Thom S. Rainer

Latest

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  Mar 12, 2015

  9 Thoughts on Church Splits

  For over thirty years I have been professionally and personally connected to the local church. I have served as a pastor, church consultant, author, seminary dean, and church resource provider. The most painful moments of my tenure have been those occasions where church dissension is great, and where church splits take place.

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  Feb 22, 2015

  The Top 10 Most Fiercely Defended Traditions in Churches

  I recently embarked on a major research project for a new resource I will soon be offering. Part of my research included a long review of thousands of comments made on this site over the past few years. Though my research had another purpose, I became intrigued by the comments related to church traditions.

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  Feb 18, 2015

  5 Thoughts About Church Memorials

  Many churches have them. They can be found in varying degrees of emphasis from one church to another. They are church memorials, areas of a church designated in memory of someone who was a member of the congregation.

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  Feb 14, 2015

  9 Concerns about Church Members Who Withhold Their Financial Gifts

  The story is too common, but I hear such stories repeatedly. My most recent conversation was with a church leader where an affluent church member offered to make a large contribution to the renovation of the worship center. He had one stipulation: the worship center had to be named in memory of his late mother. The leader politely declined. The affluent member did not make the donation. To the contrary, he began withholding all of his gifts to the church.

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  Feb 2, 2015

  3 Major Trends in Sermon Length

  The opinions about the "right" sermon length are varied, but they are typically intense. Several months ago, I conducted a social media poll to find out the preferred sermon length of preachers. Since that time, I have been observing pastors' preaching on podcasts and in person. I have also been asking them directly about their sermon length.

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  Jan 31, 2015

  6 Observations about Speaking to Pastors Right Before They Preach

  For most pastors, preaching is one of the most important facets of their ministries. It is that time when they get to expound on God's Word. Much of their training has focused on preaching, and they often spend 15 to 20 hours preparing each sermon.

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  Jan 14, 2015

  Seven Ways Pastors and Church Staff Find Jobs

  This post may cause some of you to feel uneasy. I have to admit I've had some of those same feelings writing it. I prefer to think of pastoral ministry as a calling more than a job. And I sometimes cringe when I write about seemingly secular solutions to Christian work.

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  Jan 9, 2015

  15 Trends for Churches in 2015 (Part 2)

  These final eight trends are those I consider to be of greatest magnitude for their potential impact on churches: The beginnings of prayer movement in our churches. The tipping point for small groups.

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  Jan 8, 2015

  15 Trends for Churches for 2015, Part 1

  Some of my trends are called "tipping points." In simple terms, a tipping point here means that something has changed in our churches to the point that it appears to be permanent. With that in mind, I present to you my 15 trends for 2015: The tipping point of churches eliminating Sunday evening worship services. Continued flow of people from smaller churches to larger churches.

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  Dec 31, 2014

  Seven Myths About a Pastor's Workweek

  It is an old joke, one that is still told too often. You go up to your pastor and say, "I wish I had your job; you only have to work one hour each week." It is likely your pastor will laugh or smile at your comment. In reality your pastor is likely hurt by your statement.