Series: Blogs

October 5, 2018

Christian Standard

Decisions, Decisions

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Rod Nielsen Decision-making in a church can be a blessing or a curse. Often, the decision itself is not as problematic as the process of coming to a decision. Major decisions—such as entering into

October 4, 2018

Christian Standard

A Furnished House for the Preacher

CS Archive from October 3, 1903 _ _ _ When I arrived at Christian Standard more than 20 years ago, I heard many arguments against parsonages. And indeed, during my time at the church of my birth, the congregation sold three “homes” for various reasons. It was surprising, then, to come across this essay from 115 years ago suggesting that churches should purchase and furnish a home for their minister. The article from page 7 of the Oct. 3, 1903, edition, was written by a man—at least, I assume it was a man—from Turner, Oregon. _ _ _ A Furnished

September 28, 2018

Christian Standard

Richard Baxter: Timeless Advice

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Larry Carter Richard Baxter, a preacher who lived in the 1600s, wrote a book to help church leaders understand the nature and task of ministry. Among his many wise instructions and observations in The

September 27, 2018

Christian Standard

Why Build Grundy Academy?

In an article Wednesday, we wrote about a celebrity golf tournament Sept. 10 that raised $56.6 million for the endowment fund of Mountain Mission School in Grundy, Va. It was the largest single-day PGA-sanctioned fund-raiser ever. In that article, we noted that Mountain Mission School was founded in 1921 by successful Grundy businessman Sam Hurley. The first president of the school was Josephus Hopwood, who had served as president of Milligan College. A little more study this morning revealed Hopwood attended the College of the Bible at Kentucky University where he studied under Robert Milligan and J.W. McGarvey. In 1875

September 23, 2018

Michael C. Mack

Five-Minute Daily Devotions for Leaders: C’mon Man!

By Michael C. Mack Recently as I was reading Psalm 61, I came to a significant verse: “Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings!” (Psalm 61:4, New Living Translation). King David was on the run, but he yearned to be back in Jerusalem, not because that’s where his palatial home was, but because that’s where God’s sanctuary was. To David, God’s presence resided especially in the sanctuary, and David yearned to be there. Don’t miss the word forever in this verse. David longed to dwell in God’s presence forever. The relationship—the fellowship he

September 21, 2018

Jim Estep

Change

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Jim Estep Putting it simply: Change is hard. We try to change our diet, exercise more, adapt to new technology, change our routines . . . but it’s hard to take the risk of

September 20, 2018

Christian Standard

‘Who Are the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ?’

CS Archive from September 25, 1988 _ _ _ On September 25, 1988, Christian Standard published an item that had been prepared for the Encyclopedia of American Religions titled, “Who Are the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ?” The writer was Edwin V. Hayden, who served as editor of Christian Standard from 1957 to 1977. As one might expect, the article is a straightforward introduction to our churches—part history and part snapshot in time. As you read it, I believe you’ll appreciate both the clarity of the writing the clarity of the vision for our churches. Some also will note

September 14, 2018

Ken Idleman

Legacy

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Ken Idleman My father lived a very full life of 94 years. He started out as the youngest of four boys—not an enviable place in the “pecking order.” He grew up in a two-bedroom,

September 13, 2018

Christian Standard

Assessing the World, from Bismarck to Bernhardt

CS Archive from September 15, 1888 _ _ _ You might not think of Christian Standard as a place to turn for national and international news, but in 1888—130 years ago—it surely was. And the reader back then received not only the news, but commentary. The lead article/column, which started in the top-left corner of the September 15 issue that year, carried items under the small headline “AROUND THE WORLD.” The wide-ranging reports are layered with opinion and occasionally drip with sarcasm. It’s entertaining writing, but some items may cause one to cringe, so be advised. Then again, some news

September 7, 2018

Christian Standard

Do the Right Thing

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We publish it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Dick Alexander Elder work can be hard work, involving gut-wrenching decisions. On the one hand there is great joy in seeing lives changed and God honored. It’s an undeserved privilege to be used by

September 6, 2018

Christian Standard

‘Nothing to Offer Except the Book’

CS Archive from September 8, 1923 _ _ _ The lead article in the Sept. 8, 1923, Christian Standard—an issue from 95 years ago—was “The Mission of the Church,” and it carried the subhead, “The Annual ‘President’s Address’ Delivered before the International Convention of Disciples of Christ at Colorado Springs, Col., Sept. 4, 1923.” The article/speech was written and presented by Thomas W. Grafton, minister of Third Church, Indianapolis, Ind., who served as president of that convention. I can’t begin to recap Grafton’s presentation—which ran almost three pages—or to pinpoint nuanced wording that may (or may not) have troubled some

August 31, 2018

Jon Weatherly

Differences

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we will publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. This is our third installment. We are publishing it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Jon Weatherly When asked to be an elder, I knew only one thing about the job for sure: I didn’t know what I was doing. That might

August 30, 2018

Christian Standard

Publishing Committee Insights

We selected the second—and shorter—editorial from p. 3 of the September 3, 1978, issue to share today. “Fifteen Gifted Men,” written by Sam E. Stone during his first year as editor, describes the arrangement for editorial oversight that was in place during the 50 or so years Standex International owned Standard Publishing, the former parent company of Christian Standard and The Lookout. To set the stage: The first edition of Christian Standard was published in April 1866, with Isaac Errett serving as editor. Standard Publishing “grew up around it”—it’s often been said—and was incorporated in 1872. Additional publications were created,

August 24, 2018

Christian Standard

Faith vs. Sight

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Each Friday we will publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. This is our second installment. We are publishing it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site. The leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! _____ By Larry Carter I often tell people that Great Lakes Christian College is “a faith-based organization.” We believe that we exist because of God’s faith in us and

August 23, 2018

Christian Standard

What The Christian Standard Will Be . . .

#ThrowbackThursday The Restoration Movement Archive—August 24, 1878 ___ Selecting items to share with you for this new “Throwback Thursday” feature is like trying to sip water from a fire hose. There’s quite a lot to look at in Christian Standard’s archives, as you might imagine—tens of thousands of pages of issues going back to 1866. Making matters more difficult is that issues from before 2005 are not yet easily searchable. That said, I came upon p. 4 of the August 24, 1878, edition—the issue that dates from 140 years ago tomorrow. It is what we consider to be the editorial

August 19, 2018

Michael C. Mack

Back to School . . . for All of Us

Editor’s Note: Starting today, each Sunday we will publish a new blog post from the editors of and regular contributors to Christian Standard. Our purpose is to encourage and equip leaders with timely and relevant leadership lessons we are learning. We will relate to current events in the church and culture and also provide insider information about Christian Standard Media. And we’d love to hear from you! If you have a reaction to a post, please comment below! _____ By Michael C. Mack As kids in our area went back to school this past week, I started reflecting on those

August 17, 2018

Christian Standard

From Unanimous . . . to Unity

E2: Effective Elders Blog Editor’s Note: Starting today, each Friday we will publish a new blog post from our partners in ministry, E2: Effective Elders. We are publishing it here simultaneous to E2’s posting on their site every Friday. As you may know, the leaders of E2 write an article for our print and online magazine every month as well. Those articles are full of wisdom and practical help for elders. Please check them out! We are grateful to the leaders of E2—Gary Johnson, David Roadcup, and Jim Estep—as well as operations director Jared Johnson for their ministry partnership. Both

August 16, 2018

Christian Standard

The Restoration Movement: Its Vitality, Quirks, and Needs in the 21st Century

Editor’s Note: Starting today, every Thursday we will post an article about the Restoration Movement from our Christian Standard archives. While some will be more recent stories, many others will be excerpts from older issues, going back to 1866, that are currently not available on the web. It’s “Throwback Thursday” . . . Christian Standard-style!   Today we go back to December 2006 to an article by LeRoy Lawson, which started as a presentation in the Publishing Committee’s 50th annual meeting in October that year. The Publishing Committee provided editorial oversight to Standard Publishing (the longtime owners of Christian Standard)

December 21, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

The Truth About Christmas

This Christmas editorial from December 25, 2005, was written by Mark A. Taylor, who served as editor of Christian Standard from 2003 until earlier this year. ___ By Mark A. Taylor Because I’m a romantic, I love all the traditions and fun of Christmastime. But this year some national magazine editors don’t seem to share my nostalgic attachment to the holiday. In fact, I wonder if they enjoy Christmas at all, since they’ve printed so much about how simply to survive it. For example, here are warnings contained in just one of my December magazines: “¢ If you don”t handle leftovers properly,

May 30, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

Your New Chapter””Don”t Be Afraid to Turn the Page

By Mark A. Taylor New parents sometimes feel trapped. Infants need constant attention, and Mom and Dad may grieve the diminished freedom, increased expenses, and unending on-call status that come with this new addition to their family. But after only 18 years or so, that son or daughter, now looking ahead at a life of independence, leaves home. He gets a job, and she establishes a household of her own. And some parents discover a new reason to grieve: without that child who was once such a challenge, now the house seems empty and lonely. Whether pressed by our current

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