Series: Featured

September 13, 2011

Christian Standard

Gospel Distinctives

By Matt Proctor MATTHEW 1. His Gospel is primarily (though not exclusively) a Jewish Gospel. There are 65 Old Testament references””21 direct quotations from Isaiah alone. Luke traces Jesus” genealogy from Adam, the father of the human race, but Matthew begins his Gospel with a genealogy going back to Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation. 2. He does show some interest in Gentiles. Wise men worship Jesus (2:1-12). Many from east and west will feast with Abraham in the kingdom of Heaven (8:11, 12). Christ proclaims justice to the Gentiles (12:18). The Gentiles hope is in Christ (12:21). Christ

September 11, 2011

Christian Standard

Worshipping When Your World Falls Apart

By Dustin Fulton We all remember where we were on that dreadful September morning 10 years ago. Though the sun was shining and the weather was pleasant across most of America, our hearts were darkened by the images of airplanes crashing into buildings and ash-covered people fleeing what we now simply know as Ground Zero. I happened to be sitting in a seminary classroom at what is now Lincoln Christian University waiting to hear from one of my favorite professors, Dr. Robert Lowery. Before the 8 a.m. class started, a classmate informed us he had heard on the radio about an

September 10, 2011

Christian Standard

Interview with David Beamer: The Worst Day of My Life

By Darrel Rowland David Beamer and his family will get through today just like they have every day for the past 10 years. “The Beamer clan, the faith and the assurance and frankly the conviction that we had on September 11, has not waned,” he said. “We know that God is sovereign, his word is true. We know that for those who accept the saving blood of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, their future is secure. Having that assurance has enabled us to deal with the attack. Happily, that is not different 10 years later.” Beamer”s son, Todd, is

September 8, 2011

Christian Standard

What’s Different Now?

By Darrel Rowland In some ways it seems everything has changed. But some observers say reaction to 9/11 has been only a blip amid trends that began even before the tragedy. Flying is a hassle. We know what IED stands for. Osama is dead. Saddam, too. And so are almost 10,000 Americans. We”ve learned about Kabul and Fallujah the way previous generations found out about Iwo Jima, Panmunjom, and Pleiku. Scars in our largest city, our capital, a Pennsylvania field. Scars on our psyches, our souls, our kids. A bold president with a bullhorn promising justice. Members of Congress from

September 7, 2011

Christian Standard

Help, hope, and lives . . . Forever Changed

By Darrel Rowland Perhaps none of us can forget where we were and what we felt when we first heard of the September 2001 terrorist attacks. But perhaps many of us don”t know how God has worked through individuals and the local church to bring redemption and hope since then. This week we want to tell that story. Chip Gilgen was staring at the burning World Trade Center from a 25th-floor window of his FBI office when he saw the second plane slam into the other twin tower. Lisa Gilgen was still at work near Rockefeller Center while a coworker

September 6, 2011

Christian Standard

Getting the Most from the Gospels (Part One)

By Matt Proctor “Irresistibly drawn to Jesus.” That phrase describes many who have come to faith after reading the Gospels. Most of us love the Gospels because we love Jesus, and the Gospels bring us face to face with him. For some the Gospels are so familiar, though, that they miss truth contained there. A few helps can prevent that from happening. When he was growing up, Vince Antonucci”s parents never took him to church. Maybe it was because his mother was Jewish and his father was a professional gambler. Regardless, he knew nothing about Jesus. He says, “As far

September 5, 2011

Christian Standard

Cease-Fire: Rethinking the Culture Wars

By Kelly Boyd The alignment of Christians with political conservatism is a recent phenomenon rarely questioned these days. Conservatism, it seems, simply is understood as the biblical position, but the results have been mixed at best, from a cultural standpoint. In fact, it can be predicted with confidence that gay marriage will be legal in all 50 states in our lifetime. How can this be, when Paul says, “If God is for us, who can be against us” (Romans 8:31)? I propose that it”s time for a cease-fire in the culture war and a closer examination of the church”s calling

September 2, 2011

Christian Standard

Why We Serve

About These Board Members Jerry Arnold serves on the board of directors of Christian Student Fellowship of Nebraska. His father, Gerald Sr., was a charter member of the board and put the family farm up as collateral for the first campus house. John Strouse served on the board of directors for Christian Student Foundation at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, from 1969 to 2005. His wife, Lois, was secretary of the campus ministry for 26 years. Melody Hornickel also serves with Christian Student Foundation at Ball State. She and her husband, Russ (an alumnus of the campus ministry), attend

September 1, 2011

Christian Standard

I Majored in Pushing God Away

By Shane Taylor It was 1988 and the end of my second year at the state university. My prodigal journey took all sorts of twists and turns, mostly while I was under the influence of Budweiser and the liberal arts department of the secular campus. For me, college was an opportunity to rid myself of the flannelgraph stories from Sunday school lessons of bygone days. My dorm room was littered with dirty laundry and stacks of unread textbooks. I majored in procrastination and pushing God away. And yet Jesus loves to interact with people who push him away. The Gospels

August 31, 2011

Christian Standard

Proper Care and Feeding of Campus Ministry Graduates

By Gretchen Magruder Dear local church, Let me introduce you to some new members headed your way! My friends have just graduated from college and are looking for a new community to join. They are excited about finding a place to jump in and serve, and will be checking you out over the next few months as they transition from college life to (hopefully) gainful employment. Everyone wants to be known. I know they look young, but please don”t assume they”re with their parents or that they”re just going to be around for a short time. Ask them to tell

August 29, 2011

Christian Standard

Campus Ministry Is Critical!

By Justin Wallace My story begins in a rural town in central Indiana. I grew up under the tin roof of a log cabin, listening to my grandmother’s tall tales. All the grandkids would pile into feather beds, laugh, listen, and learn. There were several nights I would like awake after everyone was asleep and listen to the wind howl, my cousins snore, and the acorns fall from the trees onto the tin roof over our heads. Years later, God began speaking through the cadence created by acorns on that tin roof. Each acorn falls as an individual; alone and

August 29, 2011

Christian Standard

List of Campus Ministries for 2011

Click here to download the 2011 Campus Ministries List for more than 100 campus ministries in the United Stands (and a handful of international campus ministries). For your convenience, we are also listing the campus ministries below (with active links). ________ ALABAMA Auburn University Auburn Christian Fellowship 334-821-3963 Perry Rubin www.auburnchristianfellowship.com au**@*****er.net   ARKANSAS University of Arkansas Christ on Campus 479-521-8358 Mike Armstrong www.christoncampus.org mi**@************us.org   CALIFORNIA Hope International University Campus Ministry 714-879-3901 Ext.1284 Joel Schubert mi********@*iu.edu   COLORADO Colorado School of Mines/Red Rocks Community College Rocky Mountain Campus Ministry 303-988-1024 Ext. 5 Art Heffron he********@*****il.com   University of Colorado”“Colorado Springs Kairos Christian

August 27, 2011

Christian Standard

The T-shirt Aristocracy

By Daniel Schantz I was speaking at a small Missouri church, and I couldn”t help noticing I was the only male wearing a necktie. Services were over, and I was shaking hands with the last person to leave. “Hmmm, seems like I”m the only male wearing a tie today,” I noted. The lady laughed. “Oh, don”t worry about that! Our preacher doesn”t wear a tie, and he urges us to dress down too, so that we don”t offend any seekers who might be poor and unable to afford dress clothes.” I said nothing. I have heard this line many times

August 23, 2011

Christian Standard

Growth for ANY Church

By Steve Hinton It happened again. This past week I read yet another story of a dwindling congregation confronted with the harsh realities of years of negative growth. After some hard discussions, the congregation took the path of a growing number of churches in America and simply decided to close its doors, sell its property, and join with another struggling congregation. But I firmly believe things could have been very different for that congregation. I really believe any church can grow. This was impressed on me when my family moved to the northwest Houston area more than a year ago

August 22, 2011

Christian Standard

Life Lessons on Prayer

By Brian Giese It is easy to neglect prayer. The devil does all he can to distract us from it. We can rationalize it to the back burner because of our busyness. We can go day after day without anybody other than God knowing we have neglected prayer. This writer has been a slow learner in the school of prayer. I had been preaching 15 years before I began to take prayer seriously. That was 30 years ago, and God has taught me a few things about prayer during that time, for example:   Prayer deserves priority. A national poll

August 19, 2011

Christian Standard

A Call for All-age Worship

By Verna Weber I can read your mind. The objections that fill the air at the title of this piece probably are not new to me. Let me guess at a few. Children won”t get anything out of the church”s main worship service. Children are distracting. They need an age-appropriate setting. We need them to be somewhere else. This is my time (usually uttered by tired parents). Ultimately, the responses boil down to one point””the greatest barrier to bringing the whole church together for worship is children. It used to be that children were to be seen and not heard.

August 18, 2011

Christian Standard

Volunteers and Paid Staff Are in the SAME Battle

By Susan Lawrence I”ve been a paid ministry staff member and a volunteer ministry leader, and there are things we need to understand about each other. Ministry isn”t a territorial war. Our battles are side by side, not head-on. ________   I”m a volunteer. I”d like paid staff members to understand . . . I want to be included. Invite me to occasional staff planning meetings. Let me be a part of the decision-making and planning process. It keeps me motivated to do ministry. If you simply tell me what has to be done, or assume I already know, I

August 17, 2011

Christian Standard

How Churches Can Help Children Pray

By Katie Barbee There are so many things we, as adults, must teach children about prayer””persistence being one of them. I believe that teaching children how to pray certainly starts at home. After praying for a baby brother or sister for nearly one and one-half years, our 5-year-old son Drew prayed aloud one night: “Dear God, thank you for my family. Thank you for my friends . . . could you please give us a baby, whenever you think it”s time? Oh, never mind””could you just give me a puppy?” My husband and I tried not to laugh until we

August 16, 2011

Christian Standard

Who”s the Hero?

By Teresa Welch During my 15-year tenure as a children”s minister, I was proud of how much Bible content the children learned. But now I wonder if that was enough. Whether it was through Sunday school, kids worship, youth groups, or summer programs like church camp and Vacation Bible School, I knew children were learning the Word of God. However, as I reflected on those years, I saw a problem. Sometimes our efforts to make sure children were learning the Word of God didn”t lead them to learn about God. Certainly we taught about the number of stones David collected

August 15, 2011

Christian Standard

The Message Is Relentless

By Dale Reeves When Beth Guckenberger told me that we had an opportunity to advertise the cover of her book, Relentless Hope, on a car that would be racing in the Quaker State 400 Sprint Cup on July 9, 2011, I was absolutely thrilled! I immediately shared with my marketing manager the opportunity to have Standard Publishing represented at the Kentucky Speedway. We started wondering, Has anyone ever advertised a book in a NASCAR race before? Before long we were providing art files to NASCAR driver and Back2Back supporter Michael McDowell, and we quickly realized that he is a great

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