What Makes A Church “Small”?
Would you like that super-sized? It’s a time of anxiety for a lot of churches, especially as we educate ourselves in what Montreal philosophy professor […]
church growth
What Makes a Good Church?
I know the title may be controversial. After all, what is “good”? And I’m aware of what vonBalthasar said somewhere that “success is not a […]
Managing the church – 6 problems with church growth.
Carey Nieuwhof, pastor of Connexus Community Church in Barrie, has written a blog post on 8 reasons most churches never break the 200 attendance mark. […]
Best Practices
Over the past six years, I have been in literally hundreds of churches. Many are in gradual decline and are searching for solutions to reverse direction. Sadly, almost all are going about it in exactly the wrong way.
Is Multiculturalism Bad for the Church?
I’ve often heard this said as proof of our multiculturalism. It’s usually easy to connect the idea of diversity with the existence of difference without […]
Seconding a Sentiment
There are many talented people in the Presbyterian church. They could be, should be sharing their gifts as part of a national and denominational strategy for making our worship vibrant and joyful, and for effectively sharing our faith. Are they? And is there a strategy?
Simply Christian in a Secular Age
Most Canadians, young and old, don’t attend church even though they believe in God. The reasons are varied and complex and it may be that some find the church’s theology hopelessly conservative and outdated. But it’s also possible that they stay away because they don’t see the point.
Fundamentalists by Default
So the younger generations don’t attend church? Maybe that’s because they see the church as the “new atheists” charge, having blind faith, which is often […]
Ask Me About My Church
Over the 900 metres from my front door to my daughter’s school, I see a lot of handbills on hydro posts. There are the usual […]
The Church of R&R
Okay, so you’re wondering just what Presbyterian church I visited that prompted the headline, The Church of R&R. Rest and relaxation? In a Presbyterian congregation?? […]
Can You Imagine!
A well-meaning business friend of mine sent me a little tidbit on how a corporate culture change guru is effecting change in a car company. […]
Learning Experience
We had struggled for several years at Melville, Toronto, to persuade the adults of the congregation that Christian education is for them as well as […]