Before I was an officer I went to a church in an area with many ‘halfway houses’ for people who had recently been released from psychiatric institutions. Given that a lot of those institutions had been closed down recently, and the residents just turned out on the street with little thought for their ongoing care,Continue reading “Of stones and ants”
Tag Archives: church growth
Vision versus the people
We’ve heard a lot in the Army world over the last few years about the importance of vision and having clear plans and goals for the future. I enjoy that style of thinking, and their seem to be a lot of examples in the Bible. Still, it can become stultifying. It’s very easy to sacrificeContinue reading “Vision versus the people”
Church growth: God gets an ‘F’
There’s an idea floating around the Army—and the wider church—that says that if churches aren’t growing the pastor needs to be replaced. I like to call this ‘oikonomic rationalism’—don’t worry if you don’t get the joke! Tom in the Box is a parody site that likes to poke a bit of fun at trends inContinue reading “Church growth: God gets an ‘F’”
Rethinking church leadership
I came across two articles lately at the excellent Out of Ur blog. The first looks at the ways churches get around the logistical problems of teaching larger and larger congregations. One of the popular ways is to set up congregations at different sites and stream the sermon/service/lecture/whatever in by video. This is being trialledContinue reading “Rethinking church leadership”
Soup, soap and salvation
In those golden days before we all had mission statements the Salvation Army summed up its Raison d’être as ‘soup, soap and salvation.’ The Army’s always preferred pragmatism to deep theology, and I think this is as good a summary of what it is we do as I’ve heard anywhere. In fact, I’ve heard peopleContinue reading “Soup, soap and salvation”
Where would we be without cars?
I’m sure most readers will be aware of the rise in the cost of petrol lately. I paid $1.69 per litre this week, and there’s every chance that could rise to $2.00 by the end of the year. Most people I know are thinking twice before using the car, which is a good thing. IContinue reading “Where would we be without cars?”
Spirit Cry 