On January 6, 2002, reporters for the The Boston Globe began publishing a series of stories about clergy sexual abuse of minors in the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston. Their revelations went on to garner a Pulitzer Prize and shine a … Continue reading What Churches Should Learn from Religious Scandals | Influence Podcast
The American Muslim population is growing. According to Pew Research Center, there were 2.35 million Muslims in the U.S. in 2007 and 3.85 million in 2020. Pew estimates that by 2050, there will be 8.1 million Muslims in the U.S. … Continue reading How to Share the Gospel with Muslims | Influence Podcast
One of my favorite stories from the Gospels is found in Luke 24:13–35. Two disciples were walking the seven-mile road from Jerusalem to Emmaus on the first Easter Sunday. As they talked to one another about Jesus’ death and about … Continue reading Will We See Jesus? | Influence Magazine
Leading change is one of a pastor’s most important jobs. The changes pastors lead are spiritual, moral, and missional in nature. In other words, they help people come to Christ (spiritual), become like Christ (moral), and go out as witnesses … Continue reading Leading Congregational Change Collaboratively | Influence Podcast
How can pastors lead healthy, productive, and long-lasting change in their congregations? Mike Clarensau answers that question in Subject to Change. An ordained Assemblies of God minister, church consultant, and author, his advice comes from decades of ministry in local-church … Continue reading Subject to Change | Book Review
Pentecostalism understood itself as an end-times revival from the beginning. Drawing on the language of Joel 2:23 (KJV), early Pentecostals distinguished between the “former rain” of Acts 2 and the “latter rain” of their own revival experiences. The outpouring of … Continue reading Imagining the Future | Book Review
What can churches do to help end human trafficking? That is the question Ending Human Trafficking sets out to answer. Written by veteran anti-trafficking activists Shayne Moore, Sandra Morgan, and Kimber McOwen Yim, the book outlines a “victim-centered trauma-informed approach” … Continue reading Ending Human Trafficking | Book Review
“Imagine a steep and deadly cliff,” write Shayne Moore, Sandra Morgan, and Kimberly McOwen Yim. “Today, most churches and nonprofit organizations working in anti-human-trafficking efforts are focused solely on the victims who have already fallen or been thrown off the … Continue reading How Churches Can Help End Human Trafficking | Influence Podcast
As executive editor of Assemblies of God Publications, I get paid to read books. I read them to identify potential authors, topics, and reviews for Influence and Called to Serve, as well as to prepare for interviews on the Influence … Continue reading The Pastor’s Bookshelf | Book Review
During the 2020 Covid-19 lockdowns, Jonathan Gibson became dissatisfied with the “content and structure” of his devotional routine. He described that routine as “reading and petitioning, with a few praise points thrown in.” He decided to experiment by incorporating elements … Continue reading Be Thou My Vision | Book Review
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