Friday, October 04, 2024

Friday's Catch: 'Evangelical Alliance records fastest membership growth in decades' And More


Evangelical Alliance records fastest membership growth in decades
The Evangelical Alliance UK (EAUK) is experiencing its largest surge in membership in three decades, with 5,000 new members joining in the past year. This remarkable growth reflects a resurgence of interest in evangelical Christianity across the UK and has strengthened the EAUK's influence in national discussions and advocacy efforts.

Wheaton-to-Anglican Pipeline: Why Are Young People Turning Anglican?
For many students, Wheaton College is their first introduction to liturgy.
I personally take these migration to Anglicanism articles with a large pinch of salt. I have read a number over the last two odd decades. They often claim that young people are flocking to liturgical churches but they offer no hard research to support their claim. What research that I have seen does not support this claim. Yes, some young people are attracted to liturgical churches but not in the numbers that these articles would have us believe.
Will Anglicans Save Evangelicalism?
In this article Warren Cole Smith shares his views on what he characterizes as the phenomenon described in Sarah Carter's article, "Wheaton-to-Anglican Pipeline: Why Are Young People Turning Anglican?"
It is debatable that what the Anglican Church in North America offers is genuine evangelical Anglicanism or Anglican evangelicalism. Its form of governance, its ordinal, its other rites and services, and its catechism have been strongly influenced by Catholic Revivalism.
Who Are the Deconstructors?
Deconstruction is a rising trend in most American evangelical churches. Deconstructors themselves are sidelined, silenced, and sabotaged. For the most part, pastors and churches have been treating deconstruction as a symptom of a lack of information, or a lack of discipleship, or rebellion against God. Perhaps we are looking at something new in Christianity—an upheaval that cannot be solved by a sermon series or even by a book co-written by a Bible scholar and a pastor.

Latin American Catholics favor women priests more than married priests
Those supporting women priests have done a much better job convincing the laity in Latin America than have those who favor optional celibacy. 

Matthew Taylor’s new book explores how ‘the fringe became the carpet’
Matthew Taylor’s timely and disturbing new book, The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy, explores the politicization of America’s independent charismatics and neo-Pentecostals and the resulting “charismaticization of right-wing politics.”

Helping Hurting Women Find Restoration
Women are searching for a place of refuge, and the church should be a sanctuary where they can heal and experience restoration.

10 Practical Strategies for Effective Stewardship Campaigns
Could your church benefit from a more systematic and effective approach to your annual stewardship drive? Ann A. Michel from the Lewis Center staff lays out ten steps that can help your church do a better job of connecting with givers and inspiring generosity.

The Vital Role of Prayer for Hospital Chaplains: Bringing Comfort and Hope
In the bustling, often overwhelming environment of a hospital, where the stakes are high and emotions run deep, hospital chaplains play a crucial role in providing spiritual support and comfort. These dedicated men and women are the hands and feet of Christ, offering prayer and guidance to patients, medical professionals and families during some of the most challenging moments of their lives.

Why Prayer Matters
Does prayer scare you? It also scared me at one time. I wasn’t comfortable praying out loud. Then I learned how to pray, and it became one of my gifts—to pray for others and even for myself. I discovered that prayer is simply a conversation with God.

Our Prayers Reflect Our Relationships
Our prayers tell us a great deal about ourselves and about our view of those around us.

The Single Most Important Thing in Leading a Small Group
What is the single most important thing in leading a small group? Joel Comiskey and I recently surveyed over 1800 small group leaders from around the world to discover what makes small group grow. One thing emerged as most important. Here it is: Quit doing everything yourself and involve others!

3 Simple Children’s Messages to Use in a Pinch
Need a quick and simple children’s message? Look no further! Here are three simple children’s messages from Simply Loved curriculum to add to your ministry to children this week.

Why Christians Don’t Share the Gospel
Over the course of the last 30 years of ministry, I’ve had the privilege of training millions of believers how to share the Gospel. During that time I’ve also talked to countless Christians about roadblocks and reasons why so many of them struggle to evangelize. I’ve narrowed these reasons down to 5. Here they are in no particular order...

3 Misconceptions about Effective Evangelism: Encouragement for a Wavering Witness
...according to the Bible, evangelism involves more than explicit gospel declarations. Identifying common misconceptions about evangelism can help us overcome discouragement about our evangelistic attempts.

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