As Haiti is uprooted by violence, church leaders treat gunshot wounds, give up homes for strangers, and rescue dignitaries.Pastor Frederic Nozil has learned to keep his head down.Last year, the year he turned 53, gangs attacked his neighborhood in Pétion-Ville, a suburb overlooking Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. They ransacked the house Nozil was renting and set it on fire. Nozil moved with his wife and two daughters to a safer community a couple of miles away.Still, he took few chances. This year, he turned 54 at home, quietly. A few people from his church brought a cake. They stayed no more than an hour. “Parties attract attention,” Nozil said. “You can’t celebrate too much.”He schedules church activities to wrap up before a mandatory curfew. He will cut a prayer service short if he has a bad feeling about a police vehicle he noticed on the street. Some of his congregation risk their lives crossing gang checkpoints on their way to the church, the Centre Chrétien International Maison d’Adoration, so he knows to expect a smaller turnout.Ministry looks different, he figures, at the end of the world. “We are living in an eschatological time,” Nozil said.That’s how it felt in the early hours of March 18. It was a Monday, and the bespectacled minister should have been recovering from the usual slate of Sunday demands. Instead, he shut himself in his home for two days straight as heavy gunfire echoed through the hills.Gang members in balaclavas wound past Nozil’s neighborhood in cars and motorcycles, ascending the main road into the mountains. They shot automatic weapons and left at least a dozen pedestrians dead in their wake. They stopped in a wealthy enclave called Laboule and laid siege to its walled residences. In one home, security cameras recorded armed young ...Continue reading...

NASHVILLE, TN (April 12, 2024)? –? StowTown Records? has announced the release of a brand-new recording from popular, multi-award winning quintet,? Legacy Five. The recording, appropriately titled? 25, hits retail outlets? today and celebrates the group's 25-year legacy of sharing the message of the Gospel in song. “I can’t believe Legacy Five is in our 25th year,” group co-founder,? Scott Fowler? shares. “This Read More

We should all look forward to the day when churches of all sizes are able to gather again.As of today, the CDC has recommended that all gatherings of 50 or more people should be canceled for the next 8 weeks.Small church win, right?Wrong.No one wins in this.No “I told you so’s”As a long-time proponent of the value of small churches, you might think I’m tempted to issue an “I told you so” about small churches being better than big churches.I’m not going to do that.Because it’s not true.We Need Churches Of Every SizeI’ve never told anyone that small churches are better than big churches. I’ve never even hinted at it.In fact I’ve repeatedly stated that small churches are not better than big churches, and big churches are not better than small churches.As I’ve always said, the body of Christ needs churches of every size. That is especially true now. We need the resources of big churches and the relational pastoral voice of small churches.One ChurchIt’s a difficult time for everyone.That is why, now more than ever, we must show the world a united front.Even while we can’t gather together for church, we must band together as the church. Big churches, small churches and the people we all serve.Loving Our NeighborsThe CDC is giving us wise counsel in these recommendations about group size.Even if you’re able-bodied and unlikely to be in danger, following these rules is the best way to minimize the likelihood of passing this illness to those who are more vulnerable than you.It’s simply “love your neighbor” in a different form than we’re used to seeing it.Be The ChurchI look forward to the day when large churches are able to gather again.I will celebrate that with them.Until then, I will pray that my fellow ...Continue reading...

This is not a call to trust our leaders. It's a call for leaders to be more trustworthy.The most important aspect of leadership is not competence, communication or innovation.It’s integrity.When we can’t trust our leaders, life can turn really bad, really fast. Even deadly.We’re seeing it in real time right now. The current COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis will be made better by our ability to trust those in leadership or made worse by our lack of ability to trust them.Let’s pray that the weight of it will lean heavily toward trust and trustworthiness.A Call To TrustworthinessThis is not about any specific political or church leader. Right now, there’s plenty of distrust – and good reasons for it – on all sides.This is also not a call to trust our leaders. It’s a call for leaders to be more trustworthy.When they’re not (when we’re not) people die.In other times, when life is moving along relatively normally, untrustworthy leadership is a cause for debate, ridicule, even mockery. But when things go bad, lack of trust in leadership gets people killed.Earned DistrustIn the current crisis, for instance, there were many people, early on, who doubted the necessity of self-quarantine – and some who still do. Why? Often because they doubted the truthfulness of the people giving them this information.From politicians, to medical, religious and educational leaders, everyone has earned some degree of distrust from us.And I do mean earned. Distrust is not primarily the fault of the followers, but of the leaders who have given us plenty of reasons not to trust them.How To Regain TrustIf you are in a position of leadership, now more than ever we need to be able to trust you. And there’s only one way to do that.Be trustworthy.Do the right thing.Every time.Continue reading...

If you want to make a real difference, don't get bogged down in the details of video streaming.Just about every church is live-streaming their services now.Necessity being the mother of invention (and adaptation), we’re all doing what we have to do.Churches with pre-existing live-stream technology are learning how to conduct their service from an empty room, while those who haven’t live-streamed before are learning the basics – fast.But let’s face two facts about churches that are new to the live-stream world:1. Most first-time streamers are my friends in small churches.2. Most of us aren’t doing live-stream very well.But that’s okay.Here’s why.You Can’t Live-Stream Your Most-Needed MinistriesWhile it’s important to make a Sunday experience available to your church members, a high-quality live-stream Sunday service is not the most significant way you can serve your church or your community over the coming weeks.Top-notch video production is not what the typical small congregation expects or needs from their church leaders.Especially now.They just need to hear from their pastor, their Sunday School teacher and their friends.And not just on Sunday morning.Do What You Do BestIf your service is being live-streamed, keep it simple and do it as best you can, then move on to doing the kinds of ministry you do well.Go old-school.Regular text messages or phone calls to check in on people will mean more than seeing you on a computer screen once a week.Recruit some younger, healthier volunteers to find and bring needed supplies to those who can’t get out.Those kinds of small, simple, low-tech ministries will be of far greater value than how you frame a video shot.What We’ll RememberAt some time in the hopefully-not-too-distant future, we’ll be able to gather ...Continue reading...