The Dog Days of Summer have been upon us. Many areas of our district have been suffering with drought-like conditions. I hear reports of cities (including Billings) putting restrictions on water usage so as to conserve water and/or save overextending equipment needed to replenish fresh water. Recently, I took this picture while traveling to a…
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Recently, Carl Nassib, a defensive end for the NFL Las Vegas Raiders “came out” as the first openly homosexual player in the league. This column is not about debating that issue, Scripture speaks clearly regarding it. What caught my attention was the statement put out by the NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell, following Nassib’s announcement. Goodell’s…
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Over the last couple of months I’ve been writing about leadership development. My encouragement in April included two steps: Develop your definition of a leader, then identify the 5-7 essential leadership skills or traits that are necessary at all levels of leadership in your church. Step 3, detailed in my May article, entails defining the…
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June 13, 2021 marks the conclusion of Rev. Jim & Ronda Stumbo’s ministry at Helena (MT) Alliance Church. Jim and Ronda have served full-time in the RMD for nearly 47 years – in two churches : Greybull, WY and Helena, MT. Jim and Ronda are “finishing well” – a term heard often these days, but not often lived out. I…
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Over the course of a lifetime, the one word question, “Why?” gets asked many, many, many times. Often times it is in the context of heartache, pain, sorrow or some deep troubling situation. On a few occasions it might be said proactively, in the context of an entity figuring out, for instance, “Why do we…
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Have you had this experience? You have a church member who has a great heart, is very influential and loves to serve in the church. You think to yourself, “This is a potential leader.” Many pastors aren’t sure what to do next and default into placing someone like this in the most needed leadership role,…
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This week, Lori and I got back into the swing of things in the Rocky Mountain District. We are thankful for a few months of sabbatical where we enjoyed a wonderful time away with the Lord, our family and our beautiful country. We had the privilege at Christmas to see most of our kids and grandchildren. We…
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Every church needs more leaders. The problem is there are only three ways to get more. 1. Buy them, by hiring them. 2. Steal them from other churches. 3. Train them up yourself (the most difficult of all). So how do we do this? The Bible tells us to take what we have learned and teach it to others, that…
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I’ll admit it, I’m a chronic over-thinker. I spend way too much time overthinking. Sometimes, I overthink about really good things like, “What do these kids need to know about Jesus deep in their beings that will keep them walking with Him forever?” Other times, I overthink about really dumb things like, “If I paint…
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Have you had those Mondays when you sit in your office and wonder if all your efforts are really helping your church be the Church, as the Bible defines it? Have you felt like busyness has consumed energy, but you weren’t sure it was energy toward the right direction? Here is a system you can…
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