Posts Tagged ‘pastor’

Top Indicators of an Unhealthy Church

There are clear indicators of effective clergy that would ensure that she or he would receive an appointment regardless of whether her or his appointment is guaranteed in the United Methodist Church. There are also churches that are more and less healthy. In April, the Connectional Table of the United Methodist Church suggested that there [...]

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Top 13 Characteristics of Effective Clergy

Some of the hoopla around guaranteed appointments is around the question – How do you determine what makes for an effective clergy person? That’s easy. Straight from paragraph 340 of the Book of Discipline, an effective clergy person will… love God and love their neighbor. preach, teach, lead worship and engage people in witness. provide [...]

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12 Things Good [Pastors] Believe

I believe that there is value in taking the best practices from business and considering application within the church. I recently found a great example at The Conversation Blog from the Harvard Business Review – 12 Things Good Bosses Believe. I believe they can translated to apply to pastors or other church leaders. Here are [...]

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Obama’s Oslo Speech and Sermon Writing

I heard In Oslo Speech, Obama Must Sidestep Land Mines on NPR last week. I believe that the method for writing a presidential speech could be applied to writing a sermon. Here is an excerpt from the article: Those speeches are crafted in a tiny, low-ceilinged room in the basement of the West Wing, directly [...]

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Transition: Pastor of the Resurrection Internet Campus

Beginning November 1, I will be pastor of the Resurrection Internet Campus. Here is the news from the communication to our congregation on Friday. Did you know that over 1,000 people per weekend worship with us live, on line? These are home bound, folks who are sick, members who are out of town, members who [...]

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Transition: M-R Pastor of Congregational Care

This week, Bishop Jones announced that Rev. Steven Blair will be appointed to Resurrection on November 1 and will be responsible for those whose last names begin with M through R. You can read the full update to Resurrection here. I have known Steven for several years and he is an excellent pastor and a [...]

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Changing the Atmosphere

Nicole and I recently purchased a dehumidifier for our basement. After it’s arrival, I set it up, plugged it in and turned it on. When I checked on it the next day, the water reservoir was full and the atmosphere was noticeably different. I knew that it needed to be dehumidified, but was still surprised [...]

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New Appointive Year

As of July 1, 2009 I have completed three years under appointment as a United Methodist pastor. At this point my appointment history is pretty simple: July 2006 to present – Appointed to The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection As I begin my fourth year of appointment, I am looking forward to ordination in [...]

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Adventures in Ministry – June 15, 2009

One of the great joys of ministry is to have the opportunity to work with a great team of Congregational Care Ministers. These women and men are trained and equipped to provide care for the congregation in partnership with the efforts that I lead as a pastor of congregational care. This evening I am grilling [...]

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Internet Campus – What’s in a name?

Is internet campus the right name for what we are seeking to do at Resurrection? I have been leading a strategic project team for 2009 around the following goal: In 2009, we’ll expand our connection with online worshipers, launch a pilot “house church” using the live web stream and explore opportunities for launching additional campuses [...]

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