Digital Commons Network^™

Adventures In Churchland: Discovering The Beautiful Mess Jesus Loves, Dan Kimball

Doctor of Ministry

A growing number of young adults (those in the 18-30-year-old age range) are not
engaging, becoming involved or entering into the church of America. An increasing
number of those who grew up attending church are leaving after their high school years.
I have observed this as a pattern when visiting churches and talking to church
leaders across America. Statistics are showing this as seen in studies such as Dave Kin-
naman’s research and writings from the Barna Research group and Ed Stetzer’s research
from LifeWay Christian Resources. This is a very significant problem because if the
church loses connection with …

2011 - 105th Annual Summit, "Enough: Isaiah 1:11-17", Abilene Christian University, Abilene Christian University

Lectureship and Summit Programs

No abstract provided.

The Banner - V. 145, No. 12 - (December 2010), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

10 - Editorial: See What We’re Looking At by Bob De Moor / 11 - Catch Your Breath: Wearing Out the Concrete by Gwen Penning Genzink / 12 - IMHO: Our Discomfort with the Belhar by Bryan Berghoef / 12 - Letters to the Editor / 14 - News: Classis Roundup (and more) / 19 - Frequently Asked Questions / 20 - When Hadley Met Herod by Callie Feyen / 22 - Confessions: Why Have Them? by Rob Braun / 24 - Confessions: Cautions and Concerns by John Luth / 26 - Dear Reader: The Reason for the Season by …

The Banner - V. 145, No. 10 - (October 2010), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

6 - Editorial: So What's Your Story? by Bob De Moor / 7 - Catch Your Breath: Surrender by Evelyn Vander Veen / 8 - IMHO: Most Separation IS Sin by Esteban Lugo / 8 - Letters to the Editor / 10 - News: Ontario church targeted with racist graffiti / 19 - Frequently Asked Questions / 20 - Telling Your Life Story by Mike Vanden Bosch / 22 - Multiplying Harvests in Zambia by Kristen deRoo VanderBerg / 26 - Dear Reader: Caring for Creation by Jerry Dykstra / 30 - Just for Kids: Sweeter Than Sugar by Christin …

The Banner - V. 145, No. 9 - (September 2010), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

6 - Editorial: Hail, September by Bob De Moor / 7 - Catch Your Breath: The World of Bees by Valerie Van Kooten / 8 - IMHO: Is Separation Always a Sin? by Timothy R. Palmer / 8 - Letters to the Editor / 10 - News: Haiti progress report / 17 - Frequently Asked Questions / 18 - Koreans in the CRC by Bomsu Kim / 21 - Relating: How to Be a Christian Employee by Cal Jen / 22 - Volunteerism at CTS by Kathy Smith / 26 - Dear Reader: Little Words, Big Impact by Jerry Dykstra …

The Great Hand-Off: Empowering Effective Leadership Succession From Baby Boomer To Gen Y Leaders, John Stumbo

Doctor of Ministry

A new generation of passionate young leaders is arriving. Their commitment to Christ shows signs of vitality through fresh expressions of faith. However, is the church of North America-primarily led by Boomer leaders-ready for them? It is my claim that many of today's churches can thrive into the next decades as insightful and courageous Boomer leaders begin now to prepare for healthy leadership succession. Practical and realistic changes can now be made by Boomer leaders to facilitate an effective hand-off to Generation Y leaders. However, if intentional efforts are not made by the leaders who currently hold the positions of …

The Banner - V. 145, No. 8 - (August 2010), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

6 - Editorial: Cursed Blessings by Bob De Moor / 7 - Catch Your Breath: Safe as Eggs by Peter Schuurman / 8 - IMHO: A Gluten-Free Communion by Caroline Booy / 8 - Letters to the Editor / 10 - News: Ontario Youths Challenged to "Make It Count" / 19 - Frequently Asked Questions / 20 - The Case for Christian Education by James K.A. Smith / 22 - Hearing God in Unlikely Places by Sandy Swartzentruber / 26 - Dear Reader: Prosperity vs. Passion by Jerry Dykstra / 31 - Relating: Baby Blues by Heather Peters / 32 …

The Banner - V. 145, No. 7 - (July 2010), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

9 - Editorial: Your Sons and Daughters Will Prophesy by Bob De Moor / 10 - Candidates for Ministry 2010 / 15 - Catch Your Breath: Being Flock-worthy by Nathaniel Van Denend / 16 - How to Be Catholic by Richard Mouw / 19 - True Confessions: Don’t Know Much About the Catechism by Bob Rozema / 20 - Just for Kids: Wacky Water by Christin Baker / 22 - Tuned In: Swept Up by Swoopo by Otto Selles / 24 - I Was in Prison and You Visited Me . . . by Henry Smidstra / 26 - An …

Introduction, Alan Mcmahan

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Rethinking Missiology In The Context For The 21st Century: Global Demographic Trends And Diaspora Missiology, Enoch Wan

Great Commission Research Journal

New orientations are required of practitioners/researchers in formulating mission strategy and conducting missiological research in the context of the 21st Century due to the global demographic trends of internal migration to the city and international immigration to countries of the Northwest region. In addition, the center of Christianity has shifted from the Northern hemisphere towards the south and from the post-Christian west to elsewhere; thus new approaches are required. Diaspora missiology will be presented as an alternative to the traditional orientations of farming analogy (e.g. church planting and church growth), territorialization (e.g. home vs. foreign missions, sending vs. receiving) and …

Leadership Transfer Awakens Dormant Dilemmas In A Multi Ethnic Church: Correctives From Church Planting, Elizabeth Childs Drury

Great Commission Research Journal

This case study examines the six-month transition to a new pastor for a multiethnic, multicongregational church near Washington, DC. It describes four dilemmas that emerged and proposes correctives from church-planting literature, particularly the facilitative approach of Tom Steffen (and principles from Donald McGavran and David Garrison). First, the ownership dilemma asks how a multiethnic church can achieve genuine mutuality among varied cultural groups and suggests the need for chronological Bible teaching. Second, the identity dilemma asks how deeply individual pastors and congregations need to agree on matters of governance and doctrine, and how non-negotiables can best be communicated. It insists …

Teaching For Transformation, Michael L. Wilson

Great Commission Research Journal

The center of Christianity began in Jerusalem in the Middle East, then shifted to Europe and then expanded to include North America. In the last three decades the center of Christianity as measured by the number of adherents to the faith has shifted from North America and Europe to South America and Africa. Some of the largest churches in Europe currently were founded by church planters from Africa. Now the shift is back to the Middle East where it all began as millions of Muslims are trusting Christ through visions and other signs and wonders. Conversely the Church in North …

Dissertations And Theses Notices, Gary L. Mcintosh

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Global Migration, The United States And Canada: A Great Commission Opportunity, J. D. Payne

Great Commission Research Journal

The history of the United States and Canada is a story of migration. While many waves of early migrants came from Christianized European countries, the past several decades have revealed many contemporary migrants coming from Asian, African, and Middle Eastern contexts where Evangelicals are small in number. While certainly there is a great influx of migrants from Latin American contexts, there are also large numbers of migrants coming to the U. S. and Canada representing some of the world’s least reached peoples. In this article, I attempt to describe their numbers and offer a theological and missiological response to this …

Unique Characteristics Of Church Planters: A Research Proposal, Francis A. Lonsway, Hutz H. Hertzberg

Great Commission Research Journal

This article is the second and concluding article derived from the doctoral research project on young, male church planters initiated by Hertzberg with statistical and analytical support by Lonsway. Its goal is to recap the major initiatives in the research on church planters in the evangelical tradition and to cite their strengths and limitations, to summarize the research design and findings from Hertzberg’s research using the researcher’s Church Planter Questionnaire and the Stage II Casebook of the ATS Profiles of Ministry Program, and to offer a set of recommendations to strengthen and broaden the research in this vital area of …

Church Movements Of The Last Fifty Years In North America, Gary L. Mcintosh

Great Commission Research Journal

Over the last half-century, four major movements have arisen in an effort to stem the tide of decline in church attendance within North America. The Church Renewal Movement, Church Growth Movement, Emerging Church Movement, and Missional Movement have offered different approaches to engaging lost people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This article presents an overview of these major movements and the numerous sub-movements within each and suggests five insights and seven questions that emerge from their interplay.

About The Great Commission Research Network, Alan Mcmahan

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Donald Mcgavran’S Theological Foundations For “Effective Evangelism”, Jeff K. Walters

Great Commission Research Journal

From its inception, the Church Growth Movement, as espoused by its “father,” Donald A. McGavran, was focused on “effective evangelism.” The purpose of this article is to identify McGavran’s theology of evangelism as revealed in his published writings. While he may never have delineated a precise theology of evangelism, one can find in McGavran’s writings an orthodox, if sometimes incomplete, system regarding the working of God in the salvation of men and women. The article investigates McGavran’s views on Scripture, the content and proclamation of the gospel, and on key soteriological issues.

Organic Disciple Development: Purposeful And Practical Mentoring As An Answer To Twentysomethings Leaving The Local Church In The Postmodern Context, Jerry W. Payne

Doctor of Ministry

The thesis of this paper is that mentoring twentysomething followers of Christ as part of an organic disciple-development process will mitigate the frustrations caused by the attractional growth model and increase the effectiveness of the church in this postmodern context. This thesis will be supported by introducing practical methodologies, integrating theological reflection, and incorporating biblical precepts.

Chapter one provides an overview and working definition of the attractional church model. It provides a brief, but detailed, history of the attractional model and examines it through the lens of three distinct time periods (pre-modern, modern, and postmodern), tracing the model from the …

2010 Empowered21 Global Congress On The Holy Spirit Program, Empowered21 Committee

Empowered21 Global Council

The program for the first Empowered21 conference on the Holy Spirit held on the campus of Oral Roberts University April 8-10, 2010. Led by Dr. Billy Wilson, the executive director and char for E21, the conference included five general, learning conversations from next-gen leaders from around the world. Speakers included

• Jack Hayford
• Mark Rutland
• Tommy Barnett
• Claudio Freidzon
• A.E. Adeboye
• Ulf Ekman
• Niko Njotorahardjo
• Margaret Court
• Billy Joe Daughtery

A scholars track was hosted by Dr. Vinson Synan with 30 papers presented by Spirit-empowered scholars on a variety of topics. These were compiled into the book Spirit-empowered Christianity in the …

Mission Fields Across The Street: Sending And Supporting Simple Church Planters As Local Missionaries, Rick Shrout

Doctor of Ministry

Churches in North America are ineffective in reaching their smTounding neighborhoods when those neighborhoods are populated predominately by people who embrace a postmodem lifestyle and worldview. One of the reasons for this ineffectiveness stems from an ecclesiology that leans heavily upon institutional stmctures and methods that fly in the face of postmodem sensibilities. This problem is addressed by proposing partnerships of established churches and denominational agencies with simple church planters as a way for traditional churches to play an active role in supporting a missional presence in an emerging culture through planting simple churches.

Section 2 introduces the problems and …

67th Annual Pepperdine Bible Lectureship -- The Hero Of The Story: The Book Of Acts Revisited (2010), Jerry Rushford

Pepperdine Bible Lectures: Programs

Program booklet for the 67th Annual Pepperdine Bible Lectures, held at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, May 4-7, 2010. The Pepperdine Bible Lectures is an annual event hosted by Pepperdine University featuring a wide variety of lectures and classes on topics and themes in the Bible and Christianity.

Jerry Rushford, Lectureship Director

Rick Gibson, Tami Williamson, and Joella Michael, Lectures Team

Mobilizing Christ-Followers For Kingdom Ministry, Shonnie Scott

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

The Good Soil Process: A Strategic Missional Process For American Institutional Churches, Keith Tilley

Doctor of Ministry

The Primary Readers: Christian laity and clergy who are interested in learning about the increasing institutionalization of American mainstream denominations and the problems associated with maintaining such large corporations. They include those who have a burden for postmodern 21st century North America as a mission field and wish to communicate the good news of Jesus Christ effectively. The two project artifacts will specifically be contextualized for smaller to mid-size rural East Texas communities of faith. Much of the history and denominational traditions drawn upon in this written statement will be influenced by United Methodist heritage and experience but provided for …

Rethinking Missions: A Pathway For Helping The Next Generation To Fulfill Christ's Great Commission, Jon Olson

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Good Teams, Bad Teams: Under What Conditions Do Missionary Teams Function Effectively?, David R. Dunaetz

Selected Faculty Publications

Missionary teams are popular, but not always effective. Five conditions contributing to healthy team functioning are examined in light of empirical evidence: trust, task conflict, commitment to decisions, accountability, and group goals.

Organizational Justice: Perceptions Of Being Fairly Treated, David R. Dunaetz

Selected Faculty Publications

When members of mission organizations perceive injustice within their organization, they work less effectively and attrition is more likely. This paper examines various types of organizational justice (distributive, procedural, interpersonal, and informational) which need to be monitored and maximized to help mission organizations accomplish their goals.

Not My Church! (Chapter 5 Of Grappling With Faith: Decision Cases For Christians In Social Work), Clifford J M Rosenbohm

Faculty Publications - College of Social Work

"You're not acting as my church acts!" church social worker Sandy Potts exclaimed. "In fact, you're not acting as His church would act!"

Peter Wilson, Senior Executive Director of Creekside Christian Church, and Rita Kimball, an assistant from human resources had just informed Sandy that she was being terminated. They had given the same news to others on the church staff as they met at fifteen minute intervals; another pair of administrators was doing the same in an adjoining room.

"Thou Hast Given Me A Body": Theological Anthropology And The Virtual Chruch, Travis Pickell

Faculty Publications - George Fox School of Theology

Introduction

There is no denying the absolutely revolutionary effect of digital and Internet technology on society in the twenty-first century. For many people, the Internet provides an instant connection to friends, family, colleagues, workstations, entertainment media, and other valuable (or completely trivial) information. As a result, the world is becoming more networked, opportunities for entrepreneurial growth are more widespread, and the speed and efficiency of everyday life is increasing rapidly.2 Add blistering growth in digital Smartphone technology, which effectively turns every mobile phone into a web-connected personal computer, and one can easily see that “connectivity” is quickly becoming the new …

Viacordis: A Case Study Of The First Year Of A House Church Network, Robert E. Logan

Great Commission Research Journal

This paper is a synopsis of Logan’s journey in the development of a multi-ethnic network of house churches in the Los Angeles area and beyond. It is in this missional expression of faith communities that the necessary blending of the Great Commandment with the Great Commission are lived out. This multiplying network of churches is ViaCordis (Latin for “way of the heart”). A variety of church models are explored as to their methodology of living out Christ in their community. The 12 Life Commitments of leadership are shared along with 12 lessons learned to date in this process of ViaCordis …