There are seasons of incredible joy in ministry, and there are inevitably seasons where conflict rears its ugly head and needs to be dealt with. 
The Bible says in James 4:7: "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." 
Being a church leader is harder than ever in the U.S. Actually, I think it's more difficult to be in any kind of leadership position--whether political, spiritual, media, economic, or otherwise. Here are three reasons:
These days it seems like so many things are coming against marriage. So many, from the top down, are vying to destroy the very fabric and foundation of marriage and its original institution.
It is one thing to read about how to witness to someone; it is another to put into practice what you've learned. I tell my students, "If you want to witness, then go witness." That is the best, though not the easiest, way to learn. I call it "Trust and Go." Trust God and go witness. My very first evangelistic endeavor was just such a case. This is what happened.
Form 1099s are due on February 29, 2012, for the 2011 tax year, and churches that need to issue these forms should take note this year: a failure to send them on time has doubled from $50 per form to $100 per form.
I am the dean of a school that focuses on missions and evangelism, but evangelism does not always come easy to me. That is surprising to me now, as sharing my faith was quite easy when I was a young believer. In fact, evangelism was never difficult until I became a pastor - when the multiple tasks of ministry seemed to get in the way of evangelism. The more involved I was in leading my church, the less involved I seemed to become in evangelism.
Everyone reveres the prophet after he's dead. But in his own day the prophet is rejected, ridiculed, scorned, misquoted, misunderstood, vilified, and in some cases shot in the head.
"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:10 (NIV) 
The number one reason for couples to develop a spending plan -- a budget -- is to reduce conflict in their marriage.
While technology creates many exciting opportunities to expand ministry, it also presents dangers that ministry leaders need to be aware of. In his book Digital Disciple, Adam Thomas breaks down the dangers of a digital society while offering helpful suggestions for how we can make the most of the opportunities new technologies present to us. Thomas spoke with Laura Leonard, associate editor of BuildingChurchLeaders.com, about how these principles apply to ministry leaders.
Vonna Laue, a partner with Capin Crouse and an Editorial Adviser for Christianity Today's Church Management Team, discusses why financial transparency creates a more trustworthy financial department for your church.
It's 2 p.m. on a Thursday, and several people are sharing words of encouragement during our church's five-day challenge to raise funds for hunger relief.
Don't you just love the lists of how to do this and how to do that? As we start 2012, our love for the "Top 10 Ways" types of lists only increases. We develop a mindset that says--lay out the path, show me the tools, and give me some new ways to think.
I met with the person that I'm mentoring yesterday and we both realized that humbling ourselves before God may be the most important action that we can do everyday! As we admit our own inability to produce any part of God's love and power through our own human skills, God immediately gives us His own powerful love.
Do you believe God really answers prayer? Really and truly... that God hears your personal prayers and cares enough to respond? 
Paul Simon's latest album, So Beautiful or So What, made a bunch of Best Albums of 2011 lists, including CT's own. That Simon is acclaimed for his music is hardly news, but the fact that So Beautiful so deeply explores spiritual themes is fascinating.
Pastor G is the senior pastor of a church. The church has three other paid staff members. Pastor G is paid a salary plus a housing allowance, and the church pays for his medical insurance and reimburses his business expenses under an "accountable" reimbursement arrangement.
"You must be really good at your job," my father-in-law said the other day. I was confused. My current job is as an assistant manager at a fast food restaurant. "Not the food stuff," he followed up, "the youth ministry stuff." My last youth ministry job ended nearly a year ago, so my confusion continued and I asked him to clarify. His response floored me... "Because the devil is working really hard to keep you out of church work."
