With few exceptions, one of the challenging tasks of the finance committee after all of the pledges are in is…

Every year the church stewardship committee tries to come up with a new way to approach the stewardship campaign. The…

I am pleased to report that my new CD, Laughter From the Well, is now on cdbaby.com. Soon after it…

When someone jabs at you, it is important to know how to respond in a way that preserves your dignity…

Psalm 13 is considered the classic lament psalm. There are times when we feel nothing is going right and we…

There is also power in praying for your church when, despite one’s best efforts, it feels like the church is…

When we pray psalm 22, it is hard not to think of Jesus on the cross but the very fact…

Let us begin with that most familiar of all psalms, Psalm 23. As I mentioned yesterday, I encourage you to…

If the Psalms are God’s gift to us to teach us how to pray, then we need to experience them…

There is an old creativity strategy that I think might be beneficial in a conversation about the work of judicatory…

A council that cares about those who are exercising ministry on their behalf should take time occasionally to affirm their…

If you have taken some time to reflect on the nature of your call that has led to this position…

At least every couple of years, and in times of extreme stress more often, you should deliberately pause to reflect…

It is very easy to allow the incessant meetings, inevitable crisis, and pastoral care of others to exhaust you. Even…

Let me suggest one final possibility for the congregation and pastor upon the pastor’s return from a sabbatical. Remember that…

Another possibility for the congregation and pastor upon return from Sabbatical would be to have a congregational visioning time. This…

Congregations need to be intentional about receiving a pastor back from a sabbatical. In some ways a 3-4 month sabbatical…

There is a piece of technology that I think can be very valuable in helping denominational staff nurture the value…

Denominational staff members who work for the larger church need to deliberately identify ways that they take care of their…

I will speak of the body that meets regularly with a staff person as a council. You can adapt that…