Category: Ministry

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`When Weakness Becomes Sinfulness’ by Michael Goldsmith

georgepwood

I’m at a conference for Assemblies of God district leaders. I just heard Michael Goldsmith talk about how God deals with our weakness and sinfulness. He had a lot of good things to say, especially to ministers, so I thought I’d share what he said. Here are my notes: ********** Proverbs 4:23, 1 Timothy 4:16, 1 Corinthians 10:12 Pastors often operate on the principle of never let them see you sweat, but everybody sees you when you fall. 8 OBSERVATIONS: 1. We all have weaknesses that can become sinful. Matthew 26:41, Acts 10:26, Genesis 4:7, Luke 4:13 See Jack Hayford, … Continue reading `When Weakness Becomes Sinfulness’ by Michael Goldsmith

Interesting, Ministry1 Comment

‘I wish every church said what this church says in their bulletin …’ Jon Acuff

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He’s talking about the bulletin of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Community in Dunedin, Florida. Here’s what the bulletin says: We extend a special welcome to those who are single, married, divorced, gay, filthy rich, dirt poor, yo no habla Ingles. We extend a special welcome to those who are crying new-borns, skinny as a rail or could afford to lose a few pounds. We welcome you if you can sing like Andrea Bocelli or like our pastor who can’t carry a note in a bucket. You’re welcome here if you’re “just browsing,” just woke up or just got out … Continue reading ‘I wish every church said what this church says in their bulletin …’ Jon Acuff

Assemblies of God, Enrichment Journal, Ministry, MinistryDirectLeave a comment

Knowledge Problems and Necessary Virtues

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(Here’s my editorial from the spring 2012 issue of Enrichment, which is available online.) In a February 12, 2002, press conference, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld made the following statement: “[T]here are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns — there are things we do not know we don’t know.”[1] Rumsfeld was answering a question about the apparent lack of evidence connecting Saddam Hussein’s government and terrorist organizations seeking weapons of … Continue reading Knowledge Problems and Necessary Virtues

Assemblies of God, Book Reviews, Book Vlog, Influence Resources, Ministry, MinistryDirect, PodcastsLeave a comment

Interview with Brian Dollar, Author of “I Blew It!”

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In this video, I interview Brian Dollar, author of I Blew It! The Biggest Mistakes I’ve Made in Kids’ Ministry…And How You Can Avoid Them. Interview with Brian Dollar, Author of “I Blew …, posted with vodpod Continue reading Interview with Brian Dollar, Author of “I Blew It!”

Ministry, Podcasts3 Comments

Rick Warren’s Laws of Spiritual Growth

georgepwood

I’m listening to a webcast by Rick Warren about 40 Days in the Word, his church-wide campaign for spring 2012. In his introductory remarks, Warren talked about eight laws of spiritual growth. Here they are: Spiritual growth is intentional: We grow by making commitments. …incremental: We grow step by step. …personal: We grow at different rates than others. …habitual: We grow by developing good habits. …relational: Spiritual growth happens in community. …multidimensional: Spiritual growth involves the five purposes (worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, evangelism) and the various learning styles (hearing, speaking, doing). …seasonal: We grow in stages. …incarnational: We grow by … Continue reading Rick Warren’s Laws of Spiritual Growth

Book Reviews, Book Vlog, Ministry, MinistryDirectLeave a comment

Mark Batterson on “The Circle Maker”

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Tomorrow–Thursday, December 8–I’m interviewing Mark Batterson about his new book, The Circle Maker: Praying Circles Around Your Biggest Dreams and Greatest Fears. The interview will be webcast live on MinistryDirect.com at 3:00 p.m. (CST). If you’d like to ask Mark questions about his book, about prayer, or about other ministry topics, email your questions to [email protected], tweet them using #MinistryDirect, or enter them on the Facebook message board on MinistryDirect’s live page. (You must be logged into Facebook to post questions on the message board.) I’ll do my best to ask Mark every question I receive. If you’d like to … Continue reading Mark Batterson on “The Circle Maker”

Assemblies of God, Book Reviews, Book Vlog, Ministry, MinistryDirect, PodcastsLeave a comment

Interview with @DavidKinnaman, Author of “You Lost Me: Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church…And Rethinking Faith”

georgepwood

In this video, I interview David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group and author of You Lost Me: Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church…And Rethinking Faith. Great book, by the way! You can read my review of it here. Interview with @DavidKinnaman, Author of “You L…, posted with vodpod Continue reading Interview with @DavidKinnaman, Author of “You Lost Me: Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church…And Rethinking Faith”

Assemblies of God, Book Vlog, Influence Resources, Ministry, MinistryDirectLeave a comment

Impacting Your Community with @TommySparger

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In this video, Pastor Tommy Sparger talks about North Point Church’s strategy for making a difference in its community. You can read more about that strategy in Sparger’s new book, “The Impact Effect: A Revolutionary Vision for Compassion in Your Community and the World,” published by Influence Resources. I interviewed Sparger about his book in the video below: Continue reading Impacting Your Community with @TommySparger

MinistryLeave a comment

How Well, Not How Many? A Better Way to Measure Small Group Success

georgepwood

From “New Questions for Measuring Group Success”: Here are some MissioRelate questions to help guide you as you assess your own group: Missional Communion To what degree is our group experiencing God’s presence when they gather? What specific actions are individuals taking to simplify their lives so that they have time to share in community life with others? What kinds of sacrifices are people making to be shaped by God for leadership? How are people who are not Jesus followers experiencing the presence of God through the group? Missional Relating How is our group working through conflict and difficult relational … Continue reading How Well, Not How Many? A Better Way to Measure Small Group Success

MinistryLeave a comment

Nine Principles of Relational Evangelism

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From SmallGroups.com: Focus on Building Deep Friendships Be the Kind of Christian Unchurched People Have Never Met Before Cross-Pollinate Your Unchurched Friends with Your Fellow Group Members Avoid Duplicity Give and Take Refrigerator Rights with Unchurched Friends Pray for Yourself Refuse to Engage in Gossip Share a Relevant Message Invite, Invite, Invite! Continue reading Nine Principles of Relational Evangelism