January 21, 2021
There’s Still Time to Participate in Our Annual Survey
Church leaders are invited to participate in our annual church survey. We will be collecting data from churches of all sizes through Monday, Jan. 25.
Articles for tag: Churches of Christ
January 11, 2021
Leaders Encouraged to Participate in our Annual Church Survey
How do we gauge what exactly happened in our churches during 2020 and what is the best course of action as we endeavor to resume face-to-face community during this new year? A good first step is to share your church’s experience with us via Christian Standard’s annual survey of Christian churches and churches of Christ. “Capturing the stories and statistics from 2020 is vital for us to gauge the true impact of the pandemic on our churches and establish baselines to measure future growth and changes,” said Kent Fillinger, who has been conducting our annual survey for more than a
December 9, 2020
Students Recognized for Scholarly Papers at SCJ Conference
Several students were recognized for their scholarship at the Stone-Campbell Journal Conference in September. For the second consecutive year, Joel Childers, a graduate student at Abilene (Texas) Christian University, received the Isaac Errett Award. His winning paper this year was titled, “Responses to the Attack on Pearl Harbor in Journals from the Methodist Church and Churches of Christ.” Childers received a $250 prize provided by the Disciples of Christ Historical Society. Students from Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan (in Tennessee) and Johnson University Florida were winners of the 2020 Student Paper Competitions. Samuel Guy of ECS won the graduate division
My Story . . . from Denomination to Renewed Vision
By Gonzalo Venegas The Restoration Movement is an inviting movement—that’s something I’ve learned firsthand. You see, I didn’t start out in the Restoration Movement. For a long time, my faith experience was limited to having served as an altar boy in the Catholic church. Then I spent time in gangs. (See “My Life Story . . . from Gang Member to Church Planter” from March 2019.) After coming to faith in Michigan, I was discipled, educated, and ordained by the Reformed Church in America. I developed a seemingly unquenchable desire to study God’s Word. I preached many sermons and did
May 17, 2020
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
A Listing of Church-Planting Organizations
We have compiled a listing of Church Planting Organizations associated with Christian churches and churches of Christ. Note that organizations often partner on church plants. This list is not a comprehensive count of church plants from the past five years but is meant to demonstrate who is actively planting churches and where. For each church-planting organization, we have listed its location, leader, website and contact information, the region where it plants, and total number of churches planted in the past 5 years. We will update this list at a future time. If your organization should be listed, please provide us
March 6, 2020
Several Tennessee Churches Cope with Losses Resulting from Deadly Tornadoes
(Originally posted Friday, March 6; updated Monday, March 9) Alive Nashville, a Stadia church plant that started last September, had been meeting on Sundays in a building that was “ground zero” for the tornado that struck East Nashville early Tuesday. Since the storm, the church has been working to serve one another and others in the neighborhood devastated by the tornado. According to lead pastor Brandon Jacobs‘ Facebook posts, the church has been praying, receiving aid requests, assessing needs, lending a hand and/or connecting victims with people or agencies that can help, engaging in some small-scale cleanup, and determining how
February 26, 2020
Alberta Bible College Adapts to Meet Needs of Today's Church
By Chris Moon Stanley Helton believes Alberta Bible College is in the middle of a turnaround. The president of the Christian college in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, has overseen doubling of the school’s enrollment during the past five years. Its adult learning population is starting to take off. And financially, the college finished 2019 in the black—the first time since 2014. “We’ve been steadily chipping away and putting things back in place,” Helton said. The turnaround has been five years in the making. The college hit hard times after several years of inconsistent leadership following the 26-year tenure of Ron Fraser
January 2, 2020
An 'Independent' Objection
In this editorial from the December 27, 1970, issue of Christian Standard, the late Edwin V. Hayden registered an objection to the term “Independent Christian Church.” _ _ _ We’re Still FriendsIsn’t it wonderful that we can be brotherswe can even be friendswithout agreeing with one another in some rather strong opinions? Consider, for example, the convenient use of the term, “Independent Christian Church,” to designate folk who generally concur in the historic position taken by CHRISTIAN STANDARD. Some of our best friends use the term pragmatically, arguing that it is brief, generally understood, and generally applicable. It communicates what
December 26, 2019
Kenneth T. Norris Played Pivotal Role in Maritime Christian College’s Early Years
Every year, Maritime Christian College in Charlottetown, P. E. I., Canada, hosts a series of lectures. It’s a tradition that started in 1960, the year the college was established. In the early 1980s, the annual event became known as the K. T. Norris Lectureship, honoring a man who helped found the college and became president shortly thereafter. Kenneth T. Norris was born in 1915 in Toronto, Canada. He was baptized at Toronto’s Keele Street Church of Christ in 1932 after spending much of his boyhood in Trenton, Ontario. Starting in 1936, he spent more than a decade attending college and
October 1, 2019
The Mainstreaming of Online Church
By Kent Fillinger If Paul were still preaching, would he have an online church live-streaming from Jerusalem? It’s entirely possible. After all, Paul said, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Corinthians 9:22, 23). All that to say, Internet worship services are becoming more mainstream. In July, I provided an overview of how Christian churches and churches of Christ are using various social media platforms to communicate. I want to go
September 4, 2019
Spire: What It Is, What It Isn’t . . . and Why
By Chris Moon New things inevitably generate questions. “What is it?” “Why this?” “Why now?” And “why not this other thing?” It’s been no different for the organizers of Spire Network, a digital platform that has set its sights on uniting and equipping pastors within the independent Christian churches and churches of Christ. The network has been working toward its first conference—set for October 8 to 10 in Orlando—and preparing to roll out its online networking platform this fall. In the middle of all of that, organizers are fielding questions about the nature of Spire and what it hopes to
August 22, 2019
THE BIG CHALLENGE FACING SMALL CHURCHES (1): Small Churches
Why do many small and rural churches struggle to find and retain leaders and even to survive? More importantly, what are some solutions? Christian Standard asked Jerran Jackson to lead and manage a project to study these issues. He teamed with four other seasoned leaders who have expertise in the small church to develop this topic. _ _ _ By Jerran Jackson and Barney Wells Many rural and small-town churches are struggling. LifeWay Research found that 60 percent of Protestant churches are plateaued or declining in attendance. And 46 percent say their giving decreased or stayed the same from 2017
June 22, 2019
Transformation through Education
By Laura McKillip Wood (After writing our “Horizons” column for two years, Emily Drayne has decided to step away from this role due to time constraints and other responsibilities. We thank her for her good work. We welcome our new “Horizons” writer, former missionary Laura McKillip Wood. Laura’s name may be familiar to readers as she contributes regularly to The Lookout.) He closes his Bible and stretches his arms, rubs his neck, and yawns. He hears the night sounds outside his window and tucks his sermon, scribbled on a scrap of paper, into his Bible. Ambling to bed, this Ugandan
May 22, 2019
What Is the Restoration Movement?
By Jim Estep The United States is becoming increasingly divided politically. Conservatives keep moving further to the right, liberals are gravitating toward the left, and those in the center are stretched between the two. It’s similar to what has happened to the Restoration Movement. A Formula for Effectiveness When I attempt to describe the Restoration Movement to someone, I draw on this formula: Biblical Authority + Church Unity → Global Disciple-Making The Restoration Movement affirms biblical authority and binds it to a strong commitment to church unity (beyond the level of unity by agreement), all for the sake of making
March 1, 2019
The Most Comprehensive and Accurate List of Christian Churches and Churches of Christ Available Anywhere
UPDATE/MAY 18: The ChurchLink database is in the final testing phase. We hope to have it up and running—and ready for you to use—within the next few days. Thank you for your patience and understanding. ____________ (Christian Standard’s article from the April issue) The Center for Church Leadership and Christian Standard Media Partner to Produce an Updated—and Updatable—Digital Database By Jim Nieman It’s taken longer than either the Center for Church Leadership or Christian Standard Media had hoped or previously promised, but a partnership to provide an updated—and updatable—online database of Christian churches and churches of Christ called ChurchLink should
January 31, 2019
The Origins of Hope International University
Announcement of John Derry’s retirement as president of Hope International University this coming August after 15 years in that office served to remind me it is the 90th anniversary of that institution, which originally was known as Pacific Bible Seminary. Christian Standard announced the launch of that school with a front-page story Dec. 1, 1928, and also with an editorial in that same issue. Following are excerpts from the article, but some of its details open up a bit of mystery. _ _ _ Pacific Bible Seminary New School for the Training of Loyal Christian Preachers Is Launched in Los
January 29, 2019
The Fortification of the Restoration Movement (Part 3 of 3)
By Steve Carr “What religion are you?” “Christian.” “Well I get that, but what kind of Christian?” “Um, just Christian.” Growing up on Cincinnati’s west side, where Roman Catholicism reigned supreme, I constantly had this exchange with kids at school. Raised in a Restoration Movement congregation, I was taught that our church was simply Christian—nothing more, nothing less. It wasn’t until years later in seminary that I learned another biblical name that could describe my tribe. Alexander Campbell was repulsed that some referred to his group as “Campbellites,” so he sought a more biblical description of our fellowship. Terms like
January 3, 2019
Christian Standard Interview with Fred Gray: Preacher, Lawyer, and Civil Rights Warrior
By Jerry Harris HE’S A QUIET southern gentlemen, but he wields the law like a warrior. He is fueled with a deep conviction to his calling in life. Though he is nearly 88, his recall of facts and names is instantaneous. He is friendly . . . able to distinguish lines that separate the arena of ideas from the God-given value of every human being with whom he comes in contact. He’s among the last remaining champions of the earliest days of the civil rights movement; he is the one who brought the heavy weight of the law to bear
November 1, 2018
‘Young Missionary’ J. Russell Morse Discusses Foreign Mission Methods
If you haven’t taken the opportunity to read Russell Johnson’s article from our November 2018 issue titled “Prayer, Power, Purpose: J. Russell & Gertrude Morse and Four Generations of Ministry to Southeast Asia and Beyond,” please be sure to treat yourself. The article details hardship, heartache, discouragement, and imprisonment, but also the prayers, purpose, and perseverance through which God’s Word has been faithfully preached over the past century. Thousands of people in isolated areas have heard the message and accepted Christ through God’s grace and the Morse family’s efforts. I scanned Christian Standard’s archives and reviewed the headlines of numerous
