A Very Broad Mantle

By Kelly Larson (Bishop Creek Community Church, CA) It was nearly a decade ago that my mentor Wally Norling and his wife Betty came to Bishop to be part of my installation at Bishop Creek Community Church, so I was very happy to be at his funeral as we celebrated his installation into eternity with his […]

And He Sent a Wolf

By Pastor Kelly Larson (Bishop Creek Community Church, CA) All in all, it had been a pretty good run, at least as far as church ministry goes. My wife and I had been at Bishop Creek Community Church, in a beautiful area of central (eastern) California, for about six years and had seen the church […]

Not So Fast!

By Pastors Kelly Larson (Bishop Creek Community Church, CA) Let’s say your church has been progressing nicely. Attendance is growing, and the community is flourishing. In the midst of this growth, your team decides that an additional staff person should be brought in to help ease the pressure on other leaders. You start to receive […]

The Preaching Sandbox

Pastor Colin Smith (The Orchard Church, Chicago) Here is a super helpful framework for Biblical preaching from one of the great expositors in our movement: The Preaching Sandbox This tool makes it clear that the central priority in preaching is to exalt Jesus Christ. “We proclaim Him!” “We resolved to know nothing among you except […]

Feed the Sheep that Come

By Pastor Kelly Larson (Bishop Creek Community Church, CA) Serving a church in a geographically remote small town presents no small amount of challenges. Perhaps the most obvious challenge is the simple number of people available for any given church event. When my family relocated from a metropolitan church, which was itself larger than the […]

Self and Staff Management

keys for intentional living and staff supervision

The Call of the Shepherd

By Pastor Kelly Larson (Bishop Creek Community Church, CA) In my office upon the wall, near the door hangs a picture; it is a gift I received from a friend shortly after entering the pastorate. It serves as a sober reminder of the privileged call which God has placed upon my life. It is a […]