Ministry in smaller congregations takes expertise and enthusiasm for people not programs, says United Methodist minister and small church consultant Ron Crandall. A retired seminary dean, Ron has a contagious excitement for the small church, and says that building a core team of leaders within the congregation is key. In this interview, Ron unpacks this [...]

The Well is a United Methodist church plant that, by most indicators, is a home run. It’s hip, it’s relevant, and on its first Sunday, 7 months ago, welcomed more than 800 people. However, pastor Arthur Jones says the challenge of discipleship-making remains: how do we help young people deepen their knowledge of Scripture, increase [...]

Author, journalist, and pastor Jason Byassee says it was the natural move at his rather large, well-established Boone United Methodist Church in North Carolina: that his first hire would be someone charged to coordinate care of those who were not already members. Jason, an author who writes for the Christian Century and is a popular [...]

Gifted retreat leader and speaker Suzanne Stabile says the Church, living in liminality, is best served by engaging in intentional spiritual practices. Her expertise in the enneagram and other spiritual disciplines as arranged through the Life in the Trinity Ministry office has her visiting many congregations, which she says, are hungry for intentional spiritual practices. [...]

How does a church of 19 (mostly grandparents) get to nearly 150 in just a few years? Intentional Christian practice found at the heart of the Methodist tradition. Matt Smith, co-founder of The Table at Central United Methodist Church says the growing congregation, that already has one ‘plant’ at a local coffee house, is all [...]

Taking what’s best of the old and freshening it up with the new is the challenging work facing nearly every congregation today says Duke University theologian, author, and UMC minister L. Gregory Jones – so how do we do this? Dr. Jones says one strategy is that church leaders need to keep up on the [...]

Ordained Methodist, PhD candidate, and USA Messy Church coordinator Andrew Holmes ponders the role of ‘fun’ when it comes to Christian worship – and at the end of the day he’s in favor of it. Holmes, who cites numerous Scripture texts suggesting the playfulness of God, is also writing his doctoral dissertation (St. John’s, Durham [...]

Valley and Mountain is not your typical church – in fact now, in its infancy, it is best described as a movement – which may be where the next generation of vibrant congregations is going. John, a gifted United Methodist Church minister, is a few years into this Seattle, WA plant, which meets in different [...]

It’s not that they’ve never been churched, it’s that they’ve been de-churched – says Foundry United Methodist pastor Dean Snyder – which calls for ministering in a whole new way. Pastor Snyder’s helped design a whole new worship service, with different time and liturgy, in hopes of capturing the attentions of Washington, D.C.’s young urbanites. [...]

The ethical shortcomings we hear about in the news every day are, unfortunately, not absent from the Church. Whether it be financial, sexual, or some other scandal, not only are they common, but there are ways to handle them that can minimize the pain. Susan Nienaber is a Senior Consultant with the Alban Institute and [...]

“Certainly not MY sermon!” – Yep, Princeton Seminary PhD candidate Stephen Cady says he was just as shocked to discover this – and other things – about the spirituality of young people. When Stephen embarked on his research – to discover where high school aged young adults find God in worship – he never expected [...]

It’s a lament often heard in churches: where are all the kids? And Princeton Seminary‘s Kenda Creasy Dean says we often not need look further than parents. An abundance of research points to the direct link between religiously active adults and religiously active children – so the best place to start – is with parents. In [...]

21st Century Strategies church consultant Bill Easum says it’s the most common challenge he runs into when consulting stalled churches: 2-3 entrenched bullies are at work, who shoot down new ideas and impede growth. Bill, a legendary mentor who has consulted for more than 700 congregations, says leaders need to remember that the message is [...]

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 [...]

Few Christian ministers can lead and preach like the venerable Will Willimon. A United Methodist bishop, prolific author, scholar, and pastor – Bishop Willimon says leading is important because too many congregations have been trained to expect too little. And preaching is important because God has a lot to say to today’s churches. I was [...]

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 [...]

It wasn’t strategic planning or suburban demographics that led Pastor David McNitzky’s Alamo Heights United Methodist Church to open a satellite campus – it was the prayer team. David’s large congregation had hit a plateau and expansion north of town was where the Spirit seemed to be leading. In this interview, David explains how his [...]

It all boils down to who we are and what we’re doing here. So says well-known consultant and author Gil Rendle who sees many congregations suffer because they put relationships over purpose. As we all know, the main reason for the church’s existence is God’s mission – a conviction many congregations need to recover. In [...]

Wonder how Mike Slaughter’s 2-room country church grew to a 5,000+ member congregation? Mike says the success at Ginghamsburg Church it’s a combination of vision, outreach, and a commitment to stay in the same position for more than 30 years. It’s an unlikely story, that a 27-year-old Methodist pastor could take a tiny country church, [...]

Author, minister, and Gallup Organization consultant Al Winseman points to the hard data that says people who are engaged (involved, committed, and enthusiastic) with their faith communities are more apt to support the mission of Christ in the local church. While the sad truth is that most church members are not engaged Al has written [...]

Keeping 180 year old Calvary United Methodist Church vibrant takes more than one person – pastor Todd Outcalt says it takes a caring community that will uphold an atmosphere of hospitality and welcoming.  This Brownsburg, Indiana congregation has moved 5 times in its history, and under Todd’s leadership, has seen Sunday attendance double. I first [...]

50% of the resources at Cornerstone United Methodist Church are spent on people who are not there says pastor Brad Kalajainen. He started the Grand Rapids, Michigan church with 25 people in his basement, and today hosts 2,000 worshipers each Sunday. Brad’s heart is for those who are not Christians as he takes quite seriously Jesus’ words [...]

It’s become common for many churches – to offer the same church experience in many sites – even partnering with declining congregations of the same tradition to instill new life through new ministry. That’s the creative idea lead pastor Jorge Acevedo is putting into action with Grace Church in South Florida, a United Methodist congregation. [...]

Less than a year after opening his doors, Ronnie Collins’ Out of the Box Worship Center is nearly bigger than the United Methodist congregation that planted it. One big reason is Ronnie’s use of social media, especiallyhis blog and Facebook, to keep in touch and mold community. Ronnie’s demographic research showed him 78% of his [...]

Invite them to serve and they will come. The United Methodists are growing their congregations (40,000+) though an innovative campaign aimed at 18-35 year olds that highlights service.  Larry Hollon is the exec in charge and he says young people are hungry to give back so many of them are turning to well-equipped United Methodist [...]