March 18th, 2024

Alecia M. White

99 POSTS
Author, blogger, lover of coffee, and all things Jesus. By profession, Alecia is a teacher and administrator. She recently published her first book "The Thing Is...", a poignant look at suffering and endurance. She is privileged to share her love for Christ through her writing.

Exclusive articles:

The Middle of the Storm is not Your Final Destination

God's plan is not to leave you in the middle of your current storm, but to bring you to an expected, peaceful end. Keep going!

When You’re the Strong Friend, But You Need a Strong Cry

If you're the strong friend, it's not always easy to process pain. Here's how to navigate the strange place of needing others when they typically need you.

SMART Goals for the New Year: How to Set Them and Follow Through

The new year is filled with plans, dreams, and goals. Plan your new year with SMART goals and make sure you follow through...here's how.

3 Ways to Fly Solo When Everybody Can’t Go With You

When your assignment calls for you to go alone, when everybody can't go with you, here's how to prepare for the journey prepared for you.

Your Gifts and Talents Aren’t Like Theirs, and It’s OK

When we focus on the gifts and talents of others, we forget how important our own gifts are to God and that He wants us to use them.

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Trolls Band Together in Theaters November 17th

Nothing's Stronger Than Family Harmony About This holiday season, get ready...

Are State Laws the Solution to Kids’ Access to Porn?

As data continues to show the harms of viewing porn, particularly for children, support for stricter legal limits on pornographers has grown.

The Burial: A Glimpse Into the Life of William Gary

The Burial: Based on a True Events About Inspired by true...

Pandemic Restrictions Had No Lasting Effect on Churches, Study Finds

Even in states where regulations were severe, most congregations moved on quickly. Jeff Schoch was ready to be done with COVID-19 health safety regulations. Like most ministers in the US, the pastor of Crossroads Bible Church in San Jose, California, did his best to comply with the many pandemic rules imposed by state and local governments. But as soon as they were lifted, he wanted to put them all behind him. He quickly tore down the state-mandated signs about social distancing, hand washing, and masks. “I got rid of every visual reminder in the church,” Schoch told CT. “I was anxious, personally, to make that a memory.” Across the country, Protestant congregations are dealing with the long-term impacts of the pandemic. A new, extensive study by Arbor Research Group and ChurchSalary, a ministry of Christianity Today, found that a lot of pastors are still in crisis. Some furloughed staff members haven’t gone back to work. And even when attendance numbers have rebounded, there are still people missing from many congregations. Christian leaders will likely be grappling with the fallout from COVID-19 for years to come. But, surprisingly, state-level pandemic restrictions had no measurable, lasting impact on American churches. Even in places like San Jose—where the county government imposed some of the strictest rules in the country, the restrictions changed frequently, and authorities aggressively went after churches they said failed to comply—pastors like Schoch were able to just move on. The data doesn’t show any adverse effects from the government regulations. Eric Shieh, a research consultant for Arbor Research, said that surprised him. “You would think that the restrictions made things tougher for churches. They didn’t meet as much, and so you’d ...Continue reading...
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