December 7, 2022
Bob and Gretchen DeVoe—founders of Lifeline Christian Mission—have just published "Memoirs of Two Crooked Missionaries." Also briefs from Pioneer Bible Translators, Ozark Christian College, and a retirement at Central Christian College of the Bible.
November 4, 2022
Among the 15,000 Ozark Christian College alumni, Meredith Williams is a legend. During his 46 years at OCC, Meredith wore many hats, including admissions director, alumni director, and many others. Nicknamed “Mr. OCC,” he’s been the college’s single best cheerleader, and when he retired in 2013 at age 73, his ministry didn’t stop. He just moved it to Facebook. . . .
September 17, 2022
On Friday evening, after a long battle with cancer, Jack Cottrell, 84, passed from earth to heaven. Dr. Cottrell was professor of theology at Cincinnati Christian University for 48 years. Throughout his life, Dr. Cottrell enjoyed helping others come to a clearer and more specific understanding of biblical and doctrinal issues . . .
August 10, 2022
Doug Crozier of The Solomon Foundation announced recently that the church extension fund has achieved $1 billion in assets on its way to helping more than 500 churches with facilities in just over 11 years. Also briefs from Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, and New Jersey.
July 1, 2022
By Matt Proctor The movie Apollo 13 tells the true story of astronauts James Lovell, Fred Haise, and John L. “Jack” Swigert. On their way to the moon in April 1970, an explosion left them in a crippled spacecraft 200,000 miles from Earth—low on power, losing cabin heat, flight trajectories off. “Houston, we have a problem.” As John Ortberg relates the story in Everybody’s Normal Till You Get to Know Them, suddenly, these three astronauts needed a community of NASA scientists to save them, and these scientists were not your normal movie heroes—no chiseled good looks or superpowers. They were
March 2, 2022
News from the Preaching-Teaching Convention at Ozark Christian College, CMF International, IDES, Waypoint Church Partners, St. Louis Christian College, and more.
August 4, 2021
Milligan University student-athlete Megan Jastrab won a bronze medal in the Women's Team Pursuit Tuesday as part of the U.S. Women's Cycling team at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. (Plus briefs about the Stone-Campbell Journal, the death of Murray Hollis, and Ozark Christian College's upcoming Branson Conference.)
Briefs about the 10-year anniversary of the deadly Joplin tornado, Passion for Planting, Mid-Atlantic Christian University, Holley Christian Church's 150th anniversary, and more.
Ozark Christian College asked the Mabee Foundation for $760,000 in grant funds to help renovate its Dennis Hall dormitory. The organization countered by offering $1.3 million. There was one catch . . .
February 8, 2021
Etienne Prophete, 81, who co-founded Haitian Christian Mission in 1974 with his wife, Betty, died Friday, Feb. 5. Over the years, the mission has started nearly 60 churches totaling more than 10,000 members. Many of the churches also have schools that serve a total of more than 13,000 children daily. Prophete was a 1974 graduate of Ozark Christian College, which awarded him with the Seth Wilson Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2006. “Since he came to Ozark and returned to his native land, no missionary leader has cast a longer shadow of Christ-honoring influence in Haiti,” said former OCC president Ken
January 5, 2021
Since I first enrolled at Ozark Christian College, Mark Scott has been my kingdom hero, and I’m not the only young preacher Mark has shaped. Over his 35 years at OCC, Mark has inspired generations of students.
June 3, 2020
Christian churches and colleges across the country have called for prayer, dialogue, and reconciliation in response to outrage and demonstrations over George Floyd’s death while in the custody of Minneapolis police on May 25. Among the many examples: • Dudley Rutherford, pastor of Shepherd Church, Porter Ranch, Calif., had a conversation with several leaders in the black community, most of whom attend Shepherd regularly, about topics that included Floyd, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the current state of our country. (View it at the church’s Facebook page.) • A dozen staff members of Crossroads Christian Church, Corona, Calif., spent about
By Chris Moon In his 24 years at Ozark Christian College—10 as a professor and 14 now as president—Matt Proctor has never experienced a spring semester like this one. “We’re all learning,” he said. The university in Joplin, Mo., just finished its first week of being an online-only school amid the campus closures that have affected colleges across the nation during the coronavirus pandemic. Proctor said things haven’t been easy, but they haven’t been overwhelming, either. “I am blessed with an amazing team,” he said. “I have been able to see our team at Ozark just rally together and do
December 11, 2019
Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon Central Christian College of the Bible will host a retirement reception from 1 to 3 p.m. Friday for William Walton, professor emeritus of Christian ministries. Walton began his service with CCCB in 1980 and has served the college in various roles, including as dean of students, vice president of student life, and athletic director. CCCB president David Fincher said he was a high schooler competing in a preaching contest when he first met Walton, and that Walton’s comments that day encouraged Fincher to pursue ministry. “A similar story can be told by thousands
July 3, 2019
(This story was updated July 3 with funeral arrangements for Jace Smothers.) An Ozark Christian College student working with Christ In Youth this summer was killed Friday when a CIY van he was riding in was rear-ended as part of a multiple vehicle accident on Interstate 24 east of Paducah, Ky. The van carried four other CIY MOVE summer event staff members; all were injured. Jace Smothers, 19, who had just completed his first year as a youth ministry major at Ozark, died at the scene. His funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. today (Wednesday) at Norton (Kan.) Christian
May 23, 2019
By Jim Nieman News outlets are reporting that storms and tornadoes injured several people in Carl Junction, Mo., and killed three people in Golden City on Wednesday. Carl Junction is just a few miles north of Joplin, Mo., where Ozark Christian College is located. The storms occurred on the eighth anniversary of tornadoes that killed 161 people in Joplin. Matt Proctor, president of OCC, said, “At the moment, we know of one student’s house in nearby Carl Junction that experienced storm damage (roof damage and blown-out window), but no one was hurt, for which we’re grateful.” Proctor said there is
May 15, 2019
Compiled by Chris Moon and Jim Nieman Lake Springfield Christian Assembly in Chatham, Ill., is learning the power of the penny. The Christian camp has collected a million pennies from 26 churches during the past two months to help generate funds to acquire an additional 2.7 acres of land. The $10,000 in pennies were put on display in a large bin at the camp; they weighed 6,000 pounds. “(The lesson here) is that every penny counts, especially when you’re a 501(c)(3),” camp manager Kerma Yotter told the State Journal-Register. “What’s more amazing, and we see it all the time, is God’s provision through his faithful
April 13, 2019
Christian colleges have been offering numerous opportunities for fellowship and spiritual enrichment throughout the spring. We found some additional activities being offered over the next several weeks that weren’t part of the original list we posted Feb. 6. Below is an updated chronological listing of events yet to happen. “Love Your Story . . . Embrace His Glory,” the Lincoln (Ill.) Christian Women’s Conference, is scheduled for April 24. Featured speakers will include Debbie Strater Sempsrott and Sheila Walsh. Learn more at lincolnchristian.edu. Great Lakes Christian College, Lansing, Mich., will host a Women’s Spring Celebration at 6:30 p.m. April 26.
December 16, 2018
What the Holy Family Teaches Us about Hospitality By Matt Proctor My wife, Katie, has the gift of hospitality. With six kids, our house isn’t always clean, but it’s always open. Katie’s smile, fun red chairs, and paper plates have welcomed hundreds of people. Me? I’m not so good at it. I’m a professional extrovert but a personal introvert. I interact happily with lots of people in my work, but at the end of the day, I want to pull in my driveway, pull up the drawbridge, and enjoy some alone time. Also: I’m not always good at welcoming
September 30, 2018
(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.
April 7, 2026
John B. Penrose Jr
April 7, 2026
David Faust
March 27, 2026
Rick Cherok