Articles for tag: Church Reopening

April 1, 2021

Open

I had always assumed suicide rates were higher in the winter months. Cold winds, icy streets, gray skies, and more time alone indoors were all things I equated with sadness and depression. This most recent winter brought an even colder chill—a storm in the form of a pandemic that shut down activities, closed stores, and stopped people from gathering. And with this storm came the gusty wind of political tension. People bundled themselves up with fear, worry, and a deep sadness in what had been lost over the past 12 months. Save.org—a website operated by Suicide Awareness Voices of Education—shares

November 22, 2020

Doug Crozier

Christian Living

My Road to Peace

—This content is sponsored by The Solomon Foundation— As the pandemic unfolded in March, I quickly became concerned . . . about catching the virus, about our economy, and about churches. On March 9, during my last airline flight (from Detroit to Denver) before most everything shut down, it became obvious to me I was not the only one concerned. Before that week ended, our country was in total lockdown. I could feel the tension rising within me, and I could sense the tension in others. As with many others, my wife and I spent a great deal of time

September 22, 2020

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

The Challenge: What Do In-Person Services Look Like Upon Reopening?

By Justin Horey In Manhattan, Kansas—“The Little Apple”—a church of about 1,000 regular attendees has resumed in-person worship with no serious complications. Though the average Sunday attendance is lower than its pre-COVID-19 norm, Crestview Christian Church has found reopening to be a blessing. Elsewhere, three other churches found that resuming in-person worship wasn’t so simple. One church reopened successfully but the state forced it to “reclose,” another church opened partially, and the other reopened but then closed again after a church employee tested positive for the virus. These are their stories. _ _ _ Reopened and Staying Open: Crestview Christian

September 22, 2020

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

The Waiting Place: What Does Church Look Like When Your Doors Are Closed?

By Justin Horey Trying to summarize how churches are resuming in-person worship after the 2020 quarantine feels a bit like a tribute to Dr. Seuss: Some are meeting, some are not. Some are indoors, some are out. But while reopening plans vary across a wide spectrum, churches that have decided to postpone in-person worship, even as local municipalities began to lift restrictions, have much in common. Most of them are large, with attendance of 1,000 or more. Many of them minister in cities with left-leaning political ideologies. And all churches—regardless of their reopening plans—are eager to minister face-to-face again. Despite

August 15, 2020

Christian Standard

Devotionals

A New Pandemic

The Coronavirus Crisis Provided the Church with New Opportunities and Approaches . . . Will We Take Them? By Trevor DeVagewith Mark A. Taylor Ask the typical Bible study group, “How are Christians like us persecuted today?” and you usually get blank stares. Some might remember being bullied at school or ignored by the party crowd at college. Maybe one will tell about being disowned by her family when she decided to get baptized. You might even come across someone who got fired because he wouldn’t lie for his boss. But more often Christians in America apply Bible passages about