Pastors.com | Encouraging pastors and church leaders with tools for healthy, growing churches.

God has a unique vision for your church – a vision you can't come to grips with by copying how someone else does church. In this article, Ed Stetzer helps you understand the communities you want to reach so you can break the “cultural code” and begin to see how God wants to work uniquely through your church. [more]

"Let’s remember that every ministry started as someone’s dream. Every church, parachurch ministry, church college, Christian publisher, and missionary organization started as a dream that God gave to someone. That’s the reason I love to dream about my part in the ministry of Jesus in the world. It is exciting to think that right this minute, the Holy Spirit may be igniting a fantastic new expression of ministry in my heart or in someone I know." - H.B. London & Neil B. Wiseman, The Heart of a Great Pastor (Regal, 2006)

"What makes a small church successful is what will eventually halt its growth. Everyone in a small church knows everyone else. This creates a tight community, composed largely of the kind of people 'we like' – people who were 'like us.' This makes fellowship close and builds a family-type atmosphere. Small churches, without realizing it, intuitively resist growth at some point since continued growth threatens the closeness they so enjoy." - Michael Fletcher, Overcoming Barriers to Growth (Bethany House, 2006)

"To avoid criticism do nothing, say nothing, be nothing." - Elbert Hubbard (1856 - 1915)

“World Vision Vice President Steve Haas said he took a casual poll while speaking to 18,000 students at 10 Christian colleges last year in the United States. When he asked how many had ever heard their pastor address the AIDS crisis, he counted only 28 raised hands.” - Kansas City Star (1/6/07)

An Australian surfer, Nicael Holt,  recently sold his life – including his name, phone number, all of his possessions, and baggage from a recent romantic break-up – on E-bay for $5,790 in American money. Also coming in the deal was Christmas with Holt's family and an introduction to all of his friends, who promised to treat the winner the same way they do Holt, along with the names of eight women he has been flirting with. The winner was entitled to a four-week training course on how to be Nicael Holt and two months of on-call support. Asked why he did this, Holt said he didn't really know – possibly boredom or intrigue over what constitutes a life. His identity, passport, qualifications, and future inheritance were not part of the sale. - Agence France-Presse (Jan. 28)