Articles for tag: Jennifer Johnson

October 17, 2011

Christian Standard

Challenging Men to Take the Lead in Prayer

By Jennifer Taylor  When John Seitz joined the Antioch Christian Church (Marion, IA) staff in 2000, he challenged the men to join a team committed to praying for his ministry and for the church. “Prayer is so integral in seeking guidance from God and providing spiritual protection for the pastor,” Seitz says. “We have a prayer ministry open to everyone, but I wanted this to encourage strong male leadership in the church.” In addition to praying through the week, each year the team gathers for a retreat, and each Sunday morning several of the men gather at the church building

October 10, 2011

Christian Standard

Johnson, Other Colleges Partner for PhD Program

By Jennifer Taylor Eight Christian universities and graduate schools have partnered together to offer an online PhD in leadership studies. This new Center for Global Studies, under the sponsorship of Johnson University (Knoxville, TN), will prepare students around the world for academic or ministry leadership. The program “is an online, research-based, interdisciplinary degree that seeks to facilitate the leadership abilities and roles of Christian men and women working in inter-cultural, cross-cultural, and/or international contexts,” the center writes. The degree includes classes in ethics and research and requires focused electives in educational leadership, organizational leadership, or theology of leadership. The proposal

October 6, 2011

Christian Standard

Encouraging Male Prayer Leadership

By Jennifer Taylor When John Seitz joined the Antioch Christian Church (Marion, IA) staff in 2000, he challenged the men to join a team committed to praying for his ministry and for the church. “Prayer is so integral in seeking guidance from God and providing spiritual protection for the pastor,” Seitz says. “We have a prayer ministry open to everyone, but I wanted this to encourage strong male leadership in the church.” In addition to praying through the week, each year the team gathers for a retreat, and each Sunday morning several of the men gather at the church building

October 5, 2011

Christian Standard

RiverTree Providing Tools for Missional Movement

By Jennifer Taylor A number of factors began to converge, and Greg Nettle, senior pastor at RiverTree Christian Church (Massillon, OH), thought God might be up to something. There were partnerships with Stadia (Irvine, CA) and Compassion International; the launch of 18 churches and counting with Kingdom Synergy Partnership, a church planting network; the addition of Alex Absalom, coauthor of Launching Missional Communities, to the RiverTree staff; the launch of Love Canton, an urban church plant; and the transition of RiverTree from megachurch to missional movement. “It started to become clear that God was moving,” Nettle says. The RiverTree team

September 20, 2011

Christian Standard

Indiana Church Shows Knack for Winning Grants

By Jennifer Taylor In the last four years, Jamestown (IN) Christian Church has received 14 grants totaling more than $110,000″”including one used to learn how to write grant applications! The congregation, located about 30 miles west of Indianapolis, began researching the process in 2003 and was awarded its first grant in 2007. JCC has received grants for a variety of uses, including beautifying its 17-acre property, building a shelter house for public use, and maintaining its food and clothing pantry. In 2010 the church received a grant of matching funds from the Indianapolis Center for Congregations to hire a design

September 4, 2011

Christian Standard

Some Churches Might Qualify for Tax Refunds

By Jennifer Taylor Tom Burbrink believes tens of thousands of dollars in tax refunds are available to churches””maybe even yours! Burbrink, a tax professional specializing in service to churches and ministers, has researched the issue in light of changes made by the Affordable Care Act. The act provides federal tax refunds to small employers, and many churches and church organizations are eligible even though they pay no income taxes. To qualify for the refund, a church must have a group medical insurance plan, must pay at least 50 percent of the premium, and must offer the plan to all full-time

July 17, 2011

Christian Standard

CIY Teams for Movie with Voice of the Martyrs

By Jennifer Taylor Last-minute trips, amazing “coincidences,” and the consistent witness of faithful believers around the world helped Christ In Youth (Joplin, MO) partner with Voice of the Martyrs to create a new feature-length film, Love Costs Every Thing, about the persecuted church. The CIY team started by recording the testimonies of Christians in India. “Then we waited on God,” says Chris Jefferson, director of organizational advancement. “And through my mom I met a Marine, who had married an Iraqi Christian girl, whose brother fled to France after bombs destroyed his church in Iraq. Bill Carroll, a church planter and

July 14, 2011

Christian Standard

Solomon Foundation Offering Church Loans

By Jennifer Taylor The Solomon Foundation, a new church extension fund for the Christian churches and churches of Christ, launched several months ago with headquarters in Englewood, CO. Doug Crozier, formerly president of Church Development Fund (Irvine, CA), serves as chief executive officer of the new organization. Crossroads Christian Church (Grand Prairie, TX) and Christ”s Church of the Valley (Peoria, AZ) worked with Crozier and his team to fund the development and launch of the foundation. Leaders from Mount Pleasant Christian Church (Greenwood, IN), Real Life Ministries (Post Falls, ID), The Crossing (Quincy, IL), and Churchill Meadows Christian Church (Toronto,

June 27, 2011

Christian Standard

God Does Not Have a Plan for Your Life

By Jennifer Johnson “God”s plan for your life isn”t a map you see all at once, but a scroll unrolled a little at a time, requiring faith,” Rick Warren recently tweeted. “God will accelerate his plan for your life as you put your trust in him. God is giving you victory sooner than you think,” says Joel Osteen. Less prominent Christians champion the theology as well. In responding to a new believer”s question about his career, a contributor to Bible-Knowledge.com writes, “God will now be the one to fully guide you into whatever jobs he will want you to have. .

June 24, 2011

Christian Standard

TCM”s “˜Priscilla Initiative” Boosts Training for Women

By Jennifer Taylor   Training Christians for Ministry (TCM) created its “Priscilla Initiative” to provide graduate-level Christian leadership education, training, and practical experience to women in Europe and Central Asia. Over the last 10 years, women around the world have become more influential in developing their families, churches, and communities. “Yet because of cultures and customs,” TCM writes, “these women have fewer opportunities than their male counterparts to access formalized Christian education and training that will enable them to grow spiritually and develop as strong Christian leaders.” TCM is working to solve these problems by establishing a scholarship fund and providing

June 12, 2011

Christian Standard

Large, Healthy Churches Merge in Phoenix Area

By Jennifer Taylor What if thousands of people drove past one another on the highway to worship at churches that weren”t located too far apart? What if both churches coordinated hundreds of small groups in their communities””groups studying different material and never working together to reach the city? When Christ”s Church of the Valley (Peoria, AZ) and Parkway Christian Church (Surprise, AZ) saw this scenario playing out in their shared mission field, they made a surprising decision””to merge both churches and do more together than they could apart. The two churches, both located in suburbs of Phoenix, officially merged in

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