Articles for tag: COVID

January 12, 2021

Christian Standard

RHM Residency Program a ‘Leadership Pipeline’ for Ministry in Northeast

By Chris Moon   The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t dampened Restoration House Ministries’ efforts to bring young church leaders to New England. The church-planting organization in Manchester, N.H., is in the third year of its residency program which recruits young people from across the country to gain ministry experience in the Northeast. Five residents are nearing the end of their 11-month training cycle. “It’s a work in progress,” said Aaron Rathbone, residency program director for RHM. This year’s residency program came with its own challenges, he said. The current cohort started work remotely in April 2020 just as the COVID-19 pandemic was

January 6, 2021

Christian Standard

Christian College Athletic Departments Stressing Faith and Sports

By Chris Moon A pair of Christian colleges saw a wave of baptisms of student-athletes in the fall as coaches continue to make the gospel a priority while still teaching the Xs and Os of their sports. Kentucky Christian University saw six of its football players baptized. That was in addition to at least five baptisms of student-athletes from the school’s volleyball and basketball programs. Point University in Georgia, meanwhile, saw four members of its football program baptized in a six-day span in October. Videos from several of those baptisms were posted to social media. “It’s amazing how it all

January 1, 2021

Tina Wilson

Opportunity and Open Doors

When the Pandemic Hit, Our Leaders Went to Work to Discover the Best Ways for Us to Serve Our Community . . . One of our pastors, while addressing the coaching staff at a local college last year, described Ekklesia Christian Church as opportunists. Any time God cracks open a door, even slightly, and we see a target that aligns with our core values and seems beneficial for the kingdom, we run at it. In our six years as a church, God has opened doors that have brought about immeasurably more than all we asked or imagined. Perhaps that’s why Saturday, March 14,

January 1, 2021

Gary L. Johnson

‘In God We Trust?’

A couple of exciting events took place in 1956. First, I was born, which was pretty exciting for me. Second, our federal government adopted the official motto, “In God We Trust.” That phrase quickly was stamped onto our currency and coin, where it remains today. Why did America adopt a motto in 1956? We were fighting a Cold War with the Soviet Union, a superpower that championed atheism. While the U.S.S.R. contended God did not exist, the United States not only declared his existence, but that our nation trusted in him.   “In God We Trust” is more than a

January 1, 2021

Andy Hansen

How the Pandemic Impacted Christ In Youth

The beginning of March had a vibe that 2020 was going to be a banner year of ministry at Christ In Youth. SuperStart preteen and Believe junior high events were on a roll! The teaching and interactive elements were powerful and impacting hundreds of youth. Large numbers were waiting to attend the seven remaining major city sites in April and May. Plus, registrations were at a record pace for CIY’s Move high school and Mix junior high summer events. Hundreds were also prepared to participate in an Engage mission experience. Several new projects were coming together, and the culture and

January 1, 2021

Dr. Orpheus J. Heyward

A Renaissance Rebirth

How God Worked through the Pandemic to Move Our Church from Local to Global Ministry One of the most potent theological tenets of Scripture is called the Providence of God. The doctrine of Providence provides us with insight into God’s care for his creation as he continuously provides for its existence and sustenance. Additionally, Providence suggests that God is guiding his creation according to his divine purpose. A particular passage that accentuates this notion is Romans 8:28: “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose”

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

Phil Claycomb

How the Pandemic Impacted Planting Churches

7 Counterintuitive Ways to Interpret Reality By Phil Claycomb I’ve coached, mentored, and trained church planters since 2001, so I’ve been involved in many different crisis situations. I’ve sighed deeply and asked, “OK, what just happened?” more times than I care to remember. I’ve brainstormed through a host of “where do we go from here?” discussions. I’ve rolled up my shirtsleeves and jumped in to help “pick up the pieces and move on.” And I’ve discovered that while the causes of crises may vary, and churches are amazingly creative at finding ways to get into trouble, the one thing leaders

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

December 23, 2020

Christian Standard

Retired Ministry Couple Continues to Share Jesus as Mr. and Mrs. Claus

By Chris Moon After 35 years in ministry, Vernon and Ellen Landreth found a new way to share the story of Jesus Christ—as Mr. and Mrs. Claus. The couple have spent more than a decade serving their Idaho community as the jolly couple in red. They created a business to match—The Santa Couple—and typically do 60 to 70 “gigs” per year, Ellen Landreth said. They make home and business visits and join customers on carriage rides. They’ll even drop off presents wherever they are needed. And they’ll tell the story of the birth of Jesus Christ “at every opportunity we

December 16, 2020

Christian Standard

Churches Tweak Christmas Eve Plans as COVID-19 Continues

By Chris Moon Churches are making a variety of changes to their Christmas Eve traditions to accommodate social distancing needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. And pastors are doing so while wondering when life finally will return to normal. “It’s been crazy,” said Ross Frisbie, senior minister at Tonganoxie Christian Church in Kansas. “I never thought by December we still would be dealing with this, and even more so now with cases going up. It’s crazy. I’m looking forward to normal.” Frisbie said his church will have three Christmas Eve services while offering churchgoers three options by which they can attend

December 1, 2020

Christian Standard

Raders Persevere in Planting NYC Church During Pandemic

By Jim Nieman The launch of Reunion Church in the heart of New York City hasn’t gone off exactly as planned this year . . . but few things in life have escaped the far-reaching impact of COVID-19.   “There’s no book on how to do what we are doing,” says Russel Rader, who is launching Reunion in the Union Square neighborhood with his wife, Katie, and the help of a core launch team, Orchard Group, and churches from across the country. “On Wednesday, March 11th, our community had an amazing evening of hospitality in our home with a group

November 25, 2020

Christian Standard

Every Church Is Now a Church Plant

Three Significant Considerations for Every Church in the Midst of and Post-COVID-19 By Trevor DeVage As every aspect of our daily lives is being reconsidered and refashioned by the pandemic, churches are rethinking their futures, too. Or at least they should be. But I’m afraid some are anticipating the days ahead only with a vision of the years behind. And I’m convinced this just won’t work. My thinking on this was influenced by the recent mentoring retreat I attended with Cal Jernigan, lead pastor with Central Christian Church in Arizona. I get together several times a year with Cal and

November 22, 2020

Rusty Russell

How to Lead a Peacekeeping Church

Practice These Three Crucial Habits to Live at Peace with Everyone and to Be an Example for Our Communities and Nation to Follow Never before has peacekeeping in the church been so difficult! This past summer in the middle of the COVID-19 crisis, I received two emails from people who were upset at how we were handling the situation. The first said she was leaving the church because we weren’t properly social distancing (although we thought we were) and we weren’t making people wear masks. The second said she was leaving the church because we were listening to the liberal

November 22, 2020

Laura McKillip Wood

Laura-McKillip-Wood

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

November 22, 2020

Caleb Kaltenbach

The New Year, No Fear Challenge

How You Can Begin 2021 with Courage and Understanding   This year-end article was written in mid-September. Due to the magazine’s production schedule, I simply don’t have the luxury of knowing if we’ve made strides toward loving each other well, who won the election, the state of the economy, or whether there is a coronavirus vaccine. As I type these words, my mother is suffering from COVID-19. She’s older, in poor health, and already fighting cancer, so I have no clue whether she will survive or go to be with the Lord. Remember the old saying, “hindsight is 20-20”? If

November 22, 2020

Mark E. Moore

The Anxiety Antidote (A Study of Luke 2)

Two Announcements of Peace and How We Live In Between And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people” (Luke 2:8-10). What a sweet story. We can almost hear Linus recounting the entire passage in “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” We see images of sweet children in a

November 22, 2020

Doug Crozier

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

November 16, 2020

Christian Standard

Three Colleges Adjust Schedules Due to COVID-19

At least three Christian colleges announced changes to their fall semester plans in recent days due to the coronavirus pandemic. The most significant change occurred at Lincoln (Ill.) Christian University, where students were sent home about 10 days early, a main reason being the dwindling number of students receiving in-person instruction. “It is becoming increasingly difficult for our faculty to manage courses that have numerous students in quarantine,” LCU president Silas McCormick wrote on Nov. 9. “While we would all prefer to continue holding these classes in-person, the reality is that over the next week-and-a-half, a number of classes would

November 10, 2020

Christian Standard

All-Church 5K Raises Funds for Mission

By Jim Nieman In this time of COVID-19, Vail Christian Church in Tucson, Ariz., figured out a way to bring people together, improve physical and spiritual health, and raise money for a Christian mission. As a bonus, participants in the church’s inaugural Masquerade 5K—the culmination of VCC’s 12-week Run for God class—were encouraged to dress up in costumes, since the big event took place on Halloween. “Due to the closures of all [running] races around Tucson, we wanted to provide a race that our Run for God class participants could end their 12-week walk/run training program with,” said Mat Miller,

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