In our Lilly-funded Project Thrive, we have outlined seven key traits of thriving churches. It comes as no surprise that one of those is “Missional … [Read more...] about Missional Focus: Tourist, Traveler or Pilgrim?
About Bill Wilson
Dr. William “Bill” Wilson founded The Center for Healthy Churches in January of 2014. This followed his service as President of the Center for Congregational Health at Wake Forest Baptist Health since 2009. Previously he was Pastor of First Baptist Church of Dalton, Georgia, where he served since 2003. He brings over 33 years of local church ministry experience to the Center, having served as pastor in two churches in Virginia (Farmville BC and FBC Waynesboro) and on a church staff in South Carolina. Bill has led each of the churches he has served into a time of significant growth and expansion of ministry.
His denominational leadership has been extensive, including serving as the President of the Baptist General Association of Virginia in 1998, on the McAfee School of Theology Board of Visitors (served as their chair 2008-2009), on the Board of the Baptist Center for Ethics, and as a member of the University of Richmond, the Mercer University and The Baptist Theological Seminary in Richmond Board of Trustees. He is currently a member of the Board for Baptist News Global. He is a certified coach and facilitator, and has experience as a consultant in numerous settings and with a wide range of organizations, faith communities, and churches.
Dr. Wilson grew up in Greensboro NC and Brentwood TN, where his father pastored local congregations. He graduated from Murray State University, and went on to receive his Master of Divinity at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and his Doctor of Ministry at the Graduate Theological Foundation in South Bend, Indiana.
Bill is a popular speaker and writer, and he brings to his role as the leader of the work of the Center a deep passion for the local church, as well as a commitment to the health and success of both clergy and congregations. He and Dr. Bob Dale have written a book together: Weaving Strong Leaders: How Leaders Grow Down, Grow Up and Grow Together. (2016)
He is married to Kathy and they have three children and ten grandchildren.
The Center for Healthy Churches is a nationwide network of 27 consultants and leaders who value and believe in the local church and are committed to it’s future. Deliberately trans-denominational, team members come from a wide range of denominational, geographic, theological and vocational backgrounds. The Center has worked with churches from approximately twenty different denominational groups that span the geographic and theological spectrum.
Endorsements:
“The help that Bill Wilson and his team have given here at First Baptist Church of Decatur (GA) in our recent, challenging season of transition has been an absolute game-changer. The new Center for Healthy Churches is a fresh expression of a proven approach to congregational wellness. This is great news for churches of all kinds, and for the kingdom of God.”
Dr. Julie Pennington-Russell
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Decatur GA
“I have known Bill Wilson as a confidant, encourager, and consultant. Most recently I have seen the results of his work at First Baptist Greensboro, where he and his team served as primary consultants through the church’s 19-month Transition and Pastor Search. Bill provided outstanding consultation that prepared both congregation and pastor for what has been a magnificent start. If my church or I were seeking consultation, facing challenges, or planning for the future, Bill Wilson would be my first phone call.”
Rev. Alan Sherouse
Pastor, First Baptist Church Greensboro NC
“In 2011, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the second largest church in the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, embarked on a long-range visioning process to help chart St. Paul’s future. After conducting a thorough request for proposal process for assistance from a consulting firm to help guide St. Paul’s’ process, St. Paul’s selected Bill Wilson and his team at the Center for Congregational Health. Bill and his team did an outstanding job throughout our engagement, which lasted about a year. They provided critical information about the various global dynamics and changes affecting churches, they appropriately guided us in our process without taking it over, and they were masterful in allowing us as a congregation to develop our own thoughts and ideas while effectively challenging us to consider newer, different and bigger, “provocative proposals”. Bill Wilson and his team were available, present, responsive, insightful and a pleasure to work with. I am certain that St. Paul’s Long Range Vision process and outcome would not have been as successful as it was were it not for Bill Wilson and his team. I look forward to an opportunity to work with him again in the future.”
David P. Broughton
Chair, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Long Range Vision Committee
Articles by Bill Wilson
A New Set of Metrics
I recently found this photo of my mom standing with my sisters and me on an Easter Sunday morning around 1964. Aside from my stunning fashion … [Read more...] about A New Set of Metrics
From Risk Management to Risk Taking
On this one-year anniversary of the start of the Covid Pandemic, it seems appropriate to take stock and assess the American Church. For many of us, … [Read more...] about From Risk Management to Risk Taking
Five Crucial Tools for Healthy Ministry
Regularly, ministers ask for my help with ministerial and congregational life in pragmatic ways. What is the best way to organize, plan, preach, … [Read more...] about Five Crucial Tools for Healthy Ministry
PTED: Post Traumatic Election Disorder and a Trauma-Informed Congregation
In recent years, PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) has become a highly visible part of our culture, and generalized trauma has emerged as a … [Read more...] about PTED: Post Traumatic Election Disorder and a Trauma-Informed Congregation
Please Don’t Waste Your Transition Crisis!
What would you say is the best gift a Transitional Pastor can give a congregation? Most traditional interim training programs land heavily on the … [Read more...] about Please Don’t Waste Your Transition Crisis!
The Train of Conflict is Coming
CXAs a child, my neighborhood friends and I loved to play on a train track near our house. Foolish, I know, but quite fun and exhilarating. We learned … [Read more...] about The Train of Conflict is Coming
Your Church: Re-Start, Re-Fresh or Re-Launch?
Our current virus pandemic has forced all of us to face some harsh realities. One of the benefits of experiencing a seismic shift in our world is the … [Read more...] about Your Church: Re-Start, Re-Fresh or Re-Launch?
What Will We See Less of and More of in Churches in the 2020s?
Approximately 100 days into the Corona-19 pandemic, we continue to find ourselves bewildered and confused by the upheaval to our way(s) of life. It … [Read more...] about What Will We See Less of and More of in Churches in the 2020s?