Articles for tag: Southeast Christian Church

May 7, 2014

Christian Standard

Megachurches Break New Ground

By Kent Fillinger The annual survey of attendance and trends in the fellowship of Christian churches and churches of Christ always yields interesting facts, but our study for calendar year 2013 also identified three notable “firsts”: “¢ For the first time, three churches averaged more than 20,000 in weekly worship attendance. Joining Southeast Christian Church, Louisville, Kentucky, and Central Christian Church, Henderson, Nevada, both of which surpassed 20,000 for the third consecutive year, was Christ”s Church of the Valley, Peoria, Arizona. “¢ For the first time in the 18-year history of this list, Southeast Christian did not have the highest

March 25, 2014

Mark A. Taylor

Just Enough Scaffolding

By Mark A. Taylor “We all seemed to be on the same page,” Bob Russell wrote me after last week”s Beyond the Standard BlogTalkRadio program. “Maybe that made for boring listening, but it makes for a stronger brotherhood!” His comment sowed a new thought for me. Should I be looking for opposing points of view among the guests who appear on these monthly programs? For this episode, could I have found Christian leaders to disagree with “We”re not the only Christians, but we are Christians only”? Maybe. At least one comment about CHRISTIAN STANDARD”s March issue, devoted to that centuries-old

March 13, 2014

Christian Standard

The Christians Only Challenge

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

February 13, 2014

Christian Standard

Southeast Christian Church Tells ‘The Story’

By Brent Adams When one of the largest megachurches in America wanted to celebrate its 50th anniversary, leaders decided there was no better way than to point people to the message of the Bible.  In summer 2011, the elders and staff at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, started planning for the church”s 50th anniversary celebration, to be held the following year. They wanted to come up with something that would deflect attention away from the rapidly growing congregation and focus, instead, on the God who has blessed the church since its humble beginnings in the basement of a tiny

January 20, 2014

Christian Standard

Interview with Steve Dye

By Paul Boatman Steve Dye, a 17-year veteran of deaf ministry and former deaf minister at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, is a freelance evangelist for the deaf, working in conferences, workshops, revivals, and other church programs, for the encouragement of deaf ministry. (The interview was interpreted by Amy Truman of the Deaf Institute.)   How did you become interested in deaf ministry? I did not know sign language until I married my wife. She is also deaf and had to be my interpreter all the time. As I learned to communicate through sign, I began to realize many

August 5, 2013

Christian Standard

Victorious! — A Review of the 2013 NACC

By Darrel Rowland The woman who can never stand up got a standing ovation simply for guiding her wheelchair onto the stage. Why did the entire hall of thousands of Christians rise to applaud Joni Eareckson Tada””an honor given to no other speaker during this year”s North American Christian Convention in Louisville, Kentucky””even before she uttered a syllable? Perhaps because her life embodies the theme of the 2013 gathering: “Victorious.” Convention President Matt Proctor”s decision to spend July 9-12 plowing through the book of Revelation may have generated skepticism beforehand, but the reaction afterward was overwhelmingly positive. “I think this is

July 7, 2013

Christian Standard

40 Under 40: Kyle Idleman

KYLE IDLEMAN Teaching pastor,  Southeast Christian Church,  Louisville, Kentucky Kyle Idleman is a young man with some amazing talents. His influence is widespread both within and outside our fellowship of Christian churches. I am blessed to get to share the preaching responsibilities at Southeast Christian with Kyle. His preaching feeds and inspires. His first book, Not a Fan, became a best seller and his new release, Gods at War, is encouraging thousands of readers. Although his preaching ability along with his writing and video teachings are what most people note about Kyle, I am even more appreciative of his unswerving

June 14, 2013

Christian Standard

A Lesson in Christian Separation, Engagement

By Jennifer Johnson In 2005, three former PayPal employees launched YouTube. Today more than 800 million people, 70 percent of whom live outside the United States, visit the site each month to watch more than 4 billion hours of its free content. People also upload 72 hours of footage every minute, making YouTube the site for video sharing. In 2007, four investors launched GodTube. It grew quickly to almost 3 million users before dropping to 690,000 in 2009. The site was rebranded as a social network named Tangle, and it was acquired by Salem Communications a year later. In his

March 17, 2013

Christian Standard

A Global Partnership

By Keith Keeran Commonwealth International University was conceived in 1992 as a partnership between Kentucky Christian University and Crimean College in Simferopol, Ukraine. Under the leadership of its current president, Dr. Georges P. Carillet, and its original founder, Dr. Keith P. Keeran, CIU continues to serve the purposes of God for the benefit of the Ukrainian people and other least-reached and underserved people groups throughout the world. Since the beginning, CIU has been faithful to its mission to educate students for meaningful careers while introducing them to the fundamentals of the Christian faith, equipping them to be servant-leaders in the

January 27, 2013

Christian Standard

Get in the Game! Why I Love Volunteers!

By Eugene DePorter While visiting a church recently, I heard a young preacher say, “I hate volunteers.” It shocked and distracted me so much I wasn”t able to grasp what he was trying to communicate. In my 26 years of ministry at Southeast Christian Church, Louisville, Kentucky, I have depended greatly on the faithful, unselfish efforts of volunteers. They have contributed to helping many people know Jesus, and I will always be grateful for their impact. Most churches appreciate the value of volunteers, but recruiting these servants is a continual challenge. Jesus told his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but

October 23, 2012

Christian Standard

Interview with Kyle Idleman

By Paul Boatman Kyle Idleman, as teaching pastor of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, wrote Not a Fan (Zondervan, 2011), a book that has gained wide circulation among Evangelical Christians.   Kyle, what possessed you to write a book? It came out of my personal journey. In Not a Fan, I detail a personal transformation moment when I sat in our sanctuary before Easter, thinking about how to have a message that would be attractive to the thousands who will fill the room like a big stadium. A conviction came over me: All too easily the church could be a

July 18, 2012

Christian Standard

Their Questions, Your Answers with These Two New Titles

By Mark A. Taylor Questions are good. We can welcome questions when they come from a person with honest doubt. Most people we”ll meet with questions about our faith are not at peace with their uncertainty. They want answers. They want time to ponder our conclusions and the reasons we believe. But sometimes Christians are threatened when confronted by questions from folks who don”t believe in God, can”t accept the Bible, or consider Jesus as nothing more than a great teacher. Sometimes Christians take the questions as a personal attack. Sometimes we react with anger or derision because we don”t

July 13, 2012

Christian Standard

How Shall We Face the Future?

By Mark A. Taylor “Refreshed in the Future” was Bob Russell’s sermon topic at the closing session of the North American Christian Convention in Orlando, Florida, Friday morning, July 13. And even though he’s a little skeptical about predicting the future, he observed that “one sure way to get attention” is to try. But in spite of future predictions that have not come true (By the 21st century we will will have colonies on the moon) and those that have (Automobiles will be guided by satellite systems), he reminded us of one thing we do know: American culture is growing

June 6, 2012

Christian Standard

What About Southeast?

By Darrel Rowland A renowned church leader wonders if Bob Russell stayed a little too long at Southeast Christian Church. The rapid growth of the megachurch in Louisville, Kentucky, plateaued a bit in Russell”s final two years there””he stepped down in June 2006″”and successor Dave Stone”s first two. Russell seemed a little slow to move to a multisite model, which in the past few years has sparked renewed growth to nearly 21,000 a week meeting in three facilities. And, frankly, near the end of his 40-year run at Southeast, Russell didn”t show as much energy as he did before. Who

May 29, 2012

Christian Standard

Cross Creek: Facing the Challenge of Change

By Kent E. Fillinger Leading a 68-year-old, multigenerational church in a small Southern town presents a unique set of challenges. Cross Creek Christian Church, located in rural Georgia, takes pride in its history, and its members often find comfort in maintaining the status quo. On the other hand, senior minister Rick Evans is committed to gently challenging people to move beyond their comfort zones to help the church be more effective in reaching its community for Christ. Prior to coming to Cross Creek in 2002, Rick served as a senior minister at a small church for six years. He also

May 23, 2012

Christian Standard

A Church Anyone Can Come To

By Kent E. Fillinger What does it mean to be a church anyone can come to? This question drives Caleb Kaltenbach and Valley View Christian Church in Dallas, Texas. Kaltenbach fully understands it is messy to reach people who would make most Christians feel uncomfortable. When Kaltenbach arrived at Valley View two years ago, it was a predominantly white, fairly traditional, established church that had experienced its share of ups and downs. In short, it was like many other churches across the country. Now Valley View is the place of worship for homosexual couples who walk through the church lobby

March 23, 2012

Christian Standard

To End, to Follow, to Believe

By LeRoy Lawson Necessary Endings: The Employees, Businesses, and Relationships that All of Us Have to Give Up in Order to Move Forward Henry Cloud New York: Harper Business, 2010 Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus Kyle Idleman Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011 Hannah”s Child: A Theologian”s Memoir Stanley Hauerwas Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2010 Not long ago a friend urged me to read Henry Cloud”s Necessary Endings. It has inspired and instructed him, he said, because as he leads his megachurch into its next phase of growth, he knows he faces some very difficult decisions.

December 21, 2011

Christian Standard

Bethlehem: Inspired by a Preacher”s Renewal

By Bob Russell Phillips Brooks was nearly burned out. The man many regarded as the most inspirational preacher of his time had lost his fervor and couldn”t seem to recover. He requested and was granted a sabbatical from the church and took a trip to the Holy Land. On Christmas Eve in Jerusalem, he and a couple of friends mounted horses and took off riding. It was a wonderful, life-changing afternoon for him. He prayed and spent time alone with God. At dusk, when the first stars came out, he rode into the tiny village of Bethlehem. The town had

December 1, 2011

Christian Standard

Sowing the Seed

By Bob Russell My mother loved the Bible and was determined to pass along her passion for God”s Word to her six children. Some of my fondest memories of early childhood are of my mother prompting me to memorize Scripture so I could get a star on the chart in my Sunday school classroom. She was wise enough to know that Scriptures memorized in youth stay with us and guide us for a lifetime. The second Bible verse I memorized (which was embedded in my mind right behind John 3:16) was Psalm 119:11: “Thy word have I hid in my

September 26, 2011

Christian Standard

Protestors at the NACC: “˜Where the Action Is”

By Darrel Rowland “We’re not out here to turn people to Christ.” So said one of six sign-toting demonstrators (including two children) from Westboro Baptist Church, Topeka, Kansas, who protested outside the North American Christian Convention for about an hour July 7. A woman with an NACC name tag was asking the female protestor about Jesus’ love and whether they thought their message would turn gays and others to Christ. But the protestor said gays are “in the pit”—and, in fact, so was the NACC attender because she had cut her hair, in violation of 1 Corinthians 11. As the

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