us news
Las Vegas Pastor Jud Wilhite on God lessons learned in pandemic
So far this year has been anything but normal. With so much chaos surrounding us, it can be difficult to know how to plan for what’s next. Pastors are navigating more emotional, relational, technological, financial and structural decisions than ever before, and it isn’t clear if there’s an end in sight.
To help provide ministry leaders with encouragement during this time, I sat down with Jud Wilhite, who has been the Pastor of Central Christian Church in Las Vegas for over 17 years. The mission of Central Christian is focused on rescue through recovery programs and evangelism, which may seem like a challenging ministry during COVID-19. Like other churches, Central Christian closed their doors for in-person worship at the beginning of the pandemic, but they were anything but shut down.
The leaders and members of Central Christian sprang into action serving their community in any way possible, including feeding over 7 million pounds of food to over 570,000 families at their food bank. Now, Central Christian has once again opened their doors for in-person worship, while following the CDC’s social distancing guidelines, and they continue striving to be the hands and feet of Jesus by serving their community.
Jud shared what God’s been laying on his heart throughout the pandemic, and how he has found peace and encouragement despite the uncertainty of 2020.
1. Lean Not On Your Own Understanding
There has not been a shortage of opinions on how church leaders should react during this pandemic. Half of your congregation may be pushing you toward reopening while the other half may be terrified of the possible repercussions of in-person worship. While there is no right or wrong answer about reopening, scripture offers some guidance on who to turn to when we are stuck at a crossroads.
Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” With so much uncertainty surrounding us, we can find comfort in the reality that if we turn our hearts toward Jesus and submit to what he is calling us to do, our paths will be aligned with his will for our lives
For Jud, this verse pushed him to make three practical changes in his life:
1. He stopped watching the news when he realized it was producing more harm than good for his mental health.
2. He became more intentional about social media and pulled back on how often he spent time online.
3. He spent more intentional time reading the Bible.
These three practical steps allowed Jud to focus his heart on what God had called him to, rather than what everyone around him was telling him to do. In the interview, Jud shares the relief he found from these small changes. What can you change in your life to refocus your heart on what Jesus is calling you to do?
2. Do Not Borrow Trouble From Tomorrow
It seems like every day of 2020 has offered a new twist or turn to navigate. Every time we think we have something figured out, something new comes along and unravels all of our plans. We spend much of today planning and worrying about what will happen next. When will this pandemic go away and what is coming next?
In Matthew 6:34, Jesus says, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
As you continue to navigate what it is best for your church, remember the words of Jesus. Do not borrow trouble from tomorrow while you are still getting through today. Rather, live every day one day at a time, seeking the Lord for guidance as you take each step.
3. Serve Your Community
As Christians, we are called to serve God and serve others. Whether or not your church has reopened, there are things you can be doing now to serve your community. As you continue to seek wisdom and guidance from the Lord, consider what needs need to be met in your community and what resources your church can provide to meet those needs. When you pray for God to open your eyes to opportunity, he’ll reveal creative ways to be his hands and feet.
God led Central Community Church to serve others in three ways:
1.Serving food – Central Community Church was already connected to the largest food pantry in the city. Throwing more effort into providing resources here allowed them to outdo their serving from the entire previous year by September of 2020.
2.Offered a 24-hour phone line that anyone can call with their needs – From Jud’s own experience and those around him, he realized one of the heaviest needs that needed to be met was the need for community. Providing a care line allowed Central Community to keep focused on their mission of serving individuals seeking recovery and connection, whether they were church members or not.
3.Meeting in person again – Walking through a season of being unable to meet in person provides a new perspective of joy now that Central Community is open again. Jud shares how despite the fact that he went from preaching to thousands to preaching to hundreds, he’s never been more full of gratitude and joy.
There is no way to know what tomorrow holds, and the right move for one church may not be the right move for another church. As you continue to seek wisdom and guidance about what’s next for your church, we hope Central Christian Church offers you hope and guidance.
This conversation is part one in a 5-part podcast series we released called The State Of The Church, where our CEO & Founder, William Vanderbloemen spoke with pastors and ministry leaders from around the country about how COVID-19 has impacted their Kingdom efforts and what they project the lasting impacts will be. Check out the other encouraging conversations in this series here.
Sources: Christian Post
Popular Bible app YouVersion says it has seen more people engage with the Bible this year than ever before, drawing closer to God through His Word and through prayer features on the app.
Developers of the Bible app point out the most popular verse from 2024 reveals that people have been seeking God’s comfort in tumultuous times.
This year, the most searched scripture was Philippians 4:6. It reads: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
YouVersion Founder and CEO Bobby Gruenewald believes it shows that people are more likely to turn to God when they face anxiety and daily struggles.
“In many cases, our anxiety comes from holding onto worries that we aren’t meant to carry,” said Gruenewald. “To me, this verse being sought out the most this year is an illustration that our community is seeking God in prayer and choosing to trust Him to carry their burdens—and we’re seeing that supported in the data.”
The YouVersion app was designed to encourage and challenge people to seek God throughout each day. It offers a free Bible experience in more than 2,170 languages and has been installed on more than 875 million unique devices.
“I was just trying to figure out how to use technology to help people read the Bible more consistently. And just had enough faith to start, to try something, and of course, what we’ve seen God do is incredible. Our faith has grown, but in the very beginning had no idea what it was going to become,” Gruenewald previously told CBN News.
Praying for Peace
Seeking peace through God’s Word is not the only thing that has increased this year.
YouVersion also saw increased interest in prayer around the world.
The words “prayer” and “peace” were among the top in-app search terms this year and the app’s YouVersion Prayer features went up by 46% this year compared to last year.
The YouVersion’s Prayer Team volunteers responded to prayer requests in 20 languages and prayed for concerns involving finances, healing, family, marriage, and anxiety.
The group has partnered with 24-7 Prayer International to facilitate “an unbroken chain of prayer, every hour of the day and night” among churches in more than 65 countries.
This year, they saw a 37% increase in the number of 24-7 Prayer Rooms they’re supporting.
“Throughout 2024, we have seen a rise in the number of people dedicating themselves to night and day prayer in different nations around the world,” said Carla Harding, International Director of Products for 24-7 Prayer International. “Our hope is that through continual prayer, the global church would be ignited in the presence of God and carry His love with greater compassion and power to the communities around them.”
Global Trends
It was a good year for YouVersion for another reason–more people engaged with the scriptures through their smartphones and tablets than ever before.
Every month of 2024 became the highest month in YouVersion for both app installs and daily use.
Across its Family of Apps—which includes Bible App, Bible App Lite, and Bible App for Kids—YouVersion saw an average of 11.2 million new device installs per month and about 14 million people engaging in the Bible every day.
Regional Momentum
YouVersion has also had a major impact in many countries around the world.
Bible engagement is growing at a fast rate in Central Africa (54%) and Eastern Africa (56%), compared to last year.
Countries like South Sudan (82%), Angola (68%), Mozambique (55%), Guinea (50%), Nigeria (35%), and Algeria (35%), saw a rise in daily Bible use in 2024.
YouVersion’s Bible App for Kids has also seen a big boost.
Nigeria, Senegal, and Cote d’Ivoire experienced the biggest engagement spikes among kids in Africa this year.
YouVersion is also seeing sustained growth in Latin America.
Many countries across the region saw a surge in daily Bible use, including growth in Nicaragua (107%), Venezuela (74%), Bolivia (52%), Honduras (50%), Cuba (45%), and Argentina (30%).
The Bible app is moving forward with plans to launch its first-ever Regional Hub in Belo Horizonte, Brazil in support of the roughly one million Brazilians opening the Bible App every day.
YouVersion’s goal for its Regional Hubs is to have a local team recruit content partners and churches to create a more authentic and regionally relevant Bible experience that helps people better connect with God’s Word on a personal level.
“It’s encouraging to see people throughout the YouVersion Community, in every region of the world, engage with the Bible at such high levels,” said Gruenewald. “These Bible engagement trends highlight the commonalities that can be found throughout the global Church—in the struggles we face and in our need for God.”
As CBN News reported, sales of physical, paper Bibles are also up 22% this year.
According to The Wall Street Journal,13.7 million copies were sold in the first 10 months of this year, compared to 14.2 million for all of 2023. Experts expect the total number to outpace last year once they tabulate November and December Bible sales.
Dr. John Plake, chief program officer at the American Bible Society, told CBN News why he thinks so many people, especially Gen Z, are engaging with the Word of God.
“They’re leaning into the Bible,” he shared. “They’re really trying to engage in their faith and they are kind of a bright hope for us as a young generation of American adults.”
Sources:CBN News
വാഷിംഗ്ടണ് ഡിസി: കഴിഞ്ഞ വർഷത്തെ അപേക്ഷിച്ച് ബൈബിൾ വിൽപ്പനയിൽ 22% വർദ്ധനവുണ്ടായതായി പ്രമുഖ മാധ്യമമായ ‘വാള് സ്ട്രീറ്റ് ജേണല്’. 2023ലെ വിൽപ്പനയുമായി താരതമ്യം ചെയ്യുമ്പോൾ ഒക്ടോബർ അവസാനം വരെയുള്ള ബൈബിൾ വിൽപ്പനയിൽ 22% വർദ്ധനവാണ് രേഖപ്പെടുത്തിയിരിക്കുന്നതെന്ന് ബുക്ക് സെയിൽ ട്രാക്കർ എന്നറിയപ്പെടുന്ന ‘ബുക്ക്സ്കാൻ’ പുറത്തുവിട്ട കണക്കുകളെ ഉദ്ധരിച്ചുള്ള റിപ്പോര്ട്ടില് പറയുന്നു.
2022-നെ അപേക്ഷിച്ച് കഴിഞ്ഞ വർഷം ഒക്ടോബർ അവസാനത്തോടെ, ബൈബിൾ വിൽപ്പന 1% ഉയർന്നിട്ടുണ്ടെന്നും കണക്കില് പറയുന്നു. ആദ്യമായി ബൈബിൾ വാങ്ങുന്നവരാണ് ഇതില് ഭൂരിഭാഗമെന്നതു ശ്രദ്ധേയമാണ്. അമേരിക്കയില് ബൈബിൾ വിൽപ്പന 22% വർദ്ധിച്ചപ്പോള് മൊത്തം യു.എസ് പ്രിൻ്റ് ബുക്ക് വിൽപ്പന 1% ൽ താഴെ മാത്രമാണെന്നും റിപ്പോര്ട്ടില് സൂചിപ്പിക്കുന്നുണ്ട്.
ആളുകൾ സ്വയം ഉത്കണ്ഠ അനുഭവിക്കുന്നുണ്ടെന്നും മക്കളെയും പേരക്കുട്ടികളെയും കുറിച്ച് അവർ ആശങ്കാകുലരാണെന്നും ഇവാഞ്ചലിക്കൽ ക്രിസ്ത്യൻ പബ്ലിഷേഴ്സ് അസോസിയേഷൻ്റെ പ്രസിഡൻ്റായി സേവനമനുഷ്ഠിക്കുന്ന ജെഫ് ക്രോസ്ബി ബൈബിള് വില്പ്പനയിലെ വര്ദ്ധവിനെ ചൂണ്ടിക്കാട്ടി പ്രസ്താവിച്ചു. 2019-ൽ, ബൈബിൾ വിൽപ്പന 9.7 ദശലക്ഷത്തിലെത്തിയിരിന്നു. 2024-ൻ്റെ ആദ്യ 10 മാസങ്ങളിൽ 13.7 ദശലക്ഷത്തിലധികം ബൈബിളാണ് ദശലക്ഷങ്ങളിലേക്ക് എത്തിയതെന്നും കണക്കില് ചൂണ്ടിക്കാട്ടുന്നുണ്ട്.
Bible sales in the US have surged 22% this year, driven by first-time buyers and innovative designs. Publishers attribute the rise to anxiety, a search for hope, and targeted marketing. Despite growing secularization, 13.7 million Bibles were sold in the first 10 months of 2024. Gen Z and younger demographics are increasingly drawn to Bibles for guidance and stability.
കടപ്പാട് :പ്രവാചക ശബ്ദം
One pastor from California is extra thankful this year for his training in mixed martial arts.
Pastor Nick Neves of Family First Church in Antioch, a city in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, confronted a would-be thief carrying an ax on Thanksgiving morning last Thursday, after the unnamed intruder broke into the church’s building.
“I shouted at him to stop, and that the police were on their way, and he ran and I grabbed ahold of him and we ended up wrestling in the parking lot of the church,”
When he was first approached by Neves, the unnamed attempted burglar tried fighting the preacher — but he was not very successful.
“I like to stay fit, and I studied in some jujitsu and kickboxing and I have a mixed martial arts background,” said Neves. “So it was very helpful to be able to grapple with this gentleman without having to do much harm to him.”
The pair wrestled for about 15 minutes before the would-be thief gave up until police arrived. Neves said he was able to pin the man to the ground and, although he got up and tried to get away a few times, the pastor never seriously injured the intruder.
“I knew I could outlast him,” the pastor said.
One of the church’s longtime attenders, Jeff Strawther, said the ordeal “could’ve gone in a totally different direction and we thank God that it didn’t,” calling Neves a “very tough” man the church is “grateful” to have as their pastor.
The preacher said it’s “ironic” the burglar attempted to break in to steal things from the church on Thanksgiving Day, especially since his congregation prides itself on providing meals to those in need in their community.
In fact, churchgoers had just given away groceries to 130 families in need earlier in the week.
“If he had come a couple of days earlier, he would have been blessed and get some food and be cared for,” Neves said. “But he decided instead to smash windows and desecrate property and do something that’s going to hurt the ministries.”
The pastor said he hopes this incident serves as a wakeup call to the criminal.
Sources:faithwire
Should Christians Fear Artificial Intelligence?
Is artificial intelligence (AI) ethical? That’s the question secular and Christian leaders alike are contending with as technology quickly evolves....
Bible App Engagement Spikes, and the Most Read Verse of 2024 Says a Lot About Our World
Popular Bible app YouVersion says it has seen more people engage with the Bible this year than ever before, drawing...
ഐ.പി സി സംസ്ഥാന കൺവെൻഷന് ഇന്ന് തുടക്കം
ചുങ്കത്തറ • ഇന്ത്യൻ പെന്തക്കോസ്തു ചർച്ച് (ഐപിസി) സംസ്ഥാന കൺവൻഷൻ ഇന്ന് മുതൽ 8 വരെ പാലുണ്ട ന്യൂ ഹോപ് ബൈബിൾ കോളജ് ഗ്രൗണ്ടിൽ നടക്കും. സംസ്ഥാന...
അമേരിക്കയില് ബൈബിള് വില്പ്പനയില് 22% വര്ദ്ധനവ്
വാഷിംഗ്ടണ് ഡിസി: കഴിഞ്ഞ വർഷത്തെ അപേക്ഷിച്ച് ബൈബിൾ വിൽപ്പനയിൽ 22% വർദ്ധനവുണ്ടായതായി പ്രമുഖ മാധ്യമമായ ‘വാള് സ്ട്രീറ്റ് ജേണല്’. 2023ലെ വിൽപ്പനയുമായി താരതമ്യം ചെയ്യുമ്പോൾ ഒക്ടോബർ അവസാനം...
സൗജന്യമായി ആധാർ അപ്ഡേറ്റുകൾ ചെയ്യുന്നത് UIDAI ഡിസംബർ 14 വരെ നീട്ടി
യുണീക്ക് ഐഡൻ്റിഫിക്കേഷൻ അതോറിറ്റി ഓഫ് ഇന്ത്യ (UIDAI) സൗജന്യ ആധാർ അപ്ഡേറ്റുകൾക്കുള്ള സമയപരിധി 2024 ഡിസംബർ 14 വരെ നീട്ടി. ഔദ്യോഗിക ‘മൈ ആധാർ’ പോർട്ടലിലൂടെ ലഭ്യമാകുന്ന...
Christians banned from 8 villages in India’s Chhattisgarh state
In the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, eight village councils have passed a resolution that bans Christians from staying in...
-
Travel7 months agoയാക്കൂസ കരിഷ്മ:ഓല സ്കൂട്ടറിനേക്കാൾ വിലക്കുറവിൽ കുഞ്ഞൻ കാർ; സിറ്റി യാത്രകൾക്ക് ഇനി ഇവൻ മതിയാവും
-
Movie3 weeks agoFor KING + COUNTRY Stars’ Big Plan to Bring Message of Jesus, ‘Redemption of Humanity’ to People Across America
-
Tech5 months agoചിത്രങ്ങൾ എഡിറ്റ് ചെയ്യാം; വാട്സ്ആപ്പിലെ ‘നീല വളയം’ സ്മാർട്ടാകുന്നു, കാര്യമായ മാറ്റങ്ങൾ
-
National9 months agoനെയ്തേലിപ്പടി ക്രൂസേഡിന് അനുഗ്രഹീത സമാപ്തി
-
Movie9 months agoActor Ryan Phillippe ‘Craving’ Relationship With God After Movie About Christian Missionary
-
National9 months ago300,000-Member Indian Church to Plant 40 More Megachurches
-
Movie12 months agoBrazilian gospel singer Pedro Henrique dies of heart attack after collapsing on stage
-
Articles6 months ago8 ways the Kingdom connects us back to the Garden of Eden