September 1, 2021
A Posture, Not a Program
Reaching our worlds with the gospel today demands that we think afresh about outreach.
Articles for tag: Mark A. Taylor
July 28, 2021
David Faust Marks 25 Years of Weekly Column Writing
Today is David Faust’s 25th anniversary of writing a weekly column focusing on God’s Word and Christian faith. On this date—July 28, 1996—Faust’s first column appeared in the pages of The Lookout magazine. "I view writing as an extension of my ministry," Faust says.
Help for a Fledgling Preacher
Twenty years or so after stepping down as editor of Christian Standard, Edwin Hayden penned this reminiscence of four gentlemen who had helped and encouraged him during his career: W.H. Book, P.H. Welshimer, Toyoza W. Nakarai, and W.R. Walker.
April 1, 2021
The Guards at Jesus’ Tomb:
‘Did That Just Happen?’
By Trevor DeVage with Mark A. Taylor My buddy Aaron and I were at our friend Matt’s house. We were 17, Matt’s folks were out of town, and we were bored. Matt’s stepdad’s prize vehicle, a beautiful, brand-new, gold Buick LeSabre, sat in his driveway. “Don’t drive the car unless it’s an emergency” the stepdad had told Matt before he left. “And if it is an emergency, call me, and I’ll tell you where I’ve hidden the keys.” It took us about 10 minutes to find the keys and 5 minutes more to jump into two cars (Aaron was driving
January 27, 2021
Sam E. Stone: ‘A Steel Hand Inside a Velvet Glove’
Mark A. Taylor shares memories of his colleague, teacher, and friend, Sam E. Stone. Sam, who was Christian Standard's longest-serving editor, died on Monday.
February 12, 2020
CCU Faculty, Staff Relief Effort Distributes More Than $54,000
The GoFundMe effort on behalf of Cincinnati Christian University Faculty and Staff has disbursed $54,576 among 28 individuals left without jobs because of the school’s sudden closing last year. Gifts came from 132 individuals and ministries from around the world. Some of the largest gifts came from local congregations and parachurch ministries, including: Milford (Ohio) Christian Church, $1,000; Owensboro (Ky.) Christian Church, $2,500; Northeast Christian Church, Louisville, Ky., $5,000; Bob Russell Ministries, $5,000; SouthBrook Christian Church, Miamisburg, Ohio, $5,000; and Southland Christian Church, Lexington, Ky., $12,500. Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Mo., dedicated its first chapel offering of the second semester
December 18, 2019
CCU Faculty, Staff Relief Fund Started on GoFundMe
Three graduates of Cincinnati Christian University have started a GoFundMe page for CCU faculty and staff who are now in need due to the closing of the university. Former Christian Standard editor Mark A. Taylor, The Lookout editor Shawn McMullen, and Linda Mirante, who serves in ministry with Bachelor Creek Church in Wabash, Ind., started the page Tuesday for CCU workers who are “receiving their last paycheck this week.” The appeal states, “Many of these faithful servants still do not have jobs; at least several are left with no income. With the closing of the school, employees have no severance,
December 9, 2019
Reflections on CCU’s Final Chapel Service
By Mark A. Taylor Thursday morning, at the last chapel service of Cincinnati Christian University, I remembered Cincinnati Bible Seminary chapel services at the old church building in Price Hill 50 years ago when I was a student. Inside, the stone walls and wooden pillars would reverberate with chatter as we gathered twice each week. Then E. Wayne Berry would take his place and the room would fall silent as he called us to worship with a melody played on the room’s majestic pipe organ. Then we would stand to sing. And, oh how we sang! Our voices raised a
June 6, 2019
Whatever Happened to Pentecost Sunday?
All will agree that Pentecost, as described in Acts 2, is foundational to the church. Now, here is an observation (not an accusation): We don’t write or talk about Pentecost as much we used to. It’s true both for our magazine and our churches. The index for Christian Standard’s first 100 years shows there were well over 200 articles about Pentecost published during that time. W.E. Sweeney’s keynote address at the 1929 North American Christian Convention was “The Challenge of Pentecost.” A dozen articles about Pentecost were published during 1930, a year in which the 1,900th anniversary of the birth
May 19, 2019
What Are You Doing Now?
Compiled by Mark A. Taylor _ _ _ Alan Ahlgrim Retired: Founding pastor with Rocky Mountain Christian Church, Niwot, Colorado, March 2013 What are you doing now? Continues to encourage and mentor church leaders. Director of Covenant Groups with the Center for Church Leadership. Thoughts on retirement: âThe best is yet to be for every kingdom leader. I jokingly say if I had known this season would be so fulfilling, I would have started with this first and stuck with it! Iâ™ve traded unrelenting responsibility for a soul-enriching opportunity.â _ _ _ Dick Alexander Retired: Senior minister, LifeSpring Christian Church,
May 18, 2019
“If You Have a Pulse, You Have a Purpose”
Advice from 14 ministers on finding fulfillment in retirement By Mark A. Taylor We asked Mark Taylor, retired editor of Christian Standard, to contact retired ministers in our movement to ask what they are doing now and share their advice. âRetire to, not from.â Itâ™s a popular recommendation, and more than half of the retired megachurch ministers we interviewed for this piece repeated it. As our summary shows [click here], all of them have followed the advice in one way or another. Their accomplishments and activities include filling guest speaker slots, serving in their local congregation, representing a parachurch ministry,
March 25, 2019
Times of Refreshing
By Mark A. Taylor Bob Russell told his blog readers last year that his 12 years of ministry in retirement has been “much more than I could have imagined.” Soon after he retired, Bob began hosting retreats for preaching pastors “to provide encouragement, instruction, and reinforcement.” He had seen so many local church ministers “mistreated by their church leaders and beaten down by their circumstances . . . really discouraged by the constant criticism and overwhelming responsibilities they faced every day.” The response to his concern shows that the need is real. Since the spring of 2006, he has conducted
March 25, 2019
Kindness, Opportunities, Resources, Evangelism
Mark A. Taylor Dennis and Brenda Bratton founded the KORE Foundation after his retirement in 2010 with the goal, as the foundationâ™s website explains, âto provide sustainable solutions to extreme poverty for the people of Haiti.â Taking its name from the Old Testament businessman appointed to distribute generous offerings to those in need (2 Chronicles 31), the foundation adopted an acrostic to explain its mission: Kindness: the touch of Christ in practical ways Opportunities: not a handout, but a way out of poverty Resources: a foothold away from poverty toward self-reliance Evangelism: education and enterprise are transformational tools for the
January 1, 2019
Good Strategies for a New Year
Former editor Mark A. Taylor offered these thoughts two years ago under the headline, “Strategies for a New Year.” At the time, Taylor confessed to sharing similar thoughts a few years earlier. He wrote on Jan. 1, 2017: “. . . I still need to follow my own advice here! So let’s read it together as, once again, we recommit ourselves to faith and ministry at the beginning of a new year.” _ _ _ By Mark A. Taylor Anytime can be the right time for new beginnings, but the transition to a new year seems like a natural. If you’re
September 12, 2018
A California Hindu Discovers Christ Online
By Mark A. Taylor It all started on an airplane. Rajiv Badha was flying home to Fremont, California, sitting beside Nic Chumney who lives in Ohio. Chumney is a member of Christ’s Church in Mason, Ohio. As their conversation continued, talk turned to spiritual matters, and Chumney told Badha about the online campus of Christ’s Church, ccmasonlive.churchonline.org. Badha, who grew up in a Hindu family, decided to check out the congregation’s worship services broadcast live over the Internet every Sunday. But he didn’t log on the first time on a Sunday; instead, he viewed a Sunday service on a Tuesday (Christ’s
July 4, 2018
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
December 21, 2017
The Truth About Christmas
This Christmas editorial from December 25, 2005, was written by Mark A. Taylor, who served as editor of Christian Standard from 2003 until earlier this year. ___ By Mark A. Taylor Because I’m a romantic, I love all the traditions and fun of Christmastime. But this year some national magazine editors don’t seem to share my nostalgic attachment to the holiday. In fact, I wonder if they enjoy Christmas at all, since they’ve printed so much about how simply to survive it. For example, here are warnings contained in just one of my December magazines: “¢ If you don”t handle leftovers properly,
August 29, 2017
Feeling Inadequate for the Task? Good!
By Michael C. Mack In June at the North American Christian Convention in Kansas City, I met Marshall Hayden, retired minister of Worthington (Ohio) Christian Church. We stood in front of our Christian Standard Media booth and talked about his dad, Edwin Hayden, editor from 1957 to 1977, and the newly designed July issue. Like Sam Stone, editor from 1978 to 2003, and Mark Taylor, 2003 to 2017, two men I”ve known and respected for many years, Marshall strongly encouraged me in my new role. These three men””Edwin, Sam, and Mark””and the eight editors before them have left a legacy
August 1, 2017
The Editors: An Inside Scoop
Christian Standard managing editor Jim Nieman reflects on the four editors he has known and worked alongside. By Jim Nieman My transition from newspaper journalist to Christian Standard managing editor came about unexpectedly almost 20 years ago. Three editors of the magazine played roles in making it happen . . . and I am glad they did. Because of my unique perch and perspective, new editor Mike Mack asked me to share my insights into these gentlemen. Edwin V. Hayden I”ve been managing editor for the last three editors of the magazine, but a man I never worked
Giving Honor to an Editor and Friend
By Michael C. Mack I don”t recall what the speaker said, but I”m sure his words were well-spoken and significant. I do remember, however, who that speaker was on that Sunday evening 21 years ago: Mark Taylor, who was at that time publisher at Standard Publishing Company. Mark had already played a key role in my life. When I worked in the New Products department at Standard in the early to mid-“90s, Mark was my boss. When I left to start a web-based small group ministry in 1995, he encouraged me and gave me opportunities to do freelance work, which
