Rainer on Leadership

Podcast Episode #252 Healthy churches of tomorrow will likely reflect these characteristics. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Pastoral longevity doesn't guarantee health in a church, but a series of short pastorates almost guarantees an unhealthy church. * Most churches that have consistent health have consistent leadership. * Many Millennial pastors don't see church hopping or ladd...

Podcast Episode #251 Nik and Ruth Ripken join us to discuss The Insanity of God and their story of God's faithfulness. Some highlights from today's episode include: * "On the mission field, you can't look at lost people in the eye and say 'I want to quit.'" * "When our son died, it's not that it didn't rip my heart out, it just felt like it was our turn." * "Our kids would be stoned off their bike...

Podcast Episode #250 Our mailbag is overflowing, so we answer a few listener questions about topics related church leadership. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Hospitality is a desire to bring people into your social sphere and should be modeled by pastors. * Sometimes there are low-hanging fruit at your church that you don't need to pick. * Look at the demographics of your communit...

Podcast Episode #249 Time wasting can be a problem regardless of what line of work you're in. Today we examine time drainers and how they can lessen your ministry effectiveness. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Don't take people away from their main task by filling up their schedules with meetings. * Check your bylaws to see if you really are required to have certain meetings or are...

Podcast Episode #248 Community-focused churches often have these nine traits. Also in this episode, we talk about civic organizations and call an elk. Some highlights from today's episode include: * If I were the new pastor at a church, one of the first things I would do is get to know the community leaders. * Unfortunately in some communities it has taken crisis to force churches to be more invol...

Podcast Episode #247 Pastors go through several emotions when church members leave. Today, we cover five reasons why. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Even when someone has a good reason for leaving a church, it still feels very personal when they leave. * It's not just pastors who hurt when church members leave. Staff, members and leaders do as well. * Almost every community has a...

Podcast Episode #246 Carey Nieuwhof joins us once more to talk about the nuts and bolts of podcasting for pastors and church leaders. Some highlights from today's episode include: * "You can be innovative in your podcast format. It's your show." * Producing a podcast is often something done in the margins. * "A host's unique contribution to a podcast is relationships and interviews." * "Let your p...

Podcast Episode #245 Carey Nieuwhof drops by to talk podcasting for pastors and church leaders. Some highlights from today's episode include: * "If you struggle with something in ministry, it's likely someone else has as well." * "Podcast guests are typically very accommodating." * "Don't have anything on your podcast that you're not passionate about." * "I want to get people on the podcast who ar...

Podcast Episode #244   Staff conflict creates division in churches and leads to an unhealthy church. It's something to deal with head on with wisdom and grace. Some highlights from today's episode include: * The pastor should play a major role in hiring new church staff. * Try to give inherited staff a chance when you come on as a new pastor. * There seems to be more church staff conflict today th...

Podcast Episode #243 Make the most out of your next ministry conference with these five tips. Also in today's podcast, we discuss the upcoming Pipeline Conference. You can find out more about the event at the conference website: MyLeadershipPipeline.com. Early registration ends July 31, and you can save 15% on registration by using the promo code rainer16 at checkout. There are even group rates fo...

Podcast Episode #242 Discussions on pastors and funerals as well as what to watch for, what to have prepared, and what to avoid. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Know the community traditions related to funerals. * Don't just read a script when officiating a funeral. Personalize it if at all possible. * Have a personal policy of what funerals you will do and whether you will do out...

Podcast Episode #241 Mike Harland returns to the podcast to discuss worship as discipleship. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Discipleship is something that should be passed from generation to generation in our families. * The most quoted book of the Bible is the book of Psalms. * Every spiritual discipline you can think of is represented in at least one psalm. * Music should be use...

Podcast Episode #240 Discussions on pastors and weddings as well as what to watch for, what to have prepared, and what to avoid. Some highlights from today's episode include: * If you're in the South and getting married on a Fall Saturday, prepare for possible low attendance. * You really don't know your spouse until you're married and living with one another every day. * Premarital counseling is...

Podcast Episode #239 We cover a recent blogpost on warning signs for dying churches. Some highlights from today's episode include: * These are signs of churches that are not just unhealthy but that are dying. * If a church does not have strong theological roots, it's not really a church—it's a civic club. * Unfortunately, good pastors and staff from all over are emotionally and verbally beaten up...

Podcast Episode #238 Discuss the characteristics of generous churches and how to tell if your church is a generous one or not. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Weekly per capita giving is one of the best numbers to use to measure financial health of a church. * The average weekly per capita giving in the U.S. is $30. * There are certain types of financial campaigns that are more lik...

Podcast Episode #237 William Vanderbloemen joins us to talk about the top trends and biggest mistakes he and his company are seeing in pastor searches. Stick around for the end and hear William's answer to the question "Should a pastor send an unsolicited resume to a church?" Some highlights from today's episode include: * Why does the business world have a better plan for succession than the chur...

Podcast Episode #236 Discuss an article by Art Rainer on how to make a poor first impression and apply it to churches. Impassioned discussions on proper handshake etiquette and hugs are also included. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Church members are often friendly...to the people they already know. * Don't wait for a guest to ask a question. If you see they need help, help them....

Podcast Episode #235 Discussion about challenges that are related to following a long-term pastor. We see this often in other walks of life such as sports and coaching changes. So we shouldn't be too surprised that it is an issue in the church as well. Some highlights from today's episode include: * As a general rule, a long-term pastor who leaves a church needs to stay away and give the new pasto...

Podcast Episode #234 Discussion about issues related to the recent transgender bathroom controversy. Some highlights from today's episode include: * One of the worst things you can do is to avoid or ignore difficult moral issues in your preaching. * Sexuality and gender identity are biblical issues we must address in the church. * We must teach on difficult moral issues with biblical clarity. * If...

Podcast Episode #233 We welcome back Mike Harland to discuss church worship preferences and arguing over doubtful issues (Romans 14). Some highlights from today's episode include: * The subject of worship runs through the entire Bible. Who we worship and serve is of utmost importance. * Style of music is generally the most frequently debated worship issue in the church. * The tunes to a lot of our...

Podcast Episode #232 We cover seven demographics for pastors and church leaders to know about their community. And surprisingly, there are also riveting discussions about table tennis and Nashville geography included in this episode. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Sometimes we have ministries that don't actually meet the needs of the community because those ministries are what we'...

Podcast Episode #231 Discuss a recent post on church outreach and how it has changed over the past few decades. Some highlights from today's episode include: * We still need personal contact with non-members for evangelistic reasons. * The first place people come into contact with your church is likely no longer the worship service but the church website. * As much as things change, one thing rema...

Podcast Episode #230 We discuss five areas where change often fails and discuss everything related to the new book, Who Moved my Pulpit? Some highlights from today's episode include: * Prayer should be the foundation of everything we do in the church. * A change leader needs to be in prayer and needs to enlist others to pray as well. * Prayer is not a perfunctory step in leadership. * More leaders...

Podcast Episode #229 Discussion about recent post on relational IQ and leadership and the importance of relational skills to effectiveness in ministry. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Relational IQ begins with a foundation of a vibrant prayer life. * If you have a healthy relationship with God, you'll likely have a healthy relationship with others. * There's nothing wrong with talk...

Podcast Episode #228 Discussion about few causes of negativity in the church and how pastors can help deal with negativity and even stop it from happening on the front end. Some highlights from today's episode include: * Every church will go through a challenge or lull. The question is "how long will you stay in it?" * Any time there is negativity, there is the possibility of it snowballing. * To...