Organizations & Events

Organizations & Events covers the ministries, institutions, and gatherings that shape church life and the Restoration Movement. Explore articles on conferences, training opportunities, church networks, and the work of organizations serving local congregations. You’ll find news, highlights, interviews, and event coverage—along with updates that help leaders stay connected and informed. Whether you’re looking for what’s happening across the movement or learning about trusted partners and key initiatives, this hub brings together stories and information related to organizations and events that support the mission of the church.

July 19, 2016

Mark A. Taylor

10 Reasons to Attend the Global Gathering in New Delhi Next January

By Mark A. Taylor As I”m reflecting on the soul-refreshing experience of last week”s North American Christian Convention in Anaheim, California, I”m filled with anticipation for another similar opportunity. Similar, because it promises rich fellowship and unique worship with committed believers. Similar, because it offers the chance to learn from Christian leaders extending the gospel in ways I may not have considered. But the convention I”m anticipating is different in many special ways from the NACC just finished. This month I”m encouraging Christians from across America to go with me to the 19th Global Gathering of the World Convention January

June 26, 2016

Christian Standard

Diversity by Design

By Pat Magness In 2006, ethnic minority students made up only 5 percent of the Milligan College student body. By 2010, that figure had increased to 14 percent. (In raw numbers, there were 19 ethnic minority students in 1998 and 121 in 2012.) This dramatic increase was no accident. It began in prayer and was energized by a deep commitment to the idea that diversity is God”s intention and desire, that Milligan College needed to take a proactive role in bringing about diversity, and that a multipronged approach would be necessary. The desire to be “a strong, vibrant, and diverse

May 30, 2016

Christian Standard

Degrees of Change

By Jennifer Johnson It”s common knowledge that the Internet has transformed traditional approaches to higher education. Although one out of every three academicians considers online learning to be inferior to face-to-face instruction (according to SEO.com), millions of undergrad and graduate students enroll in online classes each semester, and the National Center for Education reported recently that 22 percent of United States graduate students study exclusively online. Many schools have also realized class schedules and degree programs must become more flexible to attract growing numbers of nontraditional students. These changes, along with the growing desire among growing churches to raise up

May 27, 2016

Christian Standard

Barreto Lectures on ‘Race, Ethnicity, and the Bible Today’

To whet your appetite for our June issue, which features articles that provide insight and encouragement about racial reconciliation and the church, and which also features 11 leaders who tell about how they are bridging the racial divide, we thought we would recommend a video on the subject filmed earlier this week at Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan College in Tennessee. Dr. Eric Barreto, Weyerhaeuser Associate Professor of New Testament at Princeton (NJ) Theological Seminary, spoke Monday night as part of the Myron Taylor Lectureship. His topic was “A People for God”s Name: Race, Ethnicity, and the Bible Today.” The

May 18, 2016

Christian Standard

Johnson University Partners to Extend Reach

Johnson University, with campuses in Tennessee, Florida, and online, is launching Johnson University ExtendEd. Through ExtendEd sites, the University will provide Christian education opportunities to more students on a localized basis. Initial launch locations include Indianapolis, IN; Phoenix, AZ; Louisville, KY; and Knoxville, TN. Starting in August 2016, Johnson University ExtendEd will offer affordable, local business and ministry degrees at partner locations around the country. Partners include Southeast Christian Church in Louisville; Christ”s Church of the Valley in Phoenix; Knoxville Interdenominational Bible Institute in Knoxville; and Connection Pointe Christian Church, Greenwood Christian Church, Indian Creek Christian Church, Park Chapel Christian

April 24, 2016

Christian Standard

Johnson, Lilly Investing in Teens

By Jennifer Johnson Johnson University (Knoxville, TN) is just starting its Future of Hope Institute, but has already been encouraged””and funded””by a $600,000 grant from the Lilly Endowment. The institute is the latest initiative in Johnson”s ongoing work to invest in the Knoxville community. Each summer for the next three years, 30 local high school students will participate in the program, which includes emphasis on spiritual, personal, and professional development. “After a weekend retreat in the mountains, there will be a week of classroom work,” says Dr. Gary David Stratton, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. “We”ll focus

November 21, 2015

Christian Standard

ICOM: A Conference with Eternal Value

By Rick Jett I used to feel sorry for the away team. When I ministered in Marion, Indiana, in the mid-1980s, the Marion Giants were the dominant high school basketball team in the state. They were state champions three years in a row. On game day, everyone in town wore purple and gold to support the home team. Nearly 7,000 fans would fill the high school athletic arena. The ceremony before each home game was designed to intimidate the away team. After everyone stood for the national anthem, the announcer would introduce the starting lineup for the visitors. The cheerleaders

November 17, 2015

Mark A. Taylor

Mike Schrage, ICOM 2015

Mike Schrage, executive director with Good News Productions International talks about the need for churches to make better use of technology and how that will be the subject of the 2016 International Conference on Missions, scheduled to meet in Lexington, November 17-20. (He”s the president.) Click here to see this interview with Mark A. Taylor.

November 4, 2015

Christian Standard

Evangelizing Associations Merge to Form Waypoint

By Jennifer Johnson The Virginia Evangelizing Fellowship and Envision (North Carolina), two mid-Atlantic evangelizing associations, publicly announced their merger at last week”s International Conference on Missions. The two groups are joining to become Waypoint Church Partners. The two organizations completed a two-year process syncing their legal, financial, and organizational structures to form a new regional alliance. Envision, once known as the Piedmont Evangelizing Association, had been involved with more than 30 new church projects in North Carolina over the past 45 years. VEF, in existence since 1938, planted more than 80 churches in Virginia and more recently in the adjoining

November 4, 2015

Christian Standard

Inclusive Aquatic Center Planned at Christian Camp

Lake Aurora Christian Camp and Retreat Center in Florida (LACC) is partnering with Removing the Barriers Initiative (RTBI) to house Stirring Waters, which will be Florida”s first aquatic adventure center that is intentionally and fully inclusive of people with disabilities. RTBI was formed as a nonprofit organization to come alongside organizations working to remove the barriers to great experiences for people with disabilities. Lake Aurora is doing just that through the various camps it now offers for people with disabilities. RTBI founder and president Bill Redmon, who served as executive director of LACC for 34 years, recognized that the traditional

October 22, 2015

Christian Standard

Tennessee Retirement Village Changes Name

JOHNSON CITY, TN “” Appalachian Christian Village has changed its name to Cornerstone Village. CEO Tom Sexton says the village, which started nearly 50 years ago, will continue to offer its residents a worry-free retirement in a full-service continuing care retirement community. He said the new name will better reflect the active, vibrant community that welcomes people of all faiths. The campuses known as Sherwood, Magnolia Crossing, and Woodlands will now be known as Cornerstone Village North. The campuses previously known as Maple Crest and Pine Oaks will now be called Cornerstone Village South. Cornerstone also is making improvements to the main dining room, along with an updated menu,

October 21, 2015

Christian Standard

Making the Grade

By Jim Tune Mark Twain spoke in 1900 on the value of an education. “Every time you stop a school, you will have to build a jail,” he said. “What you gain at one end you lose at the other. It”s like feeding a dog on his own tail. It won”t fatten the dog.” We need our schools in this movement of ours, perhaps more than ever. As president of the 2015 International Conference on Mission in Richmond, Virginia, October 29″”November 1, I”ve had the unique privilege of personally visiting nine of our Bible colleges and Christian universities. As I

August 20, 2015

Christian Standard

Youth Advance Evolving

By Jennifer Johnson Youth Advance began as a way to build student leaders and recruit them for Christian college. In 1982, representatives from Northeastern Christian Junior College in Villanova, PA, developed the event””with speakers, workshops, worship, and more””as a way to identify and encourage promising high school students in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic. “It wasn”t a youth rally,” says Bill McGee, the vice president. “The idea wasn”t to send your entire youth group. It was for church leaders to handpick a few kids with potential and for the church to pay their way.” Northeastern eventually merged with another college and

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