Church & Ministry

Church & Ministry equips leaders and everyday believers to build healthy, gospel-centered congregations. Explore biblically grounded articles on church leadership, preaching and teaching, eldership, staff and volunteer development, discipleship systems, small groups, church planting, church growth, and ministry strategy. You’ll also find practical guidance for navigating transitions, cultivating congregational health, and serving your community with wisdom and compassion. Whether you’re a pastor, elder, ministry staff member, volunteer leader, or church member who wants to help your church thrive, this hub brings together resources to strengthen the local church and advance Christ’s mission.

November 2, 2019

Christian Standard

Children’s Ministry Best Practices (Small Church): Versailles (Ind.) Church of Christ

‘A Love for Watching Young People Grow in Christ’ By Melissa Wuske JR and Debra Stephen have been volunteer leaders in the children’s ministry at Versailles (Indiana) Church of Christ since the mid-1980s. It’s a small congregation with “more older people than younger” right now, JR said. About 20 children regularly attend, and he described the church as “a close-knit family.” As a children’s leader, that closeness is an asset: “Everybody pretty much knows everybody, and you get to know the parents well.” The couple have been through many seasons of ministry with the church: Families have moved into town

October 10, 2019

Christian Standard

An 1800s Preacher Shares His Story

Buried toward the back of the Oct. 12, 1889, issue was a column by an unknown preacher who shared short recollections of his inadequacies and failings as a young evangelist. This column is several things: raw, uneven, humorous, painful, perceptive, and poignant. _ _ _ Reminiscences from a Young Preacher’s Experience By Y. P.Oct. 12, 1889; p. 11 Yes, I remember quite a number of the firstlies in my ministry. My first sermon was in a new, unfinished, country meetinghouse, painted without, but rough within; the studding, joist and rafters were bare. The benches were slabs from the saw-mill, supported

October 9, 2019

Christian Standard

Rural Church Sees a-Maze-ing Opportunity in Cornfield

By Chris Moon Rinehart Christian Church in Missouri is surrounded by cornfields . . . and that’s a good reason to celebrate during October. “This is a very rural area,” senior minister Kevin Moyers told Christian Standard. But the church of about 200 people has a heart for families. It wants to see them come to know Christ and to spend quality time together. And so RCC created a corn maze on a 10-acre patch of land adjacent to the church property and is hosting a fall festival for people in the surrounding communities from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

October 7, 2019

Christian Standard

STARTING SMALL: In Praise of the Smaller Church

This is a repost of an appreciation for smaller churches from Oct. 15, 2006, written by Ben Merold, who was then serving as senior minister with Harvester Christian Church, St. Charles, Missouri. Merold, now in his early 90s, continues to serve Harvester as teaching pastor. (Read our October 2019 issue for articles about challenges facing rural and small churches . . . and possible solutions.) _ _ _ By Ben Merold, Harvester Christian Church, St. Charles, Missouri I have a great appreciation for the smaller church. I was led to accept Christ as my personal Savior in a small church.

October 2, 2019

Christian Standard

Third City Going the Distance to Launch Broken Bow Site

By Jim Nieman The first venture into multisite ministry by Third City Christian Church, Grand Island, Neb., started with a request for help more than a year ago. First Christian Church in Broken Bow, Neb., about 80 miles away, had lost its minister, and the folks who remained thought the church “wasn’t going to make it,” said Third City senior minister Scott Jones, “[so] they reached out to us.” The folks at First Christian knew Third City was a healthy, growing church. TCCC averages about 1,500 on weekends and has a strong after-school program that sees about 350 students weekly.

October 1, 2019

Kent E. Fillinger

Kent E. Fillinger

The Mainstreaming of Online Church

By Kent Fillinger If Paul were still preaching, would he have an online church live-streaming from Jerusalem? It’s entirely possible. After all, Paul said, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Corinthians 9:22, 23). All that to say, Internet worship services are becoming more mainstream. In July, I provided an overview of how Christian churches and churches of Christ are using various social media platforms to communicate. I want to go

September 25, 2019

Christian Standard

Church Vans Serving Community throughout Week (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman Calvary Christian Church is among several organizations in Winchester, Ky., that have created a pilot program to help people in need of transportation, especially those individuals in recovery programs. “There were all these churches around town that have vans, and there’s all these people who need transportation,” Calvary pastor Mike McCormick told the Winchester Sun. “Could those vans be repurposed beyond Sunday morning . . . to be used for the benefit of the community? . . . At Calvary, we’re very intentional about wanting to serve the community and break down whatever

September 20, 2019

Christian Standard

Small Churches: Responding to Some Stereotypes

In this repost of a classic article that first appeared in Christian Standard on May 20, 2012, Tom Claibourne responds to some fairly typical stereotypes about small churches. Claibourne is in his 40th year serving with Bethlehem Church of Christ, Winchester, Ohio. He recently was inducted into the Christian Village Communities Hall of Faith; his induction video celebrating his life of ministry is available at the church’s Facebook page. (Read our October 2019 issue for articles about challenges facing rural and small churches . . . and possible solutions.) _ _ _ By Tom Claibourne Small church. What is the

September 18, 2019

Christian Standard

Exponential, Outreach Team for ‘Church Multiplication Challenge’

Exponential and Outreach magazine are partnering for “The Church Multiplication Challenge,” and an initial goal of identifying 100 reproducing churches has expanded to 1,000. “We want to see reproduction and multiplication become normative,” Exponential CEO Todd Wilson says in an article at ReproducingChurches.org. “We want to see leaders changing their scorecards as they think differently about what it means to lead successful churches and to build legacies that last.” The response thus far has been encouraging, Wilson says, especially since an attempt several years ago to identify 10 rapidly multiplying churches fell far short. (The research team couldn’t find even

September 11, 2019

Christian Standard

McGilvrey Retiring after Ministry with an Unexpected Twist

By Jim Nieman When Mark McGilvrey’s church provided seed money to help start 2|42 Community Church in 2005, he had no idea of the boomerang effect. McGilvrey, who retires this month after 47 years of ministry in Livonia, Mich., said the church he serves, Compass Christian Church, reached an agreement earlier this summer to be adopted by 2|42, and is slated to become an official 2|42 campus, probably in the fall of 2020. “It’s a beautiful thing,” McGilvrey said. “We started just this past Sunday with live video from [2|42].” Since being planted in Brighton, Mich., 2|42 has been one

September 4, 2019

Christian Standard

Small Tennessee Church Oversees Big Laundry Ministry

By Jim Nieman A women’s group at a church of about 35 in Rogersville, Tenn., started a ministry in 2016 that has grown like, well . . . a pile of laundry. The Rogersville Laundry Ministry began as a once-a-month outreach to people at a local laundromat and has developed into a weekly endeavor that relies on dozens of volunteers from several churches to serve hundreds of people at two laundromats. “Our church’s mission is ‘Loving People to Jesus,’” said Dawnel Newhouse of First Christian Church of Rogersville. “Basically, it’s what we’re trying to do” with the laundry ministry. But

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

The 2018 Charts: Small Churches and Very Small Churches

Our annual listing of churches is one of Christian Standard’s most popular features. This year scores of churches participated, including 78 small churches (average weekly worship attendance of 100 to 249 during 2018) and 47 very small churches (attendance of fewer than 100). In May we featured an article and statistics from 55 megachurches (2,000 or more in weekly attendance) and 70 emerging megachurches (1,000 to 1,999). In July we spotlighted 88 large churches (500 to 999 in weekly attendance) and 86 medium churches (250 to 499). Click here to view and download 2018 Charts3, with data from small churches and

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

2018 Fast Facts about Small and Very Small Churches

These statistics from 2018 are gleaned from small and very small church data collected by Kent Fillinger. Be sure to read Fillinger’s article, “2018 Special Church Report, Part 3: Small and Very Small Churches,” and look at the accompanying tables, “The 2018 Charts: Small and Very Small Churches.” _ _ _ AVERAGE ATTENDANCE Small churches: 163 Very Small churches: 54 Combined average weekly attendance (125 churches): 21,701 _ _ _ GROWTH RATES Small churches: 0.03 percent (up from -0.3 percent in 2017); overall, 38 percent of small churches grew (up from 36 percent in 2017) Very Small churches: 1.7 percent

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

The Inescapable Church

By Daniel Schantz A farmer came up to me after a church service and asked, “Which do you think is better, a big church or a small church?” I pondered a moment and then answered with a question of my own: “Well, which is better, a big truck or a small truck?” He grinned. “It depends. If you have a thousand acres of soybeans to harvest, you’ll need an 18-wheeler, but for most farm jobs a pickup truck is about right.” In other words, there is no one-size-fits-all truck. Likewise, there is no one-size-fits-all institution or church. Do all convenience

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (8): The Future

By Jerran Jackson Rural churches have faced many challenges, and they will face many more. We have highlighted possible solutions in these articles. While your church may be doing well right now, it’s not inconceivable it could be forced to close its doors within the next 20 years. The best mind-set is a willingness to join Jesus in new adventures. The future for your church might include part-time ministers, mergers, and hiring from within. It’s important to openly discuss and pray about what might be necessary and best for the kingdom. It’s also important to try new approaches. If the

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (7): Build a Legacy

By Barney Wells “In this part of the country, there’s a Christian church every five miles, and three in between,” quipped the minister, who had served small-town congregations in the Midwest for decades. Though an overstatement, it does point to a challenge for the rural church. Many rural churches were planted in the days before automobiles and good roads, when the population density of the rural countryside was much greater and you could travel only a few miles in 30 minutes. Back then, more schools, stores, and churches were needed. Over the years, schools have consolidated and stores have closed,

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (6): Elders Wanted

By Matt Johnson If many people with leadership gifts and experience attend your church, then your pool of potential leaders is deep. If your church is comprised of people who have little leadership experience or skill, you’re facing a completely different situation. You may have great workers with great hearts, but you may not have competent leaders. It is possible this dynamic contributes to the size of the church. How can the small church cope with a dearth of potential leaders? My response is mostly anecdotal. The church I served until recently, Levittown Christian Church, is in a lower-middle-class, blue-collar

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (5): Hope from History

By Jerran Jackson Down through the ages, Jesus has used crises and challenges to renew his church. When Christians by the thousands were leaving their churches to pray alone in the desert, Basil of Caesarea redefined devotion to God by gathering Christians in cities and organizing them both for prayer and for service to their neighbors. When the church became corrupt and Christianity became a superstition, Martin Luther reemphasized the guidance of God’s Word. When dry formalism replaced living faith, Philipp Jakob Spener introduced home Bible studies. Jesus can renew the American church today in similar ways. Before there were

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (4): 10 Ways to Develop Ministers

By Jerran Jackson Carlos Fields just wanted to play baseball. So he joined some friends who were playing on a church team. The church’s minister was on the team, and during the season they had several conversations. Carlos was a Christ follower by the time the season ended. The minister continued to work with Carlos, and two years later, the young man was in Bible college. Carlos was familiar with only small and rural churches, so he was not put off by serving those kinds of congregations. Carlos ultimately planted 12 small congregations and led hundreds of people to faith

August 22, 2019

Christian Standard

THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (3): Hiring a Pastor

By Richard Creek An objective for this article is to determine how many 2019 graduates from Bible colleges will be entering the pastoral/pulpit ministry. The Pastor’s Project contacted nine Bible colleges associated with independent Christian churches and churches of Christ in the United States and Canada. (That’s about one-third of our colleges and universities.) The total number of students from these nine schools entering the pastoral ministry was 17, which is considerably lower than in previous decades. Yet the need for pastors has been increasing. Without a pastor, many rural and small churches go on life support and eventually die.

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