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Church-Based Research: Challenges And Opportunities, David R. Dunaetz

Great Commission Research Journal

Because the church is the body of Christ, research focused on the Great Commission and Jesus’ concern for evangelism and disciple-making needs to be church-based. The goal of such research is to better share God’s love to a world who does not know him by building up a collection of knowledge that will enable us to do so. This research may be both theological (focusing on what the Bible and other theologians have said) and scientific (focusing on collecting new data and interpreting it, especially in light of theology). Church-based scientific research may be either qualitative (exploring broad ideas and …

Book Review: Church Planting In The Secular West: Learning From The European Experience By Stefan Paas, Keith R. Sellers

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Book Review: Donald A. Mcgavran: A Biography Of The Twentieth Century's Premier Missiologist By Gary Mcintosh, Keith R. Sellers

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Good Planters Make Good Neighbors: Perspectives On Church Planting, Peter Roennfeldt, Petr Cincala

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

The Effective Bi-Vocational Pastor, Cory A. Macneil

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Pastors fill an important role as they lead churches to fulfill the Great Commission. This is especially challenging for bi-vocational pastors who have jobs outside of ministry. Meanwhile, some church members view the bi-vocational pastor as the paid professional and misunderstand their role as members/ministers. The original design of God is for pastors and members to be disciples who make disciples according to 2 Timothy 2:2. The purpose of this project is to help bi-vocational pastors in the Northeast strategically equip their people to become effective members, ministers, and missionaries who realize the significance of being disciples who make disciples. …

Prayerlessness: Using Expository Sermons To Change The Way Believer's Pray, Joshua Kenton Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In America, the church is operating with less supernatural power than it once did or currently does in other parts of the world, especially as it relates to those like East Barbourville Baptist Church who belong to the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). For example, the Annual Church Profile data of the SBC for the 2018 year reveals that its overall membership has reached a thirty-year low. Likewise, the data reveals a decline in baptisms for the tenth year in a row. Yet, the church has access to more ministry tools and better training than any previous generation, so what is …

Good Planters Make Good Neighbors: Perspectives On Church Planting, Petr Cincala

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Why We Fail To Enact The Change We Need: A Framework For Adaptive Change At Large Churches, Beau J. Johnson

Doctor of Ministry

It is difficult for leaders at large churches to make changes to their ministry models. As culture rapidly evolves, large, attractional churches look to adapt their approach to reaching the unchurched. Attendance and participation in large churches continues to decline, despite the breadth of suggestions for what and how to change. These suggestions for change are often top-down, leader-centric, and rarely grounded in the academic research about change management. This paper seeks to address a comprehensive model for leading adaptive changes at large, established churches. Chapter One describes the problem, describing trends in cultural change and the impact on church …

A Curriculum For Teaching Collaborative Worship Songwriting Inspired By Village Hymns, Craig Alan Osterhus

Masters Theses

The scriptural injunction to “sing to the Lord a new song” motivates the church to create new worship songs that are Biblically based, musically excellent, and reflective of God’s unique gifting and purpose for the church in its time. Village Hymns, a collective of worship leaders and songwriters serving in South Florida churches, has developed a platform for building skill in collaborative worship songwriting through their CREATE events. Through the experience of hosting over 50 CREATE events and recording three EP CDs, Village Hymns has developed best practices for collaborative worship songwriting. The aim of the case study research was …

Pioneering Spots In The Netherlands: A Missional Mainline Church's Turnaround And The Discovery Of Innovative Ways Of Communicating The Gospel In A Pluralistic Society (A Research Overview On The Years 2012 - 2020), Achim Härtner

Witness

No abstract provided.

Billy Graham: An Ordinary Man And His Extraordinary God, Rich Mclaughlin

Witness

No abstract provided.

A Project To Implement A Missional Development Program Within The Sandy Creek Baptist Association Of Illinois, Robert Thomas Kean

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The following dissertation will present the issue of declining membership and baptisms over the past fifty years in Sandy Creek Baptist Association of Illinois, (SCBAI). This study will show the need for collaboration by the Association members to address this issue and encourage the members to consider spiritual formation towards vitality. The study will include surveys seeking pastoral input, Director of Missions input, and membership of the SCBAI input regarding missional endeavors in local ministries. A plan toward new missional goals in the churches of SCBAI and in the local communities will be discussed. The goal of the project is …

A Strategy For Conducting Evangelism And Discipleship With The Unchurched In The Cane Bay Plantation Residential Development’S Restricted Communities In Summerville, Sc, John Paul Tornifolio

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The late Twentieth and early Twenty-first Centuries witnessed an unprecedented rise in the numbers of families moving into restricted, residential communities, seeking security, an improved quality of life, and high property values. These communities hinder traditional churches from fulfilling the Great Commission. Homeowners’ associations disallow door-to-door neighborhood evangelism. Zoning laws prevent churches from erecting buildings for church services and discipleship programs. This research studies the effectiveness of small group ministries, using non-traditional evangelism and discipleship methods, as a counter measure to these hindrances. The study results found small groups are an effective method of fulfilling the Great Commission in restricted, …

Religion In Latvia After The Fall Of The Soviet System: Fragmentation And Postsecularism, Valdis Tēraudkalns

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"The purpose of this article is to analyze changes that religions in Latvia have experienced since the collapse of the USSR. This is too broad of a topic, therefore I will concentrate on only two aspects, fragmentation of religious groups and postsecularism."

Justice And Righteousness For Creation, Renita Reed-Thomson

Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations

A hymn entitled “This Is My Father’s World,” written by Maltbie Davenport Babcock around the year 1901, includes the words: “This Is My Father’s World, O let me ne’er forget…” Unfortunately, many Christians seem to have forgotten that this world belongs to their Heavenly Father. Justice for the poor and the environment has been neglected as Christians pursue economic and material gain, as well as the church’s pursuit of converts over disciples. That the Protestant Evangelical Church may have forgotten the creation may be a surprising point for some given that it has a reputation for caring for the poor …

The Acts Model Designed To Make Disciples, Phillip Harold Stevens

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Churches are in decline. Every relevant statistic reveals the church has a major problem, and if it is to continue to survive it must make changes. The church is not evangelizing, not making disciples, and not making an impact in our communities. Every year it is estimated that over 4,000 churches close each year. The organism founded by Jesus is being overcome. Winfall Baptist Church, located in Gladys, VA, was arguably a church on the decline. Members of the Winfall community believed the church building would one day end up becoming a hay barn. Based on Scripture, surveys of current …

Creating More Discipleship At Mount Olivet Baptist Church Through The Brotherhood Ministry, Kevin Ml Jefferson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Getting volunteers to serve in the Brotherhood Ministry will increase the opportunity to create more discipleship at Mount Olivet Baptist Church and better serve the Community. The purpose of this research is to address the problem through some sort of intervention and report the results based on the interventions provided. Research is needed on this particular ministry because it is the ministry that does outreach in the local community.

Academy Students Commended For Their 'Caring Heart', Lake Union Herald

Lake Union Herald

No abstract provided.

A Strategy To Plant Missional Churches That Multiply In Small Urban Communities, Michael Scott Moore

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis will use Hopewell, VA, as a microcosm of small urban towns across America that are in need of spiritual and economic revitalization. The purpose of this thesis will be to develop a strategy for planting churches in Hopewell, VA, that is not only able to reach its community but serve as a model to reach other similar urban communities. The rationale for this topic is to shine the light on the need for revival in spiritually and economically depressed towns. Demographic and ethnographic research will be done, as well as interviews with a minimum of ten local leaders. …

The Banner - V. 155, No. 6 - (June 2020), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

No abstract provided.

Church Planting, Humanitarian Services, And Christian Holiness In Central India : A Study Of The Life And Mission Of Ernest And Phebe Ward, Shivraj Kumar Mahendra

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Grandpa's Legacy, Anthony Wagenersmith

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Strategies And Biblical Principles To Keep Church Plants From Closing Its Doors Within The First Three Years, Damian Billups

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Christians are commissioned to disciple the nations. Many attempts to fulfill this commission encounter variables that hinder the fulfillment of this dictum. Statistics indicate significant proportions of church planting endeavors are challenged to survive beyond one year. This project will expose reasons church planting efforts struggle to thrive and will provide strategies and biblical principles to remedy the identified obstacles. The data will be utilized for current and future church planting efforts. The goal of this project is to reduce factors that cause church plants to close prematurely. Church laity and clergy will be surveyed for their perspectives regarding church …

History Of Contextualization, Youssry Guirguis

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Foreigners In America: A Study Of Migration, Mission History, And Ellen G. White’S Missional Model, William Wells

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Footnotes: Re-Open, Bob Turner

Footnotes: Curated Resources for Ministers

No abstract provided.

History Of Lutheranism In Liberia: The Current State Of Lutheran Churches In Liberia As A Result Of Their History And Development, Edward Momoh Kollie

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Kollie, Edward M. “History of Lutheranism in Liberia.” Master of Arts Thesis, Concordia Seminary, 2020. 68pp.

This thesis presents a study of the society within which the church exists, how it was initiated by missionaries, including a historical analysis of the impact the mission status had on the Lutheran churches in Liberia. This thesis, in line with other scholars, points out ways mission churches established in Liberia were wholly dependent on their mission partners for support, propagation, and governing. The conclusions drawn lead to suggestions for ways the church may be able to graduate from the dependent status to viewing …

A Changing Church: A History Of St. John's Lutheran Church, Journey Holland

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

As part of Valparaiso University’s Flight Paths project, I worked on archiving and digitizing important documents at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Gary, Indiana. My research follows the history of the church from its beginning as a church plant in Tolleston (now annexed into Gary) onward with an emphasis on how the church adapted and changed during the period of White Flight in Gary. As more black residents moved into Gary, white residents packed up and left. Coupled with the closing of many of Gary’s factories, the result was a drastic shift in racial and economic demographics. The church, which …

Transformational Leadership: Equipping Small Churches To Make Disciples By Integrating Wesleyan Principals, Ronald Kent Wise

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This ministry thesis project will use qualitative research to address Wesleyan Transformational Leadership and how to apply the principles to equip churches to make disciples for Jesus Christ. The principles addressed within the project are defined by the acronym L.E.A.D: L-Love, E-Educate, A-Adapt and D-Duplicate. In today’s politically correct culture, the persecution of the Christian worldview occurs in communities, politics, and the church. Transformational leadership introduces biblical principles in conjunction with time-tested leadership principles to promote and strengthen individual and corporate growth. Individual and corporate growth transforms lives of individuals as relationships and stories are shared. As transformation takes place, …

A Study On ‘Big Forest Movement’ Of Ansandongsan Church: The Case Of Church Planting, Dongsung Park

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation aims to study about the ‘Big Forest Movement’ conducted by Ansan Dongsan Church which experienced healthy growth in its community through small group ministry. The Korean church has been leading growth and revival through church planting. However, from the 21st century, church growth is rapidly declining and planted churches are also experiencing severe period of decline. There are still many churches being planted but the reality is that many of them are not growing or being shut down. There may be various reasons for this phenomenon but the main reasons would be the lack of preparation and no …