Articles for tag: Michael C. Mack

Church Life

The Disturbing Truth

By Michael C. Mack “Do Not Disturb.” The unseen sign hung noticeably on Bob and Mary’s heart. The boomer minister had retired and was replaced by a millennial lead pastor. More millennials joined the staff and eldership. The church’s mission statement was reworded and the music updated. The pulpit disappeared as the new guy preached noteless. New signs were added above the doors declaring the vision to reach people “out there.” This month we ask an important question: How can we minister effectively to—and with—multiple generations? Many of our articles this month seek to answer that question. Haydn Shaw tells

April 12, 2018

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Church Statistics: A Healthy Approach

By Michael C. Mack How you view the statistics in this and the next two issues depends on the attitude you decide to take. I suppose you could look at the numbers with a competitive spirit, comparing your figures with those of a nearby church or one in your size category, with envy, suspicion, or snobbery. Some of us might do the same with churches of Bible college friends (and foes), churches where we used to work, or those hip, one-word-name churches—you know, like Vibe, Collage, 24|7, and TheUnpretentiousDeliberatelyIntentionalChurchofAuthenticRelevantChristianCommunity (“Unpretentious” for short). I’d like to suggest two healthier ways to

March 15, 2018

Mission & Evangelism

Go and Tell

By Michael C. Mack I have learned some of the most vital lessons from some of the most unlikely people in Scripture. Mary Magdalene is one of them. A most pivotal day in her life started “while it was still dark” (John 20:1). As she went to the tomb, her life epitomized what our lives would look like without knowing Christ and the power of his resurrection—dark and hopeless. But the resurrection changes everything. A day that began in darkness ended with her radiant proclamation, “I have seen the Lord!” (v. 18). Mary was the first to view the empty

February 22, 2018

Devotionals

The Wrong Number

By Michael C. Mack My life started changing while I was preparing for Christmas in 1987. While I was decorating my apartment, trimming my tree, and wrapping presents to celebrate Jesus’ coming into the world, I realized· he wasn’t really in my world. About that time, I took a class on stress and time management. We were to prioritize our “guiding values,’’ those things in our lives—like job security, financial success, good friends, and faith—that are most important to us. I learned that my leading values were faith and creativity, both of which had little to do with my job

February 15, 2018

In Search of a Happy Ending

By Michael C. Mack and Jim Nieman It was intended as a feel-good story for the October 2017 issue. Managing editor Jim Nieman reported on a son turning his life around, through God’s grace, and returning to his hometown to minister to those who are “down on their luck.” It was a story with a stern warning and a storybook ending. And then everything utterly collapsed. The preacher’s son who had battled years of addiction to opiates during and immediately after high school, and then managed to turn his life around and graduate from Christian college and return to his

January 19, 2018

What Kind of Extremists Will We Be?

By Michael C. Mack “If today’s church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust.” Dr. Martin Luther King wrote these words in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” on April 16, 1963. Now, nearly 55 years later, his words seem prophetic. King’s letter was in response to eight white Alabama clergy members who wrote a letter asking

December 26, 2017

Giving & Fundraising Stewardship & Generosity

Don”t Drop the Ball!

By Michael C. Mack A 2015 research study revealed that small group participants gave an average of $1,886 more per year to their churches than those not in groups. As a small groups guy, that statistic makes me smile. You”re probably not shocked by this finding. It makes sense that the more connected and involved people are in the life of the church, the more buy in they will have to the church”s vision and the more they will tend to give. But I think there”s more to it. LD Campbell, who was senior minister of First Church, Burlington, Kentucky,

December 8, 2017

The Christmas Story Is Our Story

By Michael C. Mack Editors probably shouldn”t have a “favorite” issue. After all, I think every issue of Christian Standard has incredibly well-written stories. However . . . I really love this one! Perhaps it”s because the Christmas season brings out so many sentimental memories for me. Or maybe it”s because this issue has lots of awe-inspiring stories about family. Dave Stone, Kyle Idleman, and Rusty Russell tell stories of how their parents blessed them and their ministries. Joe Harvey shares how he and Val have blessed their daughter Mandy, and how she in turn is blessing them. We have

November 18, 2017

Family & Relationships Parenting

Stand: When You Did Not Receive Your Father”s Blessing

By Michael C. Mack “Stand up if you grew up without a father . . . if you never knew him . . . if he was abusive or inept or spiritually vacant and unavailable . . . even if he was around, but not really there . . . if you knew him but weren”t known by him . . .” I and six other members of my men”s group had traveled to the RCA Dome in Indianapolis for the Promise Keepers conference, joining some 62,000 other men worshipping God and being inspired to live godly lives. On the

October 19, 2017

Mission & Evangelism

A Great Commission for Everyone

By Michael C. Mack As I edited this month”s articles about international missions and ministry, I noticed a trend. Most of our writers either quoted or referred to the Great Commission, namely Matthew 28:18-20, some in the first sentence or two. That makes sense. When we think about taking the gospel into all the world, we naturally think of this primary passage.Â Â I hope this doesn”t sound sacrilegious, but we deleted that Scripture from some of the articles. Why? For one thing, we didn”t want the articles to become redundant, but also, we figure you know this verse well. I”m

September 19, 2017

Common Threads Woven Throughout

This month we focus on the rural church and rural ministry . . . but what exactly is rural, and how are rural areas different from small towns or micropolitan communities? Before you read other stories in this issue, be sure to read “A Salute to Small Towns, Rural Areas, Micropolitan Communities: Our Attempt at a Glossary of Terms.” It takes many threads to weave a beautiful church, and I noticed four prevalent threads in many of the articles this month. And, while this issue is about rural ministry, I think these threads are important regardless of where your church,

September 12, 2017

Don’t Let the Sheep Lead the Flock

By Michael C. Mack God often leads us as his leaders, and thus those we lead, on roads we never planned on traveling. Several months ago, I was leading a training event at a church in Central Illinois. As I left my home near Louisville, Kentucky, I set the route in the maps app on my phone and headed out. About two hours in, the app told me to exit the highway at least 30 miles before my next designated turn. I took the exit and then looked at my phone to see where it was taking me. It looked

August 29, 2017

Church & Ministry Leadership Development

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 9, 2017

Church & Ministry Community Outreach

Why Our Church Worshipped on 31 School Campuses Last Sunday

By Michael C. Mack Last Sunday I worshipped with a steel rake and a pair of pruners. I was not alone. At my church, Northeast Christian in Louisville, Kentucky, 2,069 volunteers gathered Sunday morning at 31 local schools to help get them ready for a new school year. Church members showed up with gloves, wheelbarrows, yard tools, paintbrushes, and their various spiritual gifts to work together as the body of Christ. One guy, a farmer, brought his tractor to the school where my wife and I served. We pulled weeds and mulched garden areas, trimmed shrubs, painted lines on parking

July 25, 2017

Discipleship & Spiritual Formation

Old Dogs Keep Running

By Michael C. Mack Some maxims should never be uttered again, especially by Christian leaders. Like this one: “You can”t teach an old dog new tricks.” I own an old dog, a black Lab named Lainey, and she still is learning new tricks. I figured she was simply smarter than the average dog. My vet, however, told me all older dogs can continue to learn, though it may take more work. Like Lainey, we as individuals and the body of Christ, regardless of age, have the capability to learn new things, be transformed, and do more of what God created

July 12, 2017

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

June 20, 2017

How I Got Here . . . on God”s Path

God knows what we need before we ask him, and he knew I needed Mike Mack. As the new publisher of Christian Standard Media, my first major responsibility was finding a qualified, passionate editor for Christian Standard. The Lord provided a writer, editor, minister, and disciple maker who already had a great relationship with the magazine, and I”m excited to have him tell you a little about his story. “”Jerry Harris _ _ _ By Michael C. Mack God drastically changed my life in 1988. I found Jesus, found a great church, was baptized, lost my job, started seminary, and

June 19, 2017

Are You Truly Leading by (Biblical) Values?

By Michael C. Mack Ken Blanchard, widely known author and management expert, challenges leaders to think about this important question: “Are you truly leading by your values?” Blanchard says he believes “when a company is truly leading by its values, there is only one boss””the values.” As Christian leaders, our values are God-centered and biblically defined. When a church or any other Christian organization is truly leading by its values, we lead according to God”s purposes under his power. These values guide””or should guide””every aspect of church life: how staff members interact with one another, how senior leaders manage, how

June 18, 2017

Christian Standard