Pastors and ministry leaders pay close attention to several numbers in their ministry leadership context. Two of those — worship attendance and financial giving — can serve as early warning signs of the health of a church or Christian ministry. What should pastors, elders and ministry leaders do when giving is soft in the churchContinue reading “When Giving is Soft “
Tag Archives: prayer
Growing into Your New Role
I’ve never accepted a ministry position that — in the first six months — I didn’t want to go back to what I was doing before. In fact, if your new ministry position doesn’t require you to grow into it, then I wonder whether the Lord called you to that role. The Lord stretches HisContinue reading “Growing into Your New Role”
Reaching Our Foreign-Born Neighbors
I had an interesting experience a few days ago while eating at a Mexican restaurant with a KBC pastor in one of our Kentucky counties. As is my custom, I learned the name of our server and offered to pray for her. The pastor already knew her and was doing his best to communicate inContinue reading “Reaching Our Foreign-Born Neighbors “
I Want to Pastor
It is not unusual for young men who serve on church staffs to reach a point in ministry and leadership development where they start thinking about becoming senior pastor of a church. Not every senior pastor has his first ministry experience in a church staff position, but many will. Others, however, discover along the wayContinue reading “I Want to Pastor”
From Adversity to Action
Not all opportunities present themselves as such. One showed up recently as a record-setting snowfall, and a good dose of ice that canceled most church services in our neck of the woods. My home church did not cancel services (no judgment here for those who did cancel because it is always a difficult decision). Continue reading “From Adversity to Action”
5 Ways to Take the Gospel to Every Kentuckian
There was a time in our not-too-distant history when most Kentucky Baptist churches scheduled a weekly time for outreach. We were then told that programs like that were no longer effective, but we instead needed lifestyle evangelism: church members sharing the gospel where they work, where they live and where they play. This shift inContinue reading “5 Ways to Take the Gospel to Every Kentuckian”
5 Secrets to Ministry Longevity from a Seasoned Pastor
Many of us in ministry leadership are grieved by recent revelations of high-profile pastors who were discovered to have been unfaithful in their marriage. These discoveries continue to shock us and serve as a reminder that we are all in a battle against the flesh and the devil. The overwhelming majority of pastors, however, areContinue reading “5 Secrets to Ministry Longevity from a Seasoned Pastor “
Persecution-Proof Disciples
In 2020, as churches were coming out of Covid-related ministry adjustments and thinking about how ministry might look different moving forward, I remember a pastor friend saying that his church was going to need to raise up “persecution-proof disciples.” He was seeing changes on the cultural horizon and discerned the church might not be ready.Continue reading “Persecution-Proof Disciples “
Things That Make Us Pray
What drives you to your knees in prayer? A pastor friend said, as I was listening to him describe a remarkably difficult time in his pastorate, that this event was certainly causing him to pray, and in his words, “anything that makes you pray is a good thing.” While the analogy could be pushed tooContinue reading “Things That Make Us Pray”
We are Together for the Mission in Kentucky
Measuring the full impact of Kentucky Baptist churches working together to reach Kentucky and the world for Christ is impossible. Only heaven itself will reveal the full measure of our cooperative efforts. We do, however, get occasional glimpses of the fruit of churches working together to advance the gospel. Kentucky Baptists have a greatContinue reading “We are Together for the Mission in Kentucky”
Dr. Todd Gray 