October 6, 2025
MEDICINE FOR THE HEART
Consider this time of Communion in our worship service as an opportunity given to revive our spiritual heart. It's a "heart healthy" meal for the spiritual heart.
Articles for tag: Worship Service
September 1, 2023
A Hard Lesson in Hope
By Jerry Harris Some years ago, a church member phoned and asked me to make a hospital call on their distant relative who was dying in the hospital. This relative had a terminal brain tumor and no relationship with Jesus. I had not been invited by the immediate family and so I figured it was going to be a bit awkward. I stepped into the hospital room with complete strangers and introduced myself. I wasn’t greeted warmly. The person in the bed was Benny Robertson, and he appeared to be close to death. He was in a half-seated position and
May 15, 2023
Does Online Church Attendance ‘Count’?
With the rise in online church services, many have different opinions on the acceptability or validity of online church attendance for those with the ability to attend in person. Lifeway Research finds pastors and churchgoers split over the question. But other research projects may provide more clarity on tangible benefits that come exclusively from physical attendance. . . .
Offering as Worship
KCU's president is concerned we are inadvertently deemphasizing the biblical concept of the offering as worship.
February 22, 2020
The Power Room
By Brian Cook Three people gather quietly around a small table. Their bodies hunch forward as their lips move silently. The drone of electrical machinery whirs around them, punctuated only by the soft rustling of Bible pages and the gentle creaking of chairs. The sign on the door says “Power Room.” It is a cramped electrical closet situated on the far side of the stage in our worship center. Our church’s facilities have been updated significantly over the years, but its sturdy mid-century bones can still be seen amid the bulky circuit breakers and snaking wires that inhabit this secluded
July 17, 2018
Church Celebrates Long-Married Couples
By Peggy Park It was a golden day in Lexington, Ky., on June 10, as Tates Creek Christian Church celebrated its annual Wedding Bells Sunday with 83 couples who have been married 50 years or longer. One couple, in fact, has been married 75 years. Ladies received white corsages while the men received boutonnieres, and all of the couples had their pictures taken. The couples were also recognized as a group during the worship service. Additionally, senior minister Tommy Simpson recognized the widows and widowers who would have been married 50 years or more. The church administrator and some members
July 15, 2018
Easter Service Promoted as ‘Unlike Any Other’ Was Actually Just Like Any Other
By Caleb Kaltenbach KANSAS CITY, MO—Easter experiences are still being reported to various Christian magazines and outlets and a common theme is emerging: Some pastors pledged an Easter service like no other, but it turns out these were empty promises. Stan Hanson, pastor of the newly planted Crossways Christian Church, told his congregation: “Don’t miss Easter! Arrive early, bring a friend, and get ready for an experience unlike any other.” Crossways member Tom Harlow offered this critique of the service: “Let’s see. They had a creative opener, more lights, good singing, and a sermon on the resurrection. Pastor Stan also
August 9, 2017
Why Our Church Worshipped on 31 School Campuses Last Sunday
By Michael C. Mack Last Sunday I worshipped with a steel rake and a pair of pruners. I was not alone. At my church, Northeast Christian in Louisville, Kentucky, 2,069 volunteers gathered Sunday morning at 31 local schools to help get them ready for a new school year. Church members showed up with gloves, wheelbarrows, yard tools, paintbrushes, and their various spiritual gifts to work together as the body of Christ. One guy, a farmer, brought his tractor to the school where my wife and I served. We pulled weeds and mulched garden areas, trimmed shrubs, painted lines on parking
July 5, 2016
Prayer for America
By Mark A. Taylor Last Sunday, the day before the Fourth of July, I had the chance to lead worship in my home congregation. While I don”t believe Sunday-morning worship is the place for patriotic rallies (I”ve written about this before), I do believe we should be praying for our country as Christians gathered. So I wrote the following prayer as a responsive reading for the service I led. Maybe it will encourage some readers today. And some might even personalize it to use in their own congregations. Leader: Dear God, as we think about the freedoms, privilege, and possibilities
April 21, 2016
Holy Unintentional
By Jennifer Johnson It all began with a few sandwiches back in 2002. “My wife and I became convicted about whether we really loved poor people,” says Dallas Stamper. “We decided to make sandwiches and give them away to a few people on the beach. We ended up connecting with four homeless men and talking to them for three hours””which surprised them, I think, because they were used to people giving them food and then hurrying away. We asked if we could meet them again the next week, and that was the beginning of People In Need. The second week
May 25, 2012
Beautiful
By Mark A. Taylor “How beautiful is the body of Christ,” sang the children”s choir, standing in perfect rows on risers in the Sunday-morning worship service. The Twila Paris anthem pictures Christ”s perfect hands and feet and heart and eyes””all sacrificed with pain deeper than we fully understand to take care of sin greater than we fully grasp. And then it reminds us that his beautiful body is still alive and active today, whenever “humble hearts give the fruit of pure lives so that others may live.” As the melody echoed in my mind throughout the day, I remembered
February 11, 2012
His Church & Her Church
By Daniel Schantz When my wife and I attend church together, we do not have the same experience at all. When we get back home and start comparing notes, I sometimes wonder if we were even in the same building. The Arrival She: We arrive at the church 30 minutes early. Any later would be unthinkable to my wife, Sharon, who is magnetically drawn to people and needs time to visit with them. Like a hummingbird foraging flowers, she moves from friend to friend, gathering newsy nectar and sharing the supernatural achievements of her grandchildren. At the same time,
Church Youth Bring the Blessings
This past Sunday churchgoers received some great food and a special blessing. After the worship service, the youth group at River Hill Church of Christ (Monongahela, PA) surprised the congregation with a pancake breakfast. “As we took our seats, the youth asked us to sit quietly and remember Jesus” example of service when he washed the disciples” feet,” the church shares. “Then they made their way around the room and washed our hands and prayed for each of us individually. . . . They had [also] written a personal letter to every person at the breakfast, thanking us for our
January 15, 2011
Whatever Happened to the Invitation?
By Mark Atteberry The elders at my church very graciously gave me seven weeks off, a kind of mini-sabbatical. It was during the summer and my wife and I had a trip planned anyway, so we laid out a plan to visit a different church every weekend. We chose a mixture of large and small churches, city and rural churches, and Restoration Movement and denominational churches from Florida to the mountain west. Overall, it was a positive experience. We heard some fine sermons, met some nice people, and picked up a few good ideas. There was, however, one big surprise
October 20, 2010
Just One Sunday (a Special Emphasis on Nov. 14)
Churches Invited to Pray for Harvest Workers Churches across North America are invited to join the Just One Challenge on November 14, the Sunday before the National Missionary Convention. The emphasis calls congregations to pray Matthew 9:38 and ask the Lord to raise up preachers, missionaries, and other workers for the harvest. Churches are encouraged to make Matthew 9:38 a worship-service prayer emphasis. The Just One Challenge focuses on asking God to raise up new kingdom leaders. Resources and ideas are available through the Just One Challenge website. Imagine what could happen if every church in North America began to
July 11, 2010
When Is a Worship Service Not a Worship Service?
John Sloper examines biblical words for worship and reminds readers that true worship requires humility, submission, and a heart bowed before the majesty of God.
September 30, 2009
Tell Us About Your Celebration!
Churches planning Great Communion celebrations are encouraged to move forward, even if October 4 is too soon, and to use the observance as a step toward visible Christian unity.
How to Communicate with Excellence
Tony Jeary shares practical guidance for Christians who want to communicate with clarity, confidence, and purpose in small groups, classes, worship settings, and everyday conversations.
November 30, 2005
Let Us Know About Your Church’s 9/11 Plans
Churches plan special observances for September 11, and CHRISTIAN STANDARD invites readers to share what their congregations are doing and what meaningful moments occur in services, including one example from First Christian Church & Academy.
