Series: Featured

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

What”s Happening with Wayne?

Editor”s note:Â We asked Wayne Smith collaborator Rod Huron to give us an update on Wayne”s activities these days. During May, Wayne”s schedule included a banquet sponsored by the International Conference onÂ Missions (formerly National Missionary Convention) and speaking at a banquet to raise money for Sayre Christian Village in Lexington, Kentucky: “They started in 1972 to build a home for the elderly, and now they have 25 acres and 250 apartments, plus a medical unit. It hasn”t been easy, but look at where they”re going””a $12 million expansion.” He also spoke at a banquet sponsored by Women for Life, a group

June 19, 2012

Playing Hurt

By Wayne Smith The greatest thrill, the greatest dream, the greatest goal of a football player”s career is to play in the Super Bowl. To be able to wear the ring of a Super Bowl champion is the greatest accomplishment of all. I”m told that being tackled in an NFL game is like running into a brick wall. In spite of their unbelievable conditioning, nearly all of these players play hurt. The question begs to be asked, “Why do these fellows do this?” Some do it because of the money, but for most of them, football is in their blood

June 17, 2012

Church & Ministry Church Leadership Preaching

First Voice

By Daniel Schantz I paused by the open door of a Bible college preaching class. A nervous young man was delivering his first sermon. The video camera glared at him like an electric dragon, and the students were busy filling out evaluation forms on his performance. Thanks to accreditation, Bible college is now all about evaluation””meticulous, relentless evaluation. It may be a boon to bureaucrats, but it can be brutal to a tender young spirit. As I watched the boy, my mind drifted back to my own first sermon, when I was just a 15-year-old preacher”s son, attending the Sabina

June 14, 2012

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

Rah-Rah for the Christian Standard

By J.K. Jones Jr. “Rah-Rah” for the CHRISTIAN STANDARD! This is so unlike me to want to lead a cheer for a 146-year-old magazine (founded in 1866 by Isaac Errett), but here I am acting the fool. Those who know me could attest that I prefer a quiet life outside of the public eye. I tend toward encouraging others to stand up and speak out, but at least in this one instance, I find myself uncontrollably vocal. I”d like to take a few minutes and tell you why I”m imitating King David who “was dancing before the Lord with all

June 12, 2012

What About Workouts?

By Dale Holzbauer Here”s a nonsense syllable to help you achieve your goals: “FID.” Workouts should have frequency, intensity, and duration. F””Frequency.Â You should work out about three times per week. I worked out as frequently as six times per week when I was in hard training for a fight, and I have worked out as little as twice per week when I was “peaking” for a power lifting meet. I have found that working out three to four times per week allows plenty of time for recuperation and provides good health benefits. Â I””Intensity.Â You must push yourself a bit in order

June 12, 2012

What About Exercise?

By Dale Holzbauer A quick look at books, articles, and websites shows there are thousands of plans available for one who wishes to begin a basic training program to improve appearance, health, mobility, flexibility, and endurance. I have distilled what I have learned in more than 50 years of training into two easy-to-remember formulas that will help aspiring trainees. Fess Parker, ofÂ Davy CrockettÂ andÂ Daniel BooneÂ TV and Hollywood fame, was my hero as a kid. I use his first name to help me remember some important principles in training and exercising. F””Flexibility.Â Avoiding flexibility training in your exercise regimen is a huge mistake.

June 11, 2012

What About Diet?

By Dale Holzbauer No exercise program can succeed without attention to diet. Most readers already know that Americans eat too much salt, fat, and sugar. Here”s what I”ve learned and how I handle my diet. I have found it is beneficial to eat a good breakfast consisting of whole grains, fruit, and egg whites. Lunch consists of fish or fowl and a vegetable or two. For supper I have soup, whole grains, a small portion of meat, veggies, fruit, and a reasonable dessert. Through the course of the day, I snack on unprocessed nuts, raisins, and yogurt to combat cravings.

June 11, 2012

From 90-Pound Weakling to Weight Lifter

By Dale Holzbauer The funeral director and I had been friends for many years. The man whose funeral service I had conducted was also my longtime personal friend. The official cause of death was a massive heart attack. As we made our way to the cemetery, the funeral director and I began to talk. “He was only 59 years old,” I said. “The family had to buy an extra-large casket,” replied the funeral director. The statistics are shocking. Obesity is the No. 2 cause of preventable death in the United States. One-fifth of the nation”s population, 20 years of age

June 6, 2012

My Top 10 Reasons for Staying Put

By Steve Reeves As I reflect upon my 26 years at the congregation I serve, I am so grateful God and the church have allowed me to stay for 2.5 decades. I understand we each have unique callings to ministry, but I would appeal to local preachers that staying put in one congregation for a long period of time is the best course, if possible. Here are my top 10 reasons why. 10. Personal Family Stability Our children were 5, 3, and 2 when we began, and as my son, who is now on our staff, told me today,

June 6, 2012

What About Southeast?

By Darrel Rowland A renowned church leader wonders if Bob Russell stayed a little too long at Southeast Christian Church. The rapid growth of the megachurch in Louisville, Kentucky, plateaued a bit in Russell”s final two years there””he stepped down in June 2006″”and successor Dave Stone”s first two. Russell seemed a little slow to move to a multisite model, which in the past few years has sparked renewed growth to nearly 21,000 a week meeting in three facilities. And, frankly, near the end of his 40-year run at Southeast, Russell didn”t show as much energy as he did before. Who

June 5, 2012

More than Numbers?

By Darrel Rowland Jim Putman readily agrees that a lengthy ministry is no guarantee of spiritual success. “Just because you”re in a place a long time doesn”t mean it”s going to be effective. You”re going to have to be the right kind of leader in a long-term ministry.” But that right kind of leader can be more effective over the long haul, he says. “I think the largest churches in the United States are led by people who”ve been there for a period of time and figured out how to make an impact, and how to grow people spiritually and

June 5, 2012

An Exception to the Rule?

By Darrel Rowland There are exceptions to the rule . . . there are rare exceptions . . . and then there is Ben Merold. Point to statistics showing that a long-term ministry generally doesn”t equal numerical success for a church, and those who disagree will more than likely point to Merold, in ministry for 63 years and counting. After a 12-year stint at an Indiana church, he spent more than 22 years with Eastside Christian Church in Fullerton, California, where weekly attendance grew from 185 to 3,000. Then, at age 65, he launched a 17-year stay as senior minister

June 4, 2012

Better with Time?

By Kent E. Fillinger Neuroscience and social science both suggest we are more optimistic than realistic. On average, we expect things to turn out better than they do. The belief that the future will be much better than the past is known as the optimism bias. To make progress, we need to be able to imagine alternative realities””better ones””and we need to believe we can achieve them.1 Senior ministers, especially those of large churches and megachurches, typically believe their congregation”s best days are ahead of them. But research consistently shows church growth rates diminish as the senior minister”s age and

June 4, 2012

Beware the Second Decade

By Darrel Rowland For several years in a row, Kent Fillinger”s statistics have shown that church growth peaks when the senior minister is in his eighth to tenth year. Last year, those churches” weekend attendance increased an average of 8.3 percent””about double the figure for years 11-20 of a minister”s tenure. The 2010 contrast was even greater: 17 percent growth for years 8-10, a mere 1.4 percent for the second decade. Is now the time to mention that many senior ministers really hate these statistics””even though few quibble with the bottom-line numbers? One reason: The figures shoot down a prevalent

May 29, 2012

Church Life

You Can Go Home Again

By Kent E. Fillinger Eric Keller grew up in Enid, Oklahoma, and attended Oakwood Christian Church. He returned to his home church for two summer internships during Bible college, and in 2003 he became the church”s student minister. Then, in 2008, Keller became senior minister at Oakwood. Some would say you can”t go back home to serve a church you attended as a child. They would point to the experience of Jesus. When he returned to his hometown to teach, some of the locals took offense, and Jesus responded, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town

May 29, 2012

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Cross Creek: Facing the Challenge of Change

By Kent E. Fillinger Leading a 68-year-old, multigenerational church in a small Southern town presents a unique set of challenges. Cross Creek Christian Church, located in rural Georgia, takes pride in its history, and its members often find comfort in maintaining the status quo. On the other hand, senior minister Rick Evans is committed to gently challenging people to move beyond their comfort zones to help the church be more effective in reaching its community for Christ. Prior to coming to Cross Creek in 2002, Rick served as a senior minister at a small church for six years. He also

May 28, 2012

Church & Ministry Church Growth

MEDIUM-SIZED CHURCHES: The 2011 List

This listing of 35 churches that averaged 250-499 for worship in 2011 includes church name, city, senior minister, Web site, average attendance, and number of baptisms. (This is not a complete listing of such churches; it is a listing of Medium-Sized Churches that participated in our survey.) Click here to look at the chart ofÂ 2011 MEDIUM-SIZED CHURCHES.

May 28, 2012

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Consistency in Corinth

By Kent E. Fillinger Consistency and longevity are apt descriptors for 150-year-old Corinth Christian Church in Loganville, Georgia. Adam Turner, who is in his seventh year at Corinth, is still the new kid on the block (literally and figuratively). Turner, 32, has been senior minister at Corinth since 2009, after serving as the church”s youth minister for four years. In most churches, a minister with seven years of tenure would be a veteran, but not at Corinth. By comparison, Don Hardison served as Corinth”s senior minister for 42 years, until he transitioned to the part-time role of shepherding minister in

May 26, 2012