September 19, 2022
September 25 | Discovery
How do we defile what is holy by bringing what is detestable and worldly into our temples?
Articles for tag: Rooted
March 1, 2022
Authentic Community
By Rick Lowry God created every person with a “community gene.” We all have a natural longing to be with other human beings. From an early age, we have known the value of being a member of a group. Everyone grew up in some version of a family, a place where we belonged, living with significant others who helped shape us. We are in community, in groups, every day: the staff team at work, the board or committee on which we serve, the Thursday night Bunko ladies group, the guys who gather to watch NFL games—all small groups that satisfy,
August 22, 2019
No Town Like Hometown (Part 1): Sage Hills Church
By Mel McGowan If you consider your church to be in competition with the church down the street or across town, you might need a missions lesson. And I know of two homegrown, down-to-earth churches in Wenatchee, Washington, that can help. In 1908, a small group of Wenatchee folks planted Sage Hills Church. One hundred years later, in 2008, another small group decided to open Grace City Church just a couple of miles away. When Mike Wilson, senior pastor of Sage Hills, moved to Wenatchee a few years ago, he met senior pastor Josh McPherson of Grace City. They immediately
April 25, 2019
Is Your Church Ready for Generation Z?
By Kent Fillinger It might seem hard to believe, but the millennial generation is approaching middle age! The oldest millennials will turn 38 this year, which means they were entering adulthood before today’s youngest adults were born. Many researchers and demographers are now shifting their attention from millennials to generation Z to learn more about them. Researchers quibble about when the millennial generation ends and generation Z begins—the years range from 1996 to 2002—but a Pew Research Center article from January indicates people in the two age groupings aren’t all that different. Here’s the article’s headline (so judge for yourself):
March 25, 2019
SPOTLIGHT: Compass Christian Church, Chandler, Arizona
Elders, Staff, Discipleship Program, Prayer Culminate in Baptisms By Melissa Wuske Compass Christian Church âhas had a heart for evangelism since day one,â said senior pastor Brian Jobe. But in recent years, the churchâ™s growth has been astoundingâeven in an area crowded with megachurches and in the midst of a culture of church hopping. Jobe said the Greater Phoenix churchâ™s eldership has been crucial to âputting the church in a place to receive Godâ™s blessingâ during his three years thereâincluding a year overlapping with pastor Roger Storms, who had served the church for 29 years and helped instill âmission-mindedness, flexibility,
September 29, 2018
No Small Measure
The statistics from four small-town churches stood out in our 2017 Christian Standard survey. But numbers never tell the whole story. What were the real reasons for their growth in baptisms, attendance, and giving? By Kelly Carr “Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes—how do you measure, measure a year?” These are lyrics from “Seasons of Love,” a song from the Broadway show Rent. Church leaders may find themselves asking the same question when they reflect back on a year of ministry at their church: How do you measure a year or season of ministry? You often measure ministry
