Christian Standard | June 2018

christian standard

COVER

JUNE 2018

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letter FROM THE

publisher Jerry Harris Publisher | Christian Standard Media

The Restoration Movement has faced critical junctures at least twice in its history.

The first time was after the Civil War. Deep wounds remained as the nation endeavored to reconstruct itself. Death had silenced the great leaders of our movement: Barton Stone in 1844, Thomas Campbell in 1854, John T. Johnson in 1856, Walter Scott in 1861, Alexander Campbell in 1866, and “Raccoon” John Smith in 1868. Division came from many voices that tore at the fabric of the simple principles of unity based in the restoration of the church of the New Testament.

It was into that splintering factionalism that Isaac Errett wrote “Our Position” in 1872. In a short but thorough article, Errett effectively communicated the Restoration plea, its grand adherence to the inerrant truth of God’s Word, and the purity of its New Testament model of church, all while contrasting it with the other religious systems of the day. It wasn’t a creed but a rallying point for the movement at a time C H RIS T I A N STAN DA R D

when it stood on the brink of dissolution. James DeForest Murch declared that Errett and his “Our Position” was responsible for holding the movement together. (See “‘Our Position’ Revisited” on page 38.)

The second time our movement faced the possibility of demise was in the 1920s. In the aftermath of the First World War and a new global realization, voices sprang up from Europe that were heard and followed in America. The concepts of modernism, liberalism (higher criticism), ecumenism, and open membership once again tore at the fabric of Restoration unity.

A growing apostasy created a great controversy, an ideological battle over the plea itself. As Victor Knowles recounted at the 2007 North American Christian Convention, [P. H.] Welshimer put the axe to the root of the tree when he wrote in the Dec. 4, 1926 Christian Standard, “If you remove the authority of Jesus, you destroy the - 2 -

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meaning of baptism. If you eliminate the inspiration and the all-sufficiency of the Scriptures, you take away the meaning and sacredness of baptism. . . . This is a fight for more than an ordinance. It is a fight for loyalty to Jesus Christ and for an appreciation of His authority, the inspiration of His word, and the compliance with stipulated conditions that remission of sins may be granted.”

In response to this emerging denominationalism and liberalism that threatened the movement, a gathering formed to hold onto the precious truths that formed out of the Second Great Awakening. It was called the North American Christian Convention, first held in Indianapolis in 1927.

Knowles recounted 35 Bible colleges forming in the wake of that first NACC, each committed to raising up preachers who would hold to the simple truths of New Testament Christianity.

Many existing Bible colleges held these same convictions, and Christian Standard became a unifying voice. The Restoration Movement was on the brink, and once again, it stayed the course.

Today, we are again at the brink, with a social gospel threatening to replace the ancient one.

Culture is creeping into our ranks, seeking to rewrite our plea in an effort to make it more palatable to the masses. Our desire for unity has blurred the lines that define the beauty of who we are; we face the threat of dissolving into the wider evangelical and denominational landscape with little to no understanding of what we might be sacrificing.

In some ways, we are drunk on our success. The independent Christian church megachurches have been growing in unprecedented ways, some measuring in the tens of thousands. In contrast, many small churches are closing their doors, unable to compete with the opportunities and amenities of the large ones. But as a movement, we are less connected and informed than we have ever been and we’ve grown weaker by the day.

In many ways we reflect the society in which we minister . . . more technologically and socially C H RIS T I A N STAN DA R D

networked than ever before while, at the same time, more isolated and alone. This is not a time to give in to the anonymity of a generic, compromised, one-size-fits-all expression of belief. It’s a time to remember and embrace the beauty of our mottoes, our heritage, and our plea. They are as great today as they were 200 years ago: “No creed but Christ, no book but the Bible, no name but the Divine.”

“Where the Scriptures speak, we speak. Where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent.”

“In essentials, unity; in opinions, liberty; and in all things, love.”

“We do Bible things in Bible ways and call Bible things by Bible names.”

“The New Testament is our only rule of faith and practice.”

“We are Christians only, not the only Christians.”

“The church of Jesus Christ on earth is essentially, intentionally, and constitutionally one.”

“Let Christian unity be our polar star.”

America was a grand experiment, and the framers of our freedom and liberty captured its genius on paper and in policy. Like the nation and our founding fathers, our movement was forged in that same crucible. Today, we live in the results of that American experiment, and those who identify with our movement and its leaders live in the bountiful blessings of their vision. Their desire for unity on these basic beliefs didn’t come cheap. Our unity doesn’t need to be cheap either. Our movement’s founding fathers were on to something great . . . something special. It’s time to embrace it again.

Jerry Harris is publisher of Christian Standard Media and senior pastor of The Crossing, a multisite church located in three states across the Midwest. @_jerryharris

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/jerrydharris

CHRISTIAN STANDARD —

FOUNDED 1866 BY ISAAC ERRETT Devoted to the restoration of New Testament Christianity, its doctrine, its ordinances, and its fruits.

The Staff Jerry Harris, Publisher Michael C. Mack, Editor Jim Nieman, Managing Editor Shawn McMullen, Contributing Editor Megan Kempf, Designer Abby Harris, Designer Renee Little, Operations On the Cover: Christ’s Church of the Valley, Phoenix, Arizona

Subscription Information To order Christian Standard for yourself, your church, or your group, visit christianstandard.com or contact Customer Service. Bulk pricing is available.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

800.543.1353 info@christianstandardmedia.com Volume CLIII. Number 6. Christian Standard (ISSN 0009-5656) is published monthly by Christian Standard Media at 16965 Pine Lane, Suite 202, Parker, CO 80134. Periodicals postage paid at Parker, CO, and additional offices.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®.

Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Christian Standard Media, 16965 Pine Lane, Suite 202, Parker, CO 80134. Phone: 1-800543-1353.

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Christian Standard is published by Christian Standard Media, www.christianstandardmedia.com.

Copyright ©2018 by Christian Standard Media Email: cs@christianstandardmedia.com Website: www.christianstandard.com Printed in USA

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

SPECIAL CHURCH REPORT PART 2: Large and Medium Churches

—

by kent fillinger

I N E V E RY I S S UE CHARTS: 2017 Large and Medium Churches

2-3 | L E TTE R F RO M THE P UB L ISH E R Jerry Harris

FEA T U R E 5 things you need to know about the 5-GENERATION church

6-7 | L E TTE R F RO M THE E DITO R Michael C. Mack

by Haydn Shaw

8-10 | MOVE ME N T

‘Our Position’ REVISITED

Fr o m He r o to He ro Maker David Dummitt

by jerry harris

11-13 | IMAG IN E

you FOUND me

Gra c e City Chur c h: Building a Se ve n-Day-aWe e k Co mmunity Mel McGowan

by Greg Swinney and Beth Swinney INTERGENERATIONAL small groups

14-16 | E 2 : E F F E C TIV E EL D ER S

by jessie clemence

Elde r s Le a ding the Church thr o ugh Pray e r David Roadcup

discipleship for ALL ages

17-19 | H O RIZO N S

Ge ne ra tio ns in Missions Emily Drayne

by rick lowry

32-37 | F E ATURE ARTI CL E

maximize KINGDOM IMPACT through INTERNSHIPS

5 Things Yo u Ne e d to Kno w About the 5 -Ge ne ra tion Church Haydn Shaw

by josh quade the MYTH of christianity’s DECLINE

64-67 | H E ADL INE S Chris Moon

by Glenn t. Stanton

68-69 | N O N DE NO MINA T I ON A L I S H CHRISTIAN STANDARD MEDIA purchases CHRISTIAN CHURCH TODAY

Caleb Kaltenbach

70-71 | IN TE RAC T the NORTH AMERICAN CHRISTIAN CONVENTION. what’s next?

72 | C O MMUN IO N ME D I TA T I ON Sin n e r A n o ny m o u s Gene Shelburne

by jerry harris C H RIS T I A N STAN DA R D

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letter

FROM THE

editor Michael c. Mack Editor | Christian Standard

“Do Not Disturb.” The unseen sign hung noticeably on Bob and Mary’s heart.

things, especially as younger generations step into leadership.

The boomer minister had retired and was replaced by a millennial lead pastor. More millennials joined the staff and eldership. The church’s mission statement was reworded and the music updated. The pulpit disappeared as the new guy preached noteless. New signs were added above the doors declaring the vision to reach people “out there.”

And that’s disturbing many of us.

This month we ask an important question: How can we minister effectively to—and with— multiple generations? Many of our articles this month seek to answer that question. Haydn Shaw tells us that, for the first time in history, we now live with, work with, and share the church with five generations. That’s changing C H RIS T I A N STAN DA R D

This isn’t necessarily about age. “Bob and Mary” represent several couples younger than me who left our church when our boomer founding pastor retired and was replaced by a gifted 29-year-old. Yet, several other friends in their 70s and 80s have not only stayed but fully support our new pastor and the millennial staff, and they love our church. The difference is in perspective. The first group have said things like, “I feel like it’s not my church anymore” (it never was) and “the new leaders are not meeting my needs.” The second group is excited about all the new, young people and love serving our church and community.

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20 years of outstanding dedication and service In February, managing editor Jim Nieman (left) celebrated his 20-year anniversary with Christian Standard. Jim has now worked with three editors: Sam Stone (editor from 1978 to 2003, third from left), Mark Taylor (2003 to 2017, second from left), and me. (See Jim’s article about the editors he has known and worked with, “The Editors: An Inside Scoop,” on our website.)

It’s when God disturbs us that he grows us. He constantly puts opportunities in our paths to count the cost of discipleship in order to pursue growth and fulfill his mission. Each opportunity is a decision point, often a difficult one, for us.

We can stay in our safe and reliable comfort zones or we can trust God to step out into others-first, self-sacrificing service.

We need to be disturbed, and Jesus’ words may do just that: I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God (Revelation 3:1, 2).

If the new millennial staff members or fellow church members are disturbing you, thank God for them! Their unbridled passion for God and for serving “the least of these” may be the wakeup call the church needs.

So let’s take down those figurative “Do Not Disturb” signs that keep us from growth and revival. We—all of us, from all generations and tribes and races—are better together, and we’ll do more together than any of us can do alone.

Lord, disturb us! @michaelcmack @michaelcmack @michaelcmack /AuthorMichaelCMack

move ment

BY DAVID DUMMITT

from hero to hero maker // A Game Changer for the Church In February I attended the Exponential conference in Orlando. It was a great week of connecting with other church leaders and church planters from all over the world.

This year’s conference theme was “Hero Maker,” based on Dave Ferguson and Warren Bird’s new book by the same name. I had the opportunity to facilitate workshops alongside of Dave, Warren, and others as we talked about a shift in practices that we as leaders must make in order to carry out the Great Commission: moving from being heroes to being hero makers. This message is a game changer for the church.

David Dummitt is the lead pastor and planter of 2|42 Community Church in Michigan, one of the largest and fastestgrowing churches in the country. He is also on the lead team of NewThing, a catalyst for reproducing churches worldwide. /DavidDummitt

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The message of Jesus flipped the world on its head. Many of his teachings are counterintuitive and require paradigm shifts: The last will be first. The greatest person is the least. The leader is the servant. Life comes through death.

And the real hero is the person raising and releasing other leaders, the hero maker.

Jesus modeled hero making throughout his life. He invested strategically and intentionally in twelve men and then sent them out to do likewise. Yes, he taught crowds. Yes, he ministered to thousands. But it was those twelve that Jesus equipped and empowered with his message, his authority, and his practice.

The truth is that my natural desire is to be the hero. Most of us want to be “the guy.” But that mind-set is the very thing that gets in the way of us actually winning for the kingdom.

So, instead, let’s follow the way of Jesus and strive to develop others to be the heroes.

Here are the five practices of hero makers:

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Hero Makers Practice Multiplication Thinking

Addition is good. But multiplication is better.

When we shift our mind-set from being the hero—from striving to maximize ministry through our personal efforts—to developing others, we fuel multiplication and maximize the reach of the gospel. Effective ministry happens through developing and releasing other people.

We should leverage our positions to invest in others who will invest in others, and so on. There is only one of me, but if I develop five people who each develop five more people, then we are talking exponential multiplication.

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Hero Makers Practice Permission Giving

As a lead pastor, I have authority over my church. I can choose to hang onto that authority, or I can choose to look for the potential in others and empower them by giving them permission to lead.

Jesus modeled this type of leadership. He had all of the authority, and then he gave it away to his disciples. He charged them to feed the crowds, heal the sick, and baptize in his name.

Jesus was secure in his identity and authority, and he celebrated that his disciples would do even greater things than he did (John 14:12).

Dave Ferguson puts it this way, “Ask yourself, ‘How can I affirm [others] and give them permission to go far beyond their wildest dreams?’” Hero making starts by affirming people through what we call “ICNU” conversations. This is just an abbreviated way of saying, “I see in you.” This is a conversation where we intentionally notice and call out the potential we see in other people. As hero makers, we become great noticers of what God can do through others, and we look for opportunities to say, “I see _____ in you.”

Maybe it’s a gift or the way you see God using someone. Look for it and speak it to the person.

Then practice leading with a yes. Give permission to people to grow and step out to lead. This can be uncomfortable. Permission giving can strike a few nerves: losing control, rejection, or someone passing us up in influence and authority. But if we want to lead like Jesus, we will speak to people’s potential and give them opportunities and permission to lead.

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Hero Makers Practice Disciple Multiplying

Hero making isn’t job training, it is cultivating lasting relationships with spiritual sons and daughters. It is sharing wisdom, experience, and expertise with the people we are developing. But hero making is also sharing our lives—showing up for celebrations and for crises. It is walking side by side through the ups and the downs as an influencer, adviser, and leader. Then it is launching people out to be hero makers for others.

At 2|42, we use the 5 Steps of Apprenticeship to help intentionally multiply disciples: 1. I do. You watch. We talk.

2. I do. You help. We talk.

3. You do. I help. We talk.

4. You do. I watch. We talk.

5. You do. Someone else watches.

We should be investing in others in such a way that they are equipped to do what we do, and then release them to innovate and take things to new levels while also becoming hero makers to others. But once we have sent out our apprentices, we remain in relationship as influential leaders in their lives.

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Hero Makers Practice Gift Activating

One of the most powerful and profound moments of Exponential every year is the commissioning of leaders who are stepping out to plant more churches. Hundreds of leaders come forward to be prayed over and sent out.

This commissioning is the fourth practice of hero makers. Ferguson calls this a “shift in blessing.” We shift from asking God to bless the gifts he has given us, to also asking God to bless the gifts he has given to others.

Gift activating can be as simple as placing your hands on your apprentice’s shoulder when they are ready to launch out on their own, praying over them, and intentionally sending them. It is a clear demarcation that our apprentice is ready to “go.”

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5

Hero Makers Practice Kingdom Building

Making a shift from being the hero to being a hero maker requires practicing a new way of counting . . . to using kingdom numbers to define a “win.”

We need to measure what really matters, and to do that we have to adjust our scorecards.

Instead of measuring only head counts and dollars, hero makers also measure kingdom impact through two simple metrics: • The number of people you are currently apprenticing • The total number of apprentices you and your apprentices have ever developed and released The first number is usually a handful or so. The second number should grow exponentially as your “graduated” leaders reproduce more leaders who reproduce more leaders.

That’s legacy. That’s playing the long game to win. That is kingdom building.

As I look ahead to the rest of my life, I want to be less about the size of my church and more about how many heroes I can make of other people and seeing them have great impact for the kingdom. If we as church leaders make this strategic shift, I am convinced we are going to experience bigger kingdom wins than we ever could have imagined possible in our lifetimes.  - 10 -

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imag ine

BY MEL MCGO WAN

grace city church // Building a Seven-Day-a-Week Community

Mel McGowan is cofounder and chief creative principal of PlainJoe Studios. He is a leading master planner and designer of churches in America.

Imagine if, instead of building a church campus, a church developed the new town center for its community—a place that would serve people both inside and outside the church seven days a week, drawing the community together for generations to come.

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@visioneer /visioneer

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Dreams of a Father and Son

This is the vision of Grace City Church in Wenatchee, Washington, a church in the heart of an agricultural community more than two hours east of Seattle.

Located just east of the majestic Cascade Range, Wenatchee sits on the shore of the Columbia River and is home to a unique, entrepreneurial-minded community.

Lead pastor Josh McPherson leads Grace City’s vision to build a thriving new campus that will harness the entrepreneurial spirit of Wenatchee’s people, draw families in for recreation and education, and introduce the unchurched to Jesus. The church is known for its thriving partnerships with the broader community and believes it is perfectly positioned to make a lifechanging impact through these plans.

“Our hope and dream for this property is that people are going to come here, ideas are going to come here, and those people and ideas are going to converge,” McPherson says. “And they’re going to enjoy the present and enjoy each other even as they dream about building the future.”

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When McPherson’s father, Greg, was a young man, he left behind the family business and a dream of building a fisherman’s retreat in his Idaho hometown to dedicate his life to ministry. Following in his father’s footsteps, McPherson left a career in the corporate world to plant Grace City with his wife, Sharon, in 2008. What they originally anticipated to be a small gathering swelled to more than 1,000 over the next few years until the congregation moved into their current location in the Numerica Performing Arts Center in downtown Wenatchee.

But McPherson had bigger dreams for Grace City and Wenatchee. I was enlisted to help develop the master plan for Grace City’s new site, a property at the confluence of two rivers. During the planning process, McPherson shared a photo of a similar property: a site in Idaho also at the confluence of two rivers—the land upon which his father had once planned to build his retreat.

A father had once dreamed of helping vacationers rest and reconnect with one another. Now, his son dreams of something similar: a place where people find rest in Jesus and connection with him. From there, those rejuvenated spirits would share the good news of the Spirit who offers peace from the anxiety and stress of a broken world for generations to come.

Church Designed for Community

Because the new Grace City campus will be on property located outside the downtown core, McPherson and his team decided it needed to be a blessing to the community at large—something outside the common large-church paradigm . . . something that would be accessible seven days per week.

“We refused to build inside the old paradigm: a member-only club, open one day per week,” McPherson says. “[We thought], what if we came together and leveraged our resources and combined our generosity to build something that could be received by our community as a gift?”

My team designed and developed a master plan for Grace City that will function as a mixed-use, collaborative campus that will house both for-profit businesses and nonprofits. The heart of the campus will be a co-working space named The Intersection Co-Lab, where entrepreneurial-minded locals, - 12 -

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- IMAGINE start-ups, freelancers, small businesses, and large enterprises can interact and work alongside one another as they grow. Also planned for this space is a Mela Coffee Roasting Company location, a specialty coffee purveyor based in downtown Wenatchee.

The Grace City Event Center will adjoin The Intersection, with multiuse capacity for groups of 50 to 1,000. Rather than being what I call a “multi-useless gymnatorium,” the venue is carefully designed with a balance of stewardship, intentionality, and excellence. We can reinvent the room based on the experience because it’s all about the technology and the magic of the soundstage.

A children’s ministry area called Grace Town will house dynamic learning and activity spaces that will function beyond Sunday school.

“We want to have a space in which we can allow our kids to grow up, explore, learn, but not just one day a week,” McPherson says. “So our dream for this is to build it so it works for Grace Kids, but then repurpose it all week long for an academic space and a daycare.”

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Nurturing a Heritage of Faith

Grace Town, like the rest of Grace City’s campus, will pay homage to the Wenatchee area and its agricultural heritage. The Spatial Storytelling will celebrate people and place, and really dig into the way God uses his creations to sustain us. The gospel can also be woven into the agricultural heritage of the valley. Jesus thought agriculture was a helpful metaphor for how the kingdom of Heaven spreads from one person to the next: Plant a seed, grow the kingdom from that seed, and produce ripples that carry forward into future generations.

Also planned for the campus are areas called The Landing and Story Tower, where members of the community can overlook Wenatchee, the Columbia River, the Cascade Range, and the picturesque orchards that are a signature feature of the region. A traditional wedding chapel, a courtyard designed for a variety of community events, and a fitness center will also be located at Grace City.

An added benefit of the co-working space, business incubator, wedding chapel, event center, fitness center, and daycare is that these portions of the facility will have independent sources of revenue and won’t necessarily depend on being fully funded by Sunday offerings.

“We’re a highly entrepreneurial, highly innovative church,” McPherson says. “Business, innovation, entrepreneurs, collaboration—these are values that come from being made in the image of God.” Beyond stewarding their talents and values, Grace City aims to nurture and pass on their heritage of faith to the surrounding community first, and then the world.

“Where we come from gives us perspective on where we’re going,” McPherson says. “God’s given us a heritage of faith to steward and care for.” 

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e 2:

ef f ec tive elde rs

BY DAVID ROADCUP

ELDERS LEADING THE CHURCH THROUGH PRAYER An elder’s job description includes numerous responsibilities. Teaching, managing, leading a small group, attending meetings, listening, and making decisions fill an elder’s time.

Two of the most important responsibilities an elder can fulfill are in modeling a life of prayer and leading his church in a powerful, impacting, and continuing prayer experience.

Prayer is the greatest untapped source of power in the life of the church today. God calls his leaders to prayer. It is important that the church leadership team—paid staff and elders—be in constant contact with our Father.

David Roadcup is cofounder and outreach director for e2. He also serves as professor of discipleship and global outreach representative with TCM International Institute.

He is also on the board of directors of Christian Arabic Services.

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In warfare, every military battlefield commander knows the importance of communicating with his leaders in the field.

No marriage can be successful without quality communication. It is the life’s blood of a strong relationship. When it comes to elders and our heavenly Father, God expects his leadership team to communicate with him constantly. Too much is at stake for it to be otherwise: the salvation of lost souls, and the nurture and maturation of those who are part of our eternal family.

God desperately needs church leaders who understand this. They must be men of the Spirit, men of humility and supplication, leaders who are willing to grow in and through prayer so the church can be empowered by the Holy Spirit to fulfill its mission.

E.M. Bound made this point in his book Power Through Prayer: What the church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy Spirit can use—men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Spirit does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men—men of prayer. . . . The church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men.

Here is the request: Will you, as a team, lead your church to new levels of impact through leading your church in a major, continuous prayer effort?

If the staff and elders do not lead this effort, it probably will never happen.

This must be done through two elements: (1) your personal prayer discipline and (2) finding ways to mobilize your church in prayer.

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Develop the Discipline of Personal Prayer

An effective elder or paid staff member must first work to develop the prayer discipline in his own spiritual walk. Leadership requires prioritizing, personal discipline, scheduling, and focus. We all have multiple duties and important responsibilities. We must ask ourselves: Of all the important things I must accomplish today, which are the most important? We must find time for prayer in our daily schedules. It is absolutely critical!

It could be early in the morning, before our family awakes, or maybe later in the day.

Deciding on a time is key! If we do not plan on a time for meeting with our heavenly Father, it’s unlikely to occur.

I met with a church leader friend who was struggling with finding time to pray. He had started a new business. He had four very active small children who awoke at 6 a.m. each day. He usually did not get home from work until 6 or 7 p.m. He asked, “With this type of daily schedule, when do I meet with the Lord?”

I suggested he set his automatic coffeemaker for 4:45 a.m. and his alarm clock for 5 a.m.

Upon waking, I suggested he immediately pour himself a strong cup of coffee (which can be a key ingredient to early morning prayer!) and take his Bible to his family room to meet with the Lord. He followed my advice.

After just a week, he told me he was amazed at how his relationship with the Lord had been strengthened and changed.

Brothers, as primary leaders of the church, we must be men of prayer.

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Mobilize the Church to Pray

Elders, together with paid staff, should lead their churches in prayer.

How can a church attain new levels of prayer? Here are some suggestions: Elder meetings: Seek the Lord in prayer during the first 30 to 45 minutes of each scheduled meeting. I have often heard the chairman of the elders start a meeting by saying, “Let’s begin with a quick word of prayer and get to the business of the meeting.” We understand his concern to get the work done, but we need to recognize that prayer—deep, passionate, intense, effectual, fervent, heartfelt prayer—is the work of the elders.

In his excellent book Extreme Prayer, Greg Pruett points out that when we believe that God can move in our congregations in a truly amazing way, we understand that prayer is the work of leadership. Through prayer, we change our church and we touch the world!

Pruett writes, “I began to learn not to pray about my strategies but to make prayer the strategy.”

I know of a church elder team that meets twice a month. The first gathering is a business meeting. The second is wholly spent in Bible study and prayer together. At that second meeting, they seek the Lord for their flock and the lost, the nurture of the saints, and other critical needs in the community and the mission field.

Prayer was a key part of leadership in the early church. The book of Acts contains many examples (see Acts 1:24; 2:42; 3:1; 4:2431; 6:4; 6:6; and 8:15, among many others). Is there a lesson here that we sometimes miss?

Elder retreats: When elders plan an annual or biannual retreat, one of the main items on the docket should be several sessions of prayer. There are many meaningful, creative ways to spend time in prayer as a leadership team.

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Morning worship: Our corporate worship times should include praise, the Lord’s Supper, and the Word of God. Prayer should also be a key part of our worship. The average hour-plus worship service devotes less than three minutes to prayer. We should rearrange the order of worship or lengthen the service to make sure that creative, powerful prayer has a prominent role.

Encouraging the church to pray: Encouraging prayer at all church gatherings is important. Our small groups, Bible classes, men’s and women’s ministry meetings, youth meetings, ministry team meetings . . . all church gatherings should include times of serious prayer. Asking the church to gather for special prayer times will also fortify our congregational life and ministry.

The largest American jet engine is the General Electric GE90 series found on the Boeing 777-300 aircraft. At 115,000 pounds of thrust and with a fan diameter of almost 11 feet, these giants power large aircraft to fulfill their mission. Prayer is like that when it comes to the church. There is a source of power available to the body of Christ. Elders will lead well when they lead their churches to impacting prayer.

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hori zons

BY EMILY DRAYNE

generations in missions // Don’t count me out!

An older missionary might say, “They’ll never understand how we did it.” A younger missionary might complain, “They’re so old school.” It’s a generational issue that’s probably been around forever. Leaders err, however, when they count out those from other generations simply because of age, style of doing the job, or lack of “experience.”

In missions and in ministry, it seems, there are two ways to do the job. There’s the way it’s been done for years, and then there’s the way new leaders with new ideas are doing it. So how can we carry out our mission together?

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Emily Drayne lives in North Carolina and has served with the International Conference on Missions since 2011. /emilydrayne @edrayne0530 @edrayne0530 www.theicom.org

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Understand Technological Disparities

Respect Differences

If we are to be successful at missions, all generations must play a part. We need the silent generation—also called traditionalists—those born 1925 to 1945, all the way up to gen Z, born 1995 through 2012, and beyond to fully accomplish the Great Commission laid out for us in Matthew 28. There are vast differences between generations, and because of that, they all bring different skill sets. In a developing world that changes almost daily, it’s important to recognize and use all of those skills.

Many silent generation missionaries have retired or are retiring and they are passing the mantle to others. They are looking for someone to continue the work they started.

We’ve all heard of missionaries who have been working in the same place for 30 years or longer. It can be tough on them to see a new missionary with a different perspective come in and make changes.

Respecting the work that’s been done over many decades while also keeping an eye on current trends is crucial when the torch is passed from a veteran servant. Along the same lines, knowing where you’ve been but understanding that times are changing is key for a veteran to consider while approaching retirement.

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

Technology is one of the most debated topics in outreach strategy. While some agree it’s a hugely beneficial tool, others see it as a stumbling block and a distraction.

With the rise of technology, the part of “doing mission work” that includes keeping up with your supporters, receiving donations, and maintaining a website, among many other things, has changed greatly in the last 10 years. Facebook, Twitter, and the Internet are pervasive.

People of all ages expect missionaries and organizations to have a Facebook page to “like,” a user-friendly website, and regular email updates about their work. This can be an unrealistic expectation to place on missionaries. Many are serving in places around the world that do not have a daily Internet signal. Older missionaries might not have anyone to teach them how to use the latest technological features.

Funding is also still a huge concern, and that is undergoing changes as well. While forwarding agents once were called upon to mail checks, now an account can be autodrafted monthly without ever getting out a checkbook. Missionaries want to maintain donor relationships, and they want their supporting churches to remember the work they are doing in the field. But what if those avenues aren’t available to them?

Learn from One Another

I am a 29-year-old millennial, but my heart is drawn toward all missions and all types of missionaries. In my work with an international missions conference, I’ve been privileged to see missionaries of all ages. We have so much to learn from one another.

What can folks in the younger generations learn from the veteran servants, those who have given their lives in service to the calling? A quality I’ve seen in many missionaries is patience. No one would argue that veteran missionaries who have been serving for decades on the field have - 18 -

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- HORIZONS a vast knowledge of how to win souls for Christ. Through patience, dedication, and perseverance, they have built programs and missions from the ground up. Whole villages have been won for the Lord, people’s health has been restored, and many people now have a sustainable, livable income.

Looking at it from the other direction, what qualities and skills can millennials and other young people bring to the table that will be useful for established missions and organizations? One important quality, I think, is flexibility. When one way doesn’t work, people in the younger generations are quick to try and find alternative solutions. They keep at it until something clicks.

Another favorite quality of younger generations is the passion with which they support various causes. They want to make a difference in our world so badly, and it shows in the clever and creative ways they approach their calling. The Internet, social media, and new technology can be second nature when that’s what you’ve grown up with. These days, people with degrees in communications, marketing, and international studies are making a difference on the mission field.

One of the most exciting trends in missions today is the rise of business as mission.

It’s an approach that’s successfully being carried out by all ages. A vocational approach using the skills you learned during your college experience can bring amazing and innovative ideas to the mission field.

Sometimes, depending on the vocation, it can even allow the missionary to be self-supporting. This can also coincide with sustainable missions, whether it’s aquaponics, chicken farming, or some type of business skill like jewelry making and selling.

Each of these things benefits local people in that community, while also providing them an income from their small business.

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

There are countless options for how to use sustainable living and business as a way to spread the message of Christ.

It opens doors with people in that community simply because you are meeting their needs at a basic level. Once you meet a basic need—such as with food, shelter, water, or income—you have a valuable opening to meet their spiritual needs, as well.

Work Together

When all ages work together, we are most likely to make balanced progress in missions. People who are honestly and earnestly seeking a mission outreach opportunity that honors God will find it.

His will knows no age limits.

The stories we’re hearing of how God is working in the heart of the mission field are so inspiring. Stories of Caribbean chicken farmers now earning an income to feed and support their families, as well as stories of a European coffee shop owner holding a Bible study in his home are the same level of importance to God. Whether your approach is old school or new school, God will use your gifts to grow his kingdom. He wants the entire world to be sold out for him, and both the old and new ways of doing that will accomplish our task of world evangelism.

Generations and trends will come and go, but the gospel of Christ remains the same. It sounds like a cliché, but we all can work together to bring this world to him. Remember, don’t count out anyone because of how they approach their calling. We are stronger when we work together!  - 19 -

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AD

AD

SPECIAL CHURCH REPORT PART 2 : LARGE + MEDIUM CHURCHES

BY KENT FILLINGER

This month, the focus is on large churches (average worship attendance of 500 to 999) and medium churches (250 to 499 weekly) from our annual church survey. If you missed the May issue on megachurches and emerging megachurches, you can read it online to get caught up. Next month, I’ll conclude this series with a report on small churches (averaging 100 to 249 weekly) and very small churches (fewer than 100) and share the firstever recorded data on these two church sizes.

Here are some stats and stories that show the major themes that emerged for large and medium churches. The survey asked churches to report their best “wins” from 2017, and these provide the foundation for the key trends.

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

Structures and Spaces The mantra of “If you build it, they will come” from the movie Field of Dreams seemed to be the mind-set for 22 large and medium churches. These churches were involved in some phase of building, construction, remodeling, and relocation in 2017.

For example, The Refinery Christian Church (Goodyear, Arizona) purchased property.

Prescott (Arizona) Christian Church broke ground on a new building last year. And Hope City Church (Joplin, Missouri), the fastest-growing large church last year with a growth rate of 32.5 percent, went from being a portable church to having a permanent location. Likewise, the second-fastest-growing - 22 -

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large church, The Crossing Church (Batavia, Ohio), also moved into its first permanent facility in 2017.

strongly agreed or agreed that a strategic plan guides their actions and decisions.

Sunbury (Ohio) Christian Church relocated from a 2-acre property to 11 acres on a major state route in December 2017, and their attendance has grown from 450 to 650 in the first few months.

Stewardship

Elm Street Christian Church (Olney, Illinois) completed its new worship center last year and reported, “Now either a new family joins the church or someone is baptized every week.”

Staffing The second most popular theme last year involved church staffing. Sixteen churches noted that a new hire was a win for them. These new hires ran the gamut of roles: lead ministers, executive ministers, worship ministers, children’s ministers, youth ministers, and others. Two churches said they completed leadership transition plans.

Under the theme of stewardship, three distinct focuses emerged: capital campaigns, debt reduction or elimination, and generosity initiatives.

Six churches started or completed capital campaigns in 2017, so I anticipate building projects will continue to be a primary theme in the years to come.

Tates Creek Christian Church (Lexington, Kentucky) and Valley Christian Church (Lakeville, Minnesota) were two of five churches that became debt-free last year. Overall, 22 percent of large churches and 34 percent of the medium churches reported being debt-free in 2017.

Strategic Plans

Generosity initiatives were hallmark events at several churches. For example, Crossway Christian Church (Nashua, New Hampshire) raised a Christmas offering of $50,000—over and above its normal giving—and donated the money to its local and global partners. A recovering addict shared his story one Sunday at Outlook Christian Church (McCordsville, Indiana), and the church collected a “second” offering of $12,000 for his ministry.

Seven large and medium churches created a strategic plan in the past year. This included large churches like Christ’s Church of Flagstaff (in Arizona) and medium-size churches like Plum Creek Christian Church (Butler, Kentucky).

Capital City Christian Church (Frankfort, Kentucky) did a 90-day giving challenge and the response was “unbelievable,” according to the church. Total giving for the year exceeded projections by $230,000.

Large churches spent slightly more of their general fund budgets on staff than medium churches did last year—47 percent compared to 46 percent, respectively.

“A clarity of vision and mission has propelled us into 2018 with a renewed focus, unity, and direction,” reported Highland Church of Christ (Robinson, Illinois). We had gone through a couple of years of struggle in defining ourselves. . . . We are now a healthier staff and a healthier church, headed in the same direction together.”

Overall, 52 percent of large churches and 62 percent of medium churches said they either

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

Service These large and medium churches were among those who served their local and global communities through a variety of creative outreach initiatives last year: • White Oak Christian Church (Cincinnati) worked with and shared its building with one

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- 2017 FAST FACTS -

large churches

medium churches

724 average attendance

363 average attendance

combined weekly attendance 96,012

2.9% growth rate (down from 4.3% in 2016)

1.3% growth rate (down from 2.1% in 2016)

56% of large churches grew (down from 69% in 2016)

49% of Medium churches grew (down from 62% in 2016)

Hope City Church, Joplin, MO 32.5% The Crossing Church, Batavia, OH 28.9% Restoration Park Church, Medway, OH 26.9%

fastest growing

23.6% CrossPointe Christian Church, Valparaiso, IN 18.4% The Journey Church, Springfield, VA 16.3% Christ’s Church—Fort Wayne, Fort Wayne, IN

1,896 baptisms 6 . 5 : 100 :: baptism s : attendance

3,688 baptisms 5 .7 : 100 :: baptism s : attendance

First Capital Christian Church, Corydon, IN 12.4 Greenville First Christian Church, Greenville, IL 11.8 The Carpenter’s Christian Church, Harrodsburg, KY 11.7

highest baptism ratios

37.6 Jessamine Christian Church, Nicholasville, KY 26.8 Vernal Christian Church, Vernal, UT 19.5 Verve Church, Las Vegas, NV

NUMBER OF BAPTISMS PER 100 PEOPLE IN AVERAGE ATTENDANCE

$32.05 average weekly per-person giving (up from $29.22 in 2016) based on general fund only 47% of total budget invested in ministry staff

$31.11 average weekly per-person giving (up from $28.78 in 2016) based on general fund only

outreach giving percentage spent on ministry “outside the walls”

14% large churches

15% medium churches

46% of total budget invested in ministry staff

of the largest Bhutanese congregations in the United States.

• Journey Christian Church (Greeley, Colorado) partnered with another local church and the local school district to host a “Refugee Thanksgiving Meal” for newcomer families in their community; almost 700 refugees attended.

• Community Christian Fellowship (Siloam Springs, Arkansas) started a “bar” ministry called “On Tap” once a month in a local brewery.

• Timber Lake Christian Church (Moberly, Missouri) held a “Drive-through Bethlehem” for its community to tell the Christmas story through outdoor scenes. More than 2,300 attended.

• Elevation Christian Church (Aurora, Colorado) fed the less fortunate in their community through a free market.

Sites Last year, eight large churches (9 percent of the total) and two medium churches (2 percent of the total) used a multisite ministry model. But these numbers are on the rise. Five large churches and four medium churches have definite plans to launch additional campuses in 2018.

Gateway Christian Church (St. Albans, West Virginia) bought and renovated a facility for a second campus in 2017. New Hope Christian Church (Marshalltown, Iowa) and Grandview Christian Church (Johnson City, Tennessee) both developed a vision and plan to become multisite in the future.

Small Groups Less than one-third of the large and medium churches surveyed (29 and 28 percent, respectively) used small groups as their primary means of adult discipleship. But five churches noted an increased emphasis on small-group discipleship last year.

Valley View Christian Church (Edgewood, New Mexico) moved to a small-group discipleship model last year and saw an increase from less than 10 percent of adults participating in groups to about 40 percent. And Wilkinson (Indiana) Church of Christ launched an all-church smallgroup campaign and more than doubled their small-group involvement.

Super Stats Several churches had their best years ever. Here are some super statistics worth noting: • Newberg (Oregon) Christian Church had record growth (9 percent), record giving, and a record number of first-time guests last year.

• Windsor Road Christian Church (Champaign, Illinois) had its largest attendance ever: 1,500 on Easter.

• The Carpenter’s Christian Church (Harrodsburg, Kentucky) baptized 70 people, which was a record.

• Community Christian Fellowship (Siloam Springs, Arkansas) had the most baptisms and largest giving to missions in its history.

• Lakepoint Church (Muskego, Wisconsin) and Poinciana Christian Church (Kissimmee, Florida) both were named “business partner of the year” by their local chambers of commerce.

While the numbers are worth noting and the stats are worth celebrating, the more important wins are the stories of the people behind the numbers. Central Christian Church (Portales, New Mexico) summed it up well: “Our biggest ‘wins’ were in the reconciliation of a nearly destroyed marriage, and when several men who had never accepted Christ (but their wives had) finally were baptized into Christ. And when alcoholics found sobriety after years of drunkenness. Our biggest ‘wins’ were in the lives of those attending.” 

Kent E. Fillinger serves as president of 3:STRANDS Consulting and director of partnerships with CMF International, Indianapolis, Indiana. /3strandsconsulting C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

www.3strandsconsulting.com - 25 -

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C H U R C H E S

L A R G E

2 0 1 7

L A R G E

C H U R C H E S

CHURCHES THAT AVERAGED 500-999 IN WEEKLY WORSHIP ATTENDANCE

CHURCH

AT TENDANCE

Newberg Christian Church Windsor Road Christian Church Christ’s Church of Flagstaff Northridge Christian Church Christ’s Church of Effingham Northside Christian Church 5 White Oak Christian Church Journey Christian Church 3 Academy Christian Church Community Christian Church Restore Community Church North Terrace Church of Christ Greenville First Christian Church 1 Fairway Christian Church Westbrook Christian Church 5 Outlook Christian Church Boones Creek Christian Church Bettendorf Christian Church First Capital Christian Church First Christian Church Vail Christian Church Crossway Christian Church First Christian Church Lincoln Christian Church WellSpring Christian Church Crossroads Christian Church 3 Bright Christian Church Capital City Christian Church NorthEast Christian Church Franklin Christian Church Gateway Christian Church Ninevah Christian Church Suburban Christian Church LifePointe Christian Church Hope City Church New Life Christian Church Crossroads Christian Church Highline Christian Church Christian Church of Clarendon Hills Corinth Christian Church Connect Christian Church Post Road Christian Church Cedar Ridge Christian Church 5 Belmont Christian Church Tates Creek Christian Church Victory Christian Church Hazelwood Christian Church Prescott Christian Church Legacy Christian Church Restoration Park Church Sunnyside Christian Church Oakwood Christian Church Calvary Christian Church 3 Crosspoint Christian Church Wentzville Christian Church New Hope Christian Church The Refinery Christian Church Clifton Christian Church First Christian Church - - Large Churches continued on page 30 - -

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

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995 992 986 986 972 972 954 950 945 941 930 905 901 885 880 877 872 865 854 852 850 843 834 814 813 800 797 772 770 765 764 759 758 745 742 740 735 730 722 720 715 711 707 704 696 694 692 692 690 685 684 683 683 678 678 673 668 667 665

BAPTISMS 26 25 37 93 86 45 36 78 72 49 69 98 106 31 34 33 33 106 44 18 31 48 46 51 33 50 63 30 31 25 59 14 26 48 36 40 12 33 39 52 13 43 20 29 38 21 42 23 43 27 44 36 49 37 18 74 59 20

L O C AT I O N Newberg Champaign Flagstaff Milledgeville Effingham Yorktown Cincinnati Greeley Colorado Springs Nottingham Kansas City Zanesville Greenville The Villages Bolingbrook McCordsville Johnson City Bettendorf Corydon Norfolk Vail Nashua Yuma Lincoln Spring Hill Joliet Lawrenceburg Frankfort Lexington Franklin St. Albans Lawrenceburg Corvallis Elk Grove Joplin Bella Vista Shawnee Burien Clarendon Hills Loganville Concord Indianapolis Broken Arrow Christiansburg Lexington Franklin Clayton Prescott Senoia Medway Colorado Springs Enid Winchester Cape Coral Wentzville Marshalltown Goodyear Clifton Columbus 1 4

OR IL AZ GA IL VA OH CO CO MD MO OH IL FL IL IN TN IA IN NE AZ NH AZ IL TN IL IN KY KY TN WV KY OR CA MO AR KS WA IL GA NC IN OK VA KY IN IN AZ GA OH CO OK KY FL MO IA AZ CO IN

SENIOR MINISTER David Case Randall Boltinghouse Chris Reed Mike Waers Jeff Michael Larry Jones Rick Shonkwiler Arron Chambers Bryan Myers David Robinson Troy McMahon Matt Mehaffey Tyson Graber Mark Fessler Mont Mitchell Rob McCord David Clark Tim Scott Randy Kirk Tim DeFor Ben Pitney Ron Kastens Jeff Elzey Ron Otto Andy Hudelson Matt Summers Jeff Stone Steve Pattison Monte Wilkinson David Welsh Dave Stauffer Terry Cooper Mike King Chris Delfs Cody Walker Joe Williams Brad Fangman Tim Knight Matthew Rogers Adam Turner Eric Pruitt Dennis McConnaughhay Greg Pittman James “Beaver” Terry Tommy Simpson Josh Cadwell Steve Ranson Jason Price Roy Roberson Randy Warner Eric Batteiger Eric Keller Mike McCormick Jeff Swearingen Keith Comp Kerry Jech Chad Goucher Roger Ferguson Steve Yeaton

= includes nursing home worship service(s) = includes multisite(s) outside of the U.S.

x

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YEAR S TA R T E D

WEBSITE newbergcc.org windsorroad.org ccof.church northridge.online christschurch.com northsidecc.org thewocc.com journeychristian.org academychristian.org communitycc.net restorecc.org ntcoc.org greenvillefcc.org fairwaycc.org westbrookchurch.org outlookchurch.org boonescreekcc.org bettendorfchristian.com firstcapitalchristian.org firstchristiannorfolk.org vailchristian.com crosswaycc.org fccyuma.org lincolnchristianchurch.org wellspring.church crossroadsofjoliet.org brightchristian.org capitalcitychristian.org ncclex.xorg franklinchristianchurch.com gatewaychurch.net ninevahchristian.org suburbanchurch.com lifepointe.org experiencehopecity.org newlifenwa.com crossroads-christian.com highlinechristian.org ccch.org corinthchristian.org connectchristianchurch.org prcconline.com cedarridge.church belmontchristian.org tatescreek.org victorycc.life hazelwoodchristian.org prescottchristian.com legacysenoia.org restorationpark.church sunnysidechristian.com myoakwood.org calvarychristian.net crosspointcape.com wentzvillecc.org newhopechristianchurch.net therefinerycc.com cliftonchristianchurch.com fccoc.org

= includes prison worship service(s) = includes church plant(s) in the U.S. or overseas

3

1907 1973 1984 1916 1984 1899 1830 2000 1973 2006 2008 1920 1878 1999 1996 1866 1825 1963 1990 1894 2006 1995 1853 2003 2007 1890 1960 2000 1986 1956 1963 2003 2014 1974 1995 1946 1957 1861 1983 1928 1979 1946 1945 1929 1910 1921 2009 1962 1953 1978 1974 2006 1961 1991 2009 1907 1855

= includes Internet campus

= indicates a “Spotlight” church; see pages 48-59 in the May issue of Christian Standard to read more about this church in 2017

C H U R C H E S

M E D I U M

2 0 1 7

M E D I U M

C H U R C H E S

CHURCHES THAT AVERAGED 250-499 IN WEEKLY WORSHIP ATTENDANCE

CHURCH

9

Journey Church Two Rivers Church of Christ Wilkinson Church of Christ Plum Creek Christian Church Olathe Christian Church Jessamine Christian Church Area 10 Faith Community Fairfield Church of Christ The Journey Church McCook Christian Church Gateway Christian Church Sunbury Christian Church Central Christian Church LifeBridge Church Converse Church of Christ Central Church of Christ Valley Mills Christian Church 1 Creekside Christian Fellowship Canoe Creek Christian Church Centerville Christian Church Christian Church at Cogan Station Elm Street Christian Church Pomona Christian Church Central Christian Church Ogilville Christian Church Grandview Christian Church Eastpointe Christian Church Crosspoint Christian Church Impact Christian Church Poinciana Christian Church CrossPointe Christian Church Northview Christian Church New Hope Christian Church Kalkaska Church of Christ Greencastle Christian Church Timber Lake Christian Church Central Christian Church Gateway Christian Church First Christian Church Legacy Christian Church Taylorville Christian Church Cedar Creek Church Campbellsville Christian Church Cicero Christian Church Chilhowie Christian Church Pasco Christian Church 1 2 Broadway Christian Church Lake Ridge Christian Church Centerburg Church of Christ Tonganoxie Christian Church Sherman Church of Christ New City Church of Los Angeles Northglenn Christian Church Delaware Christian Church Batesville Christian Church Central Christian Church Nicholson Christian Church Parkview Christian Church Lakepoint Church - - continued on next page - -

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

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AT TENDANCE

BAPTISMS

499 495 495 492 492 490 490 490 489 479 475 460 451 450 447 447 446 445 445 436 435 435 429 423 422 411 410 405 405 403 403 400 400 395 391 390 390 386 380 355 355 353 350 345 340 340 330 329 327 324 320 320 313 311 310 310 307 301 300

26 16 32 38 15 184 20 7 32 15 21 26 17 15 15 45 16 16 26 21 28 27 15 28 12 8 28 30 33 27 26 16 18 41 16 16 13 4 14 15 8 8 14 11 30 27 5 13 12 19 33 25 31 21 22 7 13 14 24

L O C AT I O N Jackson New Bern Wilkinson Butler Olathe Nicholasville Richmond Fairfield Springfield McCook St. Louis Sunbury Fort Smith Kennesaw Converse Streator Indianapolis Needville St. Cloud Centerville Cogan Station Olney Pomona Portales Columbus Johnson City Blacklick Conyers Woodland Park Kissimmee Valparaiso Danville Roanoke Kalkaska Greencastle Moberly St. Petersburg Mount Sterling Greeneville Lakeland Taylorville Fort Wayne Campbellsville Cicero Chilhowie Pasco Fort Wayne Paris Centerburg Tonganoxie Dry Ridge Los Angeles Northglenn Delaware Batesville St. Joseph Independence Findlay Muskego 1 4

TN NC IN KY KS KY VA OH VA NE MO OH AR GA IN IL IN TX FL IN PA IL MO NM IN TN OH GA CO FL IN IN VA MI IN MO FL KY TN FL IL IN KY IN VA WA IN IL OH KS KY CA CO OH IN MO KY OH WI

SENIOR MINISTER Jeremy Brown David McCants Ryan McCarty Doug Hartley Ken Kersten Wally Rendel Chris Barras Brian Schreiber Chad Simpkins Clark Bates Karl Schad Mike Bratten Tim Beasley Aaron Gable John Clark Rory Christensen Bob Beltz Greg Garcia Ross Runnels Wes Sewell Mark Beard Casey Kleeman Marcus Allen Don Thomas Martin Wright Aaron Wymer Dan Stoffer Curt Zehner Scott Park Mark Atteberry Tim Wanless Nathan Rector Seth Bryant Andy Bratton John Tischer Daniel Goehringer and Brian Sevits Rich Franz Bill Kilgore Scott Wakefield Steve Newland James C. Jones Greg Krafft Rodney Booe Adam Colter Frank Branson Chuck Rodgers Ryan Cochran Nate Alexander Daryn Dawes Ross Frisbie Tim Seevers Kevin Haah David Troutman Sam Rosa Mark Bond James Sones Larry Travis Joel Johnson Brian Hofmeister

= includes nursing home worship service(s) = includes multisite(s) outside of the U.S.

x

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YEAR S TA R T E D

WEBSITE ourjourney.com tworiverschurch.com wccin.org plumcreek.org olathecc.org jessaminecc.com area10church.com fairfieldchurchofchrist.com thejourneynova.org mccookchristian.church gccstl.org sunburychristian.com centralfs.org mylifebridgechurch.com conversechurch.org centrallive.net valleymillscc.org creeksidefellowship.org canoecreek.org centervillechurch.com cccschurch.com elmstreetchristianchurch.org pomonachristian.com centralwired.org occtoday.org grandviewchristian.org eastpointe.cc xpt.cc impactcc.net poincianacc.org discovercrosspointe.com northviewchristian.org newhoperoanoke.com kccwired.com greencastlecc.org timberlakechristian.org centralstpete.com gcch3.com fccgreeneville.org legacychristian.com taylorvillechristian.com cedarcreekchurch.com campbellsvillechristianchurch.com cicerochristianchurch.org chilhowiecc.com pascochristian.com broadwaychristian.org lakeridgechurch.org centerburcoc.com tongiecc.org shermancoc.org newcitychurchla.com northglenn.cc dccwired.org batesvillechristianchurch.org c3stjoe.com nicholsonchristian.org parkviewfindlay.org lakepointmuskego.org

= includes prison worship service(s) = includes church plant(s) in the U.S. or overseas

3

2010 2009 1889 1881 1975 1994 2008 1963 1967 1963 1973 1956 1962 2011 1888 1968 2004 2003 1839 1981 1866 1899 1905 1887 1927 1952 1963 1998 1979 2011 1968 1953 1888 1966 1956 1954 1976 1919 2008 1964 1884 1837 1898 1908 1974 1977 1889 1872 2008 1960 1979 1970 1903 1968 1958 2012

= includes Internet campus

= indicates a “Spotlight� church; see pages 48-59 in the May issue of Christian Standard to read more about this church in 2017

2017 LARGE CHURCHES (continued)

CHURCH

6

AT TENDANCE

Northside Christian Church Broadway Christian Church 1 Valley View Christian Church Hikes Point Christian Church Mountainview Christian Church Miamisburg Christian Church The Crossing Church First Christian Church Newburgh Spencer Christian Church 1 Central Christian Church Madison Christian Church Galilee Christian Church Parkside Christian Church Libby Christian Church 1 Heritage Christian Church The Carpenter’s Christian Church Orrville Christian Church Highland Church of Christ Tri-Village Christian Church West Valley Christian Church South Side Christian Church The Crossing Ringgold Church 1 5 Harmony Christian Church 3 First Christian Church of Dodge City Community Christian Fellowship Leesburg Christian Church First Christian Church Northside Christian Church Canyon Springs Christian Church Indian Hills Christian Church Crossroads Christian Church

2017 MEDIUM CHURCHES (continued)

CHURCH

AT TENDANCE

Lincoln Heights Christian Church Amazing Grace Christian Church Verve Church Rich Acres Christian Church Downey First Christian Church Union Christian Church Huron Christian Church Sarasota Christian Church Troy Christian Church Vernal Christian Church Novesta Church of Christ Forefront Church Discovery Church Faith Christian Church Milford Christian Church 1 2 New Beginnings Christian Church Northfield Church of Christ Oak Park Christian Church University Christian Church Elevation Christian Church Christ’s Church—Fort Wayne Valley Christian Church First Christian Church 1 South Fork Christian Church

C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

662 660 654 652 650 640 633 632 630 615 612 602 601 601 600 598 595 591 584 562 557 553 551 550 546 544 542 540 517 516 515 505

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300 293 292 292 283 282 280 280 278 276 275 275 272 268 266 265 254 252 251 250 250 250 250 250

BAPTISMS 63 12 25 55 18 70 17 46 43 51 51 23 24 54 63 70 35 42 33 43 10 34 26 55 39 30 44 7 22 30 13 18

BAPTISMS 24 14 57 15 18 13 24 16 11 74 30 0 15 8 43 4 11 18 8 36 46 15 10 31

L O C AT I O N Warrensburg MO Mattoon IL Edgewood NM Louisville KY Highlands Ranch CO Miamisburg OH Batavia OH Newburgh IN Fisherville KY Ocala FL Groveport OH Jefferson GA Cincinnati OH Libby MT Fayetteville GA Harrodsburg KY Orrville OH Robinson IL Pataskala OH West Hills CA Springfield IL Milton DE Hagerstown MD Georgetown KY Dodge City KS Siloam Springs AR Cynthiana KY Scottsburg IN Broken Arrow OK Middleton ID Danville KY Macon MO

L O C AT I O N Phoenix AZ Grove City OH Las Vegas NV Martinsville VA Downey CA Terre Haute IN Huron SD Sarasota FL Troy OH Vernal UT Cass City MI New York NY Bristol TN New Philadelphia OH Lamar MO Tampa FL Fort Dodge IA Grover Beach CA Muncie IN Aurora CO Fort Wayne IN Lakeville MN Roanoke Rapids NC Verona KY 1 4

SENIOR MINISTER Sid Tiller Ian Stamps Brandon Shaffer Jeff Wallace Ken Hensley Mike Tuttle Kenny White Kevin Brimner Doug Martin Doug Reed Paul Barnes Nick Vipperman Bart Steever Phil Alspaw Shane Hargrave Greg Warren John Mulpas Shane Bopp Paul Snoddy Robert Denton Brooks Wilson Mark Magee Don Conley Billy Strother Dusty Cookson Patrick Callahan Sammy Harris Matthew Craig Justin Carpenter Mike Whitford Jim Cooper Matt Stieger

SENIOR MINISTER Chris Roussin Tom Alexander Vince Antonucci Tim Hunt David Smith Todd Payton Al Wager Lee Robison Mark Messmore Marty Young Brad Speirs Jonathan Williams Matt Korell Larry Sams Clifford E. Hazard Troy Borst Dale Harlow Mike Gunderson Steven B. Huddleston Scott Bloyer Jason Kemerly David Burkum Bane Angles Bob Hightchew

= includes nursing home worship service(s) = includes multisite(s) outside of the U.S.

x

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YEAR S TA R T E D

WEBSITE nccburg.com broadwaycc.org vv.church hikespointchristian.com mountainviewfamily.org exploremcc.org cometothecrossing.com fcnewburgh.com spencerchristian.org centralchristianocala.org madisonchristian.org galilee.org parksidechristian.com libbychristianchurch.com heritagechristian.org carpenterschristian.church orrvillechristian.org hccrobinson.com tri-village.org wvcch.org southsidechristian.com thecrossingnow.com ringgoldchurch.com harmonychristianchurch.com fccdc.com ccfsiloam.com leesburgchristianchurch.net fcc-scottsburg.org northsideonline.com canyonspringschristian.com ihccdanville.org maconcrossroads.com

1987 1998 1986 1954 2012 1979 1997 1975 1870 1929 1963 1999 1902 1959 1961 1976 1944 1984 1898 1997 1886 1973 1826 1956 2011 1961 1973

YEAR S TA R T E D

WEBSITE lincolnheights.church myagcc.org vivalaverve.org racconline.com downeyfirst.org unionchristianchurch.org huronchristianchurch.com sarasotacc.org troycc.org vernalchristianchurch.com novestachurch.org forefrontnyc.com discoverybristol.com fccnp.org newbeginningscctampa.org northfieldchurch.org oakparkchristian.org universitychristianchurch.com elevationcc.com fwcc.cc valleycc.org fccrr.org southforkchristianchurch.org

= includes prison worship service(s) = includes church plant(s) in the U.S. or overseas

1964

3

1892 1956 2010 1953 1869 1855 1910 1973 1951 1978 1872 2012 2011 1997 1881 1950 1987 1986 1929 2010 1969 1975 1916 1844

= includes Internet campus

= indicates a “Spotlight� church; see pages 48-59 in the May issue of Christian Standard to read more about this church in 2017

5 5 THINGS

YO U N E E D TO K N O W

ABOUT THE

5 - G E N E R AT I O N C H U R C H

BY HAYDN SHAW

I was recently in a church talking with a room full of baby boomers (those born 1946–64) and millennials (born 1981–2001) who wanted to understand how to build community across generations. They realized that people tend to socialize with others of their own generation before and after the worship services, and they wanted to know how they might bridge the differences. They wondered if they should have intergenerational small groups.

The boomers and millennials want to spend more time together, but their different life stages create practical challenges. For instance, many baby boomer small groups enjoy big meals that often take an hour to prepare before the study begins. The younger generation, however, said they didn’t have interest in or energy for anything more than purchasing a bag of chips at the store.

Many churches that contact me would be happy to have either of these situations because their youngest attender is 58 years old.

Generational differences are a big challenge. Though each situation is different, I believe you and your church need to understand five things when connecting the generations together.

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- FEATUREARTICLE -

1. W E H AV E NEVER HAD FIVE G E N E R AT I O N S BEFORE In the 1970s we needed generational intelligence during what was known as “the generation gap.” We need it even more today when, for the first time in history, we have five generations in our families, churches, and communities. As I pointed out in my January column, that causes quite a shake-up as every generation pushes to be heard and understood, to find their own way, to recover what they feel the previous generation fumbled away, and to work out their parents’ unfinished business. When we start to understand another generation—rather than attempting to maneuver others into seeing things our way—we open ourselves to new possibilities of relating, helping, reaching, encouraging, and loving them.

Let’s face it, most of us are not good at something we’ve never done before. I have no doubt churches will learn to serve five generations, just as they learned to juggle different worship music and update their approaches to their children’s Christian education. Understandably it usually takes a generation or two before we get the hang of it, which is not helpful for the generation that gets left behind. If we realize that adjusting to five generations is one of our biggest challenges, we can get a lot better at it a lot faster.

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W H E N W E U N D E R S TA N D OT H E R G E N E R AT I O N S , W E W I L L CO M P L A I N L E S S A N D LEARN MORE FROM THEM.

2. R A I S I N G O U R G E N E R AT I O N A L I Q M A K E S I T E A S I E R TO L OV E Five generations at church and in our families create irritations, miscommunications, and misunderstandings. Just as it’s easier for two children to play well together than it is for three or four, it’s easier for two generations to get along at church than it is for five. The movies, music, television shows, and even the schools we attend all pump images and ideas into our heads that shape our generation and are at the crux of our complaints about other generations. Another generation’s behavior makes no sense to us because we don’t understand the images and ideas that shape their minds.

We can get especially upset when another generation questions the ideas and customs that are readily accepted by our generation. Of course we put the cell phone down when we’re having a conversation with someone. Of course we let the oldest generation determine the traditions for Christmas or family reunions. Of course we plan our family reunions through email because nobody has time to make 12 phone calls to get everyone on the same page (and if some people refuse to use it, then they will find out in snail-mail time). Of course . . .

Most people don’t realize that their own images and ideas are governing their lives just as other images and ideas are governing the people they’re criticizing.

We struggle to love people we don’t appreciate or understand. When we understand other generations, we will complain less and learn more from them. Increasing our generational intelligence doesn’t make the key teaching of Jesus to “love one another” easy, but it does make it easier. Many churches and families are trying to make themselves love people of another generation even though they’re frustrated or even angry with them, when understanding generational differences can make our hearts tender toward one another. Why make it harder than it needs to be?

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“Why won’t younger people come to my church?” is a question I am asked all the time.

“Because you are asking the wrong question,” I respond. “That question traps you in a dead end; it keeps the younger generations away.”

Why is this a dead-end question? Because the question is about you and not about them. I first faced this issue as a part-time youth pastor while attending college. My ministry was with good people who wanted to save their church, but while that’s admirable, it’s also wrongly focused: they wanted to save their church—the church they liked, the church they had grown up in, the church they were used to. So they asked questions that pushed the younger generation away. They spent countless hours trying to figure out what to do to reach more young people, but they asked the wrong question. Their story isn’t unique. I often see congregations deadlocked over the same question.

If the dead-end question (“Why won’t younger people come to my church?”) doesn’t work, why is it so popular? Here are the reasons I see most often: • People don’t know the best question yet.

• Blame is easier. If the people we are trying to reach are the problem, God can’t hold us accountable if we don’t reach them.

• People are scared that if the next generation starts coming, they will want to change things until it won’t feel like the same church anymore.

• The present church members worry that they will be pushed into a corner for the next 20 years.

• They usually have hurt feelings. They wonder what is so wrong with their church that the younger generations don’t like it.

• They ask it when they feel guilty that they should be reaching the next generation, but they don’t want to. So they end up resenting the younger generations for making them feel pressured to give up the church they love.

In contrast, imagine how much more creative the conversations could be if you asked the best question: “What must we do differently to reach the younger generations?”

This question is the secret to better conversations because it takes the focus off you and places it on the people you are called to reach. It pushes you to quit going in circles and complaining about what is wrong with them and to start talking about your options. It is the best question I know to help you determine what God has called your church to do.

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3.

YO U ARE ASKING THE WRONG QUESTION (MORE LIKELY THAN N OT )

4. YO U A R E N ’ T E Q UA L L Y G OO D WITH ALL F I V E G E N E R AT I O N S People tell me they want their church to reach all five generations, but that may be beyond the gifts and calling of all but a few. In my business presentations, I tell salespeople they are good at communicating with their generation and maybe one other, but rarely all of them. In the same way, your church staff may be skilled at leading a more traditional congregation but not know how to relate to the younger generations.

I consulted with a church whose senior minister desperately wanted to reach young families. As I watched him interact with the congregation, I noticed how at ease he was with boomers and traditionalists, but how awkward he was with Xers and millennials.

He was a good man, but communicating with the younger generations would never be his strength. In businesses and churches, it’s a mistake to take a person out of a job they’re good at and put them in a position where they are only mediocre.

If your church has classes only, people who like small groups will not stick. If the sermons go verse by verse, then the people who want practical, topical sermons will not relate. If the music is too fast, younger millennials will tune out. The point is, every choice you make helps you click better with some and less with others. It’s naïve to think you will be equally good at connecting with all five generations. That’s just too many for any church to relate to equally well.

5. T H I N K A B O U T YO U R B OO M E R S B E F O R E YO U C H A N G E TO R E AC H M I L L E N N I A L S Traditionalists and baby boomers are living significantly longer lives than those who preceded them. But that creates struggles no other generation has had to face. It’s easy to miss how hard this can be.

I had finished speaking to church leaders one Saturday morning regarding how to help people who still struggled with the transition from traditional to more contemporary services. Two couples in their late 60s hung around after everyone left. All four of them talked about how excited they were that their church was reaching younger people.

Then they glanced at each other and guilt spread over their faces.

They began talking about how this didn’t feel like their church anymore. They didn’t relate to the worship music, and they weren’t fans of small groups rather than Sunday school. They felt like everything was centered around the younger generations, but the C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

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I T ’ S N A Ï V E TO T H I N K YO U W I L L B E E Q UA L L Y G OO D AT CO N N E C T I N G WITH ALL FIVE G E N E R AT I O N S .

T H AT ’ S J U S T TOO M A N Y F O R ANY CHURCH TO R E L AT E TO E Q UA L L Y W E L L .

Haydn Shaw has created seven free videos to help churches learn more and even begin talking about generational challenges. He’s included three questions for discussion at the end of each sevenminute video, but you can watch them on your own if you want to learn more. Go to www.christianityisnotdying.com and click on the “Free Videos for Staffs and Boards” in the upper-right-hand corner.

Shaw is a generations expert and the author of Generational IQ: Christianity Isn’t Dying, Millennials Aren’t the Problem, and the Future Is Bright .

- FEATUREARTICLE younger generations didn’t give much money. Their generation still paid the bills, but that seemed all the church needed them for.

One of the men said, “The previous senior minister was 10 years older than me, but the new one is the age of my kids. Now I feel old every time I look at him, and I feel pushed off to the side when I had always been in the center of things.” One of the women said, “We know that supporting the shift to a younger church was the right thing to do, but now that it’s worked, we don’t like the church. If I were looking for one, I wouldn’t come here a second time.” The other man said, “We’re all healthy and going to be around for probably another 15 years. That’s a long time not to feel at home in your church. What are we supposed to do?” They all nodded.

Wow. They said out loud what so many people think but won’t say.

They’re afraid that if they change to reach younger people, the church they love will be lost. Or they’re afraid it sounds selfish to say they would rather target their own age group because they don’t want their church to change. As a result, they often find themselves in the most precarious place of all— thinking they are a church for all generations yet watching their church decline.

When we fail to understand generational differences, we make it harder than it needs to be. We may dedicate 40 meetings to discussing how to change our church to reach younger people. But how often do we talk about what’s going to happen to traditionalists and boomers when we do? We need to start talking with boomers and traditionalists about their struggle to welcome the Xers and millennials without feeling like they’re losing their home, because our silence is making the changes much harder than they need to be.

If people can’t picture where they will fit in the new future, they will naturally resist change. But we don’t even talk about it until people are understandably upset. If your church will determine what it will do with the boomers before it plans how to reach millennials, it will save itself many unnecessary problems.

Boomers are such a huge generation that they’ve transformed every institution, and they’re already transforming retirement.

Financial services companies are spending millions of dollars on ads that portray boomers as beginning their next adventure rather than settling into traditional retirement, because they know the worst thing they can do is make boomers feel old or irrelevant. Many of them have 20 or 30 years left in their second adulthood. What are they going to do with all that extra time?

Shouldn’t you and your church start talking about how you will help them figure it out?  C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

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‘Our Position’ When Isaac Errett wrote “Our Position,” a need existed within the Restoration Movement to define in succinct terms the soaring rhetoric of Barton W. Stone’s The Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery, Thomas Campbell’s The Declaration and Address, and Alexander Campbell’s “Sermon on the Law,” which had so eloquently defined the position of a movement intent on the restoration of first-century Christianity.

Errett argued that while creeds are sectarian and create division, and therefore are sinful, we are free to identify those areas where we find ourselves in agreement with the larger evangelical framework, those areas where we agree with some but not all, and those areas where we are distinctive. While Errett’s position was written in five parts, it focused on these three areas: complete agreement, partial agreement, and our distinctives.

Errett listed 18 areas of agreement with evangelicals: 1. The divine inspiration and inerrancy of the Old and New Testaments.

2. The revelation of God as seen in the Trinity.

3. The all-sufficiency of the Bible.

4. The incarnation of God in the person of Jesus Christ.

5. Jesus’ life and teaching as a perfect example of divine character.

6. The death of Jesus as a perfect sin offering for redemption and forgiveness.

7. The bodily resurrection of Jesus and his immortality.

8. Jesus’ ascension and present mediation on our behalf until all his enemies are subdued.

9. Jesus’ supreme authority as Lord over all.

10. The personal and perpetual work of the Holy Spirit.

11. The alienation of the human race from God because of sin, and humanity’s total dependence on him.

12. The necessity of faith and repentance for salvation.

13. The ordinances of baptism and Communion.

14. The obligation to recognize Sunday as the Lord’s Day. 15. The acceptance that the church is a divine institution.

16. The necessity of the pursuit of righteous living.

17. The fullness and freeness of salvation.

18. The final punishment of the ungodly.

All who considered themselves evangelical at the time agreed on these things. After scanning through the belief statements on evangelical websites, I believe the same can be said today. In this sense, there is a great deal of unity between us all.

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revisited

BY JERRY HARRIS

Errett identified these five areas of some commonality with other evangelicals: 1. The New Testament mode of baptism is always immersion only.

2. Baptism is an individual decision and not for infants.

3. The church began at Pentecost, not

under John the Baptist’s teaching.

4. There should be no distinction between clergy and laity.

5. Sectarianism is sin and we should seek to be unified.

While many evangelical churches would describe their belief and practice as different from these, many others would agree with most or all of them, and in these we find an even larger degree of unity.

Errett described the reality and necessity of union in 10 ways: 1. Union is something we must desire.

2. We must hold union loosely.

3. A desire for division or sectarianism is sin and should be avoided.

4. We have only one basis for unity . . . that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 5. All other tests of fellowship must be abandoned.

6. There should be no distinction between clergy and laity.

7. In areas of biblical liberty, the law of love should lead us.

8. In areas of biblical inference, we should seek unity but never force our conviction on others.

9. In business matters, the majority should rule.

10. Where we are free, no one should judge someone else.

The idea of unity and the basis for it rested at the core of Restoration principles. It was something to be contended for while holding firm to the distinctives that made us who we are. The dynamic tension between truth and grace is seen here: On the one hand, an unwavering commitment to rightly dividing the Word of truth, and on the other, a committed motivation to honor the divine directive of unity.

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Many churches in 1872 could line up with this position, but it was in the third group of nine distinctives that Errett defined and delineated the Restoration Movement of his day: 1. We believe that both the Old and New Testaments are divinely and inerrantly inspired by God, and that the Old Testament provides invaluable lessons and understanding to the New. That said, we believe the New Testament alone is our rule of authority, faith, and practice.

2. We refuse to attempt to define or explain the Trinity, as it is beyond human reason; we insist only on the descriptive words of Scripture.

3. We repudiate all human and man-made creeds and see the New Testament in totality as our only rule of faith and practice. Where it has not bound us, we are free to stand in that liberty.

4. We see Jesus, his divinity and Christhood, as the central truth of the Christian system. All who trust in him as the Christ, the Son of God, are part of our spiritual family.

5. Our faith comes by hearing God’s Word and responding to it. We repudiate any spiritual exercise that excludes the Word of God as central to conversion and regeneration.

6. We submit no other tests for baptism other than faith and repentance.

7. We insist on the meaning of baptism as defined in the New Testament and surrender to its biblical definition. We also regard the Lord’s Supper as a sweet and holy feast of precious memory within the framework of our spiritual family that we observe as a regular part of our worship.

8. We recognize Sunday as the Lord’s Day as a New Testament apostolic example.

9. We believe the church is a divine institution and renounce all party, denominational, or sectarian names.

The need to understand these distinctives of our movement is as critical today as it was in 1872. While we are not given to debate as our spiritual forebears were 150 years ago, having a clear understanding of our position, especially in leadership, is vital to this movement’s forward progress. In many ways, the wider evangelical movement has gravitated in our direction. Some of the motivation of this certainly comes from our numerical success. But celebrating attendance without understanding spiritual conviction is sandy ground. As I review the nine distinctives Errett laid out in “Our Position,” I find myself in sweet harmony with them.

I have always heard the term “Restoration plea,” but outside of this work by Isaac Errett, I couldn’t find any good explanation of its meaning besides the quoting of our mottoes or references to the writings of some of the great pioneers of our movement. As Alexander Campbell’s protégé and the original publisher and editor of Christian Standard, I think it’s important to study Errett’s writings on “Our Position.”

Even more interesting, I think, are the things we argue about today that I don’t see on any of these lists. Perhaps some of those things were understood or are written about elsewhere.

Or perhaps some things ceased to be issues while breathing the fresh air of unity. Maybe we don’t have to agree on a particular interpretation of Scripture. Maybe on some subjects the value of brotherhood is more precious than the value of being proved right. As long as the love of Christ rules, debate is fine, but once we divide, that love is lost to us both. 

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BY GREG SWINNEY AND BETH SWINNEY

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He was scrolling down his Facebook page on a computer in the university library when I nudged him and asked if I could bother him for a few minutes. Tom looked over and immediately stopped what he was doing and said, “Sure, what’s up?” I knew I could count on Tom, a prelaw student, to level with me.

“What are college kids looking for these days in a church?” I asked. “I’m scratching my head to figure that one out.”

Tom didn’t flinch. He said, “We are looking for a place that’s real. A place where we can be who we are and bring all of our questions and uncertainties into the discussion. We want to be a part of something more.”

In that moment, I woke up to the challenge of what on earth do we do with college kids? Attracting and involving college students (generation Z), millennials, and baby boomers is at the forefront of most church leaders’ minds.

The spiritual needs of these generations are both incredibly diverse and shockingly similar. As a campus minister for more than three decades, I’m often asked for advice on how to reach college students. I have learned from experience that relating to these young adults and the stressors they face is a challenge.

We can talk about this all day long and create some great plans, but it’s all pointless if we don’t include this generation in the conversation. We need their input or we will ultimately lose sight of their needs as we lovingly try to serve them.

I decided to discuss this situation with my daughter, Beth, who is a millennial, to gain more insight on how to share Christ with people of college age. We hope this discussion helps with your church’s efforts to welcome them.

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Learn Their Language

BETH: When missionaries prepare to travel to a new country, they spend a significant amount of time learning about the language, culture, and customs of the people they will be serving.

The same is true when college students come to your church. You may need to learn a new language to be able to communicate with them, or at least understand them.

Keeping up with the catchphrases and jargon is daunting, and by no means are you expected to speak fluently. Still, you need to know that mansplaining is when a man explains something to a woman she already knows (this is bad), that bae is a term of endearment for a significant other and stands for “before anyone else” (this is good), and that on fleek means something is pretty much perfect, such as an outfit or meal (I’m a millennial and I can’t stand this one . . . so I’m torn on whether it’s good or bad).

College students speak in extremes—something could be so powerful that they can’t even or something could be so overdone and fake that it is labeled basic. To reiterate, the church - 43 -

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does not need to translate their message or mission to fit this generation’s language, they just need to be able to hang in a conversation with an individual member of the generation.

GREG: A word to the wise: College students can sniff out a lack of authenticity these days faster than you can shake a stick (and they don’t relate to that phrase, either). If they sense you are trying too hard or are motivated by anything other than connecting with them (such as when someone from my generation works on fleek into a conversation) they will most likely bolt.

If you think you can attract and retain college students to your church by offering a swanky coffee bar or a free T-shirt for visiting, you are sadly mistaken. This is not what they’re looking for, and if that’s all you’ve got, it’s unlikely they’ll return.

College students and people of that age are looking for genuine connection in a world that often feels very disconnected through texts, tweets, and snaps. Their communication style is so different from mine. But they desire the same thing we all do—they want to connect with someone. A simple, “Hello, how were your classes this week?” in the church hallway is a great place to start.

BETH: Yes. Connecting one-with-one in direct and transparent interaction grabs them.

To understand the uniqueness of each soul that is sitting in the pew behind you, just start the conversation. I spend the majority of my time training people (many new college graduates) in our workplace. These grads want to know that someone genuinely cares about them.

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Learn Their Motivation

GREG: College students are connected to unlimited technology and information. Their phones have everything: alarm clocks, weather stations, social networks, and apps that connect to their online classes and bank account.

Oh, and they can make phone calls from them too. This means their phones rarely leave their hands.

With this newfound addiction comes some interesting trends and potential correlations.

Recent studies show anxiety is a major health concern among young people. It affects two out of three people and has surpassed depression as the number one mental illness among college students.

News of school shootings, abusive coaches, and hearing about the new LGBTQQIAAP sexual diversity office on their campus causes overwhelming stress. Things that cause anxiety are everywhere they look. My gut reaction is to say, “Are you crazy!” I want to put a big cardboard box at the door of the church that reads, “Drop your cell phone here.” My daughter shakes her head at me during my rants, but then smiles and brings me back to reality.

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Learn Their Spiritual Needs

BETH: Here’s the reality. The average student participates on five social media platforms, which translates into hours of scrolling, consuming of both positive and negative content, and an obligation to participate and respond to communication. The minute you mandate that your church, Bible study, or dinner table is a “no phone zone” will be the same time you make it a “no college kid zone.”

This is a fight that won’t be won by rule-making. Instead, demonstrate the behaviors you personally have found to be of value with regard to information consumption via the Internet and phone use. Set an example by modeling the positive effects in your own life. If you’ve learned the language and are in conversation as we described above, college students will see that and will interact with you in your home or church. If they should ask about it, you could casually respond, “Yeah, I’m taking a break from Facebook in the evenings—I sleep better, and I don’t feel like I’m at the mercy of everyone demanding my attention as I’m trying to unwind from the day.”

GREG:: While college students are driven by massive amounts of information and various ways of connecting, they are motivated by knowledge and relationship—and the church offers both! We just need to offer it to them in a way they can both understand and apply, as we would do with any other people group we are trying to serve.

BETH: The purpose of learning a generation’s language and motivations is ultimately to better understand their spiritual needs . . . and let’s not overthink this one—this generation needs Jesus. As college students or new members of the workforce sort things out, they need to know their identity lies not in the year they were born, but in a loving Father who purposely placed them in this exact moment, age demographic, and time frame.

To a generation bombarded with information and desperate for identity while drowning in the stereotype that says you are just like everyone else in your generation, the quiet but firm voice of Jesus whispers, “The very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid” (Matthew 10:30, 31, New Living Translation).

They are hungry to hear, “You are so valued, unique, and special to Jesus.” We don’t have to make it more complicated than just leading them to him.

GREG: Thanks for opening our eyes to that truth, Beth. The other day, a minister in a local church leaned over his desk and asked me, “What do these kids really want . . . how can we connect with them?” I glanced over his desk— cluttered with bulletin announcements, sermon notes, and letters to sign—and replied, “They want the same thing as you and me.

They want to belong. They want to feel a part of something, a part of a family, a part of a vision.”

He nodded.

I recently sat in the student union of a Midwestern university as a worship team led a session of praise music for about 300 college kids. The atmosphere was electric. The lyrics to “Give Me Jesus,” especially, seemed to permeate every heart—keep the world, “but give me Jesus.”

That’s what they want. And isn’t that what the rest of us want too? 

Greg Swinney serves as national representative for the Association of College Ministries and leads Crossroads International Student Ministries, an organization to mobilize churches and campus ministries in reaching university international students.

Beth Swinney works as a leadership trainer for a global Internet security corporation.

She lives in Omaha, Nebraska, where evening walks with her dog, Penny, make her smile.

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INTER GENERA TIONAL

MIX IT UP!

small groups

BY JESSIE CLEMENCE

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Wait.

You Want to Hang Out with Me? I invite you to peek inside our kitchen on a smallgroup night. Four baby boys and a preschooler are strapped into various high chairs around the table. Three young fathers are trying to assemble dinners for their offspring while a mother nurses a newborn in the living room. The room smells heavily of tacos and mushed-up baby food. Four older adults work side by side with the young mothers, feeding babies and sneaking cookies to toddlers when their parents aren’t looking. A pile of Bibles is stacked on the coffee table for the upcoming study, but only the older people had a chance to do the homework before the meeting.

Chaos rules. And yet, so does love, companionship, and friendship. Welcome to our intergenerational small group, which has included members from 7 days to 70 years of age. Our Monday-night meeting became the most chaotic, wonderful, exhausting, and blessed time of our week as we met the challenge of sharing different life stages together.

This experience was completely different than any small group I’d ever been in. I was used to groups of college students when I was in school, or a young wives’ meeting when I was just married. These homogenous groups were fine and often wonderful places to grow relationships, but something about the intergenerational gathering of our most recent group pushed me out of my comfort zone in the best way possible. We had wildly different financial situations, time constraints, and daily challenges.

Harmony wasn’t automatic—it took genuine effort to look beyond our own interests to care for the other members of the group, and this pushed me to a new place spiritually that I never would have found in a group of like-minded, middle-aged mothers.

Over the years, we built the kind of relationships that Titus 2 encourages—the older Christians teaching the young men and women to live Christhonoring lives. I doubt Paul had a formal training program in mind. I think he was expecting these lessons to come out of natural relationships, where generations make time for each other, raise children together, and eat dinner in a loud, messy, toddlers-throwing-pasta kind of way.

I’m not kidding. Noodles were thrown. It was awesome.

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Some unfortunate misconceptions keep generations apart. We might think the older generation wants peace and quiet, or that young children might be too stressful for them. At the same time, we assume younger church members are too busy with their careers and parenting to make time for mature members. But our small group found that nothing could be further from the truth. Layers upon layers of blessing flowed out of the combination of babies, teens, young parents, and grandparents.

One of those blessings was the realization that millennials really do want to know older members and learn from their years of wisdom. They asked things like, “How do I potty train this kid?” “How did you teach your kids Bible verses?” “Should we buy this car?” “Can you pray for our marriage?”

They were hoping, rather intensely, that someone with experience could help them through these issues.

But the blessings didn’t flow only in one direction, because those young families blessed us in return.

Take, for example, the time our 14-year-old daughter came up with some dubious plans for her future career path. I talked for days about how this was a terrible idea, but my advice fell on deaf ears. Fortunately, my child brought her ideas up with a couple from small group, and Katherine and Jay were able to talk her out of it in a matter of moments. They’re young and cool, which is the exact opposite of her boring old mother. I can’t count the times the young parents in our group spent time with our teenagers, and I’m thankful for every instance.

Our young friends would have been surprised to learn that we older members had begun to feel cutoff and slightly useless in our congregation, and our small group helped reconnect us to the church body. It’s a wonderful sense of purpose to set up a house for a meeting of toddlers and their parents.

Even when noodles flew through the air and I had to scrape something unidentifiable off my ceiling the next day, it was still a good feeling.

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It’s not that older men or women have all the answers, but we do have the unique ability to encourage young parents in some of the most exhausting days of family life. Honestly, I have no idea how my kids managed to get potty trained. I’ve blocked the terrible memories from my mind. But I remember how hard it all was, and I know how to lift a baby from the arms of a tired mama and tell her it’s all going to be OK. I can reassure her that her child is simply a 2-year-old; he’s not destined to be on America’s Most Wanted when he’s 20 based on his current behavior issues.

As our group grew closer together, we found the wrong assumptions and masks fell away.

The young parents found it impossible to pretend they had it all together when their toddlers threw themselves on the floor and had giant tantrums over toys or blankets.

Tempers flared between husbands and wives because exhaustion had stolen all of their patience. Honest confessions of resentment and bitterness spilled out of young parents’ lips during the prayer request time, and all that honesty just bred more honesty. I could remember back to when our kids were young and how furious I used to get at everyone and everything, and it was easy to offer grace and compassion from 15 years further down the road. Compassion bred more honesty, more pleas for prayer, and stronger relationships.

Practical Points to Make It All Work If you’re ready to step into a group with multiple generations, here are a few principles our group learned as we built those strong connections.

Relationships grow best in a climate of encouragement and acceptance.

Conversely, nothing kills a group faster than heavy-handed advice and criticism. Listen, encourage, repeat . . . these are the choices that open doors to deep, trusting friendships.

Uncomfortable truths can be graciously broached, when the need arises, after trust is established.

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Different generations have different financial situations, so tread thoughtfully.

Asking open-ended questions to determine financial ability is best done up-front. (Try: “How do you think the babysitting should work? Would you like to hire a sitter, or take turns watching the kids?” “We need some input on meal planning. What works best for your family?”)

Flexibility is key. Mixing a diverse group is rarely a smooth operation, and that’s OK! In our case, almost every single lesson was interrupted by some sort of childish shenanigans. We chose to focus on the fact that our group supported one another in various ways all through the week—through prayer, babysitting, advice, and snarky jokes on our Facebook group chat. I’m sure other groups do a good job of balancing study and young children, but we never beat ourselves up for the times we didn’t.

The Next Great Thing After three years together, our group morphed into something new. Two new groups were born from our large one; this change helped us meet new spiritual needs and open up additional locations for brandnew members. I’m not going to lie; I’m sad the season is over. But I also know God is always growing and changing us, and what he has next is also going to be great.

What does he have next for your small group?

Look around and reach out to someone unexpected. Maybe that new young couple with the tattoos and the baby stroller needs you. Maybe that widow who always sits in the back row would love to meet with you and your noodle-throwing tribe.

Ask them to join you, and see where God leads you next!  Jessie Clemence is a Christian church secretary.

Her newest book is I Could Use a Nap and a Million Dollars (Kregel Publications). Her website is jessieclemence.com.

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discipleship for all ages

BY RICK LOWRY

It’s easy to focus programming on younger adults. After all, they represent the long-term future of the church. That’s why many churches place a priority on worship music preferred by the younger crowd and the children’s programs that are important to their families.

I’m a discipleship pastor, and I acknowledge that our church gears most of our discipleship efforts toward those on the front end of family and life. But I have also observed that, as a result, many mature Christians struggle to find a place in their local church where they can continue to grow. As a church staff member moving into my 60s, I find myself living in two worlds. On the one hand, I’ve been instrumental in introducing many contemporary elements to church programs over the years, especially in the area of small groups and discipleship. On the other hand, I still remember spiritual growth settings that were meaningful to me in years past, like adult Sunday school, monthly Saturday men’s prayer breakfasts, or Wednesday-night prayer meetings. They still fit like an old glove when I get a chance to experience them again. Do we have to choose between older and younger church members when it comes to Christian growth? Or can we help all ages grow in Christ?

I researched churches in my region of the country that are growing and attracting the 20s and 30s crowd, while at the same time offering meaningful discipleship opportunities to middle-age and older adults.

Here are some attitudes and actions that these churches embrace to help the age-50-and-older crowd thrive spiritually.

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ABFs Can Meet Spiritual Needs Just as Well as a Home Bible Study

Age 50-Plus Church Members Can Serve in Meaningful Ways

One key element of discipleship for older adults is to continue finding ways to serve in the church—to give back what they have been receiving over the years. Georgetown (Indiana) Christian Church has a large percentage of children’s ministry volunteers who are empty nesters and retirement age. Georgetown discipleship pastor Chris Tanner has seen growth in younger people’s lives as they learn from those a generation or two ahead of them. Mason Seevers at Whitewater Crossing Church in Cincinnati recounts how an older adult group made an admirable transition.

They moved from doing only tourist bus trips together to becoming a service-oriented group.

They now regularly serve together at places like Matthew 25 Ministries, an organization that helps the underserved.

Mature Adults Can Offer Strong Discipleship Leadership

At Community Christian Church in Bethel, Ohio, family life minister Kyle Dickerson was having trouble finding qualified teachers for the ABF (“adult Bible fellowships” or Sunday school) program. Some seniors— who in their earlier years had been teachers and had experience at running a Sunday school program—heard about this need, so they stepped in and offered the leadership necessary to once again make the adult Sunday classes a thriving place for growth. Seniors with church leadership experience can be invaluable to leading a church discipleship program.

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I was invited to join the staff of First Church of Burlington, Kentucky, a few years ago.

Leadership charged me with starting a small groups program. There were already some strong adult Sunday classes.

When I arrived, people in the Sunday classes were nervous I was going to encourage them to stop meeting and become part of a small group. Instead, we decided to acknowledge that they are a small group—just one that happens to meet at the church building on Sundays. These classes were doing everything we wanted a small group to do—studying the Bible, praying for one another, and being involved in each other’s lives. So, we asked ourselves, Why would we break up a group that is already functioning as the kind of group we are hoping to build for the future? We view our ABFs as some of our most meaningful discipleship experiences and regard them and their teachers as full members of our small group program.

Tim Peace, who serves on the staff of Mount Carmel Christian Church in Batavia, Ohio, has taken a similar approach. Mount Carmel has midsized classes on Sunday morning, Wednesday evening, and Thursday morning.

They’ve encouraged the groups to do the things that other small groups do: enjoy meals together, have Bible discussion, and receive prayer requests (the same things good Sunday school classes have always done). Peace reflects that rather than experiencing a “small group vs. ABF fight,” these groups have become additional places for people to meaningfully belong.

Kathy Stahlhut, who directs discipleship at Greenwood (Indiana) Christian Church, starts with a resolve to create environments where every person can take their next step in growing closer to Jesus. Greenwood has a strong small groups program, but Stahlhut acknowledges that no matter how much the church emphasizes it, some people will never

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join a conventional small group. So Greenwood has developed alternative programming to try to catch everyone. For example, discipleship coaches are available to every age group; these coaches walk beside a person to guide them into their best next steps for growth.

Many Older Adults Are Lifelong Learners

At First Church we started “FCUniversity,” which is a series of classes designed to help people dig deeper into the Bible. In the spring and fall, we offer a more in-depth look at topics, Bible books, and issues than we might normally try to cover in a regular small group setting. Things like “Basic Theology,” “New Testament Survey,” or “What the Bible Says about Homosexuality.”

We originally planned to address a concern about biblical literacy, but we were surprised when the largest number of attendees were older adults. It reminded us that many older Christians are hungry for Scripture and more in-depth discussions than we can offer in home Bible studies.

Sunday Isn't the Only Day for Senior Adult Discipleship

At Whitewater Crossing, “groups guy” Micah Odor offers a midday, midweek Bible study for seniors. Attendance is 50 to 80 people per week. The church has noticed the following benefits: • The time frame avoids both morning, when winter roads can be rough, and evening, when it’s dark.

• The parking lot is empty, so there’s no stress dealing with traffic.

• They basically have the building to themselves, so there are no crowds to maneuver through.

• The schedule makes it possible for a staff member to teach at the gathering. (Staff typically are unavailable to teach on weekends, due to other responsibilities.)

The class is from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., but a lot of people get there at about 1:00 and stay until

3:00. So, socializing and informal care takes place. The class members take turns stocking the snack table.

Small Groups Can Emerge Organically from Programs for Older Adults

Our church started a Sunday-evening worship service geared toward older adults that we call “Trio.” It’s based on the Gaither Homecoming model, with traditional Southern gospel music. Back when we began to emphasize the importance of small groups, the director of the Trio program had a vision for groups starting organically from the Trio crowd.

For example, one of our church’s most thriving small groups calls itself “The Knee Group.”

For a few weeks at Trio, director Gary Griesser announced that a group was starting for people who had experienced knee replacements.

They met at our building immediately after the Trio service. Twelve people showed up the first night. After an initial tryout period, they decided to become a permanent group. They have become one of our model groups, as they meet weekly to study the Bible and be involved in each other’s lives. They go for bike rides together and also travel to attend the funerals of loved ones of group members.

Being a senior adult means something different than it did a generation or two ago. The older members of our churches have much wisdom to offer, the freedom to serve, and a desire to keep growing deep in their relationships with Christ—just as much as the younger members.

Let’s release them for ministry. Our churches will be better for it!  Rick Lowry serves as spiritual growth pastor with First Church of Burlington, Kentucky.

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MAXIMIZE KINGDOM IMPACT THROUGH INTERNSHIPS

BY JOSH QUADE

After completing her internship interview process, a college student wanted to discuss her options. She’s pursuing both a Bible college and regular university degree for a career in media and graphics arts, ideally in a church’s creative arts department.

On the surface, her description of potential internships lined up well with what our church could offer— some elements amazingly so. We had brought her in, introduced her to the team over several gettogethers, conducted personality profiles and orientations, and discussed logistics. All quite C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

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helpful and good. But I found the team’s questions for her the most encouraging: What are your dreams? What are your one-year, three-year, and five-year plans?

How would you characterize your faith? Can you tell us about your story?

The team members were more interested in her than the role she would fill, focusing most of the get-togethers around how they can help her develop and grow.

Healthy internships are about the holistic development of the individual, about maturing a disciple of Jesus into a powerful kingdom worker.

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DEVELOPING A GREAT INTERNSHIP PROCESS Every fall the local colleges and universities host community expos and invite local businesses, churches, and student organizations to meet, inform, and recruit students. I have come to loathe these events.

Many of the recruiting organizations are so strapped for leadership that they hand out internships and leadership roles to underdeveloped, immature, and unknown individuals simply because a spot needs to be filled.

The recruiters scramble for the most gifted and dynamic leaders in an attempt to impact their organization as quickly as possible.

I often wonder: Is this best for the student? If not, Is it best for the organization? And ultimately, Is it best for the kingdom?

I have never found a great intern at a community expo, for great interns are made. Every year our community gets a new influx of college students, most of whom are underdeveloped and immature. Regardless, all of them can make a huge kingdom impact in this season and beyond.

Even in towns without colleges, young adults are looking to discover the part they can play in the local church. The best intern recruiting tool I use is discipleship—a multiyear process of developing the whole person in the context of their gifts and the church.

Healthy leaders must take responsibility for developing great internships that holistically equip the next generation of kingdom workers. An organization doesn’t need a

robust internship program, a large budget, or a week-byweek curriculum to achieve this. Instead, it needs time, intentionality, and a commitment to kingdom work that goes beyond the walls of their organization. But first, it needs to be up to the task.

Most potential interns are very moldable. They have their own ideas of what the local church is and what it can do, but these can be shaped by your leadership and congregation. I have occasionally directed students away from particular areas of leadership in my own church because it wasn’t what was best for the student.

If churches aren’t careful and intentional, some students may walk away from internships less sure of themselves and having lost hope in what the local church can accomplish. It may be wise to improve the health of your church before bringing an intern onto your team.

DEVELOPING AND CHOOSING POTENTIAL INTERNS Once your church leadership is ready to take on interns, start by weaving those potential interns into the fabric of the church by incorporating them into low-commitment service opportunities in their areas of interest and passion, and invite them to connect with the beautiful generational diversity of the church. Through those two roads—service and sharing life with others—they can be developed personally, spiritually, relationally, and even professionally. As the semesters go by, they become valuable parts of the congregation. They are C H RIS TI AN STA N DAR D

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leaders who aren’t recruited, they are raised from within.

When we focus on servant leadership, we make leadership accessible to more people as they simply use the gifts God has given them. College-age adults especially need those low-level volunteer opportunities to discover more about themselves and to grow personally before they can move into greater levels of responsibilities.

When we become familiar with a person’s strengths, weaknesses, and passions, and actively assist in their growth, we will naturally begin to rely on them more. We engage them as key leaders who are instrumental to the church’s regular programming. A handful of these key leaders rise to the top, and from those individuals we choose interns.

HEALTHY INTERNSHIPS ARE ABOUT THE HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE INDIVIDUAL

INTENTIONAL DEVELOPMENT: THE FOUR Ps An internship is a mutual agreement for the shared development of the intern, the supervisor, the team, and the church. All share in the learning and growth together. To help guide us, we intentionally focus on four Ps: prayer, personal engagement, philosophical discernment, and professional development.

• Prayer: We consistently pray with the intern. The church’s leadership models the necessity of seeking the Lord together, demonstrating where true leadership finds its source and power.

• Personal engagement: We create space to talk through the life experiences of the intern. College-age adults are at a critical stage of development. They are asking foundational questions that will shape the rest of their lives: What do I believe? What career will I pursue? What type of person do I want to become? What type of person do I want to marry (if they choose that path)? As their supervisor, you will play a key role in helping them decipher some, if not all, of these questions. Interns find this type of personal engagement results in some of the most rewarding and impactful moments for their long-term development.

• Philosophical discernment: We communicate the “why.”

It isn’t enough to assign tasks for the intern to accomplish;

they need to know why those tasks exist. Allowing them to wrestle with the “whys” can give them the principles of leadership and ministry that transcend the internship.

Many interns have taken the “why”—that is, the DNA of our church—into leadership roles all over the world.

• Professional development: We prepare the intern for their unique calling. While some will ultimately serve in vocational ministry, all can be kingdom workers in and through the local church.

Leadership principles transcend occupation.

Careers may change, but the local church is the vessel through which God has chosen to change the world.

Seeing these students step into their new communities after graduation and hearing how they serve/lead their new local churches (whether vocationally or not) is tremendous affirmation that we are doing something right and worthwhile.

Practically speaking, my church can’t afford to pay interns, but we make sure all of their ministryrelated costs are covered. We also regularly work with their colleges (not just Bible colleges) to help them receive credit. Other creative benefits and perks— housing, Christmas bonuses, ministry stipends, and occasional meals or coffee—can mean a lot.

I’ve never had a student who received key investment really complain about not being paid.

That we are helping them gain skills and advance toward their goals is worth more than money.

Our church believes we share a responsibility with our local colleges and universities to empower the next generation of kingdom workers. Beyond that, we feel responsible to the broader kingdom to empower those leaders. While we appreciate the interns’ many hours of service and how it blesses the church, we most look forward to sending them out year after year. They are better because of it, and so are the kingdom and the church. And I, also, am better because of it. 

MAKING THE COMMITMENT The four Ps require setting aside focused time. Our internships are generally yearlong commitments that offer a complete picture of the ministry rhythm. There can be value in summer internship programs or one outside their normal context, particularly early in their development (when they can be exposed to different ways to influence the kingdom) or toward the end (as they circle their specialties). Regardless, intentional engagement with the four Ps is infused in each experience.

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Josh Quade serves as college age & young adult minister with College Heights Christian Church in Joplin, Missouri. /Josh.Quade @joshquade @joshua_quade www.chjoplin.org jquade@chcchurch.org

THE MYTH OF CHRISTIANITY’S DECLINE

BY GLENN T. STANTON NEW HARVARD RESEARCH SAYS U.S. CHRISTIANITY IS NOT SHRINKING, BUT GROWING STRONGER

“Meanwhile, a widespread decline in churchgoing and religious affiliation had contributed to a growing anxiety among conservative believers.”

Statements like this are uttered with such confidence and frequency that most Americans accept them as uncontested truisms. This one emerged in January in an exceedingly silly article in The Atlantic on Vice President Mike Pence.

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Religious faith in America is going the way of the Yellow Pages and travel maps, we keep hearing.

It’s just a matter of time until Christianity’s total and happy extinction, chortle our cultural elites. Is this true? Is churchgoing and religious adherence really in “widespread decline” so much so that conservative believers should suffer “growing anxiety”?

Two words: Absolutely not.

New research published late last year by scholars at Harvard University and Indiana University Bloomington is just the latest to reveal the myth.

This research questioned the “secularization thesis,” which holds that the United States is following most advanced industrial nations in the death of their once vibrant faith culture.

Churches becoming mere landmarks, dance halls, boutique hotels, museums, and all that.

Not only did Landon Schnabel and Sean Bock find no support for this secularization in terms of actual practice and belief, the researchers proclaim that religion continues to enjoy “persistent and exceptional intensity” in America.

These researchers hold our nation “remains an exceptional outlier and potential counter example to the secularization thesis” (see “The Perception and Exceptional Intensity of American Religion: A Response to Recent Research,” Sociological Science 4, November 27, 2017, available at www.sociologicalscience.com).

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WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR THE DIFFERENCE IN PERCEPTIONS? How can their findings appear so contrary to what we have been hearing from so many seemingly informed voices? It comes down primarily to what kind of faith one is talking about. Not the belief system itself, per se, but the intensity and seriousness with which people hold and practice that faith.

Mainline churches are tanking as if they have supersized millstones around their necks. Yes, these churches are hemorrhaging members in startling numbers, but many of those folks are not leaving Christianity. They are simply going elsewhere. Because of this shifting, other very different kinds of churches are holding strong in crowds and have been for as long as such data has been collected. In some ways, they are even growing. This is what this new research has found.

The percentage of Americans who attend church more than once a week, pray daily, and accept the Bible as wholly reliable and deeply instructive to their lives has remained absolutely, steel-bar constant for the last 50 years or more, right up to today. These authors describe this continuity as “patently persistent.”

The percentage of such people is also not small.

One in three Americans prays multiple times a day, while one in 15 do so in other countries on average. Attending services more than once a week continues to be twice as high among Americans compared to the next highestattending industrial country, and three times higher than the average comparable nation.

One-third of Americans hold that the Bible is the actual Word of God. Fewer than 10 percent believe so in similar countries. The United

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THESE ARE NOT ISOLATED FINDINGS

States “clearly stands out as exceptional,” and this exceptionalism has not been decreasing over time. In fact, these scholars determine that the percentages of Americans who are the most vibrant and serious in their faith are actually increasing a bit, “which is making the United States even more exceptional over time.”

This also means, of course, that those who take their faith seriously are becoming a markedly larger proportion of all religious people. In 1989, 39 percent of those who belonged to a religion held strong beliefs and practices. Today, these are 47 percent of all the religiously affiliated.

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The findings of these scholars are not outliers.

There has been a growing gulf between the faithful and the dabblers for quite some time, with the first group growing more numerous.

Think about the church you attend, relative to its belief system. It is extremely likely that if your church teaches the Bible with seriousness, calls its people to real discipleship, and encourages daily intimacy with God, it has multiple services to handle the coming crowds.

Most decent-size American cities have a treasure trove of such churches for believers to choose from. This shows no sign of changing.

If, however, your church is theologically liberal or merely lukewarm, it’s likely laying off staff and wondering how to pay this month’s light bill. People are navigating toward substantive Christianity.

The folks at Pew have been reporting for years that while the mainline churches are in drastic free fall, the group that “shows the most significant growth is the nondenominational family.” Of course, these nondenominational churches are 99.9 percent thorough-blooded evangelical. Pew also notes that “evangelical Protestantism and the historically black Protestant tradition have been more stable” over the years, with even a slight uptick in the last decade because many congregants leaving the mainline churches are migrating to evangelical churches that hold fast to the fundamentals of the Christian faith.

(See “Chapter 1: The Changing Religious Composition of the U.S.” from May 12, 2015, available at www.pewforum.org.)

When the so-called “progressive” churches question the historicity of Jesus, deny the reality of sin, support abortion, ordain clergy in samesex relationships, and perform their marriages, people desiring real Christianity head elsewhere.

Fact: Evangelical churches gain five new congregants exiled from the liberal churches for every one they lose for any reason. They also do a better job of retaining believers from childhood to adulthood than do mainline churches.

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THE OTHER KEY FACTOR: FAITHFUL PEOPLE GROW MORE CHILDREN There is another factor at work here beyond orthodox belief. The University of London’s Eric Kaufmann explains in his important book Shall the Religious Inherit the Earth? (he says yes) that the sustaining vitality, and even significant per capita growth, of serious Christian belief is as firmly rooted in fertility as it is in faithful teaching and evangelism. Globally, he says that the more robust baby-making practices of orthodox Jews and Christians, as opposed to the baby-limiting practices of liberals, create many more seriously religious people than a secular agenda can keep up with.

Fertility determines who influences the future in many important ways. He puts it bluntly, “The secular West and East Asia are aging and their share of the world population declining. This means the world is getting more religious even as people in the rich world shed their faith.”

Fertility is as important as fidelity for Christianity and Judaism’s triumph from generation to generation. Kaufmann contends, “Put high fertility and [faith] retention rates together with general population decline and you have a potent formula for change.”

It comes down to this: God laughs at the social Darwinists. Their theory is absolutely true, but just not in the way they think. Those who have the babies and raise and educate them well tend to direct the future of humanity. Serious Christians are doing this. Those redefining the faith and reality itself are not.

This is why Orthodox theologian David Bentley Hart proclaimed in First Things, long before the proposal of the Benedict Option, that the most “subversive and effective strategy we might undertake [to counter the culture] would be one of militant fecundity: abundant, relentless, exuberant, and defiant childbearing” (see “Freedom and Decency” by Hart, June 2004, available at www.firstthings.com). The future rests in the hands of the fertile.

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WHAT ABOUT ALL THE MILLENNIAL EX-CHRISTIANS? But what about our young people? We are constantly hearing that young people are “leaving the church in droves,” followed by wildly disturbing statistics. This also requires a closer look at who is actually leaving and from where.

Pew reports that of young adults who left their faith, only 11 percent said they had a strong faith in childhood while 89 percent said they came from a home that had a very weak faith in belief and practice.

It’s not a news flash that kids don’t tend to hang onto what they never had in the first place.

Leading sociologist of religion Christopher Smith has found through his work that most emerging adults “report little change in how religious they have been in the previous five years.” He surprisingly also found that those who do report a change say they have been more religious, not less (see Smith’s book Souls in Transition from 2009). This certainly does not mean there is a major revival going on among young adults, but nor does it mean the sky is falling.

Add to this Rodney Stark’s warning in his 2015 book The Triumph of Faith that we should not confuse leaving the faith with attending less often. He and other scholars report that young adults begin to attend church less often in their “independent years” and have always done so for as long back as such data has been collected. It’s part of the nature of emerging adulthood. Just as sure as these young people do other things on Sunday morning, the leading sociologists of religion find they return to church when they get married, have children, and start to live a real adult life. It’s like clockwork and always has been.

However, the increasing delay among young adults in entering marriage and family is likely lengthening this gap today.

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MORE AMERICANS ATTEND CHURCH NOW THAN AT THE FOUNDING What is really counterintuitive is what Stark and his colleagues at the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion found when looking at U.S. church attendance numbers going back to the days of our nation’s founding. They found that the percentage of church-attending Americans relative to overall population is more than four times greater today than it was in 1776. The number of attendees has continued to rise each and every decade over our nation’s history right up until the present day (see Stark’s book What American’s Really Believe, 2008).

People are making theological statements with their feet, shuffling to certain churches because they offer what people come seeking: clear, faithful, practical teaching of the Scriptures, help in living intimately with and obediently to God, and making friends with people who will challenge and encourage them in their faith.

Or as Eric Kaufmann asserts, “Once secularism rears its head and fundamentalism responds with a clear alternative, moderate religion strikes many as redundant. Either you believe the stuff or you don’t. If you do, it makes sense to go for the real thing, which takes a firm stand against godlessness.”

If your Christianity is reconstituted to the day’s fashion, don’t be surprised if people lose interest in it. Few are seeking 2 Percent Christianity. They want the genuine deal, and the demographics on religion of the last few decades unmistakably support the fact. 

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This article originally appeared on The Federalist website (thefederalist.com) and is reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2018 The Federalist, a wholly independent division of FDRLST Media, All Rights Reserved.

Glenn T. Stanton is the director of family formation studies at Focus on the Family and is the author of eight books including The Ring Makes All the Difference (Moody, 2011). He blogs at glenntstanton.com.

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CHRISTIAN STANDARD MEDIA // CHRISTIAN STANDARD MEDIA // CHRISTIAN STANDARD MEDIA // C

Christian Standard Media Purchases Christian Church Today Christian Standard Media has purchased the assets of Christian Church Today, including its online database of Christian churches and Christian ministries, and plans to make them available to readers of Christian Standard and The Lookout.

“Our intention is to create a digital list that will form a vital communication link in our church network locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally by providing connections and links to email, websites, and social media,” said Christian Standard Media Publisher Jerry Harris.

“The database has more than 9,000 churches and organizations that we are presently and painstakingly bringing up to date,” Harris said.

“We plan to migrate this database to our Christian Standard Media website (www. christianstandardmedia.com) and make it available at no charge to those who have purchased a subscription to either Christian Standard or The Lookout,” Harris said. The database will be available beginning sometime in July, though updates may still be occurring.

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This database will serve as a communication tool for churches and related organizations to share local and regional events, to network resources and ideas, and to aid in relationship building.

“The church and media database will be a key part of a central hub to all of our communications: our magazines, apps, newsletters, and our other published products,” Harris said.

The mission at Christian Standard Media is “to leverage the power that comes from our unity . . . ,” Harris said. In order to accomplish that, we need know who “we” are.

“One of our greatest challenges as a movement flows out of one of our greatest strengths— autonomy—but the challenges associated with autonomy can be disconnection and isolation,” Harris said. “The reason we purchased Christian Church Today is to address that challenge.”

“This comprehensive, up-to-date, digital database will serve to help network all those churches and organizations that identify with independent Christian churches and churches of Christ.”  - 60 -

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// NORTH AMERICAN CHRISTIAN CONVENTION // NORTH AMERICAN CHRISTIAN CONVENTION // NORTH

The North American Christian Convention.

What’s Next?

BY JERRY HARRIS Some of us have heard a massive shift is coming to the North American Christian Convention that will make it unrecognizable compared to gatherings of years past. While the 2019 convention will see some changes, in many ways it will focus on the fundamentals upon which the NACC was founded.

I was at a meeting to help plan the NACC’s 92ndyear gathering. I was surrounded by committed leaders of our movement from churches, organizations, and missions. What I heard renewed my excitement for a great future. The mission of the NACC is “. . . to encourage and equip leaders who inspire a movement of healthy growing churches.”

That statement captures what the NACC has sought to be from its first gathering October 12-16, 1927, in Indianapolis.

As Christian Standard’s publisher, I have access to an archive of every issue since the magazine’s inception in 1866, so I looked up the issue that recounted that first meeting at Indianapolis’s Cadle Tabernacle. P.H. Welshimer, the chairman the first year, described it as “a preaching meeting. An old fashioned county meeting on a national scale to sound forth the fundamentals of our faith and to give us new courage and aggressiveness.” Between 3,500 and 5,000 people from all over the country attended. Just imagine the transportation challenges of the day . . . but the people came!

Why? It was a defining time for the movement.

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for highly liberal theology; many were questioning the authority of Scripture, salvation through Christ alone, and the lordship of Christ. Churches were practicing open membership, not requiring any doctrinal adherences. Christian colleges and universities of the day were churning out leaders who were continuing down that dark path and leading churches with them.

Christian Standard that year recounted strong messages on the deity and authority of Christ, New Testament baptism, the centrality of the Lord’s Supper, what we must do to be saved, standing for the truth of God’s Word, evangelism, the work of the Holy Spirit, social justice, and a clarion call to recruit and train up leaders with the proper ideals for ministry. It was a resounding success.

Victor Knowles has written that in 1927 there were 5 colleges in our movement. In the years following that convention, 35 more were established, 17 in the 1940s alone. These colleges brought young leaders back to the Bible, to the centrality and lordship of Jesus, and to a movement that was founded in the principles of the New Testament church. Through the NACC, the Restoration Movement found its footing again.

Over the years, the NACC has been the gathering designed to build health into our movement by inspiring, encouraging, and equipping its leaders.

The meeting I attended affirmed our need to pull together our tribe, to reaffirm its stand on God’s Word and biblical truth, to stay focused on evangelism and discipleship, and to promote Christian unity realizing that our mission flows from that unity.

In recent years, the NACC has been “the connecting place” for our movement, and while our times may not seem so dire as the years preceding 1927, we must be vigilant to build leaders who can stand up against the growing opposition of our culture.

We must invest in a future of biblically strong churches that take ground, enlarge territory, and bring in a human harvest for God’s great kingdom.

It is not a time to be distracted by tradition or past programming; instead, we must be laser focused on the mission before us and the plea we carry.

I want to encourage you to make every effort for your leaders to attend the 2019 NACC in Nashville, Tennessee. I will be there with mine.  - 61 -

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HEADLINES

BY CHRIS MOON

ticker //tape The women’s ministry at Kissimmee (Florida) Christian Church assembled gift bags in February to show appreciation to the female officers of the Kissimmee Police Department.

The church collected various items, such as nail files, nail polish, gum, mints, protein bars, and bottles of Gatorade and Powerade, for the officers.

Westbrook Christian Church in Bolingbrook, Ill., hosted an “International Feast” to celebrate the diversity of the church. The church encouraged members to bring dishes that represented their family heritage.

Christ’s Church of the Valley in Phoenix, Ariz., sent its first mission team to Liberia this past winter. The church’s primary emphasis in Kakata, Liberia, was putting on soccer clinics and tournaments, as well as hosting a VBS. In promoting the trip, the church said, “Soccer skills not required but helpful!”

Bettendorf (Iowa) Christian Church hosted “Team Jersey Day” for its children’s ministry.

The church encouraged kids and grown-ups to promote their favorite team at church—“pro teams, local

The high school ministry at Greenville (Ill.) First Christian Church hosted a “Senior/Boomer Banquet” in March to honor those in the congregation who are 55 and older. Students served at the banquet.

FIRE DESTROYS MOHI SCHOOL BUT NOT HOPE IN ITS MISSION

First Capital Christian Church in Corydon, Ind., hosted its annual wild game dinner in March. Professional fisherman Clay Dyer was the keynote speaker. The church marketed its “Kill It & Grill It” event with the following tagline: “You kill it. You grill it. We all eat it.”

Missions of Hope International suffered a blow to its efforts to spread the gospel in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya, when one of its school buildings burned to the ground in February.

The building in the Bondeni community housed 18 classrooms that served 694 students. Desks and textbooks were lost in the blaze.

MOHI is a partner of Indianapolisbased Christian Missionary Fellowship International, which immediately began fund-raising to replace what was lost.

The estimated loss was $300,000.

“We thank God there were no injuries,” said Mary Kamau, executive director of MOHI, in a video in the days after the fire.

The fire also destroyed homes in the area.

“When I visited Bondeni after the fire, I was really touched, I was really moved,” Kamau said. “And the biggest thing that the community members were concerned about was how are the children going to continue learning. And I looked around and most of those people, they had lost everything that they owned after the fire.

Yet they were so concerned about our school and how the children will learn. It really made me see that no matter what happens—no matter the fire, no matter the destruction of all the property and all that—we know that God will continue to transform lives in this community.”

Gateway Christian Church in St. Albans, W.Va., hosted a Foundations of Faith Conference in February. Workshops included “How to Follow Jesus in a Post-Christian Culture,” “Who Chose the Books of the Bible and Why,” and “Tolerance and Homosexuality.”

Dudley Rutherford, pastor of Shepherd Church in Porter Ranch, Calif., took to Facebook to honor Billy Graham after the evangelist’s death in February: “He has graduated into glory after preaching to millions.

Before the Internet and before social media he did it the oldfashioned way. He used his lungs and a lot of shoe leather.

God brought the masses and the presidents and the media attention, and he simply lifted up Jesus.”

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teams, not-so-good teams . . . hats, full uniforms, just a T-shirt . . . it’s all good! Just bring your team spirit.”

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LOUISVILLE CHURCH PACKS A MILLION MEALS FOR FAMINE RELIEF Southeast Christian Church in Louisville is putting food in the hands of people who need it most.

The Louisville megachurch last fall hosted a food-packaging event in which 8,500 people from across its network of campuses came together to package more than a million meals for famine relief in Uganda and Kenya. The church in February followed up with a video showing the congregation that the first third of those meals had been delivered.

The video showed hundreds of cardboard boxes of food being unloaded from the back of a truck and stacked on the ground. One of the boxes had a heart and a handwritten note that said, “Jesus loves you!”

Leaders of local churches who know the situation best oversaw the food distribution, said Jay Schroder, missions project manager at Southeast. “In the past, these churches have provided developmental programs, (they’ve) helped start microbusinesses, they’ve sustained livestock. But now they’re threatened with starvation.” The food enabled those churches “to engage those in need so they can still eat. They can hear good news of the gospel. They can start to plan to provide for themselves for the long term.”

Schroder said the containers used to ship the food would be used for classroom space and would “be used over and over again.”

Bachelor Creek Church of Christ in Wabash, Ind., hosted an event called “Made Known: A Community Gathering for Pregnancy and Infant Loss.” The event sought to acknowledge babies “made” by God, “known” by their parents, and “made known” through the honoring of their memory.

Bright Christian Church in Lawrenceburg, Ind., hosted woodcarver Ron Vance at its men’s breakfast. Vance, a former church of Christ pastor, showed off his “Bible sticks”—intricately carved staffs with images and symbols representing key themes from the Bible, such as the 12 apostles and the titles for Christ.

Lincoln (Ill.) Christian Church is hosting a weekly “Homework Club” for students of a nearby school that has a large number of disadvantaged students.

Volunteers help students with their schoolwork and provide Christian mentoring.

Compassion Christian Church this spring packaged weekend meals for disadvantaged children in the Savannah area.

The church said one in four children in coastal Georgia lacks food, especially on weekends. The church collected and packed single-serve meals to be distributed through the local school system.

Parkview Christian Church in Orland Park, Ill., used bacon to lure junior high students out of

Former Academy Christian Church pastor Dick Crabtree celebrated his 90th birthday this year. The Colorado Springs church held a birthday party in February to honor Crabtree, who led Academy for 18 years before serving as executive director of South Pacific Christian Fellowship in New Zealand and Australia.

Michigan’s 2|42 Community Church recently launched its fourth campus in Saginaw and already is eyeing campus No. 5 for the Ypsilanti area, pastor Dave Dummitt announced in February. The Ypsilanti location will be led by campus pastor Chris Pasik; the expected launch date will be this fall.

“God seems to be opening doors, and we’re going to continue to follow his lead,” Dummitt said in a Facebook video.

Momentum Christian Church in McDonough, Ga., partners with a local nonprofit group to provide furniture to families in need. The church in February was able to fully furnish two homes with donated furniture. 

/ChristianStandardMagazine @ChrStandard @christianstandardmagazine Cs@ChristianStandardMedia.com

ONE BUCK, ONE WEEKEND, BIG COMMUNITY IMPACT Christ’s Church in Effingham, Ill., is trying to make a difference in its community—one buck at a time.

The church this year is hosting “Impact Weekend” on the last weekend of every month. Each church member is asked to bring a dollar to contribute to a special cause in the community.

“We’d like everyone at all of our locations to bring just an extra dollar with them,” associate pastor Matt Farrar told the congregation during a sermon in February. “And then we’ll take that dollar and we’ll give it away . . . to one of the many organizations our life groups are working alongside of to make a difference in our world.”

The church in February donated the proceeds of its “Impact Weekend” to a local Head Start program. 

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the cold and into church this past winter. The church hosted “Bacon Night” in its Wednesday student ministry . . . a night “full of free bacon, bacon games, and bacon-related activities.”

NONDENOMINATIONALISH Headlines For Christians Who Don’t Take Themselves Too Seriously

BY CALEB KALTENBACH

THE LEAD PASTOR: XP EDITION PAIRS A LEAD PASTOR WITH AN EXECUTIVE PASTOR MALIBU, CA—Pastor Paul Porgman needed an executive pastor, so he went on The Lead Pastor: XP Edition.

The show is patterned after the hit series The Bachelor, which features a single man who spends weeks with many attractive women until he chooses his future wife. In The Lead Pastor: XP Edition, Porgman spent weeks with many unattractive, out-of-shape, type A personality men until he chose one to be his executive pastor.

“It was . . . bizarre,” Porgman said. “We never got in a hot tub, but I walked on the beach with each one of them. I also had to take them out for dinners. Most of them wanted to talk about systems or the latest church database.”

“In each elimination ceremony,” reflected Sam Alzar, who was chosen by Porgman to be his executive pastor, “instead of a rose, Paul handed each of us a page from the staff handbook.

At the end, I knew I won because I had the whole handbook!”

“He asked me to map out the process and action steps I used to choose him,” Porgman said.

“I told him not to use so many

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words in a sentence again. But you know—,” Porgman was interrupted.

“Our department head meeting is in an hour,” Alzar said, “Do you want to chart the steps of the meeting so it’s streamlined for an intentional discussion concerning the variables?”

Porgman fell on the floor. “Are you OK?” a children’s minister asked.

“Shhh,” Porgman whispered.

“I’m playing possum.”

NEW HUNGER GAMES VBS THEME FAILS MISERABLY

ASHLAND, MN—Back in January, the family ministry team

of First Christian Church gathered to discuss possible VBS themes before finally settling on The Hunger Games.

“It seemed like a good idea,” said student pastor Francis Jenson. “I like the Hunger Games movies, and kids play a significant role in the films. It seemed perfect.”

That first night, parents dropped off their kids in the church’s sanctuary. Many parents left immediately, but some paused as the lights dimmed and a sense of foreboding took over.

“They had fake trees all over the room,” reported Andrea Lansberry, mother of two children who attended that first night. “There were so many trees you couldn’t see the other side of the room. The kids had to sit against the walls.

Then the student pastor said something like, ‘May the odds ever be in your favor.’”

As soon as the children started combat—most of them using improvised weapons—many disturbed parents entered the makeshift Hunger Games arena to pull their kids out of VBS. Still, some children hung on and returned for several nights—though numbers dwindled as players were “eliminated.”

“I guess we should have anticipated that,” Jenson said. Only two children returned that last night.

“On the plus side, several parents told us they’ve never received such big, big hugs from their kids,” Jenson said.

“What’s the big fuss?” questioned children’s assistant Irene Slumtom. “Do we have to do Dare to be a Daniel every year? The parents have no idea how many themes we rejected. I mean, we refused to do a Deadpool theme! Doesn’t that count for anything?”

When asked if he still thought the theme was a good idea, Jenson replied, “I guess not. Why? Do you think we should try it one more time?”

ALEXANDER CAMPBELL ANNOUNCED AS A 2018 NACC SPEAKER

INDIANAPOLIS—Church leaders around the world were shocked to learn that Alexander Campbell will be speaking at the yearly convention.

2018 North American Christian Convention President Drew Sherman reportedly hired a Transylvanian scientist—a mad one, no doubt—to fly in and reanimate Campbell, the leading thinker of the early Restoration Movement and longtime editor of the Millennial Harbinger.

The process took longer than initially thought, due to good weather. Eventually, however, a thunderstorm passed through the area and made the impossible possible.

“We just want to empower leaders and give them an NACC

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they’ll never forget,” Sherman said.

“It’s weird, [and] I still think it’s a bad idea,” commented NACC Vice President Tim Winters. “But we’ll definitely have a crowd during Campbell’s main session.”

Unfortunately, no photograph of Campbell was made available; the traditional drawing of him is being used in promotional material.

“I’m not gonna lie, he’s hard to look at,” Sherman said. “But what do you expect? He’s been dead for 151 years, so he’s going to have major issues. A team of volunteers is working on his face and a speech pathologist with roots in our movement is helping him to use sentences instead of grunts. He’ll be ready for NACC. He’ll be great.”

Bible college and seminary professors are debating the theological implications of this bold move, but ministers whom we’ve contacted are excited by the prospects of having Campbell visit their congregation.

“After the NACC he’s ready to speak at your church,” Sherman promised. “I’d just make sure to keep an eye on him at all times and lock him in a closet at night.”

Sherman was asked to elaborate on this decision.

He would respond only by saying, “This changes everything.”  Caleb Kaltenbach is just kidding.

interact ENCOURAGEMENT FOR MISSIONARIES

CIVIL LIBERTY

Thank you for the kind words and the encouragement, Emily [“Standing Firm in the Spotlight,” by Emily Drayne, p. 18, March 2018].

I can testify that missionaries really need such kind words and encouragement, as well as a listening ear, accountability, guidance . . . basically, friends to help us stay on track. It often feels pretty lonely out here.

Please look up missionaries that your church is involved with. Keep in touch with them and pray for them. Please ask others to do the same.

You may be the one who keeps a missionary from becoming “a statistic.”

John Allcott via website

I was challenged and helped by this article [“Civil Liberty: How Christ Frees Us to Be Civil in Less-Than-Civil Times,” by Shawn McMullen, p. 58, March 2018]. My wife, Bev, and I have been missionaries here in Taiwan for more than 49 years, and we are constantly faced with trying to be civil in everyday situations. The Taiwanese are very kind, personable people if you are their friend, but they can do some very trying things if you are driving among them or are unknown to them.

Your article was helpful to me personally as I strive daily to “take up my cross” and grow in Jesus (2 Peter 3:18).

Ted Skiles via website

FANTASTIC! Love, love, love the new Lookout!

I’ve always enjoyed The Lookout and Christian Standard and the newest changes are fantastic!

Lisa D. Loveless Shelbyville, Indiana via email

Great article! Thank you for words wisely chosen.

Pam Henwood Coffey via Facebook Great thoughts. Deep thoughts. Convicting thoughts. True thoughts.

Mark Coffee via Facebook Great article . . . so important for our day. You might pick up a copy of Stephen L. Carter’s book Civility and note his reference to [civility] depending on our being a servant to others and seeing God’s image within them.

That gives them value.

Don Shelton via website

OUR SPIRITUAL HERITAGE

THE DOT

I want you to know that I think the February issue of Christian Standard was the best issue since I started receiving [the magazine] five months ago. I especially appreciated the article about Marshall Keeble [“Marshall Keeble and What He Taught Me,” by Jerry Harris, p. 28, February 2018]. I had heard of him but did not know very much about him.

We need to pray for more evangelists with his zeal working to reach people for Christ today. . . .

I am one of the saved who is lost, so the lost can be saved. In the article [“The DOT” by Jerry Harris, p. 30, March 2018], it says, “Those who oppose this kind of aggressive strategy will find plenty of other comfortable places to worship.” That’s not true. Outside of Restoration churches, the grace of God as revealed in salvation by grace is not only nonexistent but abused and even mocked. I have experienced it personally, and it is everything but comfortable. After 35 years of involvement, we were told that if we did not agree, we could leave, displaying a complete lack of consideration and respect for the body of Christ. There are always two sides to every story.

David Brackemyre via website

I would also like to thank you for changing the format of Ticker//Tape. I can finally read it and hope you keep it this way. . . .

One other suggestion would be to feature an article each issue about some of the giants of faith from years past. Rolland A. Steever’s book Looking Back to See Ahead would be a good source for this. I am afraid we are rapidly losing any knowledge or interest in our spiritual heritage of heirs of the Restoration Movement. More articles about our position would be most helpful.

Robert J. Tinsky Fishers, Indiana via mail

POLITICAL ISSUES Jesus took a stand on many political issues so I’m in good company [“Should Christian Leaders Take a Stand on Political Issues?” by Bob Russell, p. 44, March 2018].

Roger Wever via Facebook If you believe as I do that Christianity is a complete worldview, then there is absolutely no area in life where Christians should be afraid about expressing an opinion!

Richard A. Diefenbach via Facebook

Read every Christian Standard for the last 38 years.

This article, “The DOT,” should be required reading for everyone in your congregation over the age of 40.

Then they should stop complaining about the style of the worship. If your youth group is responding to it and growing, celebrate that. Remember, your dot is moving to the right. Oh, I am 79.

Bob Evans First Christian Church, Miami, Oklahoma via Facebook

Give us your

feedback! /ChristianStandardMagazine @ChrStandard @christianstandardmagazine Cs@ChristianStandardMedia.com For space, length, readability, relevance, and civility, comments sent to Interact may remain unpublished or be edited. We do read them all and prayerfully take them to heart. If we publish your comment, we will try to honestly reproduce your thoughts with those considerations in mind. Where we disagree, let’s continue to keep P.H. Welshimer’s words in mind to “disagree without being disagreeable.”

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- COMMUNIONMEDITATION -

SINNER ANONYMOUS As God’s people, we have one common bond: All of us have brought our sins to Jesus. And that is what brings us around his table.

How sad, then, that many of us spend so much energy trying to conceal our sinfulness! Why does the church often become an exercise in pretending we are perfect?

BY GENE SHELBURNE Gene Shelburne has served as the pulpit minister at the Anna Street Church in Amarillo, Texas, for 49 years. He is senior editor of the Christian Appeal and his column “Cross Currents” appears in several newspapers, including the Amarillo Globe News . He has written four books, including The God Who Puts Us Back Together .

The late Bishop Fulton J. Sheen said, “The modern world does not believe in sin. . . . It used to be that we Catholics were the only ones in the world who believed in the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. Today every American believes he is immaculately conceived. He is not a sinner; he is sick.”

“If we confess our sins,” the Bible assures us, the Lord “is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Unfortunately, the recipients of that promise often choose to maintain a charade of pious perfection in the name of Christ.

C. S. Lewis warned, “Those who do not think about their own sins make up

for it by thinking incessantly about the sins of others.” Jesus seems to have had something like that in mind when he told the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector who both went to the temple to pray (Luke 18:9-14).

The Pharisee who was so proud of his own goodness was equally repulsed by the sins of others.

Lebanese writer, poet, and artist Kahlil Gibran was on target when he said, “If we were all to sit in a circle and confess our sins, we would laugh at each other for lack of originality.”

We all are weak human beings beset by the same frailties and follies. Greed and pride and fears and wrath debase the best of us and give us a great deal in common with the worst of us.

At Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, the participants always identify themselves before they speak. “Hi,” they say, “I’m Jim (or Joe, or Tom, or Susie). I’m an alcoholic.” Maybe we should say something similar when we gather to share the Lord’s Supper.

“Hi. I’m [whoever]. I’m a sinner.” Just like you. 

Gene Shelburne has written more Communion Meditations specifically for use in May. See a new one posted each Tuesday at ChristianStandard.com.

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