In 2015, more than 38% of pastors in the U.S. were bi-vocational. Tim Diehl defines a bi-vocational pastor as a person who serves as a pastor in a church and also carries one or more other jobs in order to…
One of the hardest things to do for most lead pastors is to separate from work. Pivoting from their professional life to their private life. A Barna research study of 14,000 U.S. lead pastors, published in January 2017, reported that…
One of the hardest things to do for most lead pastors is to separate from work. Pivoting from their professional life to their private life. I know this from personal experience. I had to work really hard as a lead…
As the virus rages on here in Michigan, the impact on churches and their leaders has been heavy in many places. We hear from leaders who are hanging in there, but some are hanging by a thread. So I thought…
Today, a brilliant and encouraging post from our teammate Jaime Hlavin, written to encourage pandemic-weary pastors and ministry leaders. Enjoy ~ John One beautiful sunny day in March, I received a text from a friend who hadn’t yet been back…
Have you ever wondered, “Do I really have what it takes?” Ever felt a gnawing sense of inadequacy, a creeping fear that you’re ill-equipped, and not up to the challenge your calling presents? Do you occasionally hear the lying whispers…
“Even when you see things happening or not happening that you don’t understand, I want you to trust Me.” Those words came to my heart a few weeks ago while praying and sitting quietly with the Lord. It’s hard sometimes…
When I ask leaders about their day off, I’m often greeted with a blank stare followed by uncomfortable mumbling. Some report they haven’t taken a day off in years. And even worse, a few of them are proud of it….
In the book of Revelation, chapter 2, Jesus makes an impassioned plea to the church of Thyatira: “Hold on to what you have until I come.” “Hold on.” Jesus was speaking about finishing. As the stress and strain of COVID-19…
A couple of weeks ago, Laura and I attended a high school graduation party. It was the first extended time we spent talking and interacting with a large group of people since the COVID-19 quarantine began. The party was great…
