January 12, 2026
David Faust urges churches to live their mission statements and core values—not just display them. Grounded in faith, hope, and love (1 Corinthians 13:13) and Israel’s daily manna, he calls for fresh, daily obedience.
August 18, 2025
I often tell parents that there is a great opportunity for spiritual growth and development as students enter into the university.
January 8, 2024
These Discovery Questions are for use with this week’s Lookout Bible Lesson, “I AM the Good Shepherd” (John 10:1-18), by Mark Scott.
Spiritual disciplines, by themselves, do not bring about the spiritual transformation God seeks in our hearts.
Pastors in Restoration Movement churches quit at an alarming rate. According to research from the Christian Church Leadership Network, 70 percent of Bible college graduates in the Restoration Movement leave pastoral ministry within the first 10 years.* That means 7 out of 10 current Bible college students called to pastoral ministry in this movement probably will not last a decade. How might we better develop and grow healthy leaders? In what ways might we support the leaders we already have so they last a lifetime in ministry? The future of our movement and the health of our churches is at
January 1, 2022
They were turning off the lights and beginning to lock the doors after worship at church this past Sunday. The crowd stuck around longer than usual because, well, I’m not really sure why, but I know it’s a sign of healthy and growing churches, so I was not upset. Anyway, my niece, Carter, knocked on the office door where I help count the offering so she could say goodbye before she made a trip with her parents to the next town over. “Bye, Mimi. I just really miss you,” she said. “Well, Bug, why don’t I come along so we
May 1, 2021
As elders we also measure what matters. What should be important to us? What should we be measuring?
January 11, 2021
The practice of faith is always public and private. If the practice of faith is only public, then it is hypocritical. If the practice of faith is only private, then we miss the community aspect of it.
January 11, 2021
Study Questions for Groups — In what ways are a person’s motives important to how they practice their faith?
October 24, 2020
It’s ironic I’m writing an article instructing others on how to find peace. I have recently struggled with anxiety—a deep restlessness in my soul that sleep could not satisfy. I have been so tired. And the pandemic hasn’t helped at all. I was worrying about minor things too often—stuff I couldn’t change. It’s not that I don’t know how to find peace, I was simply not practicing what I preach. But all that changed one Wednesday morning. Here is what I learned about finding true peace. Step 1: Do not use Google to research health issues! It started one Saturday.
October 24, 2020
Leslie sat in the dorm lobby on her Christian college campus thinking about the last question on the get-to-know-you survey she and the rest of the girls in her dorm were completing. Her sophomore year had just begun, and Leslie had been considering where God was leading her. The last question asked, “What is something you have dreamed of doing?” She scribbled her answer in the blank: “missions in Europe.” Leslie Hall had been learning about the decline of Christianity in Europe, and she wondered what God might be doing there. “I guess God paid attention to what I wrote,”
May 29, 2019
By Jim Nieman A new book by Shawn McMullen, editor of The Lookout, seeks to explain the importance of holy living and help people nurture a deeper relationship with God. McMullen titled his book Coming Home to Holiness, though he admits holiness isn’t a popular topic today. “The concept of holiness is routinely misrepresented and misunderstood in our culture,” McMullen says, “to the point that many people today are turned off by the mere mention of the word.” “I think this is why some sincere Christians, with all their love and service and devotion, still feel incomplete—like something is missing
March 2, 2018
By Emily Drayne A missionary gets to live in a new place, explore new locales, try new foods, have cross-cultural experiences, and more. What’s not to love? They live the same life, just in a different location—right? No! A million times no. The amount of planning, prayerful consideration, financial preparation, and training that goes into becoming a full-time missionary is staggering. Missionaries undergo months of training to prepare for something that one must experience to truly understand. They need a lot of self-discipline, hard work, and faith to make that leap. The Need for Spiritual Disciplines Some people
February 23, 2018
By Jerry Harris As the publisher of both Christian Standard and The Lookout, I have been tasked with reimagining the magazines and what they are supposed to accomplish. Christian Standard is primarily focused on ministry from a leadership perspective, so I know that leaders are primarily reading this. You are the decision makers, the ones with the sacred responsibility of caring for the flock of God. Like me, you want to have the very best tools at your disposal, and so providing you with the best tools is our goal at Christian Standard. We want to leverage the power that
December 26, 2017
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,
February 27, 2017
By Michael C. Mack As sailing is a partnership between man and nature, spiritual growth is a collaborative effort between you and God. The term for Spirit is the same for that of wind in both the Old and New Testaments. The Holy Spirit is the wind that provides the driving force of all spiritual growth. You cannot bring about spiritual growth in your own life or the lives of those you lead, but neither are you a passive bystander. As the Holy Spirit moves, you must become engaged in that driving force. As a small group leader or teacher,
January 20, 2017
By Jennifer Johnson Christian leaders often try to “fill the well” by reading, praying, resting, and spending time with God, and they talk about “leading out of the overflow” of a life that”s replenished by these activities. This type of spiritual development is about much more than sermon preparation, and it”s vital to strong leadership at churches of every size. J.K. Jones, pastor of spiritual formation at Eastview Christian Church in Normal, Illinois; Kelly Kastens, worship arts pastor at Mountain Christian Church in Joppa, Maryland; and Glen Schneiders, lead pastor at Crossroads Christian Church in Lexington, Kentucky, each play a
November 24, 2016
By Mark A. Taylor As American Christians celebrate Thanksgiving Day, there’s a good chance we may miss the greatest value in saying thanks. Typically, our lists of “reasons I’m thankful” include relationships or opportunities or experiences or possessions. All these are appropriate, but listing what we have unfortunately often only prompts us to remember what we lack. “¢ We probably start our thanksgiving inventory with “family.” But quickly most of us also think of arguments, misunderstandings, or more serious breaches that are part of most family histories. “¢ We might be thankful for our ministries. But many church leaders privately
September 26, 2016
By Neal Windham I recently took six college students to a state park not far from my home for an afternoon of prayer. It was a dreary spring day. Intermittent rain showers soaked our plans, cooled the air, and beckoned us to drier conditions after we toured the park. So we went to a Dairy Queen””you can always pray at a Dairy Queen””where we celebrated Abbey”s birthday over Blizzards and swapped some great stories. On the drive home, students began to sing. One of them asked if I had a request. “Sure,” I said, “How about something from The Sound
July 25, 2016
Joe Grana talks about spiritual disciplines and how it is possible for a Christian of any age to continue to grow spiritually. See this interview from the 2016 NACC in Anaheim here.
April 7, 2026
John B. Penrose Jr
April 7, 2026
David Faust
March 27, 2026
Rick Cherok