all Marie Kondo on my home. In the process I came across handwritten notes from a talk Ron Heifetz (Godfather of Adaptive Change) gave several years ago. An audience member posed a question...
by Matt Cook | May 5, 2020 | Christian
In the second and third centuries two different pandemics swept the Ancient Roman world. Many Roman cities were densely populated (by some estimates Ancient Rome was three times more densely populated per square mile than modern day New York City) which made them...
by David Hull | Apr 28, 2020 | coronavirus, preaching
John Ruskin once wrote, “Preaching is thirty minutes to raise the dead.” This well-worn quote is worth hearing again. While our preaching during this pandemic may be shorter than thirty minutes due to online attention spans, the cultural moment that is...
by Barry Howard | Apr 23, 2020 | Uncategorized
Church looks and feels very different right now. For the past six to seven weeks, as a proactive expression of love for our people and our communities, most of our churches have been gathering online for worship, Bible study, and committee meetings rather than...
by Mike Queen | Apr 20, 2020 | focus
“Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow. Don’t stop, it’ll soon be here.It’ll be, better than before. Yesterday’s gone, yesterday’s gone.” These lyrics from an old Fleetwood Mac song call us to let go of yesterday and look forward to tomorrow. While most of us are...
by Bill Wilson | Apr 14, 2020 | future
My friend Mike Smith (recently retired pastor at Central Baptist Church, Fountain City TN and thinker extraordinaire) and I have been speculating about what is on the horizon for congregations and parishes as the next phase of the Covid-19 shutdown takes place. We’ve...
by Barry Howard | Apr 7, 2020 | Self-Care
If it feels like your emotions are “all over the map” during these days of sequester and “physical distancing,” you are not alone. In addition to altering our schedules and delaying many of our plans, the closures and life interruptions will likely disrupt our sense...
by Phill Martin | Mar 31, 2020 | Self-Care
As a church staff leader, are you in information and support options overload? These opportunities are coming to us quickly and with ever-changing details. New laws, technology, challenges, upset schedules, and unknown answers. I know I’m in overload, perhaps...
by Matt Cook | Mar 25, 2020 | future
I still remember the moment I first saw the spaghetti models for Hurricane Florence heading right for us. I’m not a native North Carolinian and most of the folks who’d grown up on the coast told me not worry too much until it was a lot closer, but...
