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The Rural Think Tank

…It's Different Out Here.

Category: Rural Community

Rural demographics, brain drain, opioids, data centers, and community life.

Rural Thinktank Episode 49: What’s Your Story?

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This message is from 3/21/21 at Morey Chapel Church of Christ near Westville, Illinois.      Sources MinistryPlace.net Rural Think Tank

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Rural Thinktank Podcast Episode 47: Does it look like the Neighborhood?

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This message was given 2/21/2021 at Morey Chapel Church of Christ in Westville, IL.  Sources MinistryPlace.net Rural Think Tank

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Rural Thinktank Podcast Episode 33: Maintaining the business reputation of a church

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This podcast episode addresses the question – Can how a church conducts business in the community help or hinder it’s witness and reputation? The answer may not be as clearcut as you think…  If you have thoughts/input/questions, go to ruralthinktank.com and hit the contact button or go to anchor.fm/ruralthinktank and leave a voice message. Sources …

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Rural Thinktank Podcast Episode 32: Change the Oil

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This is a message on Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 given 1/26/30 at Bloomingdale Friends Church in Bloomingdale, Illinois.  If you have thoughts/input/questions, go to ruralthinktank.com and hit the contact button or go to anchor.fm/ruralthinktank and leave a voice message. Video available on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/scott.miller.9619/posts/10158132991073960?comment_id=10158133159328960&reply_comment_id=10158133562978960¬if_id=1580056196868779¬if_t=comment_mention Sources MinistryPlace.net Rural Think Tank

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Rural Thinktank Episode 26 : More thoughts on Church Safety

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This episode contains information localized to the US/North America, due to laws that are present here.  There may be content that you might disagree with in this episode, but please hear me out and listen. This Episode was recorded in mid-December 2019, before the last round of church/synagogue violence in the US. The discussions that …

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Rural Thinktank Podcast Episode 16: Changing Media Consumption and Rural Ministry

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This episode talks about changing media consumption habits and how they affect the ways that we present the message of the Gospel through our ministries.  Links to things I mention in this episode: The Rural Think Tank – http://ruralthinktank.com RightNow Media –http://rightnowmedia.com FaithlifeTV – https://faithlifetv.com/ Rural Youth Ministry 2nd Edition Book at Amazon – http://bit.do/rym2 Supporting this podcast …

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Rural Think Tank Podcast Episode 12: Empowering the Senior Adults in Your Congregation

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

This podcast episode looks at the “graying” of our rural and small congregations (Episodes 3 and 6 are also related here). I discuss changing the perspective of how you do ministry when you have a predominately senior adult congregation. We look at not what seniors can’t do, but what they can  do.  Links to things …

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Rural Think Tank Podcast Episode 11: Unleash the Creatives!

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

The Untapped Creative Potential in Your Church Every church has them. The artist who sketches in the margins of the bulletin. The musician who plays in a band on Saturday night but never on Sunday morning. The writer who journals but has never shared their words. These are the creatives. And in most rural churches, …

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Rural Think Tank Episode 8: If you need help, get it! Now! I’m not Kidding! We need you!

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

When the Shepherd Needs a Shepherd On September 9, 2019, the evangelical world was shaken by the news that Jarrid Wilson, a 30-year-old megachurch pastor and outspoken mental health advocate, had died by suicide. Wilson had founded Anthem of Hope, a Christian mental health organization. He had spoken openly about his own struggles with depression. …

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Rural Think Tank Episode 7: No one else is going to do it for you…

August 9, 2026 by Brent Lacy

Backing Away from the Cliff Taking care of yourself is probably one of the last things on the priority list of most ministry workers. Yet it is vital. An unhealthy leader cannot take a ministry to a place of health. Many of us serve near the edge of the cliff called burnout. We are so …

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