Author Archives: Jay F Guin

About Jay F Guin

My name is Jay Guin, and I’m a retired elder. I wrote The Holy Spirit and Revolutionary Grace about 18 years ago. I’ve spoken at the Pepperdine, Lipscomb, ACU, Harding, and Tulsa lectureships and at ElderLink. My wife’s name is Denise, and I have four sons, Chris, Jonathan, Tyler, and Philip. I have two grandchildren. And I practice law.

Good to Great (Picking a Team, Building a Culture, Being a Hedghog)

Picking a team, building a culture Level 5 leaders can be slow to get started. They realize that they can’t be successful unless they’re surrounded by like-minded people. In church, this is much harder to do than in business. After … Continue reading

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Surprised by Hope: The Ascension

In N. T. Wright’s Surprised by Hope, he explains the significance of the ascension of Jesus in understanding the End Times. He notes that while only Luke records the event (twice!), it’s implicit in much of the rest of the … Continue reading

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Buried Talents: Deacons, Part 1

I refer the reader to the excellent book Deacons: Male and Female? by J. Stephen Sandifer. Sandifer explains in great detail the history of deacons in the synagogues, the early church, and throughout history. The research on which this section … Continue reading

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How Not to Have to Fire Your Preacher: Keeping the Right Guy, Part 1

If you made a good hire, then you should feel sufficiently invested in the man that you will do what it takes to keep him. Now, ask yourself, as traumatic as leaving is on a family, why would a preacher … Continue reading

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New Research on Society’s Attitudes Toward Homosexuality

Ed Stetzer summarizes recently released research on how America views homosexuality. As many consider homosexual conduct sinful as do not. It’s a tie. And the younger you are, the more likely you are to condone gay sex. And here’s the … Continue reading

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Good to Great (Introduction, Picking the Right CEO)

Back in 2001, Jim Collins wrote one of the most important business management books ever, Good to Great. Although it’s about business, the principles are easily applied to churches, because it’s not about how to make a profit. It’s about … Continue reading

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How Sinful Is Smoking?

I get emails. Here’s one I thought I’d refer to the readership for an answer: It’s one of those things that puzzles me … , but I never hear anything about smoking or tobacco use from the Churches of Christ. … Continue reading

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Marketing Christianity

An Australian women’s magazine commissioned several ad agencies to propose ideas for an ad campaign to spread religion. The ideas are interesting. Check out the ads here. Be sure to check out all of them. And here is a TV … Continue reading

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Buried Talents: The Gift-ocracy of the New Testament

The Parable of the Talents We will next study the qualifications for elders and deacons. But before we approach this topic, we need to return to the Gospels. Jesus had much to say that relates to these issues. Most significant … Continue reading

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How Not to Have to Fire Your Preacher: Hiring the Right Guy

Well, having told everyone how to fire their preacher, it seems only fair to talk about how to keep him. I mean, firing the preacher is always traumatic for everyone, especially the preacher and his family. And studies show that … Continue reading

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