Articles for tag: Community Center

March 1, 2021

An Ending and a Beginning

Maureen closed the book she’d been trying to read and switched off her bedside lamp. Burrowing into the covers, she tried not to think about the future. She felt her spirit stirring, as if God was about to do something big and different, but she didn’t yet know what that would be. “God, here I am. Send me,” she prayed for what seemed like the millionth time. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, still unsure of where God would take her. Several months later, an insightful missionary friend invited Maureen to attend a Global Perspectives on the World

November 22, 2020

Laura McKillip Wood

Mission & Evangelism

Drinking Tea, Sharing Meals, and Making Disciples

Musa* lives in a Muslim country in the Middle East. Since he grew up hearing stories about the great prophet Jesus, he thought he knew all about him. That changed when he became roommates with Yosef*. Yosef shared his faith in Christ as the Messiah with Musa, and they began studying the Bible together. Before long, Musa accepted Jesus and wanted to be baptized. Christians in his country usually baptize new believers in a river, but because of the pandemic occurring at the time, public beaches were all closed. Musa’s baptism would have to wait. As time passed, Musa became

June 19, 2017

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

WHERE’S THE STEEPLE? “” 2|42 Community Church, Brighton, MI

By Justin Horey and Jennifer Johnson 2|42 Community Church (pronounced “Two Forty-Two”) didn”t mind being a portable church in its early years. In fact, lead pastor David Dummitt liked being portable. He found that the weekly set-up and tear-down made it easy to involve men, who sometimes struggle to find their place in a new church. Moreover, the lack of a building allowed 2|42 to invest more money into ministry and community outreach. During that time, Dummitt said, the number one question he heard from other pastors was, “When are you going to build?” Dummitt and his team didn”t want

June 15, 2017

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

WHERE’S THE STEEPLE? “” Crosspointe Church of Cary, Cary, NC

By Jennifer Johnson A hundred years ago, churches were commonly known for building hospitals, schools, universities, and community centers that served their surrounding neighbors instead of constructing buildings that served solely their own purposes. In that spirit, Crosspointe Church of Cary partnered with the YMCA to create a multipurpose facility that provides opportunities for work and recreation as well as worship. The church built the facility on its property and the Y leases space from the church and operates independently. The YMCA doesn”t offer programming on Sunday mornings or evenings, so Crosspointe uses portions of the extended campus as needed

June 29, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Community Outreach

2|42 Community Church Buys Athletic Club

2|42 Community Church (Brighton, MI) recently announced its purchase of the Brighton Athletic Club and its plans to renovate the building as a multipurpose facility for the community. The new community center will include an indoor/outdoor cafe, gym, auditorium, meeting space, play areas for children, and space for music lessons, tutoring, and more for teens. “We want this to be a facility that extends beyond Sunday morning, reaching out beyond our regular church attendees,” says lead pastor Dave Dummitt. “This is our gift to the community we love and have served for over six years. It is a no-strings-attached gift.

October 14, 2010

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Planting

Partnering with God to Help a New Orleans Church

By Jennifer Taylor Indian Creek Christian Church (Indianapolis, Indiana) is more than halfway through “Project 52″“”a 52-day challenge to complete construction on a new church building in New Orleans with at least 5,200 hours of labor and an additional $52,000 in funding. Five years after Hurricane Katrina ripped through the city, New Orleans residents “are still rebuilding their lives, particularly spiritually,” writes Indian Creek senior minister Gary Johnson. “That”s why a group of people has formed a church called The Gathering and have established it . . . where some of the greatest destruction occurred.” The time, money, and labor

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Megachurches: Navigating at Compass

By Kent Fillinger Bedford Christian Church began in 1966 with 12 couples and has evolved into a church-planting church. In 1994, Bedford relocated and changed its name to reflect its new location. The church adopted the name of the adjoining subdivision and became Highland Meadows Christian Church. The church grew from 500 to a peak attendance of 1,500 in 2000. By the time current senior minister Drew Sherman arrived in 2002, however, attendance had been declining slightly for two years. Sherman realized many people in the church were hurting, so he gradually embarked on casting the vision for loving people

September 4, 2005

Wes Dillon

Community Outreach Church & Ministry

Meeting Strangers

As churches seek stronger ties with their neighborhoods, “third places” like coffee shops and community centers can create everyday connection points beyond Sunday. Practical examples show how presence and service can open relational doors.