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GAYLORD, Mich. – In northern Michigan, the winters are bitter cold and snow often covers the ground for months. But North American Mission Board (NAMB) missionary Allen Ballard doesn’t let that stop him from sharing Christ with his neighbors. He’s even come up with a creative way to reach others – by using a snow blower.

The former Arkansas Baptist pastor says blowing snow off people’s driveways is an effective way to minister to the elderly and those who cannot pay for the task themselves.

Ballard has served as pastor of a multi-campus church in northern Michigan since 2009.

Pigeon River Baptist Church, which is located in Vanderbilt, MI, is a traditional church that holds services on Sunday morn-ings while the Connection, a mission church, meets on Sunday afternoons in Gaylord.

Ballard’s funding comes from NAMB, the Baptist State Convention of Michigan (BSCM),

Pines Baptist Association in Grayling, MI, and private sources. Ministry in in North Michi-gan is different than in Arkan-sas. “A large c h u r c h i n North Michi-gan is one that has about 100 people in it,”

said Ballard. People usually move to North Michigan to

escape the “hustle and bustle” of the larger cities or because they are “trying to get away” from life’s problems, he explained.

Because of the latter, those people are often receptive to the gospel message. “In the South, people often go to church because it’s the right thing to do,” said Ballard. “But in the North, people go to church because there’s something wrong in their life and they need to get it fixed.”

There’s a huge need for evangelistic work in the area. Ballard said statistics indicate about 8 percent of the area’s population attend church.

Bobby Gilstrap, who serves as BSCM executive director, noted the need for planting churches in the pioneer area.

“When you realize that there are more lost people in Michigan than 42 other states have in total population, you can easily see the

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Contents

Bobby’s Bits Winter Pastors’ Retreat Team Announces VISION Sessions New Strategic Role for DoM’s MI Girls Missions Retreat 2011 State VBS Institutes E-Rallies Awakening 2011 State Evangelism Conference Tentmakers Today Reflections! Impact Your World Pulpit Exchange Day Vision-Portrait of a Leader

Ballard grows Michigan church ‘Snow blower’ for Christ Lisa Watson Arkansas Baptist News

March 2011 • Vol. 55 No. 3

THE BAPTIST BEACON Official Publication of the Baptist State Convention

of Michigan

Affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention

Dr. Robert E. Gilstrap Jr., Editor

bgilstrap@bscm.org

Printed Monthly Subscription: Free to all members of Southern Baptist churches in Michigan. Others: $2.50 a year in advance. Advertising: Rates and conditions supplied upon request. Change of Address: Send old label with new address to the editor.

POSTMASTER: Send form 3579 to

The Baptist Beacon 8420 Runyan Lake Road Fenton, Michigan 48430

(810) 714-1907 Fax: (810) 714-1955

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The FOUR F’s There are FOUR “F’s” that we try to remember to help us effectively resource the churches of our convention. They are:

Fast Flexible Focused, and Friendly

We want to respond Fast to specific needs. When there is a request for resourcing, we want to respond within hours if possible. We trust and empower our leadership to make decisions so they can respond quickly.

Our convention is striving to be Flexible, responding to opportunities and needs. We have very few dates on our calendar that are not connected directly to the vision needs of our churches and associations.

We strive to be Focused by being priority-based. We realize the convention is an extra-Biblical organization that needs to exist for the primary purpose of assisting the local church. We are exploring ways to organize ourselves around priorities and not programs.

Finally, we seek to work with our churches in a Friendly manner so they know we are a “great place for resources.” We want to collaborate with our 15 associations to be the first choice of our churches for resources. We want our churches to know that we are ready and able to provide assistance and resourcing at the point of need and in a timely fashion.

One way to find many resources is through our www.MichiganBaptists.org website, which includes our web-training portal and resource blog.

Thank you for allowing us to partner with you to expand the Kingdom of God!

Bobby's Bits

Winter Pastors’ Retreat Bob Wood Church Growth Ministry Leader Pastors from all over Michigan (the UP to Monroe to southwest Michigan) were encouraged and inspired at the Winter Pastors’ Retreat. The Pastors’ Retreat was February 14-16 at Bambi Lake Retreat and Conference Center. Our own Michigan pastors brought messages of challenge and encouragement. Bob Carpenter, pastor of Cedar Street Church, spoke about the implications of the church belonging to Jesus. Kevin Hester, pastor of the Sanctuary Church, taught on living a gossip free life. Wayne Parker, pastor of Merriman Road Baptist Church, taught on creationism in discipleship. Tent-making ministry was one focus of the retreat. George Fountain, BSCM bi-vocational ministry consultant, spoke on the importance of tent-making

pastors. Greg Bynam and Jimi Staton, SBC pastors from the Ft. Wayne area of Indiana, spoke about wearing two hats in ministry as well as pastors dealing with fear. The retreat was also a time for fellowship and personal refreshment. One highlight was the annual “boot hockey” match between northern Michigan ministers and southern Michigan ministers for the Lord Bambi cup. The Winter Pastors’ Retreat is sponsored by the Michigan Pastors’ Conference, an organization of Michigan Southern Baptist Pastors. Plan now to attend the Pastors’ Conference on October 24-25 in Marquette, immediately before the Annual State Convention Meeting.

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Team Announces VISION Sessions By Staff FENTON – State Convention President, Pastor Roscoe Belton, appointed a System and Structure Team in January’s convention Executive Board meeting. The team met for the first time to begin their work on Tuesday, March 1, 2011. One of their first actions was to determine an appropriate name for their team that would be descriptive of their task. The consensus was to call the group the Forward Focus Team. After additional discussion, the team also decided to host five regional VISION SESSIONS across the state for pastors and leaders to share their vision for the future of our convention. Specific meeting locations have yet to be secured, but the general areas where they would like to meet are Kalamazoo, Midland, Mackinac Bridge, Detroit Metro North and Detroit Metro South. If interested in hosting one of these Vision Sessions, contact the convention offices. Lead State Missionary (Executive Director), Bobby Gilstrap said, “It will be exciting to hear what God is doing throughout our state as we meet with pastors and leaders. We realize there are things we need to do better and we hope to hear some great solutions of how we can improve from across the state.” Gilstrap continued, “Ultimately, my personal prayer is that we hear from God’s people as we hear from God so we can begin the journey of resourcing the vision of our churches more effectively.” The discussions at the Vision Sessions will be guided by one of the Forward Focus Team members who will be available with Gilstrap to hear from state leaders.

New Strategic Role for DoM’s Jim Marcus Director of Missions Genesee Baptist Association As many of you have heard, the North American Mission Board (NAMB) is in the process of chang-ing the assignment that will be expected of jointly funded DoMs. This applies to all NAMB missionar-ies throughout the country who serve as DoMs and are jointly funded by NAMB, the state convention and the local association. This new assignment will begin on January 1, 2012, and with it comes a name change for those currently funded by NAMB as DoMs – the new name matches the primary expectations for the Church Planting Catalysts are:

Mobilize existing churches to engage in evangelistic church planting

Encourage churches to engage in evangelis-tic activity

Encourage and cultivate pastor/leader skill set among pastors in the association

Personal involvement in planting a church or be a member of a church plant (optional)

At a recent meeting in Atlanta, this new “job de-scription” was handed out, but it is still in its devel-opmental stage – we have the primary expecta-tions by NAMB, but we have no details as to what specifically will be expected of those currently serv-ing as DoMs.

For example, we don’t know how much of our time will need to be given to church planting activities, nor what will be considered as church planting activities. Please continue to be in prayer for Dr. Kevin Ezell, the president of NAMB, that God will give him strength and wisdom to lead NAMB through the changes he has been instructed to make. Also, be in prayer for our own state convention – the BSCM – that we will know how to restructure due to financial limitations and changes being made by NAMB. Be in prayer for the leaders of the GBA that we will know what God would have us to do in response to NAMB mandated changes and BSCM structural changes which may be recommended. Finally, pray that I will know what God wants me to do in view of all of the changes that will be taking place in the next couple years. I will continue to keep you informed of the changes NAMB makes as they develop. There is no word as to when we will receive more detailed job expecta-tions from NAMB, but these are their primary expectations for those currently serving as NAMB supported DoMs/Associational Missionaries.

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“But now thus says the Lord, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have

redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine.” Isaiah 43:1 Don’t you love those words “you are Mine?” Michigan girls, God has redeemed and called you by name. In the book of Isaiah God says to you, “You are Mine.” “Mine.” “You are My girl.” Oakland Woods Baptist Church in Clarkston will serve as the host church for the MI Girls Missions Retreats — an overnight retreat for teenage girls and a one-day retreat for girls in grades 1-6. The MI Girls Missions Retreats brings girls and their leaders from all over the state for an overnight or day filled with music and worship, missionary stories, mission projects, crafts, games, food, fellowship and more. Go to http://bscm.org/#/mission-involvement/conferences to download promotional and registration information or contact Cindy Bradley @ 810-714-1907 or email cindy@bscm.org.

An Overnight  Retreat for Girls in 

Grades 7-12 March 18-19 

Oakland Woods Baptist Church, Clarkston, MI Cost:  $25  

(includes Friday night pizza, Saturday  

continental breakfast and Saturday lunch) 

Event begins at 7:00 pm Friday and concludes by 

3:00 pm Saturday. 

A Day Retreat for Girls in Grades 1-6 

March 19 Oakland Woods Baptist Church, Clarkston, MI Cost:  $15 

(includes lunch) Event begins at 10:00 am and concludes  

by 3:00 pm. 

This event is sponsored by the Missions Ministries/WMU/Women’s Ministries Department of the Baptist State Convention of Michigan and is provided through gifts to the Cooperative Program.

Vacation Bible School Institute #1, April 2 First Baptist Church of Portage

1133 East Centre Avenue, Portage Call 810-714-1907 to register by March 18.

Vacation Bible School Institute #2, April 9

Merriman Road Baptist Church 2055 Merriman Road, Garden City

Call 810-714-1907 to register by March 25.

Vacation Bible School Institute #3, May 7 (Note the date change.)

Bambi Lake Retreat & Conference Center Old Highway 76, Roscommon

Call 989-275-5844 to register by April 22. Friday Night reservations may be made at Bambi Lake for an extra $20 per person.

2011 State 2011 State 2011 State VBS Institutes

VBS InstitutesVBS Institutes

Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Cost is $5.00 (lunch included) Say “Yes” t

o VBS!

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The BAPTIST BEACON and the Great Commission Ministries of the

Baptist State Convention of Michigan are provided from the gifts of our

churches through the Cooperative Program.

E-Rallies Awakening Ed Emmerling Pastor of Westside Church, Flushing This year’s Youth E-Rally was different than ever before in many great ways. One way is that there were actually two rallies instead of just one. Like in the past years we had a rally at the location of the state-wide Evangelism Conference at Merriman Road Baptist Church, but this year, at the request of some of our churches, we also helped to resource a rally an hour and a half away in Flint. Monday evening over 100 people were blessed by the Quenched, the youth praise band from Lakeside Community Church, as they led them in worship with such pure hearts. They were also challenged by evangelist Braxton Hunter about things we should and should not be afraid of. As a result of this rally 7 young people gave their lives to Christ and 15 others rededicated their lives to Christ. Praise the Lord for He is good! Then on Tuesday night we held a similar rally at the New Haven Field House in the Flint area. That night over 200 people were led in worship by Dave Collins and the New Haven worship band and once again challenged by Braxton Hunter in the Word of God. As a result of our time worshiping together 15 students gave their lives to Christ and 20 others rededicated their lives to Christ. Wow, what an AWESOME God we serve! I know that 4 students from my church gave their lives to Christ and our church is so excited to see what else God is going to do through the work He started there that night. We are already looking forward to what God is going to do through these events next year and are looking for other associations that we can

partner with to do events like this right in their area. So if you are interested in helping to host a youth evangelism event please call our state office and talk to Diane so we can get started on bringing Awakening to your area.

E-Rally Awakenings at New Haven Field House, Swartz Creek. Photos by Ed Emmerling

E-Rally Awakenings at Merriman Road Baptist Church, Garden City.

Michigan Baptist Resources Sign up for our E-Newsletter at www.MichiganBaptists.org

2011 State Evangelism Conference Gary MacManamy State Missionary / Evangelism Team Leader The 2011 State Evangelism Conference, hosted in two locations, was the best attended conference in a number of years with well over 500 people in attendance. Most of the sessions were hosted by Merriman Road Baptist Church in Garden City and one session in Flint for the youth. The Women in Evangelism track began Sun-day evening with over 70 in attendance. The Youth track had over 100 in attendance in Garden City while they had over 200 in attendance in Flint. Twenty two youth trusted Christ in their sessions with 35 rededications to Him. The speakers were incredibly used of God in every session. A great prayer leader, Chris Schofield, began each session with a time of explanation of a prayer element that makes all the difference and then time was given to all to lift that prayer up as the sessions began. Evangelists Braxton Hunter and Larry Wright excelled. Pastors

James Gailliard, Jim Chappell, Art W e r r y , D a v i d Washington Jr., and Jimmy Jones continued God’s pace in challenge along with Jimmy Kinnaird of NAMB. Tracy Jones and Danielle Rieker set the tone for all as they spoke in the opening session of the Women’s Track Sunday evening and also shared in breakouts and testimonies in the main sessions. God stirred the folk in a seldom seen way. Be sure to pray God’s blessings upon Merriman Road Baptist Church for its incredible service to the Lord. Also upon those that gave leadership to the various tracks: Cindy Parker, Julie Scheving and Ed Emmerling. The messages will be available on the BSCM website and on CDs that can be ordered by calling the office.

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Volume 22

Welcome to… “Tentmakers Today”

Michigan Baptist Resources Sign up for our E-Newsletter at

www.MichiganBaptists.org 7

During the month of January my wife and I enjoyed visiting two of our BSCM churches that are both served by Tentmakers Today or Bi-vocational Ministers. That is, these men are dually-employed and dually-funded…they work secular jobs in addition to pastoring congregations.

The first church would still be considered a church plant. This congregation is currently meeting in a beautiful school building and faces the weekly challenge of setting up rooms for worship, Bible study, etc. This would include setting up and taking down Audio Equipment, Video Equipment, a computer, a projector, pulpit furniture, etc. The folks were very welcoming, the worship leaders did a great job and the sermon was a “Ten”. There were a good number of visitors. It seems the congregation was seeing “results” of their recent outreach efforts. They had gone to the community and the community was coming to them. Gale and I had a delightful experience.

The second church would be considered an older and established church. This congregation is meeting in a beautiful new building and enjoys the comforts of “occupying” their own building each week. This church has been long established at their location but having outgrown their previous building they constructed new facilities behind their original facility. The new building is beautiful and spacious, able to accommodate up to five hundred people for worship. In addition to the worship facility is a beautiful “Family Life Center”. In addition, there is plenty of space for the little people assuring the families of a secure and pleasant learning environment for their children. Gale and I had a delightful experience.

Both of these congregations are served by Tentmakers Today. Neither of these two congregations are “part time” churches nor do they have “part time” ministers. The “new” congregation is served by a dually funded minister who also works as a school teacher. Matt is a young man serving in his first pastorate and doing

a great job of penetrating their surroundings. The “older and established” church is also served

by a dually funded minister who also owns his own business. This is not his first pastorate. He has been in the ministry for approximately thirty years. He remains serving as a Tentmaker Today. Consequently this church was able to build new facilities as we described. Larry continues to serve as a “dually-funded minister, serving the church as pastor and managing his own business.

While the two congregations have entirely different worship settings, one being a new “church plant” the other being an “older and established” church, both churches are advancing the kingdom of God in their respective communities.

Both men have responded to the call of God into bi-vocational Ministry. As a result God is working through Matt in a “Church Plant” and God is working through Larry in advancing an older and established church to even bigger ministry opportunities.

Whoever said, Bi-vocational Ministry was short-term? I am convinced Michigan will be reached by “Long Term” Tentmakers Today. May God call them out of our churches and into the work of His Kingdom, invading their communities, preaching the gospel, seeing people come to Christ, lives being changed, and His Kingdom being populated…thank God for these Tentmakers Today.

Gratefully and Sincerely His,

George George B. A. Fountain Consultant, Bi-vocational Ministries 2895 Sharon Drive Monroe, MI 48162 tentmaker@charter.net 734 243-0236 (Home) 734 652-0022 (Cell)

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Reflections! is the theme of the 2011 Women’s Missions Celebration & 53rd WMU Annual Meeting to be held April 15-16 at Friendship Baptist Church in Lincoln Park. Nawal Picard & Paula Hemphill will be the featured speakers. Paula serves as the Women’s Missional Strat-egist for the International Board. Nawal is an MSC Mis-sionary with the North American Mission Board and serves as the Arab Women’s Consultant for the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio. Both ladies come ready to share from a wealth of experiences with God, both in the states and overseas. The event begins at 6:00 pm on Friday & concludes by 4:00 pm on Saturday. The Friday evening session will conclude with a Prayer Tea for Muslim Women. Cost for the two-day event is $25 & includes the Prayer Tea on Friday evening & Saturday lunch. A promotional flyer & registration information may be downloaded at http://bscm.org/#/mission-involvement/conferences. Contact Cindy Bradley at cindy@bscm.org or 810-714-1907 for more information.

This event is sponsored by the BSCM Missions Ministries/WMU/Women’s Ministries Department and is provided through gifts to the Cooperative Program.

Impact Your World A Conference for Pastors and Mission Leaders Believers will universally agree that the biblical mandate of Acts 1:8 eternally rests upon the church, not a mission agency or board. But questions remain: How does a church pragmatically live out this command? How can a church "connect" with overseas mission opportunities in effective and powerful ministry? Can a church of 100 or less members effectively engage in international missions? Can a church be used to change a nation? At the Impact Your World Conference, you will: Receive training and engage in dialogue to answer the questions above, and many more. Hear from pastors whose churches have effectively, personally and practically engaged in international

missions. Make connections with missionaries. Receive tools to vision cast, equip our church for missions and develop the strategy that fits your church,

regardless of size. Come join scores of other pastors/lay leaders in a dialogue that has already proven to be life-changing! Registration information to come.

May 2-4, 2011 Cedar Street Baptist Church

1705 Cedar St. Holt, MI 48842

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GARDEN CITY & INKSTER, MI - The Southern Baptist Convention has set aside the second Sunday in January as Race Relations Day in the churches across the land. On January 28, a national holiday is set aside in remembrance of Martin Luther King, Jr. and February is Black History Month in recognition of the great achievements. On Sunday, January 16, 2011 two congregations came together to celebrate their love for one another in a pulpit exchange day between Middlebelt Baptist Church and Merriman Road Baptist Church. This is the fourteenth year for such fellowship. When asked the reason for this occasion, Wayne Parker, pastor of Merriman Road Baptist Church in Garden City, MI said, “It is a way to acknowledge that in the Kingdom there are many different cultures and culturally we express our worship

differently. Middlebelt is a sister church two miles down the road from Merri-man Road. The whole w o r s h i p service is transported from one

church to the other – this includes the pastors, choirs and praise teams. So we lead the congrega-tion in “our” worship service so the congregation ex-periences what worship would be like at their church and vice versa.” The reasons we do that are (1) work at breaking down racial barriers and expose in our own hearts what we may dismiss is there. We are not aware of our own racism is because we are not embracing ourselves or living in a different culture. (2) Make awareness in our own hearts. As pastors, it is our responsibility to be the doctor

of your soul and we have to diagnose what the illness is in our soul (sin). If we simply stay in our own comfort zones, we will not be aware that we have that sin lurking in our own hearts. Exhibit and go over and say, “We love you.” And they come and say, “We love you.” But by e x p e r i -e n c i n g the day that way, there is more opportunity to express latent sin in our own lives.” Parker’s sermon to the Middlebelt Baptist congregation was “Preaching to the Choir.” He said their church brought their choir as part of the worship service, but what does that phrase mean? Revelations 7: We should already be living that message. WE ARE THAT CHOIR! Parker went on to say, “in regard to racism, it is our responsibility before God to be loved as we have been loved. Practically, how do we do that – by loving people you don’t really love. Learn how to love one another.” Parker and his congregation try to put that love into real action. In addition to the Pulpit Exchange Day, in August the two churches will have a joint service with a combination of the choirs and other worship events. They also play each other in sporting events. Parker said, “We know each other.” Levi Parish – Interim Associational Missionary for Greater Detroit Baptist Association attended the pulpit exchange day and said, “What a wonderful day!” He was encouraged by the way each congregation received and encouraged one another as they fellowshipped together.

Pulpit Exchange Day Mary Lou Hall Member of Roscommon Baptist Church

“From every mountainside, let freedom ring. When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every

village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, ‘Free at last! Free at last! Thanks God Almighty, we

are free at last!’” Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have a Dream, 1963.

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Vision We need to have a vision of lost souls By Mary Lou Hall

Jesus’ lens captured everyone – exhaust-ed and tired, Matthew 9:36 tells us that, “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.”

Jesus went where others wouldn’t – the religious leaders, the hated tax collector, the prostitute, the people with communicable diseases and the demon possessed. What is your lens capturing? Is the angle wide enough to include the lost souls in Michigan? Do you just point and click your camera? Do you even know how to take a good picture? Is God capturing a portrait of you with a desire to win the lost souls?

The 1950s have come and gone. We are in a new century, a new millennium and under new leadership and certainly with technology beyond what we could have imagined. However, the man in the portrait, the late Dr. Fred Hubbs, Sr., left us with a few examples to follow as told by his son, Fred Hubbs, Jr. Of his father, Hubbs relates he was:

1. A servant of God - Dad spent every last ounce of energy he had in his body every day toward his service. I know because I saw him collapse with exhaustion at the end of each long day.

2. An administrator and facilitator of God’s work but he thought of himself simply as a Baptist preacher There were times of financial difficulties that were so dire that the work might cease but God provided from unexpected sources all that was required.

3. A leader who kept his office out among the people 4. A communicator who went to the cities and villages, fearing nothing - We were in a different

church from one end of the state to the other almost every night when it was within driving distance, and if it took longer we left on Friday and returned Sunday night.

What does God see in the lens of his camera?   It  is estimated that over eight million people  are lost  in Michigan.  What will it take to lead them to Christ?    

Portrait of a Leader Click!

Standing in front of a portrait of Dr. Fred Hubbs, Sr., are men who in 2011 are leaders, each reaching out for Christ in their different areas of influence. They are from L-R Dr. Bobby Gilstrap, current BSCM Executive Director/Lead Missionary; Rev. Fred Hubbs, Jr., Minister of Music, Bethel Church, Niles, MI and Rev. Jimmy Jones, BSCM Men’s Ministry Consultant, Pastor of Trenton Baptist Church and past President of the BSCM. The late Dr. Fred Hubbs, Sr., the man in the portrait, was a pioneer of Southern Baptist work in Michigan in the early 1950s. When the State Convention was constituted in 1957, Hubbs, Sr. was elected to serve as its first Executive Director. He served until 1970 “when he felt God needed a new man to continue the work,” according to his son, Hubbs, Jr.

Continued on page 12

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“Snow blower” for Christ continued from page 1

need for starting new churches,” he said. “Churches are rapidly losing ground in Michigan. There is no single county in Michigan where there have been more people reborn (faith in Christ) than were born in the hospitals.

“We will never correct that problem if we aren’t aggressively starting new churches.”
 


Gilstrap said the fact that Ballard’s church is growing is a testament in itself.

“We were able to see eight people baptized within the last eight months,” Ballard said. “That’s just unheard of in this area.”

Ballard’s vision is to start four new churches in the area by 2015. Plans are already un-derway to begin a Bible study in a nearby town that may become a church.

To reach people, Ballard said the church has to be creative in ministry opportunities. The church provides a ministry, called SAFE (Setting Addicts Free Eternally), to people with addictions. The ministry helps people with all addictions because it addresses “man’s real problem – a sinful nature,” noted Ballard.

This ministry has been especially needed be-cause of the recent construction of Indian casi-nos in the area. But Ballard is trusting God in this situation.

“When God put us in this place, He already knew a casino would be there. And we will be there to help people, whether the casino is there or not,” he said.

Ballard’s wife, Jean, is developing a business plan to launch a resale shop in the community in hopes of providing funding for the church.

The Connection Church’s service is also broadcast online, providing a way to remain connected to the body for those who were ac-tive in the church but had to move.

“We do have a physical touch with the people who are connected through the Internet,” said Ballard, explaining that just a few weeks ago, a young man, who had been a part of the church but moved away for work, returned to the church to be baptized. This young man works at a facility for disabled adults and broadcasts

the services live to all the residents on Sun-days.

“Allen is a passionate church planter who is seeking innovative ways to build relational bridges to lost persons around him,” said Gil-strap.

A native of Flint, Mich., Ballard relocated to Arkansas for work in the mid-80s when his father retired from General Mo-tors. At age 26, he sur-rendered to ministry, first serving part time as a chaplain and youth pas-tor in Batesville. He served for six years on the staff of Gassville Baptist Church, Gas-sville, as a full-time youth pastor. While there, he went on a short-term mission trip to South Dakota and got his

first taste of pioneer missions. “God broke my heart watching what the pastor there was going through to start a church,” he said.

In the meantime, Ballard served first as pas-tor of First Southern Baptist Church, Bearden, and then Pearcy Baptist Church, Pearcy.

Through it all, Ballard said God was at work, planting in his heart the desire to be a church planter.

In 2009, his desire became a reality, when he, along with his wife and daughter, moved to northern Michigan.

Ballard is thankful for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions, which helps support his ministry, noting, “Without giving through the Annie Armstrong Offering and state missions offerings, both in Arkansas and Michigan, we would not even be able to be a viable option” to revitalize and plant churches in northern Michigan.

Ballard is among the almost 5,000 missionar-ies in the United States, Canada and their terri-tories supported by the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. The Week of Prayer for North American Missions is March 6-13. This year’s theme is “Start Here.” See related story below.

To learn more about praying for and/or ministering with Ballard in northern Michigan, go to http://www.theconnectionsbc.com. Contact Lisa Watson at lisa@arkansasbaptist.org.

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Vision continued from page 10

5. A believer that the center for God’s work should be in the heart of the need - Dad be-lieved the ‘center’ for God’s work (Southern Baptists) should be in the heart of the need - in the inner city of Detroit in among those who were so lost and hurting. It was not the safe place to be but the place where the most im-pact could be achieved. Dad was convinced that we needed to be seen where others feared to tread. Like an Old Testament prophet set-ting out to do a thing or say an unpopular thing to those who didn’t want it. He went anyway because that was what God told him he was to do.

6. An inspiration to others in word and in deeds leading by example

7. A story teller – along with being mischie-vous and fun to be around

8. A singer of Gospel music 9. Humble – The lodge at Bambi Lake is named

after Dad. That was something that he felt em-barrassed by. He said, “Why do men feel the need to put a man’s name on something God did?” He knew they just wanted to honor him but he knew Bambi Lake was the result of the sacrifice of so many preachers and the people God—hundreds of believers giving of their en-ergies and meager incomes to build a work here and above all, the miracles of God’s own hand reaching down from heaven to do great things with those willing to love Him enough. He did not want his name to be placed upon something God built.

Hubbs was a visionary in his day. Executive Director Gilstrap is a visionary. Faith does not look back to what might have been. Gilstrap takes the State Convention into this generation of Southern Baptists in Michigan with all of the faith, vision, strength and determination as did Fred Hubbs, Sr. The year 2011 has many challenges but God says, “Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abun-dantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the

church by Christ Jesus to all genera-tions, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV) If you’re reading this, God is not finished with your portrait. There are a few more things He needs to see through the lens of His camera. Go where God calls you to. Fred Hubbs, Jr. said of his father, “Dad would be proud if anything God did with him back then and remembered today could inspire new servants. Be sure our thoughts are of glorifying God for it is He who works great things and we who are blessed by being a part of what He does.” Together with Christ as our head, thankful for our former Executive Directors: Dr. Fred Hubbs, Sr., Dr. Robert Wilson and Dr. Michael Collins and with vision from our current State Convention lead-ers, let us charge forward in faith believing that God will do “exceedingly abundant” things in our cities and villages in our great State of Michigan. To Him be the glory! The challenge is to be the best subject you can in the photographic portrait the Lord is clicking of you. How can we reach the lost? – Go into the cit-ies and villages; communicate the gospel however you can: Twitter, Facebook, blog, text message, Email if you must, but communicate the gospel.

  “We must face the reality that things are different now.  We have too many churches that are saying, ‘God, I remember when’ rather than, ‘God, how can we reach them?’” 

Bobby Gilstrap Baptist Press, 11/23/10

Mich. Elects DOM as executive director

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