News & Updates

News & Updates delivers timely reporting and important announcements relevant to church leaders and the Restoration Movement community. Explore articles covering ministry developments, events, organizational news, and updates that impact churches, leaders, and readers of The Christian Standard. You’ll find information on conferences, initiatives, partnerships, and significant stories shaping the life of the church today. Check back regularly to stay informed and connected to what’s happening across the movement and within The Christian Standard network.

March 6, 2019

Christian Standard

Milligan Freshman Honored for Volunteerism (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon Milligan College freshman Chase McGlamery won a big award for his service to his community and church. McGlamery received the Governor’s Volunteer Stars Award; he was one of 108 honorees this year. McGlamery completed more than 300 hours of community service during 2018, even while acclimating himself to life at Milligan, where he is majoring in communications. In total, he completed more than 1,000 hours of community service during high school. He began volunteering at age 8. Much of his work has involved technology. “Since I was in elementary school, teachers would ask me to help

February 27, 2019

Christian Standard

News Briefs for Feb. 27, 2019

Ken Idleman will speak at the Mississippi Christian Convention March 29 and 30 at the Coliseum Civic Center in Corinth, Miss. “Dream Small” is the theme. Go to www.midsouthchristian.edu or contact Chuck Hassell at jt*********@*****ok.com for more information. _ _ _ The School of Business at Kentucky Christian University will host its ninth annual Leadership Conference April 4 in Grayson. The conference allows students and area business professionals to learn the art of leadership from a variety of leaders. Participants will include retired minister Bob Russell, Amazon launch and expansion manager Cassie Kiser Brodie, and Center for Disease Control public

February 25, 2019

Jerry Harris

Our Move to Not-for-Profit

By Jerry Harris It happened quietly in 2018. The owner of Christian Standard and The Lookout took on not-for-profit status for the first time ever. For about 150 years, the magazines were guided by Standard Publishing, which did business like most of the working world . . . as a for-profit. The company encouraged churches to buy and pass out their magazines for free and to purchase their books and other helps for teaching. That system endured for years, even as the business was bought and sold four times. Then, in early 2017, a church-centric organization purchased the magazines, and

February 20, 2019

Christian Standard

Wrestling Champ Gives Shout-out to His Church (Plus News Briefs)

Norfolk (Neb.) High School wrestler Conner Cowling capped a dominant season with a state championship over the weekend, and he credited his church with encouraging him along the way. The senior lost his mother and two grandparents during the last few years. Cowling told the Norfolk Daily News that at one point in high school he started to get into trouble and feel depressed. “But my friend . . . introduced me to Fuel—a youth program at my church, First Christian Church [in Norfolk], and I discovered God and Christianity, which really helped me,” Cowling said. Cowling hasn’t missed a youth

February 13, 2019

Christian Standard

Church Coping with Suicide (Plus News Briefs)

A few weeks after losing one of his pastors to suicide, Rusty George of Real Life Church in Valencia, Calif., spoke on radio station KHTS’s “Aging With Power” program about coping with the suicide of a loved one. “It was shocking for all of us, and it was devastating,” George said of campus pastor Jim Howard’s suicide Jan. 23. George said Howard had struggled with a mental health issue and was on and off medication for years. “We react the way everyone reacts with something like this—with sadness, with a bit of anger, a bit of guilt. And we just

February 6, 2019

Christian Standard

Church Helps Indy 500 Connect with New Presenting Sponsor (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman A lot of connections can be made in church, and that is no more apparent than in the story about how the Indianapolis 500 came to find its newest presenting sponsor. It started two years ago at Traders Point Christian Church in Zionsville, Ind., when open-wheel driver Zach Veach, then 22, asked his pastor, Aaron Brockett, for help in finding a race sponsor. Brockett connected Veach with another church member, Dan Towriss, CEO of what soon would become Group 1001, a major insurance holding company based in Indianapolis. One thing led to another

January 30, 2019

Christian Standard

John Derry to Step Down as HIU’s President (Plus News Briefs)

Hope International University President John L. Derry has announced his retirement. Derry will step down on Aug. 15 after 15 years as Hope’s president, HIU said in a news release. “Over the past several months, Jane and I have been praying and considering when would be the best time for us to transition to retirement,” Derry said. “A decision like this is certainly not easy and in no way reflects on our confidence in the future of the university.” The Derrys have grandchildren in Texas and Ohio and hope to spend more time with them. Since becoming president of HIU,

January 23, 2019

Christian Standard

Real Life in Virginia Rebuilds after Tornado (Plus News Briefs)

Real Life Christian Church, Chesapeake, Va., celebrated their first worship service in a new building Sunday, almost two years after a tornado ripped through their original building. “It was a very special service to be here together again,” executive pastor Brett Coates told WAVY. “We’ve been through a lot the past 22 months, but we’ve bonded together and that made today even more special.” The new building, constructed on the site of the old, features a cross inside made from pieces of the previous church, along with artwork made from pieces of a tree knocked down by the tornado. “We

January 16, 2019

Christian Standard

First Christian Church in Decatur Marks 185 Years (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman   First Christian Church of Decatur, Ill., took a moment between regular services Sunday to mark the 185th anniversary of the congregation and 25th year of service by lead pastor Wayne Kent and his wife, Leslie. “The original home of the congregation was the log courthouse in Decatur, where Abraham Lincoln practiced law,” Morgan Arseneau, the church’s discipleship assistant, told the Herald & Review. Church members had their choice of celebratory cupcakes marked with either “185” for the church anniversary or “25” for the Kents’ silver jubilee. “The word of God never changes,

January 9, 2019

Christian Standard

Rapha House’s Freed Graces Magazine Cover (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman   Stephanie Freed, an Ozark Christian College alum who cofounded Rapha House, was named a “2019 Pathfinder” by J Mag, a lifestyles magazine published by the Joplin Globe. According to the Globe: “The award honors individuals, couples or groups who have accomplished something unique and who have made it possible for others to follow in their footsteps.” The entry for Freed reads: “Stephanie Freed . . . co-founded Rapha House International in 2003, after her father challenged her to research human trafficking. Today, there are safe havens in Cambodia, Thailand and in Haiti, where

January 2, 2019

Tyler McKenzie

Rise City Church Helps Student Buy New Prosthetic Foot (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon As part of its annual Christmas offering, Rise City Church in Lakeside, Calif., is helping a college student struggling with bone cancer to buy a prosthetic foot. According to NBC 7 News, the church—pastored by Brandon and Jamie Grant—presented a gift in person to Sam Bodger, a first-year UCLA student. Bodger had some of her left leg amputated as part of her treatment for osteosarcoma. Insurance, however, wasn’t sufficient to provide a quality prosthetic. Rise City Church takes up a Christmas offering—this year totaling $260,000—that it spreads to worthy causes in the community. Bodger was nominated

December 26, 2018

Christian Standard

Ozark Plans Preaching-Teaching Convention (Plus News Briefs)

Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Mo., will host a Preaching-Teaching Convention Feb. 18-20. The theme is “No Matter What: Holy Living in a Hostile Land.” Among the speakers will be Caleb Kaltenbach, Brad Tate, Shan Moyers, Ashley Wooldridge, Daryl Reed, Nathan Rector, and Mark Scott. There also will be pre-convention seminars held during the day Monday, Feb. 18, including “Church Leadership: Conversations for the Smaller Church,” “Children’s Ministry Training,” and others. Click here to learn more and to register. _ _ _ Three conferences have been scheduled by e2: effective elders over the next several weeks. Manhattan (Kan.) Christian College will

December 22, 2018

Christian Standard

The Church of Christ Nativity Heist

From After Class Podcast Police have confirmed the mysterious Nativity heist has finally ended. “We’re glad it’s over. The whole town’s glad it’s over,” reported officer Melchior. For three weeks, the front yards of unsuspecting homeowners, respected public establishments, and houses of worship across Magian County have been repeatedly raided by previously unknown thieves. Strangely enough, only one item was routinely carted off—plastic or wooden figurines of the wise men who visited baby Jesus to bring him presents. “It was so strange,” reported 60-year-old Ricky Bob Gaspar. “I’ve never seen anything like this before. They left the cattle, the shepherds,

December 19, 2018

Christian Standard

Church Sponsors ‘Christmas Shoppe’ for Struggling Families (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon Owensboro Christian Church did its part to help families who are struggling to buy presents for their children this Christmas season. The Kentucky church opened its “Christmas Shoppe,” where the church sells low-priced toys to families in need. Hundreds of toys were purchased by the church or donated to it. There was a purpose to selling the toys rather than simply giving them away. “Through all of the outreach we’ve done, a lot of parents really would rather provide Christmas for themselves and not really have to rely on other people doing it for them,” the

December 12, 2018

Christian Standard

Churches Rescue City’s Hoops Program (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon Calvary Christian Church in Winchester, Ky., is ramping up for the little league basketball season one year after the church helped rescue the sports program after the closure of the community’s YMCA. Calvary Christian is one of several churches sponsoring Upward 40391, a Christian-based basketball and cheerleading program. The program came into existence after the Winchester YMCA closed in late 2016. “We were breaking down barriers and coming together for the cause of the kids,” CCC’s lead pastor Mike McCormick told the Winchester Sun. About 940 preschoolers through 12th-graders are signed up for the program this

December 5, 2018

Christian Standard

Megachurch Helping Asylum-Seekers (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon Central Christian Church in Mesa, Ariz., is one of several nearby churches that have helped house nearly 5,000 asylum-seekers who have crossed the Mexican border into the United States since October. According to the Arizona Mirror, the megachurch has received five large groups of migrants released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The asylum-seekers are brought temporarily to the church’s worship center, where they are fed and clothed and connected with local families who can house them temporarily. Eventually, the migrants go to live with relatives across the United States until their asylum cases can be

December 4, 2018

Christian Standard

CRA Trustee, Former College President Harvey C. Bream Jr. Dies

Former Christian college president and longtime Christian Restoration Association trustee Harvey C. Bream Jr., 95, of Mason, Ohio, died on Saturday, Dec. 1. His funeral service will take place at 1 p.m. Wednesday at Christ’s Church at Mason. Mr. Bream served the Lord in many roles through the years. He was president of Cincinnati Bible College and Seminary (now called Cincinnati Christian University) from 1970 to 1986, and was chancellor an additional 3 years. He had served as trustee with the CRA since 1951, while also serving 10 years as CRA director and editor of The Restoration Herald, and 7

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