I’ve been following with interest the Supreme Court hearings addressing homosexual marriage. I’ve also been following faith leaders’ reactions to these hearings...looking for insights to help me sort through my own feelings about the issues at hand. In searching the web for Christian leaders’ insights, I ran across an older interview with Tim Keller at Columbia University. The ... read full post

“The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus” (Luke 16:14)

It’s no secret. The Pharisees don’t have the best reputation. Jesus gave them a fairly substantial black eye. Actually, to be more accurate, Jesus exposed their dirty laundry.

Nobody in the Christian world aspires to be a Pharisee. In an “us vs. them” world, the Pharisees are ... read full post

As the New Year rolled around in 2012, Christ Community Church had a big goal. They wanted to help people get more involved. They wanted to develop new connections in the community, send more people on mission trips, get more people out of debt and empower their Community Groups to impact their neighborhoods. In other words, they wanted to intentionally be the church. They wanted to help their entire congregation ... read full post  |  1 comments

There are times in life when I genuinely want to be generous. I feel excited to give a gift and watch the joy of the recipient. There are times where I really feel compelled to give…not just a token of appreciation, but a radical, unexpected gift of love.

Then, there’s Greedy-Me. There are times that I would rather just keep what I’ve obtained…for me. I would like to blow ... read full post

Pastors, if you really believe Matthew 6:21, what are you doing about it? If you trust Jesus when He says, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also," how are you helping people with the things they treasure?

There is a lot of trepidation in churches today around the subject of money, but Jesus makes it clear that we need to address this issue. Pastors need to be able to help direct and guide ... read full post

Have you noticed the recent rise in resources available to church leaders? Ten years ago, it was hard to find a good video to include in a worship service. I remember renting movies from Blockbuster to use for worship clips. Don’t laugh. You probably still have a VCR sitting around your church building that was used for the same purpose!

Today, there are thousands of videos developed for every ... read full post  |  1 comments

When I was in 6th grade, I played the lead role in the Pied Piper in Jr. High. Think green tights with pointed shoes with bells on the end. One of my prayers of gratitude to this day is that my parents didn’t own an iPhone or video camera to memorialize this role for future generations.

Dave Ramsey is the 21st century Pied Piper of finances for many in the church today. He plays his financial flute ... read full post  |  5 comments

One of the key concepts we teach at GenerousChurch was first stated by Andy Stanley as a challenge to church leaders way back in 2004 at a conference at North Point. Andy asked this question:

“When it comes to your people’s finances do they know what you want FOR them or do they just know what you want FROM them?”

That’s a powerful question for those of us in church leadership ... read full post

“The Great Recovery is a grassroots movement spread by people who are tired of looking to Washington for answers. The truth is that the government can’t fix this economy. It’ll be restored one ... read full post  |  1 comments

For almost ten years, I have been a fly on the wall of some of the most innovative churches in the United States. My work has been focused on one central question: What does it take to create a culture of generosity in a local church? I have used the Acts 2 church as my plumb line, looking to see which churches come closest to this early model. From time to time I will come upon a key element in a church and think, ... read full post  |  9 comments