Articles + Podcast
Easter Field Report
In this special post-Easter episode, Scott Ball & A.J. Mathieu interview three North American pastors to get an Easter Field Report. Hear the wins and challenges of Easter 2020, and learn what's on the horizon for churches like yours. Be blessed by Scott &...
Developing a Virtual Guest Assimilation Process
Are you ready for the hundreds of Easter guests that will "attend" your church online this weekend? Do you have a clear plan for following up with them? Are you confident you can connect them into the life of your church beyond streaming your services on Sunday? On...
Building a Virtual Small Groups Strategy
All of us want to be known and loved. The COVID-19 crisis has exposed humanity's deep need for relational connection. Now more than ever, your church's success will be defined by the depth of the relationships you can build--not by the quality of your Sunday live...
Leading Through The Lockdown
The Global Church is in uncharted waters. True, past generations have encountered hardship. But the COVID-19 pandemic is the first truly global health crisis of this century. Every church leader is experiencing something brand-new, and it is natural for it to feel a...
How to Navigate a Culture Change
When you hear the word "culture," do you first think of the world or your church? Most church leaders would probably think of the world first since that’s what we hear about most often across various forms of media. Terms like “culture shift,” “culture change,” and...
5 Tactics to Win the Implementation Battle
The number one barrier to a successful revitalization process is implementation. It is easy to become a slave to the urgent. Sunday comes every seven days, and so there is always a sermon to prepare. People get sick and need prayer and visitation. Marriages need...
Developing a Crisis Logistics Plan
Note: This week’s episode is unique. Earlier in the week, A.J. and I hosted a webinar on Crisis Logistics in the church. Given the rapidly evolving situation with the coronavirus, we wanted to release the full, unedited audio of that webinar on our podcast to help...
Consequences of Rejecting Revitalization
If you know what your church should do, and you don’t do it, there are potential adverse effects. Here are three consequences that churches may find when faced with the opportunity to head towards the Promised Land, but choose to stay in Egypt.
5 Risks Your Church Should Take
This article is not about taking a chance on building a massive facility, saddling your congregation with decades of debt. It’s about risks. The ones worth taking. The risks your church should take.
15 Reasons Why Committed Christians Do Not Attend Church
Many genuine believers are shifting their church attendance patterns. The purpose of this article is to address 15 common reasons committed Christians provide for why they do not attend church services.
DNA of an Unfriendly Church
There's always a reason behind a guest choosing not to return to your church. We need to look critically at how we come across to people if we have any desire to gather people into the Kingdom of God. The necessity of hospitality is apparent in Scripture, but beyond...
When Is the Best Time of Year for a Strategic Planning Process?
One of the most common questions we get at The Malphurs Group is, “When is the best time of year to start a strategic planning process?” The answer is both complicated and straightforward.
The Revitalized Church
A revitalized church is a powerful force. Before a church is revitalized, its life dwindles, and death looms. These churches have a fading view of a once bright past, and it gives way to robotic monotony, apathy, and stress. In Revelation 2:2-5, the Lord...
How to Know if You’re Ready to Lead a Revitalization Process
Leading a church through revitalization is not for the faint of heart. I’ve had the privilege of walking many churches through the process of revitalization as Lead Guide with The Malphurs Group. One of the things our team looks for first when we start a partnership...
Three Most Common Revitalization Mistakes
Author's Note: January 15, 2020 marks the launch of Church Revitalization University--an online, guided process for your church to engage in our Strategic Envisioning process. To get you started in the right direction, this week's article and blog are intended to make...
2020 Ministry Trends
We’ve compiled ten trends that will drive churches in 2020. We encourage you to take a hard look at each of these. How will your church need to adapt and change in the coming year? Which of these trends are you already experiencing in your church?
The God of Revitalization
The Old Testament prophets are filled with doom and gloom. The minor prophets are marked by calls to repentance, yes. But these books are also known for their cataclysmic predictions if the audience does not repent. This push for change in the face of punishment...
How to Recruit a Healthy Church Board
One of the most frequent questions we get from pastors is: How do we build a board that works? You need to recruit leaders that exhibit the eight core competencies of a healthy board member.
How to Evaluate Leaders: Volunteers, Staff, & Board
Thriving churches maximize the leadership potential of their board, staff, and volunteer teams. If your church isn't achieving your vision, there is likely a problem with the leadership. The journey to maximizing your leaders begins with implementing systems of...
Moving People from Sitting to Serving
Believe it or not, your church has all the volunteers you need to be successful. But right now, they might be sitting and not serving. You don’t have a volunteer crisis. You have a volunteer development and recruitment crisis.
Top Five Ways to Thank Your Team
The word "team" means different things to different people, and the size of your church will largely determine the group of people that come to mind when you hear the word. If you are leading a small church, your team may be a few leaders that you hold close or maybe...
How to End Ministries without Ending Yours
If your church is going to be healthy, you’re going to have to do a few, fundament things well–which means you’ll have to end some ministries. Here is how to end ministries without it ending your ministry.
How to Assess the Effectiveness of Ministries
Most churches have been doing the same things over and over for a long time and never really think about how effective the ministry is. Here are 3 filters you can apply to assess the effectiveness of your church’s ministries.
3 Shifts to Move from Failing Ministry Programs to a Thriving Discipleship Pathway
The solution to declining attendance is developing a clear pathway for making and maturing disciples in your church that isn’t motivated by program growth but by spiritual growth.