Articles for tag: First Christian Church

July 27, 2017

Christian Standard

A New Lease On Life: First Christian Canton Comes Rushing Back

By Ryan Rasmussen I must admit, right off the bat, that as a minister, I”m still learning, and the church I lead, First Christian of Canton, Ohio, is a work in progress. We don”t have the greatest turnaround story of all time, but God has done some incredible things over the past few years, despite our imperfections. You see, as I write this, I am sitting at my dining room table on a beautiful 82-degree day. The sun is breaking through the blinds as if God himself is stretching the rays of light, pinching one end between his thumb and

February 20, 2017

Christian Standard

Church Moves from Mortgage to Ministry

By Jennifer Johnson It”s common for church plants to meet in school buildings, and leaders in those new churches happily haul gear, set up rooms for children, and tear down worship spaces each week. It”s much less common for decades-old congregations to give up their buildings and go back to this way of worshipping, but for Journey Christian Church in Roswell, GA, this facility decision is opening up new opportunities for ministry. When Dan Garrett became lead pastor at Journey (then First Christian Church of Roswell) in 2011, the church was paying off $2.5 million in debt. The church had

January 24, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

Leonard Wymore””Yesterday’s Hero

By Mark A. Taylor It”s fair to say the passing of Leonard Wymore represents another marker in the end of an era. Leonard, who served as director of the North American Christian Convention from 1963 to 1986, died last Thursday, January 19. He was 95 years old. Known by many as Mr. North American, Leonard had his finger on the pulse of Christian churches and churches of Christ as perhaps no one else. He traveled widely. He heard and encouraged preachers in churches small and large across the heartland. He passionately promoted unity and church growth in a fellowship of

January 15, 2017

Christian Standard

The Church”s Mission: Making Disciples

By Ethan Magness My first formal ecclesiological training came from a song: The Church is not a building, the Church is not a steeple, the Church is not a resting place, the Church is the people. It was not an especially good song, but it had hand motions (perhaps you know them). I am grateful for this song, because it provided a sufficient ecclesiology for my early years of life. I did not merely go to church; I was part of the church. We were the church, the people of God. My second round of training came from the back

December 9, 2016

Christian Standard

Missions Pastor”s Family Part of the Neighborhood

By Jennifer Johnson “A number of churches were moving to the suburbs, but we made a commitment to stay,” B.J. Leonard says. First Christian Church in Decatur, IL, has seen lots of change during its 180 years in the city. However, over the last 15 years some of the area”s bigger manufacturing and industrial companies have shut down and left, the unemployment rate soared, and people began to move. The congregation had to wrestle with its future. “We sensed God was leading us to reach outside our building and try to make a difference where we are,” says Leonard, missions

July 30, 2016

Christian Standard

It Just Keeps Getting Better

By James Book I met Jackie when I began my ministry with First Christian Church of Kissimmee, Florida, in May 2011. Her father was a military man who became very violent and abusive toward her from the time she was 10 years old until she later moved out. Jackie worked full-time while attending high school, graduating in 1975. She married the first man to ask her in 1978. Jackie shared with me that she felt so worthless and unloved that she literally sabotaged her own marriage. She got a job shortly after the wedding and started having an affair with

December 11, 2015

Christian Standard

A Book for Those Who Make Art

By Tim Neuenschwander For the Beauty of the Church: Casting a Vision for the Arts Edited by W. David O. Taylor Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2010 For the Beauty of the Church brings together a collection of noted voices of art making (the craft of making art) and art makers (the people who create art) from religious settings, churches, and forums. There is something in this collection for everyone who is looking for ways to manifest arts in his or her religious venue. While some chapters held little interest for me, others were spot on and I gleaned much from the encouraging and

October 2, 2015

Christian Standard

Tour of Duties

By Jennifer Johnson Recently, two older ladies in our church began taking Communion to members in the hospital. While this is far from the 24-hour, professionally trained chaplaincy program organized by First Christian Church in Decatur (see related article), for Miss Marilyn and Miss Pat it was a Bigfoot-sized step out of their comfort zones. “I was scared to death,” Pat said the Sunday after her first hospital visit. But she did it, gathering up the portable Communion set and her car keys and setting out on a faith adventure. Now she and Marilyn are old pros, sometimes scheduling their

October 1, 2015

Christian Standard

First Christian Steps in to Fill Hospital Chaplaincy

By Jennifer Johnson When the chaplain of Decatur (IL) Memorial Hospital retired after 25 years of service, Wayne Kent, lead pastor at First Christian Church in Decatur, got an idea. “I approached the hospital leadership because this kind of hire is different from what they normally do,” he says. “I told them we could help with the process””or they could just ask us to do it.” With that, Kent began a series of conversations with the hospital administration that resulted in First Christian “just doing it”””evaluating applicants for the chaplaincy position, hiring the chaplain, and expanding the program to provide

March 5, 2015

Christian Standard

Getting Ready for Easter: First Christian Church, Albuquerque, NM

The Table, the Throne, and the Cross By Tim Neuenschwander, worship minister, First Christian Church, Albuquerque, New Mexico The theme was “The Table.” The four weeks leading up to Easter highlighted the table that transformed into a throne, and to a mess, and to the cross, and then, on Easter, back into the table. Senior minister Tom Caffery and I went to our Christian camp here in New Mexico and cut down a tree, split it into lumber, and hauled it back to our church. We videotaped all this with the theme song, “There”s a Table in the Wilderness.” We

January 19, 2015

Christian Standard

Carpet Splitting

By Brian Jennings As a young man still in Bible college, Chuck Thomas was invited to preach at First Christian Church in Gotebo, Oklahoma. The church was searching for a new preacher. Chuck accepted, and drove to the small town the following Sunday. Chuck noticed the church (both the building and the people) seemed split down the middle. Both sides had their own Communion table, and their own elders, who separately prayed and served their half of the congregation. This strange division bewildered Chuck and his wife, Anita. A friendly family invited them over for Sunday lunch. After eating, Chuck

November 7, 2014

Christian Standard

Missions Ministries that Work: First Christian Church

By Jim Book At First Christian Church, we support missions directly connected with churches of Christ and Christian churches that also value the Restoration Movement plea. The money designated for missions is allocated in three specific areas of ministry. One portion goes directly to Timothys sent from this church who are still directly connected to this church family. We are blessed to have Timothys in South Sudan and Japan, as well as a team preparing to minister in Jordan. A second portion goes to missions directly involved in church planting, discipleship making, and local church leadership training. The third portion

July 9, 2014

Christian Standard

Too Much Preparation?

By Bruce Templeton (From our series “The Best or Worst Advice I’ve Ever Received.”) The worst advice I ever received was from an elder who knew a lot about running a bank, but very little about leading a church. I was “young and dumb,” but I loved the church and was willing to listen to any advice I could get! I was serving a church coming off its best year in the last 25: more baptisms, greater attendance, and a greater spirit of excitement and joy. He believed the real way to build a church was to visit people who

May 4, 2014

Christian Standard

Helping the Hidden

By Jennifer Johnson There are so many “least of these.” We devote countless hours and dollars to serving the homeless, the fatherless, and the hungry. We do everything we can for single moms (soapbox alert: when was the last time you saw a ministry to single dads?). We rally around ending poverty in Haiti and AIDS in Africa and contaminated water everywhere. But stories like the ones featured this month from First Christian Church (Canton, OH) and Kentucky Christian University remind us there are other groups who need our help, “hidden” communities that may be surviving but not thriving, and

May 2, 2014

Christian Standard

Showing God”s Love for the Disabled Community

By Jennifer Johnson “The disability community is often a hidden community,” says Ryan Wolfe, developmental disabilities pastor at First Christian Church (Canton, OH). “In every city, they largely take care of themselves. But you don”t have to read much beyond the parable of the great banquet in Luke 14 to realize this group is close to God”s heart.” Wolfe and his wife began serving the disabled in their area by volunteer coaching in the local Challenger Baseball league. “We were outsiders,” he says. “We were the only coaches who didn”t have a kid playing, so we got a lot of

December 27, 2013

Christian Standard

Interview with Phil Scott

By Paul Boatman Phil Scott is in his sixth year as senior minister with First Christian Church in Dodge City, Kansas. This is his fifth ministry focused on leading a declining church into “turnaround” principles and practices.   “Turnaround church,” “comeback church”””help us understand these terms. As I use “turnaround church,” I”m using a concept deeply rooted in Scripture. It relates to leaving past patterns that were ineffective and choosing new patterns for living out our faith by returning to God. That describes repentance, but not all of the issues that led a church into decline are obvious sin patterns.

December 26, 2013

Christian Standard

A Conversation with Phyllis Fox

Meet Our Contributing Editors: This month we talk with Phyllis Fox, director of church relations and Youth in Ministry at Milligan College in Tennessee, about young leaders, broken kids, and the future of the church. Interview by Jennifer Johnson You wear a couple of hats””let”s start with your role in church relations at Milligan. Church relations is an opportunity for us to be in touch with the churches that support the mission of the college. The money these churches give totally supports student scholarships, so my role is enhancing those relationships, and even more importantly, to serve those churches in significant

October 27, 2013

Christian Standard

Interview with Steve Wingfield

By Paul Boatman Steve Wingfield serves as senior pastor with First Christian Church in Florissant, Missouri. With an average attendance of 1,200, this church in the largest suburb of St. Louis faces challenges endemic to churches in changing suburban communities.   Give us a brief summary of your history with First Christian. My dad, Charles Wingfield, was called to preach here in 1972 when I was 10 years old. The church was running about 150 to 170. I grew up in this church, went away to Bible college, and then ministered four years in another place. In 1987 the church

May 24, 2013

Christian Standard

Obituaries for 2012

ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF OBITUARIES Martha E. (Taylor) Blackmore, 90, of Tulsa, OK (formerly of Hillsboro, OH), died Feb. 18, 2012. Born in Mitchell, IN, on Aug. 30, 1921, to LaVerne and Martha Taylor, she grew up a preacher”s kid as her father ministered in Hillsboro, OH (1918-21), and then for many years in Springfield, IL. She graduated from Cincinnati (OH) Bible Seminary in 1943, and studied vocal music for four years at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. She married Roy C. Blackmore in 1943, and served with him in a ministry in Louisville, KY. They were a singing and preaching

May 16, 2013

Christian Standard

Growing in the Cape

By Kent E. Fillinger A mother church and a legacy church provided a great foundation for the birth of Crosspoint Christian Church in Cape Coral, Florida, in January 2006. Jeff Swearingen, lead pastor at Crosspoint, was on staff at First Christian Church in Fort Myers when discussions about a church plant started. He initially resisted the idea of planting a church, but God eventually changed his mind. About 150 people from First Christian committed to help birth Crosspoint. The church also benefited financially from a local Christian church that closed, sold its property, and then invested a significant amount into

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