Inner-city ministry shows Christ’s love with ‘Heart & Hands’
>> TODD FISHER Recently I had a person I did not know, but obviously fol lowed me on social media, come up to me and criticize me by ask ing, “Why do you spend so much time in small churches and with average pastors. You should fo cus on churches that can give the most money and pastors that are the most gifted.” This person argued that the health and future of the South ern Baptist Convention (SBC) and state conventions depend ed mainly on fostering relation ships with large churches that had large budgets and the men who pastor such churches.
>> STAFF Christina is like so many oth er single mothers in Oklahoma these days. She is trying to carve out a good life for herself and her children, which includes 10-yearoldChristina,twins. however, has faced other challenges that many have not. Having been previously ad dicted to substances years ago, Christina found herself home less and without work. Fast for ward to today, and she now has a stable living situation, attends church each week and is back on her feet. pastors‘Average’
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CrossTimbers launches children on a lifelong missionary adventure FORBES GROVE—Nearly 4,500 chil dren in third-sixth grades learned at the CrossTimbers camps in Davis and Grove this year that God has a mission for them: sharing the hope of the Gospel with the world. The camps took place in 15 four-day sessions, spread from May 30 to July 28 in the two loca tions. Eleven sessions were at the CrossTimbers facilities in Davis, while four of the sessions were in July at the Grand Lake Baptist As sembly campgrounds in Grove.
>> CHRIS
Informing and Inspiring Oklahoma Baptists Since 1912 BAPTISTMESSENGER.COM • AUGUST 11, 2022 Falls Creek & local churches work together as nearly 2,500 campers make professions of faith CONTENTS: Page 2 | News & Trends Carnegie, First dedicates remodeled children’s wing in Blount’s name >> STAFF Page 3 | Voices Sword & Trowel: The end of vacation >> BRIAN HOBBS Page 4 | Gospel Ministry Rite of Passage: I called him ‘Brother Harry’ >> WALKER MOORE Page 5 | Missions & Ministry WatersEdge Ministry Services provides annual tax seminars for churches >> KEDRICK NETTLETON Page 10 | Church Toolbox 5 common pastor search mistakes to avoid >> MARK DANCE Follow the Baptist Messenger on social media! To comment on articles, visit www.baptistmessenger.com
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>> by Staff CARNEGIE—Carnegie, First dedicated its newly remodeled children’s wing in the name of the Ar thur Blount family at a July 31 ceremony. Blount served 13 years as the church’s music di rector and youth pastor before becoming the se nior pastor in 1990. He remained in that position until his death on Nov. 8, 2020. All told, he served at the church for 43 years. The new facility will be called The Blount Children’s Center. Blount’s family was in attendance for the dedi cation, which occurred after Sunday worship. One of the Blounts’ sons, Charlie, the pastor at Moore, First, led the service that morning, and the music was led by another son, Jared Blount, associate pastor and worship leader at Midwest City, Soldier Creek. Blount’s daughter, Melanie, also attended the“Theservice.length of time that Arthur, his wife Joni ta, and the family served this congregation is ex tremely rare, and it was fraught with very meaning ful ministry,” said Kenny Mossman, Carnegie, First’s current pastor. “We want to memorialize that ser vice and give Carnegie a reminder of this family’s outstanding contributions. Our congregation is thrilled that this has all come together.” Carnegie, First has spent the past four months renovating its education building, which previously hosted adult Sunday School classes. The remodel ing project will pave the way for all of the children’s classes to move into the facility. “Our family is very appreciative of this recogni tion, and especially for our parents,” Charlie said. “This is a wonderful remembrance. We share the church’s desire to see the building filled with chil dren and the next generation of believers in Carne gie and the surrounding area. We pray that God will use that building as a tool in building His kingdom.”
SCOTT BARKLEY | AUG 2 Two Southern Baptist pastors with recent leadership experience in addressing sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) will fill similar roles with the Abuse Response Implementation Task Force (ARITF). Marshall Blalock, pastor of Charleston, S.C., First, will be chair while Mike Keahbone, pastor of Lawton, First, will serve as vice chair, SBC President Bart Barber announced Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief mobilizing after flooding STAFF | AUG 1 Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief’s (DR) volunteer teams are answering a call to assist in the wake of devastating floods that caused damage in Kentucky and other areas. Don Williams, state DR director for Oklahoma Baptists, reported DR is prepared to serve through the month of August. p.m. Oklahoma Baptist University oklahomabaptists.org/thecall SEPT 4-11 Week of Prayer: Edna McMillan State OfferingMissions oklahomabaptists.org/smo SEPT 5 Labor Day FOR MORE INFO ON OKLAHOMA BAPTISTS’ EVENTS, VISIT WWW.OKLAHOMABAPTISTS.ORG/EVENTS
E VE NTS PUBLICATION INFO WEB EXC E VE NTS PUBLICATION INFO N E W O N L I N E WEB-EXCLUSIVE CONTENTE VE NTS PUBLICATION INFO N E W O N L I N E WEB EXCLUSIVE CONTENT FIND ALL THESE STORIES AND MORE ONLINE AT WWW.BAPTISTMESSENGER.COM AUG 11-13 Tutoring Children and Youth and ESL Workshop Owasso, First literacy@oklahomabaptists.org AUG 12-14 Directors of RetreatMissions Embassy Suites, OKC knix@oklahomabaptists.org AUG 20 Oklahoma Baptist Children’s Chorus Retreat 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Baptist Building oklahomabaptists.org/worship AUG 26-27 Hispanic Pastors and Wives Retreat Baptist Building eborunda@oklahomabaptists.org AUG 27 Oklahoma Student Worship Choir Retreat 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Midwest City, Meadowood oklahomabaptists.org/worship AUG 27 The Call Conference 9 a.m.-4
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>> PHOTO: PROVIDED The Blount family stands in front of Carnegie, First’s re modeled children’s wing, which bears their name. Arthur Blount served at Carnegie, First for 43 years, first as music director and youth pastor and then as the church’s senior pastor before his death in 2020. Blalock, Keahbone to head Abuse Response Implementation Task Force
>> Chris
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Mossman said the upgrades at the church will create a unique opportunity in children’s ministry. “Because our new children’s wing con nects directly to our gymnasium, we’re going to have a distinctive setting,” he said. “Our Sunday School teachers will have the flexibility of working in new classrooms that are just steps away from a wide-open space that is perfect for physical activity. The sky is the limit for what they can offer the kids. “We’ve transformed an older building into a facility that feels brand new. We now have 3,400 square feet dedicated solely to our children. Not only will it be a remark able space on Sunday mornings, it will also become the hub for our popular Vacation Bible School each summer.”
Messenger attempts to provide advertisers of integrity who furnish quality products, it is recommended that buyers be cautious, do research and get references to any advertiser with which they are not familiar. Publication of an advertisement in the Baptist Messenger does not constitute an endorsement of the products, services or businesses. August 11, 2022 • Volume 111, Number 14. Member, Baptist Press News, Christian Newspaper Association, Evangelical Press Association, Oklahoma Press Association. MESSENGER STAFF >>
Some 71 children attended VBS at the church this Mossmansummer.added that much of the work and funding on the renovation was provided by church members. “Several dedicated people volunteered many hours and gave of their expertise to make this happen,” he said. “We also saw numerous families with ties to our church step forward with financial gifts that helped us cover the expense. It’s quite a tes timony as to how our people feel about this church and it underscores how much they love the children of this com munity. Arthur Blount left an amazing legacy, and we see it every day among the peo ple he shepherded.”
| Staff Writer
>> Tori
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2 August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com | News & Trends
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Carnegie, First dedicates remodeled children’s wing in Blount’s name E W S & T R E N D S E L MI URCH TOOL BOX SP ORTS & E N T E RTA I N M E N TM IS S I ON S & M I N IS T RY C L A S S I F I E D S V O I C E S
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Voices | August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com 3 Connect: ‘Average’ pastors /// PREVIEWED ON COVER Sword & trowel: The end of vacation V O I C E S A N N UA L M E E T I NG I N F O Oklahoma Baptists’ Executive BrianEditorTodd@eToddFisherDirector-TreasurerFisheroftheBaptistMessenger@BrianGHobbsHobbs FEEDING &LEADING A PODCAST FEATURING TODD FISHER & ANDY TAYLOR 03: Pastors & Expository Preaching In this episode, learn more about the expository preaching of God’s Word—what it is and why it matters for pastors in the pulpit. Listen at www.oklahomabaptists.com/podcast or on...
In other words, people now make plans, not just on how scenic a place might be, but how it will look to others when they post their pictures on social media like Instagram and Facebook. Given the growing number of people posting to social media and the growing influence of those posts, now at the end of summer is a good time to review just how we are using social media and what it says about our lives. ‘Look at me’ Sociologists have coined the term the “Look-AtMe Generation,” referring to adults—mostly young adults—who have come of age at the same time of social media’s appearance. As the term suggests, if you glance at this segment of the population’s dai ly social media, you are almost guaranteed to see someone talking about themselves. “Look at my trip!” “Look at my exercise results!” “Look at my dinner plate.” There is nothing inherently wrong with talking about what is going on in your life, and we can and should take an interest in what people are doing and thinking. Jesus Himself was alert to the habits, attitudes and circumstances of those around Him. If we are not careful, though, we can fall victim to becoming a little too self-involved. Popular author and pastor John Piper, in 2009, said social media can “lure people away from Scripture and prayer, disembody relationships, feed the fires of narcis sism, cater to the craving for attention, fill the world with drivel, shrink the soul’s capacity for greatness and make us second-handers who comment on life when we ought to be living it.” ‘Look at this’ Many social media posts scream, “Look at me,” while others seem to say, “Look at this!” People to day share a lot of information and ideas about vari ous issues. “Look at this political topic,” “Look at that sports news,” and so on. There is something inher ently good about using this platform of social media to advance viewpoints and the Christian message.
This person argued that the health and future of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and state conventions depended mainly on fostering rela tionships with large churches that had large bud gets and the men who pastor such churches. Well, I have, in fact, spent a lot of time preaching in small churches and visiting with “average” pas tors (I’ve spent a lot of time with big churches and their pastors, too). I have already written about the importance of smaller in attendance churches and how they actually make up the strong majority of churches not just in our state convention, but in the whole SBC. That all of our churches partner to gether in giving through the Cooperative Program is what matters far more than the size of church and the amount it gives. The beauty of the Cooperative Program is that it enables all churches, large or small, rural or urban, to partner together to fund missions and minis tries in ways they could never do alone. All of our churches are important! But in this article, I want to focus on this person’s comment about “average” pastors. Allow me to tell you a few things about “average” pastors. They will, in all likelihood, never pastor a big church, preach in front of a large crowd, speak at conferences, write a book or become famous.
Many are overworked, underpaid or hardly paid and hold more than one job. Many serve in difficult, isolated places where the fruit of their labors is of ten not readily seen. They will, however, pour all they can into Sunday’s sermon, preach funerals, show up at the hospital, answer the phone when someone is in need, talk to your child about salvation, give coun sel to people facing incredibly difficult/complex things in life, endure the constant weight of people’s criticisms and expectations—and they will do all of this in obscurity with few accolades. So, I think these “average” pastors are actually quite extraordinary and models of faithfulness to Christ. They do what they do, not for reward or rec ognition, but out of their love for God and people. They are deserving of encouragement and invest ment, not to mention they lead the vast majority of churches in our denomination. Yes, churches of every size, including small churches, are critically important—and so are their pastors! If you are a church member with an “aver age” pastor, be thankful for his faithfulness and en courage him today! If you are an “average” pastor, please remember there is nothing average about you. Press on in your important ministry! Did you know your vacation photos could di rectly affect someone’s future summer plans? Ac cording to one news source, “roughly 40 percent of (young adults) pick vacation destinations based on how ‘Instagrammable’ the pics will be.”
Recently I had a person I did not know, but obvi ously followed me on social media, come up to me and criticize me by asking, “Why do you spend so much time in small churches and with average pas tors. You should focus on churches that can give the most money and pastors that are the most gifted.”
John Piper went on to say we should “try to fill these media with as much provocative, reasonable, Bible-saturated, prayerful, relational, Christ-exalt ing, truth-driven, serious, creative pointers to true greatness as you can.”
Christians therefore must be more careful not to add offense to the cross with brash comments about politics, sports and culture. When you are trying to espouse opinions and articles that are in teresting to you, be sure to consider how it would enhance or detract from your Christian witness. ‘Look at Him’ Whether we are typically talking about ourselves or the issues of the day on social media, Christians would do best to post on social media with Jesus in mind. Whether we are talking about ourselves and the daily happenings of life, or are posting an inter esting photo, it should all come back to Him. In the end, most social media posts will still say, “Look at me!” or “Look at this!” Yet only when our so cial media posting habits shout, “Look at Jesus,” will they have the lasting impact we want. Because we ul timately want to affect, not just someone’s future va cation plans, but their future eternity with the Lord.
Oklahoma Baptists are united by one objective primarily, and that is to take the Gospel to as many people in our communities, our state, our nation and around the world. It is that desire that moti vates us to work together in equipping capable pastors and leaders who can lead fruitful ministries.
Gospel Ministry
Thanks to the past and current efforts of thought ful and compassionate leaders such as Dr. Haskins, we can rest assured that Oklahoma Baptists will continue the wonderful work of training ministry leaders in AnotherOklahoma.milestone for the Haskins School is that it will be graduating its first recipient of the Ad vanced Diploma in Pastoral Ministry this year. This diploma will be awarded to James R Nowlin, mem ber of Saint Louis, First in Pottawatomie County. The Haskins School offers certificates and diplomas in church ministry, pastoral ministry and now a new diploma in evangelism and missions. There has never been a better time for someone with the desire to be trained in practical Christian ministry than now. Besides the four different programs offered in En glish, the school has its own program, 100 percent in Spanish, known as Instituto Bautista de Oklaho ma. This program offers the same certificates and diplomas as its counter parts, completely in Spanish, with online lectures given by prominent Hispanic min istry leaders from around the nation. That means that the students not only re ceive their course content in their own language but are trained with the Hispanic ministry context in mind. The same can be said about the other programs designed for Native Ameri can, African American, wom en and small rural church leaders. This is extremely im portant to the success of the School because every year there is a growing need to identify, equip and send out more ethnic and bi-voca tional leaders into the har vest field. The face of our state is rapidly changing, and Oklahoma Baptists have accepted the challenge to assist the local church to minister more effectively in this ever-changing environment. Receiving a diploma from the Haskins School does not automatically mean that the person is ready to lead a successful ministry in a local church. What it does mean is that the person has acquired the nec essary tools to continue learning and applying that knowledge in his or her particular setting. Whether it is pastoral, youth, women, children’s, deacons or evangelism ministry, a graduate from the Haskins School is someone who is willing to work hard and set priorities to accomplish their goals. If you are a leader looking for an opportunity to re ceive practical ministry training or sharpen your cur rent skills, consider the Robert Haskins School of Chris tian Ministry to help you accomplish your goals. Visit us at haskinsschool.org or give us a call at 405/942-3800.
Rite of passage: I called him ‘Brother Harry’ N E W S & T R E N D S GOSP E L MI N IST RY CH URCH TOOL BOX SP ORTS & E N T E RTA I N M E NIS S I ON S & RY P EO P L E & C H U RC H N E WS C L A S S I F I E D S V O I C E S NEWS & CULTURE A N N UA L M E E T I NG I N F O Author & Messenger Columnist Email | walker@back40.org Walker@WalkerDeanMooreMoore
Haskins School offers tools needed for ministry
PHOTO: PROVIDED Mark Clifton and Walker with Walker’s ‘Ambassador Card.’
From a dark, damp basement, I was commis sioned to go unto all the world. I have no other credentials; I have not been com missioned by a denomination or a church nor any organization. But I was commissioned by Brother Har ry and the men who taught me, laid their hands on me and told me to go unto all the world. Brother Harry has gone home to be with the Lord, leaving be hind his son Mark. I had to babysit Mark once when he was a squirre ly kid. But today, Mark Clifton is the senior director of replanting and rural strategy for the North American Mission Board. He does a tremendous job of turning declining churches into growing lighthouses for the Kingdom. I had not seen Mark in years, but I was near his home recently, and we met for lunch. I told him how his dad had impacted my life, how he had com missioned me, sent me out to be an Ambassador for Christ. Because he commissioned me, I have or chestrated the telling of the Gospel in 53 Countries, trained and commissioned 13,000 people over the last 50 years to be Ambassadors for Christ. Before we finished lunch, I pulled out my tattered “commissioning card” and ask if I could take a pic ture of him with the card. You might not ever hear of Brother Harry Clifton, but he has impacted the world through the lives he has touched. As I sat across the table listening to Mark talk, it was like I was hearing his dad again. God bless pastors who tell their congregations that they have been empowered by the Holy Spirit, equipped with the Word of God and commissioned to go into the world. Thank you Brother Harry!
4 August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com |
Every Saturday morning, I met with other boys my age, gathered in a dark damp basement at Chillicothe Mo., Calvary. I went for two reasons. I belonged to a group called Royal Ambassadors, a Southern Baptist Missions organization that helps boys become godly missions-minded men. The second reason was, after the program was over, our leader Brother Harry gave us a dime to get anything we wanted at the Dairy Queen adjacent to our church. I had begun the Royal Ambassadors program in a previous church outside of Kansas City, Mo. It also met in a dark, damp basement. I am not sure what it is with Baptists and their dark, damp basements and all of the boys’ activities being held in these caves. I was in elementary school when I started. At my first meeting, the group voted me to take minutes of the meeting. I was so excited that I went home and told my parents that they needed to buy me a watch. “Why do you need a watch?” they asked. “I have been voted to take the minutes of the meeting, and I need a watch to watch the minutes,” I replied. They laughed and explained to me I was voted to record in writing what we did in our meeting. If I had known what they were asking me to do I would have turned the job down. Brother Harry was a man with a sweet spirit, gen tle voice, and he talked a lot about Jesus. He was the pastor of the church. After working all week vis iting the sick, witnessing to the lost, he taught on Wednesday evening and preached twice on Sunday. Yet, he still thought it was important to teach us boys on Saturday morning. I had turned 15, and the last step in the Royal Ambassadors program was to get your “Ambassador Pin.” To earn that pin you served the church for 125 hours, memorized Scriptures and completed a vigil. Brother Harry found enough work for me to complete my 125 hours. I memo rized the Scriptures, and when it came to the “The Vigil,” I would spend three hours alone in a room with a series of questions about my life. I had to reflect on what I wanted to do and who I wanted to serve. For a 15-year-old to spend this much time alone in prayer, Scripture reading and reflecting on one’s life—and then to exit the room to report to leaders—was a huge undertaking. Three hours seemed like 20 hours, but I worked through the assignment, reading the Scriptures, praying, talking to God, more reading, more pray ing and writing out what God was saying to me. It was an overwhelmingly deep spiritual experience. As I came out of the room, I reported to a group of men, Brother Harry, Brother Blankenship and Brother Ashford. I shared with them my answers and how God was speaking to me. I was told that I had passed the test, and they commissioned me to be an Ambassador for Christ. They handed me a small card that stated “This is to certify that Walker Moore became an AMBASSADOR, 11-5-1967.”
On Aug. 13, the Robert Haskins School of Christian Ministry will celebrate its graduating class of 2022. This year, 18 students from around the state will be receiving their diplomas and certificates in pas toral and church ministry. During the previous six years, more than 200 students have been able to take classes, and receive high quality, practical, contextualized ministry training through one of our five programs. There is a great need in our convention to train existing and prospective leaders to help them min ister in many of our smaller in attendance, ethnic and bi-vocational churches. That has been the vi sion and the goal of our School. That vision is the continuation of Robert Haskins’ original dream; to help ethnic and bi-vocational pas tors, not only survive, but thrive in their particular min istries. For that reason, this year the Haskins School will present Dr. Haskins with the inaugural honorary shepherd’s staff during our graduation celebration. This honorary shepherd’s staff represents the col lective appreciation of Oklahoma Baptists to one special individual who has been a champion for bi-vocational, ethnic and small churches. As the namesake of the school, Dr. Haskins will be the first to be awarded this honor. His dedication as a pas tor and a denominational leader for many decades has had a great positive impact in our convention.
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Hispanic Ministry Partner with Oklahoma Baptists Dean of Robert Haskins School of Christian EverardoMinistryBorunda
Resolutions requested for Annual Meeting
WatersEdge Ministry Services provides annual tax seminars for churches
Cherokee Baptist Assembly, Cherokee—918/506-5482 email: cba_tahlequah@yahoo.com
TOPICS INCLUDE: Now online! Accessible on the go!FREE genuine leather travel journal for the first 25 participants to complete the online bible study and survey questionnaire. IN YOUR CORNER FOR LIFE AND MINISTRY
VOLUNTEER
Arms Around Broken Arrow—food pantry, clothes closet—918/258-7714 or bryan@armsaroundba.org
Lake Texoma Baptist Resort Ministry, 2034 Max Rd, Mead 73449—Monty & Tammy Wood, directors, 580/916-2181 or thehelm2034@gmail.com
In addition to the seminars, WatersEdge pro vides numerous services to churches and minis tries, including loan services, ministry investments and ministry accounting—and this last service, currently expanding, creates a perfect opportuni ty to make the most of these tax seminars. “We employ a team of highly trained profes sionals who care deeply for the success of the churches we serve,” Johnson said. “In addition to the professional training of our staff, we are also very well connected with industry experts; we love playing the role of connector between these re sources and our churches. Our ex panding work with church finances through Ministry Accounting Services makes this timing absolutely perfect.”
RELIEF Training: Aug. 27—Orientation & Credentialing—8:30 a.m.-12 noon, Poteau, Southside, 505 Holden Ave. Sept. 17—Orientation & Credentialing – 8:30a.m.-12 noon, Wynnewood, First, 1515 E. Robert S. Kerr Blvd. Sept. 22-24 —Chaplaincy Training, 3800 N. May Avenue, OKC; To register email: pjones@ oklahomabaptists.org For other upcoming training, visit okdisasterhelp.org.
* No Confidentialsales.disciplemakingresearch.
For more than three decades, Oklahoma Bap tists arranged annual tax seminars for churches across the state to help pastors and church staff keep up with complex administrative challenges. This year, they have passed the baton to the finan cial experts at WatersEdge Ministry Services. In September, WatersEdge will give the work shop a revamped focus on tax, internal control and legal issues—with two identical seminars for attendees and an option for virtual attendance. The events were initially envisioned to meet a simple, vital, often unanswered need for Oklahoma Baptist churches: tax help. According to Brad John son, CFO at WatersEdge, that key focus will remain. “Tax law is complicated and constantly chang ing,” he said. “These seminars are designed to connect church employees with valuable, up-todate knowledge that can help them better suc ceed in their role within the church. But protect ing the church doesn’t stop with tax compliance. We’ll connect attendees with industry experts who can teach on a variety of topics intentional ly designed to protect the church from an array of pitfalls—fraud, insurance, cyber security and in ternalThesecontrols.”experts include attorneys, retirement and payroll professionals, insurance agents and Wa tersEdge’s own, in-house experts. For Norma Wood ard, owner of EagleView Consulting and a past seminar organizer for Oklahoma Baptists, this expertise and experi ence in helping church es manage their resourc es made WatersEdge the perfect choice when it came time to shift the seminars.“Iam so very excit ed to see WatersEdge continue the legacy of these seminars, creat ed by Barbara Spess and Henry Chennault over 30 years ago,” she said. “Their dedication and vision will go far beyond what we’ve done in the past, and I believe it will be exactly what Oklahoma churches need to en sure we are watching and caring for their resources going forward.”
There are two dates for those interested in at tending. The first seminar will be at Owasso, First on Tuesday, Sept. 27, from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., with a virtual attendance option. An identical in-person event takes place Thursday, Sept. 29 at Oklahoma City,AttendeesNorthwest.can receive a reduced registration rate through Aug. 31. For more cost information and to register, visit watersedgeservices.org/tax
OKLAHOMA
Missions & ministry | August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com 5
CH URCH TOOL BOX SP ORTS & E N T E RTA I N M E N TM IS S I ON S & M I N IS T RY P EO P L E & C H U RC H N E WS C L A S S I V O I C OE
These ministries have various on-going opportunities for volunteers: Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, OKC and Community Food Bank of Eastern OK, Tulsa—both locations, call 405/972-1111 (Not an Oklahoma Baptist ministry, but many churches receive food from them for local food pantries.)
For Powerpoint slides of Prayer Guide, visit www.oklahomabaptists.org/cp
Pray for MissionariesInternational Europe
>> by Kedrick Nettleton WATERSEDGE CONTENT CREATOR
Pray for MissionaryOklahoma Victor Cope Victor has served as senior pastor of Moore, First Indian for 32 years. He also serves as executive director of Indian Falls Creek, leading the camp for 31 years, and Indian Falls Creek recently celebrated 75 years.
MINISTERS NEEDED for research to evaluate online discipleship program.*
What is life’s purpose? Is the Bible credible? Where is God? Who is Jesus? Why did Jesus come? Knowing God’s Communicatingwill.with God. .orgBaptistFeaturedontheMessengerPodcast
Pray for Oklahoma Baptists serving with the MissionInternationalBoardin European Countries. Europe has experienced 78 new church plants and five new people groups engaged.
To participate visit: edifyleaders.org/resources
>> PHOTOS: WATERSEDGE Brad Johnson, CFO at WatersEdge, said the upcoming tax seminars will provide churches information needed for tax compliance and for protection against fraud and other pitfalls. MISSIONS OP P ORT U N I T I E DISASTERS
Resolutions may also be submitted online through Sept. 8 at oklahomabaptists.org/business/#resolutions.
All resolutions for consideration during the 2022 Oklahoma Bap tists’ Annual Meeting, other than those generated by the commit tee itself, must be received by Resolutions Committee Chairman Jeff Moore no later than Sept. 8. Moore is the pastor of Altus, First. Those submitting resolutions are asked to provide a copy to the Oklahoma Baptists Leadership Office. Resolutions may be mailed to Resolutions Committee, c/o Dr. Jeff Moore, First Baptist Church, PO Box 665, Altus, OK 73522, with copies addressed to Resolutions Committee, Oklahoma Baptists, 3800 North May Avenue, Okla homa City, OK 73112. Resolutions sent by e-mail should indicate Resolutions Committee in the subject line and be addressed to drjmoore@fbcaltus.org and lwarren@oklahomabaptists.org
There were also breakouts for church leaders, which has been happening at Falls Creek for nearly 15 years. Called Adult Leadership Investment (ALI), more than 1,600 church leaders who serve in stu dent ministry attended this year’s sessions. “We talked about the ‘must-haves’ for a success ful small group, focusing on our small group lead ers and giving them an opportunity to have train ing along those lines,” Sanders said, describing this year’s ALI topic. “It has always been well received. We try to help people in such a way that they not only get ready for camp but beyond camp and overallThoughministry.”theemphasis is on students who attend Falls Creek as campers, Falls Creek provides a great environment for whoever may come during the summer weeks. Even lead pastors came for a fel lowship that met every Tuesday afternoon and was led by Todd Fisher, executive director-treasurer for Oklahoma Baptists. “Falls Creek is a place where so many of our people come together,” Sanders said. “So many of our church es participate and are a part of Falls Creek youth camp weeks. It’s a great gathering place. I think if you have not been familiar in a while with what happens here, it is like a small city that assembles every week, and we have a major aspect of a community, as we orches trate a week of life together. “There are so many ways you can engage from the smallest aspects of your church group to the largest corporate aspects. I think there is some thing for everyone at Falls Creek, whether that’s a rec activity or a spiritual growth opportunity, a fel lowship opportunity, a training opportunity or a worshipJeremyopportunity.”Freemanagrees with Sanders. Serving as pastor of Newcastle, First, Freeman was one of the camp speakers this summer. He shared what it was like as a speaker and also what it meant for his church to participate at Falls Creek. “It’s an experience like none other,” Freeman said. “To get to see every single night the power of prayer and the way God works and moves at Falls Creek is Freemanunbelievable.”alsohadhis son Caleb give his testimo ny while speaking at the camp. Caleb’s story con tinues to encourage and inspire people, as they hear how he miraculously recovered from a 2017 near-fatal auto accident. Caleb now gives God glo ry for his recovery and unashamedly tells people about Jesus. “We went to 30 different cabins while we were there,” Freeman said about him and Caleb talking with different church groups at Falls Creek. “We got the big picture in the tabernacle and then the small picture in the cabin, and it reminds you that we have some really great churches in our state and re ally great churches that come to Falls Creek. Our ex perience was just phenomenal all the way around, seeing God working.” Freeman also gave his perspective as a pastor and being involved with his church attending Falls Creek.
>> by Chris Doyle MANAGING EDITOR DAVIS—Todd Sanders had a lot to share when re capping what happened during the eight weeks of summer youth camp at Falls Creek Baptist Confer ence Center. As the camp’s program director, Sanders shared in an email to Oklahoma Baptists team members a simple yet powerful statement. “I hope this never grows old for us,” he wrote. The statement was made after Sanders was re flecting on some monumental moments he has had through his years at Falls Creek. He wrote about what happened 36 years ago when he made a pro fession of faith in Christ at Davis, First, near Falls Creek, and God has used him for the past 30 years “to encourage believers and equip the church, giv ing me opportunity upon opportunity, and that I would get to do this work I’m given the privilege ofSandersdoing.” went on to praise God for what hap pened at Falls Creek this summer. God moved through 2,498 campers who made professions of faith in Christ. He moved through 516 campers who surrendered to a call to ministry, and overall, there were 4,975 spiritual decisions made among Falls Creek“Lastcampers.yearwe had 2,645 (professions of faith in Christ), which was an all-time record at Falls Creek,” Sanders said. “This is another great summer of de cisions. I’m blown away that God will let us contin ue as Oklahoma Baptists family to see Him move in thatFallsway.”Creek will continue to make evangelism a priority. Sanders said it is important to “proclaim the Gospel and invite people to respond to the Gospel.” Falls Creek also makes an emphasis on dis cipleship. Sanders said more than 13,000 camp ers attended breakout sessions that happened throughout a week, covering various topics of spir itual“(Campers)development.areasking questions and learning,” Sanders said. “They are walking away with really good Christian development and Christian life principles.” A total of 16 different breakouts happened each week at Falls Creek, and 128 leaders led the break outs, Sanders said. The topics included “Evange lism for Everyday Life;” “A Look at Biblical Sexuality;” “Grasping God’s Word through Bible Study;” “Pre paring to Lead Worship;” “Offering Hope to Those in Despair;” “Social Media with Gospel Eyes;” “Liv ing Life with Discernment;” “A Strong Beginning for New Believers;” and “Pursuing a Call to Ministry.”
Sanders also spoke on the relationship churches have with Falls Creek and how both work together to impact students. “Falls Creek makes a difference because we give churches an opportunity to forge that ground with students,” Sanders said. “Hopefully, we are setting churches up for their job, resourcing them and con necting them with ways to do that. We give them an opportunity to deal honestly with spiritual mat ters, gain understanding in spiritual growth and, most importantly, (helping students) come to a faith in Christ by being clear with the Gospel and giving them a chance to respond.
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>> PHOTOS: TONY DILLARD 1) Concessions were busy during Falls Creek as campers partake in a Falls Creek tradition of buying ICEE drinks; 2) Todd Sanders rallies campers during an invi tation time of an evening worship service; 3) The Falls Creek offering raised more than $98,000 this year, which will support Hope Pregnancy Ministries and GoStudents missons send ing work; 4) Campers learn about mission work at the Wynn Center for World Missions; 5) Jeremy and Caleb Freeman speak during Week 4 of Falls Creek youth camp.
“From the pastor side of the things, I don’t know another place in the country that is like Falls Creek,” he said. “It’s like a camp within a camp. We have our own church stuff that we do, that is important, and then you are a part of a much bigger thing. (Camp ers) are hearing about the Cooperative Program. They are hearing about Oklahoma Baptist Univer sity. They are hearing about International Mission Board and GoStudents. You get to reveal to them to the bigger part of Kingdom work that we are a part of, and it’s fun to see. “Falls Creek is a safe place; it’s a spiritual place,” Freeman continued. “It’s a strong place for your student ministry and for God to do incredible work. Falls Creek does more for the next generation than any other program or organization that is happen ing right now. It is calling kids to salvation, number one; it is calling and equipping kids for full-time min istry, which is another incredible thing. Falls Creek is helping churches raise up leaders who want to be a part of what God is doing, and I don’t know anoth er program or place that has been more effective in doing just that.”
“What happens on Falls Creek grounds is just a fraction of what God is doing, acknowledging that the real work is in the churches and will continue in connecting with students on a regular basis. It’s not all about what happens in these services. The lasting fruit is in the local churches. We saw it ev eryAndweek.”asSanders powerfully stated, may this work that God is doing through Oklahoma Baptists ad vancing the Gospel together never grow old.
Falls Creek 2022: Falls Creek & local churches work together as nearly 2,500 campers make professions of faith /// PREVIEWED ON COVER 6 August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com | Features
>> by Chris Forbes STAFF WRITER
To learn more about CrossTimbers Children’s Mis sion Adventure Camps, visit crosstimbers.org
Christina is like so many other single mothers in Oklahoma these days. She is trying to carve out a good life for herself and her children, which in cludes 10-year-old twins. Christina, however, has faced other challenges that many have not. Having been previously ad dicted to substances years ago, Christina found herself homeless and without work. Fast forward to today, and she now has a stable living situation, at tends church each week and is back on her feet. How did God bring about this transformation? This is thanks to a ministry called Heart and Hand Ministries, a non-profit organization founded in 1997 by then-pas tor Steve Kern and leaders with Oklahoma City, Olivet. Christina and her twins today live in one of sev eral apartment properties located on North 10th Steet, near Olivet, in a challenged inner-city part of Oklahoma City. These properties are owned and operated by Heart and Hand. The purpose statement of Heart and Hand is to meet “the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of homeless women and their children in the Okla homa City area. The ministry provides families with crises housing, including rent and utilities, as well as food, clothing, medical care, counseling, educa tion, job training, job placement, etc. with the in tent of leading them to spiritual and financial free dom and possible home ownership.” Kern, who retired in 2019 from Olivet, shared how Heart and Hand got its start. “Years ago, the Lord gave me and others a burden to reach people in our neighborhood with the love of Jesus,” he said. Since its founding, Heart and Hand has min istered to some 1,400 children and mothers like Christina, who was recently baptized at Olivet. The average length of stay of a mother is six months to two years, prior to the mother completing the Heart and Hand program and finding work.
adventure /// PREVIEWED ON COVER
In addition to learning about missions and evan gelism, CrossTimbers campers have a lot of fun. “We also have ‘activity stops’ at the camp,” Russell said. “We have a zip line; a rock wall; target sports like BBs, slingshots and archery. There are other ac tivities they can do, like Ga-Ga ball, nine-square in the air, dodge ball, basketball, and more. In the af ternoon we also have a pool and a waterslide. It’s so much fun to watch the children enjoy camp.”
Under the camp theme of “Hope,” campers learned how to share the Gospel through their own personal evangelism, learning multiple ways to share. They also discovered how missionaries work at home and abroad to advance the Gospel, while engaging in mission adventure activities through three “mission stops” and three “adventure stops.”
CrossTimbers campers had the opportunity to give to missions. “The money raised (in the Cross Timbers sessions from the summer) will be used to buy more water filtration systems that the missionar ies can give to the people they meet in Cambodia to enable them to have clean water,” said Jamie Russell who served as director of CrossTimbers Grove. Children could also record encouraging Gospel messages that will be broadcast in Belize. “The Bi ble college we partner with in Belize has a radio station,” Gatton explained. “We are recording boys and girls sharing the Gospel and giving the record ings to that radio station, and they are going to broadcast their messages. “We want boys and girls to know what it is like to be a missionary, about people who are mission aries all over Oklahoma and the world, sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” Gatton continued. “And we want them to know that they are missionar ies where they are, if they are already a follower of Christ. They can do it at home; they do it in North America; and they do it all over the world.”
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“CrossTimbers is ‘Children’s Mission Adventure Camp,’” Charlie Gatton, program director for Cross Timbers, said. “The title says it all. We are all about missions, and we are all about adventure.”
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GROVE—Nearly 4,500 children in third-sixth grades learned at the CrossTimbers camps in Davis and Grove this year that God has a mission for them: sharing the hope of the Gospel with the world. The camps took place in 15 four-day sessions, spread from May 30 to July 28 in the two locations. Eleven sessions were at the CrossTimbers facilities in Davis, while four of the sessions were in July at the Grand Lake Baptist Assembly campgrounds in Grove.
CrossTimbers
The Heart and Hand property and ministry to moth ers is overseen on a day-to-day basis by Kathy Pau well, who herself used to be a recipient of the ministry. “Kathy does a remarkable job ministering to these mothers, helping them get back on her feet,” Kern said. “It’s a testament to what God can do, that she was once here as a resident and now serves here.”
>> PHOTOS: BRIAN HOBBS 1) A shopper visits the Heart & Hand Thrift Center in Okla homa City. Proceeds from the thrift store support the Heart and Hand housing and support ministry; 2) Christina, center, pictured with her daughter, is a single mother who is thriving, thanks to the Heart and Hand Ministries. The Heart and Hand property and ministry to mothers is overseen on a day-to-day basis by Kathy Pauwell, right, who herself used to be a recipient of the ministry.
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Inner-city ministry shows Christ’s love with ‘Heart & Hands’ COVER
the single mothers ministry. Many employees and volunteers have found the thrift center to be a home away from home and even a mission field for some. Valerie, a Heart and Hand volunteer, sees the im pact of the thrift center firsthand, welcoming custom ers with a smile, saying “I love volunteering here.”
PHOTO: 1) CHRIS FORBES; 2-4) GRANT BIVENS 1) Tetherball is a popular activity at CrossTimbers Grove; 2) Campers participate in a mission stop, learning about different mission work happening all over the world; 3) Campers have fun every day at CrossTim bers; 4) ‘We are all about missions, and we are all about adven ture,’ states Charlie Gatton, CrossTimbers program director
The Heart and Hand properties include the Millie Bradley Complex, a group of four houses adjacent to each other. The complex was named in honor of Kern’s mother. Altogether, the properties can house and assist three to six families simultaneously. Heart and Hand operates completely from dona tions made by individuals and churches to the min istry, as well as proceeds from the Heart & Hand Thrift Center located on Coun cil Road and N.W. 23rd Street in Oklahoma City. At this large thrift store, which once was a grocery store, shoppers will find stacks of books, rows of well-kept fur niture, clothing of all types, sports apparel and much more. They also will notice the pres ence of the Lord on the faces of the staff and volunteers. Since its establishment in 2003, the Heart & Hand Thrift Center has given 100 percent of its profits to aiding
The two camps reported a combined total that 359 children made professions of faith in Christ, 50 sought the reassurance of their salvation and 78 rededicated themselves to the Lordship of Christ. Seventeen responded to God’s unique calling in their lives to ministry. Another 280 sought prayer and other forms of spiritual encouragement.
During the mission stops, children learned how missionary work is supported through the Coop erative Program, the Edna McMillan State Missions Offering, the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for international missions. In addition, the campers discovered how they could be a part of starting a Bible Club in their schools. Campers heard about mission work in North America and worldwide, through stories about mission work in these contexts. Children learned how missionaries advance the Gospel in Belize through a Bible college in that Central Amer ican country and heard how International Mission Board missionaries give people in Cambodia access to clean water and the Gospel. Children participated in adventure stops that al lowed them to put their learning into practical ac tion by giving access to clean water to an unreached people group. Children learned how missionaries in Cambodia could share the Gospel because they produce water filters that the people group needs.
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Features | August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com 7
>> by Staff
Kern and others have seen the provision and bless ing of God in this thrift center, noting that more vol unteers are now needed to continue the ministry of Heart and Hand. To find out more, call 405/470-0431. Through people donating items to the thrift store, volunteering, offering financial and prayer support, Kern is hopeful that the Lord will continue to make the ministry flourish. And through the min istry flourishing, other single mothers facing home lessness, like Christina, can be back up on their feet. And the flourishing will allow these women to see the love of Jesus from Christians who are serving with their hearts and hands. launches children on a lifelong missionary
8 August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com | People & Church News
CHURCH STAFF CHANGES MICHAEL BUTTERS is associate pastor at Sapulpa, Faith. MICHAEL COX has retired as pastor of Konawa, First, where he served for six years. MIKE CRITCHFIELD is interim pastor at Canaan in Cad do Association.
ROBERT WAGONER is pastor and music minister at Sapulpa, Faith. LUKE YOUNG is youth minister at Sapulpa, Faith.
K X G T P V X A M O H A L K O R K J T Z S M R I E I L K V L V O L T I C T S L T U M U J U W K D M P A A G J S D C L O T H I N G F R A S S V E O N I S T M O H U O N R U M L S E G A N A E V R O E W N Q E O H V K L L I O N U E X B I R J I N F I R D I G V D E M D T K E M A T A S T Z G K T N G A Q E S O I E P S R R N E M O W E S T O C N T H I H Z P T G L E I O O A O E Y X I I E R V E J B O X N I N R N O R H W K R I K X W R Y X R M H O H Q P U G T Y I I F S O W H T M H H V L O E I R E G S N G R C Q S X I R S C T A W C E U A C J H N J C K I A L F I U M C E C Q O C Q R W E A B O T O G F B E R Q L B O R B N B F F U L C F L I O P E M M H H D B U D U H D E W U Z Z D N I P I D P R O P E R T I E S O D R D N O B M L E Y C G I U R D N A H U R A A J D L P G P E Q N B Y T S I O B D O N A T I N G O B J Z F U G L D Z Z F T R T L H W C H I L D R E N X I S N Children Christina Clothing Council Donating Education Flourish Food Freedom Hand Heart Housing Jesus Kern Ministry Neighborhood Oklahoma Olivet Ownership Placement Properties Training Volunteering Women Work Note: The word clues for the Word Search are chosen by the Messenger staff, while the puzzles and letters surrounding the clues are computer-generated at random. DonatingCouncilClothingChristinaChildren HandFreedomFoodFlourishEducation MinistryKernJesusHousingHeart PlacementOwnershipOlivetOklahomaNeighborhood WorkWomenVolunteeringTrainingProperties S U D O K U W O R D S E A R C H CH URCH TOOL BOX P EO P L E & C H U RC H N E WS C L A S S I F I E D S V O I C E S NEWS &NCULTUREGINFO People & Church News | August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com 9 C H U R C H N E W S PTIST ARCHIVEHE OKLAHOMA PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
ORDINATION. Denny Doyen was ordained to the Gos pel ministry at Miami, Northwest on July 24.
>> PHOTO: Leedey,PROVIDEDFirst children support playground fund Leedey, First reported they are replacing their play ground equipment. As the church had embarked on rais ing funds for this project, some of the first contributors are the ones who will enjoy the results. Children of Leedey, First worked food booths at a local July 4 celebration and donated their profits to the playground equipment. Blane and Loren White served in a water and tea booth. The Quattlebaum cousins, Hudson Thompson, Karlee Quattle baum, Lilly Quattlebaum and Easton Thompson (and Mal lory Johston not pictured) sold ice cream sandwiches and popsicles. Together, the children raised $600 for the play ground equipment. Worship leader Lake Carpenter, left, accepts the contribution.
In 32 years of ministry at Tulsa, South Tul sa, Philip and Mary Ann Stephens have al ways represented the true heart of our church. They’ve watched the church re joice in victories and helped hold us to gether during significant challenges. Their first days at South Tulsa were hum ble beginnings, but following God’s leader ship, they have built a music ministry that reaches to every age and stage of life, all for the glory of God. They leave their positions with our music ministry at an all-time high point. They are showing us the definition of finishing well. Both Philip and Mary Ann minister far be yond the music area. They are always in con tact with people—from church members and volunteers to visitors and others in our community. They reach out to and visit those who are sick or in the hospital and care for others who are hurting or dealing with loss. In season after season in the life of our church, Philip and Mary Ann have been a rock of faith fulness, kindness and thoughtfulness. I’ve never seen ministers who are better at investing in and developing people. This in cludes their investments into my own fami ly. And they have ministered to me—I have been blessed personally on countless occa sions through their diligence, excellence in all things, encouragement and wisdom. In Matt. 25:21, Jesus says to His faithful servant whose investments for the Master have multiplied: “Well done, good and faith ful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness! ” Indeed, these words are incredibly fitting for Philip and Mary Ann Stephens, their fami ly, and their ministry. May God bless you both in this next season and we are beyond thank ful for the wonderful ministries and legacy they are leaving behind for us to continue. A beautiful anthem commissioned by Jo seph M. Martin titled “God is Singing” was presented by our choir and orchestra in both the morning worship time and the evening celebration. The evening began with a dinner in hon or of Philip and Mary Ann and concluded with a wonderful worship service.
>> PHOTO: PROVIDED >> by Eric Costanzo PASTOR, TULSA, SOUTH TULSA
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CONGREGATIONAL NEWS NEW CONGREGATION. Norman, The Church at Nor man is now meeting. Wally Kelly is pastor.
NEW AFFILIATES. OKC, Faith Hope and Love Mission ary and Del City, Jesus is Lord Missionary are now affiliat ed with Oklahoma Baptists. COMING EVENT SEPT. 16. Moore, First is hosting Band of Brothers din ner, 6-8:30 p.m. Speaker will be Jeff Struecker, former Army Ranger involved in Black Hawk Down incident. Cost is $10 or $15 at door. Visit firstmoore.com/bandofbrothers for info. TO SHARE NEWS, PLEASE EMAIL ALL INFO TO BAPTISTMESSENGER@OKBAPTIST.NET Mustang, First hosts tutoring workshop On June 17-18, a Tutoring Children and Youth Workshop was at Mustang, First. Lead ers were Barbara Marlett, center, and Cher yl Wilkinson, not pictured. The five partici pants who completed training were, from left, Caroline Hoofnagle, Stu Tully, Debi Tully, Janelle Breiding and Stacy Neuschaefer.
>> PHOTOS: PROVIDED 1) Philip and Mary Ann Stephens, center, sing with their daughter, Sarah Stephens Harper, and their son, David Stephens; 2) South Tulsa honored the Stephenses with a retirement dinner in July. Philip served as minister of music since 1990.
SANDERS DEATH. Gene Sanders, 69, died July 15. Funeral services were July 23 at Lindsay, First. He served in music ministry for 48 years with 23 years as music minister at Lindsay, First. He loved singing, ministering and sharing the Lord with people. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Becky; his son, Matthew Sanders; his daughters, Amy Vanderveer, Allison Petty and Alicia Belcher; and six grandchildren.
JOHN HICKMAN is pastor of Bethany, First. He previ ously served as pastor of Oklahoma City, Everyday. JIM LEHEW resigned as associate pastor at Oklahoma City, Emmaus. He is in a partnership with Oklahoma Bap tist Homes for Children as human resource director and the North American Mission Board as OKC Ministry Cen ter coordinator. DAVID MCDOWELL is interim pastor at Anadarko, Square Top. CHRISTOPHER PARKER is church administrator at Sapulpa, Faith. MIKE PRICE is interim pastor at Oklahoma City, South Lindsay. He previously served as pastor of Geary, First.
South Tulsa celebrates Stephens’ 32 years of ministry
• Your candidate may not be able to afford your church. If their family budget doesn’t match your church family budget, you save everyone time, energy and embarrassment by fully disclosing the salary package early in the process.
>>F/T or BI/VO PASTOR: Mary Niblack Road Baptist Church, Ardmore, OK is prayerful ly seeking a F/T or BI/VO Pastor. Please send resume to: maryniblackroad@gmail.com.
N E W S & T R E N D S CH URCH TOOL BOX M IS S I ON S & M I N IS T RY C L A S S I F I E D S V O I C E S
>>P/T MUSIC MINISTER: New Hope Baptist Church, 1501 N. 43rd St. E., Muskogee, OK 74403. Prayerfully seeking P/T Music Minister. Send re sume to above address or email to: NHBC2022MusicMinister@gmail.com.
To read more blogs with Jesus in mind, visit www.baptistmessenger.com/blog
>> CARISSA JONES
EMPLOYMENT
Everyone in ministry will eventually be on both sides of a pastor or ministry leader search process and needs to know best (and worst) practices. Here are five common mis takes pastor search teams can avoid:
3. Forcing candidates to compete. This practice (or malpractice) isn’t as common as it used to be, but the temptation to have a “preach off” may surface at some point. Ad mittedly, there’s a fine line between compar ing and competing. So how do you know when you’ve crossed it? You’ve crossed that line when multiple candidates are asked to preach live sermons for the committee, or multiple candidates make site visits to your campus. Save the church visit for when you narrow your search to one primary candidate.
>>F/T PASTOR: FBC Tecumseh, OK is prayerfully seeking a F/T Se nior Pastor. Please see a job description/qualifications & informa tion on how to apply on our website: www.fbctecumseh.org/.
1. Communicating inconsistently. From the moment candidates submit their names or resumes for consideration, that church takes a prolific part of both their attention and their spouses’ attention. Not a day will go by that each candidate is not prayer fully considering God’s will for their minis tries and families. Why then would a pastor search team allow weeks to go by without connecting with each candidate?
Children can learn about State Mis sions Offering by doing activity sheets featuring Edna McMillan. Download the sheets at the following address: oklahomabaptists.org/smo
>>F/T OR BI/VO PASTOR: Oney Baptist Church is prayerfully seeking a Pastor to lead our small, country church. 3 bed, 2 bath parsonage. Please send resumes to: Oney Bap tist Church, P.O. box 147, Albert, OK. 73001. Or Email to: gregory.darrel@yahoo.com.
>>CHILDREN’S/FAMILY PASTOR:FBC Crescent is prayerfully seeking a Children’s & Family Pastor to love & serve the Crescent community. Parsonage is provided. Please send resumes to: P.O. Box 196, Crescent, OK 73028 or email to: FBCCrescent@aol.com.
>>F/T CHILDREN’S MINISTER: FBC Ponca City is looking to ex pand its F/T Ministry Team. We believe Jesus’ words in Luke 18:16-17 are not a suggestion. We want to invest our resources to help kids meet & follow Jesus. If that resonates, send a resume to: kids@fbcponca.org.
>>BI/VO PASTOR: FBC of St. Louis, OK is receiving resumes for God-called, BI/VO Pastor. We are a healthy, stable SBC church. Please send resume to: FBC, P.O. Box 147, St. Louis, OK 74866 or email to: stlouisokfbc@gmail.com.
5 common pastor search mistakes to avoid CH URCH TOOL BOX P EO P L E & C H U RC H N E WS C L A S S I
>>P/T YOUTH MINISTER: New Hope Baptist Church, 1501 N. 43rd St. E., Muskogee, OK 74403 is prayerfully seeking a P/T Youth Minister to lead & disciple youth 6th - 12th grades. Send resumes to above address or email to: NHBC2022YouthMinister@gmail.com.
• Send everyone who’s not being consid ered a respectful rejection email immediately.
• Your church may not be able to af ford that candidate. It’s not uncommon for a church to think of itself through the rose-colored lenses of its heyday. Instead of guessing what you can afford, let us do the homework for you. The latest Compen sation Study (compstudy.lifeway.com) from Guidestone and Lifeway helps churches benchmark salaries and benefits.
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WORDSLINGERS BLOGFROM THE DAV E SAYS RESOURCE HIGHLIGHTOKLAHOMA BAPTISTS
CRICKETS
• Have the same person on the commit tee send email updates every other week, even if you have nothing new to share, so they know they’re still being considered and prayed over.
Check back with the highlight every issue to learn more about the resources available to every SBC church!
The Oklahoma State Missions Offer ing features videos of some of the fund ed ministries. Videos are available to show in worship services, Sunday School classes and other ways to promote the offering. oklahomabaptists.org/smo
STATE OFFERINGMISSIONSCHILDREN’SACTIVITYSHEETS
It’s not uncommon for pastoral candidates to oversell (or lie about) their ministries, marriages or anything else that makes them look better than they really are. That sounds cynical, but pride is a universal struggle that goes back to the garden of Eden. Pastors ar en’t immune to it. This is a common mistake because lay lead ers are understandably reluctant to delve into the personal life of their future pastor. But you must dive in. Politely wading into the shallows is not only a waste of time, but it’s also a dangerous injustice to the congrega tion who asked you to represent them. If you’ve narrowed your search to three to five candidates, a casual search through their social media feeds is sufficient. But once you’ve identified a primary candidate, jump into the deep end by searching both their social media feeds and their spouse’s, going back at least a year. Practice the same due dil igence with your criminal and credit history background checks. Don’t hesitate to openly share this process with your candidates ear ly on. If anyone balks, push the eject button.
4. Avoiding hard, personal questions
5. Misrepresenting the vision of the church. Pastor search teams may also inad vertently bait candidates by overselling their churches. Shoot straight with them about both your challenges and opportunities. Pas tors commonly complain that their search team didn’t give them an accurate description of who the church really was or who they hoped to be. The search for a pastor is a high-stakes process. Avoiding these common mistakes will prayerfully make it less painful and more enjoyable for everyone. F I D V O I C E NEWS & CULTURE A N N UA L M E E T I NG I N F O
10 August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com | Church Toolbox
If you’re on a pastor search team, your an swer may have something to do with how busy everyone on the team is. Holidays and “unexpected surprises” are typical excus es. The solution is very simple if you have a chairperson who will implement it:
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>>F/T YOUTH MINISTER: Jay FBC is seeking a F/T Youth Minis ter who has a call & passion for ministering to youth. Please email to: fbcjay@yahoo.com or mail to: P.O. Box 304, Jay, OK 74346.
WORDSLINGERS BLOGFROM THE DAV E SAYS RESOURCE HIGHLIGHTOKLAHOMA BAPTISTS
>>F/T PASTOR: Is needed for Galey Baptist Church. Galey is a friend ly, country church. Please send resume to: DMount.quiver@gmail.com.
>>F/T ASSOCIATE PASTOR: FBC Frederick is prayerfully searching for a F/T Associate Pastor of Worship & Family Discipleship. Please send resumes to: fbcfrederick@pldi.net. Visit https://www.baptistmessenger.com/classifieds-form/toadvertisewithus!
This post might seem to hop around a bit (pun fully in tended), but stick with me. Have you ever asked a question or made a comment, and not one single person responded? Often in these sit uations, we say “crickets” to indicate that things are so quiet, all you hear are the crickets chirping. My dad has tinnitus. Rather than a ringing in his ears, he describes it as sounding like crickets chirping constantly. He recently failed to realize that they had a real cricket in their home because the racket it made blended so well with what Dad was already hearing. While a certain level of irony exists in the fact that he experiences the constant noise of what most of us associ ate with silence, the two go hand-in-hand to some extent. You see, the relentless chirping makes it difficult for Dad to hear some things. He often misses what is being said to him because the cricket sounds in his ears drown out the voices of those around him. I was scrolling through social media recently and began feeling overwhelmed. We are bombarded daily with copi ous amounts of content. It dawned on me that this sensa tion is comparable to the constant chirping my dad hears. Each tweet or post becomes a single chirp adding to the general din. To read the rest of Carissa’s blog visit, baptistmessenger.com/blog-crickets
2. Waiting to talk about money. This is usually the most awkward part of the pro cess for both sides. Perhaps that’s why it is often avoided until the last minute. Here are a few reasons to consider talking about money immediately after you’ve identified your primary candidate.
STATE OFFERINGMISSIONSVIDEOS
>> by Mark Dance GUIDESTONE DIRECTOR OF PASTOR WELLNESS
>>P/TYOUTH MINISTER: Duke FBC is prayerfully seeking a P/T Youth Minister who is pas sionate about God & serving youth. Please send resume or inquiries to: fbcduke@swoi.net.
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>>F/T MUSIC/YOUTH: NLBC Newalla is prayer fully seeking a combination position for Music & Youth. Interested candidates should email a cov er letter & resume to: Zach@newlifenewalla.com.
>>BI/VO OR P/T WORSHIP MINISTER: Lakeview Baptist Church is searching for a blended service worship minister. Please send resumes to: lsbc93@ gmail.com or 5265 W. Rogers Blvd, Ste A # 202, Skiatook, OK, 74070, Attn: Search Committee.
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>>F/T PASTOR: Eastside Baptist Church in Elk City, OK is prayerfully seeking a F/T Pastor. A parsonage is provided. Candidates should sub mit a cover letter & resume to: eastsidesec@ outlook.com Attn: Pastor Search Committee.
>>SENIOR PASTOR: Lake Center BC seeks a Senior Pastor to love, lead & grow us in the di rection God leads. We are a loving multigener ational, elder-led church on Grand Lake. Great schools. Submit your resume & cover letter by 9/30 to: searchteam@lakecenter.church.
>>P/T YOUTH MINISTER: Soldier Creek Baptist Church is prayerfully seeking a P/T Youth Minister to lead & disciple our youth group, 6th – 12th grades. Please send resumes to: soldiercreek@soldiercreek.org.
>>F/T YOUTH MINISTER: Southeast Baptist, Muskogee is seeking a F/T Youth Minister who has a call & passion for ministering to youth. Please email to: danielm.sebc@gmail.com or mail to: 2511 E. Hancock, Muskogee, OK 74403.
>>VAN FOR SALE: 15 Passenger, 2005 White Chevrolet G-3500 Express Van, 54,435 miles, 6.0 L V8 engine. Runs well, but van has areas that need paint and it needs a catalytic convert er. $4,000. Contact Sam Marvin (405) 677-2640.
>> F/T OR BI/VO PASTOR: FBC Ryan is seek ing a F/T or BI/VO Pastor. Parsonage is pro vided. Please send cover letter & resume to fbcryan1@gmail.com or to Pastor Search Committee, P.O. Box 519, Ryan, OK 73565.
>>P/T MUSIC MINISTER/YOUTH MINISTER: Union Valley Baptist in Cookietown, OK is seek ing a P/T Music Minister & a Youth Minster. If you feel God calling you to serve as either the Mu sic Minister or Youth Minister, or both, please send resume to: cboydston547@gmail.com.
>>F/T YOUTH/COLLEGE MINISTER: FBC in Grove, OK. This is a F/T position with paid health insurance. Grove is located in NE Okla homa on Grand Lake. Applicants can email a cover letter & resume to: grovefbc@gmail.com.
>>DIRECTOR OF MISSIONS: Muskogee Bap tist Association is taking resumes for Director of Missions. Submit your resume to: Muskogee Baptist Association, 637 N. C Street, Muskogee, OK 74403 or email to: wanda@mbamissions. org. Deadline for resumes is August 31, 2022.
Classifieds | August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com 11 C L A S S I F I E D S V O I C E S NEWS & CULTURE A N N UA L M E E T I NG I N F O
>>F/T WORSHIP LEADER/CHURCH AD MINISTRATOR: View Acres Baptist in Tulsa is seeking someone to lead our blended worship service & work as church admin istrator. For a complete job description or to submit a resume contact Gary Patton at: gpatton3@cox.net
CLASSIFIEDS COLOR KEY: PASTORYOUTHMUSIC JOB MISC.VEHICLELISTING
>>P/T WORSHIP LEADER: FBC, Noble prayerfully seeking Sunday morning Worship Leader. Interest ed applicants email resume to: stbrasier@aol.com.
>>WORSHIP/YOUTH PASTOR: Emmanuel Bap tist in Purcell, OK is looking for a Worship & Youth Pastor. We have a blended worship style & a good core of students. This is currently a P/T position with potential to go F/T. Contact: mike@ebcpurcell.org.
>>F/T PASTOR: FBC Hollis is prayerfully seeking a F/T Pastor. Parsonage is provided. Please send resumes to: FBC, P.O. Box 589, Hollis, OK 73550 or fbchollis@pldi.net.
>>EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Ministries of Je sus Executive Director. Provides daily leadership, management & decision making. Ensures suc cessful implementation of MOJ mission/vision. Leads in fundraising & participates with the Board in developing strategies. Email: jhill@moj.com.
>>F/T MUSIC MINISTER: South Tulsa Bap tist Church is searching for a F/T Music Minis ter who can lead contemporary & traditional music for all generations. For the job posting & more information, email: pwhite@southtulsa.org.
>>F/T OR BI/VO PASTOR: Small rural church is Southeast Oklahoma is searching for a F/T or BI/VO Pastor. Parsonage provided. Please send resume to: McGee Valley Baptist Church, 11014 N. Gabbart Rd., Stringtown, OK 74569.
>>F/T PASTOR: FBC of Canton, a small rural church in northwest Oklahoma, is prayerfully seeking a F/T Pastor. Parsonage, utilities & com petitive compensation package provided. Email resume: cantonfbcpastorsearch@gmail.com.
(Job 6:17) 68 School org. 69 Glutton’s partner, slangily (Prov. 23:21) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 www.CrosswordWeaver.com JULY 14 ANSWERSPuzzle 29: Nehemiah Puzzle 30: Esther Puzzle 27: 2 Chronicles Puzzle 28: Ezra Puzzle 25: 1 Chronicles Puzzle 26: 2 Chronicles 1 SarahChroniclesLagerquistSimmons F O R E W R A P C R A B E V E N W H I R R H I V E T E N T R A C K O A P E D A R T I F I C E P A P E R S C A S K P H I L P R I E S T D U E L I S T L O R D S T A R T N O O K A L I A V E F A N N E S T P L I E D R I S E S H E L L E D I D E A T E S E A S S N I P C H A T T Y J U G G L I N G Y O G I A S A P H I D E A S A U L C O V E Y C O R P T R A Y T S A R A L O E Ezra Sarah Lagerquist Simmons S E B S S C A L P H I T T U L I P A L D E R O N E A R I S E K A Z O O U S A B O P O B E Y P O S E S O P U S A T H L E T E S E P A L S A C H E D A Z U R E M E A T D K G A R T S G H O S T T O I L R A T B R A N P R O N E F L I N G G E O R G E S M I L I N G L O R D C Y R U S G O D S A C S A L A T A B O O I G L O O M A T E X A L T A I M E D P R E R E N D S N A D A SarahNehemiahLagerquistSimmons A C T W A T T S T A T U S W O E A R I A W H O O S H A V E L O R D A I R W A Y R E P U L S E T N T E Y E S E D G E G A T E S S E A S O R B R A P G A G D I E C A S E M I M E T I C E S C A P E D E R A S S O N T A R E A R T W O D O W N K N E A D S T E M L A O S C O P P E N S I V E T E N U R E L O R E T E E S P I R I T A C C T E N D P A L A C E W H Y S D A Y Esther Sarah Lagerquist Simmons U M P T I L D E E D U C E P E A A R E A S S E R E R P A L F I G H T P I N O N E N A C T S H A N G R I C A S H E D N A D A S E E K S W A R M N I P I D E A S E S T E E B A N Y A N F A S T E D R O U G E N A S T Y E A T A P I S H L A I D D R O P F E L T E M M A U N T O B O S O M S G E N R E P R E E N R U T O R B I T L E V E L A R E D E E M S E V E R Y L E D A S P P R E A T E S H E B A O U R M A N O R H O A R D O B S A L T A R E L I J A H T U R B I D M U G S I A T E N S O L O M O N L O W H E A R T A L I A C U T E A R T Y D I M A C H E N I T E R E V E P L I E D K E Y I G N E O U S D R S N B A N E B G R A B B Y D O U A L A A L A M O E S E D R E S S S E V E N A P E O F F E R L E E R A M T A I A L P O D E G A S C R Y C A R L O A M I N O H U E T W E E T V I N Y L A L A G N P H E I R O F F E R M E L D H A M M E R S D I S A R M B E F O G A B Y S S I R A N S A T R I N K C E D A R H U G H E S C L O R D B O G I E S E A M Y I R V I N E C A N T A T A T R E E O B E Y S U R S A C P A M A R H O U S E S C O R N A C V E A S E S T A L O N S K Y S T A R S N A M E C R O S S W O R D Rate:
>>F/T WORSHIP LEADER: FBC Sapulpa is looking for the right individual to lead our worship ministry & corporate worship. For a detailed description of the position vis it: https://fbcsapulpa.com/ministry-openings.
>>PIANIST: Knob Hill Baptist Church is prayer fully seeking a piano player for Sunday services. Call or text (405) 481-1990 or you can send an email to: knobhillbaptistchurch@gmail.com.
>>F/T YOUTH MINISTER: FBC Prague, OK is search ing for a F/T Youth Minister. Please send resumes to: fb cpyouthsearchcommittee@gmail.com or ATTN: Youth Search Committee, 1500 Bluebell Rd., Prague, OK 74864.
>>BI/VO OR P/T WORSHIP MINISTER: Seeking God’s candidate for our next blended service Wor ship Minister. Please submit resume & cover letter to: cbcbamusic@gmail.com or Clearview Baptist Church, P.O. Box 140892, Broken Arrow, OK 74014.
>>F/T PASTOR: Bethel Baptist Church of Anadar ko, OK is prayerfully seeking a F/T Pastor. Candidates should email a resume to: scot.gpglass@att.net or mail to: Bethel Baptist Church, Attn. Pastor Search Committee, 501 W. Florida, Anadarko OK 73005.
>>F/T SENIOR PASTOR: FBC Jay is accepting re sumes for a F/T Senior Pastor. Please email resumes to: fbcjay@yahoo.com or mail to: P.O. Box 304 Jay, OK 74346. Attn: Pastor Research Committee.
>>F/T or BI/VO PASTOR: Cheek Baptist Church, Lone Grove, OK is prayerfully seeking a Pastor for our rural country church. Please send resume to: Cheekbaptist@gmail.com or P.O. Box 551, Lone Grove, OK 73443-6166.
MISCELLANEOUS
>>F/T PASTOR: FBC Rosedale is prayerfully seeking God’s will. Please send resumes to: 37740 Arkansas Ave, Rosedale, OK 74831 or tracy100@windstream.net.
>>P/T OR BI/VO MUSIC MINISTER: Western Heights Baptist Church of Duncan, OK is seeking a P/T or BI/VO Music Minister for Sunday am & pm service & as needed. Send resume to: whbc duncan@gmail.com or mail to: Western Heights Baptist Church, 2305 W. Beech, Duncan, OK 73533.
>>F/T YOUTH MINISTER: North Pointe BC, in Edmond (Deer Creek School District), is actively interviewing candidates to lead our small group driven student ministry. Applicants can send a re sume & cover letter to: searchteam@northpointe.tv.
>>BOOK/CONSULTING: Building a practical church safety organization? Intentional Church Safety by Bev an Collins, 2022 now available from Amazon.com. www. intentionalchurchsafety.com. The author is available for free presentations (NE OK) & additional consulting.
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>>PASTOR: FBC of Kellyville is prayerfully seeking a Pastor. Please send resumes & DVD or CD if avail able to: Pastor Search Committee, FBC, P.O. Box 637, Kellyville, OK 74039 or email: kvfbc1@yahoo.com.
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>>F/T CHILDREN/FAMILIES MINISTER: FBC Elk City is accepting resumes for a F/T Min ister of Children & Families. Please send cov er letter & resume to: duncan@fbcelk.city.
DOWN 1 Each of Job’s children had one, for short 2 One in Madrid 3 New Deal pres. 4 “The ___ of God is fallen from heaven” (Job 51:16)The Book’s lesson: They show when we presume to advise others 6 The Book’s debates, almost 7 Name in color 8 It tells you when you’ve got mail 9 Eliphaz would ___ Job’s innocence (Job 104:7–8)Esau (Gen. 36:1) 11 Job’s adversary (Job 1:10–11) 12 Look on the face of 9 Down, perhaps 13 Peter does this when he tries to walk on water (Matt. 14:30) 21 Job would ___ God’s test (Job 42:10) 23 Repeat, in music 24 Colorado park 25 Summation of Job’s reply to his wife, perhaps (Job 2:10) 26 Cake confection 28 KJV rent 31 “I’m at a loss for words” 32 Describes Job’s friends’ advice 33 South African plain (var.) 34 Pitcher 36 Tidy 38 Feature of Daniel’s lions 39 “Thou shalt not ___” (Ex. 20:15) 40 Describes Job (Job 1:8) 43 The Book’s holder of power (Job 2:6) 46 Brainy test (abbr.) 47 Job’s description of life, in a way (Job 3:23) 49 Much of it was at Job’s eldest son’s house (Job 1:18–19) 50 After he lost everything, what Job lived in, 52perhapsResult of Job’s sore boils, perhaps 53 Jesus, the Word (John 1:1) (Gr.) 54 Job’s misery would ___ his patience (Job 583:1)Skins of kids covered Jacob’s (Gen. 27:16) 59 NT Book 61 “Canst thou ___ lightnings?” (Job 38:35) 62 Tub spread 63 Grass 66 “When it is ___, they are consumed” (Job 686:17)School org. 69 Glutton’s partner, slangily (Prov. 23:21) 70 Jerusalem to Amman dir. Cake confection 28 KJV rent 31 “I’m at a loss for words” 32 Describes Job’s friends’ advice 33 South African plain (var.) 34 Pitcher 36 Tidy 38 Feature of Daniel’s lions 39 “Thou shalt not ___” (Ex. 20:15) 40 Describes Job (Job 1:8) 43 The Book’s holder of power (Job 2:6) 46 Brainy test (abbr.) Job’s description of life, in a way (Job 3:23) 49 Much of it was at Job’s eldest Result of Job’s sore boils, perhaps 53 Jesus, the Word (John 1:1) (Gr.) Job’s misery would ___ his patience (Job 3:1) Skins of kids covered Jacob’s (Gen. 27:16) NT Book 61 “Canst thou ___ lightnings?” (Job 38:35) 62 Tub spread 63 Grass 66 “When it is ___, they are consumed” $25.00 flat rate per ad • Deadline: Two weeks prior to publication. Submit a classified ad at www.baptistmessenger.com/advertise on the Classifieds Form
>>BI/VO PASTOR: FBC Roosevelt is searching for a BI/VO Pastor. We have a vacancy for a min ister who will challenge & inspire us. Please send resume to: rooseveltfbc@swoi.net or mail to: First Baptist Church, P.O. Box 218, Roosevelt, OK 73564.
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>>BI/VO YOUTH MINISTER: Eastland Hills Church in Choctaw is seeking God’s person to lead in our youth ministry. You may con tact Pastor Kenny Lindsey at (405) 361-0656 or email resumes to: kenny@eastlandhills.org.
ACROSS 1 Book’s question: Why do people ___? 7 Book’s question: Does God ___? 11 Serpent’s sound 14 Dye familiar to Lydia, perhaps (Acts 16:14) 15 Judas Iscariot took the wrong one (Matt. 1626:14–15)Frenchfriend
>>BI/VO PASTOR: Swan Lake Baptist Church, located by Ft. Cobb Lake, is prayerfully seek ing a BI/VO Pastor. Please send resume to: kaylab24@yahoo.com or call (580) 613-0007.
>>F/T WORSHIP/COMMUNICATIONS PASTOR: FBC Enid is seeking a F/T Pastor of Worship & Com munications. For more info on the job description & next steps visit: www.fbcenid.com/careers or contact the church office at (580) 234-1133. Thanks!
>>F/T FAMILY/STUDENT PASTOR: Associ ate Pastor of Families with a primary empha sis on Student Ministry. FBC, Mannford, OK. For a job description, inquiries or to submit a re sume, please email: fbcmannford@cimtel.net.
>>F/T WORSHIP PASTOR: Associate Pas tor of Worship/Media. FBC, Mannford, OK. For job description, inquiries or to submit a resume email: fbcmannford@cimtel.net.
>>F/T PASTOR: Blackgum, FBC Vian, OK is prayerfully seeking a F/T Pastor. Interested candidates should email a cover letter & re sume to: BlackgumBaptistresume@gmail.com.
>>BI/VO PASTOR: Prairie Grove BC is a small rural church near Talihina, OK. We are prayer fully seeking a God-called, BI/VO, Bible-preach ing, man of God to lead our church. We are a unified, mission minded congregation. Send resume to: kerryaphillips2016@gmail.com.
>> SHUTTLE BUS FOR SALE: 1992 F350 Ford Shuttle Bus, 7.3 diesel, front & rear air with extra top mount ed unit & 1994 Dodge 15 Passenger Van, 157282 miles. Make offer. Contact Glenn at (918) 569-4178.
>>F/T PASTOR: FBC of Mangum, OK is prayer fully seeking a F/T Pastor. Updated parsonage will be provided. Candidates should email a re sume to: mangumfirstbaptist@gmail.com or mail to: FBC Mangum, Attn. Pastor Search Com mittee, 228 N. Oklahoma, Mangum, OK 73554.
17 What the wicked do, but never repay (Ps. 1837:21)Choir section 19 Metal that can withstand re (Num. 2031:22–23)TheBook, in a way 22 Paul would ___ on a journey to Cyprus (Acts 13:4) 24 New York winter hour 27 Measurement (Ezek. 45:14) 29 Baruch’s tools (Jer. 36:18) 30 “Be ___ with sandals” (Mark 6:9) 32 The Book’s answer (Job 19:25) (2 wds.) 35 Albanian capital 37 What you sit on during worship (2 wds.) 38 Controversial food avoring (abbr.) 41 Book before the Book 42 Musically smooth 44 Job’s wife, e.g. 45 Paul was ___ during his trip to Cyprus (Acts 13:4) 48 Job’s “comforters” did this a lot 49 Unbeliever, perhaps 51 Book’s question: How does man ___ with 52grief?Snow transport 55 London hour in January 56 Describes 11 Down 57 Sun circle 60 Cleaner choice 64 The Book takes place long ___ 65 Job surely felt this when he said that “the Lord hath taken away” (Job 1:21) 67 Jesus said time would ___ before world’s end (Matt. 24:6) 71 “Their houses are safe. . .neither is the ___ of God upon them” (Job 21:9) 72 Dept. of Commerce agencies 73 Physicist Isaac 74 Tyre to Amman dir. 75 French verbs 76 Job’s friends would ___ their advice to Job (but not their home or money!)
>>BI/VO PASTOR: Squaretop Baptist of Anadar ko, OK is a small, rural church that is prayerfully seeking a Bible believing BI/VO Pastor with a heart for God & Family. Please send resume to: square top.baptist@gmail.com or call: (405) 933-0698.
>>BI/VO PASTOR: Etowah Baptist seek ing God’s man to preach, teach & guide our congregation. Mail cover letter & resume to Etowah Baptist Church, Attn: Pastor Search Committee, P.O. Box 571, Noble, OK 73068.
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>>F/T DISCIPLESHIP/MUSIC PASTOR: FBC Elk City is accepting resumes for a F/T Pas tor of Discipleship & Music. Please send your cover letter & resume to: duncan@fbcelk.city.
12 August 11, 2022 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com | News & Culture
