“Discipleship” is rapidly becoming one of those irritating buzz-words, like missional, inclusive, and green, guaranteed to get people asking with a certain edge in their voice, “But what exactly do you mean by that?”

In the case of discipleship, at least we can blame Jesus. His Great Commission is often cited as justification for our interest in the topic. And as you might expect, Jesus sheds some light on what we mean by the word. After all

There was a couple who were having serious issues in their marriage, mostly because of financial difficulties. After a stewardship sermon at church, they went home and had a huge discussion. They decided to sell their house and buy a smaller one. They did just that, and saved their marriage. In fact, their whole lives were changed.

That experience reminded me of how important preaching is, because what happens if people really believe what we are saying and begin to order their lives around it? Imagine if they do that with sermons about money.

The days of the neighbourhood dropping in for Church just because it’s Christmas are over. Here’s how your church can move into the neighbourhood instead.

For centuries, the Advent/Christmas seasons have been a time for folks to automatically come into Church, perhaps forthe only time in a year. However, in this post-Christendom, and some would argue post-Christian age, all bets are off. The days of expectation that people will naturally come into events in our churches simply because it is Christmas, are rapidly dwindling. This is not an urban, suburban, or rural issue. This is not a church size or denominational issue. This is the new normal of every local church in our increasingly secularized age.

It is not a time for despair. In fact, it is . . .

My mentor and I met by accident, if there’s such a thing in a life of faith. We were invited to dinner at the home of some mutual Christian friends.
Peter had been a key leader in a local church that had experienced tremendous growth over the last 20 years. Fairview Louth Community Church began as [...]

This summer, my wife and I spent some time in the UK. One day, we checked online for churches to visit that Sunday, and found one that seemed very lively. I clicked on the “staff” page. There I found an impressive number of staff, both full and part-time, but I confess I was baffled by [...]

Learn how one Saskatoon congregation put missional into writing
Joining God in his mission is a great adventure with so many blessings. But it’s also a lot of hard work. As a church leader, I’m continually amazed at how easily and quickly I can get pulled back into complacency and comfort. It’s true for me personally [...]

July/August. High summer. Hot days with high humidity leaves a body feeling listless. Makes it hard to focus on kingdom priorities. What to do? Fight it? Stay only in an air conditioned environment? Or realise it’s part of summer in Canada and it definitely won’t last forever? After all, as Ecclesiastes says, “There is a [...]

Churches can transform themselves by practicing the ancient art of hospitality
There’s a church near Wycliffe College in Toronto that I like to stroll by every once in a while to see if their “welcome” sign is still up. This is how it reads: “While on church grounds please abide by the following: Women should not [...]