by Stephen Suffron | May 24, 2018 | Carroll Community
This past month, our church ordained our long-time volunteer youth pastor to the gospel ministry. The ceremony was the culmination of a process of a couple of years as we have worked out his sense of calling. It’s a great honor to help someone realize that God...
by Karl Fickling | Apr 19, 2018 | Carroll Community, Leadership, Ministry
Unfortunately, meeting with church leaders, where a pastor left “poorly,” is all too common in my life. “Our last pastor didn’t feed me,” is a common complaint. It’s not a fair gripe, as we all know that preaching is subjective, and reaching a diverse (in theology...
by Karl Fickling | Dec 14, 2017 | Carroll Community
They did it again. I went into my neighborhood grocery store to buy shampoo and my brand wasn’t there. In fact, none of the shampoos were there. They moved the entire shampoo section to a completely different place in the store. I don’t get it. Is it someone’s job to...
by Stephen Suffron | Oct 26, 2017 | Carroll Community, Leadership, Ministry
I didn’t set out in the beginning to be a small-town pastor. I grew up in the suburbs, and I expected that I would stay in that context throughout my life as I fulfilled my calling. The first time I was looking for a pastoral position, I did not even seriously...
by Stephen Suffron | Mar 16, 2017 | Leadership, Ministry, Missions
“I remember when this whole place was full every Sunday. We even had people in the balcony.” The “good old days” can be an enemy to the pastor of a small church. People can often define success as getting things closer to what they used to be,...
