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Personal Computersand the Pastoral

MinistryBy Randy Corn

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f t t rive in acomputerwe-=----phone call, withdraw cash from an au-tomatic teller or drive a recently-manufactured car, you use compu-ters. They're all around us, and they'reshowing up ín increasing numbers inchurch offices, The potential of thesethinking machines is only limited bythe imagination of their users.

Gettîna Storted

Now wait a minute! I can almosthear someone saying, "All this stuffmight be great for a pastor who wasborn speaking computer-ese, but I'mnot technically minded. I wouldn'teven know where to begin." You'reoff to a good start by reading thisarticle.

Let me assure you that I'm no com-puter whiz, but as a pastor I've foundmy PC (personal computer) to be atime saver. In fact, I fondly refer to it asthe secretary the church will neverhire. Let me share some of the dis-coveries made along the road to com-puter literacy.

What lt Can Do t'or You

Like most ministers I know, I'm nota world-class typist. Somehow I madeit through Typing I in high school, butthe experience did little for my self-confidence or my grade point average.The advantages of a word processorover a typewriter are roughly equival-ent to the advantages of aBoeingT4Tover a Fokker Triplane. The end pro-duct is the same, but the trip is quitedifferent. A word processor allows youto type with no thought of when to re-turn; it automatically does that foryou. Once the information displays onthe screen you can easily correct it.

For some time now there have beensoftware programs that check spelling.More recent programs check gram-mar. The cunent "Cadillac" of wordprocessing programs contains athesaurus, a word counting function, aspelling and grammar checker, and agrade level tester! All this can aid inproducing letter-perfect sermons, bul-Ietins, newsletters and correspond-ence. You can even produce thatscourge of the computer age, the formletter.

Another significant way the compu-ter can aid the pastor is in informationmanagement.

When dealing with numbers anelectronic spreadsheet can be helpful.This can be true of both income andexpenditures. It's a fairly easy matterto record expenses in the computerform and allow it to figure where youare in terms of your church budget.The teasurer can use the spreadsheetto record giving, and at the press of a

button have an annual giving reportgenerated.

Most spreadsheets generate graphsfrom the numbers supplied. Thesecharts can help you visualize where allthe tithes and offerings went.

A computer spreadsheet allows youto play endless "what if" games withbudget items. Suppose you choke onyour morning cofiee after reading thatthe local power company will raisetheir rates t2 percent next month.From records already stored, you canproject what that means in terms ofweekly giving.

"But, hey," you say, "l can easily dothat with a calculator and a scratchpad." Yep, but add three or four other

variables to the equation and you'llhave to put new batteries in that calcu-lator. Sure, you can figure out allthose things. The computer simplydoes them faster and without enor.

When dealing with non-numericinformation you can be aided by acomputer software program called adatabase. It's exactly what the nameinfers, a way of storing and retrievingdata or information.

Most ministers have filing cabinets intheir offices to file items that may beneeded or helpful in the future. Butlet's face it, most preachers have sorryfiling systems-if we have one at all.

A database can allow you to file allyour articles by a number code ratherthan by an alphabetical scheme. Thisresults in less misfiling of articles andallows you to cross reference all itemsby subject, title, author, scripturepassages cited, illustrations andpublication. Any busy pastor can seehow this increases the effectiveness ofhis files.

The PC allows you to index allthosebooks of sermons the averagepreacher owns. After entering theinformation, simply ask the computerto scan all the subject entries to findeverything you have on discipleship,soul winning or whatever. The samecan be done with scripture passages orillustrations. Your people will thinkyou have the memory of an elephant!

Another likely application for data-base would be to neatly file on disks allthose records we generate in theaverage church. Our church has acomputerized membership roll that al-lows us to generate mailing labels in asnap. One of the tasks we just addedto our Sunday School superintend-ent's job is to enter attendance recordsinto the computer.

We keep a computer record of allvisitors and prospects. I can ask thecomputer to sort these by zip code tohelp in visitation. And speaking of vis-itation, a database can also be set upto record your pastoral calls so thatyou spread yourself around moreevenly, or at least know where theclumps are.

Oh, did you know that a computercan produce personalized cards, notepads and even banners? I have a pas-tor friend who was not impressed at allby pastoral PC's until he saw one pro-duce a personalized birthday card. Itwas like a light bulb flicked on over his

head. Folks are impressed by this sortof thing. Why not use it to your advan-tage in the ministry?

Chrrrch So/tLpare

We've d¡scussed the basics of com-puter capabilities. They are word pro-cessing, databases and spreadsheets.Now comes the question of custom-izing all these to church needs orchurch software. These programs aredesigned to answer the most commonquestions pastors and parishioners askabout their church. Most of them inte-grate all three areas of computer cap-ability. While they can be an effectivemanagement tool, there are draw-backs.

First, most of the best programs aredesigned for large churches, and mineis hardly large. Second, almost all ofthem are designed for IBM or IBM-compatible machines. This is great ifyou are a believer in Big Blue, but Ihappen to be a proud Mackintoshowner.

This introduces one of the codes ofcomputerdom, "Software determineshardware." In other words, find thetask you want performed, the programto achieve it, and then buy the ma-chine to run it. I learned this lawthrough expensive experience.

Third, most integrated packages arepretty well described in the old adage,"A Jack of all trades and a master ofnone." Why not buy a really gooddatabase that you customize to yourown needs? The same is hue of theother two areas. By the way, this is us-ually a more economical route as well.

The Doun Side

Obviously, I'm sold on the pastoraluse of personal computers. It's alsoobvious that I'm in the minority. Let'sconsider some of the objections.

About a year ago I was invited totalk to a homiletics class at Free WillBaptist Bible College about compu-ters. After I shared with the class whatI've done we had a question and an-swer time. One of our exchanges wasabout cost. Some students, along withmost pastors I know, simply see com-puters as too expensive. True, theyaren't cheap, but when you considerthe amount of work they can do, I be-lieve they're cost-effective.

Another factor to consider is that,just like with hand-held calculators or

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ContentsMarch 1987

2 Peßonal Computoß andPasto¡al Mlnlst¡yRandy Corn

4 Thc FIsh at Beeî 'n' Bl¡dDlckle Anderson

5 Erlefcase: Valley ol the SunJack Wllllams

6 Why I'm a MlsslonaryPatsy Gwartney

7 Good PalnJoy Simpklns

7 TheBudgetM. J. Prltchard

I Famlly Fun NlghtSandra Atwood

9 Uncle Joe-Meo, tho MastetDennls Carter

1 0 T he C h ¡lstl a n Bookstot'Ray Martin

11 Chu¡ch ln ActlonLouis Nettleton

13 F¡ee Wlil Bapt,st Newshont

15 What Do You Bld?Floyd Wolfenbarger

16 Currently

17 ThaDapedmentPages

24 Guldellneslor a New HymnalLeroy Cutler

25 Top ShellThomas Marberry

26 Oa Llttle LanesDonna Mayo

28 feen Scene

29 Espøclally For Young PrcachersDennis Wlggs

30 ßellglous Communlty Nøws

31 Hlghest ln HlstoryMelvin Worthington

Edltor-ln+hlel: Dr. Melvl n WorthlngtonEdltor: Jack WilllamsEdltorlal Assletant: Marilyn Pr¡tchardClrculatlon: Geneva Trotter

Volume XXXIV, No.3

CONTACT IUSPS ,30-660), pubtishodmonthly by the Natlonal Assoc¡atlon ol FreeWill Bailßts, Post Ofilce Box 1088, Nashvllle,Tennessae 37202. Addrøss all coftespon-donce and subscilptlons to thls address.Phono 615/361-1010. Subscrlptlon /,stes: 1

year, $9.00; church lam¡ly plan $7.50 potyoaï chutch bundle plan 58.00 per year.Second crass postag e pa¡d at N ashv¡ I le, Ten-nessee. Copyt¡ght pilv¡logøs, reserved o,1987 Membet ol tho Evdngellcal Press Asso-clatlon. POSrMASfER.' Send addrosschangesto CONTACT, P.O. Box 1088, Nash-v¡lle, Tennessoe 97202,tssM 0573-n96.

TheF¡sh

A TestimonyBy

DickieAnderson

had been saved on my trip to Georgia.Maybe he was my "fish."

After we went through the drive-inand got our food, I parked and askedthe man if he minded if I asked theblessing. After praying, I began witness-ing to him. When I asked him if hewould go to hell if he died, tears pud-dled in his eyes.

"l don't want to go to helll' he said."You don't have tol' I replied. "Jesus

loves a poor man just as much as Heloves a rich man. Do you mind if I showyou in my Bible how you can be savedand go to heaven?r'

Computer¡... (from page 3)

digital watches, prices are falling. AnApple II that sold for $2,500 five yearsago now costs $1,500 and has beensignificantly improved.

Simply put, today you get morecomputer for less money. That veryhuth, however, has stopped somefolks from buying. "lf the price hasdropped that much in five years,"they ponder, "perhaps it will drop an-other $1,000 in the next five years." Ifyou follow that line of reasoning, injust 10 years Apple should be payingfolks $500 to take machines off theirhands. Waiting for lower prices ortechnical improvements is a good wayto keep yourself from owning a com-puter. Go ahead and take the plunge.

Other students wondered if theycould master the use of the machine.Would they be able to get allthe goodout of it without a degree in computerscience? Admittedly, some machines

He agreed, so we looked at someverses together while I gave him theplan of salvation. Then I asked him topray. First I prayed, then I asked him topray the sinner's prayer.

Afterward, he had a few questions,which I tried to answer by showing himverses from the Bible. How thrilled I wasthat God gave me the privilege of lead-ing this man to Christ.

God taught me that although I sawrro decisions on the trip to Georgia, Hehad someone waiting for me back inNashville!

ABOU'| THE WRITER: Dickie Anderson is asophomore ot Free Will Baptist Bible College. agroduote ol Pioneer Chrislion Academy in Nosh-uille. ond a member ol New Hope Free Will Bop-t¡sf Church in Joelto¡t.

are more difficult to operate thanothers. Some instruction manuals forsoftware are only slightly more read-able than pig latín. But there are com-puters which are "user friendly." Likethe phrase implies, they are easy toget along with.

The biggest obstacle most studentssaw was how to get all the informationinto the computer in the first place.When you consider the mass of infor-mation. involved it can be discourag-ing. In my case, I've enlisted volunteeraid to help compile the material. Thatapproach, coupled with the fact thatyou aren't going to ty to get all of itdone before next Tuesday, makes itpossible. The time to begin is as earlyin your minishy as possible, and youcan't get any earlier than right now.

Why not ride the crest of the high-tech wave into the 1990's? 0ABOUT THE WRITER: Reuerend Randy Cornposlors Firs! Free Wtll Baptîst Church, Souon-noh, Georgia.

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group of men from Free WillBaptist Bible College drove to

Georgia last fall to preach in a numberof churches.

Although I'm not called to preach, I

felt impressed of the Lord to go withthem. It was great! I spoke in a churchSunday morning and evening; how-ever, I was disappointed when no oneresponded to the invitations. But theverse, "Knowing that your labor is notin vain in the Lord" kept runningthrough my mind.

On the bus, returning to Nashville, weshared our experiences. Several menhad seen people walk the aisles forJesus. This only made me all the moredepressed at my lack of fruit. After shar-ing the blessings, evergone settled downto rest for the long trip home.

Two days later, in chapel, we sharedour experiences with the entire studentbody. I testified too, even about my dis-appointment at having no decisions inmy services.

Soon after that, I left the campus oneafternoon, hungry, and decided to driveto the Beef 'n' Bird, a fast-food restau-rant. As I drove down Church Street,a traffic light stopped me. While I waitedfor it to turn green, a ragged old manapproached my window.

"Hey, you,' he said. "Think you couldcarry me to Beef 'n' Bird to get mesomething to eat?"

I'm not inclined to pick up strangers,but I noticed that he named the restau-rant he wanted me to take him to. Hedidn't say Wendy's, McDonald's or anyof a score of others. In spitÞ of my mis-givings, I unlocked my door and invitedhim in. I had the feeling that the Lordhad sent him to me. After all. no one

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ff,rå:J:J,",'ffiui*::,",.tyellow brick road's closed for repairs. It'sone detour after another until you arriveat Grandma's house only to discoverthat the wolf got there first. Few thingshappen the way the manual promises.

That's home missions. all work andno glamor. The glamor missionary'susually stationed in some exotic-sounding village far, far away. Peopledon't get excited about a missionary toNew Orleans or Los Angeles or NewYork. Why, my Uncle Harry lives there.

The home missionary hits the samenon-Christian resistance as the foreignmissionary. He knows it'll take a mira-cle to win the misled in San Francisco,the uninformed in Chicago or the towndrunk in Shreveport. Sin does the samedamage to men whether it's Africa orArizona.

Meet Howard and Patsy-missionaries to the Phoenix, Arizona,area. Someone set the Gwartney'sDecember commissioning service for aWednesday night in Nashville. Anythinggo wrong, you ask? Of course.

For starters, it rained all day andnight. Not a pretty rain, mind you, buta grey, depressing downpour. The kindthat routinely dogs the missionary's trail.In every missionary life, a lot of rainmust fall. Better to learn it now.

Then, Patsy's grandfather had majorsurgery the same day as the commis-

wCommission:

Valley of the Sun

sioning. And Patsy's dad, Home Mis-sions Director Roy Thomas, got foggedin at the Salt Lake City airport andmissed one of the most important daysin his daughter's life. But that's homemissions for you. Sometimes loved onesmiss those special moments.

I watched them that Wednesday-Patsy so serious, Howard introspectiveas the public commissioning drewnearer. I heard their two spunky daugh-ters (ages 5 and 7) bounce up anddown the office steps. Outside a coldrain fell. The fog didn't lift in Salt LakeCity. And somewhere, a physician'sknife cut.

But rain or shine, surgery orno, father or fog, the commissioningservice moved forward. That's typical.Ask any home missionary. They workwhen it's convenient and when it'sinconvenient. Better to learn that nowthan later in Arizona when friends standfour states and 1,500 miles distant.

I tracked Howard and Patsy to Wood-bine FWB Church, arriving 15 minutesearly. A smiling usher handed me atyped program as I stepped inside the600-seat auditorium. I wondered howmany months theyd labor in the Valleyof the Sun with no place to worship andno trained usher to distribute the bulle-tin. That's home missions-seldom whatpeople expect, often what they wish itwasnt.

Youd think the whole town wouldturn out to bid a missionary family Godspeed. Not so! There were plenty ofvacant seats. That's home missionswork-empty seats, few people and along, long road. Only the God-calledbetter try it.

Then the sen¡ice began.Music? Fittingly enough, the Booster

Band kicked things off and struggledthrough some Christmas carols. I askedmyself how long Howard would preachbefore he won a Booster Band in thePhoenix area. Would our people herepray l¡ke they ought? And givefaithfully?

Patsy attended junior high and highschoolin a Nashville suburb. Even backthen, God had His hand on her, grow-ing a home missionary just eight milesfrom the Free Will Baptist NationalOffices.

Some old songs, an offering, cor-sages for Patsy and the girls, a warmsermon, a commissioning prayer-andit was done. Ninety minutes. Done, didI say? Perhaps, it's just begun. Tomor-row, they load and leave for the greatAmerican West.

We'll read about them in newslettersnow. They'll write about the new con-verts, the hundreds of doors knocked,the building project, the heavy financialload-all part of the home missionarysaga.

Howard and Patsy will cry most oftheir tears alone. They'll do the coun-seling, the teaching, the witnessing. Butour prayers will open their doors, ourdollars pay their rent, our loveencourage them to stay when things gettough. That's home missions.

Oh, by the way, Howard andPatsy, about 5,000 of us are coming forSunday dinner on July 15, 1990. That'swhen the National Association meets inPhoenix.

You kids take the next 42 months totrain that usher and grow a BoosterBand. Here's our prayers, our love andour dollars. Invest them wisely. Andbuild us a Free Will Baptist Church ¡nMesa, Arizona. O

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By Patsy Gwartney hankful! That's what I am. I'mthankful to be a home mission-arv to Mesa. Arizona. As I look

back on my life, I realize that it was noaccident I became a missionary. Therewas a deliberate effort by my parents tobring me to this point in my life.

I was raised in a family involved inhome missions ever since I can remem-ber. When I was five, our family movedto Denver. Colorado, where we startedthe first Free Will Baptist church in thestate. Those happy, exciting years builtupon four main foundation stones inthe lives of my brother and me to equipus for full-time Christian service.

Salvation

The first stone was a personal rela-tionship with Jesus Christ. Our parentslived a consistent Christian life before

us. They never "got over" how the l¡rdsaved them and the joy He brought intotheir lives. They communicated this joyto us and gave us a hunger for salva-tion and for the things of God.

We spent many hours sitting aroundthe piano singing gospel songs. Theyloved the ministry and tried hard toinstilla love for the ministry and the laityof the church.

They never expressed bitterness orresentment toward the people of ourchurch. We were taught that being inthe ministry was a privilege. We werenot constantly reminded about the tarkside' of the ministry. We never felt finan-cially deprived or that we were missingout on life because Daddv was a

preacher.

Denomination

l'he second thing our parents tried toinstillwas a deep love for the Free WillBaptist denomination. Whenever a dis-

cussion arose about the faults andfailures of Free Will Baptists or when wewere disappointed in something a fel-low Free Will Baptist did, theyencouraged us to look beyond the situ-ation and keep our eyes on the LordJesus.

Yet, there was always a deep concernfor our denomination. We were taughtthat it was a privilege to attend a FreeWill Baptist church. We wanted to investour lives in accomplishing the Lord'swork through the Free Will BaPtistdenomination. We were taught a sense

of loyalty to this group. Theyd broughtus the gospel and we owed a great debt!

Sense of Humor

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A third quality that's been of great use

to me through the years was the culti-vation of a sense of humor. No matterhow bad things seemed, no matter howdark the situation, we always saw ourparents laugh and talk about the goodside of things. We learned to joke andtease each other.

Since I was a child, when thingswould be at their worst, I've been ableto reach into the resources that our par-ents gave us and see that God is in con-trol of everything. We learned to beflexible and to fit into any situation thatmight arise.

When I was a teenager, we movedto Nashville and began working for theNational Home Missions Department.We went with Daddy many times forservices in our Free Will Baptist

churches. We learned to love all differ-ent kinds of people and to keep a pleas-ant outlook on life.

Soul Winning

The most important stone our par-ents placed in our lives was that of soulwinning. We learned early in life to havea burden for lost people. We would prayfor lost relatives and friends who did notknow Jesus as Savior. As we grewolder, we were taught to share Jesuswith others everywhere we went.

We were taught to cultivate thetalents and abilities the l¡rd gave us, touse them in service for Him. Ourinterests were steered toward the thingsof God. We were told that the more aperson could learn about the Bible andthe good things of life, the more hecould use these things to win other peo-ple to the Lord.

As we anticipate establishing a self-supporting Free Will Baptist church inMesa, I thank God for my rich heritage.If discouragement, disappointment andtrouble come, I believe the foundationupon which our lives have been builtwill help me keep my eyes on the Lordand what He has in store for us.

I want my children to be raised withthe values and family closeness that weexperienced as children. I want them toknow that it's a blessed privilege to bea Christian, to be a preacher's kid andto be a home missionary. May God helpus impart these truths to the people ofMesa, Arizona.

ABOUT THE WRITER: Patsy (Mrs. Howord)Gworlneg and her husbond are Free Wíll Baptísthome missîonoríes to Meso, Arízono. Potsy r's thedoughter ol Roy Thomos. dírector ol the HomeMissions Deportmenl.

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L-By Joy Simpkins-:'

llurt feelings. Rejection. Losses,I I Overlooked. Unappreciated.Sound familiar? That's how the list ofemotional pain starts day after day.We don't care to be reminded thatsomething in this day will probablycause us great hurt.

We know the end result if we allowpain to fester inside and infect us. Wefind ourselves hating the world as theresident grouch-of-the-month. Wegripe; we complain; we resent; weplot how to get even.

Frequently we take our frushationsout on innocent bystanders whohappen to be in the wrong place at thewrong time. And have you evernoticed how contagious we are? Thatsweet family member, co-worker orassociate gets downright .nasty justafter we do. Grouchiness spreadsquickly.

Does pain have a good side?Believe it or not, emotional pain canbe good. Think about it. Why do wehurt? Because we can feel. Hurt can'tbe all bad if it shows us that we stillhave compassion and that we aren'thardened or calloused.

What do we do when we hurt? Welean on God. We realize, as Chris-tians, (even though it may take awhile) that God is the only one whocan heal our hurts. If we turned toGod immediately, we could save our-selves even further pain and disap-pointment.

That's a lesson hard to learn. Thinkback and recallthe times when you feltthe closest to God. It was probablywhen you felt the most defeated andrejected and in desperation turned itover to God. What peace!

good. Hurt, if handled in Christianmaturity and love, can go to a brotheror sister and say, "This is botheringme. Am I justified and if so, what canwe do together to change it?"

Hurt can bring a change in ourinner, spiritual lives. The kicks andknocks of life result in a tough wisdom

-in dealing with people, being sensi-tive to needs and helping mend other'shurts.

l1 we're willing to learn from ourhurts and what God can teach usthrough circumstances, we'll riseabove resentment, anger and ¡eal-ousy.

Don't let life's hurts harden yourheart. There's no limit to what Godcan do with your disappointments. B_e

ready. O

ABOUT THE WRITER: Joy Simpkins ís omember ol Donelson Free Wíll Baptíst Church,Noslruille. Ten nessee.

The BudgetBy M. J. Pritchard

Father,Help me cope with costs that rise

higher, faster than my salary. [.et mefind good bargains, budget and spendmy money wisely.

I need Your wisdom, Lord. I can't doit alone. When I check the figures, I

panic and sink in despair. Help me notto be bitter; don't let me get uptight. I

know You can help me overcome, over-ride this unending problem.

Thank You for the victory I'm goingto experience in this matter of financeswith Your help. Thank you for the peaceyou give. I love you. Father.

Amen

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hud! Goliath (Daddy) hits theground. David (Jared) runs tocut off his head with the sword

(wooden spoon). The army (Nathan,Justin and me-Mother) cheer. This isa typical Friday evening scene as we actout Bible stories. (Noah's Ark runs aclose second to David and Goliath.)

One thing I learned about children(after I had some of my own) is that theyneed lots of love and attention. Don'tgive them any for a few days and you'llbe amazed at the trouble they can getinto. Each of us needs to know that weare special to someone and loved.

Living in a society which is graspingfor things, it's easy for Christians tobecome confused and think that weneed to give our children more andmore things. They don't need morethings, they need us-parents who lovethem and listen to them. Sounds sim-ple doesn't it? Actually, it's time-consuming and difficult. Sometimes it's

easier to give them things to occupytheir time rather than give ourselves.

As an adult who remembers specialmemories from childhood, I am moti-vated to do the same for my children.It's not the gifts or toys that I remember;it's the time we spent together. Timespent having a picnic, watching aThanksgiving Day parade, makingcookies, playing ball, giggling with a sib-

ling late at night until a parent threatensto hang you at noon.

l¡¡any good memories are builtlvlthrough just being together. Butas a busy parent I find myself needingspecial designated times. Not only dothey force me to give the needed atten-tion, but they allow our children achance to look forward to a time ofundivided attention. That's why wechose Friday night as our "Family FunNightl'

Friday night belongs to our children.We give them a big say in what we do.They love to be involved in the plan-ning. There's just one rule-it has to besomething we all enjoy and somethingwe do together.

We start the evening with a meal weall enjoy, no broccoli or spinach on Fri-day. At our house it usually turns outto be pizza. The children take turnschoosing, planning and even cookingthe meal. Festive napkins and paperplates simplify clean-up.

It has been our experience that it's notso much what we do but the fact thatwe do it together. One of the favoriteevenings for our 6-year-old Jared is forthe whole family to cuddle underblankets on the couch while Daddyreads or tells stories by candlelight. We

don't turn on the tv unless there's a spe-cial program-tv seems to inhibit con-versation rather than encourage it.

We try to build special times into ourfamily night. On one anniversary wedressed up and had a candlelight din-ner complete with china and crystal. Wetold the children about how we met, ourengagement, the ceremony and thenwe reaffirmed our commitment to eachother.

Our children enjoy hearing stories ofwhen we were children, especially thewild antics of aunts and uncles. Theyalso love hearing stories about whenthey were younger. On a recent Fridaynight we showed old home movies. Wewatched Jared make snow angels,Nathan smear cake all over himself, andbaby Justin eat the wrapping paper onChristmas day.

¡¡ family fun night provides anf-l opportunity for a family to serveothers. One night a month could be setaside to plan projects and ways to helpothers. One year we planned a birthdayparty for Jesus and invited the neigh-borhood children to hear the real storyof Christmas.

Täke a trip to a nursing home. Dovolunteer work at your church. Visit asick neighbor. Bake cookies and take to

By Sandra Atwood

Uncle Joe-Meet the Mast€r--------rBy Dennis Carter

tf.*o years ago. I was married. livingI in Columbia, South Carolina, and

unsaved.ld never experimented with drugs

until one night when some of my friendswho used drugs offered me marijuana.I tried it and liked it. I began using itmore and more. In addition to drinkingand smoking pot with my friends. I alsoran around with my Uncle Joe. My drughabit grew, costing $400-$700 permonth.

Other changes took place, too. Myjob productivity began to fall off and myrelationship with my wife. Janie, wasfalling apart. At the same time, lbecamemore and more disgusted with myself.

One night, after going out with myfriends. I came home and found a notefrom Janie. She said she could not livewith me anymore because of what I hadbecome in the year since I started to usedrugs. I didn't blame her for leaving me.I knew what Id become.

I began calling people who mightknow where she was, hoping to findher. I wanted to try to patch things upand get back together, but no one kneww,here she was.

Eventually, Janie called me fromFlorence. South Carolina. She hadgone to live with her Aunt Diane, whowas a Christian and a member of the

a shut-in. Rake leaves for an elderly per-son. Distribute tracts at a nearby shop-ping center. Children have wonderfulideas. Encourage them.

It's sometimes surprising to discoverthat children enjoy the simplest things.You don't have to spend any money toread good books, listen to music or playgames together. Our boys love wrestlingon the floor with their dad. The activi-ties may change depending on the agesof your children.

There are many resources and ideasavailable for the family now. (Some arelisted below.) Idon't believe it's for lackof ideas that we don't spend valuabletime with our children, t-¡ut rather thelack of commitment. lf we want our chil-dren to look back on their childhood

Peace Free Will Baptist church. I wasglad for a second chance when Janieasked me to come to Florence. Aftertalking things over, I decided to leavemy friends in Columbia and try to makea new start in Florence. Janie's AuntDiane let us move in with her until wecould get on our feet.

The first Thursday night we werethere. the pastor of the Free Will Bap-tist church. Danny Keen, came by onvisitation. He told me about Jesus-thatHe loved me and wanted to save me.I really wasn't interested. My heart washard: Jesus was the last thing on mymind.

After talking to m€, the preacherstood to leave. I was glad to see him go.

But when he put out his hand towardthe door, I felt something grip my heart.Suddenly, I began to cry. Before I knewit. I was asking the preacher to pray forme. In just a few minutes I was savedl

Two months later. February 1986,God called me to preach.

I heard about Free Will Baptist BibleCollege and felt that God wanted meto go to Nashville to prepare to preach.My wife and I sold everything we could,gave away the rest, and moved to Nash-ville with our clothes and $200! ffheLord has provided for us ever since.)

When I came to Nashville, I knewthat Uncle Joe had cancer. Word

with pleasant memories, we have to bewilling to take the time to make thosememories with them! iÐ

BibliographyLet's Make a Memory by Gloria Gaitherand Shirley DobsonFinally, Family Deuotions that WorkbyTerry HallGood Cleon Fun-Fit'tg Nifty Games t'orJunior Highers by Tom FinleyTögether ot Home-700 Prouen Waysto Nurture Your Child's Foith by Deanand Grace MerrillThe New Fun Encaclopedia Volume3-Home and Family Fun by E. Harbin

ABOUT THE WRITF-R: Mrs. Sondro Attuood is

a member ol Free Wíll Boptist Churcl¡. Neru Cos-tle. Delowore.

reached me that he was critical andprobably would not live long. He wasmore than a relative to me; he was a

friend, and I could not bear the thoughtthat he would die without Jesus.

I wrote to my mother and encloseda list of verses ld learned in Evangelismclass. I asked her to take them to thehospital and give them to Uncle Joe.She called me a few days later and saidthat she could not do it. He was weak,she said. and cried much of the time.

That Wednesday night, I felt the Lordtelling me to call the hospital and wit-ness to Uncle Joe. When I reached hisroom. they told me he was too weak totalk to me. I asked them to tell UncleJoe who was calling. In a few momentsI heard his voice and began to witnessto him.

At first he began to mal<e excuses, so

Itold him that. without Jesus, he wouldgo to hell if he died the way he was.Then I heard him begin to cry. ln justa few minutes, Uncle Joe gave his heartto the Lord!

ABOUT THE WRITER: De¡'¡¡¡is Carter. 24. is o

/resh¡¡ron at Free Will Boptist Bible College. Sincehis conuersion. Mr. Carter hos contocted his

Ronron Cotholic lother uhont he hos neuer seen.

onc¡ r0ílnessed to hinr.

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Business andM¡nistry of the

Christian Bool¡storeBy Ray Martin

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fter World War II, many newtypes of businesses came intoexistence. One of them was the

Christian bookstore. Belore the warthere were a few stores such as Baptistbookstores, Cokesbury bookstores,Berean bookstores and others ownedby denominations or publishing compa-nies. There were also some individually-owned stores scattered across theUnited States. Some secular storesstocked Bibles and a few Christianbooks like they do today. As late as themid-1950's there were only two Chris-tian bookstores in the pklahoma Cityarea.

The Business Side

In June 1950 a few Christian bookpublishers and Christian bookstoreowners met in Chicago for a conven-tion. They subsequently formed theChristian Booksellers Association(CBA). The convention attracted 279booksellers and 48 exhibitors. In July1986 the Christian Booksellers Conven-tion which met in Washington, D.C.,

registered 9,600 with more than 350exhibiters.

The CBA listed 724 member storesin 1965. In contrast, at the end of 1986more than 3,000 stores (plus hundredsof unaffiliated stores) swelled the CBAranks. The average gross sales for CBAmember stores in 1970 was $46,300.In 1985 average gross sales topped$235,000 per store.

Free Will Baptists are not left out ofthis vast industry of bookstores. In 1958the Oklahoma executive secretary, thelate Rev. E. M. Kennedy, started theOklahoma Free Will Baptist Bookstorein his home. He hauled Bibles andbooks to quarterly meetings and associ-ations. By 1960 the store purchasedproperty at its present location, 4801.South Walker in Oklahoma City. As faras I know, this is the oldest state-ownedbookstore in the denomination.

Now other states have their ownbookstores. Arkansas: Christian SupplyBookstore in Conway; Georgia: Chris-tian Supply Bookstore in Moultrie; Mis-souri: l-ebanon Bible Bookstore in

l¿banon; North Carolina: The BibleBookstore in Durham; Ohio: Ambas-sador Bookstore in Columbus; Ken-tucky: the Master's Miracle Bookstore inInez; and Randall Bookstore in Nash-ville, Tennessee, operated by RandallHouse Publications. In addition, a num-ber of Free Will Baptist ministers andlaymen operate their own bookstores.

In the early 1970's various Bibletranslations and a number of new booksappeared on the best sellers list. Thisencouraged many people to enter theChristian bookstore business. However,because some were underfinanced theywere unable to stay in business.Remember, this is a business as well asa ministry.

The Ministry Side

I think the Christian bookstore is aministry. It serves the churches withSunday School and Vacation BibleSchool curriculum. Many young peopleaccept Christ through the SundaySchool or Vacation Bible School.

The Christian bookstore also servesteachers with a vast array of teachingaids, books and supplies. It serves min-ister and layman alike with reÍerencebooks and commentaries. However. thegreatest book in the bookstore is theBible. (l have a plaque by the Bible sec-tion that says, "The Bible is not only theworld's best-seller. it is man's bestpurchase.")

I believe that God calls people toserve in Christian bookstores, just as Hecalls pastors or missionaries to serve inchurches or on mission fields. As Chris-tians, we're admonished by His Word tobe co-laborers with Him. As booksellers,we serve by placing the right book in the

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hat's the purpose of thelocal church? What's theministry of individual be-

lievers, and how can we accomplishwhat God wants us to do? These ques-tions or our inability to answer themwill decide whether our churches growor die.

Through the years, the church haschanged its methods of evangelizing.In America, we went from homechurches to circuit-riding preachers to,Sunday School, and now we're in theera of big-day evangelism and the"super church."

The Bible is quite easy to under-stand when we consider the call andcommand of evangelism. God calls usto reach the world with His message ofsaving grace. But amid all the church'sprograms and concepts, which one isbest and will work for us?

Sometimes things get so confusingthat we throw up our hands and quit.Sometimes we grab the easiest andfastest way to accomplish the task. Attimes we simply do what someone elsehas done; we adopt their plan regard-less of whether it fits our church.

What we should do, of course, isseek God's direction. On the otherhand, some churches coast, satisfiedto maintain their small congregation.After all, it's easier to do nothing thanto attempt something. "StagnantChristians," if such people exist, de-mand far less than a bevy of overlyenthusiastic new converts willing to doanything to glorify God.

An alarming fact is that for the mostpart, our churches are small. Anotheralarming fact about churches acrossAmerica is that only four percent oftheir membership gets involved inlocal ministry, leaving 96 percentwarming pews. What a waste.

Have we ventured so far that we nolonger see what the Bible says aboutour goals in ministry, or do we con-

sider the Bible too outdated to fit withour modern worship methods? TheBible method works as welltoday as itever did.

We must evaluate what ourchurches do to see if they're fruitful.Many churches are so mindset in tradi-tion that they begin to worship theprogram by giving ¡t artif¡cial life; nevermind that the program may be unfruit-ful. Whether it be traditional standbyssuch as Sunday School, CTS, youthprograms, visitation, etc., everyprogram must be fruitful.

When churches find that no fruit isproduced through certain programs,some resort to "Big Day" concepts andpromotions. While this works forsome, others make "Big Days" andpromotions acts of sensationalism.Evangelism is not "one size fits all,"

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hands of our customers at the right time.God uses all types of books to reach.

touch, inspire and change the hearts ofHis people. God also uses talented anddedicated booksellers to share the valueof Christian literature with others. Wewho serve in Christian bookstores mustlove books, have incentive to learn, notbe afraid of work, love people and putour whole heart into our ministry. Oursis a great responsibility!

The Apostle Paul gave instructions toyoung Timothy, advising him to giveattention to reading, exhortation anddoctrine (l Timothy 4:13). When we doour work diligently, we receive a greatreward for a job welldone (ll Timothy2:I5).

The Christian bookseller shouldincrease his knowledge and abilities inorder to serve his customers. We shouldbecome experts in our vocation, able totell customers about good books onsubjects relevant to their needs. A bookwe recommend may be the answer fora customer going through a trial or val-ley experience.

In all the enterprises of Christianbookselling, the emphasis is not only onthe power of the printed page, but alsoon the power of the ever-speakingSpirit.

We must remember our calling, thatit is much better to serve others wellthan to expect others to serveus. @

ABOUT THE WRITER: Ray Mortin ís complet'íng 76 yeors as manager ol the Oklohomo FreeWill Boplíst Bookstore. He has serued ¡n numetous copociries in Free Will Boplíst churches lor 44yeors. He is a member of Southern Ooks Free WillBaptist Church. Oklohomo City. Oklahoma.where he serues os o deacon ond Sundoy Schoolsuperíntendent.

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Action ... (from page 12)

and we should not feel guilty if wedon't use these types programs tobring about success in our church.

he purpose of the church andindividuals that make up thechurch is to share the good

news of Jesus Christ and minister tothe needs of people-both physicallyand spiritually. Jesus met physical andspiritual needs of men and women.He did not separate them. Since Jesusis our example, neither should we.

This is where we've failed to followclosely the program Jesus used withthe apostles. The church today hasallowed the secular world to take overthe ministry that God intended for thechurch, such as providing for theelderly, feeding the hungry, meetingthe needs of the poor, and providingfor unwed mothers and the divorced.

When the local church stoppedmeeting the physical needs of its com-munity, the church began to lose its in-fluence upon society. To this day, thechurch is not considered when peopleseek help for their physical needs.Meeting physical needs draws peopleto the church so that the spiritualneeds may be met by the Lord JesusChrist. Instead of being concernedwith only spiritual needs of mankind,we must learn to minister to thephysicalas well.

Most churches have only thesetypes of ministries-the worship pro-gram, the Sunday School program,youth programs, Woman's Auxiliary,Master's Men, and possibly a visitationprogram. These programs are usefulfor maintaining our people, but we'vefailed to extend them to meet physicalneeds as well as spiritual.

The reason for this is that the fewpeople we have who are eager to learnto be good disciples are tied up asboard members, teachers and leaders,or they're simply used up by attendingall the programs our church may spon-sor. Some pastors measure success byhow busy we keep our people. Attimes we keep them so busy with revi-vals, meetings, singings and seminars,as well as regular services that theyhave no time left to be effective dis-ciples in the community.

Part of the church's ministry must beinternal so that our people may betaught to have a mature walk with the

Lord Jesus Christ. But the greatestpart of our ministry is external, reach-ing out to a society full of the leprouseffects of sin. It's at this point thatJesus ministers to men and women.and it's also where we touch thephysical and spiritual needs of man-kind by the power of Christ.

ut how can we get started?For the most part, our chur-chesare too small to do everv-

thing that needs to be done. Eventhough we're small, however, we canbegin'with one simple ministry at atime as God directs. Then, as we canand as God directs. increase the minis-tries. The real challenge comes as we'balance the ministry of the church withboth internal and external ministries tomeet the needs of people in and out ofthe local church.

Here's what we did at our church.To accomplish what God has put inour hearts, we eliminated some pro-grams and downgraded others. Oneof the areas downgraded is Teen andAdult Sunday School classes. Boththe Teen and Adult Departments meettogether on Sunday morning from10:30 to 12 noon. We've not forsakenteaching these individuals; we merelyadapted a different approach.

The teaching of our teens and adultsis vital. We accomplish this with ourteens through the Teen Ministry onSunday night. Adults get extra teach-ing weekly through home studygroups. These home studies are evan-gelistic in effort as we try to reach ourneighbors and friends with the gospel.

The Children's Department consistsof a Nursery class and Beginners'class. The Primary and Junior classesmake up our Children's Church. Thisenables us to reduce our staff while in-creasing the amount of teaching timefor our children.

The ministry that takes place inadult worship is both that of exhorta-tion and edification. The exhortationcomes by ministering to each otherthrough prayer, music and fellowship.We achieve edification by teachingand preaching God's Word. Then, onSunday night, we also conduct a dualservice.

The Teens (ages 12-18) receive in-depth training time to learn how to wit-ness and how to walk the Christianwalk. They become students of theWord, memorizing scripture and com-

peting as they learn. They're also in-volved in practical works about thecommunity. It becomes a fruitful timefor our teens.

During this same time slot, we alsoconduct evening worship. Again, theexhortation and edification processcontinues. We emphasize familyvalues taught directly from God'sWord.

On Wednesday night, we scheduleDiscipleship Training Class, focusingon four areas: lifestyle evangelism,daily walk, perserverance and leader-ship. Instead of assigning responsibili-ties within the church walls, we giveour people responsibilities outsidethose walls where Jesus wants us-amidst the highways and hedges torescue people from sin.

Our current outreach ministries in-clude Rest Home Service, Woman'sAuxiliary, Master's Men, Singles Min-istry, Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon, juvenile counseling and a BibleInstitute. All are designed with ministryoutreach in mind.

While training people, we pray thatGod will call us to more external min-istries such as Crisis Pregnancy Cen-ters, juvenile care, caring for the poorand needy, caring for the elderly, pris-on ministry, drug counseling, as wellas many other possibilities. All theseministries will be accomplished by theleadership of God's call upon thepeople in the church.

Too many times our churches haveappointed people to do a job theydidn't feel they could handle. This re-minds me of how the apostles selectedMatthias. Later, God called the personHe had in mind. Paul. What a differ-ence God's call made in the life ofPaul with respect to the ministry ofMatthias.

In conclusion, we must consider theWord of God. It's time to return to bib-lical principles. This may take longer,but will have a lasting effect in buildingchurches. The blessings of God comefrom obedience to Him.

Our church is building by the pro-gram Jesus used: God's call uponman. We teach and train people to getout of the pews, into the streets andminister to people of our community,both physically and spiritually. dÐ

ABOUT THE WRITER: Reoerend Lou¡s Nettle-ton postors Greenfield Free Will Baptíst Church,Greenlield, Colilornio.

REVEREND RALPH HAMPTON, SR., wlTH THE IORDSHAWNEE, OK-Funeral services forthe Reverend Ralph Clayton Hampton,Sr., 71, were conducted December 29,1986, at Westgate Free Will BaptistChurch in Shawnee. Reverend Hamp-ton died December 26 at Baptist Hospi-tal in Oklahoma City.

The Reverends Jerry Dudley andDelbert Akin officiated. Both menpastored and were pastored by Rever-end Hampton. The Oklahoma MinistersQuartet sang during the 2:00 p.m. serv-ice. Burial followed at ResthavenMemorial Park.

Brother Hampton was born March13, 1915, in Blanchard, Okla. He mar-ried Lucille Jackson on Dec. 3. 1933.in Chickasha.

A retired Free Will Baptist minister,he was ordained on Oct. 29. 1938. atIron Chapel Free Will Baptist Churchnear Blanchard.

The Reverend Hampton served 15churches in a ministry spanning sixdecades. He pastored 10 churches inOklahoma: lron Chapel, Hawkins,Adkins, Bryant, Freeny, Earlsboro,Shawnee, Prague, Stigler and Non.

He also pastored in Denison, Texas;and Porterville, Modesto and Concord,Calif. He organized the North Modesto,Calif., church.

Hampton served five years as moder-ator of the California State Associationof Free Will Baptists. Also, he traveledas that body's promotional secretary.

Brother Hampton held numerousposts in the district associations wherehe pastored. He was a member of West-gate Free Will Baptist Church, the Okla-

homa State Free Will Baptist MinistersConference and an honorary memberof the Free Will Baptist Bible CollegeAlumni Association.

Reverend Hampton's three sons areordained Free Will Baptist ministers.Reverend Ralph Hampton, Jr. serves as

dean of the Graduate School at FreeWillBaptist Bible College and assistantmoderator of the National Associationof Free WillBaptists. Dr. Charles Hamp-ton is registrar at Free WillBaptist BibleCollege. Reverend Larry Hampton,now principal of Bethany ChristianSchool in Norfolk, Va., previouslyserved as adult editor at the SundaySchool and Church TrainingDepartment.

Reverend Hampton was preceded indeath by a fourth son, James Hampton.

Survivors, in addition to his threesons, include his wife Lucille ofShawnee; 16 grandchildren and six

reat-qrandchildren.

FREE WLL BAPÎTST

newsfront

SPRING SUNDAY SCHOOLENLARGEMENT SET

NASHVILLE, TN-The Randall HouseSpring Sunday School EnlargementCampaign will use theme material writ-ten by Jonathan Thigpen, manager ofthe editorial division. The March cam-paign launches a five-week "BringingForth Fruit" challenge, based on John15:5.

During the campaign, SundaySchools will be arranged in accordancewith the following table for competitivepurposes.

Division A-over 500 averageDivision B-400-500 averageDiv¡sion C-300-399 averageDivision D - 2OO -299 averageDivision E-150-199 averageDivision F-100-149 averageDivision G-50-99 averageDivision H-under 49 averageDivision I-Newly Established

The Spring Enlargement Campaignbegins Sunday, March 1, and continuesthrough Sunday, March 29. SundaySchools in each div¡sion that experiencethe greatest percentages of gain over the13 weeks' average attendance forSeptember-October-November 1986,will be declared winners and awardedappropriate trophies denoting first andsecond place.

Campaign materials are availablefrom the Sunday School and ChurchTiaining Department. Churches mayuse the toll-free number 1-800/25I-5762 to place orders. Tennesseecustomers call 1-800/624-6538.

HILISDALE NAMES DIRECTCIR OF DEVEIOPMENT

MOORE, OK-Rev. Richard Tierry wasnamed director of development at Hills-dale FWB College, according to Presi-dent Edwin Wade. Rev. Terry assumedhis duties in December.

The new director of developmentbrings 17 years of pastoral experienceto the position. The last seven years hepastored Pryor FWB Church in Pryor,Okla.

He previously served on the HillsdaleBoard of Tiustees from Kansas, fiveyears on the Oklahoma Board of Chris-

tian Education, president of the StateMinisters Conference and clerk of theSouth Grand River Association. He isan alumnus of Hillsdale College.

In addition to denominational activi-ties, Reverend Terry has been active incivic affairs, serving on the Pryor CityCouncil, a member of the Rotary Cluband active in the Pryor MinisterialFellowship.

Richard and Thelma Terry have threesons: Richard (16), Michael (14) andStephen (13).

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TEXAS PASTOR TOCOORDTNATE MEX¡CAN WORK

NASHVILLE, TN-The ReverendJames Munsey, pastor of Templo FWBChurch, Weslaco, Texas, has beennamed Home Missionary Coordinatorfor Mexicq according to Home MissionsDirector, Roy Thomas. Rev. Munsey'sprimary task will be to coordinate thework of Mexican pastors and churches,to teach and motivate Mexicannationals to win their own people andbuild Free Will Baptist churches.

Reverend Thomas said, "BrotherMunsey will work to help overcome the

language barrier between Mexicanworks and the Home Missions Depart-ment. He will have a ministry ofencouragement and enlightenment forall the Free Will Baptist pastors inMexico."

Mr. Munsey's duties include translat-ing letters, reports and literature intoSpanish. He will also prepare mailinglists. newsletters and official records forthe Mexican churches.

In addition, he will travel among FreeWill Baptist churches in the UnitedStates to promote prayer and financialsupport. He will assist the Home Mis-sions Board with the employment ofnew national workers.

Thirty churches now comprise theMexican Association. Reverend Mun-sey's liaison work will encourage unityand fellowship in the association.

VIRGINTA CHURCH DEDTCATES ADDITIONCHESAPEAKE, VA-Members ofGreat Bridge FWB Church,Chesapeake, Va., dedicated a10,000-square-foot addition in October,according to Pastor Bobby Sebastian.The new addition includes classrooms,fellowship hall and a kitchen.

Pastor Sebastian said that 1986marked the church's lO-year anniver-sary. The October dedication also fea-tured the first annual homecomingactivities. The day's events attracted 203people.¡\

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OKLAHOMA CHURCH PLANS PASTORAL TRIBUTE

BROKEN ARROW OK-Members atBethany FWB Church, Broken Arrow,plan a March 1 farewell tribute to retir-ing pastor Reverend Ray Gwartney. The65-year-old minister will complete nineyears as pastor at Bethany Church thismonth.

l-eaders on the tribute committeewere quick to point out that "BrotherRay is not retiring but reloading to acountry home near Locust Grove wherehe will stay active as a supply andinterim minister."

For the past 35 years, ReverendGwartney has pastored Oklahomachurches. His pastorates include SmithChapel at Rose (7952-1955), locustGrove (1955 -1957), Bixby (1957-1961),Pryor (7967-7978) and Bethany(1978-1987).

Brother Gwartney served in numer-ous positions, including assistantmoderator and moderator of SouthGrand River and Greater Tulsa AreaAssociations. For 14 years PastorGwartney has served on the HillsdaleFWB College Board of Tiustees, the lastseven as board chairman.

Born in Leach, Okla., Ray Gwartneygraduated from high school in LocustGrove before serving a four-year hitchwith the U.S. Army (1942-79461. Hemarried Billye Burkett in 1943 andanswered the call to preach in 1950 atthe age of 28. He was ordained in7952.

Ray and Billye Gwartney have twodaughters, Mrs. Sherian Davis of Pryor;and Mrs. Brenda Allen of Allen. Texas.

Reverend Gwartney told churchmembers that he wants to be remem-bered as a Free Will Baptist pastor wholoved his people. He also said, "My petpeeve is folks who always find fault withthe churchl'

Businessman Donald Wagner, amember of Bethany Church, said,"Before Brother Ray takes his finalbow,he will be involved in many more actsfor our lord Jesus. You can rest assuredthat when the applause settles down,Reverend Ray Gwartney will have donehis part."

The special tribute for Pastor Gwart-ney begins at 2:30 p.m. Sunday,March 1.

WORLD LITERATURECRUSADE TAPS FWB

MINISTER FOR VP POST

CHATSWORTH, CA-Reverend AndyW. Lay, 45-year-old Free Will Baptistminister, was appointed executive vicepresident of World Literature Crusade,according to WLC officials at their Chat-sworth, Calif., headquarters.

Rev. Lay, a 1963 graduate of FreeWillBaptist Bible College, joined WorldLiterature Crusade in 1979 after pastor-ing Free Will Baptist churches 17 yearsin Tennessee and Missouri.

Mr. Lay previously served as Mis-souri's General Board Member, stateclerk and editor of the Free Will BaptistGem. He also served as a member ofthe Hillsdale FWB College Board ofTiustees. Ordained to preach in 1958,Reverend Lay is a native of Greentop,Mo.

When he joined the WLC staff in1979, Mr. Lay worked as a fieldrepresentative in the Tiust ServicesDepartment. assisting WLC supporterswith their estate planning needs. In1982, he was appointed director of theTiust Services Department and treasurerof World Literature Crusade.

Mr. Lay will now function as theadministrative head of World LiteratureCrusade's U.S. operations. He travels

extensively throughout the UnitedStates as a guest speaker and representsWLC in missions conferences and fund-rais¡ng events.

Mr. Lay resides in Simi Valley, Calif.,with his wife, Kathy Jo and their 14-year-old son, Jamie.

World Literature Crusade is a4O-year-old interdenominational mis-sionary organization which currentlysponsors Every Home Crusades (EHC)in 53 countries worldwide.

The Every Home Crusades are acooperative effort of Bible-believingchurches and mission organizations thatsystematically delivers two pieces ofgospel literature to every home in anation.

What Do You B¡d?By Floyd

f used to go to auctions in search ofI a bargain. When IU buy, ld oftenget something I really didn't need at aprice I really couldn't afford.

The auctioneer was so good. Itstarted so small and moved so fast thatwhat looked like something for nothingturned out to be nothing for something.lwent home with a lean checkbook anda train load of husks.

Satan is an auctioneer with no equal.He once got a young couple to sell theirland and the souls of their children andchildren's children for a taste of bitterfruit. Yes, Adam and Eve left that auc-tion with nothing but a bad case ofaftertaste.

Satan still sells nothing for something.Listen to the auctioneer. "Yes. maäm.everyone who's anyone has one! Thebidding will start with a sacrifice of mod-esty. Do I hear respect for the pastor'steaching? Yes, I have added willingnessto tempt others. a loss of personaltestimony!

"You bought it, maam-this ticket isgood for one tan and can be redeemedat any public pool or beach. (l like thesebecause nobody listens to the preacherabout them.) I sell them to SundaySchool teachers and deacons' families:everybody buys them. Be sure to comeback next summer." Goíng Once.

"Don't miss thisl This ticket buys yousophistication. You'll learn how toseduce or be seduced. You'll learn howto lie, cheat, steal. swear, even kill. Whatare you offering? Pure minds. cleanconscience, good testimony? Those are

OURREADERSCOMMENT

PRAYER HELPS READERI look forward to getting Contocl every month.

'Here's My Heart- (December) and -Rescue

Prayer' (January) by M. J. Pritchard really hclpeclnìe.

Mrs. Edna BlandHobgood. North Carolina

Wolfenbarger

good bids but not high enough. If I

throw in an occasional glimpse ofnudity, what will you say? Chastity!You've got it-redeem it at any theater,or better yet, a drive-in!' Going Twice.

"l know that you're almost spentout. I've taken your modesty, yourtestimony, your pure minds, but don'tgo away! There are lots of people toput stumbling blocks before, andI've got rock music, dance tickets,popularity, worldly cares. . . . GoingThree Times @

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Pastor Mircheal Jones set the WhiteChristmas offering goal at Grace FWBChurch, Lake City, SC, at $3.000. Afterthe corrgregation responded with more than$4.500. Pastor Jones said. "What a privilegeto pastor people willing to sacrifice in orderto advance the cause of Christl'

The newly-orgarrized Youth PlanningCommittee at Southern Oaks FWBChurch, Oklahoma City, OK, carnetogether to meet growing demands of youthoutreach, says Pastol James Puckett. Thecommittee is staffecl by 10 married couplesand four teenagers.

Pastor Brian Atwood said it: 'As always.God opened a doorl" His observation cameafter the church made a down payment on20 acres of prime city property on which torelocate. The Emmanuel FWB Church,Wabash, lN, had struggled with spaceproblems and with neighbors hesitant to selltheir property. After prayer. the L¡rd openedthis door of oppoltunity.

Burglars broke a window and sneakedinto the Fellowship FWB Church,Antioch, TN, over the Christmas holidays.They bashed in the door to the pastor's studysearching for money. the¡r stole a microwaveoven and trashed several filing cabinets.(This happened six weeks before new pas-tor Bill Gardner arrived.)

Pastor Allen Moore, NorthMcAlester FWB Church, McAlester,OK, reports a roaring men's prayer group.He said that about 25 nren gather eachMonday morning at 6:00 for prayer. Thegroup began meeling in February i986.With alnrost 190 in Surrday School as alesult of the men's prayers and actions in lhecommunily. Pastor Moore said the biggestproblem now is a lack of parking space.

Through efforts of Ron Cloer, a CircuitCity outlet in Nashville, TN, donated avideo cassette recorder to Donelson FWBChurch. Rob Morgan pastors.

Nineteen preachers spoke during the NewYear's watchnight service at First FWBChurch, Guin, AL. Pastor RichardCordell called it "the greatest preachingspectacular in all Alabamal'

After an offering of almost $13.000.members of Victory FWB Church,Goldsboro, NC, voted to proceed with asanctuary renovation project. PastorGeorge I¿e said the special olfering wasin addition to the regular Sunday offeringof nearly $2,000.

Canadian Free Will Baptists extendedspecial recognition to Lavergne Hanson,wife of Canadian Moderator Fred Han-son, for her work in the camping ministry.Officials presented a plaque to Mrs. Hansonin appreciation for her faithful service.

A publishing note of interest: Rick Nash,minister of Christian education at CentralFWB Church, Royal Oak, MI, wrotefive articles in the Prophecy Edition of theOpen Bible published by the Thomas Nel-son Company. The special Prophecy Edi-tiorr has been in print for about a year.

Frank Breeden was named director ofsludent support at Free Will Baptist BibleCollege. according to President CharlesThigpen. The new position consolidatesand coordinates the college's fund raisingefforts. Mr. Breeden brings 10 years ofpromotional experience to his new position.

Pastor Steve Trail said that VictoryFWB Church, Pineville, LA, celebratedits grand opening with guest speakers RoyThomas, director of National Home Mis-sions, and David Joslin, Arkansaspromotional director. Pastor Trail said the$60.000 construction project includes achapel with baptistry. five Sunday Schoolrooms, two offices and a day care.

The youth group at ThompsonMemorial FWB'Church, Vineland,NJ, raised more than $160 for the Mary-land State Home Missions project in a walk-a-thon. Vergel Manness pastors.

Pastor Bichard Atu¡ood says membersof the Free Will Baptist Church inNew Castle, DE, pledged more than$10.000 to the Foreign Missions Advanceprogram. The church also voted to giveseven percent of its general income to theCooperative Program. Atwood then said,"With the three percent that goes to the stateassociation. we will now be tithing.

There's a new Masteri Men chapter atFirst FWB Church, Yakima, WA. Pas-tor Terry Stafford said the new chapterbegan with eight charter members.

Pastor Mike Mutchler reports 22 con-versions at Grand View FWB Church.

Oregon Citg OR. He also confirmed, "lfthe zoning goes through, we will be purchas-ing 11.6 acres of landl'

Members of Victory FWB Church,East Wenatchee, WA, purchased a

36-passenger bus to aid in church growthefforts. Paul Wood pastors.

Georgia Free Will Baptists did some-thing special lor the Target 90 push in thestate. Executive Secretary Herbert Waidprinted a two-page spread in the Januaryissue of lhe Georgia Promotíonal Bulletínabout Tärget 90. Georgia Free Will Baptistscan now order visitation folders as well asstate brochures to assist them.

California Executive Secretary NuelBrown preached the 36th anniversary ser-mon at Concord FWB Church, Con-cord, CA. Pastor Ron Wood said 144attended the anniversary celebration. Thatnumber included charter member PearlHuddleston.

Immanuel FWB Church, Joliet, IL,hosted a teen lock-in, according to PastorDavid Potete. Lee Bryan coordinatedthe event. Some 19 teenagers as well asadults from churches in the Northern lllinoisQuarterly Meeting attended. Pastor Potetecommended the work of Vicki Englishand Helen Bryan who oversee thechurch's new nursery ministry.

Pastor Keith Perkins reports five con-versions and six baptisms at HillsboroFIUB Church, Hillsboro, OH.

Pastor Delmar Marks sends word ofgrowth at Espyville FWB Church,Marion, OH. The growth includes fourconversions. nine baptisms. six new mem-bers and four rededications.

The February 3-5 Ohio Minister-LaymanRetreat met at Big Prairie using the theme."How to build a growing. healthy SundaySchooll' Ohio Executive Secretary AltonLoveless said speakers included Dr.Elmer Towns and Dr. Roger Reeds.Towns is dean of the School of Religion atLiberty University. Reeds is general directorof the Sunday School and Church TiainingDepartment.

Pleasant Valley FWB Church,Pedro, OH, celebrated its 70th anniversarythis year. Meredith Settle pastors.

Pastor Paul Oppy said members ofBloom FWB Church, Wheelersburg,OH, conducted the churchi 75th yearanniversary.

Sounds of praise ring out at PleasantHitl FWB Church, Delaware, OH. Pas-tor Lucien Baker reports 24 rededica-tions. live conversions and eight newmembers. The church also paid off themongage.

Pastor Wylie Perkins reports fourbaptisms and seven new members atSamantha FWB Church, Leesburg_,oH. tg

CONVENTIONHOTELS

Look ForReservation

Form inApril

CONTACT

]TIINI GNMT]fDepartment ol Home Missions and Church Extension

of the National Association of Free Will Eapt¡sts

Roll Call SundayReflections and Proiections

By John Gibbs

f¡ oll Call Sunday is already threeIf years old. Like a typicalyoung-IIster it's finallv able to take a fewsteps on its own. tioll Call Sunday isbeginning to say some things. While themessage is not as clear as it will be inthe future. the information is valuableand enlightening. The past three yearsrevealed some interesting facts.

For instance. we have the mostaccurate count of our churches we'veever amassed. Next, we have a basenumber on which to build. We knowwhere we are so we can set our growthplans. Also, we've seen hundreds ofpastors and churches work together ina denominational effort to reach onegoal. This achievement fulfilled a miss-ing element among Free Will Baptists.

On and on I could go as we look backon the first three years of Roll Call Sun-day. Let me mention one more accom-plishment brought about through thisone special day. Across the coun-try.hundreds of new people were invitedto church, many came and many weresaved. We are talking new souls won toJesus, not just stastics found on a dustymembership roll.

Projecting Ahead

The date for Roll CallSunday 1987is March 29. To make it easy for evety-one to remember, Roll Call Sunday willbe the /osf Sunday in March each year.

Attendance goalfor 1987 is 227.000.In order to keep attendance figures uni-form, pastors are asked to record theirSunday morning church attendance onMarch 29. This will answer a ouestion

often asked during the first three years."Should I count Sunday School orchurch attendance?" Please countchurch service attendance. Projectionsfor RollCallSunday'87 also include thenumber saved on that day.

This year National Home Missions isworking in conjunction with our Sun-day School Enlargement Campaign.Pastors are urged to use the March"Bringing Forth Fruit" campaign for theSundays prior to Roll Call Sunday, thenconclude with a giant Victory Day.Materials for enlargement campaign canbe ordered through the Sunday SchoolDepartment.

Roll Call Sunday is a massive effortthat has yielded positive fruit. Howmuch fruit or how little fruit will be re-vealed when God takes His final rollcall.

ROLL CALL SUNDAY MARCHT987.

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BUILDTNG TOGETHER......LIVES OF SACBIFICE

One hundred five laymen, 19preachers and two new LifeFriendsmake up the present list of LifeMem-bers. Men sense the excitement of beingwith an organization advancing thecause of the Master.

A one-time deposit of $100 guaran-tees LifeMember status. Some menchoose to give on a time payment plan.

The funds received become a part ofthe LifeMember Endowment lust.These funds generate interest used tosupplement the General Fund. Theprincipal amount is never used.

The list of LifeMembers included onthis page show the newest additions.

TEXAS CHAPTER FIRST TOENLIST ALL LTFEMEMBERSThe Eastside FWB Church Master's

Men are the first in the denominationto have 100 percent LifeMembers. Themen in Houston, Texas, workedtogether on a chapter project buildingshipping pallets.

The funds generated were dividedequally three ways, with the first portionset aside for LifeMembership, and theother portions aiding a missions projectand a work of their church.

Rev. E. R. Mayo was pastor when themen began this project. Now, Rev. NedGraham is their pastor. Chapter Presi-dent is Bob Welker.

Fourteen men have joined the ranksas LifeMembers from this church.

In Mississippi, another chapter hasbegun payments with the goal of allmembers becoming LifeMembers. FirstFree Will Baptist in Petal plans to usethe time-payment method to achievethe goal.

Jerry Nicholson serves as presidentof the chapter. He issued a challengeto all the chapters in Mississippi to worktoward 100 percent LifeMembership.The pastor is Rev. J. L. Gore. He wasa Master's Men member when the Lordcalled him to preach.

ATÏACK PRTNTTNGSUSPENDED

The ATTACK magazine will not beprinted in 1987. Master's Men Boardsuspended printing due to a drop infinances. In their December meeting,the Board discussed ways to economizedepartment operations.

General Director Jim Vallance stated,"We will continue to produce monthlystudy lessons, probably in the form ofpackets. The packets willbe mailed tothe chapter presidents. I believe ourpeople will help this year to reduce thefinancial crisis."

PASTOR I.OCKLEAR RECEIVESANONYMOUS GIFT

Woodhaven FWB Church in Michi-gan contains the largest chapter ofMaster's Men in our denomination thisyear with 55 members. Recently, pas-tor Loyd Locklear was presented a

LifeMember certificate as an anony-

mous gift from a friend. With thepresentation he became LifeMembernumber 90.

Pastor Locklear has shown greatinterest in the men of his church. Theyvolunteered nearly all the labor to con-struct the church facilities. The sanctu-ary seats over 600.

CALENDARApril 23-25

Ninth Annual Master's Men ConferenceLinden, Tþnn.Call for details: 1-615/361-MMEN

MEMORIAL GIFT RECEIVEDThe Master's Men of First FWB

Church, Sparta, Tenn., made a gift tothe Master's Men Endowment Trust inmemory of Mr. Sam Gay. Brother Gaywas a deacon and active member of theSparta church. His unexpected death inNovember was a loss to the family,church and denomination. Thismemorial gift will continue to aid theministry of Master's Men until the Lordrelurns.

LAYMAN OF THE YEARNOMINATION FOBMS

AVAILABLENomination forms for the Layman of

the Year 1986 Award are available bywriting or calling Master's Men Depart-ment. Forms are mailed to the pastorsof the churches with Master's Men chap-ters. Nominations must be made bv thepastor.

The deadline for entries is May15. @

BUILDINGTOGETHER. . .ríÉry_Èì>þ;¡"ækjr . . .LIyESOFSACRIFICE*1 MASTERS r'\ .;:- I

\*"t^/ Rev. Ned Graham. Texas Rev. Carson Whiteake¡. Tenn.

VlË*7 Kenneth Mayo, Texas Jerry Proffitt. TÞnn.\-/ Jack Johnson, Texas Bobby Littrell. Tenn.

Bill Reese. Texas Michael Johnston. Ill.

David Jennische. TÞxas John Spry. Mich.J. B. Huggins, Texas Doyle Terry. Kansas

Sammy Blake, Texas Jerry Nicholson. Miss.

Kevin Walker, Texas Paul Robinson. UruguayBob Welker. Tþxas Rev. L¿ande¡ McAdams. Miss.

C. L. Allen. Tenn. LifeFriendRev. Loyd Locklear, Mich. lma June Brunkhorst. Calif.Kenneth Smith, Tenn. Betly Hall. Tenn.

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Ryan Vallance, WVa.Jerry L.ewis, Ark.Jackie Neely, Miss.Michael Endebrock, Ill.Paul Mayfield. Jr.. Tenn.Dirk A. Dent, ïþnn.Gene Castle. Mich.Rev. Carlos Kelsey, TennRalph Addington, Ariz.Lee Merritt, Ga.Butler Hall. N.C.Tom Kemble. Ga.

Donald G. White. Ga.James Prater, Mich.Larry Phillips, Ark.Justin Barnett. Ark.Larry Sanders Il, WVa.Larry R. Sanders, WVa.Rev. Wayne Bess. Tenn.Horace Johnson. Ga.Rev. J. L. Gore, Miss.K€irh Walkley, Tenn.Ed Knight, TexasJim Yarbrough. TÞxas

FrnlD\l AT YOUR SERVICE

Board of Retírement

TAX DEFERRED

A member retains the right to with-draw any tax-deferred employee con-tributions at all times. However, thereare two disadvantages to considershould a withdrawal be made beforeretirement.

First, the earnings are subject to a

substantial penalty based on the con-tinuous years of participation.

Second. once a withdrawal is made,a three-year waiting period is requiredbefore further funds can be deposited.

Borrowing privileges on tax-deferredemployee contributions are permitted.A participant can borrow, after threeyears, at an interest rate determined byour board. against the balance ofemployee contributions, plus earnings.The percentage allowed is determinedby the number of years of participationin the plan.

The current interest rate on loans istwelve percent. Loans are set up forregular monthly payments over a five-year period or less, depending on theamount of the loan.

Funds in the account continue toearn at the same rate of interest as forall other funds, even though there is aloan against it.

Call or write our office for a salaryreduction agreement and worksheet.

Täx AdvisorsMore Americans rely on tax advisors

and preparers than need to. Unless yourtax return is likely to be complicated youprobably can rely on your own work.Just allow yourself time and becareful-both necessary also if you getoutside help.

Keep in mind that the Internal Reve-nue Service will help you; in manyinstances you can have questionsanswered by phone.

IRS also sponsors a free VolunteerIncome Tax Assistance program inmany cities. aiding primarily low-income, elderly disabled or non-Englishspeaking taxpayers. Contact IRS for fur-ther information.

Another IRS-funded service. TaxCounseling for the Elderly, helps thosein the 60s and older.

Otherwise, if you feel you need helpwithout relying on IRS, it's wisest to dealwith a tax office that is open year-round,not one that prepares returns only at taxtime. lf there is a serious dispute overa return, you'll want the tax prepareravailable to help with it.

Remember you're responsible even ifsomeone else prepares your return.

Should there be a major IRS chal-lenge of your tax return or troubles overstate or municipal returns, donl hesitateto go to a tax attorney-your costliestoption but perhaps the safest step youcan take. 6S

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CONTRIBUTIONS

fror¡ time to time we get a call fromf someone inquiring whether or notIRA's, or anything comparable, are avail-able through our retirement pensionprogram. For many years we had to tellthem no. For the last two years. how-ever, we have been able to offer a tax-deferred plan similar to IRAs.

Any member of our pension planmay make tax-deferred employee con-tributions. These before-tax contribu-tions must be made by the employerthrough a Salary Reduction Agreement.Under the agreement the employerwithholds a stipulated percentage of theemployee's salary each pay period.

In most cases, the church oremployer may withhold up to twentypercent. The exact allowable percentageis determined by a worksheet furnishedby our office.

Täx-deferred contributions lower theemployee's taxable income, reducingthe amount of current federal incometaxes paid. Income taxes on these con-tributions and earnings are not due untilwithdrawal. Pension plan members maycontribute to their tax-cleferred accountand to an IRA at the same time.

iWoman'sW¡ndowon the

, ff,IorldBy Mary R. Wisehart

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From My Window

f ook! Yes, there they are again. The&snowdrops. Glistening star-shapedwhite petals rise through the crust ofsnow in my front yard.

Years ago someone planted thebulbs, and now I enjoy the surprise ofblossoms in the snow.

Their return reminds me of God'spromise: "While the earth remaineth,seedtime and harvest, and cold andheat, and summer and winter, and dayand night shall not cease" (Genesis8:22).

Their life force seems to melt thesnow above them with its energy. Andthere they are glistening white againstgreen foliage. Little white stars whichsay to us that we also may blossom inthe snow.

Are you planted in a frozen waste?Try the warmth of God's love.

Allthrough the cold winter these lit-tle buds hid in the bulb. But with the first

warm rays of sun, they begin to seek itswarmth.

Finally here they stand, spreadingwhite stars down my walkway. Tèstimo-nies to the wonder of God's grace.

National Project UpdateTotal for the Eunice Edwards Fund at

the end of 1986 was $1.239.55.

Prayer FellowshipWNAC has always emphasized

prayer.The 9:00 a.m. hour of prayer was

established at the Convention in 1941.The resolution suggested that all mem-bers pray each morning for mission-aries, ministers and Christian workers.

Renew your pledge to pray. Enlistother women for the hour of prayer.Prayer is a powerful force which canchange our world.

Prayer Fellowship cards are available.Put one in your wallet. Attach one to

the fridge to remind you to pray. Orderthem from WNAC. They're free!

Keep in touch with current requestsfrom the Hotline, 615/361-5005. ReadHeartbeat. Co-Laborer. Míssíon Gromsand the state or district papers.

The WNAC office staff prays eachworking morning about 8:15 CST (orCDT) . Join us. [.et's unite our prayerforce.

Need a Project?Thieves broke into First Free Will

Baptist Church, Panama City, Panama.says Steve Lytle. They made off with allthe audio equipment belonging to thechurch.

That equipment is valuable to thechurch, and $400-$500 willreplace it.

Send money designated for AudioEquipment, Panama.

EnlistmentEvery month is enlistment month.

Reach out to the women of your churchwho are not involved.

Talk with women from churches inyour area where there is no Woman'sAuxiliary.

A Íree packet of materials is availa-ble to new groups including one freeissue of the Co-Laborer.

Write and request the packet fromWNAC, P.O. Box 1088, Nashville, TN37202. State how many copies of tþçmagazine you need. tP

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Dr. McGrew

Rev. Munsey

Four Speakers FeaturedAt 1987 Bible GonferenceFour speakers are scheduled for Free Will Baptist Bible Col-lege's 1987 Bible Conference, March 8-12, according toPresident Charles Thigpen. They are Dr. Ben McGrew, Dr.Charles Hampton, Rev. Howard Munsey and Rev. Rue DellSmith.

Dr. McGrew is Professor of Biblical Studies at BaptistBible College, Clarks Summit, PA. He has also served asRegistrar and Academic Dean during his 22 years of serv-ice to the college. He has studied at Moody Bible Institue,Baptist Bible Seminary and Dallas Theological Seminary.

Dr. Hampton is a native of Oklahoma and a 1960FWBBC graduate. He is Registrar of FWBBC, and hasserved as Registrar and Mathematics Professor at HillsdaleCollege, Moore, OK. Before returning to FWBBC inL974,Dr. Hampton studied at the Universiþ of Texas (Austin), theUniversity of Oklahoma and Oklahoma Baptist University.

Rev. Munsey says, 'My chief concern has always beenmissions." He has pastored churches in east Tþnnessee formore than 32 years. He has served as moderator, assistantmoderator, promotional secretary and secretary of the UnionDistrict Association of Free Will Baptists. He is the founderof Hearthstone Builders and has channeled generous sup-port to home and foreign missionaries.

Every church Rev. Smith has pastored has grown by atleast 300 percent. His present pastorate, Bethlehem FreeWill Baptist Church, Van Buren, AR, has grown from 90to a high attendance of 538 in two years. Rev. Smith sen¡edfor four years as a home missionary and is chairman of theNational Home Missions Board. He has also served on theArkansas and Unip Association mission boards.

The college has planned a special service for the 11:15hour on Tiresday, March 10, at which a new comprehen-sive growth campaign will be unveited. The service willinclude a spectacular new multi-media presentation and willbe attended by dignitaries from Metropolitan Nashville.

Special music for the services will be provided by the col-lege's Music Department, under the direction of RichardMcDonald.

The FWBBC Alumni Association will meet during theconference, according to President Billy Gene Outland.

Local accommodations are convenient to the conference.A list of area motels may be requested from the college.

Come to the 1987 Bible Conference and enjoy three-and-a-half days of spiritJifting, soul-refreshing Bible preaching!For more information, write or call:

Free Will Baptíst Bible College3606 West End Avenue

Nashville, Tþnnessee 37205-0117(615) 383-1340

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the responsibility and would be free tosay no.

You can name a guardian and alsosomeone to manage money left to thechildren. Or you can consult an attor-ney about setting up a trust fund for thechildren.

use a lawyerThere are enough rules in will-

making to justify using an attorney. Forinstance, you can't try to pass along toothers property that is jointly owned-your home, for an example-or insur-ance that has a named beneficiary.Jointly-owned property goes automat-ically to your partner upon your death,insurance money to the designatedbeneficiary.

Keep the will clean-cut and simple.You may make major bequests in it butwhen it comes to divvying up personaland household effects, either mentionwho is to get what in a supplementaryand nonbinding letter or let yourbeneficiaries decide among themselveson matters of sentimental but not neces-sarily monetary value.

Finally, an attorney can help you withfederal and state tax laws. By consult-ing an attorney on the ins and outs ofthe law you might save money.

Provisions for passing an estate alongto heirs in an orderly manner and in theway we want is a vital part of estateplanning. A will is a basic-andintegral-part of estate planning. Besure you have one and keep it up to

The Foundalion is not engaged in rendering legalsertice or aduice. Aduice from leoal counsel shouldbe soughL

FCfUndatiOnHerman L. Hersey, Execulive Secretary

the importance of a willin estate planning

wills ate vitalWe don't mind planning for the

accumulation of an estate-financialplanning-but we find it hard to take thefurther, vital step of arranging to disposeof what we've accumulated at death.

We put off f¡om year to year thedrafting of wills; we don't like to thinkof death. However, wills are importanteven for those who are young, healthyand looking ahead to many years of life.

Everyone should have a will. Youcannot be sure that what you have-your estate-will be preserved andpassed along to your heirs unless youhave made clear, legally through a will,how you want your property distributed.

laws prevailOnly about one-third of all adults

have wills, although it isn't particularlycostly or difficult to make one. Most seeno reason to make wills, believing-wrongly-that if one spouse should die,the other will automatically receivewhatever assets there are.

The result of death without a will canbe legal confusion that adds to thetrauma of losing a loved one. Wherethere is no will, the disposal of assets willbe determined by a state's laws ofintestacy, without taking into accounthow the person who accumulated theestate intended it to be divided.

In most cases, state laws requireassets to be divided between a surviv-ing spouse and children in the family,often with one-half to two-thirds goingto the children. For the childless. laws

may require assets to be divided amongthe surviving spouse and direct relativesof the deceased spouse.

court costsDying without a will can also mean

substantial court costs that would other-wise have been avoided. The court willappoint an administrator to manage thedistribut¡on of the estate, often at a costof three to five percent of its total value,with the added cost of a required bond,another $200 or more.

While you can draw up your ownwill, it's better-and legally moresecure-to let an attorney do it.Depending on the complexity of thewill, his costs ordinarily will be around$75. You can designate as an adminis-trator a relative or trusted friend, mak-ing a court appointed and paid andbonded administrator unnecessary.

Once drafted, wills should be kept athome (and not in a bank safe depositbox) and on file with your attorney. Besure that beneficiaries or close friendsknow where the will can be found.

update willsWills should be reviewed if or when

family changes occur-particularly ifthere! a divorce, marriage, birth ordeath. Divorces lead to complicatedproblems; by all means consult anattorney.

If there are dependent children, yourwill should include your wishes for aguardian or guardians should the chil-dren be orphaned. Be sure to discussthis with the relative or close friend youchoose to care for the children: theguardian you propose might not want

date.

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THE RANDALL HOUSE BIBLE COMMENTARYBENEFITS THAT BUILD_FEATURES THAT FORTIFY

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Theolog¡calGuidelines for a

l\lew HymnalBy l-eroy Cutler

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you imagine a worship serv-I ice without music? lt would beYlike another Sunday School

class or Bible study. Music is importantin our worship of God because every-one participates.

Historically, music is associated withservice to God. Old Testament believerssang in one style, while Paul and Silasprobably sang in another. The style ofmusic changes with time. What we singtoday is unlike singing in Bible times.

This f act remains unchanged:believers have always sung songs aboutGod, Christ, the Holy Spirit, the church,truth, etc. So the Bible becomes thestandard for evaluating a song's validityfor worship.

Singing was part of both Old andNew Testament worship. Ephesians5:I7, 19 urges believers to communi-cate "...in psalms, hymns, and spiritualsongs, singing and making melody inyour heart to the Lordi' Many Biblesongs described the experiences ofIsrael, the captivity in Egypt and Baby-lon, the deliverance by God. There aresongs of praise and thanksgiving,expressing the heart of the psalmist.

Ephesians 5 mentions three differenttypes of songs: psalms, hymns andspiritual songs. We may say that we singanthems, hymns, gospel songs, cho-ruses, evangelistic songs, missionarysongs and others. Musical style maydivide high church from low church, butbiblical content is important to all.

Music edifies, educates and excites,being a means to enhance worship.Joshua sang, David sang, the lsraelites

sang, Paul and Silas sang, and in Reve-lation L9 everybody sang the Hallelu-jah Chorus!

A song or hymn must be theologi-cally sound to be acceptable for use inworship. That is, it must speak properlyand accurately about God. It must beacceptable to God, as well as beingacceptable to those who sing.

We need a theological standard whenselecting songs and hymns for the newFree Will Baptist hymnal. And how canwe measure a song's validity other thanby the scriptures? Does it say what theBible says? W¡llthose who sing it under-stand it to mean what the Bible meansconcerning that particular truth?

One quartet song I remember as aboy was "Lord, Build Me a Cabin in theCorner of Glory Landl'Good harmony,but bad theology. God says He has amansion for us!

Paul uses the expression, "Makingmelody in your heartl' in Ephesians5:19. Literally, it says "Psalming with theheartl' Maybe that's what David didwhile shepherding his sheep, compos-ing songs from his own experiences andknowledge of God.

Three guidelines for hymn selectioncan help us avoid problems: WouldGod approve it? Would Jesus sing it?Would the Holy Spirit inspire it? If itdoesn't pass those three criteria, itshould be eliminated.

In order to reach our ultimate goal,we also ask the following:

l. f)oes it present the truth alreadyapproued by God in His Word? It's notthe proven examples that we question,such as 'Amazing Grace," "Blessed

Assurance," "Victory in Jesus," 'tesusLoves Me" or "How Great Thou Artl' It's

the new songs that we hope to includefrom new authors, even Free Will Bap-tist composers. We don't anticipate anyproblems here, either. But we musthave some means of measuring them.

2. ls the meaning cleor? John Wes-ley was concerned on one occasionabout some of his songs being changed.He believed every word in a songshould have meaning, and it wouldchange the meaning to change thewords. He wanted it published as hewrote it or not at all.

John Wesley and his brother Charleswrote and published entire hymn books.They were both well educated men andwrote complex hymns, believing thatthis was a way of educating the laity. Forinstance, we sing, "Here I raise mineEbenezer." Ebenezer meaning"memorial stone." Words like'diademl'meaning "crownn or "authority" illustratethe point.

3. Will it strengthen those who usethe song? Songs make impressions on

ABOUT THE WRITER: Dr. Leroy Cutler pastorslmmonuel Free Will Boptíst Church. Jacksonuille.Florida. Dr. Cutler ís o member of the Free WillBaplísl Hymnal Commiuee.

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our subconscious mind. We find our-selves singing them while driving orwashing dishes. They become part ofour beliefs and convictions.

4. Does the song haue a doublemeaning? Could it mean somethingelse? The song, "You Light Up My Life,"is an example of this. Debbie Boonesays she had God in mind when writ-ing it. But it's sung in night clubs andbars, and in that setting does not makeone think of God.

A country-western song popular inthe 1960's was titled 'Almost Per-suaded." But it was about a guy in a bar"almost persuaded" to become involvedwith a girl.

"When the Saints Go Marching In"was a favorite, used in bars by a youngman whose parents attended ourchurch..He played in a band and wasunsaveo.

l. Could all our people use iú? Asdiverse as we are. even on some doc-trinal points, we must either eliminateall songs that would not be acceptableby all our people, or we must allowtolerance to choose hymns that reflectour views as well as the views of others.Some of our people hold premillennialviews on escatology, while others areamillennialists. Do we eliminate allsongs on the subject, or do we includesome of both? My opinion is that weinclude both.

6. Would the song glorit'y God?7. Would the lit'e ol the composer

glorily God? We do not question thesongs of Fanny Crosby or John New-ton. But some modern-day gospel songwriters do not bear witness to beingsaved individuals.

8. Would it be a blessing to ourpeople?

9. Does it produce positiue results?10. Does it qdhere to traditional Free

Will Baptist ualues? Free Will Baptistshold certain views concerning the lord'sSupper, baptism, education, missions,Sunday School, women'in the church,the virgin birth, the blood atonement,tongues in the New Testament church,God's power to heal, the providence ofGod, and lhe Íree will of man. Theseare only a few of many doctrines thatwe hold dear.

It's impossible to write a completestatement on each of these. Time andspace do not permit. But we will judgeevery song's teaching in the light of whatwe believe will be true to traditional FreeWillBaptist doctrine. Our guide here will

Ca¡ol R. Shearn, The Church OfficeHøndbook (Wtlton, CT: Morehouse-Barlow, 19A6, 22Ð pp., paperback,$ro.95).

¡rìarol Shearn is office manager for a\¡2,500-member congregation inFlorida. She's responsible for recordkeeping and correspondence for thislarge church. In her book, she sharesmany helpful insights on how to set up,organize and run a church office. Thevolume is designed for the person withlittle or no experience working in achurch office.

Part one deals with the basicorganizational skills needed in a churchoffice. Effective channels of communi-cation must be established between allpeople involved. The pastor and thechurch secretary play vital roles in thatthey must provide leadership. Mrs.Shearn includes a helpful section onrecruiting, training, using and keepingvolunteer workers. Every pastor shouldread this section of the book.

Part two deals with collecting,preserving and using information aboutpeople. Every church needs to preserveaccurate records of members and visi-tors. Maintaining current records is oftena difficult task, and the author suggestsways to do it as effeclively as possible.

Part three addresses financial recordsand reports. A church must keep anaccurate and understandable record ofits income and expenditures. Manychurches do not have the services oftrained bookkeepers to do this work.They must rely on volunteers. This bookgives a simple, step-by-step outline of

how to set up and maintain the variousledgers.

The author also discusses the prepa-ration of financial reports which are tobe used by the pastor and members ofthe congregation. The most helpful sec-tion of part three deals with completinggovernment reports on unordainedemployees. Churches are now requiredto withhold income tax and social secu-rity on unordained employees and filereports with the federal government.Mrs. Shearn gives a simple and clearexplanation of how to do this.

The remaining parts of the book dealwith a variety of important subjectsincluding preservation and storage ofchurch records, handling church mail,and using computers to speed up thework of the church office. The last partgives a list of books which can be con-sulted to find answers to specificquestions.

I recommend the book to allchurches, large and small. Many smallchurches do not have secretaries. Thepastor and members of the congrega-tion must do the office work. This bookcan provide immediate help to them. Achurch office is, in some ways, differ-ent from other offices. A person withsome secretarial training may not befamiliar with the specific proceduresneeded in a church office. This bookcan benefit someone in all churchoffices. O

be the Bible, of course, and the Articles vation" (Psalm 95:1). Can you imagineof Faith from the Free Will Baptist singing to the "Rock of our salvation"Treatise. anything less than a scripturally sound

In singing as in preaching, we are to song?"speak thou the things which become Finally, our hymn book should reflectsound doctrine" (Titus 2:1). "O Come, what we are as Free Will Baptists andlet us sing unto the Lord. Let us make what we hope to become asa joyful noise unto the Rock of our sal- Christians. O

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¡'¡, ¡,ith their noses pressed against[f,, the window, Marty, Megan andUU Jeff watched ur ã big loving

van pulled into the driveway across thestreet. Three men began unloading fur-niture and boxes into the vacant house.

"Look!" cried Megan as one of themovers rolled a pink bicycle down theramp. "They must have a girl. Yippee!"

"Shucks," groaned Marty turning fromthe window. "Hey, wait a minute. What'sthis?" Two of the movers were carryingout a go-cart. "They must have a boy,too, and he's got a go-cart. What luck!I can't wait to meet him."

Marty got his chance that afternoon.Mrs. Lane baked a cake, and she andthe children took it across the street towelcome the new neighbors.

A woman in her 50's opened thedoor.

"Hello, welcome to the neighbor-hood," said Mrs. Lane warmly. "l'mLaura Lane and these are my children,Marty, Megan and Jeffl'

"Why, thank youl'answered the lady."l'm Mrs. Kemble, the Whitlev'sgoverness."

l/farty and Megan stared at thelYlwoman. Thevd heard of qover-nesses on televisión, but never-knewanyone who had one.

"l baked this cake for you alll' saidMrs. Lane. "Would you please tell Mr.and Mrs. Whitley that I called, and thatwe're looking forward to meeting them?"

"Mr. and Mrs. Whitley are in Europeon business," answered Mrs. Kemble."They won't be returning to the statesfor several weeks. But I know they

Th¡ngs and ImportantThings

appreciate your kindness, and the chil-dren and I will certainly enjoy the cakel'

"Could we meet them, please?" askedMegan shyly.

"Why, of course," answered Mrs.Kemble. "George, Christy, come here.please. You have guests."

The two Whitley children ran into theroom. They both had big brown eyesand shiny black hair. George was 10,Christy 8.

After Mrs. Kemble introduced every-one, Mrs. Lane said, "lt was nice meet-ing you, but I know you're busy tryingto get settled in, so we won't keep you.Come on children, let's go homel'

"Oh, please, Mrs. Kemble, can't Martyand Megan stay?" asked Christy.

So the twins spent the afternoon withthe Whitley children. It was like playingin a toy store. George and Christy hadevery kind of toy and game imaginable.

Marty and Megan bubbled over atsupper that night. "Boy, they haveeverythingl'said Marty. "Can I get a go-cart for my birthday, so George and Ican race?"

"You should have seen all of Christy'sdollsl'said Megan enviously. "She has29 Barbie dolls and 12 different Cab-bage Patch dolls. Can you believe it?"

"George has his own color tv in hisroom," said Marty.

"So does Christyl added Megan, bndher own computerl'

"Can we go back and play withGeorge and Christy tomorrow?" askedMartv.

"Why don't we invite them overhere?" asked Mrs. Lane.

"Aw, Mom, there's nothing to do hereicomplained Marty. "Can we, please?George said we could fly his remotecontrol airplane."

Mr. and Mrs. Lane looked at eachother and wondered what kind of peo-ple the Whitleys were and how theyended up in their subdivision.

Th" weeks went by and Marty,I Megan, George and Christy be-

came good friends. The twins nevertired of all the Whitley's toys, and Mrs.Kemble took them on outings to keepthem entertained. They went to the zoo,the circus, an amusement park, puppetshows, museums, libraries, plays andeven a concert.

Once when Mrs. Kemble was sick,George and Christy spent the night atthe Lanes' house. Mr. and Mrs. Laneoverheard the children talking.

"l know it's sorta boring here," saidMarty as George and Christy wereleaving.

"No," said George quickly. "lt's beenswell. Playing baseball with your dadthis afternoon was really neat."

'And I really liked it when we madepopcorn and played Unol' addedChristy.

"But we don't have nearly as manytoys here," said Megan.

"But it was still funl' said George. "lt'ssorta...well, cozy herd'

Marty and Megan couldn't believewhat they were hearing.

One day Megan and Mrs. Lane wentshopping for a birthday present for

Christy. "l don't know what to get her."said Megan. "She has everything. She'sthe luckiest girl in the worldl'

Mrs. Lane didn't like to hear Megantalk that way. but she didn't sayanything.

.' i 'he next day Marty and Megan went

.l . over to help Christy celebrate herbirthday. Mrs. Kemble gave her a prettylavender jumper and blouse along withknee socks. hair ribbons and a purse tomatch. George gave his sister a Vic-torian doll house that his parents'creditcard had paid for. Their parents, still inEurope. had arranged for a big organto be delivered from the music store.

"Wow!" exclaimed Megan. "Neato!""Yeah, it's neatl'said Christy quietly,

"but I wish Mother and Dad were herel'"Time for cake." said Mrs. Kemble

cheerily carrying in a beautifully deco-rated cake in the shape of a doll. Every-one sang "Happy Birthday" to Christy.Then Megan said. "Make a wish andblow out the candles."

A sad look came into Christy's browneyes as she made her wish. Everyoneknew what she was wishing for. Shewas wishing for her mother and daddy.

"Well, how was the party?" asked Mrs.Lane when the twins got home.

"[t was ok]' said Megan, "but Christywas sad because her parents weren'ttherel'

"But she got all those great presents,'said Marty, 'and she had a real neatcake from a bakery that looked just likea dolll'

"Yeahl' agreed Megan. "but I couldn'thelp thinking about our birthday cakesthat Mom always works so hard on. I

think they taste a lot better.""You're rightl' admitted Marty. "You

know. it's fun to go over to the Whitley's,but it always feels good to come home.It's sorta lonely therel'

"l don't think George and Christyhave it madel'said Megan solemnly. "lthink we dol'

Mr. and Mrs. Lane looked at eachother and smiled. They hugged thetwins. "We've had to bite our tonguesto keep from telling you that there aremore important things in this world thanthingsl' said their mother.

"We thought wed let you figure it outfor yourselvesl' said Mr. Lane.

"Toys, games, computers ancl outingsare nicel' said Megan, "but having afamily that loves each other and is q!togetirer is better-lots betterl' (Ð

Chank þu Fo,

þu, Cont¡ibulions...

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Cooperative Channel ContributionsDecember 1986

RECEIPTS:StateAlabamaArizonaArkansas

CaliforniaFloridaGeorgiaIdaholllinoislndianaKansas

KentuckyMichiganMississippiMissouriNew MexicoNorth Ca¡olinaOhioOklahomaSouth CarolinaTennessee

TÞxas

VirginiaWest VirginiaCanadaOtherInterest

Totals

cooPDeslgn. (utrder¡sn¡red, Total Dec. '85 Y¿ to Date

$ 309.04 $ 40.00 $ 349.04 $ .00 $ 9,544.91.00 .00 .00 48.74 221.29

283.32 2.268.11 2.506.43 3.673.03 49.134.54.00 775.54 775.54 742.87 10.113.33.00 .00 .00 1.822.96 21.900.99

4 .Ozt .7 I 6 1 9 . 50 4 .64t .28 t4 .217 .29 60 ,631 .23.00 .00 .00 .00 392.80

6.991.6t 1.436.60 8.428.2r 5,036.85 86.194.89740.20 .00 740.20 460.38 6.759.08

.00 .00 .00 47.13 688.36

.00 353.00 353.00 291 .00 5.091.873.151.35 .00 3,151.35 4.722.t0 54,278.25

105.32 516.59 62t.9t 110.73 5.041.06t.496.16 6.058.77 7.s54.93 t3.259.99 104.695.95

14.25 7.13 21.38 57.56 411.61955.00 185.00 1.140.00 852.82 2r.458.52586.54 3.300.00 3,886.54 .00 34.r4r.02

28.212.06 5.322.61 33.534.67 36,094.r7 493,815.9510.972.88 .00 10.972.88 138.00 36.024.56

195.79 478.70 674.49 1,502.53 17.051.996.9t4.20 520.82 7.435.02 5,359.40 89.271.69

145.00 (140.00) 5.00 660.00 5.674.121.749.2r 192.48 r.941.69 2.528.31 35.358.81

.00 .00 .00 .00 500.0020.00 10.00 30.00 .00 48.00

.00 1.013.85 1.013.85 613.51 1,013.85

$66.8 18. 7 1 $22.958.7 0 $89.77 7 .4r $92.239.37 $1, 149,458.67

DISBURSEMENTS:Executive Office $ 872.59 $13.852.35 $14.724.94 $14,158.05 $ 177,381.24Foreign Missions 44.794.94 2.094.42 46.889.36 46.908.87 583.782.76FWBBC 2.258.t8 2.094.42 4.352.60 6.549.01 74.089.55Home Missions 16.779.86 1.639.17 18.419.03 14.674.70 216.981.24Retirement & Insurance 51.02 1.274.93 1.325.95 2,970.19 30,628.98Masteri Men 60.99 1.183.85 1.244.84 2.750.55 26.666.19Commission for Theo.

lntegrityFWB FoundationHistorical CommissionRadio & TV CommissionHillsdale FWB CollegeOther

Totals $66.8 18. 7 l $22.958.7 0 $89.777 .41 $92.239.37 $ l, 149.458.67

24.10 9r.05 ll5.r5 228.69 2.271.15514.43 546.41 1,060.84 1.460.84 13.254.9826.04 91.05 rt7.O9 226.68 2.284.3156.04 91.05 147.09 236.68 2.720.16

r.311.28 .00 1.311.28 2.042.07 18.000.1369.24 .00 69.24 33.10 r.397 .98

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MissouriYouth at First FWB Church, Monett,

Mo., participated in an UndergroundRevival. Led by Youth Pastor TobyJenkins, the youth met for six nights indifferent homes. They were told eachevening where the next service wouldbe. There was no advance promotion,no advertising, no contacting other localchurches. It was simply by word ofmouth through the teen group.

There were no Bibles allowed and norefreshments served. The youth pastormemorized the book of Jude andshared messages from it each evening.They sang songs and choruses frommemory, recited scriptures, prayed andpraised the lord during services con-ducted in dimly lit homes.

The results? Many youth gave up badhabits; some fasted; teen,/parent rela-tionships were enhanced, homesstrengthened, 38 teens rededicated,seven teens converted. The revival spiritcarried over into the church as the finalmessage from Jude was delivered Sun-day morning. Sunday evening washighlighted by testimonies andbaptisms.

OklahomaThe teens at Shadynook FWB

Church, Oklahoma C¡ty, Okla., live upto their group name, "Teens on Fire."Youth Pastor Steven Turner directs thisgroup of approximately 25 youth. Steveand Gayla Turner are assisted by fiveother adult workers.

The group won the Oklahoma StateYouth Conference attendance trophy inNovember 1986 at Ada. This was thefirst year they attended the stateconference.

The youth pastor says, "Activeinvolvement in the church as a whole,not just teen activities, is a must. Other-wise the world and its attractions willconfuse and pull our youth into a falsehope of pleasure and joy which canonly truly be found in Christl'

The youth produce a monthly youthactivities letter for their church and plana teen newsletter for area churches. Theyouth willgather the materials, write thestories, take the pictures, edit and layout the newsletter.

The youth production (drama) groupwill present "The Judgmenti written bytheir youth pastor. A puppet ministryand a youth vocal ensemble add dimen-sion to their outreach.

The teens conduct a youth serviceeach second Sunday where they direct,

make announcements, lead song serv-ice, perform special music, prayer andaltar counseling.

The teens divide into prayer groupsand select an elderly member or cou-ple of the church for special projectsduring the year. They plan to scrapeand paint an elderly ch¡urch member'shome.

The teens are responsible for earningfunds for the youth program. They

2609 N. OUT POST o OKLA. CITY, OK

maintain the church lawn and keep upthe church sign slogans.

Pastor Stanley Konopinski laid thefoundation of faithfulness, love anddedication in the Shadynook youth."Tþens on Fire" group goal is to activelyinvolve teens in church service and helpthem become productive leaders oftomorrow's church. EÈ'

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Next Month¡ Th¡e Children and Their Money

333

f1

NEWS OF THE

RELIGIOUSCOMMUNITY

T.ELEVEN STORE MANAGER FTREDFON NOT SELLING PORNOGRAPHY

SUPERIOR, Wl (EP)-Dean Krych, named man-ager of the year in 1980 and 1981 for his workwith a 7-Eleven store, was fired for refusing to sellPlayboy and Penthouse magazines ¡n the sto¡e hemanages for the Denver-based Wydomak Corpo-ration. Because the stores are franchised, ratherthan owned by the Southland Corporation (par-

ent of 7-Eleven), Wydomak stores are not affectedby 7- Eleven's decision to remove pornographyfrom its area stores.

"l believe our country is being invaded and pol-luted by pornographers," Krych told a crowdgathered in his support. Krych said Wydomak cor-poration has "thrown down the gauntlet" andstated that he would not take his job back untilpornographic magazines were removed from allWydomak stores. 'l iust want to take this standfor the good of the community and thisneighborhood."

Until he was fired, Krych was manager of oneof Wydomak's three largest convenience stores.During the last seven years he made his store a

center for neighborhood activities. He was nation-ally honored for his compassionate handling ofa neighborhood fire tragedy; he housed and fed70 victims of an apartment fire in his storeovernight.

FEW AMERTCANS OBJECT TORELTGIOUS MEETINGS, COURSES ¡N

PUBLTC SCHOOI-S

PRINCETON, NJ (EP)-Þw Americans object tohaving a variety of religious studies available inpublic schools, including elective Bible studycourses, using the Bible in literature, history andsocial studies classes, teaching about the majorreligions of the world, and making facilities avail-able after school for student rel¡gious groups,

according to a Gallup Poll done ¡n conjunctionwith the Laymen's National Bible Committee.

Comparative religion classes were opposed byonly 16 percent of those polled. Using the Biblein literature, history and social studies classes wasopposed by 20 percent. Making facilities availa'ble after school for use by student religious groups

and organizations was opposed by 21 percent, andoffering elective courses in Bible studies wasopposed by 20 percent. Five percent of thosepolled had no opinion, and others said they wouldnot oppose such activit¡es.

The survey also asked Americans, "How oftendo you read the Biblel Only one percent said theyread the Bible more than once daily. Daily Biblereading was indicated by 10 percent of thosepolled. Others said they read the Bible two or threetimes a week (nine percent): weekly (13 percent);

two or three times a month (six percent); monthly(eight percent); less than once a month (26 pet-cent)l and never (22 percent). Five percent ofthose polled were unable to say how often theyread the Bible.

The survey showed that wom€n, blacks, olderpeople, the less-well-educated, Protestants, evan'gelicals and Southerners were more likely to be

reoular Bible readers.

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ÐËËtrËËDEPTH_Free Will BaptistDevotional GuideDEPTH is a daily devotional guide thatis uniquely Free Will Baptist, listingdenominational prayer requests on adaily basis.

DEPTH is listed on your curriculumorder blank. Churches are encouragedto order enough copies for each familyin the church.

Published Quarterly/$1.25 Per Copy

Add 5%oltotdlorctettot postage and ^

i:;::' ä:,' : ; ",:J : ::? !#!Åiäf ïi¿!i! I .$ n"".l"l Hou sc pr¡ brcadons4GÈ P.O. Box 17306. Nashville, TN 37217

Toll Free f -800-251-5762ln TN 1-800.624-6538

MINISTERS SHUN COUNSELTNG,METHODTST SURVEY REVEAT,S

NASHVILLE, TN (EP)-Although pastors areoften involved in providing counseling as part oftheir m¡nistry, they are reluclant to seek it for them-selves, according to a United Methodist survey.The survey also found that most pastors feel ill-prepared for the task of counseling theirparishioners.

About 1,900 pastors responded to the survey,which was sent to 3,000 of the 32,000 ministersin the 9.4-million-member Methodist Church. Ofthe respondents. 46 percent said they do not feelfree to seek counseling, and only five percent saidthey would turn to their bishop for counselìng.Most feared that such an overlure would be a signof weakness, according to the survey.

Some ministe¡s seek friendships with clergyfrom other denominat¡ons to exchange gripes andunload burdens. the survey showed. The studyalso found that counseling and administralion cre-ate the most headaches for pastors, who feel betterqualified to tackle preaching and educating.

WEEKLV CHURCH AXTENDANCEVARIES AROUND THE WORLD

PRINCETON, NJ (EP)-The percentage of thepopulation who practice weekly church atten-dance in countries around the world ranges fioma high of 91 percent in Malta to a low of threepercent in both Denma¡k and lceland, accordingto the Septembe¡ 1986 PRRC Emerging Tiends.

The percentage of survey respondents attend-ing church weekly in the United States is 43 per-cent. Percentages in other countries include:lreland,T2 percent; Mexico, 54; Northern lreland,521 South Africa whites 50 percent, blacks 38 per-

cent; Spain, 41; Italy, 36; Ch¡le, 31: Belgium andCanada. 30: Netherlands. 27: Aust¡alia, 22;\NeslGermany, 21: South Korea, 19: Great Britain, 14;

France, 12; Norway, seven percent; Hungary andSwedenl. five percent: and Japan and Finland,four pe¡cent.

UTAH C¡ÎY STOPS PAYINGTO LTGHT MORMON TEMPLE

ST. GEORGE. UT (EP)-The city of St. George.Utah. ended its 44-year lighting subsidy for theSt. George Mormon Temple. The temple, built ona hill above the town, is a commanding pr€sence,

and is easily seen by motorists on Interstãte 15.

Since 1942 the city had subsidized the lighting ofthe temple at night. hoping to draw tourists to St.

George, former home of Mormon patriarchBrigham Young.

Two suits filed against the city charging that thesubsidy violated "separation ol church and state"

forced the city to rethink its position. A local attor-ney filed one of the suitst five Baptist ministers anda Catholic priest filed the other.

Ted Shumway, city attorney for St. George,explained, "Our position was that the purpose ofthe energy credit was to highlight a scenic land-mark and promot€ the city. We didn't feel it wasunconstitutional." But the city agreed to drop thesubsidy when Mormon leaders agreed to financethe lighting. "We just don't want the friction or thebad publicityl' said Shumway.

Highestin History

increased support for the denomina-tional ministries through the Coopera-tive Plan and other methods ofproportionate sharing. He is chargedwith the responsibility of receiving anddispersing cooperative funds, and ingeneral to serve as treasurer and busi-ness manager of the NationalAssociation."

This includes designated and cooper-ative (undesignated) gifts. It's not a mat-ter of utilizing one or the other, but both.Proportionate sharing benefits alldenominational ministries includinglocal church, district, state and nationalassociations. All agencies in the FreeWill Baptist family are worthy of fair,faithful and fullsupport. The Coopera-tive Channel provides a way to focus onand fund all denominational agencies.

Its ProgressGifts through the Cooperative Plan

totaled $17,872 in 1955. By 1965 giftsreached $7 7,849. ln I97 5 CooperativePlan gifts passed $152,000. Gifts for1985 rose to $938,278.

Then came 1986 when cooperativegiving topped $1.1 million. That

Secretaryb ScheduleMarch 7 Arizona District Association

Heritage Temple FWB ChurchGilbert, Ariz.

March 9-ll Christian StewardshipCouncil Conference

Kansas City, Mo.Ma¡ch 13-15 New Life FWB Church

O'Fallon, Mo.

THE SECRETARY SPEAKSBy Melvin Worthington

f f lhat's 32 years old and worthlrlt a million dollars to the FreeUU Will Baptist denomination?

The Cooperative Þlan, that's what!It's true. Giving to denominational

causes through the Cooperative Plantopped the $1 million mark in 1986.That's the highest in history. We praisethe Lord for this milestone.

Cooperative giving undergirds theentire work of the National Associationand extends the influence of a localcongregation around the world. It's alsoa tangible expression of our corporatecommitment to proclaim Jesus Christ byevery means possible to every personon earth.

The Cooperative Plan is a voluntaryplan created and controlled by Free WillBaptists, through which designated andundesignated gifts can be given. It pro-vides systematic support for denomina-tional agencies. This giving conceptrecognizes relationships within thedenomination, responsibilities to it, aswell as its resources.

Its PromotionThe stewardship which pleases God

consists of tithes and offerings. The FreeWill Baptist position on financing God'swork is quite clear. We believe that"Both the OId and New Testamentscriptures teach tithing as God's finan-cial plan for the support of His work."(Tieqtise)

The Tieotíse charges the executivesecretary to "...provide a program ofstewardship education that will produce

THt: N^T|ON^I. ^SSOCT^T()N

Of'

Free Will Baptists

included $368,470 undesignated (Co-op) gifts and $780,988 designated gifts.

Its ProblemsBut it isn't all good news. Some mis-

interpret, misuse and misunderstand theCooperative Plan. They fear that it's astep toward centralization and control.

Not to worry. Free Will Baptists canbe confident that the CooperativeChannel which receives and disbursesundesignated (Co-op) and designatedgifts is our plan. We authorized it; weallocate it, and we adjust it. lf the plandoesn't do what we want it to do, wecan abolish it.

There may never be complete agree-ment on undesignated (Co-op) anddesignated giving, but it need not be abattleground. We need both kinds ofgiving. læt's stop dividing ourselves overgiving and implement both as a meansto fully and fairly support all denomina-tional ministries.

Its PotentialThe Cooperative Plan has the poten-

tial to fund every Free Will Baptist pro-gram from the local church to district,state and national associations. A com-prehensive, cooperative stewardshipprogram will bring a spirit of unity,understanding and unselfishnessu).

Denominational stewardship giopportunity for every Free Will Baptistto participate in biblical stewardship.Yes, 1986 gifts made history. Now, letour Cooperative Plan motto be iA mil-lion more bv '94!

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P.O. Box 10BB

I'iashville, Tennessee 37202

Seconci class postage pa¡d ai Nashville, Tennessi:e

Seuenfh Annuql

ffiæsrdaHH Fffimeas@

WtrñÉætrsu Cmmffetr@Rac@Sponsored by Randall House Publications

-\iÈ, .-È

May 15, 16,1987

MARY LOU REDDINGMANAGING EDITOR, UPPER ROOM MAGAZINE

Mary Lou has been active from the local church to the universitylevel.Come share in the richness of her knowledge, experience, andability.Help for beginning and advanced writers.Write for descriptive brochure and program guide to:

Randall House Writers' ConferenceRev. Harrold D. Harrison, Conference DirectorP.O. Box 17306, Nashville, TN 37277(615) 361-122r

WORKSHOP LEADER