Christian Unity

Christian Unity
4 Positive Trends That Could Make Today's Worship Music Even Better
An encouragement to widen our musical tastes, expand our emotional range, renew our melodic emphasis, and incorporate other artistic expressions.

In the last few years there have been a lot of articles written about what’s wrong with worship music, and how to make it better. So many that they've been labeled the Worship Wars. This isn’t about that.

Instead, I want to suggest four trends that are not happening ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
Grow Or Die? Actually, There’s A Third Option – Be A Great Small Church
Church growth principles are important, but we need to know what great small churches look like, too.

Most church leadership principles focus on how to prepare your church for numerical growth.

That’s an important aspect of leading a church, for sure. One I want to learn more about.

But it’s just one aspect of church leadership. It shouldn’t be the entire menu. ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
7 Advantages Of Long-Term Church Membership
The best things in life don’t come in a hurry. They take time. But they’re worth the investment.

Sometimes it seems like everyone is leaving the church. But that’s not the case.

While we’re right to be concerned about church-hoppers and church-droppers, people don’t typically go to a church with the plan of leaving soon. Most want to put down roots and ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
8 Principles To Consider Before Leaving A Church You (Used To) Love
Leaving a church is hard. Don't make it harder by doing it badly.

It’s hard to leave a church you used to love – and maybe still love.

In previous articles I’ve written from the pastor’s perspective about how hard it is when people leave the church you’re pastoring, and what to consider before leaving a church ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
If We Can Worship Anywhere, Why Go To Church?
It doesn't just matter that we worship Jesus. It matters that we worship him with other people.

I don’t go to church to worship Jesus.

Hear me out. It’s not as bad as it sounds.

Anyone can worship Jesus anywhere, at any time.

We don’t need a special building, a special day or a special time to do it. We don’t come into the presence of God when we enter ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
All Churches Make Mistakes, Why Do Ours Feel Fatal?
Christ is with us when we suit up again, even though we fell flat on our face the last time we went on the field.

No church is perfect.

Some churches make mistakes but keep growing and moving ahead at lightning speed, while other churches make similar mistakes, but can’t seem to make even the smallest forward progress.

Every pastor of every plateaued church experiences this. And every ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
3 Ways To Become The Godly Elders Today’s Youth Need – And Want To Follow
The best way to help foster the Fruit of the Spirit in others is not by demanding it of them, but by living it out with them.

This generation wants to honor its elders and be mentored by them.

That may not feel like it’s true – especially if you, like me, are old enough to qualify for AARP membership. But I assure you it is.

I know this because I see it all the time. Youth, both in and outside ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
6 Principles Healthy Churches Use To Deal With Conflict Well
We have an obligation as leaders to have a plan in place to resolve conflicts in the healthiest way possible.

Conflict is inevitable. Even in a healthy marriage, family and church.

Like healthy marriages and families, healthy churches don’t avoid conflict, but they deal with it well.

I’ve been in pastoral ministry for more than 35 years. In the early days, I dealt with more ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
“Small Churches Are Better Than Big Churches!” No. Just… No.
Some people prefer small churches over big churches. I do, too. But our personal preferences are not universal truths.

Celebrating small churches is great.

Doing it by putting down our brothers and sisters who attend, worship, serve and lead in larger churches?

That’s just wrong.

But it keeps happening.

Because I love and promote the value of small churches, well-meaning people keep coming ...

Continue Reading ...
Christian Unity
Why "Get The Right People On The Bus" Doesn't Always Work For A Small Church Staff
People are not on the bus to get you to your destination; they are the destination. People worshipping Jesus and sharing His love with others.

One of the biggest frustrations faced by small church pastors is a lack of resources, including so-called human resources. “If only I had more money, a better building, more people or the right people” we complain, “then we could really get something done at ...

Continue Reading ...

Read More from Karl

Follow Christianity Today

Free Newsletters