Episode 21: Why can’t preachers retire? Big money wants to profit from worship. A congregation for those with special needs.

Jordan Coss (Redwood Church of Christ, Redwood City, California) shares his research on Church of Christ ministers and retirement. What keeps so many Church of Christ ministers from retiring (if they even finish out their ministry careers)? What can congregations and their ministers do about it? Dr. Kelsey Kramer McGinnis, an expert in contemporary Christian music and a writer for Christianity Today Magazine, reveals how big money may be taking over Sunday morning worship in your congregation. Jeremy Marshall and Lori Young tell the story of how the Brooks Avenue Church of Christ in Raleigh, North Carolina, made people with disabilities and special needs the heart and soul of the congregation, its witness, and its worship. 

SEGMENT ONE: Can Church of Christ preachers ever retire? (Jordan Coss)

Link to Almost Essential Podcast

Link to How to Retire with Enough Money by Teresa Ghilarducci

Link to Pension Fund of the Christian Church

Link to Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman

Link to Speed, starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock

SEGMENT TWO: Our worship is turning praise into secular profit (Kelsey Kramer McGinnis)

Link to article “Our Worship is Turning Praise Into Secular Profit” by Kelsey Kramer McGinnis in Christianity Today Magazine

Link to Christian Copyright Licensing International

Link to Kelsey Kramer McGinnis bio and website

SEGMENT THREE: One congregation recognizes that people with disabilities and special needs bear the image of Jesus Christ (Jeremy Marshall and Lori Young)

Link to Audrey Jackson’s Christian Chronicle story about the Brooks Avenue Church of Christ

Link to Brooks Avenue Church of Christ

Contact Brooks Avenue Church of Christ at specialneeds@brooks.org

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