Ministry leaders know how to show up for others in grief but often struggle processing their own losses from broken relationships, failed dreams, and ministry disappointments.• Recognizing "shadow losses" in ministry—those painful exper...

Church leaders often struggle with releasing staff members who are kind and beloved but ineffective in their roles. This common dilemma creates "the nice trap" where emotional attachment overrides objective evaluation and ultimately harms your ...

Have you ever considered the surprising parallels between National Park Rangers and church leaders? Both protect sacred spaces, guide those who wander, and remain vigilant against threats that could destroy what they're entrusted to preserve.&n...

You know exactly who they are—that staff member, volunteer, or board member everyone tiptoes around. Though their title doesn't suggest it, they wield extraordinary influence, derailing meetings, intimidating co-workers, and quietly holding you...

Ever wonder why so many ministry transitions go sideways? The answer might make you uncomfortable: too many leaders grip the baton until their knuckles turn white.Leadership isn't meant to be a solo marathon. Throughout scripture, we se...

Ever notice how church staff evaluations rarely mention the qualities Jesus actually embodied? We've created a culture where filling seats trumps filling hearts, where productivity metrics overshadow spiritual growth.What would happen i...

Loyalty in church staff isn't always a virtue – sometimes what appears as faithfulness may actually be fear in disguise, potentially damaging your church staff structure. We explore the crucial differences between healthy commitment and unhealt...

Churches often employ someone who isn't on the payroll – the pastor's spouse who carries emotional weight, hidden expectations, and unpaid ministry hours without recognition or compensation. This "invisible job description" creates unfair burde...

Jesus built a kingdom with a startup mentality that continues to disrupt and grow 2,000 years later, offering powerful principles that can transform church ministry leadership today. His approach challenges conventional organizational wisdom wi...

The true measure of a pastor's success isn't the church they build but the leaders they leave behind who can continue the work after they're gone. Jesus himself modeled this approach by focusing not on buildings but on developing 11 disciples w...

We examine how some pastors are becoming online influencers and the impact this shift has on church staff dynamics, transforming collaborative ministry teams into production crews for personal brands.• The growing trend of church influe...

Many churches verbally promote diversity while continually hiring the same types of candidates, creating a gap between their stated values and staffing reality. This episode explores the unseen biases and unspoken defaults in church hiring prac...

Long-tenured pastors often become untouchable in their churches, creating a culture where accountability disappears and feedback feels like betrayal. This quiet danger threatens church health when pastoral loyalty morphs into blind allegiance.<...

Every church operates with two distinct scripts - the public one seen in sermons and newsletters, and the private one found in elder meetings discussing budget worries and staff frustrations. The gap between these scripts often creates suspicio...

We explore how church leaders sometimes misuse theology as a defense mechanism, particularly focusing on Romans 8:28 and how it can shut down necessary conversations instead of starting them.• When we use scripture to end conversations ...

Quiet firing is when church staff are gradually pushed out through neglect rather than direct confrontation, leaving them without support, feedback, or meaningful work until they get the message they're no longer wanted. This practice damages b...

Todd Rhodes concludes the True North series by reading Chapter Four of his modern epistle for church staff and workers, offering encouragement that even in difficult ministry seasons, God has not forgotten those He's called. The chapter provide...

We explore Chapter 3 of the True North series, focusing on leadership that prioritizes reproduction over becoming indispensable. This modern epistle for church staff distills wisdom from our first 360 podcast episodes into practical leadership ...

This episode continues our True North series, a modern-day epistle for church leaders that captures key insights from 360 episodes of the Healthy Church Staff Podcast.• Endurance isn't the absence of fatigue but the decision to keep goi...

We unveil "True North," a modern epistle designed to encourage and guide church staff with timeless wisdom for ministry leadership. This four-chapter resource draws from hundreds of podcast conversations to address the challenges unique to thos...

Todd Rhodes introduces a special week-long series featuring an AI-generated "epistle" created by feeding all 366 episodes of the Healthy Church Staff Podcast into ChatGPT. The resulting 15-page document called "True North for Church Leaders" sy...

Church staff displaying signs of disengagement might not be lazy but spiritually disconnected and malnourished. The real issue is often soul erosion resulting from constant ministry hustle without adequate time to abide in Christ.• Warn...

Churches often discover staff culture issues too late, only learning painful truths during exit interviews after resignations have already occurred.• Exit interviews function more like autopsies than checkups, revealing issues when it's...

We explore why the common practice of calling church staff a "family" can create unhealthy dynamics that undermine accountability and mission. This seemingly biblical and warm approach often leads to avoiding necessary conversations, protecting...

We explore the dangerous tendency for churches to confuse burnout with revival, and how overwork disguised as faithfulness is damaging the souls of ministry staff. This continuing conversation on burnout examines why ministry teams feel deplete...