Paying attention to the spiritual, emotional journey of our elders is an important way to build the body. By doing…

A first step in building Elder Leadership might begin in caring for each others physical health. What if as a…

There has been much written about church leadership lately but it is usually focused on the clergy. In the Presbyterian…

It is a current criticism of the contemporary church that there is very little prophetic preaching occurring in our churches.…

The pressure to prepare a sermon is so relentless that it often robs us of the time to do some…

Yesterday I suggested that you schedule some planning time to identify some major directions in your preaching schedule. Today, I…

Few lay people understand the emotional pressure of the weekly sermon. If you feel a sermon went badly, it puts…

I’m sharing with you a meditation I recently prepared as a devotional for a session that I moderate. Think of…

I have been receiving help on my development of comedy from Judy Carter who wrote the Comedy Bible. Recently she…

Al and Carla had parked at the end of the parking lot. It was mostly empty as they walked to…

The moderator of the meeting spoke up. “Could you summarize what you want from us at this time?” “Sure,” said…

After about 30 minutes of debate, the moderator recognized Carla to speak again. “I want you to know how much…

The next morning they joined with the other clergy as they registered, sipped coffee, and waited for the beginning of…

“Most of the clergy at our meeting would be able to tell you of some moment in time when they…

“It feels good to laugh a little, but we really are facing a difficult task,” Carla said. “Actually, it really…

“In different ways,” said Al, “they live a harsh world. What they want, what we all want, is for the…

As they walked out of the coffee house, Al suggested that they head towards a nearby park. The traffic filled…

“No one likes to hear where there life has come up short,” Al said. “People want to hear a message…

“And I thought my work had its depressing moments,” said Carla. “Don’t you reach times when it is just too…

“Even in a democracy, that’s where the resistance comes from,” said Al. “Members of congregations like mine want to believe…