Series: Featured

April 10, 2016

Christian Standard

WHAT’S NEXT?: Every Nation, Tribe, People, and Language

We asked several Christian leaders, “What should churches served by CHRISTIAN STANDARD strive to be or do or look like in the next decades?” ____ By Cam Huxford During the Christmas holidays a dream came true for me. I had a conversation with a man who shared with me his son”s plan to attend Point University in the fall to begin his preparations for ministry. This young man is a great leader at school and in our student ministry. He is bright, gifted, articulate, likable, and passionate about his faith. He is also from a Hispanic family. As I visited with this father

April 9, 2016

Christian Standard

WHAT’S NEXT?: Founded on Scripture

We asked several Christian leaders, “What should churches served by CHRISTIAN STANDARD strive to be or do or look like in the next decades?” ____ By John Derry Having served in the field of Christian higher education for my entire ministry, I have always appreciated the role CHRISTIAN STANDARD has played in emphasizing the importance of raising up the next generation of leaders for our churches. Visionary leadership is one of the most critical factors in any successful organization and requires one to be aware of changing trends and needs. In the coming decades it will be important that effective leaders are informed

April 8, 2016

Christian Standard

WHAT’S NEXT?: Remember the Spirit

We asked several Christian leaders, “What should churches served by CHRISTIAN STANDARD strive to be or do or look like in the next decades?” ____ By Mandy Smith We in the Christian churches have the Cane Ridge Revival in our history, but we”re not comfortable with the Holy Spirit. We”ve seen so many abuses of the Spirit that it”s easy to throw the baby out with the bathwater. So what would it look like to rediscover a scriptural approach to the Spirit”s work in our lives? I”m still learning this, but let me share two ways I”m stepping into it: 1. Guidance “But

April 7, 2016

Christian Standard

WHAT’S NEXT?: Get Rid of Three Spiritual Diseases

We asked several Christian leaders, “What should churches served by CHRISTIAN STANDARD strive to be or do or look like in the next decades?” ____ By Dusty Rubeck I would like to see our churches focus on eradicating three crippling spiritual diseases in the next 20 years. 1. Biblical Illiteracy I”ve been involved in ministry leadership since 1983. Over that time I have seen a steady decline in basic biblical knowledge. While it is most pronounced in our youth, it is evident at all age levels. This must change. We must move from biblical relevance to biblical revelation and transformation. Active study and

April 4, 2016

Christian Standard

We”ve Become Leaders in Church Planting

By Justin Horey Innovation is at the heart of new church planting. Spend any amount of time talking to the leaders of the church planting ministries in the Restoration Movement, and it quickly becomes clear this is a group that prizes newness: new places, new churches, new believers, new ideas, and new strategies. It”s not easy to say when this attitude began to take hold””perhaps in the 1980s or 1990s. Today new Christian churches are often established by organizations that profess to “do things no one else does.” Lance Hurley, executive director of Ignite Church Planting in Chicago, recalls how

April 3, 2016

Christian Standard

We”re Making Great Strides in Missions

By Justin Horey “If you have no churches, and you have no Scripture, you have no hope.” With those sobering words, Greg Pruett explains why he has made Bible translation his life”s work””to bring hope to those who have none. Pruett, president of Pioneer Bible Translators, says there are still about 1,775 languages worldwide without a written copy of the Bible. Pioneer Bible is one of many organizations committed to reducing that number to zero by translating the Bible into every language on Earth. Pioneer Bible”s passion for cross-cultural evangelism is shared by several missions organizations with roots in the

April 1, 2016

Christian Standard

Can You Let Your Preacher Change?

By Jim Tune Is it OK for your preacher to change? It”s understood that with growth comes change. And most if not all churches expect their leaders to grow. Christians expect their preacher will become more saturated by, and competent in, the handling of Scripture. Time in study should lead to greater depth and maturity. Shepherding a flock should, over time, lead to stronger skills in conflict resolution, mediation, and reconciliation. Your preacher will attend conferences and read books and will embrace new ideas and fresh vision. For the most part, this kind of growth and the changes that accompany

March 28, 2016

Michael C. Mack

How to Create a Collaborative Culture

By Michael C. Mack In his newest book, Collaboration Begins with You: Be a Silo Buster, Ken Blanchard, in collaboration with Jane Ripley and Eunice Parisi-Carew, shows leaders how to empower themselves and build collaboration by empowering a team. “Effective leaders learn early in their careers that they can”t manage whole projects singlehandedly,” says Blanchard on his blog, HowWeLead.org. “They need an empowered team working collaboratively to achieve goals.” In the book, the writers use the acronym UNITE to describe what it takes to build a collaborative culture: “¢ Utilize differences “¢ Nurture safety and trust “¢ Involve others in

March 26, 2016

Jackina Stark

merciful and mighty

Merciful and Mighty

In John 11, Jesus meets Mary and Martha in their grief with both compassion and power. This devotional reflects on his tears, his words, and the hope found in the One who calls Lazarus from the tomb.

March 25, 2016

Christian Standard

Social Service

By Bill Belew The Christian”s mission in life is to make disciples of the nations. Social networks are an asset the Christian should use. On LinkedIn, I have more than 4,000 1st-degree connections. My reach on LinkedIn exceeds 30 million people (that is, somebody knows somebody I want to know). On Twitter, I have more than 50,000 followers. Each of them, on average, has 500 followers. That means I can potentially reach 25 million people (50,000 x 500).  I run a private forum that includes more than 1,200 people from more than 50 countries. I can accurately predict1 that 1

March 25, 2016

Christian Standard

If You Post It, They Will Come

By Bill Belew Jesus was so good at what he did that crowds hunted him down, ran to him, brought folks to him, and prepared for his visit. Jesus” teaching, works, and methods were so appealing that people were attracted to him. He did not need to advertise: “Come hear the sermon on the mountain by the Sea of Galilee.” “Great crowds came to him,” (Matthew 15:30, emphasis mine). The church””your church and Jesus” church””should be producing such high-quality content that people seek it out. People are looking for answers. Americans spend an estimated $16.6 billion annually looking for answers

March 24, 2016

Christian Standard

140 Character: How to Be a Social Media Missionary

By T.R. Robertson I”ve dreamed of being a writer since I was just a kid, back in the 1970s. Being a writer would give me the chance to express myself, to share my thoughts and opinions. Little did I know by the time I became a published writer, anyone with Internet access would be able to instantly publish his or her thoughts. Social media enable everyone to have their say, whether insightful or spiteful, eloquent or ignorant. Twitter recorded 738 million tweets in the 10 days following the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. Social media drove the public

March 21, 2016

Christian Standard

The World Comes to India

By Gary Holloway “The experience changed my life.” “I saw more of what God is doing in the world.” “Our churches will never be the same.” These are statements from people who have attended a Global Gathering of the World Convention. The World Convention of Churches of Christ serves the Stone-Campbell churches (Christian, Churches of Christ, and Disciples of Christ) found in 199 countries and territories, with about 10 million total adherents worldwide. World Convention seeks to connect those churches everywhere, every day. One way it connects is through a Global Gathering every few years, with the next one scheduled

March 19, 2016

Christian Standard

Redefining Success Without Lowering Your Standards

By Karl Vaters Pastors may be the hardest-working, most undervalued members of our society. And that goes double for the small church and bivocational pastors I spend a lot of time with. So why are we so dismissive of our own worth? I”m not talking about humility, which is always appropriate. I”m talking about a toxic mind-set that traps many of us. We tell people in our churches that God is interested in them for who they are, not for what they do. We tell them it doesn”t matter how much money they earn, how big their business is, what

March 18, 2016

Christian Standard

Jesus in the Rubble

By Rich Gorman We were failing miserably. We moved into our Chicago neighborhood in 2010 to join others in starting a new church that would help people discover Jesus and lead to lasting life change and community transformation for God”s glory. Our neighborhood provided some unique challenges. It is one of the most dense and diverse in the city, a home to refugees and immigrants from all over the world. It is a community of stark divisions: ethnic, racial, gender, socioeconomic, language, religion, culture . . . and the list goes on. But we were certain God would bless what

March 17, 2016

Christian Standard

How Team Expansion Missionaries Define Success

By Doug Lucas We”ve tried and learned from a variety of approaches, each with a different definition of success. Here”s where we”ve been and how we”re seeing God bless the approach we”re taking now. When we were starting Team Expansion in 1978, we organized several brainstorming conferences that included some of the nation”s top thinkers and leaders in missions and other fields. At these events, we would ask questions like, “What should Team Expansion try to be? What should be its main goal? In fact, what IS Team Expansion?” It took a while to hone the vision (about 37 years,

March 14, 2016

Christian Standard

Eat, Pray, Love?

By T.R. Robertson Is there a difference in the way we Christians talk about calling versus how the rest of our culture pursues calling?  It”s certain many outside the church today have great interest in calling and identity. How can Christians be missionally purposeful in relating to that interest, especially when non-Christians may talk about calling with the same words Christians use? Oprah Winfrey is a touchstone of all that is popular in the culture at large. If it”s cool, she”ll be talking about it. If it”s not cool yet, she makes it cool by bringing it up. Winfrey has

March 13, 2016

Christian Standard

The Peculiar Duty of Pastoring

By Patrick Mitchell When I entered a conversation with a dear friend that morning at Milligan College”s exercise facility, I never would have thought that within a few months I would be pastor of a 125-year-old church in a town that boasts a population of approximately 1,000. While still chugging along on the elliptical machine, Phyllis asked if I would consider helping fill the pulpit of a rural church in our area while it searched for a pastor. You should know that at that point in my life (I was then 30 years old), I was done with church ministry.

March 12, 2016

Christian Standard

My Call Has Shaped My Ministry

By Weston Williams Too often we think of call solely in terms of a personal leading. It definitely includes that, but a true call from God is so much more. In Acts 13, the Holy Spirit issued a call to Paul and Barnabas for a mission, which was affirmed (and heard) by the entire church. It wasn”t just Paul”s personal desire to go into ministry; the entire church heard and supported that call. My call, while not as dramatic, was amazingly affirmed by my ordaining church. I”ve talked with many other ministers in our tradition and have learned that not

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