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Bible-based programs for the debt-ridden surge in popularity
South Florida Sun-Sentinel Share    
Christian debt-elimination programs, which
use Old and New Testament passages as a framework to encourage financial responsibility, are surging in popularity, with seminars offered at churches across the United States. The promise of a debt-free future is especially appealing during the recession, a "wake-up call" to Americans who pursued the dream of limitless prosperity, said Arthur Ally, president of the National Association of Christian Financial Consultants. More
Cost of faith: How recession has affected church finances
Kansas City Star
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Responding to the economy, Kansas City, Kan., churches over the last year have become smarter with their money and creative in cutting costs. Among a sampling of Kansas City area churches, many had not cut budgets, and for those that did, the cuts were not drastic. “In 2008, we
anticipated 2009 and put some things in place so we wouldn’t have to cut the budget,” said the Rev. Gar Demo, pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle Episcopal Church in Overland Park, Kan.
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A Time to Die: How do -- and should -- churches die?
Associated Baptist Press
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Churches close their doors every day. But is a church’s death inevitable? Who can give congregations permission to die? Should church members feel guilty for closing their facility’s doors? Peter Bush, author of In Dying We are Born: The Challenge and the Hope for Congregations, believes every church must “be prepared to die” because each will die in one of two ways. Each church must die to “deeply held understandings of life
and the purpose of the congregation” or it will close its doors.
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Attracting a crowd at VBS
Baptist Press
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Every year, thousands of children across our country meet Jesus for the first time at Vacation Bible School (VBS). Imagine what might happen if every member at your church invited an un-churched child to VBS. Here are some fresh publicity ideas to attract a large
crowd for your VBS.
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Innovative churches worship despite blizzard
UMC.org
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It's said that "neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night" will keep mail carriers from completing their rounds. Apparently, recent record snowfall didn't prevent some United Methodist pastors in Maryland from
completing their sermons. Thanks to high-tech innovations like webcasting and social media — and simpler options like conference calls -- some clergy in the Baltimore-Washington Annual (regional) Conference conducted Sunday services in blizzard conditions.
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In today's ministry it is crucial to establish a connection with people, whether they are first-time visitors or long-time attendees of the church. To help churches focus on the personal aspects of connection and getting new people involved in church ministries, download the ACS ministry
guide Key Elements to Connection Success today. more
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Can text messaging and Twitter enhance worship or just interrupt it?
Leadership Journal
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One would be
hard-pressed to go an entire day without bumping into someone (sometimes literally) with their phone out and their thumbs punching buttons. It used to be limited to teenagers at the mall, but now text messaging is commonplace, as is its sister technology, Twitter. And for many churches, this is great news because these technologies provide opportunities to foster community--even during worship.
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Christian Community Credit Union is your one-stop source for affordable church loans. Whether your need is purchasing a property, refinancing your loan, or remodeling your worship center, you can count on us to give you a free consultation and expert advice in providing custom financing solutions for your church.
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Sometimes it's easy for things to slip through the cracks. GuideOne Insurance has developed Keeping Your Church Safe to walk you through many of the more common risks a church faces. Whether it is church building security, nursery safety, transportation safety or an annual building inspection, this guide will be a resource you use again and
again. Download
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Who are the 1,400+ churches that use "EMS" facility scheduling and web calendar software? What do they have to say about it? Can I read case studies on EMS customers? If you think your
scheduling operations could be more efficient and effective, the answers you’re looking for are here.
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10 ways pastors and leaders can inspire generosity and increase church giving in any economy
Church Central
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In the most recent State of the Plate survey research among churches, it was discovered that giving is declining in 37 percent of the churches and is flat-lined in another 24 percent of churches. In this new economic climate, here are 10 ways that a church pastor and leaders can inspire generosity and increase giving so their church can focus on thriving instead of just surviving.
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Design: The language of a generation
Ministry Today Magazine
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Few things are powerful enough to unite an entire culture. Governments, dictators, business leaders and global influencers of all kinds have spent centuries trying to discover how to bring together organizations, communities and nations; and time and time again, they've found one
answer: design. From bulletins to Web sites, this article discusses why the medium sometimes matters as much as the message.
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NACBA members save thousands in printing costs using the Xerox
FreeColorPrinters program. Bring your outsourced printing in-house and produce vivid color, cost-effective, high quality, easily customizable printed materials. To see if you qualify, call 800-201-7868 or apply at freecolorprinters.xerox.com. Enter referral code NACBA. more
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Understanding the four forces that control church change
Church Executive Magazine
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Dealing with change in a church is difficult because there are more forces pushing for change than church leaders usually recognize. As a result, most church change strategies are too narrow, because leaders usually address only a couple of the four forces that may be present. Andrew
Van de Ven and Marshall Poole are management researchers who compiled an exhaustive study of organizational change. They discovered that change theories revolve four forces that push or generate change. These change forces are sometimes called the "four basic motors of change" because they push an organization into change. Sometimes only one force is pushing for change, but often two, three or four forces combine to push an organization through change. While they have observed the affect of the
four forces upon theories of change, I believe these forces also give us clues to the tools that can help a church change.
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Caught in-between: Developing a preteen ministry
LifeWay
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Churches have become increasingly diverse in their methods of handling the middle school ministry issue. When we were younger, we anxiously looked forward to the day when we would be in seventh grade. Then we could finally be in the youth group. Today, some churches put their fifth graders in the youth department, while others are still following the traditional model of waiting until seventh grade. So what’s the solution?
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Status of youth pastors rises as kids' lives get more complicated
Wicked Local
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Long the bottom rung of church ministers, youth pastors and ministers are getting their day. And with the rise
of social networking on Web sites such as Facebook and Twitter, the way youth pastors approach their job has changed significantly -- leading some to think that the field needs experts who specialize in the needs of young congregants.
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ChurchBus.com is a division of Midwest Transit Equipment… the largest distributor of buses in America. We work exclusively with churches and faith-based groups offering the best in Safety, Service, Selection, Savings.
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Church program does much more than feed the hungry
Yakima-Herald
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Outside the door of Immanuel Lutheran Church every Tuesday hangs a white sign colored with red and blue markers that simply reads: "Soup Kitchen." But step inside. There's much more than soup on those folding tables. What started as a simple attempt to feed the hungry has turned into a reconstruction of community, where people
belly up to satisfy social appetites even more than physical ones.
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Church that feeds needy faces court after neighbors complain
The Associated Press via USA Today
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On Saturday mornings,
crowds of homeless gather with other needy people at picnic tables outside a church in an upscale Phoenix neighborhood, listen to sermons and settle in for sausage, pancakes and scrambled eggs. Residents say the homeless create blight and pose a danger to them, pointing to the case of a homeless felon caught with child pornography in the neighborhood. A complaint prompted city officials to order the year-old breakfast halted, saying it violated zoning laws. Now, the dispute is in federal court
in Phoenix, with the church saying the city is violating its treasured American rights to freedom of religion, as well as a federal law passed in 2000 that protects religious groups from city zoning rules.
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Delivery your message with impact! InFocus
projectors enhance any presentation and are perfect for sanctuaries, meeting rooms, classrooms, wherever you want to communicate and collaborate! MORE |
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Increase attendance, giving & connection. Decrease apathy, miscommunication & confusion. All with One Call…Now!
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