During my 30 years in ministry, I’ve discovered that people give to their church for 4 primary reasons. 1. Obedience-because the Bible teaches it, they believe and practice it. 2. Challenge-some are motivated by big vision and challenge. 3. Reason-it costs the church money to run, so some give because it makes sense. 4. Compassion– touching

The frigid temperature caused me to catch my breath and I squinted as my pupils adjusted to the intense lighting.   After hearing the respirator’s rhythmic sound, I glanced into the room to my right. I felt the sadness of two red-eyed parents as they gingerly held their child’s hand.  My heavy heart became heavier

In a recent post, Strategic Planning for Dummies, I suggested a simple visual that can simply explain strategic planning. I’ve used the tool below with that visual to help actually implement ministry plans. I hope it helps you. Ministry Event Plan tool for blog

Account Suspended This account is currently suspended and is being investigated due to strange activity. ________________________________________________________________ I couldn’t believe my eyes when I read this message from Twitter! Me, Charles Stone, who loves puppies, drives the speed limit, and secretly wants to be a Wal-Mart security guard to catch people really doing bad stuff… had

Yikes. Twitter just suspended my account. I’m in Twitter withdrawal! Anybody have any ideas on how to cope with withdrawal? For those of you who got kicked off, how long did it take until they un-suspended you?

About 3 months ago a guy wheeled into our church strapped into a motorized wheelchair and breathing on a ventilator. I didn’t learn his name nor begin to learn his story until about a month ago. I spent an hour with him this week and was deeply moved by his story. It all began when

If you knew you would never see someone you loved again in this life, what would you say? I’ve move as a pastor/teaching pastor from two churches in the last 20 years, and I’ve shared these 10 parting thoughts to those people I loved, not knowing if I’d ever see them again. 1. Say thank-you

This past weekend, between Thursday and Sunday, over 3,000 people volunteered to pack over 500,000 meals for Haiti at our church. It was an incredible collaborative effort between people from five churches, the community, and local businesses. We partnered with a Christian organization called Feed My Starving Children whose sole purpose is encapsulated in its

First impressions often stymie how God wants us to perceive others. Recently we vacationed in Mississippi to visit my wife’s dad and sister. Our visits there have become quite routine. Each day I get up, run, take a shower, go to a buffet, take a nap, watch TV, go to bed, and then the next