BCNE News
The latest news from our network of New England churches. Looking for our New England Perspectives Articles? Click here.
Effective leadership in an ineffective culture
“Every time our church starts moving forward, something happens that sets us back. Our leadership just doesn’t seem to know how to get us over the hump to the next level,” lamented a key lay leader in one of our BCNE churches. I wish this was an isolated incident, but sadly, I have some version of this conversation often.
Why are our churches dying?
The first step toward addressing a problem is admitting we have one. Our churches in New England are in times of trouble. Without doubt, God is on the move, the Church is Christ’s Bride being beautifully prepared for Him and we are already overcomers. This is our identity. Given these truths, we might balk and say, “Don’t be so doom and gloom,” pointing to the churches that are doing very well. They are clearly thriving. But do these examples merely take the edge off the problem and dull our urgency to face it?
When the nation is shaken
It feels like recent events in our country have shaken us. The nation as a whole has been shaken, and many of the individual citizens and residents feel shaken. We are witnessing quite a bit of chaos, anger, and divisiveness.
But, if we read our Bibles, this is what we should expect. Generally speaking, we should never be surprised when the world acts like the world, as the old saying goes. Sin has visible effects on the world around us – effects that should bother us, but not surprise us.
Fighting the wrong battles
In our culture – Western culture – we fight way too much. If you consider the fact that we fight about our politics, at our jobs, within our families and within our communities, it seems that we are addicted to fighting.