Series: Featured

July 26, 2018

Christian Standard

What 50 Years of Youth Ministry Have Taught Me

By Les Christie Who would have thought 50 years would pass by so quickly? I was born in Liverpool, England, and came to West Los Angeles, California, with my parents and sister by ship and train when I was 5 years old. I did not grow up in the church, I’m sorry to say. I started attending the small Cardiff Avenue Christian Church in West Los Angeles during my junior year of high school. My friend Buckley Simmons invited me. Jim Irby was the part-time youth minister—he was terrific. Harry Bucalstein, the pastor, suggested I go to Pacific Christian College

July 19, 2018

Christian Standard

How Orange Is Changing the Face of Children’s Ministry and Curriculum

By Amy Fenton When you work for a company whose name is a color, you get questions (and occasionally weird looks). Sometimes people think I work for the fitness place with a similar name . . . nope. Sometimes people think my boss, Reggie Joiner, likes that color. He does like it, but that is not why we are called Orange. For us, Orange is the company name because it reflects our strategy. We recently celebrated our 11th year of the Orange Conference, and as I stood in the back of the room on our last day, I thought about

July 6, 2018

Christian Standard

2017 Fast Facts about Small Churches and Very Small Churches

AVERAGE SIZE Small churches: 174 Very Small churches: 60 Combined average weekly attendance (128 churches): 16,469   GROWTH RATES Small churches: -0.3 percent; overall, 36 percent of the small churches grew. Very Small churches: 5.5 percent; overall, 44 percent of very small churches grew.   FASTEST-GROWING SMALL CHURCHES Cornerstone Christian Church, Springfield, KY, 65.5 percent Westside Christian Church, Bradenton, FL, 15.5 percent Ridgeview Christian Church, Rolla, MO, 14.6 percent   FASTEST-GROWING VERY SMALL CHURCHES Creekside Community Church, Hot Springs, AR, 51.7 percent New Hope Christian Church, Belton, MO, 51.1 percent Restoration Christian Church, Rogersville, MO, 40 percent   BAPTISMS Small churches baptized 800 people (an average

July 6, 2018

Christian Standard

The 2017 Charts: Small Churches and Very Small Churches

Our annual listing of churches is one of CHRISTIAN STANDARD’s most popular features. This year scores of churches participated, including 77 small churches (average weekly worship attendance of 100 to 249 during 2017) and 51 very small churches (attendance of fewer than 100). In May we featured an article and statistics from 55 megachurches (2,000 or more in weekly attendance) and 72 emerging megachurches (1,000 to 1,999). In June we spotlighted 91 large churches (500 to 999 in weekly attendance) and 83 medium churches (250 to 499). Click here to view and download 2017 Charts3, with data from small churches and

July 4, 2018

Mark A. Taylor

A Brief History of Restoration Movement Media and Christian Standard Media

Compiled by Shawn McMullen   Christian Standard and The Lookout have a rich history within the Restoration Movement. Christian Standard was first published in 1866; The Lookout was first published as the Young People’s Standard in 1888 and changed to its current name in 1894. Under the umbrella of Standard Publishing, the magazines served Christian churches and churches of Christ across the United States and around the world for a century and a half. Ownership and leadership have changed through the years, but the purpose of the publications has remained the same—to strengthen churches and their leaders through biblical teaching and the promotion of the Restoration

June 28, 2018

Christian Standard

Red and Yellow, Black and White

Relentless Church Answers the Call to Create a Multiethnic Congregation in North Carolina   By Justin Horey David Jones is white. He grew up in the South, went to Bible college in the South, and married his high school sweetheart. Rafael Gonzalez is of Puerto Rican heritage. He grew up in the Northeast, excelled in high school football and basketball, and came to faith in Christ at age 28. Joy Bey is African-American. She grew up in South Central Los Angeles, was saved in a Pentecostal church, and served in overseas missions before spending five years on staff at a

June 27, 2018

Michael C. Mack

Christian Standard Interview: Back at the NACC

Why Nathan Loewen and other gospel-believing Disciples of Christ pastors are attending the North American Christian Convention in Indianapolis this year.   By Michael C. Mack Much has changed and much has remained the same in the Restoration Movement over the past 90-plus years. The separation was set in motion, many say, over a two-year period beginning with the 1926 Disciples of Christ convention in Memphis, Tennessee, and then the response by the more biblically conservative church leaders who organized the first North American Christian Convention in 1927. Over the next 45 years or so, the two groups drifted apart

June 23, 2018

Christian Standard

Paddling Together in the Same Direction

By Victor Knowles   In our American Restoration Movement, we have been paddling in separate streams for more than 100 years. Like Paul and Barnabas, we had a “sharp disagreement” (Acts 15:39) over issues like instrumental music and missionary societies. We too “parted company” and had our own journals to spread the good news (Gospel Advocate and Christian Standard), started our own Bible colleges and Christian universities to prepare gospel workers (Lipscomb University and Johnson Bible College—now Johnson University), and developed our own lectureships and conventions to encourage and equip Christians (Pepperdine Bible Lectures and the North American Christian Convention). Since

June 22, 2018

Christian Standard

Restoring God’s Dream for Our World

By Jon Ferguson  I first heard the phrase “helping people find their way back to God” at a small-group training conference. Author and small-group training guru Lyman Coleman would retell the story of the prodigal son at these conferences. With great conviction, he would remind us that every one of us is a prodigal, and that countless prodigals in all of our neighborhoods desperately want to “find their way back to God.” Those words resonated deep in our souls. Through the years, Community Christian Church’s mission statement has remained the same: “Helping people find their way back to God.” And

June 16, 2018

Jerry Harris

Cam Huxford: A Portrait of Faithfulness

By Jerry Harris What is faithfulness? Where does it come from? What builds and strengthens it? What sustains it over time? While all church leaders would like to be described as faithful, for many it’s an elusive target. That’s why it’s important to know the story of Thomas Campbell Huxford—or just Cam—and his wife, Sarah. Their life and ministry together have been an incredible living illustration of faithfulness. Faithfulness Begets Faithfulness Cam grew up in a small Christian church in a town of less than 500 in coastal South Carolina. His father, also named Thomas Campbell Huxford as was his

June 14, 2018

Christian Standard

Why I Love the Restoration Movement

By Rick Chromey   “I believe what I believe is what makes me what I am, I did not make it, no it is making me.” Rich Mullins, “Creed” I grew up in a small independent Christian church in remote central Montana. I cut my teeth in a wooden pew, sandwiched between my grandmother and brother, listening to sermons, learning hymns, and loving the saints. I washed Communion cups as a preschooler, passed offering plates as a child, and led song services and served Communion to shut-ins as a teen. I loved my church family. They made me who I

June 10, 2018

Christian Standard

Maximize Kingdom Impact through Internships

By Josh Quade After completing her internship interview process, a college student wanted to discuss her options. She’s pursuing both a Bible college and regular university degree for a career in media and graphics arts, ideally in a church’s creative arts department. On the surface, her description of potential internships lined up well with what our church could offer—some elements amazingly so. We had brought her in, introduced her to the team over several get-togethers, conducted personality profiles and orientations, and discussed logistics. All quite helpful and good. But I found the team’s questions for her the most encouraging: What are

June 8, 2018

Christian Standard

Discipleship for All Ages

By Rick Lowry It’s easy to focus programming on younger adults. After all, they represent the long-term future of the church. That’s why many churches place a priority on worship music preferred by the younger crowd and the children’s programs that are important to their families. I’m a discipleship pastor, and I acknowledge that our church gears most of our discipleship efforts toward those on the front end of family and life. But I have also observed that, as a result, many mature Christians struggle to find a place in their local church where they can continue to grow. As

June 7, 2018

Christian Standard

Intergenerational Small Groups: Mix It Up a Little!

By Jessie Clemence I invite you to peek inside our kitchen on a small-group night. Four baby boys and a preschooler are strapped into various high chairs around the table. Three young fathers are trying to assemble dinners for their offspring while a mother nurses a newborn in the living room. The room smells heavily of tacos and mushed-up baby food. Four older adults work side by side with the young mothers, feeding babies and sneaking cookies to toddlers when their parents aren’t looking. A pile of Bibles is stacked on the coffee table for the upcoming study, but only

June 3, 2018

Jerry Harris

The North American Christian Convention: What’s Next?

 By Jerry Harris Some of us have heard a massive shift is coming to the North American Christian Convention that will make it unrecognizable compared to gatherings of years past. While the 2019 convention will see some changes, in many ways it will focus on the fundamentals upon which the NACC was founded. I was at a meeting to help plan the NACC’s 92nd-year gathering. I was surrounded by committed leaders of our movement from churches, organizations, and missions. What I heard renewed my excitement for a great future. The mission of the NACC is “. . . to encourage

June 1, 2018

Jerry Harris

‘Our Position’ Revisited

By Jerry Harris When Isaac Errett wrote “Our Position,” a need existed within the Restoration Movement to define in succinct terms the soaring rhetoric of Barton W. Stone’s The Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery, Thomas Campbell’s The Declaration and Address, and Alexander Campbell’s “Sermon on the Law,” which had so eloquently defined the position of a movement intent on the restoration of first-century Christianity. Errett argued that while creeds are sectarian and create division, and therefore are sinful, we are free to identify those areas where we find ourselves in agreement with the larger evangelical framework, those areas

May 26, 2018

Christian Standard

You Found Me: Reaching College Students on Their Level

By Greg Swinney and Beth Swinney He was scrolling down his Facebook page on a computer in the university library when I nudged him and asked if I could bother him for a few minutes. Tom looked over and immediately stopped what he was doing and said, “Sure, what’s up?” I knew I could count on Tom, a prelaw student, to level with me. “What are college kids looking for these days in a church?” I asked. “I’m scratching my head to figure that one out.” Tom didn’t flinch. He said, “We are looking for a place that’s real. A

May 25, 2018

Christian Standard

5 Things You Need to Know about the 5-Generation Church

By Haydn Shaw I was recently in a church talking with a room full of baby boomers (those born 1946–64) and millennials (born 1981–2001) who wanted to understand how to build community across generations. They realized that people tend to socialize with others of their own generation before and after the worship services, and they wanted to know how they might bridge the differences. They wondered if they should have intergenerational small groups. The boomers and millennials want to spend more time together, but their different life stages create practical challenges. For instance, many baby boomer small groups enjoy big

May 22, 2018

Christian Standard

2017 Fast Facts about Large Churches and Medium Churches

AVERAGE SIZE Large churches: 724 Medium churches: 363 Combined average weekly attendance for these 174 churches: 96,012   GROWTH RATES Large churches: 2.9 percent (down from 4.3 percent in 2016); overall, 56 percent of the large churches grew (down from 69 percent in 2016). Medium churches: 1.3 percent (down from 2.1 percent in 2016); overall, 49 percent of medium churches grew (down from 62 percent in 2016).   FASTEST-GROWING LARGE CHURCHES Hope City Church, Joplin, MO, 32.5 percent The Crossing Church, Batavia, OH, 28.9 percent Restoration Park Church, Medway, OH, 26.9 percent   FASTEST-GROWING MEDIUM CHURCHES CrossPointe Christian Church, Valparaiso, IN, 23.6 percent The Journey

May 18, 2018

Christian Standard

The 2017 Charts: Large Churches and Medium Churches

Our annual listing of churches is one of CHRISTIAN STANDARD’s most popular features. This year scores of churches participated, including 91 large churches (those with 500 to 999 in weekly attendance during 2017) and 83 medium churches (250 to 499). In May we featured an article and statistics from 55 megachurches (2,000 or more in weekly attendance) and 72 emerging megachurches (1,000 to 1,999). Come back next month for articles and charts from small (100–249) and very small churches (less than 100). Click here to view and download 2017 Charts2, with data from large churches and medium churches . . .

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