October 6, 2025
Ozark Christian College Receives $1 Million Lilly Grant
Ozark Christian College has been awarded a $1 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to fund Lincoln Seminary's Lifelong Leaders Initiative.
Articles for tag: Lilly Endowment
September 4, 2025
Is It Time for a Rest? Four Experts Weigh in on Chief Questions about Your Sabbatical
We interviewed four experts about how to plan for a sabbatical—from how to have those early conversations with your church leaders to exactly what you ought to do during your time away.
March 12, 2024
Cincinnati Christian Education Developments in the Years Since CCU’s Closure
David Fincher describes efforts to continue Christian education opportunities in the Cincinnati area via the Russell School of Ministry, CCL Network, and Elliott Library since the closure of Cincinnati Christian University at the end of 2019. . . .
October 9, 2023
Lilly Awards Grants to Christian Colleges to Boost Preaching Efforts
Four schools aligned with Christian Churches and Churches of Christ have been awarded grants totaling almost $5 million from the Lilly Endowment’s Compelling Preaching Initiative. Among the schools each receiving more than $1.2 million were Point University, Johnson University, Milligan University, and Central Christian College of the Bible. . . .
October 4, 2022
Emmanuel Partners with Local Churches to Launch Ministry Fellows Program
Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan has created a pathway for students to gain paid ministry experience by partnering with churches in the Johnson City, Tenn., area.
As It Transitions, LCU to Sell Student Apartments, Lease Portion of Campus
Four months after announcing an overhaul of its educational model, Lincoln Christian University now has a contract to sell its student apartments to a private developer and has entered into a 10-year lease agreement with a local church that will use the university’s chapel and athletic facilities.
December 7, 2021
Milligan to Use $1M Lilly Grant for Academic Changes to Seminary
Lilly Endowment Inc. awarded Milligan University a $999,230 grant to review and redesign the academic programs offered through Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan.
April 30, 2021
Emmanuel Awarded Pathways for Tomorrow Grant from Lilly Endowment
A Lilly Endowment grant will support efforts by Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan University in addressing challenges that limit prospective students and underrepresented populations from attending and graduating.
October 19, 2020
Johnson Receives $1 Million Lilly Grant to Help Launch Three Rivers Collaboration
Johnson University has received a $1 million grant from the Lilly Foundation to help establish the Three Rivers Collaboration to guide congregations in the Knoxville, Tenn., area in a process of refining their God-given mission within a changing cultural context. Mark Nelson, a 1987 Johnson graduate who has served as lead pastor of The Crossings in downtown Knoxville, which he planted in 2007, will join Johnson’s staff as executive director of TRC. Nelson’s experience also includes serving 10 years of campus ministry at Purdue University. His wife, Dr. Monica Nelson, leads the pre-nursing program at Johnson. The TRC is funded
December 4, 2019
Three Stories of Hope: The Legacy of Cincinnati Ministry Education
By David Fincher (This article is adapted from comments delivered at the Cincinnati Christian University alumni homecoming on November 9 and at the International Conference on Missions on November 15.) As a graduate of Central Christian College of the Bible, Moberly, Mo., I have long known the influence of Cincinnati upon our Christian churches and colleges. In 1989, I began as a freshman at CCCB. My teachers were primarily graduates of Cincinnati Bible Seminary who quoted their teachers and shared memories of their school. Before I ever visited the Cincinnati campus, I was already grateful for the work of CBS.
November 16, 2019
CCCB’s Plans in Cincinnati Include Maintaining 3 Ministry Assets
Central Christian College of the Bible, Moberly, Mo., which is working toward opening an extension campus in Cincinnati next spring, has announced plans to maintain “three key ministry support services” that have been a part of the soon-to-close Cincinnati Christian University. According to its website, CCCB plans to provide ministry education through the Russell School of Ministry, continue development of a national network of churches through the Center for Church Leadership, and provide library services through the George Mark Elliott Library. The Missouri college is asking for “the [financial] support of Cincinnati constituent friends and church families” to help make
July 22, 2019
Let’s Revitalize Our Urban Churches!
By Michael Bowling I have a confession. I have served two inner-city congregations for a total of 35 years, yet I am no fan of urban ministry. Here’s why. The greatest challenges to healthy church communities that are dynamic witnesses to the redemptive way of Jesus have little to do with urban-specific techniques or new resources. Our challenges in urban, suburban, and rural contexts are the same: faithfulness to biblical discipleship, a theology of the church (ecclesiology) informed by the New Testament pattern, and a God-sized view of salvation. An overemphasis on new and innovative practices of “urban ministry” is
June 19, 2019
Jarvis to Direct Ministry Resource Center at Emmanuel (Plus News Briefs)
Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman Beth Jarvis has been named director of the newly created Ministry Resource Center at Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan. The seminary last year received a $1 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to start a Ministry Resource Center to help place and mentor Emmanuel’s ministry students in local churches. Jarvis is an ordained Christian church minister with years of nonprofit experience. She most recently served as care team coordinator with Christian Missionary Fellowship International in Indianapolis, coordinating pastoral care for 220 missionaries in 25 countries. “We’re delighted to have someone with Jarvis’s depth
November 14, 2018
Lilly Grant to Help Launch Ministry Resource Center at Emmanuel (Plus News Briefs)
Milligan College’s Emmanuel Christian Seminary will establish a Ministry Resource Center thanks to a $999,863 grant from Lilly Endowment’s Thriving in Ministry initiative, which supports religious organizations as they create or strengthen programs that help pastors build relationships with more experienced ministers. The goal is for the experienced ministers to serve as mentors and guide their counterparts through key leadership challenges in congregational ministry. Emmanuel’s Ministry Resource Center will have state-of-the-art tools for placing and supporting its graduates in ministry positions. A placement program is planned that will work with congregations to ensure that an incoming pastor’s gifts and skills
Helping Ministry Leaders Develop Skills, Relationships
By Jennifer Johnson This month, more than a dozen pastors in the Greater Los Angeles area will begin a journey of learning, leadership, and change as Pepperdine University (Malibu, CA) kicks off its second Communitas cohort. The program, which began as part of the Lilly Endowment, is designed to connect senior leaders who have served in ministry for 5 to 10 years and help them develop greater leadership skills; grow in their understanding of significant issues facing their communities; build networks with civic, business, and political leaders throughout the city; and develop strong relationships with each other. “Lilly discovered there
April 24, 2016
Johnson, Lilly Investing in Teens
By Jennifer Johnson Johnson University (Knoxville, TN) is just starting its Future of Hope Institute, but has already been encouraged””and funded””by a $600,000 grant from the Lilly Endowment. The institute is the latest initiative in Johnson”s ongoing work to invest in the Knoxville community. Each summer for the next three years, 30 local high school students will participate in the program, which includes emphasis on spiritual, personal, and professional development. “After a weekend retreat in the mountains, there will be a week of classroom work,” says Dr. Gary David Stratton, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. “We”ll focus
