Archive for Leadership – Page 2

Recovering a Vital Function Part Three: The Approach

by Mark Frost –  How do we reach non-religious people with the good news of Jesus? The task is so intimidating that most believers never make much of an effort, preferring instead the safety of the insulated fellowship of like-minded people. But for many of us, the very survival of our congregations (not to mention the […]

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Recovering a Vital Function – Part 2: God’s Initiative

by Mark Frost –  At one time, what passed for evangelism among us was the task of winning religious arguments with people who shared our worldview and many of our core beliefs, including the authority of Scripture. But now, we find ourselves surrounded by a culture that no longer accepts our worldview and does not understand our […]

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Recovering a Vital Function – Part 1: The Cultural Shift

by Mark Frost – Evangelism. There, I said it. How does that make you feel? Frightened? Guilty? Confused? Maybe even a bit embarrassed? Most of us who claim to be Christians feel some level of responsibility to share our faith with others; after all, Jesus’ final instruction to “go into all the world and preach the […]

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Hearing God’s Call for Your Church (part 2) – The Specific Call

by Mark Frost –  The Bible is filled with examples of God calling people to specific tasks for which they were uniquely gifted and qualified. Moses, raised and educated in Pharaoh’s court, was called to deliver God’s demand for his peoples’ freedom—to Pharaoh. God called Joshua to lead the Israelites in the conquest of the […]

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A User Friendly Church (part 4) – The Stranger

by Tim Woodroof –  Life was precarious in ancient times. Violence, famine, and plague lurked around every corner. Failed crops and marauding armies threatened ruin for all but the wealthiest few. A careless word, a simple lack of attention, could spell disaster. This was especially true for the “stranger.” A long way from the safety of […]

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A User Friendly Church (part 3) – Can I Get A Little Customer Service?

by Greg Anderson –  You might think “customer service” and “church” do not belong in the same sentence. How can they since churches do not have customers? In this post, Greg Anderson agrees that churches do not have “customers” in the classic sense, but he makes that case that embracing basic customer service principles can […]

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A User Friendly Church (Part 2) – A No! Chuch (And How To Avoid Becoming One)

by Mark Frost –  It was a Sunday morning. We were on vacation out of state. Our clan of four approached the morning with a mix of eager anticipation and anxious trepidation. We were visiting a church we had never before attended. On the one hand, we enjoyed meeting brothers and sisters in new locations. We […]

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A User Friendly Church (Part 1) – A Yes! Church?

by Phil Ware –  As surely as God is faithful, our word to you does not waver between “Yes” and “No.”  For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” He is the one whom Silas, Timothy, and I preached to you, and as God’s ultimate “Yes,” he always does what […]

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Followship: Part 1 – A Crisis of Followship

by Tim Woodroof Open your Bible and show me a time when God’s people ever flourished in the absence of good and godly leaders. Point out an instance where “everyone doing what was right in his own eyes” resulted in kingdom accomplishments. Give me an example when murmuring, resistance, and revolt against God’s anointed leaders […]

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Followship: Part 2 – Selected or Called?

by Tim Woodroof May I suggest one factor that makes leading and following so difficult in our congregations today? We (at least those of us who belong to Churches of Christ) have no functional theology of calling. In place of such a theology, we have adopted the leadership ideals and perspectives of our democratized culture, […]

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