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7/6/2010
169. Growing Deeper
Methodism began as a way of life rather than as a denominational system. John Wesley’s passion was leading people to follow Jesus, and his genius was developing patterns and support systems to help people walk with Christ. Wesley believed we cooperate with the Holy Spirit in our own spiritual
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6/21/2010
168. It Takes What It Takes
I recently listened to a podcast interview with a Catholic priest whose ministry focuses on young people involved in urban gangs. Many of the tools he uses derive from the recovery movement, including wisdom gleaned from Alcoholics Anonymous. He used a maxim that I’ve heard before to describe
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5/24/2010
163. The Stack of Blogs
I’ve taken an unintentional sabbatical from the blog writing, and I apologize for that. My new book, Five Practices of Fruitful Living, has just been released and is now available from Cokesbury and Amazon, and in anticipation of this release we’ve been working to redesign and revamp the
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7/20/2009
135. Cinco Prácticas—The Spanish Edition
I’m delighted to announce the release this week by Abingdon Press of the new Spanish edition of Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, entitled Cinco Prácticas de Congregaciones Fructíferas.
The road toward the Spanish translation began two years ago with requests from pastor
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7/13/2009
134. Milestone
Some time this month, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations will pass a remarkable and unexpected milestone as someone purchases the 100,000th copy. Several thousand congregations have used the book as the basis for sermon series, leadership discussions, small group readings, or strategic plannin
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5/18/2009
128. The Five Practices and the Four Areas of Focus
A colleague asked me how the Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations relate to the Four Areas of Focus that United Methodist leaders have agreed upon to guide our denomination during the years to come. Thousands of congregations and many dozens of districts and conferences have emphasized the
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4/21/2009
125. Blogs Become a Book: The Balancing Act
Eighteen months ago, I wrote my first entry for the Five Practices Blog. I’m now writing my 125th contribution. Hundreds of people receive copies of the entries by subscribing to an email blast that goes out after each new blog entry is posted. Other people find the www.FivePractices.org websi
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2/4/2009
112. Somewhere Out There
Somewhere out there is a five-year-old boy who doesn’t know that right now plans are being made by a passionate group of Christian leaders from a church he’s never heard of to offer a neighborhood Vacation Bible School that will change the direction of his life. The songs he will sing wi
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10/2/2008
90. "How Can I Help?" means, "How Can I Fit In?"
Last week I was a presenter at the Leadership Nexus event in Shreveport, along with Rev. Tyrone Gordon of St. Luke’s Community UMC, David Wetzler from Natural Church Development, Bob Whitesel, Brian Bauknight, Jessica Moffatt-Saey, and several others. At these kinds of learnin
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9/22/2008
88. Practices of Vegetable-ful Congregations!
Over the last couple weeks, I’ve heard dozens of stories about small churches focusing on the Five Practices, and about the new ministry initiatives that have resulted. A few of my favorite come from right here in Missouri.
For instance, Marvin McMurry UMC in St. Joseph began to think a
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8/20/2008
83. Practices and Programs
“We tried that program last year, and this fall we’re going to try the new Five Practices program.”
I confess that I cringed a little when I heard those words, although I was grateful that the congregation is using the material and I pray they find it helpful. Ca
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8/18/2008
82. Got Fruit?
I smile whenever I hear about the many creative ways congregations make the Five Practices their own. An original and locally developed idea has personal ownership, reveals imaginative engagement, and uses the gifts and insights of volunteers.
For instance, a long-time friend told me about ho
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8/5/2008
79. Already Preached on the Five Practices?
Among the frequently asked questions I receive about the new resource, Focus on the Five Practices: A Congregation-Wide Initiative are, “What if we already had a sermon series on the Five Practices?” and “What if our congregation has already used Five Practices of Fruitful Congrega
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6/26/2008
68. Focus on the Five
This week I’ve finished reviewing the final proofs of all the new resources supporting the Five Practices that will be available through Cokesbury on August 1. This has been prepared in response to the overwhelming requests that Cokesbury (and I) have received for more helpful resources
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4/8/2008
51. Withdrawing from Parish Ministry?
In preparation for General Conference, the current Circuit Rider magazine (Feb/Mar/Apr '08) has a series of articles about the global nature of the church. I enjoyed reading the diverse perspectives, but was particularly struck by a single sentence in the article by Lyle Schaller. Schaller has
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1/18/2008
32. Why are the Five Practices Working?
This past week I spent eleven hours one day with a film crew and an editor from the United Methodist Publishing House taping seven segments of about 7 minutes each on the Five Practices. These will form part of a packet of resources to assist local churches in moving the language of the practi
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1/17/2008
31. Looking Through the Binoculars, or At the Binoculars?
I’m an avid birder, and I always enjoy sharing my hobby with others (in fact, you can see my bird photos at www.pbase.com/mobish). When my sons were young, we’d go exploring by canoe and kayak, looking for birds. I remember teaching them how to use binoculars, and how to go through the careful
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12/17/2007
25. Five Practices in Europe and Eurasia Churches
A District Superintendent from Serbia moved to the microphone and began to tell the story of one of her congregations that was offering exemplary Risk-taking Mission and Service toward alcoholics and their families. We all listened for the voices of our translators through headphones as she tol
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12/7/2007
21. "Funf Praktiken..."
As you read this, I have just returned from Germany for a few brief days to lead a meeting of the Extended Cabinets of Germany, Eurasia, Central and Southern Europe, and Nordic and Baltic Episcopal Areas of the United Methodist Church in discussions about the Five Practices of Fruitful Congrega
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10/7/2007
1. Welcome, Purpose, and Background
Welcome to the Five Practices Blog (Web Log, for those of us new to this form of conversation!). I'm Robert Schnase, Bishop of the Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church and author of Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations. The purpose of this website is to identify and connect congreg
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