Today's Quote

"The greatest churches in history are yet to be built. Are you prepared to be used by God? Willing to pay the price? To be hated?" - Pastor Rick Warren

Church Music Copyright

Think twice before singing that new worship song next Sunday or before using that movie clip as an illustration in your sermon. Believe it or not, even with the very best of intentions, courts have found churches financially liable for using the works of another person without permission.

Copyright is an important concept for all churches and ministries to understand in order to protect themselves, both against infringing on the rights of others and on having their own rights infringed upon. With the incredible creativity that has been flowing out of Christian ministry in the last decade, it is probable that many churches will create their own copyrightable works, and those works should be afforded every legal protection ...

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Church, school leaders join together to help all succeed

North Carolina Anson County's faith and education leaders are joining together with the goal of helping all students in the county achieve and succeed. At a breakfast Saturday morning at Kesler Chapel A.M.E. Zion Church in Wadesboro, about 25-30 local pastors and bishops gathered with Michael McLeod, executive director for individual and organizational accountability for the Anson County school system and also pastor of Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church, to discuss ways the local faith community can help students better succeed in school. McLeod is leading the effort, along with Pastor Iris Tillman of the Church of God of Prophecy in Morven and Pastor Dannie Williamson of New Zion Missionary Baptist Church.

"Our slogan is 'All Means All,'" McLeod explained. "That means all of our students will succeed, and all of our community will be involved." In a brainstorming session, McLeod said he, Tillman and Williamson decided what better place to start than with the local churches. "We've come together to find out how we can better serve the community," Tillman said. "We're spreading throughout the county. We hope to help bring changes to the environment in our schools."

Matt Walton, pastor at First Baptist Church of Wadesboro, stated that he'd been wanting to get more involved with the local school system, but this group beat him to it. "You've answered my prayers," he said. Tillman told the audience that she has been a volunteer in the schools for more than 30 years, and is often called to schools if a parent cannot make it to discipline a child who is a member of her church. "It's one thing to sit around and talk about what needs to be done and another to do what needs to be done," Tillman said. She related stories of helping her grandson to decide not to join a gang, and how she helped a fifth-grader who was about to be kicked out of school— by having him do manual labor at her home. That child is now a senior in high school.

She also pointed out that many believe that prayer is no longer in schools, but that is not true. "If children want to pray, nobody can stop them," she said. "The doors to our schools are being opened to us to allow us to talk to kids. We, as a faith-based community, need to be involved in the school system." Tillman said that many schools in the county need volunteers to help give teachers a break during the day, volunteers to read to students, cafeteria workers and so on.

Buz Parks of the Anson Baptist Association pointed out that he foresees a wall between people wanting to help and not knowing exactly what to do. He stressed the need for an orientation for church members to get involved in volunteering. "Many are intimidated," he said. "They're afraid they're going to say or do something to embarrass themselves." Tillman, McLeod and Williamson plan to organize training sessions for volunteers and hope to get church-based volunteers and pastors into the schools early next year.

George Senter of Faith Baptist Church was surprised to learn that it's OK for pastors to visit members of their congregation in school. Tillman responded that she'd gotten parents' permission to be able to visit the children in school.

The training for volunteers will be organized soon, McLeod said. "We will have detailed job descriptions," he explained. "This [breakfast meeting] was to let you know we're coming to you. It will be systemized; this is a strategic plan." By February, he added, the community as a whole will be aware of what the faith leaders are doing.

[by Abby Cavenaugh]

President Declares November Military Family Month

President Barack Obama has declared November as Military Family Month.

The proclamation reads:

"No one pays a higher price for our freedom than members of our nation's military and their families. As sons and daughters, husbands and wives, and mothers and fathers are deployed, military families endure with exceptional resilience and courage. They provide our troops with invaluable encouragement and love, and serve our nation in their own right. During Military Family Month, we honor the families of our armed forces and thank them for their dedication to our country.

"Though only a small percentage of our nation's population, our troops bear the great responsibility of protecting our people. They, along with their families, serve us every day with courage and dignity. Ensuring that military families receive the respect they deserve and the support they have earned is a top priority for my administration.

"The strength of our nation is measured not just by our success on the battlefield, but also by our ability to support those families who have made so many sacrifices for us. Time and again, military families have shown their heart in the face of adversity. We have a solemn obligation to ensure that while our men and women in uniform discharge their duties, we do all we can to promote and preserve the well-being of their families. We must also support the families of our wounded warriors and our fallen heroes who have paid the ultimate price for the freedoms we enjoy. ...

"Now, therefore, I, Barack Obama, president of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 2009 as Military Family Month. I call on all Americans to honor military families through private actions and public service for the tremendous contributions they make in the support of our service members and our nation."

Humor

A pastor places his order at the pet store. "I need at least 50 mice, 2,000 ants, and as many of those little silverfish, you can get."

The clerk replies, "We can probably do that, but it might take some time. Mind if I ask why you are placing such an unusual order?"

The pastor replied, "I've accepted a call to another church and the pastor's council told me to leave the parsonage the way I found it."

Rural Church Treasurer Embezzles $50k

An East Tennessee woman has been accused of embezzling more than $50,000 from a rural Baptist church where she is treasurer.

The Daily Post-Athenian in Athens reports that 39-year-old Kelly Maynor of 10 Mile was arrested Monday in Meigs County on charges of theft of services and filing false financial statements. Lakeside Baptist Church in Ten Mile reported more than $50,000 in church funds missing.

Meigs County Detective Keith Kile told the newspaper that church leaders contacted authorities a few weeks ago. Kile said Maynor apparently spent much of the money for her own personal use.

[Information from: The Daily Post-Athenian, http://dpa.xtn.net/]

All churches, rural and metropolitan, should have sound checks and balances in place including outside audits to insure accountability.

Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee Fights for Local Church Property

A dispute over the future of a congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee is heading to court.

The Tennessean reports the dispute is over the future of St. Andrew's Parish and its property located in West Nashville.

The Rev. James Guill, the rector at St. Andrew's, says the congregation left the Episcopal Church and joined a Quincy, Ill.-based breakaway Anglican diocese, the newspaper reported. But Bishop John Bauerschmidt says St. Andrew's is still an Episcopal church.

It's been three years that the dispute has been brewing without a resolution. The diocese filed a lawsuit to reclaim the St. Andrew's Church property last Friday.

[Information from: The Tennessean, http://www.tennessean.com/]

Abortion Funding Is Included In Latest ObamaCare Bill

Despite repeated attempts by pro-life legislators on both sides of the aisle, taxpayer funding for abortion is back with a vengeance in ObamaCare proposals.

Thus far, all 17 proposed amendments that would prohibit taxpayer funding for abortion in ObamaCare have been defeated, and pro-life Congressman Bart Stupak, a Democrat from Michigan, said of the House's 2,000-page bill (H.R. 3962), "Language in the bill still does not do enough to prevent federal funding from going to abortion services.

"I am disappointed the Capps Amendments has remained intact (in the House bill), mandating abortion services for the first time in the nation's history."

To help you understand just how far reaching this bill will be, American Famoly Association is hosting a free live webcast on Tuesday, November 3, at 8:30 p.m. EST. They will also answer questions by email about health care live on air.

Register now for the free live webcast Tuesday, Nov. 3 @ 8:30 p.m. EST for "Government Takeover of Health Care: Counting the Costs."

In the Senate version, the 10% of doctors who submit the most reimbursements for Medicare patients will have their pay docked by five percent. This inevitably will lead to rationing of care for seniors, and make "death panels" inevitable as doctors strain to stay below the threshold.

Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-Minn.) describes the House bill this way: "This 2,000-page bill includes a job-killing employer mandate, an individual mandate that requires Washington bureaucrats to define what kind of coverage is acceptable, burdensome tax increases, Medicare cuts, and a huge expansion of Medicaid that will break already strained state budgets."

Chuck Swindoll: 10 Leadership Lessons Learned in 50 Years of Leadership

Chuck Swindoll, accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award at Catalyst 09, offered the following lessons he has learned:

1. It’s lonely to lead. Leadership involves tough decisions. The tougher the decision, the lonelier it is.

2. It’s dangerous to succeed. I’m most concerned for those who aren’t even 30 and are very gifted and successful. Sometimes God uses someone right out of youth, but usually he uses leaders who have been crushed.

3. It’s hardest at home. No one ever told me this in Seminary.

4. It’s essential to be real. If there’s one realm where phoniness is common, it’s among leaders. Stay real.

5. It’s painful to obey. The Lord will direct you to do some things that won’t be your choice. Invariably you will give up what you want to do for the cross.

6. Brokenness and failure are necessary.

7. Attitude is more important than actions. Your family may not have told you: some of you are hard to be around. A bad attitude overshadows good actions.

8. Integrity eclipses image. Today we highlight image. But it’s what you’re doing behind the scenes that matters.

9. God’s way is better than my way.

10. Christlikeness begins and ends with humility.

[from Another day... Another opportunity... by Chris Jordan]

AG Pushes Multi-Site Church Strategy

The Assemblies of God is moving forward with a resolution it recently passed to facilitate church planting particularly using the increasingly popular multi-site strategy.

"Prior to the adoption of this resolution, it was difficult to give recognition to the missional value of these sites," Steve Pike, national Church Planting director, told the denomination's publication.

"If it's true that what gets recognized gets done, then being able to recognize the evangelism and discipleship that is taking place through these new ministry outlets should result in even more people coming to faith in Christ."

During the 53rd General Council in August, Assemblies of God delegates approved the Parent Affiliated Churches resolution which encourages a new church planting methodology.

Recognizing that an increasing number of churches are dependent upon the parent church rather than the larger district, the Pentecostal group chose to make a provision for "Parent Affiliated Assemblies which shall be under the supervision of a parenting church, in accordance with the parenting church’s constitution and bylaws."

Parent Affiliated Churches was added to the existing categories of General Council Affiliated, District Council Affiliated and Cooperating assemblies.

Parent Affiliated Churches are essentially multi-site churches. The Assemblies of God defines them as outreaches of an existing church that result in a worshipping community.

According to Pike, Assemblies of God churches have already formed over 200 multi-site venues.

"The number of AG churches that are using multi-site strategies to increase their ministry scope has grown dramatically over the past few years,” he said, according to the denomination.

The jump coincides with the explosion of multi-site churches across all churches in the country. Researchers from the Leadership Network estimate there are currently 3,000 multi-sites, up from 300 in the year 2000.

Recognizing the success and potential of the multi-site methodology, the Assemblies of God has scheduled events and training beginning this month to educate members about the new strategy and equip them to become Parent Affiliated Churches.

"We already have plans for four boot camps designed specifically for PAC/multi-site churches for next year," said Leo Crosby, marketing and communications director for the Church Multiplication Network.

The new multi-site push is part of the Assemblies of God's effort to become a church planting and church multiplication movement. The Church Multiplication Network was formed in 2007 to encourage churches across the denomination to work together and plant as many churches as possible.

[By Audrey Barrick, Christian Post Reporter]

United Methodists Tackle Ineffective Clergy

United Methodists are reevaluating the so-called "guaranteed appointment" of clergy system, calling into question the effectiveness of the long-established practice amid membership decline.

For decades ordained elders have been assigned to local churches regardless of their effectiveness. While pastors could be removed from their leadership position for immorality, violation of church law or criminal activity, ineffectiveness has not been dealt with in the same manner.

The guarantee that ordained leaders have stems from The United Methodist Church's Book of Discipline, which states, "All elders in full connection who are in good standing in an annual conference shall be continued under appointment by the bishop."

It was originally adopted in 1956 to protect pastors from arbitrary, sexist or racist abuses of authority. But decades later, some say the protection is producing more negative outcomes than positive ones, such as ineffective pastors.

"What we want to do is retain protections for women and minorities. But guaranteed appointment is having the consequence of supporting mediocrity," said Bishop Grant Hagiya of the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference and the Alaska Conference at a meeting earlier this month.

In 2004 the United Methodist Church's highest legislative body created a task force to study its system of lay, licensed and ordained ministry. The panel later reported that the guaranteed appointment of clergy was one of the biggest hurdles to reviving the church, according to the United Methodist News Service.

Though a petition to completely eliminate the guaranteed appointment provision was rejected in 2000, Methodists last year approved a petition to amend, and not remove, the paragraph in the Book of Discipline dealing with clergy appointment.

The petition outlines responsibilities that an ordained elder must fulfill, including annual participation in an evaluation process with a pastor-parish relations committee or comparable authority; evidence of continuing effectiveness reflected in annual evaluations; and professional growth through continuing education and formation, among others.

The petition also gives bishops procedures for corrective action or terminating an ineffective pastor's appointment.

United Methodist leaders clarified that the petition does not point the finger at clergy. The concern is rather on the effectiveness of entire congregations. The Rev. Mary Ann Moman, an elder in the South Indiana Conference, told The United Methodist Reporter that effective congregations take initiative to reach populations in their community “that are not like themselves. To the level that we’re not doing that, we’re not being as effective in congregations as we could.”

Meanwhile, the work of the task force – Study of Ministry Commission – set up in 2004 continues. A report was expected to be delivered in 2008 but the commission asked for more time to study ministry orders and make recommendations.

The commission held a meeting earlier this month in Nashville where they considered changes to the guaranteed appointment principle and the ordination process.

Bishop Hagiya said the goal of the commission is to remove obstacles and rules to allow "creative ministry to thrive."

The United Methodist Church is the second largest Protestant denomination with 7.9 million members, but it has experienced membership decline for decades now.

With continued losses, Hagiya said the church cannot continue to afford guaranteed appointments.

[By Audrey Barrick, Christian Post Reporter]

Pastor Appreciation Month

"Appreciate your pastoral leaders who gave you the Word of God. Take a good look at the way they live, and let their faithfulness instruct you, as well as their truthfulness." (Hebrews 13:7 MSG)

Pastor, you work vigorously, often neglecting personal needs to give others comfort and direction. You do so much, yet you receive so little in return. This month, we take time out to acknowledge and celebrate the efforts of your leadership.

Show your pastors and leaders how much you care:

• E-cards from ChristianityToday.com
• E-cards from CTLibrary.com
• 8 Ways to Encourage Your Pastor
• 9 Ways to Love Your Pastor

October 11, 2009 is Clergy Appreciation Day.

October is Clergy Appreciation Month.

Clergy Appreciation Month is a special time that congregations set aside each year to honor their pastors and pastoral families for the hard work, sacrificial dedication and multiple blessings provided by these special people. It is typically scheduled in October, but can be held at any time that is convenient for the church and the community. It is also important to remember that appreciation, affirmation and prayer support of our spiritual leaders is appropriate throughout the entire year.

DOWNLOADS:

• CAM Planning Guide
• CAM Promotional Artwork
• CAM Audio Greeting
• CAM Testimonies

"The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching" (1 Timothy 5:17).

Pastor-Appreciation.Net. Take initiative. Be a Pastor Appreciation Champion. Get together with others in your church and do something special for your pastor. Your church needs to express love and appreciation to be a healthy church.

Check out the following Pastor Appreciation Resources:

• New Pastor Appreciation Ideas - The Pastor Appreciation Idea Blog keeps you up-to-date with creative pastor appreciation ideas, showing additions and changes to the Pastor-Appreciation.net Web site.
• Write A Pastor Appreciation Poem Using Pastor Appreciation Poetry Resources - A pastor appreciation poem, one of the more popular pastor appreciation ideas reveals the need for pastor appreciation poetry resources.
• Need Poems About Pastors And Poetry To Pay Tribute To A Pastor - For poems about pastors, poetry to pay tribute to a pastor, write your own pastor appreciation poems.
• Write your own pastor appreciation poems with poetry software program - When you need pastor appreciation poems, you can write your own pastor appreciation poem with this unique poetry software program.
• Pastor appreciation contact form for spam free communication. - Using this pastor appreciation contact form will enhance our communication as we share pastor appreciation ideas, yet helping us communicate in a spam free method.
• Pastor Appreciation Month prompts pastor appreciation ideas to honor pastors. - Pastor Appreciation Month is a special time that congregations, implementing creative pastor appreciation ideas to honor pastors, annually paying tribute to their pastors and pastoral families.
• Pastor appreciation skits a fun pastor appreciation idea to honor your pastor. - Pastor appreciation skits a fun pastor appreciation idea to honor pastor.
• A Church of the Nazarene Web Site - Church of the Nazarene Web Site Strategies For Creating Traffic To Your Nazarene Church Website.
• More To A Pastor Appreciation Gift On Pastor Appreciation Day - Giving a pastor appreciation gift on pastor appreciation day is much more that great pastor appreciation gift ideas.
• The pastor appreciation theme declares a powerful message of God's love. - The pastor appreciation theme during pastor appreciation month, and even pastor appreciation gift ideas, reveal a message of God's grace and mercy.
• A Christian home based business, with a pastor appreciation theme. - A Christian home based business, with a pastor appreciation theme, becomes an online income opportunity.
• Missing Encouragement For Pastors Episode Discovered - Encouragement for pastors: In a time of rampant pastoral burnout, words of encouragement for pastors could reduce pastor burnout significantly.
• To express pastor appreciation: be creative in your pastor appreciation ideas. - Express pastor appreciation by letting these pastor appreciation ideas prompt creative pastor appreciation gift giving.
• For pastor appreciation poetry try this poetry writing tool featuring a desktop - For those searching for pastor appreciation poetry, there is a poetry writing tool to help you write your own pastor appreciation poems.
• Church Anniversary Theme As A Church Anniversary Idea - How To Develop A Church Anniversary Theme: Use This Church Anniversary Idea In Your Church Newsletter.
• Focus On The Family Clergy Appreciation Resources For Pastor Appreciation Month - Focus On The Family offers great pastor appreciation resources for your pastor appreciation month celebration.
• Relationship between pastors leaving ministry and lack of pastor appreciation. -Any relationship with pastors leaving ministry, lack of pastor appreciation, and career change for pastors?
• Pastors personal finances: financial pressures of living on a pastors salary. - A pastors personal finances, including the financial pressures of living on a pastors salary, is often a key financial concern for churches wanting to show pastor appreciation.
• Home office furniture is a great pastor appreciation gift idea. - Home office furniture is an appropriate and practical pastor appreciation gift idea, when designing home office.
• Appreciation Pastor Poem: Search Leads To Pastor Appreciation Poem Webpage. - Three words, appreciation pastor poem, used in internet information search strategy, prompted a website with a pastor appreciation theme featuring pastor appreciation poems.
• Ministry career story: how to become a chaplain and pastor appreciation day.- My ministry career story: when a hospital chaplain shared how to become a chaplain, it led to a Christian website focusing on pastor appreciation day.
• Pastor Appreciation Day: Pay Tribute To Pastors Every Day - Pastor appreciation day is a way to pay tribute to pastors ever day because of an atmosphere of appreciation within your church.
• Chaplain Career Information Leads To Internet Ministry. - My search for chaplain career information on how to become a chaplain led me to start an internet ministry.
• A Family Vacation Is A Unique Pastor Appreciation Gift Idea. -A family vacation, even for last minute travel, is a unique pastor appreciation gift idea.
• Internet Income Disclaimer: You Must Understand Potential Financial Risk - Internet income disclaimer regarding website earning potential necessitates that you understand potential financial risk.
• Giving Tribute To The Pastor Is Exciting To Me - Giving tribute to the pastor, writing a pastor appreciation tribute, honoring your pastor says more about God than it does your pastor.
• Difference Between Clergy Appreciation And Pastor Appreciation - The terms clergy appreciation and pastor appreciation mean when implementing ideas for clergy appreciation (or is it pastor appreciation ideas?).
• A Bed And Breakfast Gift Certificate Is A Great Pastor Appreciation Gift - Giving A bed and breakfast gift certificate is a great pastor appreciation gift for a church to give to pay tribute to their pastor.
• Pastor Appreciation Gift Ideas Pastors Gifts For Pastors Appreciation Gift- Our readers share pastor appreciation gift ideas, suggesting gifts for pastors, given to honor pastors as appreciation gifts, that express heartfelt pastor appreciation.
• Gift Baskets Pastor Appreciation Gift Ideas For Pastor Appreciation Salary - Giving gift baskets, as a pastor appreciation gift, is one of the ideas for pastor appreciation a reader shared, prompting my comments about a pastor's salary.
• Pastor Appreciation Ideas To Make Pastor Appreciation Day Special - Pastor Appreciation Ideas To Make Pastor Appreciation Day Special and Pastor Appreciation Month Memorable.
• Pastor Appreciation Day Celebration: Ideas For A Pastor Appreciation Service - Your pastor appreciation day celebration may spark ideas for pastor appreciation service.
• Appreciation Quotes Remind Us To Say Thank You - Appreciation quotes and sayings are inspriational reminders to prompt us to express appreciation to those who have made a significant impact upon us.

Student-Led Prayer Movement Marks 20th Year

Continuing on the prayer tradition that began 19 years ago with a small student-led group in Texas, hundreds of thousands of students around the nation gathered at the flagpoles of their local schools Wednesday morning to pray for a spiritual awakening across campuses and countries.

While most of the local “See You At The Pole” rallies drew just a few dozen students, some drew many more, such as the one held Tuesday evening at Liberty University, where nearly 3,000 students gathered.

In total, around two million students in all 50 states participate in the prayer rally each year. Last year, SYATP reported around three million participants across the United States, joined by students in more 20 nations, including Canada, Korea, Japan, and Turkey.

“The hope for this campus and the hope for this country and world is God,” commented Pastor Dwayne Carson, who also serves as Liberty’s vice president of Spiritual Development, according to the school’s newspaper. “We need Him to come through for us.”

This year’s theme, “Engage: Go and Pray,” was inspired by the first sentence that appears in 2 Kings 22:13, which records the words of King Josiah upon hearing from the Book of Law.

“Go and inquire of the LORD for me and for the people and for all Judah about what is written in this book that has been found,” Josiah had ordered.

With this in mind, SYATP participants prayed to intercede for their leaders, their countries, their schools, their friends, and their families.

“For 20 years, we have seen this day serve as a springboard for unity for teenagers on their secondary and college campuses,” commented Paul Fleischmann, president of the National Network of Youth Ministries, which coordinates SYATP promotion.

“Challenging youth to take leadership on their campus is always a good idea. It’s important to remember that though it has a 20-year history, it’s fresh to today’s students,” he added.

The first SYATP was held in the Ft. Worth suburb of Burleson, Texas, in 1990, when more than 45,000 teenagers met at school flagpoles in four different states to pray before the start of school.

Since then, news of the prayer movement has spread and reached out to more students across more campuses.

It has also drawn support from churches nationwide with many holding “Campus Challenge Sunday” commissioning services the weekend before the annual event.

Each year, SYATP is held on the fourth Wednesday of September.

In Australia, where the new school year official began in late January/early February, SYATP was observed this year on May 21.

Next year's U.S. rallies will be held on Sept. 22, 2010.

[from The Christian Post RSS Feed by Lawrence D. Jones]

Top-Down Controlling Leadership is Fading

In Gary Collins' recent newsletter, he submits that casting vision isn't what it used to be:

Recent years have seen a seismic shift in our perspectives on vision, especially as it relates to leadership. A new book by Jimmy Long calls this The Leadership Jump. Top-down, controlling leadership is fading. No longer can people with titles and power set the agenda and expect everyone else to follow. A new form of leadership has emerged where the leader stimulates ideas and plans but where teams combine their creative ideas to set vision and shape directions together.

It is all about collaboration and coroperation. Is it no wonder that we get this kind of response from those we lead particularly since we now live in a world of "social media", such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Social Media empowers people to particapate not only in the medium, but also crafting the conversation and message. People want to be empowered to participate.

Gary goes on to say:

In an issue of Leadership Journal (Summer 2009) devoted to "iGens" (the contemporary "isolated generation"), one writer urges ministry leaders to "forget about implementing the church's vision." Instead, leaders need to release control and share influence with others, including those who are younger. This can be one of the most difficult changes for a traditional leader to make.

Visions and vision casting are still relevant and motivating. Leaders, coaches, mentors, and teachers will continue to instill and stimulate visions. What's changing is the shift of control, creativity and ownership from an influential individual to teams. This change in vision and visionary leadership is too far along to reverse. Maybe that's not so bad.

[from Ministry Best Practices by Bill Reichart]

Today's Quote

"Growing churches require growing leaders. The moment you stop growing, so does the church." - Pastor Rick Warren