Rainer on Leadership

https://youtu.be/44uJZp4vLM0

Like so much in the world and in churches, change is constant. Thom and Sam look at the fascinating changes in ministry training and education. These shifts will have a profound impact on local churches.

The early winds of change: off-campus models emerged.

Early video training via VHS and then DVD.

The great inflection point with the internet.

The next inflection point with streaming.

The certificate model emerged slowly but is about to take off.

The great need for training around the world.

 

Resources:

Logos is now more affordable. Get started for just $49. Go to  Logos.com/churchanswers.

Brown Church Development Group

The One Year Chronological Study Bible

Tyndale House Publishers

Collaborate with ministry leaders around the world! Join us at Church Answers Gold!

Church Answers University

Provide a Church Answers scholarship

 

Episode Sponsors:

According to a recent survey, 30% of Evangelical churchgoers want more in-depth teaching. If you want to go deeper into the word, Logos is the Bible Study platform for you.

Logos fuses powerful technology with biblical resources. Access Bibles, search tools, commentaries, seminary-level courses, and even audiobooks right on your phone, tablet or desktop.

Logos offers nearly 200,000 digital books from the world’s top publishers.

Logos is now more affordable. Get started for just $49. Go to Logos.com/churchanswers.

 

The One Year Chronological Study Bible is a truly unique combination of tools to transform your reading and study. We call it The Five-Tool Bible because it employs five “tools” for a fresh reading experience.

Like all One Year Bibles, it is formatted into 365 daily readings, setting the pace for you to read through the whole Bible in one year.

Like all chronological Bibles, the books and stories are organized in their historical order—the order the events happened—which differs in numerous places from the canonical order.

Why was The One Year Chronological Study Bible created? To bring the useful tools of One Year, chronological, 14 eras, and study together in one economical package. (List price: $29.99 hardcover, $24.99 softcover.)

Release Date: September 6. Already available for pre-order wherever books are pre-ordered.

https://youtu.be/ZnBqXAxhV74

Most Americans today read, but consume information via media and through storytelling. What does this mean for Bible reading and engagement? The Bible tells a story filled with themes and threads that connect us to God’s love and truth, but they can be hard to see for many reasons. The fact that most people have never read the Bible chronologically doesn’t help. On today’s episode, Thom and Sam are joined by Stan May and Joel Strahan from the Chronological Bible Teaching team to discuss how reading the Bible chronologically can help us better understand how our story is intertwined with God’s story and why this is important for churches.

1. What is Chronological Bible Teaching?

2. How does reading the Bible Chronologically help us better understand the Bible?

3. Why did you want to create a One Year Chronological Study Bible

4. Is this only for personal study or could churches use this as well?

5. Is there resistance to reading the Bible in this way and if so how can pastors help their congregations better understand it and get excited about it?

 

Guests: Stan May, Board Chair and Trainer, Chronological Bible Teaching & Joel Strahan, Board Member and Trainer, Chronological Bible Teaching

 

Resources:

14ErasBible.com

14Eras.com

Chronologicalbibleteaching.com

The One Year Chronological Study Bible

Tyndale House Publishers

Logos is now more affordable. Get started for just $49. Go to  Logos.com/churchanswers.

ChurchAnswers.University

 

Episode Sponsors:

The One Year Chronological Study Bible is a truly unique combination of tools to transform your reading and study. We call it The Five-Tool Bible because it employs five “tools” for a fresh reading experience.

Like all One Year Bibles, it is formatted into 365 daily readings, setting the pace for you to read through the whole Bible in one year.

Like all chronological Bibles, the books and stories are organized in their historical order—the order the events happened—which differs in numerous places from the canonical order.

Why was The One Year Chronological Study Bible created? To bring the useful tools of One Year, chronological, 14 eras, and study together in one economical package. (List price: $29.99 hardcover, $24.99 softcover.)

Release Date: September 6. Already available for pre-order wherever books are pre-ordered.

According to a recent survey, 30% of Evangelical churchgoers want more in-depth teaching. If you want to go deeper into the word,

https://youtu.be/RHBUlfnUuH4

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and eliminated the constitutional right to abortion after ruling on a new court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Thom and Sam discuss the implications of this decision. This historical decision will have a lasting impact on the culture, and the church must be ready to serve. 

Many churches have served in this area for decades, and they are well-positioned to do more

More babies will be born and more families created, making for a more complex family dynamic, especially with teenage moms

More foster parents are needed as the system is already overloaded in many communities

Crisis pregnancy centers will need more volunteers

Without immediate intervention, child hunger is likely to get worse, not better

Women will face greater challenges and stresses when faced with an unwanted pregnancy

Your church has a new opportunity to minister on the front lines

 

Resources:

Logos is now more affordable. Get started for just $49. Go to  Logos.com/churchanswers.

Know Your Community

One More Child

The One Year Chronological Study Bible

Tyndale House Publishers

Collaborate with ministry leaders around the world! Join us at Church Answers Gold!

 

Episode Sponsors:

According to a recent survey, 30% of Evangelical churchgoers want more in-depth teaching. If you want to go deeper into the word, Logos is the Bible Study platform for you.

Logos fuses powerful technology with biblical resources. Access Bibles, search tools, commentaries, seminary-level courses, and even audiobooks right on your phone, tablet or desktop.

Logos offers nearly 200,000 digital books from the world’s top publishers.

Logos is now more affordable. Get started for just $49. Go to Logos.com/churchanswers.

 

The One Year Chronological Study Bible is a truly unique combination of tools to transform your reading and study. We call it The Five-Tool Bible because it employs five “tools” for a fresh reading experience.

Like all One Year Bibles, it is formatted into 365 daily readings, setting the pace for you to read through the whole Bible in one year.

Like all chronological Bibles, the books and stories are organized in their historical order—the order the events happened—which differs in numerous places from the canonical order.

Why was

https://youtu.be/YW_hqAPlPaE

Interest rates are on the rise. The stock market recently entered into bear territory. How will a potential recession affect your church? Thom and Sam discuss six ways you can help prepare your church for an economic downturn. Discipleship cannot happen without stewardship, and your budget is a major way to steward the resources of the church.

* Start practicing zero-based budgeting.

* Project revenue before considering expenses.

* Set the budget slightly lower than your actual revenue from the previous year.

* Consider the impact of inflation on the personnel budget.

* Make sure you understand the timing of your expenses for cash flow purposes.

* Be careful with additional debt and new personnel.

 

Resources:

Another Gospel by Alisa Childers

Tyndale House Publishers

Grow Generosity 101 training by Church Growth Services

BELAY

Church Answers University

Collaborate with ministry leaders around the world! Join us at Church Answers Gold!

 

Episode Sponsors:

Have you encountered the ideas of progressive Christianity but you aren’t sure how to respond? 

Popular author, blogger, and speaker Alisa Childers brings you Another Gospel?, the book and curriculum for anyone wanting to explore the nuanced topic of progressive Christianity.

Lee Strobel says “This may be the most influential book you will read this year.”  

In a culture of endless questions, you need solid answers. Alisa will show you how to determine—and rest in—what’s unmistakably true.

Visit alisachilders.com to learn more.

 

Launching next Monday, August 1st!

6 more days to save $100 on enrollment.

Learn more at ChurchAnswers.University

 

https://youtu.be/J9AQXr-pzT8

Many churches have Christian schools, preschools, mom's day out, and other similar ministries. Should these ministries be financially self-supporting? The answer is not always clear. Thom and Sam discuss six key thoughts about this issue.

There are a number of different ministries with a similar function.

Make certain the ministry has a clear and written purpose

The first default is for the ministry to be self-supporting.

The church needs to decide if "self-supporting" includes indirect costs.

The church should consider any support to be part of the missions budget.

The danger is that support can turn into entitlement.

 

Resources:

Belay

Another Gospel by Alisa Childers

Tyndale House Publishers

Collaborate with ministry leaders around the world! Join us at Church Answers Gold!

Brown Church Development Group

 

Episode Sponsors:

Accomplish More. Juggle Less.

Virtual Assistants. Bookkeepers. Web Specialists. Social Media Managers.

Everything you need to transform your work.

 

Have you encountered the ideas of progressive Christianity but you aren’t sure how to respond? 

Popular author, blogger, and speaker Alisa Childers brings you Another Gospel?, the book and curriculum for anyone wanting to explore the nuanced topic of progressive Christianity.

Lee Strobel says “This may be the most influential book you will read this year.”  

In a culture of endless questions, you need solid answers. Alisa will show you how to determine—and rest in—what’s unmistakably true.

Visit alisachilders.com to learn more.

 

Thom and Sam take the listeners through a three-part series detailing essential digital tools for the church. Some will be expected; others may not be. In each of the 15 categories, Thom and Sam are likely to provide you with insights you have not heard before. In this third part of the series, they look at 5 tools that are relatively new. Even if they have been around a while, they are new to most churches.

1. Live streaming software

2. Project management software

3. Church news

4. Tracking analytics

5. Video meetings

6. Digital leadership coaching

 

Resources:

Listen to "Part 1: The Basics”

* Listen to "Part 2: The Helpful”

Churchteams - churchteams.com/answers, or text "Answers" to (817) 677-9850.

Monday.com

Trello

Christianity Today

Church Answers Central 

Church Answers

Twitter Lists

How to claim your business address on Google

Google Analytics

Know Your Community Report

Zoom

Church Answers Platinum

 

Episode Sponsor:

Churchteams is a full software suite for managing all the things that keep you up at night, letting you get back to what's most important - making disciples and building teams.

Included in this useful software suite is the Text-to-Church feature. Text-to-Church is a cutting-edge tool for engaging the Churchteams software with your church. Imagine a church member texting the church office number with the word "Give", "VBS", "Camp", "Connect", "Check-in", "Bible", or "Directory" and being able to engage in the life of your church.

Visit churchteams.com/answers, or text "Answers" to (817) 677-9850.

 

Thom and Sam take the listeners through a three-part series detailing essential digital tools for the church. Some will be expected; others may not be. In each of the 15 categories, Thom and Sam are likely to provide you with insights you have not heard before. In this second part of the series, they look at 5 tools that will prove very helpful for most church leaders.

1. Calendar meeting software

2. Communication software

3. Note-taking software

4. Proofreading

5. Presentation software

6. Bible software

 

Resources:

Listen to "Part 1: The Basics”

Churchteams - churchteams.com/answers, or text "Answers" to (817) 677-9850.

Calendly

Slack

Google Keep 

Echo Prayer

Grammarly

Canva

Word Swag 

Proclaim

Logos

Tyndale’s Filament Bible

Church Answers Central

 

Episode Sponsor:

Churchteams is a full software suite for managing all the things that keep you up at night, letting you get back to what's most important - making disciples and building teams.

Included in this useful software suite is the Text-to-Church feature. Text-to-Church is a cutting-edge tool for engaging the Churchteams software with your church. Imagine a church member texting the church office number with the word "Give", "VBS", "Camp", "Connect", "Check-in", "Bible", or "Directory" and being able to engage in the life of your church.

Visit churchteams.com/answers, or text "Answers" to (817) 677-9850.

 

Thom and Sam take the listeners through a three-part series detailing essential digital tools for the church. Some will be expected; others may not be. In each of the 15 categories, Thom and Sam are likely to provide you with insights you have not heard before. In this first part of the series, they look at 5 basic tools every church needs.

1. Website

2. Social media

3. Church management software

4. Church giving solutions

5. Church leaders connection center

 

Resources:

Churchteams - churchteams.com/answers, or text "Answers" to (817) 677-9850.

Church Answers Central

 

Episode Sponsor:

Churchteams is a full software suite for managing all the things that keep you up at night, letting you get back to what's most important - making disciples and building teams.

Included in this useful software suite is the Text-to-Church feature. Text-to-Church is a cutting-edge tool for engaging the Churchteams software with your church. Imagine a church member texting the church office number with the word "Give", "VBS", "Camp", "Connect", "Check-in", "Bible", or "Directory" and being able to engage in the life of your church.

Visit churchteams.com/answers, or text "Answers" to (817) 677-9850.

 

https://youtu.be/ohpi8S8gDLY

Over the last few years, the New Living Translation has seen significant growth in popularity, even moving into the #2 spot for several months in a row. Still, some pastors are hesitant to use it as their main translation. Why is this translation gaining in popularity and what about the translation process and model can help pastors feel more confident in using it as their main translation? What is important for pastors to think about when choosing a translation?

We are starting to see a shift in the top-selling Bible translations. Why do you think that’s happening?

Though the NLT is seeing growth in popularity there still is some resistance at the church or pastoral level to make it a main translation. Why do you think that is?

There also is a misconception that newer translations or translations that have updates are staying true to the text. What would be your response and why is it important for translations to be open to updates?

Some preachers insist that expository preaching can only be done from a “formal equivalence”—is preaching from a more dynamic translation really all that different?

Tremper Longman, III is a distinguished Scholar of Biblical Studies at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California, where he was the Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies for nineteen years before his retirement in 2017. He was the senior translator for the wisdom books on the central committee that produced and now monitors the New Living Translation.

Prior to joining Westmont in 1998, Longman taught for eighteen years at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. He has also served as visiting professor at The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology, an adjunct professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, and a guest lecturer at Regent College and the Canadian Theological Seminary.

He earned his B.A. from Ohio Wesleyan University, his M.Div. from Westminster Theological Seminary, and his M.Phil. and Ph.D. from Yale University.

 

Resources:

New Living Translation

Considering the New Living Translation" by Jim Jewell

A Rebel’s Manifesto by Sean McDowell

Tyndale House Publishers

Church Answers University

 

Episode Sponsors:

An insightful guide for students and youth influencers as they sort through the competing visions battling for dominance in our world.

Sean McDowell aims to encourage and inspire this generation to be the rebels who will dare to stand up in a just and loving manner. 

He helps the next generation navigate the issues that have become online shouting matches with calm, clarity, and confidence.

Learn more now!

https://youtu.be/5RfRdlMqgc0

Romans 12:18 makes clear believers are to do all they can to live at peace with everyone. This same sentiment is found in 1 Thessalonians 4:11, in which Paul instructs the church to live a quiet life and mind your own business. Unfortunately, these instructions go largely ignored by many church leaders. We seem to be more at war than we are at peace. What can we do to regain this theme in our lives?

1. Thoughtfulness: Stop reacting viscerally and start taking time to think

2. Hospitality: Open your home to people you need to know better

3. Agreeableness: Find areas of common interest rather than fueling the fire of polarization

4. Humor: Laugh more, share more jokes, and don't take yourself so seriously

 

Resources:

The Levity Effect: Why it Pays to Lighten Up by Adrian Gostick and Scott Christopher

Belay 

A Rebel’s Manifesto by Sean McDowell

Tyndale House Publishers

Church Answers University

 

Episode Sponsors:

BELAY - Accomplish More. Juggle Less.

Virtual Assistants. Bookkeepers. Web Specialists. Social Media Managers.

Everything you need to transform your work.

Visit https://go.belaysolutions.com/raineronleadership

 

An insightful guide for students and youth influencers as they sort through the competing visions battling for dominance in our world.

Sean McDowell aims to encourage and inspire this generation to be the rebels who will dare to stand up in a just and loving manner. 

He helps the next generation navigate the issues that have become online shouting matches with calm, clarity, and confidence.

Learn more now!