Posts by Steve Harling
Messaging the Kingdom
Jesus’ first sermon (Mark 1:15) had three points: The time is fulfilled The Kingdom is near Repent and believe Jesus was obsessed with the Kingdom. He talked about it more than anything else. He told his followers, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for that is why I was…
Read MoreIndispensable Uzzah
30,000 of Israel’s finest were singing and cheering loudly as they escorted the Ark of the Covenant down the hill from Abinadab’s house. “Yay God! The Ark of the Covenant is coming home to Jerusalem! The Ark was on a cart. The cart was towed by an ox. Abinadab’s boys, Uzzah and Ahio, guided the…
Read MoreYou Need a Guide
The black-clad Bedouin, standing in front of her trailside tea shop, was annoyingly insistent: “You need a guide! You need a guide! You need a guide!” She must have repeated herself at least a dozen times. The three of us kept on replying, “La shukran! (no thank-you) We don’t need a guide!” The trail up…
Read MoreFrom Saul to Paul
“Saul, also known as Paul…” (Acts 13:9) This verse marks the point in which the apostles name change becomes permanent. Formerly, he was ‘Saul.’ But for the rest of his life (and ever since), he would be known as… ‘Paul.’ ‘Saul’ means ‘sought after.’ ‘Paul’ means ‘little.’ The change of name matters. It’s descriptive of…
Read MoreLoved. Loosed. Appointed.
“Now to the one who constantly loves us and has loosed us from our sins by his own blood, and to the one who has appointed us as a kingdom of priests to serve his God and Father-to him be glory and domination throughout the eternity of eternities! Amen!” – Revelation 1:6TPT In Christ… I…
Read MoreNobody Wants to Work with a Victim!
As ministry leaders, it’s easy to fall into a victim mindset. Far too many pastors and ministry executives project fear, frustration, and scarcity to the people that work with them. “The Elders don’t get it!”“Millennials are entitled.”“People don’t give.”“No one’s coming back after COVID.”“Churches don’t care about missions.” Enough of the negativity! The sky isn’t…
Read MoreSteve’s Top 10 Big Leadership Learnings
Who you are is who you are ‘in Christ.’ The most important thing about you is that you are in Christ and Christ is in you. As a leader, it’s’ tempting to put your sense of identity and worth in what you do for God or in how well you do it. Big mistake. You…
Read MoreFive Final Instructions
For the Church Family I’ve Come to Love Serving as the Interim Lead Pastor of CHBC has been a joy and privilege! Over the last nine months, my heart became deeply attached to this wonderful community of believers. It’s been tremendously rewarding to help prepare the church family for a new leader. In two weeks,…
Read More10 Things to Know about Pastors
Being a pastor is a high calling and an awesome privilege. It’s a tremendous blessing to spend hours studying and preaching the Word. It’s fulfilling to share in life’s most cherished moments with the families and individuals entrusted to our care. It’s rewarding to see broken lives and relationships restored, and it’s fun building teams…
Read MoreThe Top 10 Perils of Pastoring
It’s a wonderful privilege to be a pastor. It’s fulfilling to craft and deliver messages. It’s fun to build teams and reach goals. It’s rewarding to share in life’s most meaningful moments with the parishioners that the Lord has placed in our care. But as life-giving as ministry can be… it’s also fraught with peril.…
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