Articles for tag: Jerry Harris

February 25, 2019

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

Our Move to Not-for-Profit

By Jerry Harris It happened quietly in 2018. The owner of Christian Standard and The Lookout took on not-for-profit status for the first time ever. For about 150 years, the magazines were guided by Standard Publishing, which did business like most of the working world . . . as a for-profit. The company encouraged churches to buy and pass out their magazines for free and to purchase their books and other helps for teaching. That system endured for years, even as the business was bought and sold four times. Then, in early 2017, a church-centric organization purchased the magazines, and

January 29, 2019

Jesus’ Ability to Transform

By Jerry Harris I walked into the quiet room where a mom and dad sat stunned. Their only son, Mark, a boy of about 5, had been playing T-ball and complained he was having trouble seeing the ball. His mother took him to an eye doctor thinking he might need glasses. The concern on the face of the optometrist was obvious when he referred them immediately to Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. Further tests revealed a very serious brain tumor. I sat with mom and dad as doctor after doctor came into the little room to report ever graver

January 3, 2019

Culture & Public Square Race

Christian Standard Interview with Fred Gray: Preacher, Lawyer, and Civil Rights Warrior

By Jerry Harris HE’S A QUIET southern gentlemen, but he wields the law like a warrior. He is fueled with a deep conviction to his calling in life. Though he is nearly 88, his recall of facts and names is instantaneous. He is friendly . . . able to distinguish lines that separate the arena of ideas from the God-given value of every human being with whom he comes in contact. He’s among the last remaining champions of the earliest days of the civil rights movement; he is the one who brought the heavy weight of the law to bear

January 3, 2019

Christian Living

Heroes

By Jerry Harris What are heroes? Heroes are people who stand up against insurmountable odds with little or no hope of success. They are people who refuse to give up, even when it’s contrary to the warnings of friends, loved ones, and common sense. They are people who don’t think about how they’ll be remembered, but take action in the moment because they feel the rightness of a cause . . . and the necessity of it. They risk it all for that one chance, that impossible opportunity to make the difference. They are selfless in that moment of

December 1, 2018

Christmas at the Movies: The Ghosts of Christmas

By Jerry Harris Besides the actual Christmas story from the Bible, one could argue that the most significant written expression of Christmas is A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. It’s actually an unlikely story about Christmas. The nightmarish tale features ghosts who haunt a cold-hearted moneylender, making it wholly different from the circumstances of a conventional Christmas. It’s a story about a miserly man who is the master of his own destiny—a curmudgeon with money, position, and reputation. It’s also a story of that same man alone, isolated, dried up, and hateful . . . a man dismissive of his

October 22, 2018

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

Big Changes in Our Magazines

By Jerry Harris “The Times They Are A-Changin’” was the title of a 1964 Bob Dylan song addressing his belief in a need for social justice. If you were 16 when that song was released, you’re 70 years old today. In 1964, Christian Standard, The Lookout, and Standard Publishing were the gold standard for Christian education, leadership, and discipleship. Two years later, in 1966, the little entity that started in Cleveland, Ohio, celebrated 100 years in business; by then it was a major company housed in a factory with 7 acres under roof and hundreds of employees. That was before

October 21, 2018

Christian Living

An Enduring Faith

By Jerry Harris I’ve been praying. I’m writing this on Labor Day weekend—our submissions to the magazine are made well in advance of the printing and posting dates—and recently I’ve been praying for Babs Johnson, hospitalized and in a coma after a serious brain aneurysm a couple of weeks ago. I’ve gotten to know Babs through her husband, Russell, a man with a seemingly inexhaustible supply of goodwill and incredible passion for the church. I asked Russell to write an article about his grandfather, iconic missionary J. Russell Morse—his namesake—for this issue, and he was happy to do so. He

September 30, 2018

The NACC: Celebrating Our Wins . . . and Starting an Inspiring New Season

By Jerry Harris The 2018 North American Christian Convention was held where it started 91 years ago, in Indianapolis. This year’s president, Drew Sherman, his team, and the NACC staff pulled together an amazing experience with inspiring speakers, incredible worship, and great accommodations. As usual at “the connecting place,” I engaged in countless conversations with like-minded leaders in our tribe, something for which the NACC is known. Some of those conversations were powerful to me. Leadership Huddles were a new addition; these ministry intensives and roundtable discussions drilled down into real issues leaders face every day in ministry. Volunteers from

September 30, 2018

Thank-You!

(This is a sidebar to Jerry Harris’s October 2018 Letter from the Publisher: “The NACC: Celebrating Our Wins . . . and Starting an Inspiring New Season”) By Jerry Harris Seventy-seven names. As one scans them, a history of the modern independent Christian church forms. These men strove to hold together in unity an independent movement while, at the same time, cherishing its individuality. They worked hard to inspire a movement of healthy, growing churches. They had their own ministries, but they generously gave their time, talent, and treasure to advance a tribe and cause in which they believed.

September 22, 2018

Christian Standard

Christmas Article on Hold as Authorities Investigate Editor’s Illness

Christian Standard editor Michael C. Mack was confined to bed rest after taking ill while reading Caleb Kaltenbach’s Christmas article that extrapolates Christian principles from the holiday classic movie, A Christmas Story. “I don’t know what happened,” Mack said, blinking his eyes rapidly but unable to focus on anything. “I think Caleb may have somehow shot my eyes out . . . figuratively, of course.” “The article is actually quite mesmerizing,” said Mack. “I had read through it once and was starting a second pass when a strange feeling came over me. I tried to stand to get a coffee

September 19, 2018

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

Raiders of the (Almost) Lost Artifacts

History preserved at new Christian Standard Media Library in Quincy, Illinois By Jerry Harris I lacked only a fedora and bullwhip as I channeled Indiana Jones during the excavation of a deep, dark storage-facility locker in a suburb of Cincinnati. Three others joined this expedition: Mike Mack, Shawn McMullen, and Jim Nieman. And no, we didn’t discover the Ark of the Covenant or the Holy Grail that day. In fact, upon first glance, the room seemed filled only with stacks of boxes on pallets, along with totes and other various objects, some wrapped in paper. But we soon began to

September 9, 2018

Christian Living

Two Minutes till Midnight

By Jerry Harris It was a beautiful Saturday morning in Hawaii when, at 8:07 on January 13, 2018, push notifications were sent to all cell phones and mobile devices, and television and radio stations across the state activated the Emergency Alert System. The message was clear: “BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.” Some people were just stepping into the shower. Others were on a morning commute. Many were enjoying breakfast with their families. Some people knew that they had about 12 minutes till impact. Some parents removed manhole covers and ushered their

August 11, 2018

Culture & Public Square Technology

Is Online Church Really Church? Absolutely.

IN THE ARENA: In the arena of ideas and opinions, there needs to be a place for Christ-centered and Christ-honoring debate of nonessential issues. We will occasionally feature a debate like this in Christian Standard. Jon Weatherly’s article “How to Debate Debatable Issues” gives great insight on how to disagree in a godly way. We apply the principles Jon describes in our first debate between Jerry Harris and Barry Cameron (click here to read his article). These two men are great friends who have differing views and opinions about online church. Read their articles and then tell us what you

August 11, 2018

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Technology

Is Online Church Really Church? In a Word, No.

IN THE ARENA: In the arena of ideas and opinions, there needs to be a place for Christ-centered and Christ-honoring debate of nonessential issues. We will occasionally feature a debate like this in Christian Standard. Jon Weatherly’s article “How to Debate Debatable Issues” gives great insight on how to disagree in a godly way. We apply the principles Jon describes in our first debate between Jerry Harris (click here to read his article) and Barry Cameron. These two men are great friends who have differing views and opinions about online church. Read their articles and then tell us what you

August 11, 2018

Church & Ministry Community Outreach

Reaching Out to the Homeless and Hurting in Hollywood, Florida

God pulled a neighborhood kid with a rough upbringing out of that life into a new one at Hope Church of Christ By Jerry Harris “Jehovah-jireh means, ‘in the mountain it shall be seen.’ You have to climb the mountain first,” says Alvin Daniels, senior minister of Hope Church of Christ in Hollywood, Florida. “It will take power, effort, and strength to get to the top. But once you’re up there, God will provide the vision for which you had to go up there in the first place. You can’t see it from the foot of the mountain.” Daniels wasn’t

July 27, 2018

Church & Ministry Youth & Children's Ministry

Youth Ministry 180

By Jerry Harris I remember the way youth ministry used to be. (Yes, I’m one of those guys.) It was a time when adults wanted to create a space for young people so they wouldn’t be bored in the adult service. Back then, church services didn’t connect to students. The deacons, wearing suits and ties, marched in and sat in the front row while the preacher took his place behind the pulpit. The organ would drone an instrumental call to worship until the song leader instructed the congregation to stand, then he would beat out 3/4 or 4/4 time with

July 4, 2018

Restoration Movement History

A Brief History of Restoration Movement Media and Christian Standard Media

Compiled by Shawn McMullen Christian Standard and The Lookout have a rich history within the Restoration Movement. Christian Standard was first published in 1866; The Lookout was first published as the Young People’s Standard in 1888 and changed to its current name in 1894. Under the umbrella of Standard Publishing, the magazines served Christian churches and churches of Christ across the United States and around the world for a century and a half. Ownership and leadership have changed through the years, but the purpose of the publications has remained the same—to strengthen churches and their leaders through biblical teaching and the promotion of the Restoration

June 21, 2018

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Is the Independent Christian Church Taking Ground?

By Jerry Harris Is the independent Christian church taking ground? That depends on how you measure it. One could measure it by the weekly attendance of affiliated churches, because numerical growth is probably the most common measurement of “taking ground.” By this type of measurement, independent Christian churches are advancing like never before. Our churches fill the lists of Outreach magazine’s largest and fastest-growing churches. Kent Fillinger’s study in our May issue (“Special Church Report Part 1: Megachurches and Emerging Megachurches”) indicates we are building, baptizing, and boldly dreaming like never before. Our mission efforts are also gaining ground as we

June 16, 2018

Biographies Restoration Movement History

Cam Huxford: A Portrait of Faithfulness

By Jerry Harris What is faithfulness? Where does it come from? What builds and strengthens it? What sustains it over time? While all church leaders would like to be described as faithful, for many it’s an elusive target. That’s why it’s important to know the story of Thomas Campbell Huxford—or just Cam—and his wife, Sarah. Their life and ministry together have been an incredible living illustration of faithfulness. Faithfulness Begets Faithfulness Cam grew up in a small Christian church in a town of less than 500 in coastal South Carolina. His father, also named Thomas Campbell Huxford as was his

June 3, 2018

The North American Christian Convention: What’s Next?

By Jerry Harris Some of us have heard a massive shift is coming to the North American Christian Convention that will make it unrecognizable compared to gatherings of years past. While the 2019 convention will see some changes, in many ways it will focus on the fundamentals upon which the NACC was founded. I was at a meeting to help plan the NACC’s 92nd-year gathering. I was surrounded by committed leaders of our movement from churches, organizations, and missions. What I heard renewed my excitement for a great future. The mission of the NACC is “. . . to encourage