Dan Reiland: Soul Care Practices for Ministry Leaders

April 12, 2023

How can we take action to care for our own souls as we are serving others? In this episode of FrontStage BackStage, host Jason Daye is joined by Dan Reiland. Dan serves as the executive director for leadership expansion at 12 Stones Church in Lawrenceville, Georgia, where he also has served for 20 years as the executive pastor. Previously, Dan spent two decades serving with John Maxwell, first as the executive pastor at Skyline Wesleyan Church in San Diego and then as Vice President for Leadership and Church Development at Maxwell Leadership. Together, Dan and Jason explore four prominent areas of soul care for pastors and ministry leaders. Then, Dan shares experiences from his own life that help illustrate how we can incorporate soul care into our lives as well.

FrontStage BackStage Podcast Guest Dan Reiland

View the entire podcast here.

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Rick Warren on Faith, Dreams, and Why His 40-Plus Years at Saddleback Prepared Him for This Moment

Jessica Lea

April 12, 2023

The Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast · Rick Warren on Faith, Dreams, and Why His 40-Plus Years at Saddleback Prepared Him for This Moment

Dr. Rick Warren co-founded Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, in 1980 with his wife, Kay. Since stepping down from the lead pastor role at Saddleback in 2022, Rick has continued to inspire people through his Daily Hope Devotional and his podcast, Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope. He is the author of “The Purpose Driven Life,” one of the bestselling nonfiction books in publishing history. Rick’s latest book, his first in a decade, is “Created to Dream: The 6 Phases God Uses to Grow Your Faith.”

Other Ways To Listen to This Podcast With Rick Warren

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Key Questions for Rick Warren

-What excites you about this season of life?

-What is the connection between dreaming and faith?

-What are the questions that people should ask to evaluate whether they should begin pursuing their dreams?

-If people are struggling with their dreams and feel like the dreams are not going to happen, how do they move through that discouragement?

Key Quotes From Rick Warren

“I’ve been in a two-year battle with an autoimmune disease. It’s not life-threatening. It won’t even last. It lasts between three to five years. But without getting into all the details, the bottom line is it leaves my muscles, all my major muscles in pain pretty much 24 hours a day.”

“I feel like my 40-plus years at Saddleback Church were actually a learning experience preparing me for this greater role.”

“We want churches to stop outsourcing their mission responsibility. What they’re doing is they’re paying other people to do their mission and they think that that is assuaging their responsibility. But God has called every man and every woman to fulfill the Great Commission.”

“There’s almost no church in the world giving ongoing evangelism training, ongoing mission training, and actually sending their members around the world.”

“It’s not enough to just care about your community. The Bible says we’re to care about the whole world.”

“By the year 2033…we want everybody in the world to have access to a Bible in their heart language.”

“Any church can plant churches if they’re planting house churches, if they’re planting small groups.”

‘Healing the Healers’ With the Restorative Wisdom of the Black Church

Joshua Stanton and Benjamin Spratt

April 12, 2023

Jennifer Bailey — Bishop Anne Byfield, front right, president of the Council of Bishops, speaks during the opening worship service at the African Methodist Episcopal Church conference July 6, 2021, in Orlando, Florida. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

(RNS) — The Black church is one of the most visible institutions in American life, its national leaders’ names nearly synonymous with the civil rights movement from the 1960s to the present day. It’s a powerfully unifying force, with 74% of Black adults identifying as Christian. Before the pandemic, some 40% of those Christians reported attending a church service in the prior week.

Behind that legacy of social justice and faithfulness are prophetic spiritual leaders and theologians, some of them household names, others all but anonymous to the wider world.

The Rev. Jennifer Bailey, founder of the Faith Matters Network, is dedicated to gathering the wisdom of fellow Black Christian thinkers for the benefit of a far broader circle of spiritual social justice leaders.

“Faith Matters Network was really born out of a curiosity about how folks inclined to see themselves as rooted in a social justice ethic were finding and building meaning and community,” said Bailey in a recent interview.

A minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Bailey wants her network to include formally trained clergy from across the spectrum of faith, but also laypeople who have taken on roles of sacred service in faith-based organizations.

The Rev. Jennifer Bailey. Courtesy photo

Bailey sees this approach as necessary in a time when religion is undergoing fundamental changes in America, especially among millennials and Gen Z, groups that are often portrayed as having lost interest in religion. “There’s still a deep yearning for spirituality and deep connection and community,” she said, reprising a theme from “To My Beloveds,” her 2021 book on race, loss and what she calls “communal hope.”

“Whether people call the (higher power) God and whether or not they go to services,” she explained, “they are ‘composting’ religion, taking what has been most nourishing and useful and letting go of the rest.”

Bailey grew up in a largely white part of Chicago, a place she writes in “To My Beloveds” that “resists change in the name of tradition and where difference is a deficit rather than a strength.” She wrote that the school playground was its own education, teaching her that “the politics of race is a messy and violent business.”

Rather than succumbing to those divisions, Bailey became a bridge builder.

She began as a community organizer, working mostly on food justice, before and while attending Vanderbilt Divinity School. When she graduated in 2014, she launched Faith Matters Network, working to create “a place of care at the center of social movements, focusing on clergy, community organizers and activists — healing the healers,” she said.

“We are really committed to thinking about how we accompany folks in the work of social justice for the long term, over the course of their lives, and empower them with the tools and resources they need to be committed to that vision of a more just and grounded society,” Bailey said.

In 2016, after a bruisingly divisive presidential election, she collaborated with the grief support organization The Dinner Party, which helps to bring people who have lost a loved one for a meal, to create The People’s Supper. Building on the Dinner Party’s model of growing mutual support out of communal dinners, The People’s Supper facilitates meals for communities facing deep divisions: places torn apart by disasters, racial barriers or politics.

There’s a Reason Every Hit Worship Song Sounds the Same

Bob Smietana

April 12, 2023

Worship Songs — The Bethel Leaders Conference 2019 in Redding, California. Photo by Bree Anne/Unsplash/Creative Commons

(RNS) — On Easter Sunday, the worship band at Bethel Community Church in Redding, California, opened the service with “This Is Amazing Grace,” a 2012 hit that has remained one of the most popular worship songs of the past decade.

Chances are thousands of other churches around the country also sang that song — or one very similar to it.

A new study found that Bethel and a handful of other megachurches have cornered the market on worship music in recent years, churning out hit after hit and dominating the worship charts.

The study looked at 38 songs that made the Top 25 lists for CCLI and PraiseCharts — which track what songs are played in churches — and found that almost all had originated from one of four megachurches.

38 songs that made the "Top 25 Worship Songs 2010-2020, by Church Affiliation" Graphic courtesy of Worship Leader Research

38 songs that made the “Top 25 Worship Songs 2010-2020, by Church Affiliation” Graphic courtesy of Worship Leader Research

All the songs in the study — which ranged from “Our God” and “God Is Able” to “The Blessing” — debuted on those charts between 2010 and 2020.

Of the songs in the study, 36 had ties to a group of four churches: Bethel; Hillsong, a megachurch headquartered in Australia; Passion City Church in Atlanta, which runs a popular youth conference that fills stadiums; and Elevation, a North Carolina congregation with ties to the Southern Baptist Convention.

“If you have ever felt like most worship music sounds the same,” the study’s authors wrote, “it may be because the worship music you are most likely to hear in many churches is written by just a handful of songwriters from a handful of churches.”

The research team, made up of two worship leaders and three academics who study worship music, made some initial findings public Tuesday (April 11). More details from the study will likely be released in the coming weeks.

Elias Dummer. Courtesy photo

Elias Dummer, a worship leader and recording artist, said he and his colleagues have been watching changes in worship music over the past decade. They wanted to know how worship songs become popular among churches, he said. They also wanted to know how the business of producing and marketing songs is shaping the worship life of local churches.

Dummer said many worship leaders believe the best songs become the most popular in churches. They also believe those songs become popular because they work — people respond to them during worship services and want to sing them over and over. But that’s not exactly true. Dummer and his colleagues found many of the more recent hits songs were released as singles on Spotify and other streaming services, which helps fuel their popularity.

“There are actual mechanisms by which songs become the most significant,” he said. “It’s not just whatever songs the Holy Spirit blesses that make it to the top of the charts.”

For their study, researchers compared popular worship songs written before 2010 with those written from 2010 to 2020. Those earlier songs were often associated with individual worship leaders such as Chris Tomlin and Matt Redman, rather than with churches, and came from a variety of sources.

Embrace God’s Best for Orphans on Your Next Mission Trip

Danny Rogers

April 12, 2023

thank you notes for children’s ministry volunteers

Churches throughout America carry out their responsibility to build up and encourage families within their congregations with excellence. They go to great efforts to strengthen relationships, offer discipleship, and provide mentoring or assistance for parents and children to thrive. Across the nation, Christians are also increasingly involved in foster care and supporting families in crisis within their local communities.

Yet sometimes the church loses this family-first focus when we begin to think globally. Too often, there is a disconnect between how churches in America uplift families domestically compared to how they support orphaned and vulnerable children worldwide.

Each spring break, as students and churches around the country head out on their annual short-term mission trips, this disconnect is on full display. More than two million Americans go on short-term mission trips each year, and though planned with the best intentions, residential care facilities, like orphanages and children’s homes, have become a common stop on the itinerary. There was a time when the church I serve, Port City Community Church, did the same. Years ago, our vision around this began to change.

What many people don’t realize is that most children in orphanages around the world have been separated from their families unnecessarily. It’s estimated that of the 5 million to 8 million children who live in orphanages worldwide, four out of five of them have at least one living parent—and the others have extended family members who could take care of them. Parents who struggle to keep their families together often believe orphanages are the best option for their children to receive adequate food, shelter, medical care, and education. Yet we have come to learn there is a better way.

Research shows that children grow best in families, and Christians in the U.S. can help them stay in or return to that family setting—but many churches will have to make a change. A recent study shows that American Christians currently support orphanages with both money and time. The study estimates $2.5 billion dollars are donated each year to orphanages, and approximately 4 million people have visited an orphanage on a mission trip. Many who visit and volunteer at these facilities believe financial and hands-on support is the best way to help orphaned and vulnerable children.

Our church takes seriously the mandate in Acts 1:8—that we are to be witnesses for Jesus “in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” With a holistic focus on formation and discipleship within our congregation, we refer to what is typically called “missions” as “encounters.” We acknowledge that God is working here and around the world, so we prayerfully ask, “How can we enter in?”

In the past, we supported orphanages. But after learning from organizations like our partner World Orphans about the power of helping vulnerable families directly, we have transitioned many of our “encounter” efforts. Now, our three church campuses partner with like-minded organizations that empower, equip, and provide dignity to families globally.

We learned what family strengthening can look like and the tangible impacts of education, training, material provision, and medical care on an entire community. This new approach helps prevent children from being separated from their parents and placed in orphanages. Our “encounter” trips are now designed to learn from our partners and support those who are already involved in the local work.

On one recent trip to Guatemala, we spent time with a social worker from the community who had taught a cooking class to a group of women. A mother who attended the training started making donuts at home, which she then sold in the community. Because of this income, she is now able to provide for her children and keep her family together. We met another woman who was able to escape domestic violence and care for her child independently because of a job opportunity she had at a leather goods shop that was created by one of our partners. Small investments in families like these can transform communities.

Our church isn’t alone—Christians around the world are responding to the needs of vulnerable children in novel and creative ways, adapting to prevent harm to children and ensuring that they remain in or are placed in safe and loving families. The church has a unique opportunity to lead the shift in how we support orphaned and vulnerable children. Instead of settling for just serving in orphanages, we can reject long-held misconceptions and embrace a vision of God’s best for children and their families.

As churches around the U.S. plan annual spring and summer break mission trips, I encourage you to pray about how to effectively invest in children globally by partnering with family-strengthening organizations. There is no better way to set orphaned and vulnerable children up for a lifetime of success.

Why Does Jesus Call the Canaanite Woman a Dog?

Mike Leake

April 12, 2023

I’ve always been a bit unsettled by Jesus’ reference to the Canaanite woman as a “dog.” I’ve heard all the explanations given and none of them seemed all that satisfactory. They seemed like an attempt to get around the very offensive thing that Jesus said to this woman. But I noticed something a few nights ago when our associate pastor was teaching on this passage. I’d never noticed this thread before and I think it’s actually the key to understanding the passage.

First, to understand why Jesus called the Canaanite woman a dog, you need to know a little about Tyre and Messianic expectations.

Consider these words from the extra-biblical Psalms of Solomon:

Cleanse Jerusalem from the nations that trample it in destruction, to expel sinners from the inheritance in wisdom, in righteousness, to rub out the arrogance of the sinner like a potter’s vessel, to crush all their support with an iron rod; 27 to destroy lawless nations by the word of his mouth, for Gentiles to flee from his face at his threat, and to reprove sinners by the word of their heart. (Pss. Sol. 17:25-27)

This was an expectation of the Messiah. When he comes he is going to go into places like Tyre—the very embodiment of paganism—and destroy them. You expect a Messiah to go to such a wicked place, call them all dogs, and leave—maybe lighting a match on his way out.

But the Gospel of Mark is painting a different picture of the Messiah. He’s just spoke to the Pharisees about what defiles a person. It’s not what is on the outside but it’s the stuff of the inside. That kind of talk would lead a Messiah into Tyre to provide redemption instead of wrathful rebuke.

But then when Jesus gets into Tyre he sounds more like the Messiah of the Psalms of Solomon than the type of Messiah of the Gospel of Mark. What gives?

Preaching About It IS Doing Something About It

Brandon Cox

April 12, 2023

It seems like all “we” do is preach about problems without actually doing something about them. If you’ve been a church leader for four or five years or more, you know how significantly the year 2020 changed everything about ministry, at least for a long season.

The Covid-19 pandemic changed how we gathered, preached, and did discipleship. It challenged how we would show love in practical ways to our neighbors. And it proved to be oddly polarizing along political lines. The deaths of Amhaud Arberry, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd followed by ensuing protests instigated a swell of conversation about social and racial justice and policing. And that year’s presidential election was the most divisive in a few generations.

Pastors found themselves in impossible conversations navigating issues they often felt ill-equipped to handle. The whole year was a wake-up call to the church to take notice of society’s problems and address them with spiritual wisdom. But pastors often found themselves saying one thing while congregations were hearing an opposing message from their favorite media sources.

It’s hard for a half-hour sermon on Sunday to influence someone who is ingesting multiple hours of talk radio, cable news, and social media. But we are messengers. We are ambassadors. We are spokespeople and therefore, we must speak.

One of the deflections often offered to pastors by sensitive church members whose egos have been irritated by being confronted with their own apathy and complicity is the accusation that you should preach less about those topics because…

“All we’re doing is talking about it and not acting on it.”

And to that point, I have a word for you who preach, teach, and lead congregations. Let this be clear in your mind.

Preaching About It IS Doing Something About It

Otherwise, most prophets were wasting their time addressing the problems of their day. According to this logic, Isaiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Elijah, and dozens of others who delivered messages about injustice and inequality were wasting their time. They could have been doing something about those issues instead of just talking.

But, as Abraham Heschel said, “words create worlds.”

Culture is something that is cultivated (notice those are two words from the same root). Culture gets created, and one of the primary ways culture gets created is through words. Both the written word and the spoken word are powerful instruments for moving entire generations of people to alter the direction of society for the next.

Memorial Day Sunday School Lesson: We Remember & Honor

ChildrensMinistry.com

April 11, 2023

Use this Memorial Day Sunday school lesson to help elementary-age children understand and honor people who’ve served.

Memorial Day Sunday School Lesson

1. Shhh

Usher children quietly into a darkened classroom. Keep lights off and windows covered.

Whisper: In some parts of the world, going to church is against the law. People who want to learn about God meet secretly.

Ask:

What do you think that’s like? Are we being quiet enough to avoid being arrested?

Quietly, say: This week we’re celebrating Memorial Day. This is a holiday when we remember people who died fighting in wars to protect our country and our freedom. We’re free to worship God here, so there’s no reason to be quiet.

Turn on the lights and sing a loud song.

2. Rooms in Heaven

Ask:

Has someone you love ever died? We feel sad when we miss them. If these people believed in Jesus, they’re in heaven.

Read aloud John 14:1-3.

Ask:

What do you think heaven’s like? How do you think Jesus prepared those rooms?

Say: Let’s create a picture of what we think heaven’s like.

Tape newsprint to a wall and provide art supplies to create a mural of heaven. Let children create the rooms they’d like for themselves or for loved ones already in heaven. Talk about the people in heaven now. Explain that while we miss them, we can be happy they’re in a wonderful place.

Easy Games for Preteens: 3 Fun Activities Kids (and You) Will Love

ChildrensMinistry.com

April 11, 2023

Easy games for preteens are a hit with youth as well as with leaders and volunteers. These three fun, easy games for tweens and preteens are guaranteed to be a hit!

3 Fun, Easy Games for Preteens

1. Weird Moments

Trying to break in a new preteen leader? Here’s a way to “bless” the leader with popularity! Create an opening segment called Weird Moments that your new leader hosts.

Each week, introduce the leader and his or her Weird Moment. Fill this time with competitions such as these that are too weird for words:

Diving for Dollars

Have two leaders compete for a dollar bill placed in a plastic bag at the bottom of a wading pool filled with ice. Leaders must keep their hands behind their backs and use only their teeth to retrieve the prize.

Stick Around

Have two leaders compete to see who can stick to the wall the longest. Use duct tape to secure them with their feet off the floor. Then conduct your meeting and see who lasts the longest!

Marathon Belchers

And, of course, don’t forget the oldies but goodies. After a soft drink, see which leader can burp the longest! Remember, your preteens love to live on the edge…even (or maybe especially) when we find that edge a bit gross.

2. Loose Lips Preteen Game

This is another fun game to challenge preteens to communicate creatively.

For each team of four, make a kit with:

four straws,
a racquetball-sized lump of clay,
three wiggle eyes,
five 6-inch yarn strips,
and a metal washer.

Make an extra kit for yourself.

Using your kit, build a creature or contraption model using all the supplies. Then hide your model outside your room.

Once teams are formed, have teams each choose one preteen to be their director. Take all the directors out to view your model. Allow three minutes for them to memorize the object.

Louisiana Pastor Camps in 200-Foot Cross for 3 Days To Help Addicts

Stephanie Martin

April 11, 2023

Since Easter evening, Louisiana pastor Andy Jenkins has been camping in an unusual spot: a 200-foot-tall metal cross that contains an internal ladder and platforms. He has been sleeping and eating in there, taking “very minimal breaks” on the ground. The three-day mission will end on Wednesday, April 12.

Jenkins is raising funds for the Minden Family Center, which he and his wife, Christy, direct. The center offers both Adult & Teen Challenge programs, helping young moms overcome addictions and care for their children.

Pastor Andy Jenkins Camps in Cross To Set ‘Broken’ People Free

The cross that’s serving as temporary shelter for Pastor Jenkins is located at the Church of the Cross in Haughton, Louisiana. On a local TV program, he gave a brief video tour of the structure. A ladder reaches to the top, with a platform located about every 50 feet.

Jenkins is camping on the first platform, which he describes as about the size of a loveseat. After completing his first day and night inside the cross, the pastor shared a Facebook Live video of his “campsite,” complete with a chair, a pillow, snacks, water, and a heater.

For a suggested $25 per day, people can sponsor Jenkins to help keep the doors of the Minden Family Center open. “We get to see women find deliverance from their addiction,” he said of their work. “These ladies come to us broken, and it’s so wonderful to see these children get a mom [who] is being what God intended her to be.”

At the residential program, women struggling with addictions can bring along their children. “They don’t have to choose between [getting] help or leaving their kids,” Jenkins said. The center has onsite child care, and older children are transported to school.

Sponsors are investing not just in a ministry, added Jenkins. “You’re making an investment in the lives of these moms and in the lives of these children. Your investment is gonna help make some moms and some children free through the power of Christ.”

Teen Challenge Helped Save Pastor Andy Jenkins

Teen Challenge, founded by evangelist David Wilkerson in New York City in 1958, is a charitable organization of the Assemblies of God denomination. It relies solely on contributions.

For Jenkins, this cross-camping mission is personal. In a 2009 interview about his pastoral ministry, he described being “alcoholic and deeply into drugs” as a teenager. Jenkins landed in jail twice, serving about five months, for possession and theft. “I was going nowhere fast,” he admitted.

TobyMac Stopped Reading the Bible After His Son Died. This Is Why He Started Again

Jesse T. Jackson

April 11, 2023

TobyMac (Toby McKeehan) wrapped up his 32-city Hits Deep Tour with Crowder, Cochren & Co, Tasha Layton, Jon Reddick, and Terrian on March 31.

ChurchLeaders attended the tour’s stop in Dayton, Ohio, where McKeehan shared multiple heartfelt moments with the audience.

One of those moments came when McKeehan spoke openly about the passing of his 21-year-old son, Truett, who tragically died on Oct. 23, 2019. Processing grief brought on by tragedy was a major theme in the lyrics of McKeehan’s latest album, “Life After Death,” which released last year.

The Grammy Award-winning artist shared that after his son’s death, he stopped reading his Bible for a couple of weeks.

“I didn’t have the heart,” McKeehan said.

McKeehan went on to say that after those couple weeks, he looked up to God and told him, “I’m going to give you a chance.”

“Imagine telling the God of all creation, ‘I’m gonna give you a chance,’” McKeehan remarked, going on to share what he learned about his relationship with God during that time.

“See, to have a relationship with anyone, you gotta be talking to them, and they gotta be talking to you. You gotta be listening to them, and they gotta be listening to you,” McKeehan said. “The way God talks us is through his Word. And the way we talk to him is through prayer. So the way I see it, if I ain’t talking to God, he’s not talking to me. Do I really have a relationship with him at all?”

McKeehan invited those in attendance to begin a relationship with God. He also encouraged those who already had a relationship with God, but had stopped talking to him, to let God speak to them by reading the Bible.

“There’s some beautiful things that come with having a relationship with God. One of those things I’ve been hanging on to with everything in me for the past three years,” McKeehan shared. “And that is this: God promises that if you’ve have a relationship with him, he will never leave you or forsake you.”

Faith-Based Film ‘His Only Son’ Makes Nearly $11 Million at Box Office Over Easter Weekend

Jessica Lea

April 11, 2023

“His Only Son,” a film based on the biblical account of when God required Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, was projected to make $10.8 million at the box office by the end of Easter weekend, according to to a press release from Angel Studios, which also distributes the hit series, “The Chosen.” Released on March 31, “His Only Son” is the first crowdfunded film to be released in theaters.

“For many, this passage from Genesis 22 has fueled much confusion or even contention toward God and his Word,” said the film’s creator, David Helling, “and many believers are left without an answer for the scoffers. That’s why I wanted to make this film.”

‘His Only Son’ Shows Demand for Faith-Based Films

“His Only Son recounts one of the most controversial moments in the Old Testament—when Abraham was commanded by God to sacrifice his son Isaac on the mountain of Moriah,” says a description on the film’s website. “While traveling to the place of the sacrifice, alongside Isaac and two servants, Abraham is flooded with vivid memories from the years he and Sarah spent longing for the son they were promised—the son he must now lay upon the altar.”

“His Only Son” had a strong opening weekend, coming third in the box office behind “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” and “John Wick: Chapter 4.” The faith-based film played in 1,920 theaters and made $5,501,070, according to Box Office Mojo. A press release for “His Only Son” says that 100 new theaters were added for Easter weekend. That weekend, the movie ranked sixth at the box office, beating “Creed III” and “Shazam! Fury of the Gods.”

Fans have used Angel Studios’ unique “pay it forward” software to purchase movie tickets on behalf of other fans, and moviegoers have so far given away more than 24,000 tickets to see the film, according to CBN.

“His Only Son,” which cost $250,000 to make, has had positive responses from audience members and from critics. It has been rated 82% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, where it has received an audience score of 96%. Audiences also gave the movie an A through CinemaScore.

“This incredible film is already hitting above its weight,” said Jared Geesey, Senior Vice President of Global Distribution at Angel Studios on April 6, “and—between word-of-mouth, strong reviews online, and a surge in people using our ‘Pay it Forward’ technology to buy tickets for others to see, we are expecting a very strong Easter weekend at the box office. HIS ONLY SON is the first theatrical release in history to crowdfund its Prints and Advertising [P&A], and now it’s the first theatrical release to use Pay it Forward to send more people to theaters to experience this faith-inspiring film just in time for Easter weekend.”

Joe Rigney To Join Faculty of Douglas Wilson’s New Saint Andrews College in Moscow, Idaho

Dale Chamberlain

April 11, 2023

A week after Bethlehem College and Seminary announced that Dr. Joe Rigney had resigned as its president, New Saint Andrews College in Moscow, Idaho, has announced that Rigney will be joining its faculty as a Fellow of Theology.

As Rigney transitions from Minnesota to Idaho, he is exchanging one academic institution closely tied to the personality of a high profile evangelical leader for another.

Bethlehem College and Seminary was birthed out of Bethlehem Baptist Church, where author John Piper was the longtime pastor. Piper also serves as the school’s chancellor. Conversely, New Saint Andrews College was founded by Christ Church, which is pastored by Douglas Wilson, and Wilson serves as a faculty member at the school.

In addition to his Ph.D., Rigney holds master’s degrees from both schools. He has served as a guest speaker at New Saint Andrews on more than one occasion and has made public appearances alongside Wilson, including in a now-infamous video where the two discuss the so-called “sin of empathy.”

“New Saint Andrews College is pleased to announce that Dr. Joe Rigney will be joining the faculty as a Fellow of Theology,” New Saint Andrews said in a press release. “He is a seasoned pastor and scholar.”

New Saint Andrews College, which boasts that it has been “saving civilization since 1994,” is part of a larger vision set forth by Wilson and Christ Church to turn Moscow into a “Christian town.”

Congregants at Christ Church constitute roughly 4% of Moscow’s population.

The church also has an affiliated publisher, Canon Press, which has published titles such as “The Case for Christian Nationalism,” “Get the Girl: How to Be the Kind of Man the Kind of Woman You Want to Marry Would Want to Marry,” and “Slaying Leviathan: Limited Government and Resistance in the Christian Tradition.” Canon Press also offers a variety of video and audio resources via its streaming service, Canon+.

Wilson’s advocacy for theocracy has made him a controversial character, as has his self-identification as a “paleo-Confederate” and defense of the institution of antebellum slavery.

Abuse survivor advocates have also raised concerns about the church and school for their vision for patriarchal gender roles, which many feel creates a culture of abuse. In 2021, Vice Media published an article detailing the stories of former church members who claimed that church and school leaders compelled abuse survivors to submit to their abusive husbands.

Local Officials Seal Church Building Shut in Indonesia

Morning Star News

April 11, 2023

AP23097544010576 — Indonesian Catholic devotees re-enact the crucifixion of Jesus Christ to mark Good Friday at Saint Theresia Church in Semarang, Central Java Province, Indonesia on April 7, 2023. Indonesian Catholic devotees celebrate Good Friday along with millions of Roman Catholics around the world, to commemorate the torture and death of Jesus Christ. (Photo by WF Sihardian/NurPhoto via AP)

SURABAYA, Indonesia(Morning Star News) – Local officials sealed shut a church building in West Java Province, Indonesia on Saturday (April 1), two weeks after Muslims intruded into a worship service and demanded its closure, church leaders said.

The congregation of the Simalungun Christian Protestant Church (Gereja Kristen Protestan Simalungun, or GKPS) in Cigelam, Babakancikao, Purwakerta, about 60 miles southeast of Jakarta, had refused to bow to demands to stop worship during the March 19 confrontation.

Purwakerta Regent Anne Ratna Mustika sealed the church building along with the local leader of the Indonesia Ulema Council (Majelis Ulama Indonesia, or MUI), the heads of the local police and the military, the local religion department chief and the chairman of the area National and Political Unity, according to video footage.

Anne said the structure was illegal as it lacked approval and a certificate of proper function – almost impossible to obtain in Indonesia – but the head of Purwakerta GKPS Elders Council, Krisdian Saragih, said the building was closed without due process of law.

“The sealing should be made on the court verdict as proof that the local government is enforcing the law,” Krisdian told Morning Star News.

The closing of the church building a week before Easter came without prior notification, he said.

“It was a saddening event for us, all the congregation, because it took place right before Easter Holy Week,” he told Morning Star News. “The church sealing is also unfair because it was made without prior official notice to us as the building owner. It was made in our absence; no congregation member or church elders were present.”

Krisdian and Pastor Julles Purba said that instead of closing the church building, officials should have detailed requirements to obtain a building permit, which involves obtaining approval from surrounding residents.

“The government should tell us what requirements we should fulfill; we are of course willing to deal with the locals around our church,” Krisdian said. “We want to be part of the local community. We really want to know what they expect from us.”

The church had never had any conflict with area residents until the disruption of the church service on March 19, he said.

Requirements for obtaining permission to build houses of worship in Indonesia are onerous and hamper the establishment of such buildings for Christians and other faiths, rights advocates say. Indonesia’s Joint Ministerial Decree of 2006 (SKB) makes requirements for obtaining permits nearly impossible for most new churches.

Even when small, new churches are able to meet the requirement of obtaining 90 signatures of approval from congregation members and 60 from area households of different religions, they are often met with delays or lack of response from officials. Well-organized radical Muslims secretly mobilize outside people to intimidate and pressure members of minority faiths.

Anne reportedly said the sealing was temporary until the church obtains all permits.

“We are grateful that the steps to sealing the building could be taken in the spirit of togetherness to maintain a conducive atmosphere in Purwakarta – all parties involved are being very wise,” she said, according to CNNIndonesia.com.

Anne said that she and the local religion department made arrangements with 19 nearby churches to allow the GKPS congregation to use their buildings for worship services, according to Kompas.com.

“We will help coordinate, allowing them to hold their worship service in those churches,” she said. “Their rights as citizens to hold worship services according to their religion remain protected and maintained; it is according to the constitutional mandate.”

To forestall festering social unrest, Anne said the decision to close the church building arose from an agreement among the Purwakarta Regency Government Coordination Meeting, the Regional Leadership Coordination Forum, the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), the Office of the local Religion Department, the Forum for Religious Harmony (FKUB), the Purwakarta Cooperation of Churches Agency (BKSG) and, she claimed, representatives of the GKPS congregation.

Discrimination

In reality, GKPS representatives said they were not involved and later reacted strongly against the closure, and the Communion of Indonesia Christian Churches (Persatuan Gereja Indonesia, or PGI) submitted a letter of protest to Anne, the Purwakerta regent.

Signed by the chairman of the PGI Justice and Peace Body, Henrek Lokra, the letter states that the sealing of the church was an act of discrimination that does not reflect tolerance among religious communities.

“The absence of the church building permit as the reason for the sealing of the church building was an excuse made up by the regent,” the PGI letter states.

Can a Teacher Put John 3:16 in Email Signature? District Says No; Her Lawyers Say Yes

Adelle M Banks

April 11, 2023

Can-a-teacher-put-John-3-16-in-email-signature-District-says-no- — Loudoun County Public Schools. Courtesy of LCPS

(RNS) — Attorneys for a Virginia high school teacher are challenging school officials for requiring the teacher to remove a Bible verse from the signature of her work email messages.

Until the recent directive, the teacher had for years, since the time she was hired by the district, included John 3:16 — “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” — with her signature.

In their request made last month, lawyers with the Christian legal group Liberty Counsel said the Loudoun County Public Schools directive amounts to religious and viewpoint discrimination. They said her colleagues are permitted to include other kinds of private expression from secular viewpoints in email messages, including the use of preferred pronouns.

“The District does not prohibit all personal expression by teachers in their email signature blocks; but only religious expression, because it says the Establishment Clause precludes the school district ‘from any communication that could be perceived as the school division’s official endorsement of any particular religion,’” the lawyers said in a letter to the district.

“Yet this endorsement/reasonable observer test was explicitly rejected by the Supreme Court in its Kennedy decision.”

In the Kennedy v. Bremerton School District case, the high court decided, 6-3, in June that it was constitutional for a high school football coach to pray on the field after football games and be joined by students in the prayer.

Liberty Counsel also cited a unanimous Supreme Court decision last year, Shurtleff v. Boston, that the city unconstitutionally refused a conservative activist’s request to fly a Christian flag on a City Hall flagpole to mark Constitution Day when hundreds of other requests to fly flags of different types had been approved.

“Upholding a teacher’s private speech in the workplace is not state endorsement of any religious message the teacher may choose to convey,” the lawyers said in their request. “It is instead a rightful protection of that teacher’s fundamental free exercise rights.”

They also cited the Supreme Court’s decadeslong position that teachers do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.”

In response to the Liberty Counsel letter, Acting Superintendent Daniel W. Smith said occasional use of the district’s email address for personal reasons is permitted if it does not interfere with a teacher’s responsibilities to the district.

But Smith said his understanding was that the teacher “is not including religious quotes in only her private correspondence, but also uses these religious quotes in her communications to students and their parents in her capacity as an LCPS employee. These communications are not private expression, but rather constitute school-sponsored speech bearing the ostensible endorsement of the School Division particularly when such emails reflect the ‘lcps.org’ email domain.”

Smith reiterated that the district’s stance concerns avoiding a violation of the First Amendment’s establishment clause, which bars government from favoring one religion over another.

Loudoun County Public Schools. Logo courtesy of LCPS

“To be clear, LCPS’s determination is not based on any particular religious viewpoint,” he added, “and LCPS would take a consistent approach as it has here with respect to any religious expression incorporated in an LCPS employee’s email signature block of which it becomes aware.”

The American Family Association stated Monday (April 10) that it considers the district’s position to be unfair censorship.

5 Marks of Relevant Churches

Dale Chamberlain

April 11, 2023

Central to the mission of the Church is offering a compelling witness to the life-saving and life-transforming power of the gospel message. In other words, we are called to show the world around us that the message of Jesus is relevant, both in this life and in the next. Nevertheless, being “relevant” doesn’t always entail what we think it does.

Here are five marks of truly relevant churches.

1. Relevant Churches Don’t Mistake Style for Substance.

Too often, church leaders think that if they update the decor of their worship spaces, dispense with archaic language, and style themselves in a way that is trendy and cool, they have become sufficiently “relevant.” While these updates can be an important part of the church’s vision to become relevant to the lives of people in the community, they ought not to constitute the entirety of that vision, or even the most prevalent place within it. The nonbelievers in our community will not be convinced of the relevance of the Christian message by virtue of the fact that our worship services open with “a secular song” or our sermon seriescleverly model themselves after the titles of the latest movies and television shows. Skinny jeans (which, fun fact, aren’t even cool anymore) never won anybody to Jesus. Instead, nonbelievers are drawn to the message of Jesus by experiencing the power of his Spirit to transform the lives of the people who encounter him—regardless of the cut of jeans the pastor wears or whether the worship team utilizes a fog machine.

2. Relevant Churches Are a Present Force in Their Community.

For many nonbelievers, the most pressing question about the Christian faith actually isn’t, “Is it true?” Rather, they question whether it is good. For those who follow Jesus, we know that it is both. Nevertheless, the way that many people become convinced of the truth of our message is by seeing its goodness. In other words, people have to want the gospel to be true before they can believe that it is. This is where truly relevant churches thrive. The relevance of the gospel message is demonstrated not only in the way that believers faithfully speak of its truth but also in the way that they live that truth out in practical ways. Certainly, this involves a commitment to personal piety. But it also means working for the good of our communities. Relevant churches are the churches that tend to the tangible needs of their community, caring for the “least of these” and working for the common good.

3. Relevant Churches Don’t Answer Questions No One Is Asking.

Believers know that the truth offered to us in the Bible is eminently relevant. It touches every part of our lives, showing us how to become everything that God created us to be. However, we don’t always do a good job of demonstrating its relevance in the way that we speak about it or teach it. Despite how fascinating Bible nerds may find it, I don’t know any nonbelievers who are dying to listen to a 10 minute exposition of a map showing the geographic borders of the kingdom of Israel in the ninth century BC. Relevant churches take care not to spend their time answering questions that nobody in the community is asking. Instead, they speak to the timely issues of our day with the timeless truths of Scripture, showing how God cares about the things that matter to us most and provides the best path forward in everything that we do.

4. Relevant Churches Care About Depth of Connection More Than Breadth of Reach.

When pastors and church leaders meet with each other at conferences and other cooperative events, some of the most common questions they ask each other are related to numbers.

What’s your average weekly attendance?

How many weekend services do you offer?

How many staff members do you have?

What is your annual budget?

These questions aren’t unimportant. Attendance numbers, building capacities, staff sizes, and budgetary constraints are all considerations when evaluating the best strategies for the unique contexts of our churches. Nevertheless, when these numbers are used as a measuring rod of success or faithfulness, they become an end unto themselves—the goal we pursue even more than we pursue seeing lives deeply formed by the way of Jesus. Relevant churches aren’t most concerned with creating systems and initiatives that will get the most people in the door. They are most concerned with what they are doing to not only draw people to Jesus but to help them see all the ways in which Jesus wants to shape and reshape the way they see the world, the practices they keep, and the lifestyles they lead. This isn’t always the case, but when churches focus more on the “long obedience in the same direction” to which Jesus calls us, numerical growth can be slower or more meager. To be sure, slow numerical growth isn’t necessarily a sign of greater health or deeper spirituality. Lots of small churches are deeply unhealthy and irrelevant to their communities. Nevertheless, when church leaders focus on growing deeper with their congregation even more than growing wider in their influence, that’s when they have the opportunity to become a truly transformational (and relevant) presence in their community.

5. Relevant Churches Don’t Compromise Truth.

As American culture continues to change, many of the cultural values of our day are increasingly at odds with the teachings of Scripture. But the key to becoming a relevant church is not abandoning the countercultural aspects of our faith in favor of offering something more palatable to those seeking an encounter with God. Instead, our key to relevance is found in doubling down on these values, and doing so in a way that models radical love, selfless service, and prophetic wisdom not only to those who agree with us but to those who disagree with us as well. As certain traditional values of the faith are increasingly being characterized as bigoted and regressive, may the people who have a personal encounter with our churches be shocked, if not mildly confused, by how loving, inviting, caring, and sacrificial we are toward them while still holding to those views. Nothing could be more relevant than a consistent testimony of the truth, wrapped in a kind of love that the world could never offer but desperately needs.

R.C. Sproul: What Is the Kingdom of God?

R.C. Sproul

April 11, 2023

Suppose someone asked you that question: What is the kingdom of God? How would you respond? The easy answer would be to note that a kingdom is that territory over which a king reigns. Since we understand that God is the Creator of all things, the extent of His realm must be the whole world. Manifestly, then, the kingdom of God is wherever God reigns, and since He reigns everywhere, the kingdom of God is everywhere.

But I think my pastor was getting at something else. Certainly the New Testament gets at something else. We see this when John the Baptist comes out of the wilderness with his urgent announcement, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.” We see it again when Jesus appears on the scene with the same pronouncement. If the kingdom of God consists of all of the universe over which God reigns, why would anyone announce that the kingdom of God was near or about to come to pass. Obviously, John the Baptist and Jesus meant something more about this concept of the kingdom of God.

At the heart of this theme is the idea of God’s messianic kingdom. It is a kingdom that will be ruled by God’s appointed Messiah, who will be not just the Redeemer of His people, but their King. So when John speaks of the radical nearness of this breakthrough, the intrusion of the kingdom of God, he’s speaking of this kingdom of the Messiah.

At the end of Jesus’ life, just as He was about to depart from this earth, His disciples had the opportunity to ask Him one last question. They asked, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6b). I can easily imagine that Jesus might have been somewhat frustrated by this question. I would have expected Him to say, “How many times do I have to tell you, I’m not going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” But that’s not what He said; He gave a patient and gentle answer. He said: “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:7–8). What did He mean? What was He getting at?

When Jesus told Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world,” was He indicating that His kingdom was something spiritual that takes place in our hearts or was He speaking of something else? The whole Old Testament called attention not to a kingdom that would simply appear in people’s hearts, but to a kingdom that would break through into this world, a kingdom that would be ruled by God’s anointed Messiah. For this reason, during His earthly ministry, Jesus made comments such as, “If I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Luke 11:20). Similarly, when Jesus sent out seventy disciples on a preaching mission, He instructed them to tell impenitent cities that “The kingdom of God has come near you” (Luke 10:11b). How could the kingdom be upon the people or near them? The kingdom of God was near to them because the King of the kingdom was there. When He came, Jesus inaugurated God’s kingdom. He didn’t consummate it, but He started it. And when He ascended into heaven, He went there for His coronation, for His investiture as the King of kings and Lord of lords.

So Jesus’ kingship is not something that remains in the future. Christ is King right this minute. He is in the seat of the highest cosmic authority. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to God’s anointed Son (Matt. 28:18).

In 1990, I was invited into Eastern Europe to do a series of lectures in three countries, first in Czechoslovakia, then in Hungary, and finally in Romania. As we were leaving Hungary, we were warned that the border guards in Romania were quite hostile to Americans and that we should be prepared to be hassled and possibly even arrested at the border.

Tech Policies are Cyber Security, Too: Do You Have Any?

Jonathan Smith

April 11, 2023

How can the church can protect itself from those bad actors? How do we provide maximum Kingdom impact while also being good stewards of the data God has entrusted to us? One overlooked aspect of church tech is using wise tech policies and procedures. (This assumes you have a firewall and a proper network design.)

Look at your Church Management System.

Do you rely solely on the ChMS vendor to keep your data secure? Do you test the security of your ChMS, or do you just take the vendors word for it?

Do your tech policies call for security audits along with your financial audits? I assume you have financial audits. Even then the security questions in a financial audit can be useless. A church IT friend of mine answered the security audit question, “How do you keep your data secure?” with, “12 flying monkeys.” He never heard back from the auditor regarding that answer. He should have. Use a security company for a dedicated security audit or ask your ChMS vendor for a copy of the security audit they have done on their product.

Second, what is your password policy like?

Are your tech policies written down? How do you enforce them? Do they make sense? Research has shown that longer, more complicated passphrases are more secure than shorter, complicated passwords that users have to change frequently. Forcing users to change their passwords, whether to their computer, ChMS, or any other system on a regular basis leads to the passwords being written down on the bottom side of the keyboard —where some of those bad actors know to look.

I suggest using long passphrases. 15 characters or more, with a capital, lowercase, number, and special character all required. Using a phrase from your favorite song or Bible verse works. “InthebeginningGod1!” as an example—but don’t use anything obvious or inscribed on a plaque hanging on your wall. A passphrase like this will never need to be changed unless it is compromised.

Your tech-policies regarding passwords should also include the ability to prevent users from sharing their passwords, even with volunteers. It is far better to invest the time and issue a volunteer a login than to share staff access. The same is true for your ChMS. Does your password policy also apply to other sites and services that require your users to login?

If you find that a user has shared or compromised their password I suggest setting it to something like, “Isharedmypasswordsonowittakesme5minutestoentermypassword?!” and forcing them to use that for a week.

**Do you have any data access tech-policies?**

Who gets access to your data? What level of access? Does everyone see everything or do users only see what they need to see? What criteria do you use to determine who sees what? Do you allow people to snoop around your database? Who can view giving data? How do you determine who sees what?

How to Pray for an Hour in Your Small Group

Randall Neighbour

April 11, 2023

How to pray for an hour in yor small group? Challenge them! Challenge your groups to pray for an hour together sometime. Spend ten minutes praying about each of the six topics below.

How to Pray for an Hour in Your Small Group

10 minutes: Praise and Adoration to Your Creator

Begin your hour of prayer by praising God for his holiness and purity, which he freely shares with you through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Thank him for his goodness and desire to bless you. Praise him for his patience and loyalty, even when you don’t deserve it. Give him honor for the gifts and talents you posses, and be specific!

Thank him for protecting you in ways you know about and those you will not know of until you meet him in glory. Finally, thank him for the privilege of being his representative in this dark and hurting world.

10 minutes: Pray for Our Federal Government and Its Officials

As you pray for the U.S. Congress, Federal Court Judges, the President, and his cabinet, and other government officials, ask God to pour out his Spirit on each person or position. Use this time to intercede on their behalf, asking God to protect them, their families, and their relationships. Refrain from complaining to God about their positions on specific issues or party affiliation.

10 minutes: Pray for Our City and Your Neighborhood

Take a few minutes to thank the Lord for this town and the things you love about living here. Praise him for the opportunity to be a positive influence on the many who live around us. Then, ask for a fresh understanding of how you can make a difference with your time, energy, and talents to make the people of our town feel loved and appreciated. Use the balance of your time to cry out to God for the unchurched in our town, asking him to give you a great awareness of their needs so you can respond in love.

Pray for safety in the schools in your area and the children that are taught there each day. Ask the Lord to bring to mind the businesses in your area and ask him to prosper each one. Then, pray for your neighbors by name, asking God for open doors to deepen relationships with them and serve them.

Look for more tips on how to pray for an hour on page two.

Parachute Candy Drop: A Fun Outreach Idea for Kids & Families

Brandon Horst

April 10, 2023

A parachute candy drop is a great outreach idea for your church’s children’s ministry. Read on to discover how easy and effective this activity can be!

Providing special outreach opportunities for kids and families at your church to invite their friends and neighbors is important. But kidmin outreach events often drain your energy, time and money.

Although this idea isn’t super cheap, the time and energy involved is minimal. I prepared it for 60 kids in a couple of hours.

We did a parachute candy drop for Easter weekend. There are a million community and church Easter egg hunts near us, so we wanted to do something different and memorable. This idea also works great with many types of events: VBS, Fall Festivals, Special Invite Sundays, etc.

For a parachute candy drop, you’ll need these supplies:

Small toy parachutes (The cheapest and highest quality I found were $2.50 each. If you order online, allow time for shipping.)
Prizes (candy, gift cards, toys, etc.)
Rubberbands

That’s it!

When supplies are in hand, here’s how you’ll prepare:

Unpack the parachutes.
Print off different prizes on strips of paper.
Rubber band the paper strips to the parachute people (putting actual candy with the parachutes makes them too heavy).
Fold the parachutes and place in boxes.

Parachute Candy Drop: A Few Simple Steps

For the parachute candy drop, follow these 6 easy directions:

Place a ladder to a flat portion of your building’s roof. (If you don’t have flat roof space, try one of these options. Invite a local fire company to come throw parachutes off their truck ladder. Rent a machine with a platform that extends up. Place scaffolding against your building, etc.).
Bring the boxes of parachutes up to the roof.
Bring the kids out and hype them up.
Send a few brave volunteers up to the roof.
Throw the parachutes down to the kids.
Have kids trade in their prize papers for actual prizes.

FrontStage BackStage Podcast Guest Dan Reiland

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Here are five marks of truly relevant churches.

1. Relevant Churches Don’t Mistake Style for Substance.

2. Relevant Churches Are a Present Force in Their Community.

3. Relevant Churches Don’t Answer Questions No One Is Asking.

4. Relevant Churches Care About Depth of Connection More Than Breadth of Reach.

5. Relevant Churches Don’t Compromise Truth.

Look at your Church Management System.

Second, what is your password policy like?

Do you have any data access tech-policies?

How to Pray for an Hour in Your Small Group

10 minutes: Praise and Adoration to Your Creator

10 minutes: Pray for Our Federal Government and Its Officials

10 minutes: Pray for Our City and Your Neighborhood

Look for more tips on how to pray for an hour on page two.

Parachute Candy Drop: A Few Simple Steps

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**Do you have any data access tech-policies?**