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Showing posts from August, 2023

An All-Too Familiar Story:

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How Churches Drift Toward Death—and How to Turn Towards Life by Bart Denny I heard a story today that reminded me of too many I have heard before. It saddens me. It bothers me. The church I heard about seems to think they have it nailed, so I’m sure they won’t be seeking my consulting services—or anyone else’s. Not that a consultant’s report would make it beyond a file cabinet—stuffed away, never to be read. While I admit it may take many years—and that bad decisions will likely outlive most of the decision-makers—I remain less than optimistic about the church's future. There Are Patterns I’ll be the first to admit: I don’t know everything there is to know about church health, vitality, growth, and renewal. And I praise God that He still does what only He can do. I never want to box in the Holy Spirit. After all, we worship a God who parted the sea, turned water into wine, and reversed a crucifixion with a glorious resurrection. So no, I would never say that God can’t revive a chur...
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Faithfulness Over Fruitfulness: Rethinking Ministry Success

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by Bart L. Denny, Ph.D., Th.M. I’ve often heard it said—sometimes harped on—that Christian ministry is about more than faithfulness; it’s about fruitfulness. But I’m not so sure. At least, not in the way it’s often meant. Yes, there are times when ministries remain barren despite having every resource to yield a bountiful harvest. But that kind of fruitlessness is often the result of unfaithfulness—not a lack of results, but a failure to labor faithfully, wisely, and prayerfully. What Is Faithfulness, Really? Every Christian is called to ministry. But I write here especially to those in ministry leadership. For us, faithfulness includes the courage to honestly assess our work, let go of ineffective strategies, and adopt biblically informed, context-appropriate approaches. It means seeking mentorship, inviting accountability, and doing the hard work of loving people, preaching truth, and building community. That’s faithfulness. We shouldn’t expect kingdom growth if we hav...
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Why I Am Hopeful for the Neighborhood Church in America

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 by Bart L. Denny, Ph.D., Th.M. If you’ve read much of my blog, you might think my outlook on the Church (capital “C”) in America is pretty negative. Not so! I hope you’ll see in my writings that, in my view, the Church must face some stark realities. I think I can. Further, in light of the world as it is and not as we would like it, we must step up to the plate to meet these challenges, or we will see more decline and further decay. We will reach fewer of our fellow Americans with the life-transforming Gospel of Jesus Christ. But for now, I will focus on the many reasons to hope for a bright future for the American Church—especially for small, neighborhood, and rural congregations. Reason #1: Most people are open to spiritual conversations. Americans may be dropping out of organized religion, but that doesn’t mean they’ve all become atheists. According to research that the Christian publisher LifeWay conducted in 2022, two-thirds of Americans are open to conversations about fa...
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