Series: Featured

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: Navigating at Compass

By Kent Fillinger Bedford Christian Church began in 1966 with 12 couples and has evolved into a church-planting church. In 1994, Bedford relocated and changed its name to reflect its new location. The church adopted the name of the adjoining subdivision and became Highland Meadows Christian Church. The church grew from 500 to a peak attendance of 1,500 in 2000. By the time current senior minister Drew Sherman arrived in 2002, however, attendance had been declining slightly for two years. Sherman realized many people in the church were hurting, so he gradually embarked on casting the vision for loving people

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: A Mega Decade

By Kent Fillinger The 2000s were a turbulent decade. We went from Y2K to 9/11 to H1N1. We had a housing boom followed by an economic bust. As we came to experience the world in high-definition, the sights were often scary and unpleasant””wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Hurricane Katrina, the Boxing Day Tsunami, AIDS, and global poverty. “Hanging chads” made one president”s election controversial, and then the first African-American president won by a clear majority. We went from watching Friends to drinking Starbucks to opening coffee cafés in our churches. We went from church in one location to one church in

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: Fun Facts Gleaned from This Year”s List

By Kent Fillinger An average of 317,003 people attended the 114 megachurches and emerging megachurches every weekend in 2009. If these people extended hands and formed a human chain along Interstate 90, it would stretch from Chicago to Cleveland. Likewise, if these 317,003 people stood on top of one another, the human tower would stretch 350 miles above the earth (the International Space Station orbits 200 miles above earth). Three churches have grown 10 percent or more each of the last three years and “Cross” is in all of their names: The Crossing, Quincy, IL; The Crossing, A Christian Church,

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: A Closer Look at the Numbers

By Kent Fillinger What is “Average”? The 54 megachurches” average worship attendance: 4,314 The 60 emerging megachurches” average worship attendance: 1,400 All 114 churches” average attendance: 2,781 Fastest-Growing Churches One-Year Growth Rate: Real Life Christian, Clermont, FL, 65% Generations Christian, Trinity, FL, 51% Eastside Christian, Fullerton, CA, 39% Five-Year Total Growth Rate: Parkview Christian, Orland Park, IL, 127% Central Christian, Henderson, NV, 118% Real Life Ministries, Post Falls, ID, 93% Fastest-Growing Churches of the Decade: Savannah (GA) Christian, 286% Christ”s Church of the Valley, Peoria, AZ, 234% Southeast Christian, Parker, CO, 227% Fastest-Growing Since the First List in 1997: Christ”s

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: Repentance Leads to Real Life

By Kent Fillinger At age 28, when Justin Miller transitioned from the role of youth minister to senior minister at Real Life Christian Church (Clermont, Florida), the church was in the midst of a nine-month spending freeze. It was 2002, the church had no money, and Miller”s paychecks often came with a note attached: “Do not cash until . . . “ The elders hired him to be the solution to the church”s problems; they told him, “We”re putting our hope in you.” But Miller quickly realized God didn”t choose him for this position for any of the reasons the

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: A Year in Review

By Kent Fillinger Studies, books, and articles that examine high-performing or fast-growing churches abound, and each one seeks to uncover the reasons for their success. The same is true in the business world. Successful companies frequently are profiled in an attempt to ascertain the secrets of their greatness. Recent research from the business world demonstrates that “the “˜great” companies . . . are mostly just lucky.”1 A study of 287 high-performing companies in 13 major success studies showed “that only about one in four of those firms was likely to be remarkable; the rest were indistinguishable from mediocre firms catching

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: The First 100 Days

By Kent Fillinger In business and in politics, much is made of a leader”s first 100 days in a new role. With 25 years of ministry experience, Gene Appel had a plan as he transitioned from Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago to Eastside Christian Church in Southern California on October 1, 2008. Appel”s plan was simple: focus on getting to know his new staff, their strengths, and the key influencers in the church; preach well; and prepare for a fantastic Christmas. Catalytic Appel really wanted Eastside”s Christmas services to be a catalytic energizer for the church. In those

April 4, 2010

Christian Standard

When God Prompts

By George Ross As I write this, the television news is saturated with graphic updates of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. It is mid-January, and first reports estimate about 200,000 people will die as a result of the disaster. The surrounding world looks on and aches with and for those Haitian families who lost loved ones. I know the church will come through and help bring assistance to one of the poorest countries on earth. We, as God”s people, have proven again and again we can step up in tragedies like this and Hurricane Katrina. My focus in this article

April 4, 2010

Christian Standard

Living Simply Isn”t So Simple

By Jim Herbst “I think I can. I think I can,” I said to myself. “I think I can live a simpler life.” Fresh from rereading the latest edition of Ronald Sider”s Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, and other similar works, I entered the Christmas shopping season with a fierce conviction to simplify and have a better influence on the world”s poor. No longer could I preach against materialism with a clear conscience while knowing every room in my home is packed with material clutter. You may already know the harsh statistics. The U.S. accounts for 6 percent of

April 4, 2010

Christian Standard

The Fasting Track: Sixteen Great Reasons to Fast

By Victor M. Parachin In 1756, a frightened and somber king of England called for a day of solemn prayer and fasting. Behind his call was the immediate threat of an invasion by the French. On February 6, 1756, John Wesley recorded in his journal the positive effect a day of fasting and prayer had upon the nation: “The fast day was a glorious day, such asLondon has scarce seen. . . . Every church in the city was more than full, and a solemn seriousness sat on every face. Surely God heareth prayer, and there will yet be a lengthening of

April 4, 2010

Christian Standard

Good Friday: On Being Human

By John E. Wasem A gold cross””attached to a necklace or pinned to your lapel””tells the world of your faith. It is a testimony of your belief””or so we suppose. That simple cross also symbolizes a certain morality to which people may presume you adhere. Why? Because observers logically assume you are a follower of Christ. Wearing a cross can bring you a degree of respect from others. Now, travel back in time about 2,070 years. That little piece of jewelry dangling around your neck or from your pierced ear or attached to your toga would have resulted in far

March 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Building Bonds Between Elders and Ministers (Part 2)

By Bob Russell In 1965, Butch Dabney served as chairman of the pulpit committee for the newly established Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. A few months before I was asked to preach a trial sermon, Butch approached the president of Cincinnati Bible Seminary and asked for the names of young preachers who had the potential to grow with the church. Butch said, “We want to hire a young man and we”re going to make him successful.” That phrase describes the attitude elders should have toward their preacher: one of their primary functions is to help make the preacher successful.

March 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Brave a New Ethical World

By Mark S. Krause A few months ago, a new type of “pharmacy” opened down the street from my church. It is a “medical marijuana dispensary.” Ironically, it is next door to the Los Angeles headquarters of Jews for Jesus, an aggressive Christian evangelistic organization. According to published accounts, it is now possible to get a “cannabis card” from a nearby physician, which allows purchase of marijuana for personal use. A student from UCLA was interviewed and said he sought the marijuana for his attention deficit disorder, but knew other students who obtained the card “for the weed.”1 It is

March 28, 2010

Christian Standard

The Blessings of Scarcity

By Stephen Bond I meet for lunch every month with four other senior pastors who serve in my community. I”m surprised by the openness of each pastor in sharing the unique hurdles and challenges his church faces. But one challenge we”ve all wrestled with in the past two years is finances. The economic downturn has affected our churches in different degrees””but we”ve all felt the crunch. In our state, Nevada, unemployment hovers near 13 percent. When people don”t have jobs, it often means they don”t have money to support their local church. This inevitably affects the financial resources churches have

March 21, 2010

Christian Standard

When You Feel Like Giving Up, Giving In, or Getting Out

By Rick Grover I probably shouldn”t be writing this on a Monday. But deadlines are deadlines, and ministry, as you know, isn”t all about how we feel . . . even (and perhaps especially) when we feel like giving up, giving in, or getting out. I didn”t always feel this way, and I don”t always feel this way now. But it is Monday. And I, like so many other preachers, look back on Sunday with those “woulda, coulda, shoulda” thoughts that drag us downward. Maybe I”m sounding a bit overdramatic, but I don”t think so. Ministers don”t always like to

March 21, 2010

Christian Standard

Building Bonds Between Elders and Ministers (Part 1)

By Bob Russell One of the most intense topics in church leadership seminars these days is elder/preacher relationships. One minister said, “In our church I get the impression that it”s the preacher”s job to cast vision and the elder”s job to prevent it from happening.” But it”s not always the elders who are to blame for conflicts with the minister. Many times the problem lies with a preacher or staff member who is lazy, unethical, controlling, defiant, or spiritually immature. I”ve observed four ministries recently that looked impressive from the outside, but suddenly the preacher was asked to resign. People

March 21, 2010

Christian Standard

Ask Yourself Some Questions Before You Fire

By Ken Swatman It was Monday morning and I sat at my desk feeling tired and frustrated, trying to decide if it was time for a staff change in a key position. I had been over the issues again and again in my mind, Did the staff member just not understand his leadership role or ministry expectations, or did he not have the skills necessary to be effective in his ministry position? I knew we weren”t getting what we needed and something had to change, but was firing him the right answer? As pastors and church leaders, we never want

March 14, 2010

Christian Standard

Here”s What”s Happening at Our Christian Colleges

By Staff We asked colleges and seminaries associated with Christian churches and churches of Christ to provide updates on what”s happening at their institutions. Here”s what they had to say (these are listed alphabetically): Alberta Bible College The Rock is a new first-year program designed to ignite a new generation! While it provides students with classical foundational knowledge and practical ministry experiences, a new ingredient is various types of coaching designed to help students discern where “their deep gladness meets the world”s deep need” (Frederick Buechner). In other words, the goal is to help students discern who and where God

March 14, 2010

Christian Standard

Friendship Matters

By Kelly Kastens Fifty years ago in a subdivision that was still under construction in Fairfield, Ohio, 12 women began to gather once a month to play bridge. The card playing was fun and getting out of the house for the night was even better! I have vivid memories of these get-togethers throughout my childhood because one of these women was my mom. I especially loved it when it was “our” turn to host. I helped clean the house, set up the card tables, and prepare the food. I was allowed to greet everyone and help fix beverages, and then

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