Articles for tag: Community Outreach

November 1, 2023

Ben Simms

How to Lead with Love . . . Without Compromising Truth

How to Lead with Love . . . Without Compromising Truth

By Ben Simms  “How can we love people without compromising truth?”    This is a complex and challenging question, yet Jesus demonstrated it throughout his ministry. In a world that increasingly seems to want to bring down the church and challenge the teachings of Jesus, we must seek to love.  As culture wages war with the truth, we are constantly bombarded with messages that run counter to how Scripture calls us to live. One of our primary purposes on earth is to love people toward the kingdom of Jesus. The culture wars, while significant, can be a way for Satan to

September 1, 2022

Megan Rawlings

Megan Rawlings

Are Church Leaders Prepared for Quicksand and Lava?

By Megan Rawlings  When I was a child, probably around the age of 10, I perceived a few natural phenomena as threats to me on my journey to adulthood. For example, I spent hours researching and watching videos on how to escape quicksand and run away from volcanic lava. I didn’t realize, though, that neither of those was a threat to me in my southern Ohio hometown!   I have prepared for one natural disaster my whole life, knowing that living in southern Ohio it was possible (notice I did not say “probable”). I could experience a tornado. I knew that

November 1, 2021

Jim Estep

Doing Ministry During the Holidays

By Jim Estep Christmas is undeniably the most celebrated season of the year. It used to begin with Thanksgiving (the time my wife allows me to set up the tree and decorate the house), but it seems like we begin seeing Christmas items on television and on store shelves earlier and earlier. QVC began having Christmas specials in July! Society may be better prepared for Christmas than the church, although for different reasons. The holiday season, particularly from Thanksgiving to Christmas, offers the church an unprecedented opportunity to minister. However, like most opportunities, we can fail to make the most

May 1, 2021

Justin Horey

SPOTLIGHT: Crossroads Christian Church (Macon, MO)

Delivering Groceries and Joy At Crossroads Christian Church in Macon, Missouri, the biggest wins of 2020 came in the form of spontaneous acts of service. In a year filled with unexpected challenges and unexpected ministry opportunities, Crossroads found two simple but significant ways to bless their neighbors. In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the owners of the local grocery store asked the church to assist with deliveries. For years, the store had delivered groceries to elderly residents in the community each week, but when the first stay-at-home orders were issued, it was impossible to keep up with the

May 1, 2021

Justin Horey

SPOTLIGHT: 2|42 Community Church (Michigan)

No Needs Meets Many Needs The first few months of 2020 brought a series of major changes to 2|42 Community Church. First, the church added three new campuses, increasing its total number of locations from four to seven. Next, founding pastor David Dummitt departed after accepting the call to serve as senior pastor at Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois. Then, of course, the pandemic shut down live worship services at all seven of the congregation’s campuses. Despite all of that, executive pastor Eric Rauch said the most significant event of 2020 was “The No Needs Project,” a

April 1, 2021

Renee Little

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

February 7, 2021

Christian Standard

Strangers Start Path to Healing at Emotional Bible Study

By Dee Ann Billings On a recent night I got a glimmer of what a church would be like if Jesus were here in the flesh sitting amongst us. We often refer to Jesus as the giver of freedom—freedom from our sins and freedom from our pain. Unfortunately, the church oftentimes has become the opposite of that. That night was the first of a six-week Bible study called “In the Middle of the Mess.” We opened the class to the community, knowing there were hurting and struggling women who needed freedom from their pain. But we didn’t expect a roster

January 1, 2021

Dee Ann Billings

God Didn’t Stop When the Pandemic Started

When We Decided to Teach People in Our Community How to Study the Bible, God Provided Everything We Needed When COVID-19 first hit and life ground to a halt, I didn’t know what I would do with myself. As a volunteer outreach coordinator at Copper Creek Christian Church in Maryville, Illinois, as well as a leader with several independent outreach opportunities in the community, I was devastated when all events were unexpectedly and indefinitely canceled. Suddenly my involvement in two to three outreach events per month dropped to zero. No more events. No more kids’ activities. No more social gatherings.

January 1, 2021

Aaron Couch

People-First Finances

How Our Church Prioritized Our Spending and Resources During the Pandemic   News about the coronavirus in mid-March sent fearful shockwaves down my spine. I had no idea what it all meant for the nation, for Southeast Christian Church in Parker, Colorado—which I serve—or for the people who call Southeast home. I had received no instruction in how to lead a church through a global pandemic, nor did I have practical experience in doing so. Consequently, while considering next steps for the church, I immediately thought of the worst-case scenario of people at Southeast—and young people especially—dying of COVID-19. There

August 15, 2020

Christian Standard

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

May 17, 2020

Laura McKillip Wood

Laura-McKillip-Wood

Churches and Businesses Partner to Reach Out

By Laura McKillip Wood Revo’s family had nothing when they arrived in the United States. They pinned their hopes on a new life in the West after fleeing dangerous political unrest in Southeast Asia. After a long and difficult process, they settled in Omaha, Nebraska,. Their apartment had only the bare minimum Revo, his wife, and their children needed for survival. Not only did they have few furnishings, their children had no beds. An organization named Sleep in Heavenly Peace heard about their situation—and the situation of many of their refugee neighbors—and sprang into action. Reaching Out Sleep in Heavenly

March 18, 2020

Tyler McKenzie

Pastors Focused on Serving Communities, Improving Online Abilities as Pandemic Continues

By Chris Moon After a weekend of large-scale cancellations of in-person worship services—the result of the COVID-19 pandemic—many Restoration Movement churches are spending this week plotting their next moves. Pastors say they are looking both inward at how their online programming was received and outward at how best to serve their communities in a time of need. They say they are recognizing the way in which “social distancing” recommendations are affecting vulnerable communities, from the elderly to those in poverty. Tyler McKenzie, lead pastor of Northeast Christian Church in Louisville, said his church put together both a weekend service plan

February 22, 2020

Chris Jefferson

Ministry Intelligence: Using the Power of Information to Reach Your Community for Christ

By Chris Jefferson Nehemiah’s transition from king’s cupbearer to rebuilder of Jerusalem provides valuable lessons for how modern churches can set goals, define objectives, strategize methods, and incorporate tactics to help them move beyond self-preservation and begin to lead movements in their congregations and communities. At the start of the Old Testament book, Nehemiah asked his brothers from Judah about his homeland. He specifically asked for information about two things: the people and the city. He gathered intelligence from trusted, knowledgeable sources. Upon learning that the remnant was in “great trouble and disgrace” and that the wall of Jerusalem was

February 5, 2020

Christian Standard

More Nexus Church Planters Choosing Bi-Vocational Path

By Chris Moon If you’re going to coach it, it helps to live it. And so Phil Claycomb got another job. That is, he got an additional job. The executive director of Texas-based Nexus Church Planting during the past year and a half also has worked 10 to 12 hours weekly helping out a local church that is trying to resurrect itself after falling on hard times. Central Christian Church in Richardson, Texas, saw its attendance drop in half and its finances lag. The church convinced Claycomb to come serve as its pastor in 2018. Claycomb was happy to help.

January 29, 2020

Christian Standard

The Thrift Store Ministry

This Church’s Outreach Approach Recycles Much More than Clothing and Furniture _ _ _ “I needed clothes and you clothed me.” By L. Mackenzie On December 15, 2008, leaders of The Crossing in Quincy, Illinois, were discussing possible changes to their benevolence strategy. Several of them had just visited a church in Post Falls, Idaho, where they sought out ideas for growth. Elder Bruce Freeman was among those who listened as an idea for a thrift store ministry was discussed. Freeman was head of benevolence, a man passionate about helping others. He also had 25 years of experience working in

November 15, 2019

Michael C. Mack

Start Some New Traditions This Holiday Season!

By Michael C. Mack I love our family traditions during the holiday season: taking a drive to see the lights, decorating the house together, going to local events, and, of course, attending church services together. Over the years, our family has worked to make our traditions much more fun, fulfilling, and mission-focused through the power of invitation. One Thanksgiving almost 25 years ago, Heidi and I got to know a young man named Mark who lived at a homeless shelter. I invited him to some of our family and church events during the holidays, and he enjoyed getting out of

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