It’s called the Parish Collective – and the idea is to link churches to their geographic boundaries – lifting up the community in the name of Christ. However, these aren’t Roman Catholic, Lutheran, or Episcopal congregations, per se, they’re the collective of Christians in one area who are committed to improving that area. Co-founder Tim [...]

Fr. Jim Hamilton really thought the new Sunday night service he was hired to create would flop – but then God has a sense of humor. Out of Christ Church, Cranbrook‘s desire for a contemplative service for 20-somethings came Lex Orandi which, two years later, is a vibrant community that has far surpassed expectations. In [...]

Theologian and author Bob Whitesel says ‘the missing middle’ of healthy congregational growth is transformation – which he sees as key for today’s church to accomplish God’s mission. Bob, founding professor of Wesley Seminary at Indiana Wesleyan University and the author of several books on congregational growth, anchors his conviction on his idea of ‘missional’ [...]

One of the advantages to leading a church in a country where few people go to church is that you can be creative. That’s what’s behind the Fresh Expressions movement in the U.K. – where David Male has the job of training ‘pioneer missionaries.’ These are folks are entrepreneurs and innovators who listen for the [...]

The unkeepable promise of certainty is what the world offers – and the Church shows its own fears when it tries to compete. That’s why author and theologian Peter Rollins urges congregations to embrace the truth of life’s deep mystery and unknowing – as a way to open us up to God’s presence and purpose. [...]

The pendulum’s swung, says author, speaker, and activist JR Woodward. Bigger is no longer better in the church world – and Woodward is predicting that the real energy for God’s work in the local church will come from smaller, intentional communities who are immersed in spiritual practices that energize and inspire. While many people are [...]

Gone are those church planting days of door to door questionnaires and neighborhood polling. Anglican Church of Canada minister Ryan Sim is starting his church with an iPhone app. It will be called ‘Redeem the Commute’ – and it’s stage one of a process to introduce Christianity to unchurched residents of Ajax, Ontario. Enjoy the [...]

Sure, it may not sell in many church circles today – but Margot Starbuck’s invitation to discomfort for the sake of others has invigorated her ministry and the thousands she addresses. Margot, an author, speaker, and Presbyterian minister, just moved with her family into a community being formed around young adult friends with disabilities. In [...]

Sure, it’s a cheeky way of putting it – but Wycliffe College Evangelism Professor John Bowen has some very serious things to say about how Christians witness to their faith. His helpful definition for evangelism is: ‘Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, helping people take steps toward discipleship.’ In this interview, this seasoned academic [...]

When Derek Penwell began serving the struggling Douglass Boulevard Christian Church in 2008, the church board decided to reach out to its local neighborhood – an LGBT neighborhood. Little did Derek know this would bring him to places of leadership in the community and in his Disciples of Christ denomination to champion LGBT rights. In [...]

For Christian Piatt and his Milagro Church bridging polarizing differences, which seem intractable in today’s contemporary society, is a job more churches should be putting on the front burner. Christian, an author blogger and pastor, co-founded the congregation with his wife (before recently moving), and thinks that the witness of just getting along with one [...]

It’s the classic definition of ‘missional’: participating with God in what God is doing in the world – and it’s Steve Knight’s passion and profession. Maybe you’ve heard of Steve’s popular blog, or heard him speak (or spoken about) at emergent church gatherings. Steve currently serves the Disciples of Christ in their efforts to start [...]

Author, activist, and new monasticism practitioner Shane Claiborne says it’s all about having a heart for others and concentrating on life here before the life hereafter. Shane, a member of The Simple Way community in Philadelphia, moved into the Kensington neighborhood years ago with a desire to build a community, not a church, and it’s [...]

No longer should the church shape the mission – but the mission must shape the church. So says author, instructor, and missional guru Alan Hirsch, who’s on a mission to invite all churches to embrace mission. Alan is well known in evangelical and mega-church circles and has something to teach everyone: that (as Barth said) [...]

It’s our age’s big missional question – and one Mark Lau Branson of  Fuller Seminary says is at the heart of preparing Christian leaders to effectively shape faith communities. Mark’s work, in the field of practical theology, helps ready Christians for the work on the ground that the Spirit is cultivating. In this interview, Mark [...]

The image of God, from which you and I are made, has much to do with imagination – so says photographer, blogger, Proost director, and Christian Missionary Society leader Jonny Baker, whose worship resources and creative insights have made him one of the go-to guys in today’s missional church movement. Jonny trains Christian pioneer workers [...]

After preaching a sermon series on science and religion, Pastor Ken Wilson says, over time, 7% of his Ann Arbor Vineyard congregation up and left – his attempt to speak to the people who weren’t in his pews was taking its toll. Ken, who’s a pastor and author, says embracing mission won’t necessarily make you [...]

Dr. Elaine Heath prepares her seminary students for ministry not with the latest, but with the oldest. Dr. Heath, a proponent of the New Monasticism, says a tripos of prayer, deep hospitality, and justice may be the only stool upon which effective ministry will take place in this new millennium. Elaine, who heads up the [...]

It’s the classic missional question: if your church closed would anyone in the neighborhood notice? Years ago Judy Paulsen posed it to the good folk at Christ Memorial Church in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada and when too many people hesitated, the congregation took on a challenge that has reinvigorated the church. Judy Paulsen is an incredibly [...]

Enough with the ‘Jesus-Flavored Group Therapy’ – says minister, student, and podcaster Tripp Fuller – it’s the prophetic work of justice that defined Jesus and needs to define the Church. Tripp is on the ministry staff at a United Church of Christ church in Southern California where his experiences with families trying to fit into [...]

Quit the copying and start dreaming! United Methodist minister, seminary professor, and leadership honcho Dr. Mark Fowler says the Church is past the days of program plug-ins and into uncharted waters where not only we can experiment, but thankfully, we can pray. Mark heads up the Institute for Transformative Leaders and Communities at Garrett Evangelical [...]

The North American Church is broken and you can’t fix it. These are tough words from seasoned author and consultant Alan Roxburg of The Missional Network. He says it’s high time Christians realize that God is the one disrupting the settled assumptions of Christendom and pushing us to new, unpredictable places. The good news is [...]

One of the most common problems ailing churches face is a debilitating mindset to preserve the Institution vs. genuinely caring for people. Author, consultant, and Leadership Network speaker Reggie McNeal is an icon in the congregational development world. He’s written extensively, in The Present Future,  Missional Renaissance and Missional Communities, about the Church’s need to [...]

It’s a buzz-word the Spirit’s been spreading: Missional. And now it’s getting its own denomination, of sorts. Spencer Burke has been on the cutting edge of modern ways to ‘do’ church for the last 20 years.  Now he’s launching www.missionplanting.com as an association of mission-minded churches to share resources. Chances are, they’re resources your church [...]

The problem with most of America’s churches (which are declining) is that they’re too focused on empire building and not kingdom building, says church planter Nick Warnes.  If congregations would simply take the risk of giving their power away the Church would be a more vibrant, relevant force. Nick’s intentional church plant with the Presbyterian [...]