Carey Nieuwhof
Don’t settle for an impact smaller than you’re called to make. It's time to unlock your potential and lead confidently into a future filled with growth — for yourself, your church, and your mission. Get access to some of my best leadership content, only published in my newsletters.
On The Rise: What Gen Alpha Thinks about Life and Faith + How to Deal with the Hugger in Your Church
Welcome to the On The Rise newsletter, where I feature fascinating, helpful, and sometimes curious content that caught my attention this week. Today, Some fresh research on how Gen Alpha (aka your student ministry) is feeling about life and faith, how to tell whether someone wants be greeted with a hug, handshake or wave, rebuilding a broken world, and what challenges reveal about you. What Does Gen Alpha Think About Life and Faith Everyone’s Talking about Gen Z, but there's a fresh...
Required Listening: One of Eugene Peterson's final interviews
Hi Reader, When was the last time you sat in silence long enough to hear what was really going on inside you? That's not a question most leaders ask. We're usually too busy solving problems, preparing messages, leading meetings, and moving on to the next thing. This week, as part of our "Required Listening" series, I'm bringing back one of the most meaningful conversations I've ever had on this podcast: a conversation with Eugene Peterson, recorded just a year before he passed away. During...
Something's changing faster than the church is
Hi Reader, A few weeks ago in On The Rise, I shared some staggering Barna data: practicing Christians trust AI more than the average person does. Not less, more. They're using it to understand scripture, and some are even using it as a spiritual guide. The people in our churches aren't waiting for us to figure this out. They're already living in it. People are asking AI their questions (including, increasingly, their spiritual ones) every single day. And most church leaders are responding...
15 lessons from a leader who finished well
Hi Reader, A question for you: If you could sit down with an 80-year-old leader who finished well, what would you ask? Most leadership advice comes from people in the middle of the journey. This week's podcast is different. As part of a new "Required Listening" summer series, I'm bringing back one of the most loved, shared and cherished conversations we've ever had on this podcast: my View from 80 interview with Gordon MacDonald. If you've never heard it, well, that's why it's part of the...
Yes, you're competent. But now AI can fake that. Now what?
Hi Reader, In 2024, 78% of people rated a deepfake video completely authentic, even after being told deepfakes exist. Think about that for a minute, nearly 8 out of 10 just couldn't tell what was real. AI can now write your sermon outline, your newsletter, your sharpest leadership take — in seconds, for free. The skills that used to signal real leadership are suddenly available to everybody. In other words, we now live in a world where competency can be generated and even counterfeited. Think...
On The Rise: Has Secularism Peaked in the US? + An honest look at being canceled
Welcome to the On The Rise newsletter, where I feature fascinating, helpful, and sometimes curious content that caught my attention this week. Today, Ryan Burge presents new data on the rise and decline of the religious Nones, your ideal sleeping temperature, an honest look at the life of a comic who got canceled (and came back), and a call for more moral voices. Are the Religious Nones In Decline? It looks that way Ryan Burge recently took a deep dive in the state of religion in the USA and...
5 signs you've outgrown doing ministry alone
Hi Reader, There's a version of leadership that looks like faithfulness but is actually overload. You probably already know what that looks like. The first one in... the last one out. Answering emails after dinner or double-checking them before bed. Chasing down details that somehow landed on your desk... again. And then Sunday comes, and you're supposed to preach with clarity and presence (while you're on fumes). But the problem usually isn't your capacity. It's your structure. You haven't...
Do you think your message is forgotten within 7 days?
Hi Reader, If you've been thinking about joining The Art of Preaching or telling yourself you'll decide later... later is now. Tonight at 11:59pm (Eastern), the special pricing goes away and I don't want you to miss it because life got busy this week. The weight of preaching doesn't let up, does it? Sunday comes back around every seven days, whether you're ready or not. And most pastors carry that weight alone... writing alone, practicing alone, standing up in front of their congregation and...
What ministry does to you (John Mark Comer + Father Ronald Rolheiser join me)
Hi Reader, Today on the podcast, John Mark Comer and Father Ronald Rolheiser join me for a fascinating conversation on who you become as you get older. Ask yourself, are you slowly becoming more bitter? Without realizing it, the wounds of ministry and leadership can cause you to drift into greater bitterness and even anger as you get older. Or you can choose a different path. Father Ron Rolheiser has been a priest, theologian, and spiritual director for over 50 years. He’s also been in...
Are you really that needed?
Hi Reader, I went on a retreat last month. When you arrive, they take your phone, electronics, and anything 'smart'. You're left with a pen, paper, some other people, and an environment that feels like the digital equivalent of 1986. They have one emergency number you can give to your friends or family. If something direly important happens, they can call. Only my immediate family and one staff member had that number. Nobody called. It was glorious. To be without distraction, without knowing...
Don’t settle for an impact smaller than you’re called to make. It's time to unlock your potential and lead confidently into a future filled with growth — for yourself, your church, and your mission. Get access to some of my best leadership content, only published in my newsletters.