There has been a lot of talk lately about the need for creative leadership in the church. Recognizing that in…

This past weekend I had a wonderful experience that created an idea about how congregations can affirm God’s call to…

The single pastor or educator should invite another colleague or two or three to share in the conversational game. It…

Now for the couple whose children have already departed from the home. Below are 29 questions that you should place…

Below are a set of questions for a ministerial couple who do not have children. If you have not read…

Below are 27 questions that you should place on individual 3 x 5 cards and shuffle them so that there…

When was the last time that you had a fairly indepth conversation about your experience of ministry? If you have…

I want to build on yesterday’s discussion about how a church behaves when expectations of leaders are not met. First,…

I recently talked to a pastor about a negative termination experience at a church. It recalled for me several times…

When a clergy person or a prominent church leader engages in activity that betrays the trust of the congregation, it…

It is difficult for either clergy or congregations to raise the question of boundaries. For the clergy, being asked to…

One of the sadder realities of the change in ministry is the necessity of reviewing our boundaries with respect to…

One of the great quanderies that has evolved in ministry is how to set boundaries in interpersonal relationships. This ranges…

Most churches do not choose to be harmful to the pastor’s family life. As a body they would probably agree…

One of the popular topics for clergy these days is the issue of boundaries. There are a number of areas…

One of the trickier aspects of this whole issue of forgiveness is learning how to forgive yourself. On two previous…

I know that at first glance it seems like almost heresy to consider forgiving God. However, we need to remember…

We talk alot about forgiveness in the church. Usually we focus those comments on our need to forgive someone who…

A very wise friend of mine said to me about a year before my retirement, “You need to decide what…

Recently I was at a retirement banquet for one of my best friends. Sitting next to me was another retired…