The Rural Think Tank
…It's Different Out Here.
I will be the first to tell you that I am not an expert in ministry. I do things, and try to figure out what can work (mostly by finding out what doesn’t from trying it) The words I am about to write, I write in encouragement and love to strengthen those working alongside me …
This post was originally published on my other blog, MinistryPlace.net “Why do we do this ministry every year?” “Well…kinda because we’ve always been the ones to do It?….” We have all had that conversation in our churches. There seems to be that one ministry in every church that is a sacred cow that happens every year only because it …
This post was originally published on my other blog, MinistryPlace.net We live in a world where context is vital to our understanding. One of the reasons our society struggles with parts of the Bible is that it is set in an agrarian context. Jesus and Paul used that backdrop and crafted wonderful illustrations. Let’s look …
This post was originally published on my other blog, MinistryPlace.net Last weekend brought a snowstorm like I have never seen before. I grew up in the midwest, and have seen and done some really crazy things in snow and ice, but this was beyond anything else. We had temps, not wind chills of -12 and …
This post was originally published on my other blog, MinistryPlace.Net If you live in a community of any size, there is a decent probability that one of the churches will have hired new or replacement staff members. Uprooting and moving a family two miles or two thousand miles is a big deal. How can the believers …
This post was originally published at my other blog, MinistryPlace.net I had a first in ministry today. A cat as a visitor to the congregation. The church I am serving is across the street from a home with several kids and a few cats. Often when I come on Sunday morning, there is a black and …
This post was originally published on my other blog, MinistryPlace.Net There are some questions that those of us in church leadership should be asking ourselves. We live in a dangerous world. Yes, it’s unfortunate that as shepherds, we must help in protecting our flock from physical danger, in addition to guarding from spiritual wolves. However, …
This post was originally published on my other blog, MinistryPlace.net I know, I used a buzzword. Whether you are in Church Growth, Business, Marketing, SEO, or Fantasy Sports, the word “Metrics” carrries a heavy connotation. Its one of measuring and evaluting everything for the sake of making things better. In a lot of rural churches, this would be a …
Ephesians 4: 11-16 11 And [m] he gave the [n] apostles, the prophets, the [o] evangelists, the [p] shepherds and teachers, 12 [q] to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for [r] building up [s] the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to [t] the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, [u] to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of [v] the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may …
Does it look like the neighborhood? 1 Peter 2:4-10 4 As you come to him, a living stone [n] rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 [o]you yourselves like living stones are being built up as [p] a spiritual house, to be [q] a holy priesthood, [r] to offer spiritual sacrifices [s] acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture:[t] “Behold, …