Saturday Six-Pack (31)

Another weekend, another Six-Pack!

That sentence may be spoken with a couple different meanings as another work week ends. For the part of Wondering & Wandering, that phrase describes the latest serving of my web readings that I’ve deemed worth sharing.

As per usual, most articles are ministry-minded or faith-focused, with enough flexibility protected to cover some who-knows-what as well.

If six swamps you, start with my two *Picks of the Week*.

For a steady stream of such links, follow me on Twitter ( @JasonBandura ) to the right of this post.  Sharp quotes and solid articles are tweeted 3-4 times daily.

Today’s edition:

1) Why Are Churches of Christ Shrinking? (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
I am part of a currently shrinking fellowship; the statistics bear this out. Many theories exist, I am sure. This piece verbalized a number of my own fuzzy thoughts better than I have done myself. I also think there is much packed into the subtitle alone: “A Left-Brained Fellowship in a Right-Brained World”. The link above goes to part one of the article. The sequel post is HERE.  Thanks to James Nored at the Missional Outreach Network for sharing.

2) The New Tent-Makers
I am not currently a tent-maker pastor, but I have wondered often if far more ministry workers won’t be bi-vocational in the future, myself included. Leadership Journal follows two current church planters as examples of what it COULD look like.

3) Why Nice People Kill Churches
This week marked my first visit to the blog of Paul Alexander.  The piece that grabbed me is about staff movement which isn’t as much of a reality in my little church as in some larger congregations. More than anything, the title resonated with something I’ve long considered, and a few of the more specific points contain valuable insights if generalized just a bit.

4) How Minimum Targets Can Mean Maximum Impact
Trust Dumb Little Man to come up with something smart! If you’ve ever experienced frustration with your inability to meet goals or to chart progress, these four tips just might make the difference between another serving of failure and a fresh dose of success.

5) Uncommon Callings (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
Skye Jethani is a writer that I find myself really blessed by recently. His book “With” is one of my best reads in the past couple years.  This Jethani offering breaks down the struggle many pastors have with really grasping the “work worlds” of their church members. Some great insights here for all who work in churches.

6) 12 Amazing Life Lessons You Can Learn Through Science
Here’s Dumb Little Man with his second offering of the week! Taking the discovery of penicillin as an illustration, here are a dozen encouraging tidbits that might provide you direction or inspiration on how to take a step upward and forward in whatever venture you’re currently part of.

Blessings on you, my friends.  May your weekend be refreshing in rest, play, and worship.

YOUR TURN: Direct other readers to the best stuff above by making a comment below, or weigh in on what you read.  Your input makes this post better!

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