Barnabas File

Although most of my ministry was on college campuses, I also worked for a small Baptist university and then a state-wide Baptist organization.     There were differences and similarities in the two. Despite the expected comments about bureaucracy, there were many positive aspects.      A plus was that I was part of organizations made up of committed people who loved the ministry they were doing.  For the most part, they were professionals who enjoyed engaging with others.  I often took the opportunity to walk down the hall or go to another campus building, drop into an office and spend time talking with someone about what they were doing, what I was doing, and life in general.  These were organic relationships that operated outside organization charts and “chains of command.”   As a result of these experiences, my understanding and appreciation for the relationships within an organization grew.  Even when individuals ...

Many in the church today look at the current situation and remember a “golden age” of church life.     Post World War Two the pews were filled, Sunday school classes overflowed with children, budgets were growing, the community was influenced by what the churches supported, seminaries were booming, and denominational bureaucracies were expanding.      Today, church members look around at empty pews, unused classrooms, diminishing resources, and an overall lack of relevance in the community around them. This disparity provokes grief, confusion, anger, and disillusionment.   In his Doctor of Ministry project at Central Seminary pastor Jason Mack pointed out that this “golden age” was an aberration.  Noting the work of Gil Rendle in  Quietly Courageous: Leading the Church in a Changing World,   he calls this “aberrant time.”   Postwar influence drove the population to be cohesive and common values were espoused.  Re...

Did you ever dissect a frog in high school biology? The main thing I remember besides the smell of formaldehyde was a bit of guilt because the frog was dead and would never live again.     Dissecting a frog is an exercise in reductionism, seeking to understand an organism by breaking it down into its smallest, most basic components.     The opposite approach would be a holistic approach, observing the living frog in its natural environment to understand how all its parts work together.      Regenerative leadership is informed by the rhythm of life, the nature of living things  The basis of regenerative leadership is that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, because the individual components interact and create entirely new properties. Systems should be viewed as wholes, rather than just as a collection of isolated parts. It is famously summarized by the phrase, "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts." Parts of a system are int...

Back in the last century, I was invited to write an article for The Campus Minister journal on the future of campus ministry.     I was too optimistic.     In that article, I identified some of the changes that were coming in higher education, but I missed some of the religious trends that would impact denominational ministry with college students—theological divisions, the decline of congregational strength, the decreased denominational support this would bring to both campus ministry and theological education, and the rise of megachurches.     One mistake I made was to project too far into the future out of ignorance of the rapid shifts coming in the latter part of the 20 th  century.   In the next several blog posts, I will attempt to consider possible future trends for the clergy leadership in the local congregation.  I hope to avoid my past errors by looking at hard data about what is happening right now in the church and denominat...

You never know what responses you will get when sharing your opinions on a blog.  On my blog—Barnabas File-- I write about things that interest me or get my attention.  Occasionally, they get someone else’s attention, too. In reviewing my posts for the past year, these received the greatest response.   1.   The Church is in Decline:  What a Great Opportunity for the Church!   In this blog, I encouraged churches to get back to the basics—to love God and to love one’s neighbor.  I noted the decline of disciple formation and spiritual practices in churches, but concluded in this way:   Even so, in these days, I see signs of hope for the people of God.  I talk with pastors who love engaging the Word of God and sharing it with their people.   I meet lay leaders who are bright, creative, and open to new ways of doing church.  I work with seminary students--many mid-career folks--who see new opportun...

Questions are keys to growth.  A coach always thinks about whether he or she is asking good questions.  Good questions energize and encourage; poor questions lead to lack of focus and uncertainty. As you begin the New Year, what questions are you asking?  We ask questions of ourselves as individuals, setting priorities and goals for the coming year and planning how we will reach them.  We do this because we want to be better than we are now. Churches often ask questions about the future as well.  Especially at the end of the calendar year, church leaders—both clergy and laity—stop the think about what is happening or failing to happen in the life of congregation. In my experience, however, churches are often asking the wrong questions, questions based on survival rather than mission. In committee meetings and leadership groups, churches will commonly ask questions like: Will we subscribe the budget for next year?...

In some recent coach training events, the participants have pushed me on the difference between coaching and consulting. Are the lines of demarcation as hard as I seem to make them?   In Disciple Development Coaching , Mark Tidsworth and I define the foci of these two people development practices in this way: Consulting deals with “problem solving, action plans, specific problems.” Coaching is “developing people through learning by doing, partnering between self-discovery and sustainable action.” Consultants are generally seen as persons with expertise in a particular area of content whereas coaches are process experts who work in many different contexts.  A coach does not have to know about education to coach an educator or be an expert in the law to coach a lawyer. Coaches are hired to promote clarity rather than inform their clients.  Consultants are generally seen as resource people and teachers. Even with these definitions, I ...

Last Saturday night was my first in-person experience with a professional soccer match.   I was not disappointed.   Tied 0-0 with the Seattle Sounders at the 83 minute mark, Sporting KC scored on a penalty and went on to win the game 1-0.   We were right behind the goal when the point was scored.   During the game, it was announced that there was a record attendance that night.   The atmosphere was family friendly and welcoming.   I will be back! I was reflecting on this experience on Sunday and thinking about church participation.   The church I attended on Sunday morning was not packed with people and the atmosphere was—well--worshipful.   This contrast often leads commentators to talk about decline of churches, denominations, and organized religion in general.   If we were doing the right thing, more people would attend our services.   Let’s not compare apples and oranges.   Certainly we do not often find the kind of ent...