“My kids have a thing tonight. We won’t be there.” 60 minutes before your small group is about to begin, the texts start rolling in… “I’m having a crazy week. Not going to make it tonight.” “My kids have a thing tonight. We won’t be there.” “I’ve got a headache. Gonna stay home.” As a Small Group leader, it can be especially frustrating to receive these texts on days when you’ve had a crazy week, or your kids have things, or you have a headache. The easiest thing to do is to just cancel your small group meeting this week;…
Keep Your Wounds From Becoming Walls
[su_quote]Ministry thrives on real relationships; so building walls of protection around yourself keeps you from building strong relationships with others. [/su_quote] A stinging pinch of truth I bet you can remember the first real backstabbing you ever received while serving in ministry. I remember my first, and I also remember some important words spoken to me by a close pastor friend shortly after… “Welcome to ministry.” Initially, I didn’t really understand what he meant. That little statement contained a bit of humor, a touch of sarcasm, and a stinging pinch of truth. Ultimately it was an important adjustment…
We Need Each Other
[su_quote]No, I’m not talking about little social clubs or touchy-feely support groups.[/su_quote] Following Jesus is a lifelong journey. If you are following Jesus, you have likely already discovered that staying on course doesn’t just happen naturally. Every moment there are dozens of things working against our best efforts to stay on the path – some come from the outside and some come from within. Either way, it is no wonder God tells us over and over that we need each other on this journey. The need goes way beyond a church service. Corporate worship and preaching are vital; but…