Thom Rainer Articles

  • Seven Characteristics of Reactionary Pastors

    Allow me to speak to the most common mistakes of reactionary pastors. Perhaps you will see yourself in one or more of these characteristics, with a prayerful hope you can make the necessary changes.

  • Seven Dangers in the Last Few Years of Your Ministry

    I want this fourth quarter of my ministry to make a difference for His glory. To be clear, I want to avoid seven dangers in my last years of ministry. And I know I can succumb to any and all of these dangers without His strength, His mercy, and His plan.

  • Ten Roadblocks to Church Revitalization

    Why are so many of our churches not moving forward? Since so many of our churches are in need of revitalization, let’s begin by seeing what roadblocks hinder turnarounds. Here are ten of the most common.

  • Seven Costs to Being an Evangelistic Leader in Your Church

    Though it is not an excuse, we must acknowledge that the pastors and other church leaders pay a high cost when they become intentionally evangelistic. Sometimes it just seems easier to keep our mouths shut about the gospel. Look at these costs to being an evangelistic leader in a local church.

  • Five Terrible Reasons to Enter Vocational Ministry

    Vocational ministry is a calling. It is not just another vocation. If you enter ministry for the wrong reasons, it is likely you will not do well. Indeed, it is likely you will not make it. Here are five of the most common failures.

  • Five Overcorrection Mistakes Churches Make

    The pendulum swings in churches. The congregation does not like a previous direction, so they overcompensate with the next move they make. Often, the overcompensation becomes a more challenging situation than the previous state.

  • Seven Personality Types of Sick Churches

    Sick churches become dying churches. Dying churches become closed churches. Those statements are factual unless some type of change or intervention takes place. But intervention or change is unlikely unless the church recognizes that it is sick.

  • Six Attitudes that Kill Evangelism in the Church

    Why are our churches less evangelistic today? That question could be answered from a number of perspectives. But one of the key explanations is simply an attitude problem. There are several dangerous and debilitating attitudes in churches that are killing evangelism. Here are six of them

  • Four Useful Ministries by Deacons

    The Bible is not abundantly clear on how deacon roles should be carried out practically day-by-day. I have enjoyed interacting with hundreds of pastors who have shared with me how their church’s deacon ministry plays out. Here are four of the more common themes.

  • Five Steps to Respond to a Hurtful and Hateful Email

    The Internet has certainly brought us incredible ways to do commerce, to get information, and to communicate. But it has an ugly and evil side to it as well. It allows cowardly critics to hide behind a keyboard and cut people to the core through blogs, social media, and email. So how do we respond ...
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