Joe Park, the CEO of Horizons Stewardship, recently sent me the results of the Unstuck Church Report. Every quarter, The Unstuck Group compiles data on trends in churches in the United States. This quarter’s report focuses on questions about staffing, structure and team. The results are both helpful and eye-opening. 1. Average church attendance increased […]
Thirty years ago, Mission Central was launched in the attic of McGaheysville UMC by Artie Frederick and her husband, Dave. The attic was neither heated nor airconditioned, and every piece of clothing had to be carried up and down a flight of steep stairs. Over the years the ministry of this clothes closet expanded so […]
Our 4th Annual Golf Classic is on Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Registration closes on October 11, 2024! Since inception in 2021, this annual event has grown in popularity, so if you’d like to join in the fun and play for a worthy cause, mark your calendar now and recruit your team! We’ll be playing […]
Lovett Weems, distinguished professor of church leadership emeritus at Wesley Theological Seminary, has done some research on declining church attendance. I’d like to share some of his findings and offer some of his conclusions and mine as we seek to help pastors and local churches. Lovett says attendance among U.S. congregations has consistently declined in […]
We live in strange times. The church of today could have four generations of adults vying for leadership. The church can be a place where there is unity, but all generations need to work together. The 21st century faces issues that have never been faced before. Life expectancy in the last century was about 50 […]
Whether your church building is old or new or in need of a new HVAC system or roof, the Virginia United Methodist Development Company (DEVCO) can help your church achieve its property improvement goals. Through DevCo’s loan programs, United Methodist churches and related entities in Virginia can grow, minister and focus on local ministry […]
Greetings Virginia Conference members and affiliates! Spring is traditionally a time for change, and so it is with the Virginia United Methodist Foundation. Since last summer, our board leadership has been in consultation with Virginia Conference leadership to discern the best ways the Foundation and DevCo might serve the conference in the coming years. Those […]
Saving Grace is a program designed to teach about financial well-being and provide tools to help with managing, giving, saving, spending and debt. The Christian-based program incorporating Wesleyan values consists of six lessons, with three special sections specifically written for clergy. The clergy sections cover the unique rules that apply to pastor compensation, clergy taxes, […]
What makes people want to come back to church when they visit? I hear people all the time tell me that they visited a church, and no one spoke to them. How is this possible? Radical hospitality is when we welcome guests with a warmth and openness that exceeds expectations. Radical hospitality creates a feeling […]
Priscilla Pope-Levison has written a book called Models of Evangelism in which she lays out five key qualities of good evangelism. I invite you to take a look at these five with me – hospitality, relationship, integrity, message-bearing and church rootedness. Hospitality – Hospitality is a place where change can take place. Henri Nouwen said […]