July 17, 2014
Rick Rusaw thinks about how the “externally focused” concept has matured to make a difference these days in whole communities. He describes the power of neighboring and tells how that’s being lived out where he preaches, LifeBridge Christian Church, Longmont, Colorado. Hear his interview with CHRISTIAN STANDARD editor Mark Taylor here.
March 14, 2014
By Darrel Rowland Which do you perceive as the bigger danger: Christian churches and churches of Christ being overly exclusive and thus missing out on opportunities for real service and growth available by greater interaction with other Christian groups, . . . or brotherhood churches losing their scriptural distinctive, especially on baptism and weekly observance of the Lord”s Supper, by interacting with other Christian groups? Bob Russell, Retired minister, Louisville, Kentucky Twenty-five years ago I would have answered that the greater danger was that we were too exclusive””we isolated ourselves too much. Today I think the greater danger is we
March 14, 2014
By Darrel Rowland Churches across the country are shedding denominational names, and well-known Evangelical leaders, such as Francis Chan, are expressing the importance of biblical baptism. Are the heirs to the Restoration Movement headed in the other direction? “I find that denominational preachers are really finding an interest in our doctrine and our stand,” says Ben Merold, minister-at-large with Harvester Christian Church in St. Charles, Missouri. “At about the time they”re kind of coming our way, we”re not making much of our doctrine and our Restoration Movement stand.” Victor Knowles, founder of Peace On Earth Ministries, remarked, “It is more
March 13, 2014
By Darrel Rowland Most of us love this old Restoration Movement slogan: “We are not the only Christians, but Christians only.” But Christian leaders from across the country contacted by CHRISTIAN STANDARD all wrestle with big-picture questions about what overarching principles flow from the adage. Most generally agree with Bob Russell, retired senior minister of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, about what to do when invited to attend or speak at an event outside the immediate fellowship. “I will go anywhere as long as I”m not restricted in what I can say or my presence doesn”t leave the impression
July 12, 2012
By Mark A. Taylor Meet Tyrone Benson, minister with the  Pontoon Beach (Illinois) Christian Church, not far from St. Louis Missouri. Tyrone graduated from St. Louis Christian College this spring, and this is his first ministry. This is his first North American Christian Convention too. He’s at the event in Orlando, Florida, this year because of convention president Rick Rusaw’s idea to honor new ministry graduates at a special service during the convention’s closing session Friday morning. Tyrone is one of several dozen such ministers who will be singled out then. I can’t imagine a candidate more deserving of our
July 10, 2012
By Mark A. Taylor “We”re inviting you to be refreshed by our amazing God,” said Tim Foot as he opened the first worship gathering of the 2012 North American Christian Convention in Orlando, Florida, Tuesday evening, July 10. Several thousand had gathered at the Marriott Orlando World Center Resort in two expansive ballrooms that had been turned into a worship center. The worship was heartfelt and substantive. Foot”s team augmented their music with creative video that portrayed the spirit and the message of each song we sang. The music was a comfortable mix of newer and older worship choruses, highlighted
June 22, 2012
By Jennifer Johnson The North American Christian Convention will live-stream each of its main sessions during this summer”s event scheduled for July 10-13 in Orlando, FL. The broadcasts will be free and will include music and worship as well as the sermon from each service. Viewers logging in for the broadcasts will also be able to take notes online and live chat with other viewers via Facebook and Twitter. All broadcasts will be in English, but a multilanguage electronic Bible will be available on-screen for easy reference. The complete schedule of speakers and broadcast times is below. Advertising space
March 7, 2012
By Brian Mavis Rick Rusaw has served as the lead pastor at LifeBridge Christian Church in Longmont, Colorado, since 1991. He is the cofounder of Externally Focused Network, and coauthor of Externally Focused Church, Externally Focused Life, and Externally Focused Quest. Here he answers questions from people like you about this summer”s North American Christian Convention. I contacted 15 different church leaders from around the country and asked them to send me one question they would like to ask you about this year”s convention. Several asked, “How would attending the NACC help me grow as a minister?” RUSAW: The theme
March 6, 2012
By Jennifer Taylor Some leaders attend conferences to hear just one or two of these speakers; at the 2012 NACC you can learn from them all! Mark Scott, exposition and leadership pastor at Mountainview Community Christian Church (Highlands Ranch, Colorado), will kick off the week with his Tuesday night message, “Come, Be Refreshed.” He is a popular author and speaker and former professor at Ozark Christian College (Joplin, Missouri). On Wednesday morning the main session will feature Jerry Taylor from Abilene (Texas) Christian University. Taylor teaches Bible classes at the university and is also one of the organizers of the
September 27, 2011
 By Mark A. Taylor To a casual observer, the North American Christian Convention president”s job may look easy and fun. He gets to make many decisions about the convention program, including the speakers and the lead musicians. In the year before the convention, he is introduced as president before audiences everywhere. Once the convention begins, he flits from one session to another, encouraging leaders and speakers and bringing words of greeting. He has the honor of preaching at the convention”s opening session. But anyone who”s worked behind the scenes at the NACC sees the burden the president takes on. For
By Brad Dupray Leonard Wymore served as convention director of the North American Christian Convention from 1964 to 1986. His expertise in leading such a large venture was developed in his organizing of National Christian Education Conventions for Standard Publishing, beginning in 1956. When the NACC”s Convention Committee asked him to become convention director, their purpose was to combine the forces of the two conventions in order to broaden the appeal of the NACC. Leonard is a graduate of Manhattan (Kansas) Christian College. He and his wife of 63 years, Thelma, attend Hopwood Christian Church in Milligan College, Tennessee. How
By Krista Petty, Eric Swanson, and Rick Rusaw Just a few years ago, a Google search for “externally focused church” found nothing. But today that search yields tens of thousand of references. What does it mean to be externally focused? In their book The Externally Focused Church, Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson offer this description: Externally focused churches are inwardly strong but outwardly focused. They integrate good deeds and good news into the life of the church. They value impact and influence in the community more than attendance. They seek to be salt, light, and leaven in the community. They
April 30, 2008
By Mark A. Taylor Decades ago I had the delight of getting to know W.F. Lown during his years as president of Manhattan (Kansas) Christian College. Brother Lown was talking about handling criticism. “As long as I”m receiving attacks from both the left and the right,” he said, “I figure my positions are just about exactly where they need to be.” It”s dangerous to quote out of context, and I must admit I don”t remember anything else from this conversation. But, maybe because I hated to receive criticism (I haven”t learned to love it yet!), his comment has never left
July 8, 2007
By Matthew Thibeau “Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not.” Those words, found in the King James Version of Jeremiah 50, are significant for two reasons. They meant much to those who first heard them: God is warning his people to flee the nation of Babylon and the doom that is about to come upon it. The pagan idols will be destroyed. The divided nation, “the people of Israel and the people of Judah together will go in tears to seek the Lord their God.” They will return to Jerusalem to
By Mark A. Taylor The North American Christian Convention meets in Kansas City in just a couple of weeks. Standard Publishing is pleased to help sponsor this one-of-a-kind connecting place””it”s a unique opportunity to fellowship with Christians from around the world and share with them in a week of inspiration, worship, and learning. It”s not too late for you to make your plans to attend at least a day of the convention, July 3-6. Get all the information you need at www.nacctheconnectingplace.org. Meanwhile, we want to tell you about some special events and experiences Standard Publishing is hosting. We hope
February 4, 2007
By Dan Scates The great leap of faith for any multisite church is the decision to try DVD or video preaching. It feels like you are taking the church skydiving with blinders on. Live preaching has long been a central part of our worship experience, so it is not surprising DVD preaching would bring forth gut reactions and unspoken assumptions. Will people merely watch rather than engage? Isn”t the preacher essential to the health and growth of the congregation? What about the potential for technical difficulties? DVD preaching challenges our presuppositions about excellent worship and church life. Who wants to
May 3, 2006
By Mark A. Taylor We met at a church leaders conference in the heartland of our movement. The two men were elders at a rural church with a weekly attendance average below 30. They were looking for a minister. As we chatted, they told me they pay their preacher $24,000 per year. “The last minister asked if he could drive a school bus to supplement his income,” one of them said. “We agreed, as long as it didn’t interfere with his work for the church.” As I read this week’s issue of CHRISTIAN STANDARD, I wondered if those two elders
April 26, 2006
By Mark A. Taylor It’s one thing for a publishing company to find good manuscripts, produce attractive books, and throw them at the local church with an invitation to buy. It’s something quite different to start with effective local church leaders and partner with them to publish tried and true resources to help other congregations fulfill their mission. The first approach is not wrong. Sometimes it’s the best a publisher can do. But the second approach, tried far too seldom, is far more effective. Here at Standard Publishing, it’s the direction we want to go. Two new releases to be
March 22, 2006
By Mark A. Taylor Tom Ellsworth says most people must receive a barrage of promotion before they realize the facts about something new. “I have learned through years of ministry that the church must print, project, publish, and promote its agenda heavily to be successful,” he told me. “A special program needs to be announced from the pulpit, advertised in church publications, posted to the church Web site, flashed on the big screen, and talked about in general conversation to ensure congregational “˜buy-in.” Doing it once or twice won”t cut it. It is only when we as staff are tired of
July 3, 2005
After a 20-month RV journey visiting churches nationwide, LeRoy Lawson reports on a surprising revival among independent Christian churches—highlighting megachurch growth, church plants, stronger leadership, deeper community service, and renewed missionary zeal.
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