This story was written by Billy Hardy at Leaf River Baptist Church in Illinois. I began serving the people of Northern Illinois at Leaf River Baptist Church in July of
God never estimates what we give from impulse. We are given credit for what we determine in our hearts to give; for the giving that is governed by a fixed
https://vimeo.com/491836671/4f65823a4e “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”. – Romans 10:9 Augustine wrote, “Christ is not valued
Compassion Baptist Church is a historic church. We’ve been here for almost 150 years, and God has blessed us to be a solid witness throughout a century and a half.
https://vimeo.com/467153214/dfafeca5fc The issues with COVID and church closing have been so challenging for each one of us who lead a church or who are a significant part of church leadership.
I had always believed church to be a safe place. Through years spent attending and pastoring various churches, I developed a deep love and respect for the local church. But
Remember Dug, the talking dog from the movie “Up”? He had a device that allowed his master to hear and understand him. What we discover is that as much as
In this sermon, Bryan Moak shares about how to keep the fundamentals of the Gospel at the forefront of your life as found in John 12. Below you can download
In this sermon, Bryan Moak shares how we can forget what is behind and live in the hope of Christ, as found in Philippians 3:4b-14. Below you can download the
In this sermon, Bryan Moak shares about church essentials as found in Acts 2:42-47. Below you can download the video for use in your church service. We hope this video
We all know we’re in an unprecedented time. We hear about it on the news. It’s in ads all around us. We’re living it daily both at home, at work
As much as I would love to hit the reset button on 2020, that isn’t going to happen. So instead of focusing on what “isn’t” right with 2020, I have
Over 100 churches participated in our 4 -week Relaunch coaching cohorts. Using Zoom, all participants gathered in a large group, focusing on insights of relaunching in light of COVID-19. The real power of the coaching
In this 2-part sermon series, Gary Rohrmayer shares Seven Qualities of a Remarkable Citizen as found in Titus 3:1-2. Below you can download the video and notes for use in
https://vimeo.com/425333558 “Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out
Guidance from the Illinois Governor’s Office for Places of Worship and Providers of Religious Services
If you’ve read any of our other posts about ideas for social media posts, you know we recommend posting a lot of photos of your congregation to your church’s social
“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” Isaiah
Now more than ever is the time to rally in prayer. Consider starting a 21 Days of Prayer campaign digitally for your congregation.
I know the last thing you probably want to think about as a church right now is the idea of a capital campaign. Frankly, you all have so much to
We recognize that life and ministry are stressful and being compounded with the COVID-19 pandemic. To help with this reality, we compiled a listing of MAP Counselors throughout our region who
Every church this fall will have an opportunity to relaunch and retool their ministry. We hope this series of articles will inspire and practically assist churches as they look into
Let’s celebrate together the ways that God is at work in our churches! Check out these awesome stories from Converge MidAmerica churches. Chicago Delivers Chicago Delivers is a partnership of
Maybe you’ve been hosting online services for ages now, or maybe (like many others) you’ve been forced into online church by COVID-19 restrictions. Either way, we want to help you
It is surreal to think that we are approaching the end of the fifth week of the Covid-19 quarantine. In fact, some of us have been in this longer than
We are offering 7 different breakout opportunities throughout the week. You can jump in on any of these Zoom calls for an opportunity to encourage each other, share ideas and
In just a few days, we will be celebrating our first “virtual” Easter Sunday in our churches. I’m pretty sure it is accurate to say that none of us have
Ed Stetzer recently made a passionate appeal to church leaders saying, “This is not the crisis, we are weeks away from the real crisis.” The crisis is not that we
I never thought the day would come, that due to COVID-19 every pastor in America would be forced to do what I’ve been doing for the past 10 years. You
It is surreal to think that we are finishing up week three of the Covid-19 quarantine. Nothing is normal for any of us. To be honest, I’m starting to forget
In reviewing Illinois’s Stay at Home Executive Order 2020-10, it is my understanding that church gatherings of more than 10 persons is expressly prohibited by this order (See Clause 3).
As we enter week two of the Coronavirus quarantine one thing is clear – the “novelty” has worn off. In some ways, last week was filled with our pastors operating
This week we began offering Zoom calls for our pastors to come together to share ideas, encourage one another and pray for each other. We have had at least six
In light of the CDC’s recommendation that all gatherings of 50 people or more be canceled for the next 8 weeks, your church staff may have some free time on
I have chosen to use Titus 3:1-2 as the guiding biblical principle for our churches as we face this unprecedented shut down of our country due to the dangerous spread
With the unprecedented state of our country right now, many churches are navigating the transition to online church. Whether your church has been streaming Sunday services for months now or
Dear Converge MidAmerica Pastors and Church Leaders, “Unprecedented” is the word that is often heard regarding the COVID-19 virus pandemic that is globally affecting all of our lives. It is
