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As a child, I was fascinated with airplanes. When I heard the sound of one in the distance, I watched it until it went out of sight. I often dreamed of the time when I could fly an airplane. I had two short rides when I was fifteen years old. The third airplane ride was…
I like birthdays, anniversaries, and parties! Last week marked two years of the Gleaning Mustard Seeds podcast. Thank you for listening, telling others about the podcast, and your encouragement. What’s been amazing to me is how people from all over the world hear about this podcast and listen. There have been downloads from 89 countries…
What prepares a man to be an elder? Is it years of church, attendance, a successful business career, or a heart shaped by conflict, prayer, and growth? When someone accepts the call to shepherd God’s people, how do they know if the congregation actually wants them to serve, and how do they avoid simply becoming…
Do You Think About Ministry? A better ministry? An Interim Ministry? A new Ministry?Whether you’re a veteran preacher, a deacon wondering about your next step, a retiring professional ready to serve in a new capacity, or someone in your first year of ministry, if you’ve thought about it, you need to come to this workshop!…
A question I received: Tell me what you think about this statement: “Elders appointing an additional elder or more, without discussion with or consulting the congregation, is dictatorial and shows little if any respect for or trust in the church as a whole.” First, there should be a selection before the appointment. I used to…
Fairlane Church of Christ in Shelbyville, Tennessee, participated in its third New Shepherds Orientation Workshop from August 9 to 11. This is my first time leading three New Shepherds Orientation Workshops for the same congregation. But this was the design of this workshop. Henry Wilhoit called me in the fall of 2013. He told me,…
Step Up or Step Out: How to Deal with Difficult People Even If You Hate Conflict, by Jonno White I found no copyright or publisher. This is a short book. I found three “mustard seeds.” I share a book I’ve read recently on the fifth Tuesday of each quarter of the year. I highlighted “mustard…
We had a beautiful weekend at the Alabama 4-H Center in Columbiana, Alabama. The temperature was ideal. The facilities for sleeping and meeting were excellent. The food was delicious. We had all our meals there and spent Friday night there. There were nine elders, three ministers, and their wives in the workshop. They had read…
Three couples were recognized Sunday morning for completing New Shepherds Orientation Workshop. Steve and Anna Hurst, Jimmy and Tracy Smith, Tracy and Leslie Ring participated in the leadership training. The way we came up with the people in this workshop was to announce it for several weeks. I encouraged everyone who had an interest in…
In 1976, when I started compiling a list of topics to discuss with elders in evaluating a move, I wanted to get all the right answers. I thought if we agreed on everything, we’d work well together. Read: Questions to Discuss with Elders When Considering Working with a Congregation I found two problems with this…