Articles for tag: The Solomon Foundation

News Briefs for Sept. 29

Compiled by Jim Nieman Several people who serve with Ozark Christian College and Christ In Youth described the close ties between the school and ministry in a video posted on their respective Facebook pages. Bob Stacy started CIY in 1968 while serving as a professor at Ozark. Through the years, many CIY participants have been inspired to attend OCC. (Many other Christian universities also have reaped a harvest that CIY helped to plant and water.) COVID-19 hit CIY particularly hard, forcing cancellation of all of its summer conferences. The video also serves as an appeal for support for CIY. (We described the

August 15, 2020

Church Life

Finally Moving Forward

5 Strategic Ministry Shifts During the Pandemic Changed Our Perspective By Matt Summerswith Janice Summers Just as the Israelites wandered in the wilderness wondering when they might go back to Egypt, we have found ourselves wondering when we might go back to the way things were just a few months ago. Our wilderness is Joliet, Illinois, in the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic. Joliet is the third-largest city in Illinois, home to 150,000 residents. Some think Joliet is a suburb of Chicago, nestled just outside the sprawling metropolis, but she is her own community. Both cities were founded in

July 22, 2020

News Briefs for July 22

Compiled by Jim Nieman Kentucky Christian University president Terry Allcorn hosts A Restoration Podcast weekly to learn from Christian leaders who are moving the Restoration Movement forward. Among those he has interviewed recently: Matt Wilson of Ekklesia Christian Church in Conway, S.C. (the fastest-growing large church in our most recent survey); Doug Crozier, CEO of The Solomon Foundation; and Douglas Foster, a leading Restoration Movement scholar. _ _ _ Restoration House Ministries’ next church plant—scheduled for 2021—will be Beacon Church in southern New Hampshire. Calvin and Tara Daly are serving as planters. A video about the plant is available at

May 26, 2020

Ministries & Nonprofits Organizations & Events

TSF, CDF, CFR Helping Partner Churches to Weather COVID-19

The three church extension funds that provide loans to independent Christian churches and churches of Christ have been working to accommodate and help their partner churches during the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Solomon Foundation has thus far helped 34 churches secure $8.4 million in SBA Payroll Protection Program forgivable loans through its bank partnerships. TSF also initiated a special program for those unable to obtain PPP funds which has provided grants totaling more than $425,000 to 26 churches and organizations. (TSF and 13 partnering churches provided funds for this endeavor.) Additionally, the TSF Tithe program disbursed

May 17, 2020

Gonzalo Venegas

Biographies Restoration Movement History

My Story . . . from Denomination to Renewed Vision

By Gonzalo Venegas The Restoration Movement is an inviting movement—that’s something I’ve learned firsthand. You see, I didn’t start out in the Restoration Movement. For a long time, my faith experience was limited to having served as an altar boy in the Catholic church. Then I spent time in gangs. (See “My Life Story . . . from Gang Member to Church Planter” from March 2019.) After coming to faith in Michigan, I was discipled, educated, and ordained by the Reformed Church in America. I developed a seemingly unquenchable desire to study God’s Word. I preached many sermons and did

April 16, 2020

Dummitt Named Senior Pastor of Willow Creek

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.

April 1, 2020

Money & Debt Stewardship & Generosity

Churches Are Eligible for Paycheck Protection Program

By Renee Little Churches are eligible for economic relief related to the coronavirus pandemic, and the time to apply is NOW! The Paycheck Protection Program was approved through Congress and signed by the president. Approximately $349 billion in forgivable loans will be given out to small businesses (under 500 employees). Nonprofits, including churches, are included. Now is the time for church leaders to strongly consider whether to seek relief through this program and to take action. Here are the next steps: 1. See this page on the Vanderbloemen website that includes videos and other information providing the most recent updates

March 21, 2020

Ministries & Nonprofits Organizations & Events

TSF Helping Ministers, Churches During Uncertain Times

By Jim Nieman The Solomon Foundation has begun hosting weekly Zoom meetings to help connect, encourage, and resource ministers across the country during these uncertain times. Doug Crozier, CEO of the church extension fund that works with Christian churches and churches of Christ, said TSF is seeking to be proactive during the COVID-19 outbreak and related financial unease by reminding ministry leaders that God remains in control. To that end, TSF connected with almost 120 ministers and/or ministry team callers during the first weekly Zoom meeting it hosted this past Tuesday morning. Among the speakers were former Christian college president

March 19, 2020

Jerry Harris

Devotionals

When Good Gifts Are Wrapped in Ugly Paper: How We Can Be Bright Lights in Dark Circumstances

By Jerry Harris Sometimes our greatest gifts and opportunities come wrapped in ugly paper. With our hearts and lives in distress because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it would be easy to cave in to our fears and get lost in this “lower” story. Consider Joseph in the Old Testament. He had plenty of reasons to give in to selfish emotions, but he instead chose to see his circumstances from a “higher” story point of view. This was Joseph’s attitude: “Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what

February 10, 2020

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

Christian Standard and The Lookout Merge!

For many years, Christian Standard Media has been challenged by steadily declining subscriptions to our print magazines, Christian Standard and The Lookout. The commensurate drop in revenue presented an opportunity for a non-profit ministry to purchase the magazines—and much of our Restoration Movement heritage—from a for-profit company. The change in ownership three years ago preserved the magazines and much of our heritage. Since that time, both Christian Standard and The Lookout have been retooled as we have endeavored to maintain and improve their appearance and content. We thank The Solomon Foundation for being the primary benefactor in this endeavor and

January 8, 2020

'Virtual Prayer Vigil' Saturday for Cincinnati Ministry Education (Plus News Briefs)

The president and trustees of the newly formed Christian Church Leadership Foundation are seeking prayer support this Saturday from those who desire the continuation of Cincinnati ministry education in the wake of the closing of Cincinnati Christian University. The CCLF was created largely through the efforts of Central Christian College of the Bible, Moberly, Mo., and contains the work of what were CCU’s Russell School of Ministry, the Center for Church Leadership, and the George Mark Elliott Library. The 24-hour “virtual prayer vigil” will begin at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. During that day, each member of CCLF’s leadership will pray for

October 30, 2019

Abortion Ethics & Moral Issues

Church Supports Women in Unplanned Pregnancies (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon Oakwood Christian Church in Enid, Okla., has started a support program for young women in unplanned pregnancies. OCC’s local Embrace Grace program was started by Tangee Lee to help young, unwed mothers stay involved in church life, according to the Enid News & Eagle. (The national program was founded in 2012.) “We want to break that stigma that’s been built up in society that the church is judgmental and you have to be perfect to be in church,” Lee told the newspaper. Alan Seibel, associate pastor at OCC, said the program can help

September 24, 2019

Former Standard Publishing Employees Meet for Reunion

On Friday, September 20, about 70 former employees of Standard Publishing and their spouses met to renew friendships and share memories, recalling the years they served together in Christian publishing. The gathering—organized by Sheryl Overstreet, Joann Van Meter, and Elaina Meyers—was held in the Community Room at the Christian Village at Mt. Healthy in Cincinnati, Ohio. The site was selected because of its proximity to the former Standard Publishing plant on Hamilton Avenue in Mt. Healthy. Standard Publishing, in fact, donated the property upon which the village was built in the early 1960s. “What a great evening!” one attendee wrote.

July 22, 2019

Church & Ministry Church Planting

‘You Can’t Do Better Than That’ (Inner City Church of Christ, Baltimore)

By Melissa Wuske “We were in heaven. You couldn’t tell us we weren’t in heaven.” That’s how Eric Lorick recalls the early days of Inner City Church of Christ in Baltimore, which started in January 2014. On Sundays the church would set up for worship—and then tear down—in a rented space in a community center. “[Such] work brings us together as a church family,” he said. From those earliest days, his vision was “to make a difference, to bring hope to the hopeless. . . . You can’t do better than that in a city like Baltimore.” That vision is

July 3, 2019

Church Life

Portsmouth, Ohio, Church Plans for New Worship Center (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Chris Moon Central Church of Christ in Portsmouth, Ohio, is preparing to break ground on a new worship center. The structure will replace the church’s longtime home that was built in 1912 and later expanded. “The building . . . is in really bad shape,” the church explained on its website. The church’s new building will be constructed in the parking lot of the existing structure and will house the church’s worship services. The old building will continue to be used for fellowship activities. The church, which averages about 120, held a groundbreaking ceremony last week. The new

May 22, 2019

Church & Ministry Church Leadership Ministry Training & Education

Daryl Reed: Building Bridges for the Next Generation

By Melissa Wuske “I’m the grandson of a preacher,” says Daryl Reed, “so I always had it in my mind that it’d be cool one day to be a preacher.” When it came time for college, however, “I really didn’t want to go to any preaching school or seminary, because . . . I thought I was still too cool for that,” he laughs. This isn’t a story about youthful overconfidence, though; Reed was following the example of earlier generations of his family, and now he’s helping subsequent generations of young people live it. “My grandfather was a reluctant preacher,”

May 19, 2019

Mark A. Taylor

What Are You Doing Now?

Compiled by Mark A. Taylor _ _ _ Alan Ahlgrim Retired: Founding pastor with Rocky Mountain Christian Church, Niwot, Colorado, March 2013 What are you doing now? Continues to encourage and mentor church leaders. Director of Covenant Groups with the Center for Church Leadership. Thoughts on retirement: âThe best is yet to be for every kingdom leader. I jokingly say if I had known this season would be so fulfilling, I would have started with this first and stuck with it! Iâ™ve traded unrelenting responsibility for a soul-enriching opportunity.â _ _ _ Dick Alexander Retired: Senior minister, LifeSpring Christian Church,

May 18, 2019

Mark A. Taylor

“If You Have a Pulse, You Have a Purpose”

Advice from 14 ministers on finding fulfillment in retirement By Mark A. Taylor We asked Mark Taylor, retired editor of Christian Standard, to contact retired ministers in our movement to ask what they are doing now and share their advice. âRetire to, not from.â Itâ™s a popular recommendation, and more than half of the retired megachurch ministers we interviewed for this piece repeated it. As our summary shows [click here], all of them have followed the advice in one way or another. Their accomplishments and activities include filling guest speaker slots, serving in their local congregation, representing a parachurch ministry,

April 25, 2019