Every church has that section of the newsletter where it publishes its monthly “vital statistics:” Sunday school attendance, corporate worship attendance, and giving and budget needs. You don’t have to read the vital statistics to recognize the precipitous drop in attendance when summer arrives.
A View from the Pew: Less Summer to Do Summer Ministry
July 20, 2016 by
If you have school-aged children in your life, it’s no secret that summer isn’t what it used to be. Here are five tips to ease the pressure and help your children’s spiritual formation remain at the top of your summer priority list.
A View from the Pew: Someone Else’s Building
June 21, 2016 by
“If you’re not here just bring me a bulletin from the church you visited, and everything will be okay.”
One of my pastor’s favorite jokes this time of year when his congregation disappears for the summer has an interesting premise: people go to church while on vacation.
Keep Moving Forward
May 31, 2016 by
A friend once told me that her favorite season was fall because winter was too cold, summer was too hot, and spring felt like too much pressure. All those blooming flowers and sprouting leaves.
A View from the Pew: Not Everyone Can Go
June 30, 2015 by
We are in the season of mission trips. Churches across America are sending members to a variety of ministry opportunities around the world and undertaking projects close to home.
A View from the Pew: “Back to Church” Season
August 28, 2014 by
As a child, the most dreaded words uttered every July on the commercials interrupting TV reruns were “Back-to-school sale.” Like the first few bars of “Jingle Bells,” heard nowadays in late September, that phrase was the harbinger of homework, research papers, and exams.
Formations 07.27.2014: A Cup of Cold Water
July 20, 2014 by
This may come as news to some people, but it gets hot in central Georgia in the summer. Temperatures can hover in the 90s (or higher) for days on end, and the humidity can go through the roof.
A View from the Pew: Summertime Blues
June 24, 2014 by
It’s easy to see it from the pastor’s perspective: you visit the sick, you counsel the anxious, and you show up on Sunday with a heart and mind overflowing. But when you reach your seat on the platform and look out at the smaller-than-normal congregation during the prelude, you question your calling.