March 29th, 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:

How to Color Life Outside the Lines with God

Lines Created to be Crossed I work with children, young girls, as a Girl Scout troop leader. In the summer, I have girls that I...

Good Soil: Why Following Jesus Christ is a Dirty Business

Good Soil is Dirty Home for the weekend and my mom wanted her yard cleaned and if y’all know me, well most of you don’t....

Why It’s Important to Do Life at the Speed of God

Life Comes at You Fast. Let God Set the Pace. I was in a rush. I needed to be there at 8:30 am. It was...

Are Your Good Looks Still Legit When God Looks at Your Heart?

Beauty Is... I had an apple, a pretty apple, and no not an electronic device, though I do have those, too. But really, this apple...

Quiet on the Set: Mute Your Doubts While God Directs His Plan

Shhhh... God is at Work. Have you ever just sat and thought about the fact that, not only does God make us promises, but He...

Breaking

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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