Lincoln Christian University shared a lengthy post on Facebook about their plans to continue the Lincoln Bible Institute even after LCU closes at the end of May. . . . Also briefs from Milligan University, Delta (Colo.) Christian Church, Financial Planning Ministry, and obituary information for Jonathon Roy Stedman.
October 4, 2023
RiverTree Christian Church in Northeastern Ohio formally opened its eighth regional campus on Sunday. The new campus is in Canton, Ohio. . . . Plus briefs from Point University, Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan, Exponential, and more. . . .
November 16, 2022
Milligan University recognized the achievements of numerous alumni and friends during its annual “Celebrate Milligan” dinner, including Roger Babik, the founder of Master Provisions. Also briefs about a Church Planter Boot Camp, John Maurice, and more.
January 26, 2022
News briefs from NewThing, IDES, Milligan University, the Missouri Christian Convention, Christian Financial Resources, and more.
Tony Johnson has been called to serve as the new senior pastor of 2|42 Community Church, a multisite church of about 10,000 with locations in seven southeast and central Michigan cities and suburban towns.
The speaker lineup for the 2021 SpireConference is announced; High Hill Christian Camp is undergoing expansion; plus other briefs.
December 30, 2020
Jim Applegate, 54, pastor for 21 years of Westview Christian Church in Campbellsburg, Ind., died of COVID-19 on Dec. 20, followed by virus-related deaths of his mother (12 hours later), and his sister (on Christmas Eve). “The thing that’s keeping me going is . . . hope in Jesus because I know where they’re at,” Nicholas Applegate, the pastor’s son and WCC’s youth pastor, told WHAS11.com. “The first few weeks in December our community had seen a lot of COVID cases, especially here in our church family.” In addition to the death of his father, Nicholas Applegate’s grandmother, Pat Applegate,
Is online church really church? That question has bounced around church circles for years as more of American life takes place over the internet. Churches and pastors have been all over the spectrum—from all-in to logged out. The conversation persisted right up to the COVID-19 pandemic. A couple of Christian magazine covers from March 2020 help tell the story. The central theme of Christian Standard’s March print edition featured a robust discussion about the benefits of online church. The cover featured Rusty George of Real Life Church in Valencia, California, who said, “Church is engagement . . . with the
April 16, 2020
By Jim Nieman David Dummitt, the founding and lead pastor of 2|42 Community Church in Michigan, has been named the new senior pastor of Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois. “I’m so excited to become a part of the Willow family,” Dummitt said in a video posted by Willow Creek. “For the last 15 years my family and I have had the privilege of launching and leading 2|42 Community Church in southeast Michigan. And over these last few months we’ve sensed God leading us to come and be a part of what he’s doing in and through Willow.
January 8, 2020
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
December 31, 2019
By Jerry Harris The January issue of Christian Standard focuses on the business side of church. Leaders make decisions every day about spending, staff, volunteers, fundraising, organizational structure, leader development, staff and volunteer education, debt, facility management, marketing, media, and online presence. Yet, despite all of that, it is rather amazing how little most church leaders know about business, finance, real estate, administration, or management. Many mainly rural and small churches are closing daily because they can no longer manage their own existence. Attendance and giving might be dwindling; the churches may no longer be able to pay for a
September 18, 2019
Exponential and Outreach magazine are partnering for “The Church Multiplication Challenge,” and an initial goal of identifying 100 reproducing churches has expanded to 1,000. “We want to see reproduction and multiplication become normative,” Exponential CEO Todd Wilson says in an article at ReproducingChurches.org. “We want to see leaders changing their scorecards as they think differently about what it means to lead successful churches and to build legacies that last.” The response thus far has been encouraging, Wilson says, especially since an attempt several years ago to identify 10 rapidly multiplying churches fell far short. (The research team couldn’t find even
February 2, 2019
By Kent Fillinger A new question on our last annual church survey asked, “Using the scale created by Exponential.org, which of the following best describes your church in 2017?” Level 1: Declining (attendance going down) Level 2: Holding Even (attendance largely unchanged) Level 3: Growing (attendance growth by 5 percent or more) Level 4: Adding/Reproducing (we directly launched another new campus or church plant) Level 5: Multiplying (a campus or church we helped to start has itself become a reproducing church) In Exponential’s e-book Becoming a Level Five Multiplying Church Field Guide, Todd Wilson, Dave Ferguson, and Alan Hirsch provided
October 24, 2018
Eight churches from our fellowship made Outreach magazine’s listing of 100 fastest-growing churches. Those churches include: No. 11: Eastside Christian Church, Anaheim, Calif. (Gene Appel, senior pastor); attendance of 8,665; grew by 21 percent. (Eastside’s logo is pictured above.) No. 12: Crossroads Christian Church, Corona, Calif. (Chuck Booher, senior pastor); 5,617; 24 percent. No. 19: Mountain Christian Church, Joppa, Md. (Ben Cachiaras, lead pastor); 6,118; 19 percent. No. 55: Christ’s Church of the Valley, Peoria, Ariz. (Ashley Wooldridge, senior pastor); 29,025; 7 percent. No. 56: Traders Point Christian Church, Indianapolis (Aaron Brockett, lead pastor); 8,144; 9 percent. No. 75: 2|42
September 15, 2017
Students Equip Toys for Kids with Disabilities Engineering students at Milligan College aren”t content with figuring out how to make things work. They also want to do good for their local community. And so this summer these students gave away two adapted Power Wheels Jeeps to children who cannot move independently. The project was part of a program called “Go Baby Go Appalachia,” overseen by AdaptoPlay, a local nonprofit organization in Johnson City, Tenn. The Jeeps are modified to allow children to use them despite disabilities that make it difficult for them to move. Steering wheels were replaced with joysticks,
August 25, 2017
Singer Overcomes Major Obstacle, Wins Over Harshest of Critics Mandy Harvey, 29, a singer-songwriter (who happens to be deaf) from St. Cloud, Fla., won over the judges””including notorious critic Simon Cowell””when she auditioned on NBC”s America”s Got Talent on June 6. Mandy”s father, Joe Harvey, an associate professor of ministry with Johnson University Florida in Kissimmee, wrote about his daughter in “Mandy”s Story” in the April 2015 issue of Christian Standard. Mandy became deaf during her first (and only) year studying music education at Colorado State University. Joe Harvey accompanied Mandy to the AGT performance and was interviewed as part
June 19, 2017
By Justin Horey and Jennifer Johnson 2|42 Community Church (pronounced “Two Forty-Two”) didn”t mind being a portable church in its early years. In fact, lead pastor David Dummitt liked being portable. He found that the weekly set-up and tear-down made it easy to involve men, who sometimes struggle to find their place in a new church. Moreover, the lack of a building allowed 2|42 to invest more money into ministry and community outreach. During that time, Dummitt said, the number one question he heard from other pastors was, “When are you going to build?” Dummitt and his team didn”t want
June 13, 2017
By Jerry Harris Why is the survival of CHRISTIAN STANDARD so important and what does it offer that other magazines don”t? Other magazines like Relevant, Outreach, and Christianity Today offer lots of good commentary and resourcing for churches and leaders in general, but they represent no actual tribe. CHRISTIAN STANDARD is critical to the Restoration Movement because it serves a vital role unique to us. We are comprised of about 5,300 churches, all autonomous, without any denominational support to hold us together. It”s one of our greatest strengths, but without something connecting us regularly, we can lose much of the potential of
By Michael C. Mack Schedules open up for many teens over the summer months, so take advantage of that by spending unstructured time together. These times of hanging out together, even some one-on-one opportunities, can open doors to deeper spiritual conversations. Jonathan McKee, president of The Source for Youth Ministry (www.thesource4ym.com), gives four simple but effective ideas: 1. Beach Day. Take a group or just a few teens to the beach””whatever a “beach” looks like in your locale””and enjoy the time together. 2. Hike or Bike. Get away from TVs and social media and enjoy a day in God”s creation.
November 22, 2016
New Year”s Eve””January 1: Contact a New Year”s Eve party venue and arrange to offer free rides home. The venue can call or text you when someone needs a ride. (Be sure to take someone with you. Do not go alone.) January 16″”Martin Luther King Day: Plan a day of service in the community to help meet pressing needs. For more information, go to www.nationalservice.gov/mlkday. “”Outreach Magazine, www.outreachmagazine.com
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