Leading Ideas from the Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
Leading Ideas from Lewis Center for Church Leadership at The Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C., United States: "3 Questions to Preserve Energy and Passion in Ministry | Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church in 2016" for Wednesday, 14 September 2016
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Leading Ideas from Lewis Center for Church Leadership at The Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C., United States: "3 Questions to Preserve Energy and Passion in Ministry | Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church in 2016" for Wednesday, 14 September 2016
SUBSCRIBE | Topics | Authors | Reprints
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3 Questions to Preserve Energy and Passion in Ministry by Heather Bradley And Miriam Bamberger Grogan, Leading Ideas
Heather Bradley and Miriam Bamberger Grogan are executive coaches with a particular concern for the wellbeing of clergy. They say that spiritual leaders are often held hostage by their own belief that their work never ends, that they have to do it all, and that whatever they do, it isn’t enough. Bradley and Grogan suggest three key questions that can challenge these assumptions and help clergy “switch off” and restore their energy and passion for ministry.
Even the most energetic congregational leader has limited energy. Structured free time, such as a weekly day off or a periodic sabbatical, is a great start, but this may not always be practical. And even if you are able to enjoy time off the clock, now and then your mind can drift back to your role.
Every time we say “yes” to one thing, we are saying “no” to another. When we make conscious and intentional choices, we’re better able to reclaim our sense of control.
Like a light bulb, if you don’t allow yourself to turn off from time to time, burnout is likely to catch up with you. Finding your “off switch” means identifying the issues that keep you “on,” examining them in a fresh light, and giving yourself permission to address them in a way that will allow you to relax and refresh. To “re-soul,” if you will.
Three expressed concerns tend to dominate the thinking of spiritual leaders who find it difficult to switch off: “My work never ends.” “Whatever I do, it’s never enough.” “I have to do it all.” As coaches, we’ve seen over and over again that three questions are useful in challenging these assumptions and opening new possibilities.
Where am I taking on stuff that isn’t mine?
Where does a minister’s job begin and end? This is not the beginning of a joke. It’s a serious question, often with no clear answers. Each congregation and each congregant are different, with different ideas of what their spiritual leaders should be doing. With unclear boundaries and often incompatible expectations, it’s no wonder clergy and congregants can be confused about the pastor’s role. In the absence of clear, agreed-upon expectations, all players — congregants, staff, family, and even you yourself — make up different interpretations of what is expected. Without a clear sense of where your job begins and ends, it’s difficult to find an off switch and know when to use it.
How much is enough?
The role of clergy has few metrics, another reason the “off switch” can be so elusive. How many visits to the hospital are enough? How many revisions of a sermon are enough? How many conversations with congregants are enough? But what if “How much is enough?” is ultimately the wrong question because it is unanswerable? This question can, however, be a doorway that can lead to more useful questions, ultimately including “How do I make peace with feeling that whatever I do, it isn’t enough?”
To what do I need to say “yes” or “no”?
With so many competing calls for our time and attention, we may find ourselves operating on autopilot. When we’re on autopilot, we abdicate control over our choices and allow ourselves to be buffeted by other forces, worrying about other people’s demands and the pressure of shoulds. As a result, we lose focus. We waste energy complaining, leaving us too spent to address the things on which we want or need to focus. Our switch becomes permanently stuck in the “on” position.
To increase your ability to switch off, establish clear boundaries between “off” and “on.” Remember every action or reaction — even no action— is a choice. Every time we say “yes” to one thing, we are saying “no” to another. When we make conscious and intentional choices, we’re better able to reclaim our sense of control.
The important thing is making the choices rather than the choices making you. Because not making a decision is a decision to leave things just as they are. The first step in regaining our sense of control is to become aware of the choices we’re making, whether consciously or on autopilot. As you become more aware of the choices you are making and the circumstances you are tolerating, you may decide you need to make different choices. Maybe you can’t change your circumstances, but by consciously and intentionally choosing the way you approach them, you reclaim control of your experience.
This material is excerpted from Switch Off:The Clergy Guide to Preserving Energy and Passion for Ministry (Abingdon, 2016) by Heather Bradley and Miriam Bamberger Grogan. The book is available through Cokesbury or Amazon.
Related Resources:
Read more.
-------
Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church in 2016 by Lovett H. Weems, Jr., Leading Ideas
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., reports that despite a modest but steady increase in the number of young clergy in the United Methodist Church over the past decade, the percentage of active elders over 55 has reached an all-time high. The Lewis Center’s annual report on clergy age trends also reveals a trend toward delayed retirement and, for the first time in decades, a drop in the number of local pastors (although the ratio of local pastors to elders continues to rise).
For over ten years, the Lewis Center in partnership with Wespath Benefits and Investments (WB), formerly the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits, has reported annually on Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church. The Lewis Center prepares these reports so that church leaders can see the most important trends in clergy numbers and ages in such a way that they understand these trends, can easily share them with others, and act upon the findings.
In 2016, there are 1,003 young elders that comprise 6.84 percent of the pool of active elders, the highest since the 1990s.
The report covers elders, deacons, and local pastors. Elders are ordained to a ministry of Word, Sacrament, Order and Service. They itinerate and receive an appointment annually by the bishop. Deacons are ordained to a ministry of Word, Service, Compassion, and Justice to both the community and a congregation. Deacons are not required to itinerate, nor guaranteed an appointment. A local pastor is licensed and appointed to perform the duties of a pastor in a particular setting. They are not required to itinerate, nor guaranteed an appointment.
Download this video free.
Decade-Long Modest but Steady Increase in Young Elders Continues
In 2005, the United Methodist Church reported the smallest percentage of under-35 elders ever. The 850 young elders that year represented 4.69 percent of active elders. Growth among young elders has been slow but relatively steady since 2005, about 14 per year. In 2016, there are 1,003 young elders that comprise 6.84 percent of the pool of active elders, the highest since the 1990s. The overall pool of active elders is now smaller by almost 3,500 elders since 2005.
Gender has been a major factor in the gains. Through 2015, all the increases in young elders since the low point in 2005 came from women. There were gains in young male elders in 2016 so that the figures now show gains for both men and women.
Fewer Middle Age Elders
Unfortunately, the modest gain in the presence of young elders was offset by a continuing substantive decline in the number and percentage of elders aged 35 to 54. This mid-age group continues to shrink, from 65 percent of all active elders in 2000 to 37 percent in 2016.
This has major implications for bishops and superintendents who traditionally looked to elders in this broad age spectrum to fill appointments that required some years of experience. Today, when cabinets look to this pool for appointments, there are over 6,500 fewer such clergy than in 2000.
Proportion of Older Clergy Continues to Grow
Elders between ages 55 and 72 comprise 56 percent of all active elders, the highest percentage in history. This group reached 50 percent for the first time ever in 2010. This age cohort represented only 30 percent of active elders as recently as 2000. The median age of elders remained at 56 in 2016, the highest in history. The average age remains at 53, a historic high, though unchanged for seven years. The mode age (the single age most represented) is 61, up from 60 last year.
Fewer Elders and Local Pastors
Elders and local pastors are appointed as pastors of congregations. Since at least the 1980s, there has been a major decline in the number of active elders while the number of local pastors increased dramatically. In 2016, there is a decline in both active elders and local pastors, though the elder decline is greater. The result is that since 1990, there are 6,842 fewer elders and 3,472 more local pastors. In 1990, there were over five elders for each local pastor; today there are two elders for each local pastor. In 2016, there are 14,665 elders and 7,408 local pastors.
Clergy Are Retiring Later
A new feature of this year’s report shows retirement age trends for United Methodist clergy in the U.S. Since 2000, there has been a fairly consistent increase in the age at which clergy retire. The average does not increase every year, but the trend is markedly upward. The average age at which United Methodist clergy retired in 2000 was just under 64. By 2015, the last full year of data, the average retirement age had increased to just over 66. The retirement ages for different types of clergy are similar but not the same. For example, in 2015, the retirement ages were: elders – 66, deacons – 67, full time local pastors – 68, and part time local pastors – 69.
Much more information is available in the complete Clergy Age Trends report, which is available for download free of charge. The full report includes detailed data for every annual conference.
Related Resources:
Read more.
-------
The Right Question
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
Doing everything yourself is efficient but limiting. Perhaps this question can help expand the number of people who have the knowledge and ability to do more than they currently do:
Want more Right Questions? Read Right Questions for Church Leaders.
Are You a Clergy Mentor?
Clergy mentors indicate overwhelmingly that they need more training for their task. Mentees value mentoring but also indicate that their mentors need more resourcing for this important responsibility. The Taking Clergy Mentoring to the Next Level Video Tool Kit, available in Group Training and Individual Study versions, is designed for clergy mentors who wish to prepare on their own for a ministry of mentoring. Learn more now.
Quotable Leadership
The primary responsibility of leaders is to promote the well-being of people, not themselves.[Juana Bordas]
Unclutter Your Church
Revitalizing congregations must strip away some of the vestiges of the past to make space for the new amidst decades of physical and emotional clutter. Read "To the Point: Unclutter Your Church" now.
To the Point: Unclutter Your Church by Lewis Center, To The Point
What needs to die in your church? We begin the journey of restarting your church by allowing for, even encouraging, places of death. We choose to have a memorial service for what worked in the past, to honor the prior period of time, and to make a decision to move forward. We choose to let the past set us free to fly, instead of letting the past become a shackle that chains us to a certain way of doing things.
Look around you with fresh eyes, and you will see obvious signs of the past still trying to shackle life in your church. The first thing I see inreStart churches is clutter. Enormous amounts of clutter and disorganization. Clutter that looks like hoarding.
In my current church, we spent my first year clearing out massive amounts of clutter. One day early in my tenure I walked into the nursery where the children are cared for during Sunday morning, and there was an aisle to walk through that led to a station with toys in the back of the room.
The first thing I saw when I stepped into the room was a big sign that read “Do Not Come in Here without an adult!” I understood the sign because the area really was a danger zone. The “aisle” was actually a little path that cut through tall stacks of equipment, papers, toys, boxes, books, and papers. There was so much stuff crammed into the room that it was massively depressing.
As we began cleaning out the nursery, we found old vacation Bible school papers from four decades prior. While they were fascinating to see in a memorabilia sort of way, they weren’t doing any good stacked in boxes and cluttered piles in the nursery.
As we began throwing this stuff away, there was a lot of pain around letting it go. The people worried that they might need that curriculum, since it was expensive to buy new VBS materials. They thought perhaps we needed to store it somewhere, just in case it might be needed.
They groaned, grieved, held tight, and fought as we all pried our fingers off the stuff of our history.
Some churches may not have literal clutter but rather institutional or habitual clutter. “We’ve always done it this way” is a common statement about clutter. “I can’t worship without my hymn … my cross … my pew” are declarations of a cluttered soul.
The only One we worship is God. We don’t worship our stuff, our memories, our dreams, our dashed hopes, or our traditions. We worship our God. We worship the One who knows how to raise up a king from a person who starts out hiding among the baggage.
There is hope for us. We may have surrounded ourselves with things that were once comforting and are now binding, but God still can choose us to lead the way forward. There’s hope for clutter-dwellers, hoarders, and memory-storers. There’s hope for the fearful ones who hold on with clenched hands. There’s hope because God can make a way.
Remember the words of remembrance called the Shema, which centered the people of Israel: “Israel, listen! Our God is the Lord! Only the LORD! Love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your strength” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).
The people were first admonished, encouraged to hear, to open up their ears to receive the sounds of the message. And the message was one of great love. Love God fully and wholly and completely. Love God with great strength.
But instead, when we describe our churches, we speak out words that show the soul’s depressed state. These words are sounds of hopelessness. We come at people, including ourselves, reminding everyone of our faults, as if we have no recognition of the beauty among us. I have done this.
But faith requires hearing, and hearing requires faith in God. When we speak, what story do we tell ourselves, and others? Is it the story of our failings, or the story of how God met us in our failure and showed something new and beautiful among us?
What is your church beautiful at? Does it sound beautiful when it sings? Is it beautiful in community? Is it a beautiful place for mission? What is your church’s beauty, and how can you shout out the good, while changing the not-so-good?
This article is by Dottie Escobedo-Frank, a United Methodist pastor. It is adapted from reStart Your Church (Abingdon Press, 2012) and appeared in Leading Ideas January 16, 2014. Used by permission.
Download a PDF to share with others.
3 Questions to Preserve Energy and Passion in Ministry by Heather Bradley And Miriam Bamberger Grogan, Leading IdeasHeather Bradley and Miriam Bamberger Grogan are executive coaches with a particular concern for the wellbeing of clergy. They say that spiritual leaders are often held hostage by their own belief that their work never ends, that they have to do it all, and that whatever they do, it isn’t enough. Bradley and Grogan suggest three key questions that can challenge these assumptions and help clergy “switch off” and restore their energy and passion for ministry.
Even the most energetic congregational leader has limited energy. Structured free time, such as a weekly day off or a periodic sabbatical, is a great start, but this may not always be practical. And even if you are able to enjoy time off the clock, now and then your mind can drift back to your role.
Every time we say “yes” to one thing, we are saying “no” to another. When we make conscious and intentional choices, we’re better able to reclaim our sense of control.
Like a light bulb, if you don’t allow yourself to turn off from time to time, burnout is likely to catch up with you. Finding your “off switch” means identifying the issues that keep you “on,” examining them in a fresh light, and giving yourself permission to address them in a way that will allow you to relax and refresh. To “re-soul,” if you will.
Three expressed concerns tend to dominate the thinking of spiritual leaders who find it difficult to switch off: “My work never ends.” “Whatever I do, it’s never enough.” “I have to do it all.” As coaches, we’ve seen over and over again that three questions are useful in challenging these assumptions and opening new possibilities.
Where am I taking on stuff that isn’t mine?
Where does a minister’s job begin and end? This is not the beginning of a joke. It’s a serious question, often with no clear answers. Each congregation and each congregant are different, with different ideas of what their spiritual leaders should be doing. With unclear boundaries and often incompatible expectations, it’s no wonder clergy and congregants can be confused about the pastor’s role. In the absence of clear, agreed-upon expectations, all players — congregants, staff, family, and even you yourself — make up different interpretations of what is expected. Without a clear sense of where your job begins and ends, it’s difficult to find an off switch and know when to use it.
How much is enough?
The role of clergy has few metrics, another reason the “off switch” can be so elusive. How many visits to the hospital are enough? How many revisions of a sermon are enough? How many conversations with congregants are enough? But what if “How much is enough?” is ultimately the wrong question because it is unanswerable? This question can, however, be a doorway that can lead to more useful questions, ultimately including “How do I make peace with feeling that whatever I do, it isn’t enough?”
To what do I need to say “yes” or “no”?
With so many competing calls for our time and attention, we may find ourselves operating on autopilot. When we’re on autopilot, we abdicate control over our choices and allow ourselves to be buffeted by other forces, worrying about other people’s demands and the pressure of shoulds. As a result, we lose focus. We waste energy complaining, leaving us too spent to address the things on which we want or need to focus. Our switch becomes permanently stuck in the “on” position.
To increase your ability to switch off, establish clear boundaries between “off” and “on.” Remember every action or reaction — even no action— is a choice. Every time we say “yes” to one thing, we are saying “no” to another. When we make conscious and intentional choices, we’re better able to reclaim our sense of control.
The important thing is making the choices rather than the choices making you. Because not making a decision is a decision to leave things just as they are. The first step in regaining our sense of control is to become aware of the choices we’re making, whether consciously or on autopilot. As you become more aware of the choices you are making and the circumstances you are tolerating, you may decide you need to make different choices. Maybe you can’t change your circumstances, but by consciously and intentionally choosing the way you approach them, you reclaim control of your experience.
This material is excerpted from Switch Off:The Clergy Guide to Preserving Energy and Passion for Ministry (Abingdon, 2016) by Heather Bradley and Miriam Bamberger Grogan. The book is available through Cokesbury or Amazon.
Related Resources:
- The Myth of Balance by Karoline M. Lewis
- Stewarding God’s Gift of Time by David Gray
- Leaders Need Holy Friendships by Tom Berlin
Read more.
-------
Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church in 2016 by Lovett H. Weems, Jr., Leading IdeasLovett H. Weems, Jr., reports that despite a modest but steady increase in the number of young clergy in the United Methodist Church over the past decade, the percentage of active elders over 55 has reached an all-time high. The Lewis Center’s annual report on clergy age trends also reveals a trend toward delayed retirement and, for the first time in decades, a drop in the number of local pastors (although the ratio of local pastors to elders continues to rise).
For over ten years, the Lewis Center in partnership with Wespath Benefits and Investments (WB), formerly the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits, has reported annually on Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church. The Lewis Center prepares these reports so that church leaders can see the most important trends in clergy numbers and ages in such a way that they understand these trends, can easily share them with others, and act upon the findings.
In 2016, there are 1,003 young elders that comprise 6.84 percent of the pool of active elders, the highest since the 1990s.
The report covers elders, deacons, and local pastors. Elders are ordained to a ministry of Word, Sacrament, Order and Service. They itinerate and receive an appointment annually by the bishop. Deacons are ordained to a ministry of Word, Service, Compassion, and Justice to both the community and a congregation. Deacons are not required to itinerate, nor guaranteed an appointment. A local pastor is licensed and appointed to perform the duties of a pastor in a particular setting. They are not required to itinerate, nor guaranteed an appointment.
Download this video free.
Decade-Long Modest but Steady Increase in Young Elders Continues
In 2005, the United Methodist Church reported the smallest percentage of under-35 elders ever. The 850 young elders that year represented 4.69 percent of active elders. Growth among young elders has been slow but relatively steady since 2005, about 14 per year. In 2016, there are 1,003 young elders that comprise 6.84 percent of the pool of active elders, the highest since the 1990s. The overall pool of active elders is now smaller by almost 3,500 elders since 2005.
Gender has been a major factor in the gains. Through 2015, all the increases in young elders since the low point in 2005 came from women. There were gains in young male elders in 2016 so that the figures now show gains for both men and women.
Fewer Middle Age Elders
Unfortunately, the modest gain in the presence of young elders was offset by a continuing substantive decline in the number and percentage of elders aged 35 to 54. This mid-age group continues to shrink, from 65 percent of all active elders in 2000 to 37 percent in 2016.
This has major implications for bishops and superintendents who traditionally looked to elders in this broad age spectrum to fill appointments that required some years of experience. Today, when cabinets look to this pool for appointments, there are over 6,500 fewer such clergy than in 2000.
Proportion of Older Clergy Continues to Grow
Elders between ages 55 and 72 comprise 56 percent of all active elders, the highest percentage in history. This group reached 50 percent for the first time ever in 2010. This age cohort represented only 30 percent of active elders as recently as 2000. The median age of elders remained at 56 in 2016, the highest in history. The average age remains at 53, a historic high, though unchanged for seven years. The mode age (the single age most represented) is 61, up from 60 last year.
Fewer Elders and Local Pastors
Elders and local pastors are appointed as pastors of congregations. Since at least the 1980s, there has been a major decline in the number of active elders while the number of local pastors increased dramatically. In 2016, there is a decline in both active elders and local pastors, though the elder decline is greater. The result is that since 1990, there are 6,842 fewer elders and 3,472 more local pastors. In 1990, there were over five elders for each local pastor; today there are two elders for each local pastor. In 2016, there are 14,665 elders and 7,408 local pastors.
Clergy Are Retiring Later
A new feature of this year’s report shows retirement age trends for United Methodist clergy in the U.S. Since 2000, there has been a fairly consistent increase in the age at which clergy retire. The average does not increase every year, but the trend is markedly upward. The average age at which United Methodist clergy retired in 2000 was just under 64. By 2015, the last full year of data, the average retirement age had increased to just over 66. The retirement ages for different types of clergy are similar but not the same. For example, in 2015, the retirement ages were: elders – 66, deacons – 67, full time local pastors – 68, and part time local pastors – 69.
Much more information is available in the complete Clergy Age Trends report, which is available for download free of charge. The full report includes detailed data for every annual conference.
Related Resources:
- Young Clergy Numbers Grow Among Young Clergywomen by Lovett H. Weems, Jr.
- The Young Clergy Dilemma in Mainline Denominations by Lovett H. Weems, Jr.
- To the Point: Why Young Clergy Matter
Read more.
-------
The Right Question
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
Doing everything yourself is efficient but limiting. Perhaps this question can help expand the number of people who have the knowledge and ability to do more than they currently do:
How might I involve someone else in this project to achieve the task and develop them to assume more responsibility?
Want more Right Questions? Read Right Questions for Church Leaders.
Are You a Clergy Mentor? Clergy mentors indicate overwhelmingly that they need more training for their task. Mentees value mentoring but also indicate that their mentors need more resourcing for this important responsibility. The Taking Clergy Mentoring to the Next Level Video Tool Kit, available in Group Training and Individual Study versions, is designed for clergy mentors who wish to prepare on their own for a ministry of mentoring. Learn more now.
Quotable Leadership
The primary responsibility of leaders is to promote the well-being of people, not themselves.[Juana Bordas]
Unclutter Your ChurchRevitalizing congregations must strip away some of the vestiges of the past to make space for the new amidst decades of physical and emotional clutter. Read "To the Point: Unclutter Your Church" now.
To the Point: Unclutter Your Church by Lewis Center, To The Point
What needs to die in your church? We begin the journey of restarting your church by allowing for, even encouraging, places of death. We choose to have a memorial service for what worked in the past, to honor the prior period of time, and to make a decision to move forward. We choose to let the past set us free to fly, instead of letting the past become a shackle that chains us to a certain way of doing things.
Look around you with fresh eyes, and you will see obvious signs of the past still trying to shackle life in your church. The first thing I see inreStart churches is clutter. Enormous amounts of clutter and disorganization. Clutter that looks like hoarding.
In my current church, we spent my first year clearing out massive amounts of clutter. One day early in my tenure I walked into the nursery where the children are cared for during Sunday morning, and there was an aisle to walk through that led to a station with toys in the back of the room.
The first thing I saw when I stepped into the room was a big sign that read “Do Not Come in Here without an adult!” I understood the sign because the area really was a danger zone. The “aisle” was actually a little path that cut through tall stacks of equipment, papers, toys, boxes, books, and papers. There was so much stuff crammed into the room that it was massively depressing.
As we began cleaning out the nursery, we found old vacation Bible school papers from four decades prior. While they were fascinating to see in a memorabilia sort of way, they weren’t doing any good stacked in boxes and cluttered piles in the nursery.
As we began throwing this stuff away, there was a lot of pain around letting it go. The people worried that they might need that curriculum, since it was expensive to buy new VBS materials. They thought perhaps we needed to store it somewhere, just in case it might be needed.
They groaned, grieved, held tight, and fought as we all pried our fingers off the stuff of our history.
Some churches may not have literal clutter but rather institutional or habitual clutter. “We’ve always done it this way” is a common statement about clutter. “I can’t worship without my hymn … my cross … my pew” are declarations of a cluttered soul.
The only One we worship is God. We don’t worship our stuff, our memories, our dreams, our dashed hopes, or our traditions. We worship our God. We worship the One who knows how to raise up a king from a person who starts out hiding among the baggage.
There is hope for us. We may have surrounded ourselves with things that were once comforting and are now binding, but God still can choose us to lead the way forward. There’s hope for clutter-dwellers, hoarders, and memory-storers. There’s hope for the fearful ones who hold on with clenched hands. There’s hope because God can make a way.
Remember the words of remembrance called the Shema, which centered the people of Israel: “Israel, listen! Our God is the Lord! Only the LORD! Love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your strength” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).
The people were first admonished, encouraged to hear, to open up their ears to receive the sounds of the message. And the message was one of great love. Love God fully and wholly and completely. Love God with great strength.
But instead, when we describe our churches, we speak out words that show the soul’s depressed state. These words are sounds of hopelessness. We come at people, including ourselves, reminding everyone of our faults, as if we have no recognition of the beauty among us. I have done this.
But faith requires hearing, and hearing requires faith in God. When we speak, what story do we tell ourselves, and others? Is it the story of our failings, or the story of how God met us in our failure and showed something new and beautiful among us?
What is your church beautiful at? Does it sound beautiful when it sings? Is it beautiful in community? Is it a beautiful place for mission? What is your church’s beauty, and how can you shout out the good, while changing the not-so-good?
This article is by Dottie Escobedo-Frank, a United Methodist pastor. It is adapted from reStart Your Church (Abingdon Press, 2012) and appeared in Leading Ideas January 16, 2014. Used by permission.
Download a PDF to share with others.
-------
Editors: Dr. Ann A. Michel and Dr. Lovett H. Weems, Jr.
Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
Connect with the Lewis Center:
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Editors: Dr. Ann A. Michel and Dr. Lovett H. Weems, Jr.
Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
Connect with the Lewis Center:
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Wesley Theological Seminary
4500 Massachusetts Avenue NorthWest
Washington, D.C. 20016, United States
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