Rainer On Leadership

Charitable giving is up—a near record of $485 billion in 2021, despite surging inflation. However, giving to churches has dropped even though giving to non-profits is up by 4%. In the early 1980s, churches received over half of all charitable giving. Today, churches receive less than a third of all charitable giving. Mike Stadelmayer joins Sam to discuss what’s going on with these trends. The post A Special Three-Part Series with Church Growth Services – Episode #3 – Churches Are Getting Less of Total Charitable Giving Every Year—What’s Going On?: An Interview with Mike Stadelmayer appeared first on Church Answers.

Interest rates are rising, and some churches are experiencing an increase in debt service payments. Mike Stadelmayer of Church Growth Services joins Sam for a special series on generosity. In this episode they discuss the controversial topic of debt and how churches can avoid holding too much debt for too long. The post A Special Three-Part Series with Church Growth Services – Episode #2 – The Implications of Churches Holding More Debt for Longer Periods of Time: An Interview with Mike Stadelmayer appeared first on Church Answers.

How strong is the financial foundation of churches today? Mike Stadelmayer of Church Growth Services joins Sam for a special series on generosity. In this important interview, Mike shares three megatrends affecting every church. The post A Special Three-Part Series with Church Growth Services – Episode #1 – Three Generosity Megatrends Your Church Cannot Afford to Ignore: An Interview with Mike Stadelmayer appeared first on Church Answers.

Thom and Sam welcome Jeff Gissing, Acquisitions Director for Tyndale Bibles, to discuss a unique and powerful telling of the gospel, “God With Us”. An ordained Presbyterian Pastor, he enjoys teaching High Sunday School and leading a small group at his local church. The post God With Us: An Interview with Jeff Gissing appeared first on Church Answers.

One of the key reasons many churches are not growing today is that many of their church members do not know the essentials of the Christian faith. Thom and Sam examine this phenomenon and offer key steps for the church to move forward. The post Five Reasons a Healthy Growing Church Must Teach the Essentials of Christianity appeared first on Church Answers.

It seems that every church that has a renewed emphasis on prayer sees greater health in all areas of the church. Thom and Sam share how effective praying churches have motivated and equipped members for more powerful prayer. The post How to Get Your Church Members to Become Prayer Warriors appeared first on Church Answers.

On this week's episode, Thom and Sam discuss why the typical church must replace a third of its congregation every year to maintain the same number of attendees. Most pastors feel this problem, but the Church Answers team has data on the issue. The post The Break-Even Dilemma: Why Your Church Has to Replace a Third of Attendance to Stay Even Each Year appeared first on Church Answers.

Todd Brown is the CEO of Brown Church Development Group, a national church design/build firm. In this three-part podcast series, we will look at the components of a church master plan. We will also get a high-level overview of the master plan. In this third part, we talk with Todd about the key critical issues of a church master plan. The post A Special Three-Part Series with Brown Church Development Group: What You Really Need to Know about a Church Master Plan: An Interview with Todd Brown appeared first on Church Answers.

Todd Brown is the CEO of Brown Church Development Group, a national church design/build firm. In this three-part podcast series, we will look at the components of a church master plan. We will also get a high-level overview of the master plan. In this second part, we talk with Todd about what it means to right-size your church. The post A Special Three-Part Series with Brown Church Development Group: How to Right-Size Your Church’s Facilities: An Interview with Todd Brown appeared first on Church Answers.

Todd Brown is the CEO of Brown Church Development Group, a national church design/build firm. In this three-part podcast series, we will look at the components of a church master plan. We will also get a high-level overview of the master plan. In this first part, we talk with Todd about the concept of "paths" in a church. The post A Special Three-Part Series with Brown Church Development Group: Why Any Size Church Should Have a “Path” for Guests (and Members Too): An Interview with Todd Brown appeared first on Church Answers.

Thom and Sam share five reasons why pastors above the age of 70 will become increasingly common. The post Why Pastors Above the Age of 70 Will Become Increasingly Common appeared first on Church Answers.

There are essentially three groups of people who attend churches: the committed Christians; the casual Christians, and the cultural Christians. Thom and Sam look at each of these groups and offer a sobering prediction: the casual Christians will be the next wave of departures in churches. The post The Next Wave of Departures in Churches (and What Your Church Can Do to Prevent It) appeared first on Church Answers.

More churches need help today than ever before. But there are not enough church consultants available to assist these churches. Thom and Sam discuss the current state of church consulting and where it will likely go in the future. The post Our Thoughts on the State of Church Consulting (and What to Expect in the Future) appeared first on Church Answers.

Most pastors and church leaders will have at least one season of restlessness. It’s the nagging question that keeps you thinking . . . what’s next? In the case of the church, this question can be corporate, meaning you’re thinking what’s next? for the entire congregation. This question can also be personal, meaning what’s next? for me individually. Thom and Sam discuss how pastors can use feelings of restlessness in a positive way. The post How Pastors Can Use Feelings of Restlessness in a Positive Way for Their Churches appeared first on Church Answers.

You can be a good parent and a good pastor. Leading a church does not mean losing your children. Thom and Sam talk about raising preacher's kids and some potential pitfalls to avoid when parenting as a church leader. The post Leading Your Church without Losing Your Children appeared first on Church Answers.

A child in your church decides to follow Christ. There is no greater decision! Now what? Thom and Sam recently created a helpful checklist for pastors and church leaders to share with families. The post Seven Recommendations for When a Child in Your Church Accepts Christ appeared first on Church Answers.

One of the more concerning trends in North American churches is the increasing length of time it takes churches to call a pastor. Thom and Sam give both cultural and demographic realities for this trend. The post Five Reasons Why Churches Are Taking Longer to Find Pastors (Update) appeared first on Church Answers.

Church fostering is one church helping another church for a specified period of time. There has been a lot of interest in the topic, so Thom and Sam explore where the church-fostering movement is headed. The post Five Current Trends in Churches Fostering Churches appeared first on Church Answers.

Thom and Sam welcome Benjamin Watson, author of the upcoming book, “The New Fight for Life: Roe, Race, and a Pro-Life Commitment to Justice.” Benjamin is a former NFL player who now serves as VP of strategic relationships with Human Coalition, a pro-life organization based in Dallas. The post The New Fight for Life: An Interview with Benjamin Watson appeared first on Church Answers.

In most cases, the lead pastor has oversight of church staff. How much authority should the lead pastor have when hiring new church staff? This question recently came up in Church Answers Central from one of our members (Thanks Deek!). Thom and Sam tackle this subject on this week's episode. The post How Involved Should the Lead Pastor Be When Hiring New Church Staff? appeared first on Church Answers.