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Leadership

Nehemiah’s Lessons for Post-Pandemic Church Leaders

Pastors have their favourites. And I don’t mean people, but books of the Bible. And they will inevitably change over time. The worn out and wearied minister may find his daily solace for a season in the “servant songs” of Isaiah––refreshed with a reminder of the gentleness of his Saviour, who delicately cradles the bruised reed in his hands (see Isa 42:3). The pastor wrestling with his own sinful heart may, for a time, immerse himself in the letter to the Hebrews––the book of Jesus the great High Priest par excellence. But where might the pastor turn for instruction and...

Dan Dupuis

When Pastors Get Discouraged

Darryl Dash

“Do you ever get frustrated by how many people don’t seem to change?” I asked. It was Monday. I’d just finished preaching another sermon. I’m encouraged by what’s happening in our little church, but to be honest, I sometimes feel discouraged too. People listen politely, but it’s hard to measure growth in people’s lives in the short term. It’s much easier to measure disappointment: people engaging in sin, people struggling with issues, people generally not doing the things that they most need to do. It’s the pastor’s dilemma: growth in grace can be hard to measure, but disappointments abound. Our...

man in rain

He Knows Not How

Paul Carter

This passage explains why I have always been skeptical of church growth authors and experts: The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; HE KNOWS NOT HOW. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come. (Mark 4:26–29 ESV, emphasis mine) HE KNOWS NOT HOW. Very often the explanation we give for the...

A Stop Doing List for Pastors

Darryl Dash

Business author Jim Collins suggests we develop a “stop doing” list so that we discard activities that don’t fit because of our passions and convictions. I like that idea, but rather than making up our own, I suggest we borrow from Paul’s list of activities that have no place in Christian ministry, all found in 2 Corinthians. I hope they’re not so much a “stop doing” list as much as a list of things we’ve never done and will never even consider. And they’re not as much a reflection of our passions as much as they are implications of the...

Journaling

Set an Example

Darryl Dash

Tim Keller founded Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York. He’s written best-selling books like Making Sense of God and The Reason for God. He’s cofounder of The Gospel Coalition. When I quote him, I can assume that at least half the people in my congregation know who he is. But I still remember the first day I heard of him. In 2005, I read D.A. Carson’s book Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church. Carson mentioned a congregation in New York that wasn’t perfect, but that had “many wholly admirable features.” They understood postmodern New York culture; they lived their message...

New York City

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