The Alabama Messenger March/April

ALABAMAMESSENGER

THE

Rev. Ken Draughon

Dr. Joseph Dimitrov

Dr. Greg Mundis

MONDAY PM

SPEAKER

TUESDAY AM

SPEAKER

TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY PM

Rev. Nelson Lugo

Rev. Sharon Fridge

Rev. Rusty Nelson

MISSIONS BANQUET

SPEAKER

LADIES LUNCHEON

SPEAKER

WEDNESDAY AM

SPEAKER

Join us for the 105th Alabama District Council

April 20-22, 2020 at The Rock Family Worship Center in Huntsville

January/February 2020 Volume 34/Number 2

Ken Draughon DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT ds@adcag.org In just a few short weeks our Alabama District Council will convene at The Rock Family Worship Center in Huntsville. Pastors Rusty and Leisa Nelson have graciously consented to host Council this year. We are looking forward to this event with great anticipation and expectation. Our theme for this council is, “A Decade of Divine Destiny.” We sense God’s Spirit has led us to focus on the Alabama District as a fellowship on a mission.

The speaker will be Dr. Greg Mundis who is the World Missions Executive Director for the Assemblies of God. The District Leadership Team is expecting the Lord to meet with us in our services to bring a spiritual refreshing as well as supernatural encouragement and vision. Dr. Mundis is an amazing and abundantly anointed speaker. You will NOT want to miss this family gathering.

In addition to our guest speaker, one of our Alabama missionaries, Nelson Lugo, will bring a missions challenge to us during the Missions Banquet. Dr. Joseph Dimitrov, President of Continental Theological Seminary in Belgium, will be our World Missions Service speaker.

Our women in ministry are sure to be encouraged by Pastor Sharon Fridge during the Ladies Luncheon on Tuesday. Pastor Sharon has served as a District Women’s Director as well as copastor alongside her husband at First Assembly in Conroe, Texas. I hope you can join us for these events.

Please mark these dates on your calendar and plan to be in attendance for District Council. I am requesting that the churches underwrite the expenses of their senior pastors, staff pastors and delegates to the Council, as they represent the church’s interest in the Alabama District. Please note, that each General Council affiliated church has the option for one delegate from their church to vote on the church’s behalf during the business session (this person does not have to hold credentials with the Assemblies of God).

Hotel information for the Huntsville area is available on our website (www.adcag.org). I recommend that you book early in order to secure the hotel of your choice as these rooms will go quickly!

Join us in prayer for God’s favor and direction on the events of our 2020 District Council. I look forward to seeing you there.

Let’s change the World, Ken Draughon

MICHAEL D. SHARP, D.MIN. DISTRICT SECRETARY-TREASURER msharp@adcag.org

DISTORTING THE SCRIPTURES TO OUR OWN DESTRUCTION “Bear in mind that our Lord’s pa3ence means salva3on, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his leAers, speaking in them of these maAers. His leAers contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruc3on.

Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure posi3on. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”

Neither the Bible nor the Chris/an church has ever taught that all Scripture is equally simple, clear, or easy to understand by all people in all /mes and places. As a ma>er of fact, if you believe that or teach that, you are directly contradic/ng what the Bible says about itself! In 2 Peter 3:14-18 above, the apostle Peter states explicitly that some of Paul’s le>ers are hard to understand. He says this about le>ers, the easiest literature in the Bible to understand. He says this about le>ers wri>en in his readers’ own language, culture, and context. And yet, Peter s/ll says some things in them are hard to understand. Why are they hard to understand? And, why are some “teachers” twis/ng or distor/ng them?

Because they are ignorant and unstable.

Here “ignorant” means unlearned or untaught. These self-styled teachers had never been properly taught by others who were themselves properly taught. They had not been taught how to read and understand Paul’s le>ers, therefore they misinterpreted them. This lack of reading skills meant they were being neither well formed, nor well informed, by God’s Word. Peter says they were misreading and distor/ng other Scriptures also. Therefore, their minds, their characters, their consciences were being twisted, distorted. They were “unstable,” meaning unseAled, not steadfast.

Without a deep founda/on of solid learning, they were unable to dis/nguish between sound teaching and heresy, between truth and lies. Believing lies, they became increasingly lawless, resistant to authority, to sound teaching, to righteousness. They were headed for destruc/on.

Peter warned his readers to be “on guard” against such unlearned, unstable teachers lest they be carried away by their errors and be destroyed. He commands his readers to be alert, watchful, protec/ve, tes/ng the validity of all teachers-preachers and their messages. They were to be constantly “on guard” by always growing in the “grace and knowledge” of Christ. Peter’s readers would be able to dis/nguish truth from error, and true teachers from false teachers, by being properly taught by Peter, Paul, and those taught by them. The Apostles faithfully taught what Jesus taught, faithfully taught the Old Testament as Jesus had trained them to. Peter’s readers would discern false teaching and avoid destruc/on by con/nually deepening their understanding of the Apostles’ teaching of God’s Word and Christ’s gospel.

We recently saw yet another poorly educated, poorly formed pastor-teacher believe a lie regarding the Bible’s teaching on homosexuality. He had an inadequate founda/on to begin with, and he never kept growing in his forma/on and educa/on – grace and knowledge – in Jesus Christ. Instead of con/nually drinking from wells dug by godly, faithful, properly educated and formed scholar-teachers, he sought out those who had abandoned God and His Word. Soon, good was called evil, and evil, good.

We’ve seen it before on this issue and others. We will see it as long as God’s leaders and people permit poor forma/on and educa/on, with no con/nuing forma/on and educa/on in Word and Spirit. God commands it, it is available and affordable, but we are too proud or too lazy to receive it. Friends, more seminars on marke/ng, leadership, and Pastor Wonderful’s simplis/c book-de-jour are powerless to teach us how to correctly handle the Word of Truth, how to grow in God’s Word and Christ’s gospel. We MUST con/nually be asking God’s well trained scholar-teachers to help us be>er handle the Word of Truth, so that we may grow in grace and knowledge, and be constantly, effec/vely on guard against the enemy. It is a fundamental requirement for ministry. God repeatedly commands it. Are you obeying, or are you rebelling?

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DA E March 20 & 21 - Springville Camp & Conference Center April 4 First Assembly of God, Clanton

2019 BGMC GI ING

JANUARY-DECEMBER

Clearwater A/G.................... $32,875.00 First A/G, Phenix City.......... $15,404.00 First A/G, Montgomery..... $10,369.72 First A/G, Ozark..................... $8,972.32 Fountain of Life...................... $7,701.97 Pleasant Grove A/G........... $7,473.54 New Home A/G.................... $5,938.00 First A/G, Jackson............... $5,614.60 Thompson Chapel A/G... $5,582.19 Temple A/G............................ $5,539.15

2019

NDA

CH

L I HE

JANUARY-DECEMBER

Yarbo A/G................................$1,392.75 Faith A/G.................................. $818.38 Temple A/G............................ $627.02 Weeks Memorial ................. $619.00 Harper's Joy A/G................. $600.00 Kingwood A/G....................... $600.00 First A/G, Montgomery..... $600.00 The Crossing.......................... $600.00 First A/G, Ashland................$598.90 Hobson A/G............................ $580.00

May 1 & 2 Southeast Regionals, Georgia June 11, 12, & 13 - Nationals, Naperville, Illinois

Our first annual KIDS Retreat was a great success We had over 0 in attendance What an awesome sight to see our th th th grade kids going after a deeper relationship with Jesus Thank you to all our small group leaders and all our volunteer personnel who helped this past weekend at KIDS we could not have done it without you

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Alabama Women’s Ministries Director: Cyndi Draughon

for every woman...

GCWC 2020 RECAP

Thank you to so many of you for joining us at the Gulf Coast Women’s Conference. God truly met with us there. We had a great crowd and Christian Life, The Island Church and their team did a wonderful job hosting us. Pastor Fred Franks, thank you for allowing us the opportunity to hold our conference at your church. Crystal Crosby, Susanne Cox and Terra Russell all brought powerful words of encouragement. Pastor Jeremy Sims and Kingwood Church, as always, did an incredible job leading us into His presence with worship.

GCWC 2021 planning is already underway. Mark your calendars now for February 18-20, 2021.

District Council

LADIES LUNCHEON Tuesday, April 21st at 11:30 AM

The Rock Family Worship Center

$20 Per ticket

Guest Speaker:

Sharon Fridge BUTLER MISSION JUNE 22-26, 2020

at home and around the world!

WOMEN IN MINISTRY

Join the Alabama Women’s Department for a local missions outreach to Choctaw County, Alabama. We will be partnering with Pastor Scottie & Phyllis Fulcher and Butler First Assembly of God to bring hope to those in need through FAITH Groceries. We will also be helping to make repairs at recent church plant in a nearby community.

If you’d like to partner with us, please text or email our office.

More info will be coming soon!

Cost : $450 per person

Cell: 334-324-8064 Email: cdraughon@adcag.org

2020 Life Rally TOUR Acting on our Heart for Missions Date

Section

Location

Time

Saturday, February 8

Enterprise

Ozark First

3:00 PM

Saturday, February 15

Andalusia

Greenville First

11:00 AM

Saturday, February 29

Tennessee Valley

Hartselle First

10:30 AM

Tuesday, March 3

Montgomery

Clanton First

6:00 PM

Tuesday, March 10

Sylacauga

Trinity First

6:30 PM

Thursday, March 12

Mobile

Moffett Road AG

6:30 PM

Saturday, March 14

Cullman

Empire AG

11:00 AM

Saturday, March 14

Anniston

New Liberty Tabernacle of Praise

4:30 PM

Tuesday, March 17

Tuscaloosa

Fayette First

6:30 PM

Thursday, March 19

Monroeville

East Brewton AG

6:30 PM

Saturday, March 21

Baldwin County

Robertsdale First

10:00 AM

Thursday, March 26

Dothan

Newton First

6:30 PM

Saturday, March 28

Demopolis

Jackson First

10:30 AM

Friday, April 3

Phenix City

Eufaula First

6:30 PM

TBA- April

Birmingham

Longhorn on Hwy. 280

7:00 PM

ALABAMA DISTRICT MISSIONS & MEN’S MINISTRIES DISTRICT DIRECTOR

DAVID STRAHAN

email: dstrahan@adcag.org

us & world missions

church planting & development

men’s ministry

lftl

105th Alabama District Council Missions Banquet Monday, April 20, 2020 Guest Speaker: Nelson Lugo AGWM Missionary Panama

Banquet begins at 5:00 PM The Rock Family Worship Center (Tickets are $20)

LIMITED SEATS AVAILABLE! ALL Tickets will be First Come/First Serve Only 450 seats will be available for the 2020 Missions Banquet, Register Early

Join us for our Upcoming District Missions Service Tuesday, April 21, 2020, at 9:00 am.

Our Special Guest is Dr. Joseph Dimitrov, President of Continental Theological Seminary in Belgium

District Council Luncheon Tuesday, April 21, 2020 at 12:00 PM The Rock Family Worship Center, Huntsville, AL

this e ve we nent is free, b e regisdt you to ut er!

This event is hosted by Rev. David Strahan and the Alabama Church Planting and Development Department.

There will be a conversation and Q&A about church leadership and church planting.

Please reserve your tickets when you register online at www.adcag.org

Thank you Alabama!

You gave $463,437.32 to LFTL in 2019!

We placed 4th in the Nation!

ALABAMA 360MAN What is a 360MAN? A 360Man lives out the full-circle faith found in Acts 2:42-47. He is part of a brotherhood of men who stand up to assist others in their walk with Christ, and share the gospel worldwide!

• • •

• •

WORSHIP—He worships Jesus Christ through praise, prayer, and his daily life.

DISCIPLESHIP—He reads, refl ects, and studies the Scriptures FELLOWSHIP—He recognizes the importance of every relationship, especially his relationship with Christ.

SERVICE—He embodies the servant mentality as he is used by God. SHARE—He shares his story with others, because God’s hope is for all people.

How do I become a 360MAN? A 360Man commits to: • PRAYER for other men to know Christ and grow in their faith.

• LIVE a life of integrity in his identity, relationships, purpose, and vision.

• SUPPORT his pastor and local church ministry.

• INVEST $10 per month to partner with his District and the National Men’s Ministries teams to reach and disciple men.

Mark Your Calendars NOW! Men’s Encounter 2020 Thank you for all those who attended our recent CP&D Banquet Tour. We are grateful for the support as we look forward to the future of church planting in Alabama. If you have not turned in your 2020 faith promise, please do so.

September 10-12th Springville Camp & Conference Center

Link to Alabama Church Planting videos on Vimeo:

CP&D 2020: https://vimeo.com/manage/ 392754659/general Vi n e C h u r c h : h t t p s : / / v i m e o . c o m / 392755466 Hope Church, Birmingham: https:// vimeo.com/manage/392086778/general

Guest Speaker: Rev. Rick Dubose

BOOK REVIEWS: THE BIBLE AND HOMOSEXUALITY

Every pastor should have all of these important books! Each book effec+vely establishes the Bible’s posi+on, and all of them together present an irrefutable case for the classical, historical posi+on of Judaism and Chris+anity on this issue. These books cri+que the Church for its failures in heterosexual marriage and morality, and they forbid any hatred or persecu+on of LGBTQ people. Chris+ans are encouraged to walk in loving, truthful discipleship with believers struggling with same-sex aHrac+on. Our Pastors and people will increasingly face pressure to affirm LGBTQ lifestyles as acceptable lifestyles for Chris+an believers, pressure from misinterpreted Scripture, and pressure from emo+onal arguments. This issue will be the most divisive issue in our culture and in the American church for many years. It will be one major watershed defining whether one is a faithful or an apostasizing Chris9an or church. We must be well and properly informed in correctly interpre+ng the Bible, in iden+fying misinterpreta+ons, and in doing all we do in prayerful and loving hope for redemp+on and healing. "We must be faithful to what the careful exegesis and applica+on of Jewish and Chris+an scholars has proven for over 3,000 years: The historical posi+on of Judaism and Chris+anity on this issue is the only acceptable perspec+ve for God's People. We must maintain the purity and discipline of the Church of Jesus Christ, in love and in truth. We will answer to God for this one day."

Slaves, Women & Homosexuals: Exploring the Hermeneu?cs of Cultural Analysis, William J. Webb, Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2002, 301 pages.

William J. Webb is a professor of New Testament at Tyndale Seminary, Toronto. In this book Webb has wriHen the most careful contextual analysis ever done of the scriptures related to slaves, women, and homosexuals. Those claiming ac+ve homosexuals can be Chris+ans have tried to link the Bible’s teaching on homosexuality with it’s teaching on women and slavery. They say that the Bible represents outmoded ancient a?tudes, and since our enlightened modern Church no longer subjugates women or prac9ces slavery, our a?tude on homosexuality must also change. Webb counters this argument at every point.

Webb illuminates Scripture’s counter-cultural perspec+ves on women, slaves, and homosexuality compared to the aZtudes of the Empire’s gen+le cultures. Scripture placed the Church on a redemp+ve trajectory to eliminate slavery and female subjuga+on. However, no similar trajectory to someday change biblical teaching on homosexuality can be found. Webb provides orthodox Chris9ans with powerful arguments against connec9ng the Bible’s treatment of slaves, women, and homosexuals. Every Pastor needs this book!

The Bible and Homosexual Prac?ce: Texts and Hermeneu?cs, Robert A. J. Gagnon, Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2002, 520 pages.

Robert Gagnon is a New Testament professor at Houston Bap+st University. This book is the most exhaus+ve treatment yet wriHen on what the Bible says about homosexual prac+ce. The scope of this work is comprehensive, examining all scriptures relevant to the issue, as well as all arguments raised by scholars who try to twist scriptures to support homosexual lifestyles. Gagnon explores all of the cultural contexts within which all of relevant passages were wriHen, explaining beliefs and prac+ces of surrounding cultures regarding sexuality. He interacts with revisionist scholars and counters their every point.

The author begins with the Old Testament, moves through the intertestamental period, the teaching of Jesus, Paul, and the rest of the New Testament. For every biblical book and passage, Gagnon deals with all historical and hermeneu+cal issues in depth. Pastors, youth pastors, and counselors need this informa9on!

He demonstrates that all passages specifically referencing homosexuality, all passages that might be relevant, and the overarching themes of Scripture never show neutrality or support for such a lifestyle, always condemn the lifestyle as sin, and always support monogamous heterosexuality in marriage as God’s original, final, and only plan for human sexual expression. Gagnon carefully engages and successfully counters every single argument put forward by those trying to find support in Scripture permi?ng Chris9ans to live monogamous homosexual lifestyles.

He concludes with an overview of gene+c, psychological, and sociological research on homosexuality.

BOOK REVIEWS: THE BIBLE AND HOMOSEXUALITY What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality?, Kevin DeYoung, Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015, 160 pages.

This may be the best book to use as a student textbook when studying this topic in a class or small group. In this brief work Kevin DeYoung, a pastor and seminary professor, has wri;en one of the most accessible books available addressing what Scripture really says about homosexuality.

DeYoung writes in a very concise and easy to understand style. He breaks down all of the important cultural, biblical, and theological issues in this debate along with all of the biblical passages addressing them. Scripture is correctly exegeted, explained, and applied in every instance. DeYoung clearly has a deep grasp of all of the relevant passages, the contexts surrounding them, and how they relate to Scripture as a whole. He interacts effecCvely with a;empts to find alternaCve meanings in these passages that would permit or affirm LGBTQ lifestyles. He also displays great compassion toward those struggling with same-sex a;racCon and those trapped in a homosexual lifestyle. When I was ChrisCan EducaCon Director, we gave this book to all of our Kids Camp Staff as their textbook for our Staff Discipleship one year and taught them from it. I encourage you to do this for your leaders and young people!

The Biology of Sin: Grace, Hope, and Healing for Those Who Feel Trapped, Ma;hew Stanford, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2010, 166 pages.

I first heard Stanford speak on these issues at Evangel University’s 2014 Faith and Science Conference. He is an excellent resource! In this work Ma;hew Stanford deals with the biological causes for several aWtudes and behaviors that Scripture condemns as sinful. These include rage, lust, adultery, lying, stealing, addicCon, and homosexuality. Drawing on his many years of academic and professional experience as a psychiatrist and psychologist, Stanford carefully explains the biological roots that are someCmes the source of these behaviors. Using the best current research communicated in easy to understand prose, graphics, and photographs, he demonstrates that there is someCmes a physiological cause for some drives and behaviors that the Bible calls sinful. In each category Stanford uses anonymized stories from his own professional experience to illustrate how paCents found grace and gradual transformaCon through Jesus Christ.

The great value of this book is its explanaCons of how the best scienCfic findings to date can be understood, accepted, and integrated with the best professional counseling when empowered by the grace and power of God. It is very important that Pastors and leaders understand the truths in this book, because you will certainly encounter people who use biological causes for homosexuality and for heterosexual immorality as a jusLficaLon that they must be accepted and affirmed as “the way God made me.”

Another value is that this thoroughly orthodox ChrisCan approach is the fruit of a highly respected and elite professional in his field who is also an evangelical believer. Stanford (PhD, Baylor University) is CEO of the Hope and Healing Center InsCtute in Houston, Texas, and teaches in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Baylor College of Medicine and the Department of Psychology at the University of Houston. He is a member of the American Psychological AssociaCon and a Fellow of the AssociaCon for Psychological Science, where he is the author of over one hundred peer-reviewed journal arCcles and book chapters in psychology, psychiatry, and neuroscience. He is a member of the Southern BapCst ConvenCon's Mental Health Advisory Group, and the American Bible Society's Trauma Healing InsCtute Advisory Council.

I urge you to buy and read this work! It is the best you will find on the biology of sin. And, as Dr. Stanford repeatedly says, for the follower of Jesus Christ, “biology is not desCny.” Christ makes all things new!

Michael D. Sharp, D.Min. District Secretary-Treasurer ALSOM Director

IN MEMORIAM

President Robert H. Spence 1935 - 2020

President Robert H. Spence, 84, entered into God’s presence on February 19, 2020, in Springfield, Missouri, his home for forty-six years. For forty years he served the Assemblies of God as President of Evangel University, powerfully impacMng our Fellowship naMonally and internaMonally for decades to come. Dr. Spence was originally from Alabama, and he never moved his ministerial credenMals from the Alabama District.

The Spence family’s rich legacy of ministry in Alabama extends back for decades. Robert’s family was from southwestern Alabama. Anne Lindon, his future wife, was from the Dubose family in southeastern Alabama. Both families trace their Pentecostal heritage directly to Azusa Street. Each had a grandfather who came into Pentecost through the ministry of M. M. Pinson, who heard the message directly from G. B. Cashwell fresh from Azusa Street. Numerous members of the Spence and Dubose families were saved and bapMzed in the Holy Spirit by 1907 while Azusa was sMll aflame with revival. Robert’s father, T. H. Spence, was Alabama District Superintendent for twenty-five years. Dr. Spence researched and treasured Alabama’s heritage. To this day we sMll distribute his book about our Alabama Fellowship, “The First FiYy Years,” to ministers in our district.

Robert grew up in Montgomery and earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Alabama. In 1956 he married Anne and they had five children — Jennifer, Tom, Jon, David and Steve. An ordained minister, Dr. Spence ministered in Alabama for twenty years, holding pastorates in three churches, including Tuscaloosa First and Crichton Assembly. He also served as a District Presbyter for seven years.

Assuming the presidency of Evangel in 1974, Robert led our Fellowship’s first liberal arts college in four decades of tremendous growth. He led the college from its beginnings in World War II barracks into a fully completed, beauMful campus facility. Under his direcMon enrollment doubled, Evangel gained university status, and ten master's degree programs were added. He was part of the transformaMon of tens of thousands of students' lives as they were nurtured and taught under his leadership.

Robert said that, "This was my greatest opportunity—to work with young people in their formaMve years and prepare them for lives of achievement." Thousands of future pastors, teachers, professors, missionaries, scienMsts, and business, poliMcal, and military leaders graduated during Robert’s tenure, many later rising to the very top of their fields.

When recently awarded the Key to the City, a very rare honor for Springfield, Dr. Spence was credited with having a greater impact on that city than any Assemblies of God leader in history. For decades he was a revered leader in spiritual, educaMonal, business, and community affairs. Among other posiMons he served as President of the Board of Directors of CoxHealth and the Rotary Club, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce, City UMliMes, Springfield/Branson NaMonal Airport, and for many years the Chairman of Springfield’s NaMonal Day of Prayer. He received the Springfieldian of the Year, the Missourian Award recognizing the state’s most disMnguished ciMzens, the Business Journal’s “Man of the Year” and later “LifeMme Achievement in Business” awards. In 2015 Robert and Anne were inducted into the Alabama Assemblies of God Ministerial Hall of Faith.

Dr. Spence’s service to our Fellowship was conMnual. In addiMon to his presidency, he served on the General Presbytery, our Chaplains Commission, the Maranatha Village Board of Directors, and many General Council commihees. During his final three years at Evangel, Dr. Spence parMcipated in the work leading to the consolidaMon of Evangel University, Central Bible College and the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary.

Dr. Spence is survived by his wife of 63 years, Anne, and their three sons: Jon and his wife, Danica, of Springfield, MO, and their children, Jon Thomas, Jordan, Jared, and Karleigh; David and his wife, Andrea, of Mahhews, NC, and their children Connor and Libby; and Steve and his wife, Sandi, of Neenah, WI, and their children, Lauren, Emily, and Michael and his wife, Ashley. He was preceded in death by two children, Jennifer two days aYer her birth, and Tom at age six, both in Alabama. Every surviving member of Robert’s family is following Jesus, serving God. Our prayers are with this wonderful family, parMcularly with Anne at Maranatha. To the many accolades and honors given to Robert H. Spence we add the highest esteem of the ministers and churches of Alabama. We give thanks to God for a son of Alabama who leY us to serve our greater Fellowship across the naMon and around the world, with a life and service unparalleled in integrity, impact, and excellence. We look forward to seeing him again someday.

In Loving Memory…

Michael D. Sharp, D.Min. District Secretary-Treasurer

I’m Stressed to the Max! Most ministers experience extreme amounts of stress at one 1me or another in their ministry. So many expecta1ons from so many people, financial pressures, 1me constraints, preparing three sermons a week, people upset with you, and so much more can bring you to the breaking point.

So, just what is this phenomenon we experience as stress? Stress manifests itself in three primary ways.

•

Pressure – The emo1onal and mental reac1ons to the ever-changing ac1vi1es of life.

•

Stress – The psychological reac1ons and responses of the body to pressure.

• Distress – The harmful results of nega1ve stress that the body is unable to absorb or adapt to.

Prolonged stress (distress) can cause sickness and death.

There is no way in this short space to elaborate, but let me give you a few ways to manage stress your life.

1.

Understand that stress in an inevitable part of life.

2.

Cul1vate an in1mate rela1onship with the Father. Gal. 2:20

3.

Know who you are. (Your limits, strengths, and weaknesses) II Peter 1:3-11

4.

Accept yourself as God made you. Psalms 139:14-16

5.

Develop an aZtude of thanksgiving. I Thess. 5:18

6.

Get plenty of rest and exercise.

7.

Focus on maintaining close family rela1onships.

8.

Seek Godly counsel. (Counselor, Pastor, Friend)

Thank the Lord that according to Scripture we can experience God’s peace and joy each day. II Timothy 1:7, John 14:1, John 14:27, John 16:33, II Corinthians 4:8-16, Ephesians 3:20-21, Philippians 4:6-7

Alabama School of Ministry 2020 Class Schedule Class Date January 4 January 4 January 11

Level 1 Courses (Certified) THE 142 A/G History, Missions, and Governance

Level 2 Courses (Licensed) THE 211 Intro to Theology: A Pentecostal Perspective

February 1 February 1 February 1

BIB 114 Christ in the Synoptic Gospels

BIB 212 New Testament Survey

BIB 318 The Pentateuch

THE 114 Introduction to Pentecostal Doctrine

BIB 214 Old Testament Survey

BIB 313 The Corinthian Correspondence

April 4 April 4 April 25

BIB 115 Acts: The Work of the Holy Spirit

BIB 215 Romans: Justification by Faith

BIB 322

May 9 May 9 May 16

BIB 117 Prison Epistles

MIN 223 Introduction to Homiletics

MIN 325 Preaching in the Contemporary World

August 1 August 1 August 8

BIB 121 Introduction to Hermeneutics

THE 245 Eschatology

MIN 327 Church Administration, Finance and Law

MIN 123 The Local Church in Evangelism

MIN 251 Effective Leadership

MIN 381 Pastoral Ministry

October 3 October 3 October 10

MIN 181 Relationships and Ethics in Ministry

MIN 281 Conflict Management for Church Leaders

November 7 November 7 November 21

MIN 171 A Spirit Empowered Church: An Acts 2 Ministry Model

MIN 261 Introduction to AG Missions

No Class Period for Ministerial Internships (MI)

MIN 191 Beginning MI

MIN 291 Intermediate MI

March March March

September September September

Level 3 Courses (Ordained) THE 311 Prayer and Worship

The Poetic Books

MIN 391 Advanced MI

(Black denotes North Campus – B’ham Horizon ) (Blue denotes Southeast Campus – Newton First) (Red denotes Southwest Campus – Evergreen Grace Way) You may contact the office of the ALSOM Director and District Secretary-Treasurer, Dr. Michael D. Sharp, for more information at 334-279-7172 # 2, or jharris@adcag.org.

A Registration Form may be found on the ALSOM page at www.adcag.org

ALABAMA DISTRICT COUNCIL OF THE ASSEMBLIES OF GOD EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

DISTRICT OFFICERS

Kenneth Draughon District Superintendent

Vint Norris District Christian Education Director

John A. Loper, Jr. Assistant Superintendent

Steven Mason District Youth Ministries Director

Michael D. Sharp District Secretary-Treasurer

David Strahan District Missions/Men’s Director

GENERAL PRESBYTERS

Cynthia Draughon District Women’s Ministries Director

Kenneth Draughon Murray Kelley George Sawyer

DATA CHANGES NEW MINISTERS/UPGRADE

PASTORAL CHANGES

TRANSFERRED IN

CERTIFIED MINISTER

NEW LIFE AG, MAPLESVILLE CODY WRIGHT

ERIC J. GRIFFIN (O) WILLIAM MCDONALD (O)

LIGHTHOUSE AG, UNION SPRINGS GLENN ADAM CARLEE

DECEASED

BROCK CUBILLO WILLIAM R. LEWIS SR. GARLAND E. OWENS

Remembering those…

Rev. Will R. Lewis, Sr.

Rev. Will Rogers (Bubba) Lewis, Sr, 84, was born September 21, 1935, in West Point, Georgia. He was raised in Lane\, Alabama and graduated from Lane\ High School. He married his beau]ful wife Be\y Jean Williams in January of 1954. From this union of over 65 years are five children; Bill, Arlene, Marylois, Jackie and Jeanie. Will re]red from the supply room of West Point Pepperrell in 1996. He began full ]me pastoral du]es at Faith Assembly of God, Dadeville, Alabama in 1992. Over the next 23 years he was a faithful servant of his Lord with visi]ng, witnessing and leading souls to Jesus Christ. His life was Christ-centered, always saw the good in others and has le` a huge legacy as the best husband, Dad and Pop ever. He loved Nascar, Auburn Tigers, David Pearson, Fireball Roberts, Bill Ellio\ and anybody that drove a Ford. He loved black coffee, chicken and dumplings, and Be\y’s dressing.

In Loving Memory…

Rev. Garland E. Owens

Rev. Garland Ethridge Owens, age 90, of Athens, Alabama passed away on Sunday, January 12, 2020.

Garland was born March 29, 1929, to Albert and Mazie Owens. Rev. Owens was a minister with the Assemblies of God for 47 years, pastoring Auburndale, FL; Cullman, AL; Gadsden, AL; Hayden, AL; and Warrior, AL. He loved his years as pastoring and preaching the gospel, studying Greek and Auburn football. He is survived by his devoted wife of 70 years Louise Washington Owens and his daughter Wanda (Bob) Broadhead of Rogersville, AL and his son Mark (Sharon) Owens of Morris, AL.; his two brothers Fred and Dan and three sisters Irene, Faye, and Judy. Grandchildren include Tracy, Benjamin and Rebecca as well as six great-grandchildren with several nieces and nephews whom he loved dearly.

…who await us.

Alabama District Council of the Assemblies of God 5919 Carmichael Road Montgomery, AL 36117-2507

Lambert Lake