by Jim Martin So what does shepherding look like practically? The following are some best practices for shepherding people in the congregation: 1. Listen well and give others your presence. Good shepherds learn to listen well. This means paying attention to the content, feelings, and body language of others. Those who listen well are […]
Archive for Jim Martin
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : shepherding, Shepherds/Elders
by Jim Martin I was a young minister who was eager, passionate, and committed to ministry. I was also keeping a counseling schedule that was intense and demanded long hours. I was seeing people not only from our congregation, but also from other congregations in our community. Afternoons were often difficult and emotionally raw listening […]
Authors : General, Jim Martin
Tags : Mentoring
by Jim Martin How do you stay sane when there is so much craziness that surrounds ministry? Good question. Craziness is everywhere! It seems to be a constant in this broken, unredeemed world. Everyone has to deal with the brokenness of the world. Sometimes others’ brokenness can be sharp and jagged, cutting bystanders like broken […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Leadership Encouragement
By Jim Martin Do you listen well? One of the most important tasks for any church leader is listening. Listening can be incredibly difficult. In fact, most of us have had far more training in speaking than in listening. A few suggestions: Listen intently. This means eye contact. This means paying attention to body language. […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Leadership Coaching
by Jim Martin This morning, I’m thinking about you — a church leader. You may be a minister in some role in a congregation. Maybe you preach each Sunday. So much of what you do takes place away from public view. I suspect you are busy. You’ve glanced at this post to see if it […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Leadership Encouragement
by Jim Martin I wrote this as I marked the 20th year I’ve served the Crestview Church of Christ in Waco. Since I started preaching there, I have learned a lot. This post will list some of the lessons learned about congregational ministry while serving this church in this city. 1. Ministry is much like marriage. […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Healthy Church
By Jim Martin A loose and undisciplined mouth. Years ago, I was teaching a Wednesday evening class at our church. The class was about to begin. A woman was still talking as I attempted to start this class. I said something about her to the group, thinking it would be funny. Everyone laughed. Well, almost […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Healthy Church, Leadership Coaching
by Jim Martin “Do you feel appreciated in the congregation you serve?” It took this minister only seconds to answer his friend’s question. “No, I don’t feel appreciated. I feel taken for granted by my elders, my co-workers, and many people in our church.” He went on to say, “Now of course that is not […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Leadership Encouragement
By Jim Martin Not long ago I was on the Interstate and glanced at the car on my right. The driver had an intense look on her face. She was staring at her phone. She was texting. Think about this. She is driving 75 miles per hour and texting! Some say that you are 23 […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Mentoring, Shepherds/Elders
by Jim Martin 1. Over-functioning is very tiring and usually results in other people under-functioning. 2. I have often worried too much about others and some imaginary future crisis. Each day has enough challenges. 3. Sometimes I have felt too responsible for another’s life instead of focusing on the responsibilities that I really do […]
Authors : Jim Martin
Tags : Leadership Encouragement, Mentoring
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