church leadership
5 ‘Ocean Buoys’ We Need – When No Norm Is the New Norm
(EDITOR’S NOTE) A few months ago, our Vibrant Faith Team retreated together at a lakeshore Air BnB in North Carolina. In advance, we all read
September 1, 2023
Author: Rick Lawrence
church leadership
The 5 ‘Ocean Buoys’ We Need – #1
A few months ago, our Vibrant Faith Team retreated together at a lakeshore Air BnB in North Carolina. In advance, we all read Australian pastor
August 25, 2023
church leadership
The Best Practices of a Thriving Church
Several years ago I sat down with a small circle of national ministry leaders who, like me, had served in ongoing pastoral roles while also
August 18, 2023
church leadership
Pastor Confidential
Not long ago I interviewed several lead pastors—“incognito”—to uncover their buried challenges and deeper longings. I gave each one the same set of prompts, then
August 10, 2023
church leadership
The Courage to Pursue the Stories of Your People
Are you sometimes a coward? I know I am… But we do our best to camouflage it, right? We’re not cowards in the epic sense—we’re
July 28, 2023
church leadership
Family Estrangement – The New Norm?
Many of the children raised in hovering, over-protective and over-functioning homes are now forcing the separation their claustrophobic families never allowed. According to Karl Pillemer,
July 20, 2023
church leadership
Beautiful Leaders
My daughter Lucy is now three days into medical school at Wake Forest in North Carolina. For the last year, as a “gap” experience between
July 14, 2023
church leadership
Beelining the Real
The planets in our solar system all orbit around the sun, because they have no choice but to orbit around the sun. We, on the
June 29, 2023
church leadership
Why ‘Lowering the Bar’ Is a Cancer
In Handing Down the Faith, Notre Dame sociologist and researcher Dr. Christian Smith offers a concise description of the parenting style that most-often guides young
June 23, 2023
church leadership
Under-Preparing for an Everyday Faith
We know two crucial truths from Notre Dame sociologist Dr. Christian Smith’s two decades of research into the role parents play in their kids’ faith:
June 16, 2023