Posts

Showing posts from August, 2023

The Missing Link in Church Revitalization: Leadership Development

-
Image
by Bart L. Denny If you’ve spent any time in church leadership, you’ve likely felt the heartbreak of decline. Empty pews. Aging buildings. Once-thriving ministries now little more than calendar placeholders. Churches across America—especially in small towns and aging neighborhoods—are closing their doors at an alarming rate. And even those that remain open are often mere shells of what they once were. But here’s the good news: Jesus hasn’t given up on His Church. The gates of hell will not prevail against it (Matt. 16:18). Still, that doesn’t mean local churches won’t die—because they do. And far too often. That breaks my heart, and I believe it should break yours, too! Why Churches Are Dying Some blame culture. And yes, the data is troubling. Fewer people identify as Christian. Fewer attend worship. And many younger adults have simply walked away from the church altogether (some recent data suggests that is changing, especially with young men). But culture isn’t the whole s...
Post a Comment
Read more

What’s more important in ministry: Faithfulness or fruitfulness?

-
Image
by Bart L. Denny, Ph.D., Th.M. I’ve often heard it said (harped upon, at times) that Christian ministry is about more than faithfulness—it’s about fruitfulness. I just don’t buy that. Not in the way it seemed to have been meant when I heard it said, anyway. Yes, sometimes ministries have been unfruitful when they lack no resources to help them yield a bountiful spiritual harvest. But this sort of fruitlessness may actually be the result of un faithfulness. What is faithfulness anyway? All Christians are called to ministry. However, I do write primarily from the perspective of a church leader. As ministry leaders, we ought to be willing to take a long, hard look at ourselves in the mirror, having the fortitude to eliminate ineffective practices in our given context. We should gladly attempt to find and implement those biblically informed ministry methods that have proven fruitful for others ministering in similar circumstances. We should humbly seek coaching and mentorship from th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Why I Am Hopeful for the Neighborhood Church in America

-
Image
 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...
Post a Comment
Read more