Tag Archives: scott thumma

Church Growth: Getting the Elders Out of the Way, Part 4

Let’s consider the pros and cons of the Policy Governance Leadership Model as applied to churches. Pros — * The ministerial staff is given clear direction from the elders. They sit down and say (a) this is what we expect … Continue reading

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Church Growth: Getting the Elders Out of the Way, Part 3

In re-reading these posts on Church Growth, it occurred to me that I’d opened — but not answered — the central question: Just how do elders get in the way? Let me begin by saying that elders aren’t alone in … Continue reading

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Church Growth: Getting the Elders Out of the Way, Part 2

I need to make two critical observation before we go further. First, the big concern many readers will have is that the Carver model creates a “pastor” system, meaning, it makes us too much like the Baptists. You know — … Continue reading

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Church Growth: Getting the Elders Out of the Way, Part 1

I’m a big believer in a church having elders. And my belief is not just Biblical (although that would be quite enough). I’ve worked with churches that have no elders, and they often run into serious problems (that’s a topic … Continue reading

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Church Growth: Hiring the Right Preacher, Part 2

Just for fun, you know, I thought I’d take a look at the latest Abilene Christian College data on preacher salaries in the Churches of Christ. They gather data each year to help churches know what to pay and preachers … Continue reading

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Church Growth: Hiring the Right Preacher, Part 1

Let me start by saying that I’m very, very happy with our preacher. This is a post for churches looking to hire a preacher — and for Christian college presidents — and for churches who already have an excellent preacher. … Continue reading

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Church Growth: Introduction

I’ve been reading Beyond Megachurch Myths by Scott Thumma and Dave Travis. I was flipping through the channels, looking for something appropriately manly, like ESPN, and saw Thumma speaking on CPAN2 about his new book. He had a lot of … Continue reading

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