Articles for tag: LifeBridge Christian Church

March 7, 2026

Wes Woodell

Intentional Churches Event

Lap 1: Executive Leader Training + Learning Community

Intentional Churches’ Executive Leadership Training Cohort – Lap 1 is a year-long development experience for executive pastors and church leaders who are either in their first five years of executive leadership or preparing for a future executive role. The cohort includes two and a half days of in-person training, a special group dinner, monthly 90-minute Zoom calls, the Intentional Executive Leader Toolkit, and workbook materials. Lap 1 is built around the 12 Disciplines of an Intentional Executive Leader and is designed to provide practical tools, coaching, and peer collaboration for leaders serving in the complex world of executive ministry.

May 13, 2020

Christian Standard

As Restrictions Ease, Church Leaders Facing Tough Challenges

By Chris Moon As coronavirus-related social-distancing rules are eased and churches crack open the doors to their buildings, they do so knowing many things will be different—some for the worse, but possibly some for the better. Churches will need to figure out how to make the most of the challenges and opportunities. SAME STORM, DIFFERENT BOATS“We’re all in the same storm, but we’re not all in the same boat,” said Rick Rusaw, chief executive officer of the Spire Network and former pastor of LifeBridge Christian Church in Longmont, Colo. Spire has been surveying pastors and church members about their attitudes

January 8, 2020

Christian Standard

WHAT MATTERS MOST: Getting Better at the Two Things Jesus Said Are Most Important

By Rick Rusaw I have lived in Boulder County, Colorado, for nearly 29 years and currently work from an office on Pearl Street in the city of Boulder. Some describe Boulder as 20 square miles surrounded by reality. At times, I would agree. I don’t know of any better location for ministry than a place that embraces spirituality but rejects Christianity. Boulder often is listed as the least religious place in America. That would be true, unless you consider naval gazing, pot smoking, hiking, biking, and running to be nonreligious activities. Boulder is also ranked as one of the healthiest

September 4, 2019

Christian Standard

Spire: What It Is, What It Isn’t . . . and Why

By Chris Moon New things inevitably generate questions. “What is it?” “Why this?” “Why now?” And “why not this other thing?” It’s been no different for the organizers of Spire Network, a digital platform that has set its sights on uniting and equipping pastors within the independent Christian churches and churches of Christ. The network has been working toward its first conference—set for October 8 to 10 in Orlando—and preparing to roll out its online networking platform this fall. In the middle of all of that, organizers are fielding questions about the nature of Spire and what it hopes to

May 21, 2019

Christian Standard

Rusaw Takes on New Challenge

Pastor steps down after 28 year at Longmont, Colorado, church to lead Spire By Chris Moon “I’m not a hugger,” Rick Rusaw told Christian Standard as he was preparing for his last weekend as pastor with LifeBridge Christian Church in Longmont, Colo., “but I’ve been giving out a lifetime’s worth of hugs this week.” Rusaw stepped down Sunday from his 28-year run at LifeBridge and now is focusing his efforts as CEO of Spire Network, the successor organization to the North American Christian Convention. Rusaw started at the church in 1991 after a stint as executive vice president at Cincinnati

November 10, 2018

Christian Standard

More Nondenominationalish News Briefs

Rumors have been flying that Dave Stone and Rick Rusaw are not actually retiring from their senior pastor positions at Southeast Christian Church and LifeBridge Christian Church, respectively, but that they have declared themselves free agents and are making their services available to the highest-bidding churches at no less than 5-year, no-cut contracts with guaranteed money up-front. (Of course, these are just rumors.) _ _ _ Former senior minister Dean Smithy of Austin, Texas, is looking for a new church to serve after elders at Yellow Rose Christian Church told him he can no longer serve at theirs. Smithy and

October 10, 2018

Christian Standard

Successful Horse Auction to Boost Kentucky Church (Plus News Briefs)

Veteran Kentucky horse breeder Beau Lane, 76, experienced his most successful auction in September and Bedford Acres Christian Church in Paris, Ky., will see a financial boost because of it. Bloodhorse.com reported that Lane, who with his wife, Gail, operates 160-acre Woodline Farm in Bourbon County, Ky., promised God that he would donate $100,000 of his auction proceeds on 12 yearlings to the Lord . . . if God blessed him with $1 million in sales. Lane said he was expecting only about $800,000 during the Keeneland September Yearling Sale that concluded Sept. 23. But those 12 yearlings ended up

September 13, 2018

Christian Standard

Rusaw Announces Plans to Step Down from LifeBridge

Rick Rusaw has announced plans to step down as lead pastor of LifeBridge Christian Church, Longmont, Colo., by September 2019, and transition to serving with the Spire network, formerly known as the North American Christian Convention. Rusaw and his wife, Diane, have served in Longmont for 28 years. LifeBridge averaged 3,264 in weekly worship attendance last year. “We knew there would be a time when we would pass the leadership privilege to someone new,” Rusaw wrote in a letter to the church posted at lbcc.org. “Now, as I look to the future of our church’s opportunities and needs, it has

July 29, 2016

Christian Standard

Bless the Hands

By Nancy Karpenske When my family gathers at the dinner table, it is common for the designated prayer person to pray, “Lord, thank you for the hands that prepared this meal.” Those would be my hands they are talking about. Sometimes fixing dinner has taken hours, chopping, mixing, stirring, grating. Occasionally my hands smell like the onion I chopped, or they are scratched from picking raspberries. But quite often my hands have merely pushed the buttons on the microwave or flipped the switch on the Crock-Pot in order to produce a satisfying meal. I like to cook and bake. But

November 2, 2015

Mark A. Taylor

Missions Ministry Toolbox

Interview by Mark A. Taylor We spoke with four local church missions ministers about best practices for missions ministry. Their answers were as inspiring as they were practical. Here are approaches to the local church”s global outreach that build up the church and nourish the workers on foreign fields.  We think every congregation will appreciate the insights and ideas these four shared: PAT CREECH, global outreach pastor for Crossroads Christian Church, Newburgh, Indiana; DREW DEPLER, global outreach pastor at LifeBridge Christian Church, Longmont, Colorado; TYLER HARI, pastor of outreach, Eastview Christian Church, Normal, Illinois; and DAVID THORESEN, director of local and international outreach,

September 1, 2014

Christian Standard

2014 NACC: Offstage

By Darrel Rowland   As with any North American Christian Convention, not all the action was on the main stage. You could mine golden nuggets at every turn. If you found Haydn Shaw”s workshop on the impact of generational differences in the church, you would have heard the sobering observation that people living 35 years longer, on average, is one of God”s most amazing blessings on our time””and millions will go to Hell because of it. Before people started living longer, the next generation would receive the leadership torch because the old folks simply died off. Now, people with power

July 25, 2014

Christian Standard

Right Here, Right Now

By Rick Rusaw (From our series “The Best or Worst Advice I”ve Ever Received.”) I had moved to Fort Myers, Florida, to begin my first ministry in a local church. I was a young man, and I was filled with aspirations, not only for this opportunity, but for other places with other opportunities. It wasn”t that I considered this church to be merely a stepping stone, something to endure until a better situation arose. No, it was a wonderful place with plenty of opportunity. But I also knew that those who do their ministries well are usually offered leadership positions

July 17, 2014

Mark A. Taylor

A Conversation with Rick Rusaw

  Rick Rusaw thinks about how the “externally focused” concept has matured to make a difference these days in whole communities. He describes the power of neighboring and tells how that’s being lived out where he preaches, LifeBridge Christian Church, Longmont, Colorado. Hear his interview with CHRISTIAN STANDARD editor Mark Taylor here.

May 30, 2014

Christian Standard

More Than Medicine

By Nancy Karpenske One little typing error. Instead of Communion meditation, if you hit one wrong key, you type Communion medication. Medication: a substance used to treat, to heal, or cure a disease. Meditation: a process used to focus one”s thought on a particular idea. Communion is a time where we stop to meditate, to focus our thoughts. The Communion emblems, the bread and the juice, are not medicines. Consuming them doesn”t heal you. They do, however, have a therapeutic effect. Touching and tasting the bread and the juice provide a visible reminder to refocus our minds and hearts past

May 23, 2014

Christian Standard

In the Painting

By Nancy Karpenske William E. Barrett”s novel The Shape of Illusion tells a story about a painting. The scene depicted on the canvas is Pilate”s courtyard. Jesus is there, beaten and bloodied. He is surrounded by the angry mob screaming insults and throwing rocks. This fictional painting is no ordinary work of art. It seems that everyone who looks at it finds his or her own face in the raging crowd. Saints, sinners, priests, paupers: all instantly see themselves acting despicably in the gruesome scene. How would you respond if you saw your own likeness in that setting? What if

May 16, 2014

Christian Standard

Time to Recharge the Batteries

Nancy Karpenske Have you ever suddenly been awakened in the middle of the night? You lay in bed, wondering what woke you. About 30 seconds later you have almost fallen back to sleep when it happens again. Your smoke alarm emits that tiny chirping sound. Oh, it”s not detecting smoke””that noise is loud and blaring. Instead, the annoying little chirp is warning you that the battery is losing its power. Wouldn”t it be great if your spiritual life gave you a little warning chirp when your spiritual batteries are losing power? Wouldn”t it be great if you could be just

March 13, 2014

Christian Standard

The Christians Only Challenge

By Darrel Rowland Most of us love this old Restoration Movement slogan: “We are not the only Christians, but Christians only.” But Christian leaders from across the country contacted by CHRISTIAN STANDARD all wrestle with big-picture questions about what overarching principles flow from the adage. Most generally agree with Bob Russell, retired senior minister of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, about what to do when invited to attend or speak at an event outside the immediate fellowship. “I will go anywhere as long as I”m not restricted in what I can say or my presence doesn”t leave the impression

September 27, 2013

Christian Standard

Images of Colorado Flooding

LifeBridge Christian Church staff member Drew Depler, who is coordinating disaster relief efforts for the Longmont, Colorado, church, provided CHRISTIAN STANDARD with a number of photos of flooding near the church, and recovery efforts in and around the church. The photos were taken in the days after the flooding started. A slow-moving cold front that stalled over the state clashed with warm, humid air from the south, producing heavy rain starting September 9, 2013, and ultimately catastrophic flooding. Disasters have been declared in more than a dozen Colorado counties.

September 18, 2013

Christian Standard

Colorado Churches Helping Flood Victims

By Jennifer Johnson Several Christian churches in Colorado have been key in helping victims of the floods that damaged more than 18,000 homes and left many other residents without power and running water.   “¢ LifeBridge Christian Church (Longmont, CO) has served as one of the primary evacuation centers since last Thursday, assisting thousands of people and working with city and county officials as well as leaders from relief organizations. LBCC says it doesn”t need any immediate donations of food, water, or clothing, but will probably need more as rescue turns to recovery. “The LifeBridge site was almost a study

Secret Link