By Sam Rainer Not every church leader will face a vision-crushing blow. But they exist. They hurt like a heavy-weight sucker punch. You didn’t see it coming, and it was hard like an Acme anvil. Church leaders (especially us pastors) can overreact. We can cry wolf when it’s just sheep around. There are cases, however, […]
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The Difference between Confidence and Arrogance
By Sam Rainer We ask leaders to be confident, but we bristle when they become arrogant. What is the difference? The dictionary reveals arrogance is pride, egotism, and inflated self-importance, while confidence is the state of being certain. When an arrogant person grates you, however, you’re not thinking about the technical nuances between confidence and […]
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Your Church is Worth the Effort
By Sam Rainer Your discouragement is understandable. A lot is happening in the world right now. Everyone is on edge. When will the pandemic pass? Perhaps your church is not doing well. Maybe you’re tired, or disheartened. Maybe you’re hurt. Don’t give up. Your church is worth the effort. Some churches reek of selfishness, but […]
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Difficult Questions about Child Protection in Your Church
By Sam Rainer Is child abuse really a problem in our culture? Absolutely, the problem is real. About 686,000 children were abused in the United States in 2012, and over 1,600 children died from abuse the same year. Approximately 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men have been sexually abused as a child. […]
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Six Reasons Why Church Members Choose One Worship Service Over Another
By Sam Rainer My church has five services on Sunday morning across two sites and in two languages. I preach three services in English, our Hispanic pastor preaches a service in Spanish, and our campus pastor preaches at our second site. Why do people choose one service over another? I’ll give you six reasons from […]
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Three Unreasonable Expectations Pastors Have of Their Churches
By Sam Rainer I have high expectations of my church. Church members should worship together often, give generously, serve sacrificially, and make disciples of all nations. There are no exceptions to these high expectations. The mission of God requires an all-in effort from every believer in every church. Of course, plenty of low expectation churches […]
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Leading on the Emotional Plateau
By Sam Rainer Shepherding a church comes with plenty of highs and lows. Some days feel like a roller-coaster ride right after eating two pounds of funnel cake. But leading a church isn’t just peaks and valleys. Plateaus exist. Plateaus can last for a long season. In fact, plateaus are more common for most leaders. […]
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Celebrating the Work of Church Revitalization
By Sam Rainer You become what you celebrate. And we will celebrate church revitalization because we need more stories of churches being revitalized. That’s why we are hosting Revitalize 2020 in Bradenton, Florida on April 20 and 21. It’s the inaugural event. You don’t want to miss it. We will celebrate churches and leaders doing […]
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Five Advantages of a Flexible Church Staff
By Sam Rainer Few established churches turn on a dime. Some don’t turn at all. One of the contributing causes is inflexibility. Leading an organization full of inflexible people is like trying to run a marathon without bending your knees. It’s anything but smooth. Every church has some inflexible people. Part of being a pastor […]
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What to Expect if You’re a Church’s First Millennial Pastor
By Sam Rainer A big wave is coming towards the church. It’s the swell of retiring Boomer pastors. Most Boomer pastors are currently between the ages of 50 and 68. They won’t all retire at once, so this wave won’t crash into the church like a tsunami. However, I don’t believe the North American church […]
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