Lifeschool 204: Is Cultural Diversity Realistic in the Church?

It’s easy to look across the auditorium–or across the room–and ask why the church and our small groups or missional communities are not more diverse. But are racial differences the only form of diversity there is?

This week on the Lifeschool Podcast, we’ll look at some of the reasons we don’t see greater diversity in the church and why there may be false expectations in connection with some of this. We’ll give you practical ways to look at your own church and community groups and begin to discern new opportunities for diversity.

is cultural diversity realistic

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These 3 Things Are True Discipleship Killers

For many of us discipleship either conjures up images of a standardized series of classes we once went through, or it’s this mysterious and foggy image of spiritual practices and a knowledge base to be passed on to others. Either way, most Christians just aren’t doing it.

I’m not even saying that these two common images are biblically accurate, but many find themselves stuck personally or in their attempts to get their churches onboard with discipleship. (more…)

Lifeschool 201: Leadership Harmony in Missional Communities

Missional community life can be tricky and hard to sustain. Leading missional communities can seem even harder to navigate. How do you determine if you are like-minded enough to lead with another person or couple? How do you get started?

This week on the Lifeschool Podcast, we’re gonna teach you how to determine who you should lead a missional community with and what should happen when you don’t agree on things.

leadership harmony missional communities

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Lifeschool 200: Why Christianese is Not Good News

It seems that many Christians are bilingual… We speak in one normal, everyday language most of the time, but when it comes time to talk about religion, spirituality, or God, we break out our special “Christianese” language.

This week on the Lifeschool Podcast, we’ll talk about being more intentional (and careful) with the words we use when we talk about our faith. And we’ll give you a better way forward!

why christianese is not good news

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Transform Your Small Group to Live as Good News

It’s happening. Churches are starting to shift their small groups to more mission-focused, incarnational communities. And many people I know are forming new “missional communities” among their family and friends. That is super encouraging!

But… Here’s the Problem:

Christians have spent years listening to sermons, studying theology and doing Bible studies, yet still feel intimidated or unable to naturally express the good news of the Gospel into normal life, conversations, and circumstances. We will never experience gospel-transformation and missional movement in our families and neighborhoods unless this changes.  (more…)

What Are the (new) Signs of a Healthy Church?

No one sets out to have or lead an unhealthy church or ministry. But we often find ourselves stuck in a loop of numbers and metrics we’ve inherited, or were imposed on us by the “higher-ups”. It would be great to have new signs of a healthy church.

The 3 Bs

For a long time now, churches have often or only measured three things I call the “3Bs”: Butts (attendance on Sunday); Building size; and Budgets. Are these the signs of a healthy church? Hmmm… I wonder how Jesus’ ministry career would measure up to these three benchmarks?

Click Here to Get my Free eGuide that includes: 10 Missional Benchmarks Test, Assessment & this Manuscript

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