Series: Columns

November 1, 2022

Wes Beavis

Christmas Is Good for Mental Health

Christmas Is Good for Mental Health

By Wes Beavis  The incarnation of Jesus Christ, God’s rescue plan for humanity, contributes to the mental health of the believer more than anything else. At Christmas we celebrate the advent of salvation through Christ our Lord. But people who celebrate Christ’s birth also typically experience three additional factors that have positive impacts on mental health.   Collective Effervescence   In 1912, French sociologist Émile Durkheim coined the term “collective effervescence,” which describes the euphoric self-transcendence that individuals feel when they are unified in focusing on a single subject or effort. Take a competitive rowing team, for example. Eight individuals climb into

November 1, 2022

Rudy Hagood

God's Love Language in Our Unions

God’s Love Language in Our Unions

By Rudy Hagood  Have you ever considered how unthinkable it is that we have intimacy with the Spirit of God within our marital unions? The prophet Malachi asked this simple rhetorical question: “Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union?” (Malachi 2:15, English Standard Version).   Your marriage is not simply between two people, but three, since it includes the third person of the godhead. For this reason, I want to talk about the health of our marriages by talking about how we engage God.   Since our marital unions consist of three people, knowing

November 1, 2022

Kent E. Fillinger

A Macro View on Generosity

A Macro View on Generosity

By Kent E. Fillinger  Giving USA 2022: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for 2021 reported charitable giving rose for its fourth consecutive year, reaching its highest level in history, $484.8 billion. Total giving increased 4 percent in current dollars but decreased 0.7 percent in inflation-adjusted dollars.   About two-thirds (67 percent) of total giving came from individuals, the fourth straight year individual giving totaled less than 70 percent. The wealthiest 1.4 percent of the country accounted for 86 percent of charitable donations, according to the Philanthropy Roundtable. Giving is highest among those in their 60s and 70s.     Charitable giving since World

November 1, 2022

Laura McKillip Wood

Missionary Uses Trauma Healing in Ministry

Missionary Uses Trauma Healing in Ministry

By Laura McKillip Wood  Renee Flory had already taken a mission trip to Eastern Europe when she heard Glen Elliott (a missionary to Ukraine for five years in the 1990s and later lead pastor of Pantano Christian Church in Tucson, Arizona, for more than 20 years) speak to her church about Tavriski Christian Institute (TCI), a Christian seminary in Ukraine.   During her previous trip, she had felt drawn to the people of that nation but believed God was telling her to wait. She returned to teaching kindergarten in California. But then in 2000, when she met Glen, she told him

November 1, 2022

Tina Wilson

Roe v. Wade Overturned . . . What Now for the Church?

Roe v. Wade Overturned . . . What Now for the Church?

By Tina Wilson, Guest Columnist  The landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision from 1973 was overturned in June. For many, this was an answer to decades of prayer. For some, this was a repeal of freedom. For Christians, this should be a call to action. Proper response, though, demands proper understanding of what happened.   Prior to 1973, abortion was a felony in most states, except in a few that had relaxed abortion restrictions in the years shortly preceding the ruling. “Jane Roe”—a pseudonym for Norma McCorvey—challenged Texas state law on abortion. To expedite the case’s hearing in the Supreme

November 1, 2022

David Roadcup

The Sons of Issachar, the Church at Sardis, and Our Leadership Teams

The Sons of Issachar, the Church at Sardis, and Our Leadership Teams

By David Roadcup  The sons of Issachar are widely noted in church leadership circles for having the ability to read their circumstances and respond in wisdom: “Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command” (1 Chronicles 12:32).   This text comes at a time when Israel had divided into Israel and Judah. The nation needed to reunite under the leadership of David. The sons of Issachar knew it was time for this to happen for the sake of

November 1, 2022

Michael C. Mack

The Stories God Tells

The Stories God Tells

By Michael C. Mack  Who doesn’t love a gripping story of adventure told by a master storyteller? Some of my favorites are epic sagas: Star Wars, Indiana Jones, National Treasure, and the like.   I was reminded about the adventures of the Pilgrims as I read Bob Russell’s feature article about Thanksgiving in this issue. It’s a true story about religious convictions, bravery, suffering, perseverance, and faith. God uses stories like that to teach us and transform us. It’s why Bob used this and a story about his grandson Charlie in his article, and it’s why I often remind our writers

November 1, 2022

Chris Philbeck

How Do We Answer the Great Questions in Life?

How Do We Answer the Great Questions in Life?

By Chris Philbeck  Our preaching team decided to devote June to an “Ask Me Anything” series. I know that’s nothing new or dramatic; churches and preachers have been doing these kinds of message series for years. But I’ve never done one, so we encouraged our church family to send in their questions during May. And even though I had a basic expectation of the kinds of questions people would submit, I was surprised by the response.   On the first weekend of the series, I began by saying that upon reviewing the questions I was left with two overwhelming feelings. First

November 1, 2022

Tyler McKenzie

Crucial Questions for Church Leaders

Crucial Questions for Church Leaders

By Tyler McKenzie   I grew up a preacher’s kid in the rural outskirts of a small city. Every time we walked into a restaurant, my dad visited at least two tables to check-in on people we knew from church. Often, someone would pick up our check. The community honored him. Back then, people looked to clergy for care and accepted their moral exhortation.  Gone are those days! Barna president David Kinnaman reported on the clergy credibility crisis in his 2017 book Good Faith. “The public’s respect for pastors, priests, and other faith leaders has significantly declined,” Kinnaman wrote. “Today only

November 1, 2022

Jerry Harris

The Gospel and the Invitation

The Gospel and the Invitation

By Jerry Harris  I admittedly write this column with some bias. Either because of how I was raised or how God wired me, a church service just seems incomplete without an invitation to enter a relationship with Jesus Christ.   When I was growing up, invitations came after the preacher finished his sermon. He would leave the pulpit and come down to the floor—to the same level as his hearers—and invite those in the congregation to come forward and do some business with God. During an invitation song the preacher would scan the audience for movement. Those who came forward—to accept

September 1, 2022

Tyler McKenzie

Tyler McKenzie

8 Ways Church Growth Has Reached an Idolatrous Level (Part 2)

By Tyler McKenzie  Church growth shouldn’t be the crowning pursuit of success among leadership. And yet, we’ve framed the pursuit of growth as natural and celebrate its attainment as health.  In part one of this article, I shared four concerning trends I’ve observed in American evangelical churches/ministries that can be explained (at least in part) as a consequence of the idolatrous pursuit of the gospel of growth. In this conclusion to the article, I share four more trends that may be indicative of that pursuit.   5. A Culture of Competition over Church (big C) Unity   Sometimes I question if this

September 1, 2022

Laura McKillip Wood

Laura-McKillip-Wood

Unexpected Ministry Bears Fruit

By Laura McKillip Wood  Kevin and Renee Payton talked as they did their Christmas shopping. It was December 2002, and they were home on furlough from their ministry in Simferopol, the central city in Crimea, which was still part of Ukraine at the time. Kevin had been teaching theology at a college in Crimea for about four years, but they saw their work with these students ending, as former students who had gone on to seminary were returning to teach at the college. Maybe the need for American professors was waning. But what would they do? As they talked, they

September 1, 2022

Chris Philbeck

Chris Philbeck

Stay the Course

By Chris Philbeck   When it comes to ministry, for me, one Scripture verse stands above the rest. Paul wrote in Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”   I love this verse for many different reasons, but mostly because of Paul’s honesty in saying that doing good can wear you out. How else can you interpret those first eight words?   While I invest my life in many “good” things, preaching is the one constant “good” thing that takes up most of my

September 1, 2022

Megan Rawlings

Megan Rawlings

Are Church Leaders Prepared for Quicksand and Lava?

By Megan Rawlings  When I was a child, probably around the age of 10, I perceived a few natural phenomena as threats to me on my journey to adulthood. For example, I spent hours researching and watching videos on how to escape quicksand and run away from volcanic lava. I didn’t realize, though, that neither of those was a threat to me in my southern Ohio hometown!   I have prepared for one natural disaster my whole life, knowing that living in southern Ohio it was possible (notice I did not say “probable”). I could experience a tornado. I knew that

September 1, 2022

Michael C. Mack

Michael C. Mack

The Church’s Identity Issue

By Michael C. Mack   Never has our culture been more perplexed about how to answer the seemingly simple question, “Who am I?” It’s hardly a surprise: The more the world drifts from the Creator, the more people struggle with their identity. We lose our sense of who we are when we forget whose we are. Satan is complicit, of course, in this case of identity theft.   In this issue, we address various matters of identity today. Our writers look at identity biblically, speaking truth in love, with a positive, humble attitude. And we hope our readers will have a similar

September 1, 2022

Jerry Harris

Jerry Harris

The Struggle with Identity

By Jerry Harris Identity is a major topic in American culture today. What do I identify as? Who do I identify with? There are hot debates about race, gender, sexual orientation, victimization, and how we  see ourselves and the world around us. The words we use or the words we are discouraged from using are all tied up in identity.   The American Medical Association just recommended that we not put gender on our birth certificates. An AMA report said, “Imposing such a categorization system risks stifling self-expression and self-identification and contributes to marginalization and minoritization.” Some doctors are recommending replacing

September 1, 2022

Rudy Hagood

Rudy Hagood

Your Spouse Is Not the Main Thing

By Rudy Hagood  I can hear it like I’m still sitting in her living room. My mother-in-law, Mama D., was saying, “Keep the main thang, the main thang!” Proverbs 18:22 says, “He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord” (English Standard Version). Well, bless the name of the Lord and let the church say Amen! Yet, a word of caution for both husbands and wives: Your spouse is not the main thang! Yes, we should be “very married.” Yes, the best gift we can give our kids is a great marriage. And yes,

September 1, 2022

Christian Standard

Primary Identity

By Jeff Faull   Who am I? How do I see myself? How do I want to be perceived? Which aspect of my identity is most important to me? Is there a right way or a wrong way to settle these questions as a follower of Jesus?  When considering these questions, some people focus on racial, ethnic, or national identity. Others are consumed with sexual or gender identity. Still others emphasize economic, professional, cultural, social, or even religious identity. With the furor over people, politics, passions, pride, power, perceptions, and pronouns, identity always seems to be an issue and an unceasing

September 1, 2022

Kent E. Fillinger

Kent E. Fillinger

Why Do We Gather?

By Kent E. Fillinger  As a movement, we’ve striven from the beginning to be a church based on New Testament principles. Where the Bible speaks, we speak, and where the Bible is silent, we are silent. No creed but Christ and no book but the Bible.   When was the last time your church staff or elders stopped to consider what these maxims mean when it comes to worship gatherings? When did you last study the New Testament to see what it teaches about our purpose for gathering? Have your church leaders ever considered why you do what you do when

September 1, 2022

Wes Beavis

Wes Beavis

Why Doesn’t God Stop School Shootings?

A tragic event like the unthinkable massacre of schoolchildren generates an understandable emotional response. The faith community often responds with the words “thoughts and prayers,” which incenses secularists who consider them to be “do-nothing” sentiments. But God uses the thoughts, prayers, and actions of dedicated Christ followers to change troubled young men into godly leaders. I know, because he used them to change me.

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