Articles for tag: Bob Russell

Restoration Movement History

Unser Jr. to Share with Indiana Church (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon Auto racing fans know that “the greatest spectacle in racing”—the Indianapolis 500—won’t be taking place as originally planned this Sunday due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but all racing fans have the option of watching two-time winner Al Unser Jr. interviewed that day by John Dickerson, lead pastor of Connection Pointe Christian Church, Brownsburg, Ind. The interview will be part of the church’s weekend services both Saturday and Sunday. It will be viewable at connectionpointe.org/life and Facebook Live. The theme is “When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned.” Dickerson recently told Fox-59 TV that Unser

May 17, 2020

Josh Ross

Restoration . . . Not Preservation

By Josh Ross Family reunions typically carry with them a mixed bag of emotions. There is joy and sadness, excitement, and even anxiety (when we forget a name or can’t place a face). A small part of family reunions is catching up with everyone. But for the most part, family reunions are about reminiscing about the past, and this can be delightful and frightening simultaneously. It’s nostalgic to hear stories we haven’t heard in years. It’s frightening when the stories entail embarrassing moments from our lives. We all have stories of breaking windows, running over a mailbox, and getting caught

April 28, 2020

Church & Ministry Church Leadership

COVID-19: Guidelines for Closing and Reopening the Church

Editor’s Note: This article was written for and will appear in our July issue, which will deal with politics and the church. We’ve decided the article will most benefit our readers now, however. We hope it helps you wisely plan as you make significant decisions over the next several weeks and months. _ _ _ By Rusty Russell Should we have canceled church during the COVID-19 pandemic? What if churches reopen, the virus rebounds, and we are asked to cancel again? What if there’s a less serious pandemic in the future? Will we be asked to cancel the next time

April 22, 2020

Conferences & Gatherings Organizations & Events

SCJ Conference Rescheduled for September (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon The COVID-19 outbreak forced the rescheduling of the 2020 Stone-Campbell Journal Conference. The event, originally set for March 20, 21, has been rescheduled for Sept. 11, 12. The location—Johnson University Tennessee in Knoxville—has not changed. The theme “Politics and the Stone-Campbell Movement” will be developed by the originally scheduled speakers: Shaun Casey, director of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and Public Affairs and professor in Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service; Jess Hale, attorney with the Tennessee General Assembly; and Richard Cherok, professor of history with Ozark Christian College. Stone-Campbell Journal

March 15, 2020

Bob Russell

New Testament Theology & Bible

Judas: The Traitor’s Biggest Mistake

By Bob Russell Judas was greedy. That’s a common temptation for most of us, but it’s especially enticing for those with easy access to money that doesn’t belong to them. When Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume, Judas protested the perfume should have been sold and the money given to the poor. A fellow disciple observed, “He [Judas] did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it” (John 12:6). Judas was the treasurer for Jesus’

November 16, 2019

CCCB’s Plans in Cincinnati Include Maintaining 3 Ministry Assets

Central Christian College of the Bible, Moberly, Mo., which is working toward opening an extension campus in Cincinnati next spring, has announced plans to maintain “three key ministry support services” that have been a part of the soon-to-close Cincinnati Christian University. According to its website, CCCB plans to provide ministry education through the Russell School of Ministry, continue development of a national network of churches through the Center for Church Leadership, and provide library services through the George Mark Elliott Library. The Missouri college is asking for “the [financial] support of Cincinnati constituent friends and church families” to help make

November 6, 2019

Mission & Evangelism

Waran People Celebrate Bible Dedication (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon Mac Silvey recently posted a YouTube video showing the Waran people of Papua New Guinea celebrating the dedication of the New Testament translated for them by Pioneer Bible Translators. The translation was a labor of love for PBT’s William and Robin Butler, as detailed in Greg Pruett’s article “To the Least and the Last” in our November issue. The celebration took place, but due to “issues and setbacks” at the printing plant, Silvey said, the actual printed Bibles didn’t arrive for another few weeks. _ _ _ Other News Briefs A Dallas Christian

August 12, 2019

Church & Ministry Church Leadership Ministry Training & Education

Who Will Fill Their Shoes?

By Jeff Green His size 9½, wingtip leather shoes sit in a glass case in the library named for him. L. Palmer Young, the third president of Kentucky Christian University, was a preacher first. He followed in his dad’s footsteps, preaching for more than 69 years. The shoes serve as a reminder of the need for more preachers. Wally Rendel, who preached Palmer’s funeral, asked, “Who’s going to fill his shoes?” Where will the next generation of preachers come from? The Situation The church has constantly been challenged to find replacements in vocational ministry, especially in preaching. A forensic expert

May 29, 2019

Stone Hands Off SECC Leadership to Idleman (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman Dave Stone preached his last sermon at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Ky., on Sunday. Stone retired after 13 years at the helm of the megachurch. Stone handed over leadership to Kyle Idleman, passing to him the same baton he’d received from former Southeast pastor Bob Russell. The Southeast Outlook offered some insight into Stone and his ministry, including tributes from Idleman (who met Stone at a Christ In Youth conference when Idleman was 16) and other ministers inside and outside Southeast. Another article included an anecdote about the time Stone, then in college, stayed with the Russells and had to borrow a pair of dress

May 19, 2019

What Are You Doing Now?

Compiled by Mark A. Taylor _ _ _ Alan Ahlgrim Retired: Founding pastor with Rocky Mountain Christian Church, Niwot, Colorado, March 2013 What are you doing now? Continues to encourage and mentor church leaders. Director of Covenant Groups with the Center for Church Leadership. Thoughts on retirement: âThe best is yet to be for every kingdom leader. I jokingly say if I had known this season would be so fulfilling, I would have started with this first and stuck with it! Iâ™ve traded unrelenting responsibility for a soul-enriching opportunity.â _ _ _ Dick Alexander Retired: Senior minister, LifeSpring Christian Church,

May 18, 2019

“If You Have a Pulse, You Have a Purpose”

Advice from 14 ministers on finding fulfillment in retirement By Mark A. Taylor We asked Mark Taylor, retired editor of Christian Standard, to contact retired ministers in our movement to ask what they are doing now and share their advice. âRetire to, not from.â Itâ™s a popular recommendation, and more than half of the retired megachurch ministers we interviewed for this piece repeated it. As our summary shows [click here], all of them have followed the advice in one way or another. Their accomplishments and activities include filling guest speaker slots, serving in their local congregation, representing a parachurch ministry,

April 17, 2019

Colleges & Seminaries Organizations & Events

Four Christian Universities Celebrating Milestone Anniversaries

By Jim Nieman At least four Christian colleges are celebrating significant anniversaries in 2019: Mid-South Christian College is turning 60, Great Lakes Christian College is marking 70 years, Lincoln Christian University turns 75, and Kentucky Christian University will mark its 100th anniversary. KENTUCKY CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY Kentucky Christian University in Grayson will celebrate its 100th birthday during Fall Homecoming Sept. 27-29, and again on Dec. 1, the actual anniversary of its founding. The Homecoming plans are still being finalized but will include a performance by 64 to Grayson, a Christian music group that formed at KCU; live performing artist (speed painter),

March 27, 2019

Lincoln Student Profiled in Forbes (Plus News Briefs)

A recent article in Forbes features Karis Hortin, a student-athlete at Lincoln (Ill.) Christian University, who started a business as part of an entrepreneur program during her senior year in high school. Hortin says God’s been answering prayers throughout the process of starting and operating Jars of Hope, a pre-mixed meal company. The Forbes article states: “Hortin [says] it was her mother’s suggestion to donate part of Jars of Hope’s proceeds to charity. After praying on the topic, however, she decided to do more, donating all her profits to the orphanage where she lived until age 9. After fundraising to cover travel expenses, Hortin visited the orphanage in

March 25, 2019

Times of Refreshing

By Mark A. Taylor Bob Russell told his blog readers last year that his 12 years of ministry in retirement has been “much more than I could have imagined.” Soon after he retired, Bob began hosting retreats for preaching pastors “to provide encouragement, instruction, and reinforcement.” He had seen so many local church ministers “mistreated by their church leaders and beaten down by their circumstances . . . really discouraged by the constant criticism and overwhelming responsibilities they faced every day.” The response to his concern shows that the need is real. Since the spring of 2006, he has conducted

February 27, 2019

Book Reviews Reviews

Preach the Word: How to Embrace Biblical Preaching in the 21st Century

By Chris Philbeck In âThe Urgency of Preaching,â Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Albert Mohler begins by asking, âHas preaching fallen on hard times?â The August 28, 2017, blog post goes on to talk about the centrality of preaching in the New Testament church and whether or not that has been diminished in a day when, using Mohlerâ™s words, âsome contemporary preachers now substitute messages intentionally designed to reach secular or superficial congregationsâmessages which avoid a biblical text, and thus avoid a potentially embarrassing confrontation with biblical truth.â Some have called this âneeds-based preaching.â And some promote needs-based preaching as

February 27, 2019

News Briefs for Feb. 27, 2019

Ken Idleman will speak at the Mississippi Christian Convention March 29 and 30 at the Coliseum Civic Center in Corinth, Miss. “Dream Small” is the theme. Go to www.midsouthchristian.edu or contact Chuck Hassell at jt*********@*****ok.com for more information. _ _ _ The School of Business at Kentucky Christian University will host its ninth annual Leadership Conference April 4 in Grayson. The conference allows students and area business professionals to learn the art of leadership from a variety of leaders. Participants will include retired minister Bob Russell, Amazon launch and expansion manager Cassie Kiser Brodie, and Center for Disease Control public

January 1, 2019

Church & Ministry Leadership Development

Good Strategies for a New Year

Former editor Mark A. Taylor offered these thoughts two years ago under the headline, “Strategies for a New Year.” At the time, Taylor confessed to sharing similar thoughts a few years earlier. He wrote on Jan. 1, 2017: “. . . I still need to follow my own advice here! So let’s read it together as, once again, we recommit ourselves to faith and ministry at the beginning of a new year.” _ _ _ By Mark A. Taylor Anytime can be the right time for new beginnings, but the transition to a new year seems like a natural. If you’re

October 31, 2018