Great Lakes District | The Christian Missionary Alliance

The sole purpose of OuterEdge.com is to challenge you to live at the edge of your faith. For every person, the edge is different.  It might be rekindling a relationship with a friend who hurt you deeply.  It might be a call to go make a difference at the ends of the earth.  Only you and God know your edge.   The goal of Outeredge.com is to help you define it and live on it.

OuterEdge.com has four key foundations:

• OuterEdge.com is a place to meet friends in a safe, faith-based setting.  The goal is not to take you away from other social network sites but to offer a place where the global body of Christ can support and challenge you.  It’s not a place to hide from the world. Rather it’s a place to come and be challenged to use all the talent God has hard-wired into you to shine His light into a world that needs the difference only He can make.
• OuterEdge.com is a place to engage your faith.  They have designed media to challenge you, to encourage you, to excite you about what God wants to do in and through you.  All productions use top-quality film to take you into characters and situations where you can relate.  We are excited to feature independent artists focused on using their talents for God’s glory.
• OuterEdge.com is a place to see lives changed. Watch as your friends share how you encourage them — as others around you begin or grow in faith.  Share what God is doing in your life in a safe, nurturing community.
• OuterEdge.com is a place where you can seek a life with purpose. They have found no purpose is greater than growing in a loving relationship with Jesus Christ.  Outeredge.com wants to fuel the passion God has created in you. It’s what Outeredge.com and every partner organization on this site is all about.

“At some point your church was planted . . . whether that was 30 months ago or 30 years… some group of people got together with a shared vision and started the church you now serve in.   Those where the the good ‘ole days . . . and the bad ‘ole days!  Somewhere along the line your church leadership settled into the routine it’s currently in and stopped acting like a start up.  You moved beyond the “are we going to survive beyond this weekend?” fire that burns in an early church start up.

But what if the exact thing you need as a leadership team is to regain some of that energy in your midst?

Here are a few ways that you can start acting like a Church Plant this spring . . . and potentially regain some of that focus and drive…”

The above quote is from a fantastic article at killerchurch.wordpress.com, a blog created by Rich Birch, who serves as the Operations Pastor at Liquid Church in the Manhattan facing suburbs of New Jersey.

>>>>>Click here to read the rest of the article!<<<<<

KillerChurch offers a bunch of free articles and ideas that serve to benefit the local church. You can get emails about these “killer” resources by signing up through this link.

_{Please note that the Great Lakes District in no way endorses any of the opinions of the individuals represented below. The opinions of the individuals below are meant for illustrative purposes only.}

Diana Butler Bass recently wrote an intriguing article about the decline of Church in America entitled “The End of Church.” She writes:

“For decades, mainline Protestants have watched helplessly as their membership rolls dwindled, employing program after program to try to stop the decline. In the last 15 years, conservative Protestant denominations have witnessed significant erosions in membership, money and participation — with some of the greatest drops in groups like the Southern Baptist Convention that once seemed impervious to decline. In a typical week, less than a quarter of Americans attend a religious service, down from the half of the population who were regular churchgoers a generation ago.”

_{Quote taken from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/diana-butler-bass/the-end-of-church_b_1284954.html}

>>>>>>>>Please Read this short article, by following this link.<<<<<<<<

Bass goes on to talk about a stigma that is developing around the word “religion.” Nothing illustrates this better than a recent “viral” YouTube video entitled: “Why I hate Religion, But Love Jesus.” This video is approaching 20 MILLION VIEWS and is a good illustration of how the next generation views “religious organizations.” The video is below:

Soon after this video went viral around the world, CBS “This Morning” decided to invite the creator of the video, Jeff Bethke (22 years old), to interact with Rev. Edward Beck, a Roman Catholic Priest. Watch the video below to hear an opposite perspective on the word “religion.”

It is fascinating the way that semantics drives this discussion. Jeff Bethke describes “religion” in very distinct, negative terms. Yet as Rev. Edward Beck points out, you cannot escape the broad semantic range of “religion,” which includes the very belief system that Bethke holds to, out of which he subsequently rejects “religion” (at least, his definition of it).

(Also interesting for this discussion is Ravi Zacharias’ response to questions relating to religious institutions: Video 1, Video 2)

What do you think about the way “religion” is being used here. If it is integrated into the mindset of those disillusioned with the church, as Diana Butler Bass asserts, how does the church respond? How do you respond to someone who views “religion” as an evil, man-made construct? Is this a problem? Is “church” at risk of coming to an end?

We would love to hear your opinion! Leave your comments below:

YouthWalk is a devotional magazine for students designed to help them navigate the Bible, get to know God through it, and go on the adventure of walking through life with Him.

In a letter to a fellow Jesus-follower, C. S. Lewis once wrote: “Think of me as a fellow patient in the same hospital who, having been admitted a little earlier, could give some advice.”

That sums up the heart of YW. They’re on this incredible journey of walking with God, and as best they can in magazine form, they’ve captured what He has taught them along the way to pass it on to fellow journeyers who are pressing in and getting to know Him too.

So, what’s YW magazine like?

YW is made of four main components:

• Devotionals: The four weeks of devos in each issue unpack Scripture to see what the Bible tells us about who God is, what His heart is like, and what it means for us to follow Him. Each month’s devos are based on a theme that they dive into from different angles.
• Articles and columns: These 4 or 5 pieces in each issue are written by fellow Jesus-followers, and are basically quirky, winsome, and hopefully insightful articles about what God has been teaching them as they’re journeying through life with Him.
• Interviews: Each month, YouthWalk interviews a Christian musician or music group. The interviews read as if you’re sitting down and having coffee with an artist, picking their brain about what God’s been teaching them lately.
• Reviews: Each month they also review albums and books that can help students dive in deeper to the theme of that month’s issue.

Want to experience YouthWalk magazine? View a sample issue by clicking here.

Also, be sure to visit www.ywspace.org, where you can find out more about YW Magazine and even read a few of the magazine’s devotionals online!

Moms in Prayer International, formerly Moms In Touch, impacts children and schools worldwide for Christ by gathering mothers to pray.

When Fern Nichols’ sons entered junior high, she had some apprehensions. But overriding those fears was a deep trust that God, and only God, could protect and keep her children. Only God could change the lives of friends and coaches and teachers. She knew that if moms gathered together to cry out to God for the needs and concerns of children and schools, that He would not only hear those prayers, but answer them.

Fern called like-minded moms who gathered each week to pray for their children and school, and thus began the first Moms In Touch group, now called Moms in Prayer. What started so simply in 1984 has grown into a worldwide community of praying moms in every state and in more than 130 countries around the world.

They invite you to browse their site, learn more about them, and discover the most important gift you can give your children: your prayers. Take up their invitation by visiting www.momsintouch.org.

Moms in Prayer International is:

• Two or more women who meet regularly to pray for their children, their schools, their teachers and administrators.
• Mothers, grandmothers or anyone who is willing to pray for a specific child and school.
• Moms who believe that prayer makes a difference.
• A nonprofit, donation-supported ministry in 130-plus countries.

Love In Action International is a Christian discipleship ministry that exists to restore those trapped in sexual and relational sin through the power of Jesus Christ. Through individual biblical counseling, support groups, custom Intensive programs, and Distance Counseling (Restoration Path), they seek to empower men and women to embrace their identity in Christ, posture themselves to receive God’s healing in their deep areas of emotional wounding, learn to meet their relational needs met in healthy ways, and make good choices that harmonize with their deeply felt moral convictions.

Love in Action is passionately committed to helping people discover the truth about God and about who they really are in his son Jesus. In the safety and strength of God’s love men and women of all ages have found the courage to step out of destructive and life-dominating patterns of sexual and relational sin.

While Love in Action is based in Tennessee, they offer distance counseling programs (communicating via the internet) that are accessible to anyone. To see what programs they have to offer, click here!

_{All information taken from http://www.loveinaction.org/aboutus}

Love In Action International is a Christian discipleship ministry that exists to restore those trapped in sexual and relational sin through the power of Jesus Christ.

David C Cook is a nonprofit organization dedicated to publishing and distributing leadership and discipleship resources to help Christians all over the world grow in their faith and pass it on to the next generation. They call this “DiscipleShaping“. They were established in 1875 by David Caleb Cook in Chicago, IL. Since that time, they have published numerous bestselling books from The Picture Bible to Crazy Love by Francis Chan, developed over ten lines of Sunday school curriculum, and published many of today’s most popular praise and worship songs through our music division, Kingsway. As a ministry, they do more than just publish and distribute Christian resources. They partner with indigenous organizations to equip Pastors, Lay Leaders, and Sunday School Teachers with their materials in places like India, China, and Cuba. In some places (underdeveloped countries), they make them available at no charge. In others, (developing countries), they subsidize the cost to make them more affordable. You are probably familiar with a Hybrid Car. This car runs off two sources of fuel: gasoline and electricity. For David C Cook the surplus that is made from selling resources in places like North America, Western Europe, Australia, and more, is the gas. That surplus is used to cover all overhead, marketing, fundraising, and administrative costs. When the electrical component kicks in they use donations from passionate people like you—combined with the surplus they have—to deliver life-transforming materials throughout developing and underdeveloped countries where people do not have access to or money to buy materials. When you donate to David C Cook, 100% of your investment is going directly to deliver a discipleship resource to somebody in need. NONE of it goes to a salary, a building, marketing, or administration. To learn more about their international programs, go to DavidCCook.com/globalmission. Dave is a ministry of regular people, like you, with a passion to transform lives around the world. Visit them by going to www.davidccook.com!

 
_{All information taken from http://www.davidccook.com/}

MISSION:

The mission of The Source for Youth Ministry is to reach 21^st Century youth with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ, develop student and adult youth leaders with effective ministry skills, and provide cutting-edge youth ministry tools and resources.

WHAT THEY OFFER:

The Source for Youth Ministry is comprised of several core ministries: evangelism, skill development and youth ministry tools. Most of the youth ministry tools can be found on their website for FREE!!! They have tons of free articles, training videos, and fresh ideas on everything from games to holiday parties.

Click here to see what The Source can offer your ministry!

Rob Connelly of Church Production Magazine recently wrote a fantastic article about good stewardship in the realm of Church technology. “Cheaper is not always better, and practicing good stewardship involves knowledge, foresight, planning, and often getting outside help.”

A portion of the article is below:

The Great Lakes District has made available the services of Brian Gowing, the district’s technology advisor, to assist churches with any technology needs or questions. This is free to any district church. With a extensive background of over 15 years in computers, audio, video, lighting and staging systems, Brian has proven to be an invaluable asset to the district and to the 20 churches that have already utilized his expertise. He can assist churches with evaluating their current equipment and assess the state of the church’s volunteer knowledge. Brian provides excellent and easy-to-understand training for audio volunteers to ensure the current equipment is utilized correctly. Brian can assist in guiding the stewardship of the church’s equipment and, if necessary, make recommendations for replacement and suitable vendors to utilize. If you’ve dealt with Brian you know his heart and soul are this ministry and how much he has helped your church. Haven’t pleasure of meeting him yet? Give him a call at the district office at 734-677-8555 or by email at brian@greatlakesdistrict.com. Brian would be happy to come out to your church.