When I plan my preaching calendar, I start by analyzing my audience. I start where Jesus started—the needs of people. You won’t learn that from a commentary set. Commentaries can help you analyze your text but not your congregation. You need to be able to answer three specific questions about your congregation: Where is my
There’s always something fighting for our attention. Something that wants to divert us from the essential to the not-quite-essential. That’s always been the case. But it’s in hyper-drive right now. On almost a daily basis there’s a big issue demanding the pastor’s attention. From a global pandemic, to the ugliness of racism, to protests, to
I’m often asked, “Is there any single common denominator you can find in every growing church?” I have studied, read and visited many churches throughout the years. What I’ve discovered is God uses all kinds of churches, in all kinds of ways, with many different methods and styles. But there is one common denominator that
Whose life is God getting ready to radically change? Whose marriage is in need of transformation? Who’s in your church is about to walk through a life altering crisis? Pastor, you have the opportunity to speak into and shepherd the people in your church through every one of these situations. Your weekend message has the
Having a challenging time moving your members from consumers to contributors? Thinking it’s a lack of desire? Well think again. Architecture teaches that function follows form. But in ministry, we believe the opposite is true – form follows function. A person’s ministry is determined by their makeup or their SHAPE. When someone doesn’t understand
It takes only 7 seconds for a first-time guest to decide whether to return to your church. Let’s make that first impression the best it can be! Rommel Manio, Saddleback Church’s Pastor of First Impressions shares 7 tips for creating a positive experience for your first-time guests. Environment Matters The environment of your church communicates
As we talk about financial stewardship, it is important to first define stewardship as the act of managing that which belongs to someone else. Hence, the Ministry of Stewardship is about helping followers of Jesus understand that ALL they have is a gift from, and actually belongs to, GOD. Our time, skills and finances are
¡A medida que nos encontramos en medio de las órdenes de “quedarnos en casa”, se nos presenta laoportunidad de ser creativos y encontrar nuevas maneras de “hacer” iglesia! Muchos de nosotros tambiénestamos descubriendo nuestros trabajos “y”. ¡Ahora, no sólo es pastor, también es camarógrafo! Así que,para ayudarle a navegar por este nuevo camino de filmar
“Our city has been hit pretty hard,” shares Kerrick Thomas, pastor of The Journey Church in New York City. “It’s been crazy. I don’t even know what to compare it to.” The Journey Church, a Purpose Driven church located in the heart of Manhattan, has experienced what it’s like to live in the epicenter of
As we find ourselves in the midst of stay at home orders, we are presented with an opportunity to get creative and find new ways to “do” church! Many of us are also discovering our “and” jobs. You’re now a pastor AND videographer! So to help you navigate this new landscape of filming sermons, promos,
It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner, an amateur, or a professional. You can stream your Easter service! Go live from your phone selfie-style or have a full-fledged studio in your home. Here are some basic tips to streaming your church service: Make eye contact with your online audience by looking into the camera. It
The best way your church will break through growth barriers is to do so quickly. I hear from pastors all the time who want to break through specific attendance barriers, whether it’s 100, 150, 250, or even 1,000. Churches rarely break those kinds of barriers through gradual growth. When I started Saddleback, I thought that’s
Your Easter sermon this year will come down to two words: Will you? You’ll likely have more unchurched guests at Easter than at any worship service all year long. They’ll come because their mother invited them to dinner, and church is a prerequisite. They’ll come because it’s a cultural tradition. Or they’ll come because you
What do you think of when you hear the word “internship”? It can be easy to adopt a stereotypical view when we consider the role of interns. But the beautiful thing about the Church is that we have so much more to offer college students who are looking to invest their time and energy into
When I wrote The Purpose Driven Church, I predicted that church health – not church growth – would be the primary concern of the 21st Century church. I believe that prediction is proving itself true. The New Testament says a lot about the health of the church. Consider just a few verses: “As each part
On Easter Sunday, churches around the world invite their communities to come in and listen to two big, bold claims. First, that Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Savior of the world, died for their sins and then came back from the dead. And second, that anyone who puts their trust in the risen
I’m often asked, “Is there any single common denominator that you can find in every growing church?” I have studied churches for many years, read about them, and visited them. I’ve discovered that God uses all kinds of churches, in all kinds of different ways, with all different methods and styles. But there is one
It’s no coincidence that Jesus started his ministry by forming a small group. When it comes to fellowship in your church, smaller is better. You can worship with a crowd, but you can’t fellowship with one. With our free new white paper, Align Your Church: Fellowship, we’ll help you build small groups that align with
Ministry is a marathon. This is true for church leaders, for volunteers, and for the church body itself. When we drive and push people to sprint all the time, burnout is inevitable. You can grow a large church by constantly creating mountain peak experiences and pushing for the top. But you will create a healthy
There is a cold, hard fact I remind myself of often as a Pastor. No one does more to determine the spiritual temperature of my church than me, the Pastor. It’s part of shepherding. I’m the lid. I’m the limit. I define passion as the heated desire with us to do or to be something.
There are very few ways to create an atmosphere conducive to building strong relationships than studying the Bible in the living room of a friend. I also agree with Rick Howerton about the need to consider a more organic pathway to healthy groups. I was recently in a conversation with my coach, Danny Kirk, about
After launching Highlands Fellowship and four international campuses for Saddleback Church, Pastor Jimmie Davidson is using Purpose Driven principles to build a new kind of church that’s exclusively online.
There’s a lot of misconceptions about what it means to be a Purpose Driven Church. Here’s a list of what’s NOT required!
When a church emphasizes any one purpose, neglecting the others produces imbalance. Find out how to master the balancing act of church health.
In a Purpose Driven church, every purpose has its own champion. Learn how to create a Purpose Driven team covenant by simply deciding what values are important and necessary for your church staff.
There’s no one particular formula or way of doing church; it’s the Purpose Driven focus and intentionality that’s important, not the method. There are, however, 12 characteristics that Purpose Driven Churches share.
Have you ever thought about why you do what you do as a church? Whether you’re aware of it or not, values are a foundational part of every church’s DNA. Being able to articulate a list of values defines the nature of a church culture.
If the people in a church grow, then the church will grow. One of the core ideas I wrote about in The Purpose Driven Church, and which we teach in our Purpose Driven events, is that every church needs a process for making disciples. —By Pastor Rick Warren
