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I have had the honor of working full-time for a number of churches in a number of roles over a 20+ year period. Of those jobs that I had and quit (yes, from some I was fired) the reason for my departure always boiled down to one or more of five factors. My tendency was to stay too long whether out of financial fear, a false sense of martyrdom or a lack of emotional intelligence.  Read more…

In a recent blog post, I wrote about the Great Resignation and the impact on the church. In that post, I noted that I would be writing more about the pastor and church staff shortage in a future post. Welcome to that post! Many research organizations that study church trends are predicting a significant shortage of pastors in the near future. The retirement of Boomer pastors, the great resignation and the bleeding of pastors under Read more…

On an unusually warm winter day in Columbus, Nebraska, I found myself before an art display at Pawnee Park called the “Quincentenary Belltower.” It was dedicated in 1992 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ first voyage to the “new world.” The belltower housed ten bells within an “aesthetically pleasing structure” that went out horizontally from a center flag. On the wall that shielded the bells, a map of the historic journey from Europe to Read more…

In 2021, the United States experienced what has come to be known as the great resignation; a voluntary mass exodus from the workforce. There are many reasons for this exodus, most of which we will not cite or debate here, instead examining the great resignation through the lens of the church. The church was not at all exempt from the great resignation and while we have probably seen the peak of the great resignation in Read more…

“What does health look like?” a church leader asked me the other day while I was sipping a chai tea latte at a local coffee shop across the table from him.  We were reflecting together on the past year; a year that has been quite trying for our faith community. “I know it’s not the yeast of dissension and division on the rise all around us,” I replied, “but I do know spreading the yeast of Read more…

While lying in front of the fireplace with my eyes closed, I sensed our dog, Lizzy, near me.  Opening my eyes, we were nose to nose, and she licked my face.  “Gross, Lizzy,” I said as she laid down next to me with her head in my lap.  She had just wanted to draw near to me, so despite her dog breath, I received her nearness. Do I approach God with Lizzy-like delight?  While I’m not fond of full Read more…