Posts by Mark Howell
Friday’s List | June 23
Every Friday I post a short list of the things I’m reading, listening to, loving and wrestling with: Here’s what I’m reading right now: The Top 7 Reasons Guests Return To Your Church by Dan Reiland. How does your church stack up with this list?. THESE 6 QUESTIONS WILL REVEAL HOW WELL YOU LOVE YOUR NEIGHBORS by Karina Kreminski…
Read MoreMust-Read: Add 4 Chair Discipling to Your Disciple-Making Resource List
I spent some time this week with 4 Chair Discipling: Growing a Movement of Disciple-Makers by Dann Spader. Published in 2014, this one began hitting my radar a couple years ago, but is just now making it onto my reading stack (one of the books on my 2017 Summer Reading List). Dann Spader is the founder of…
Read MoreTop 10 Ways to Find New Members for Your Group
Who makes the best new members for your group? That’s easy. Unconnected people with whom you are actively building a relationship. Here are some ideas that will help you find new members: 1. Look for people who are already doing the same things you are. If you have a middle schooler, make it a point to…
Read MoreTesting a Feature of GroupLife Insider on June 27th
GroupLife Insider Launched in Fall of 2017 I’m continuing to work on a new service I’ll be launching soon. GroupLife Insider, a new member site, will allow me to focus more of my time helping a select group of small group ministry point people. Membership rates will be very affordable and available with a monthly or discounted…
Read MoreDon’t Miss The Disciple Maker’s Handbook! A Great Addition
Worked my way through a new book by Bobby Harrington and Josh Patrick. The Disciple Maker’s Handbook: Seven Elements of a Discipleship Lifestyle is Harrington’s latest contribution to the relational disciple-making conversation. Harrington is the lead pastor of Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN, and also the founder of Discipleship.org (along with Todd Wilson of Exponential). Although I found…
Read MoreMy Top Small Group Ministry Learnings 2016 – 2017
I like to think of myself as a learner. On the StrengthsFinder tool I am also futuristic with a twist of ideation. I’ve been called a mad scientist (and it’s one of my favorite tags). At one stop I almost convinced my boss that my new title should be The Destructor of the Status Quo.…
Read MoreFriday’s List | June 9
Every Friday I post a short list of the things I’m reading, listening to, loving and wrestling with: Here’s what I’m reading right now: One Thing That Separates Good Leaders From Great Leaders by Dan Reiland. This is a great article. Love the quote from Jim Collins. 3 Strategic Questions to Help Your Church Get “Unstuck.” by…
Read More2017 Summer Reading List
Every summer I create a list of books I think you should read. Sometimes the books I include are strictly about small group ministry, discipleship or spiritual formation. Most times, the books I include may seem pretty far afield (innovation, design, leadership, or strategy). You’ll just have to trust me. I wouldn’t include a book I didn’t…
Read MoreBehind the Scenes: Promote Your Church-Wide Campaign Early and Often
One of our biggest ahas in learning to maximize the reach and impact of a church-wide campaign is that you gain a major advantage by promoting early and often. Although that may seem obvious (like, “good one Captain Obvious”), and you may think you’re promoting early enough and often enough, it’s very possible that just…
Read More5 Things You Need to Know about Connecting Unconnected People
There are a few things I know about connecting unconnected people. And let me tell you something. While there are definitely exceptions to just about every rule…if you can think of examples counter to these five you are thinking of exceptions. Build your ministry off the rule and not the exception. I’ve said many times…
Read More