Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: I use case-study illustrations in my books. But sometimes what is a good example for a chapter, can later decline. Forecasting who will be a good example over the long term is challenging. But, when possible … Continue reading
“Most of the time young, growing churches make a series of decisions based not upon careful planning and analysis, but rather upon necessity and intuition. Thus these decisions are not planned strategies, but strategies that often occur by accident, owing … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel, Ph.D., 6/23/15. In an earlier posting titled DYSFUNCTIONAL PEOPLE & Would Your Church Use These People? I posted a picture of a rather unkempt and dysfunctional-looking group of people … several of which later became some of … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel Ph.D., 4/20/2004. Here is a six-step prescription for keeping Christ central in the lives and ministries of both congregants and leaders. Stay rooted in … the Word. Daily and generous doses of Bible reading and reflection are … Continue reading
Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: “In my book ‘Growth by accident – Death by planning’ (Abingdon Press) I explain how to use brainstorming to generate creative new ministry ideas. But brainstorming is not a discussion session, rather it is ‘an idea … Continue reading
Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: “Two highly influential, but little-known books outside of the management world, are “The unwritten rules of management” by William Swanson and “The CEOs secret handbook.” Filled with pithy, but relevant short quotes here are some of … Continue reading
By Scott Thumma, Hartford Seminary Institute on Church Research. “What could my church possibly learn from these behemoths with million-dollar budgets, hundreds of staff, and thousands of excited volunteers?” In my travels, I repeatedly hear pastors ask this question. I … Continue reading
AN OVERVIEW of MEASUREMENT METRICS: In four of my books I have updated and modified a church measurement tool. You will find a chapter on measurement in each of these books: Cure for the Common Church, (Wesleyan Publishing House), chapter … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel Ph.D., 6/12/15. Church leaders usually want to apply quantitative evaluation of growth … that means using verifiable numbers and not anecdotal observations. But most don’t know where to start. In four of my books I have updated … Continue reading
Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: I regularly visit and coach churches that are growing and/or have multiple venues. I’ve noticed that the same sermon content, same visuals and even the same promotional artwork is used by various church preachers. I can’t … Continue reading
Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: I’ve written a chapter in one of my books about how “over building” usually stunts church growth (you can read that chapter, the “The 7 Don’ts & 7 Do’s of Building” here). Below is a recent story about … Continue reading
Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: One of my books for Abingdon Press is called Growth by Accident, Death by Planning: How not to kill a growing congregation. I looked at churches that were growing and the mistakes they made that usually … Continue reading
Commentary by Professor B: As I research/write a new course on “church multiplication and growth,” I am encouraging students to think of creative new ways to fund church planting. Having planted a church myself, as well as having written/coached many … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel, D.Min., Ph.D., 12/7/17. Recently a student commented, “Last week (national name) was advocating that we put a ‘Sun Set Clause’ in all our churches. He said less than 1% of churches in the country are older than … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel D.Min., Ph.D., 11/17/17. In this video introduction I explain how missteps with facility expansion, renovation or even just reallocation can severely hinder church health. If you are a colleague, student, client or friend who would like to … Continue reading
Bob Whitesel, D.Min. Ph.D., Associate Professor of Missional Leadership, Wesley Seminary at Indiana Wesleyan University, Journal of the Great Commission Research Network, Vol. 1, No. 2, Winter 2010. Abstract This article is an abbreviation of research originally presented to Dr. … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel, D.Min., Ph.D., 2010. Clinton’s Phases Bobby Clinton from Fuller Seminary focused on the phases of the journey after new birth (Figure 2). Though other authors have offered similar process models,[i] Clinton’s is one of the best organized … Continue reading
Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: As this research points out, ethical failures often occur when organizations are: (1) attempting change too quickly (see also Dyke and Starke, "The Formation of Breakaway Organizations"), (2) pushing change too much from the top (see … Continue reading
by Bob Whitesel, excerpted with permission from Inside the Organic Church: Learning from 12 Emerging Congregations (Abingdon Press, 2006, pp. 55-57). Since modern culture is constantly adjusting and metamorphosing, the task of translating the Good News without surrendering its truth … Continue reading
By Bob Whitesel D.Min., Ph.D., 5/13/16. “Churches usually spend way too much time polling their congregation’s opinions, and thus their programming is shaped by their congregational perception, and not community needs.” Someone once said organizations can have a “paralysis of … Continue reading
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