by Sam Rainer | Jun 30, 2009 | Uncategorized
Yesterday the Pew Research Center released data from a recent study on aging in America. They compared their findings with results from a 1969 Gallup poll of similar questions. You can read the full report here. After interviewing over 2,900 people they found several... by Sam Rainer | Jun 28, 2009 | Uncategorized
The Barna Group recently interviewed over 8,500 heterosexual adults and 280 homosexual adults. The point of the research was to compare the spirituality of both groups. Barna’s findings included some results that would be expected, but also some surprising insights.... by Sam Rainer | Jun 21, 2009 | Uncategorized
Tomorrow I will fly to Louisville to attend the Southern Baptist Convention. It’s the annual meeting of the denomination to which I belong. This year’s theme is “love loud: actions speak louder than words.” I’ve been a Southern Baptist my entire life. Growing up a PK,... by Sam Rainer | Jun 17, 2009 | Uncategorized
Warren Bird and Scott Thumma have released new research on the mega church. The report comes out of the Hartford Institute of Religious Research and involved 25,000 people from 12 U.S. congregations. USA Today also reported on the research and noted a few key... by Sam Rainer | Jun 10, 2009 | Uncategorized
CNN.com recently posted on 10 of the worst work habits. After reading the article, I could not help but to view these bad habits through the lens of church life. So I’ve reworked the top ten list as it pertains to the daily tasks of ministry. You can read the original... 
by Sam Rainer | Jun 1, 2009 | Uncategorized
It’s clear that many churches have experienced or will experience large changes in their communities and contexts in the near future. Studying these changes helps churches develop intentional outward strategies to reach people. The Brookings Institution recently...
