Every October, the same list shows up in every pastor's mailbox. Gift cards. A handwritten note from a few families. A weekend away (if you're lucky)....

Fourteen years ago I walked off a conference stage and said, out loud to nobody, I'm done. I had just finished a keynote to a room of several hundred ...

I have a real-life metaphor that may just hit home as you consider your team environment and staffing situation. Our youngest left for college last we...

If you lead anything in a church, you have a version of this moment. The text arrives at 9:40 on a Tuesday. A parent catches you after worship rehears...

You've tried this before. Maybe more than once. Which is why the next invitation to join a pastors' group will likely get a polite no from you — and y...

Count the conversations you had last week. Now sort them into three piles: people you lead, people you serve, and people you report to.

For most mini...

I'm writing this from Oregon. For the past few weeks, my office has been this porch with a view of mountains and my grandson. I did the same thing las...

Yesterday morning, I was scrolling through my phone and a name popped up. Brett. A pastor friend I hadn't talked to in a while. I made a mental note—I...

For the first 10 or 12 years of my ministry career, I believed something I'd been taught my whole life: "Ministry isn't what you do. It's who you are....