Our Blog Words of Encouragement & Useful Resources

“‘Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord, who has compassion on you.” (Isaiah 54:10) Reflecting on the uncertainty that marks so many aspects of our...

Our Camp Meeting, held July 18-24, 2021, was a great success this year! If you were unable to attend, here are some of the messages from our camp.                        

My wife and I recently stopped by “Cedar Bog,“ a nature preserve outside of Urbana, Ohio. The welcome center host there will quickly inform all visitors that Cedar Bog is incorrectly named—it is actually a “fen.” The oft-repeated clarifying statement there is “bogs...

Last month, I shared about how God’s heart for churches is that we intentionally think beyond just getting “bigger” to engage our call to go “wider.” Jesus’ Acts 1:8 instructions are to multiply disciple making efforts in an ever-expanding geographic circle, not just...

A common evaluation question for the health of a church is “are you growing?” The underlying assumption is that God wants churches to grow, and I agree—with an important qualifier as to the type of growth God seeks. Growth is usually measured by addition in the...

Jesus’ command in the Great Commission, Matthew 28:18-20, is to make disciples. His desire is that, “going, baptizing, and teaching,” we would be about the work of disciple multiplication. Therefore, if we claim to be obedient to Jesus, we must answer these basic...

I’ve spent some time recently reviewing the first ten chapters of Jeremiah. I am sobered by how this prophet, who wrote some 2600 years ago to Judah in the days before its fall to Babylon, still speaks so powerfully to our present generation. I encourage you to read...

In October of 2019, the Little Fliers Food Program (LFFP) opened its doors to serve over 60 students from a local elementary school. In reality, this program was put upon the hearts of its volunteers long before. Searching for a way to help students at the elementary...

One way to evaluate the health of a church is to determine whether the proper “TEP” balance is present. “T” is “truth,” the uncompromised Biblical foundation upon which any church must be built. “E” represents “excellence,” the intentional pursuit of the very best we...

The American church has been shaken by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. As followers of Christ, we need to ask God to show us what we must learn from the past year to help us better fulfill Jesus’ mission for His people moving forward. The understanding of the...

Since our first week together in LifeWise Pandora-Gilboa, we have been chronologically going through the Bible starting in Genesis. From the creation of the world, creation of man, sin entering the world, Cain and Abel and then Noah and the Flood, we have discussed...

Dewight contacted Community Relief in early 2020. He asked me to look at his house, as it needed quite a bit of work, and he didn't know where to turn. Through the evaluation process, I learned that 5 years ago, Dewight had invited someone else who was down on her...

Hannah Wise is a Gen Z disciple movement leader. The MCECR is partnering with her as she seeks to develop a movement of multiplying disciples among the Gen Z age group in West Central Ohio. It seems like you can’t turn on Christian radio and not hear Brandon Lake’s...

Growing up in a country music-loving household, I recall the words of a 1970 Lynn Anderson country hit: “I beg your pardon—I never promised you a rose garden!” Those lyrics come to mind as I hear more than one Christian asking, “Why has God allowed all these terrible...