Posted by Ray Pritchard on 8.12.07 in Churches
This morning I preached at Village Bible Church in Sugar Grove, IL, a suburb on the far western edge of Chicago. After the service I stayed and spoke at a leaders’ luncheon at the request of Pastor Tim Badal. Marlene and I both thought this was one of the most exciting churches we’ve visited in a long time.When …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 7.19.07 in Books, Church Trends, Churches
What would happen if a pastor and an atheist decided to visit some of America’s largest churches together? That simple question led to a book called Jim and Casper Go to Church. Over a period of several months in 2006, Jim Henderson (the pastor) and Matt Casper (the atheist) dropped in unannounced on Willowcreek, Sadd …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 7.9.07 in Churches, Travel
We have just made a late addition to my schedule. This Sunday (July 15) I will be speaking at the Fountain of Life Church in Lombard, IL at 10 AM. We invite our friends in the Chicago area to come to the service. Rich Raad serves as the pastor of this dynamic, growing congregation.
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 6.11.07 in Churches
This week the members of Harrisburg Baptist Church in Tupelo, Mississippi are “taking it to the streets” in an effort to serve those who need their help in tangible ways. Basically the church is setting aside 72 hours this week—Thursday, Friday and Saturday—to serve the community in a wide variety of hands-on services. I …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 5.14.07 in Church Trends, Churches
Recently I met someone who is a bit discouraged because his church has gone through several staff changes. Pastors who had been in that church for years have announced that they will soon be moving to other ministries. The person said, “I think God is cleaning house.”To which I replied, “Perhaps he’s just redecorating …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 5.10.07 in Churches, Preaching
A few weeks ago I wrote an article called How to Spot a Healthy Church—Quickly. To my surprise, it has drawn the most comments of anything I’ve ever written on the weblog. At the moment there are 89 comments attached to that entry. They are all enlightening because they allow us a glimpse into how people evaluate loc …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 5.2.07 in Churches
This Sunday I’m speaking at Arlington Heights Evangelical Free Church, 1330 N. Douglas Ave, Arlington Heights, IL 60004. Phone: 847-392-4840. I will be speaking in all three morning services—8, 9:30 and 11 AM. If you are in the Chicago area, I hope you will join us for one of the services.
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 4.16.07 in Churches
Yesterday Marlene and I had a wonderful time at Woodward Avenue Baptist Church in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. I grew up in that area so it was a sort of homecoming for me even though I didn’t know most of the people in the congregation. Pastor Ron Ethridge is a personal friend so we felt enormously welcomed from the momen …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 3.25.07 in Churches, Keep Believing Ministries
Here are some pictures from our visit to Pontiac (IL) Bible Church. I first met Brian Bill in May 1989 when I was a visiting preacher at Calvary Memorial Church in Oak Park. After I became the senior pastor, we served together on staff for three years and developed a friendship that has continued to this day. Seven-and-a-ha …
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 2.20.07 in Churches, Keep Believing Ministries, Missions, Travel
I am writing these words at 4:52 AM at Gate L9 in Terminal 3 of O’Hare Airport in Chicago. Last night, which really hasn’t ended yet, we had a Keep Believing Ministries board meeting that finally wrapped up sometime after 11 PM. We did our final packing and got to bed about 12:30 AM. That was OK except that we c …
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