The Chosen, now streaming its fourth season, is a worldwide phenomenon. Crowd-funded from the beginning, the show has been so popular with viewers that it’s now available on multiple streaming services, attracting more than 200 million people who’ve watched at least one episode. I’m one of them… “Skeptical” is probably
I’ve heard a crazy rumor for years… Legend has it that church ministry slows down to a sabbath-y pace in the summer. My husband and I have been part of a handful of churches, in both volunteer and paid-staff roles. In all that time, we’ve experienced the alleged slow-down with just
In the thick of the pandemic, the Lilly Endowment gave the Hartford Institute for Religion Research a multi-million dollar grant to study the impact of Covid 19 on U.S. churches. The five-year study, still ongoing, is called Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations. Researchers have gathered survey insights around social outreach
I’m walking closely alongside two sets of parents who are raising young children in this world. I’m constantly struck by how different the shape of their lives is from what mine was when I was in that season of life. First of all, I’m just amazed by how much equipment
Is it just me, or are the self-outing atheists I see on TV and online a kinder, gentler, more “spiritual” brand of God-doubters? From Mark Zuckerberg to Neil deGrasse Tyson to Jonathan Haidt to the notoriously prickly Bill Maher, the new/new atheists are careful to express their respect for those
Last month I had lunch with a ministry leader—I get to see her in-person only a couple of times a year, so it was so good catching up. We lost track of time; for almost four hours we talked about life, ministry, faith, and everything in-between. We were well into
Last weekend I was driving around town ticking off my to-do list and listening to an episode of This American Life, the much-acclaimed public-radio storytelling show hosted by Ira Glass. I catch the show mid-stream as Boen Wang, a 20-something Asian-American man describes the impact of his early life growing
Summer is the sound of crackling campfire, the smell of a fresh-cut lawn, the taste of fresh watermelon, and the feel of a frisbee caught in a park—all under a sunny blue sky. It’s the perfect time for families to go all-in on engaging each other, and the perfect time
Think of a cultural environment very familiar to you that is not your home—your church, workplace, health club, volunteer organization, or social group. Now consider these questions: What are the values of that culture? What are the priorities? What do you like and not like about it? In what ways
The old saying goes: “The church is always one generation away from extinction.” Typically, we use that sort of “fear leverage” to double-down on attractional ministries for children and youth. I’ve heard ministry leaders use the “one generation” mantra to argue for the importance of church/parachurch-based ministries. But I’ve never
In our research work with churches across the country, we’ve “discovered” an obvious truth all over again—listening to people is a crucial spiritual discipline. In our Fourth-Soil Parenting Project, an expedition into fueling parent’s spiritual impact in their kids’ lives, we asked our 20 participating churches to launch this
Normal Rockwell’s best-known illustration is called “Freedom from Want”—I guarantee you’ve seen it before. It’s the quintessential Thanksgiving meme. But this iconic image of family togetherness and prosperity is, frankly, at odds with reality. I found a parody version of Rockwell’s Thanksgiving family gathering by artist Jerry Miller—in it, grandpa
Princeton Theological Seminary professor Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean has explored the emerging ramifications of a lack of passion and faith among young people in her book Almost Christian. Dean’s book spotlights the impact of the church’s decades-long embrace of a consumer-driven, “moralistic, therapeutic” alternate version of faith formation. Dr. Michael Brown,
How is the mission of the church, first handed to us by Jesus, defining and shaping our ministries? For example, the people who are showing up shape our missional focus—but what about the people who are not showing up? The absence of certain people, and the reasons behind their absence,
I know, “program-ification” is not a real word. One of our Vibrant Faith Coaches, the Rev. Erik Samuelson, made that up. On our team, we all like it. And we know that you know what we mean when we say it. We’re curious—has Christian faith formation been mixed up with
It’s a sad-but-true reality—we often see parents primarily as our church volunteers, not the faith-forming leaders of their families and homes. As we have begun to dig into the rich work of exploring and nurturing the faith life of parents through our Lilly-sponsored “Christian Parenting and Caregiving” research grant, we’ve
In our rapidly changing landscape, church leaders face the profound challenge of establishing and nurturing meaningful connections with parents and families. In the Barna study “Who Is Responsible for Children’s Faith Formation,” virtually all Protestant and Catholic church leaders agreed that the responsibility for a child’s formation starts with parents.
When we gather with other ministry leaders, the conversations inevitably gravitate toward a common complaint—we disapprove of the way most parents allocate their time as a family. We’re frustrated by what parents prioritize over attendance at church or church programing. With our 4th-Soil Parenting Project, Vibrant Faith is helping
Every year, I read Cal Newport’s book,Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World. It’s a book that helps me reset my intentions for the year, carve out time for the things that matter most, and let go of the continuous distractions of our cultural reality. All of
We have become a selfie culture—at least once today you’ll either take a selfie or see someone else doing the same. Some people have turned it into an art form. While in Southern California last week to get my (Rick) daughter situated in a new off-campus apartment before she starts
Because ministry is centrally about relationships, we see the whole human spectrum of behavior—the good, the bad, and the ugly. Like other people-serving roles (police, physicians, counselors, social workers) it’s tempting to give in to jaded assumptions. We find ourselves expecting the worst in people. We’re quick to get frustrated
One key to building relational bridges in a divisive and isolating culture is simple – we notice what we notice about others, and gently (but intentionally) pursue them using what we see as our entry point. In this Reachable Reconciliation conversation, Fred tells a perceptive story about the obvious things that escape
In the church (and often in the wider culture) power carries with it unwanted baggage. But effective leaders use power to create positive change and thriving environments. Power in the positive sense is what the shepherd wields to encourage his flock to move to safe pastures, where they can get
In one of my first parish assignments, I knew I was going to miss a big event soon after I assumed my staff role—the celebration of First Communion. I had a pre-existing conflict with the date. So, in the weeks leading up to the celebration, I talked with my assistant
Ministry and mission were humming in the congregation. Average weekly worship attendance was booming, and we had just completed a capital campaign during the worst economy in 40 years. Following that capital campaign, we had pulled a new 12,000-square-foot multi-purpose Community Life Center out of the ground and positioned it so that
It seems counterintuitive, but the abundance we see in all aspects of our lives has as much to do with strategic deletion as it does with adding things to our efforts. I was a farmer in my first life—growing almonds in the Central Valley of California. My life revolved around
In my previous article, I focused on change and how it affects our lives. I also mentioned that change and conflict are important, if not vital, to growth. In this post, we’ll look at conflict and its unique relationship with change. Conflict serves many healthy purposes—it is… In my book, Thriving
By Dr. Nancy GoingDirector of Research & Resource Development In the emerging research spotlighting the impact of pandemic-induced social isolation, the outcomes are sobering. Writing in a Frontiers In Psychology report, authors Giada Pietrabissa and Susan G. Simpson report: “The most common psychological disorders emerging are anxiety and panic, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, insomnia,
By Jim MerhautVibrant Faith CoachICF-Certified Coach The practices we follow as Christian people have a profound shaping influence on our life—the ways we gather, pray, worship, care, and serve have the power to form our identity. But over time, as we all know, our habitual practices can devolve into stale
By Dr. Nancy GoingDirector of Research & Resource Development It was a beautiful November day as we gathered in Floresville, TX, just south of San Antonio. Bit-by-bit they arrived—team members of the Thriving Congregations Project from three Methodist churches who drove about an hour to spend the day together planning for
By Dr. Nancy GoingDirector of Research & Resource Development Research has told us for more 25 years that the faith lives of parents matter (and actually matter most) for the formation of faith in their children. That message and the impact of ongoing research for discipling and education ministries in the
By Rev. Dr. Nancy GoingDirector of Research & Resource Development She teaches her daughters how to pray for people when they need support: “About four or five times my middle girl has had to come to ask me how to pray.” And daily she blesses her daughters. “Every day I always
By Dr. Nancy Going,the Rev. Dr. Tanya Campen, andRick Lawrence A conversation between two researchers, Dr. Nancy Going and the Rev. Dr. Tanya Campen, on the surprising foundations of “meaning-making” and how young people experience God among children and adolescents. This is the kickoff for a month-long series of posts on the
By Rev. Dr. Nancy GoingDirector of Research & Resource Development “Yes, yeah. I want to. I believe I hold responsibility and I have to hold responsibility for the knowledge of God that my children have. If the church is replacing that because I’m lax in my job, so be it. Can
By Rick LawrenceVibrant Faith Executive Director Dr. Nancy Going and I have been leading a four-week book club for our Vibrant Faith Catalyst community (https://vibrant-faith-catalyst.mn.co), focusing on Dr. Christian Smith’s new book Handing Down the Faith: How Parents Pass Their Religion On to the Next Generation. Among the many, many eye-opening and
Yes, we believe God is at work, “telling a better story” in all our lives—whether we’re adults, youth, or children. But often, especially with young people, we live out a tacit belief that all learning and discovery flows one way—we expect adults to pass on the work of God to children and
