Cleveland, TN–In a historic move, the International Executive Council of the Church of God launched the Church Planting Designated Fund, often called the Church Planting “Bank,” with assets of more than $1 million dedicated to starting and building life-giving and life-sustaining churches.

Much has been said about younger Americans tending to shy away from religion in much greater numbers than previous generations, but now, researchers think they may have found the culprit.

The Presidents’ Bible is now published and released to the public. The Presidents’ Bible was set for release before the 2016 United States Presidential election since the Bible has become a key topic of discussion by some of the presidential candidates. The Presidents’ Bible is a deluxe, full-color, collector’s red letter edition, honoring the presidents of the United States who took a stand for Jesus Christ, Christianity and the Holy Bible.

I have a friend who is a gifted worship leader, a loving husband and an affectionate father. He’s funny, smart, passionate about his faith and wholeheartedly committed to his church. People who know him say he’s a model Christian.

Cleveland, Tenn.–During the first day in session of the Church of God International Executive Council, the body elected Rev. Barry A. Clardy to serve as the 18th member of the Council of Eighteen.

The industry — the world — needs films that transcend the human experience and writers that are filled with truth, goodness and beauty. Act One is searching for a screenwriter who’s work meets those criteria. It is the reason they started the competition.

In less than six weeks, the faithful will have a chance to discuss some of the same issues that have made headlines for months. Along with hundreds of others, they will gather in Charlotte, N.C., for the 23rd annual National Conference on Christian Apologetics from Southern Evangelical Seminary (SES, www.ses.edu).

The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) has announced it will move the ACC championship football game to Orlando, Florida. The game was originally scheduled to be hosted in Charlotte, North Carolina, but the ACC moved the game out of Charlotte in protest over passage of North Carolina’s House Bill 2. The law says that while businesses can do what they want, the government cannot punish businesses for having showers, locker rooms, and bathrooms designated for men only and women only.

Nearly 2,000 years ago, St. Thomas started a church in Erbil which is in modern day Iraq. Erbil is located about 55 miles east of Mosul and has a permanent population of about 1.5 million. Erbil is also the capital and largest city of the Kurdistan region of Iraq, a city that dates back to 6000 BC.