Generosity Magazine Fall 2021

WAT E R S E D G E A D V I S O R S & M I N I S T R Y S E R V I C E S

Fall 2021

YEARS OF IMPACT

SMART GIVING: BENEFICIARY DESIGNATION

OLD MEETS NEW IN FRONTLINE RENOVATION

2021 IMB WEEK OF PRAYER

PROTECT YOUR FAMILY.

Leave a legacy.

Create or update your estate plan with WatersEdge.

Everything we have is a gift from God. Kingdom-minded estate planning acknowledges Christians’ role as stewards of these gifts.

We’re commanded to use them for His glory during our lifetime and beyond. WatersEdge can help you pass on God’s provision through biblically grounded estate planning that provides for your family and advances ministry.

Let our certified estate planning professionals guide you.

Make an appointment today.

WatersEdgeServices.org/plan 800-949-9988

A Word From Our CEO

MAKING HISTORY O

ne of my prized possessions is a framed copy of the November 14, 1946, issue of the Baptist Messenger. It is historically and personally significant to me. The cover story announces the beginning of WatersEdge (The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma), as the sole incorporated trust agency for Baptist work in the state.

That copy of the Baptist Messenger was discovered in my grandfather’s personal papers following his death.

Reverend W.J. Hart was a longtime pastor of Oklahoma Baptist churches. Why he saved that issue of the Baptist Messenger is a mystery to me. He could not have known that his grandson would eventually serve as the sixth president of the Foundation.

The focus of this issue of Generosity is to acknowledge the 75th anniversary of WatersEdge by applauding the foresight of those Oklahoma Baptists who birthed us, to honor the faithful

THE BEGINNING – The creation of The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma was front page news in the November 14, 1946, issue of the Baptist Messenger.

stewardship and uncommon generosity of our donors, to celebrate the impact their gifts are making on the ministries they love, and to praise God for His providential guidance and innumerable blessings.

Ministry has changed in exciting and challenging ways since 1946. During the past 75 years, WatersEdge has matured into an effective Christian financial services organization that is empowering donors and ministries to transform lives with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We operate from a biblical worldview without compromise and I pray that 2 Corinthians 8:21 can be true of WatersEdge: “For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man.”

I trust you will see evidence of tangible Kingdom impact through the stories included in this issue of Generosity — stories that demonstrate how God is using His people and the resources with which He has blessed them to fund ministries that proclaim the Gospel. It is good to be the beneficiary of a rich heritage and promising future. I trust that those who come after us in the next 75 years will have found us as faithful as we have found those who came before us.

c. 1993

Robert K. Kellogg Chief Executive Officer WatersEdgeServices.org

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Inside WATERSEDGE TURNS 75 What can God accomplish through the faithful generosity of His people?

Celebrate the diamond anniversary of WatersEdge with a look back at threequarters of a century of Kingdom impact. Pictured are Foundation staff Janna Charles and Marvin Hall, c. 1978. PG. 14

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SMART GIVING: BENEFICIARY DESIGNATION Discover a simple way to leave your assets to the ministries you love.

PG. 10

WHY I GIVE: CARL & JAN PETERSON One sows and another reaps, and for Carl and Jan Peterson, their joy is in sowing their funds back into the Kingdom.

IMB WEEK OF PRAYER God is using an Oklahoma church to empower believers in North Africa and the Middle East while revealing Himself through miracles in Southeast Asia. Your giving makes it possible. PG. 32

PG. 12

WATERSEDGE NEWS Staff milestones, new resources and more.

PG. 40

ON THE COVER As of November 6, 2021, WatersEdge, formerly The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma, celebrates 75 years of impact.

Generosity

RENEWING AND REVIVING Learn how Frontline Church used a loan with WatersEdge to transform a historic building into a battlefield for the Gospel. PG. 36

Fall 2021

Generosity is published biannually by WatersEdge.

To subscribe for free, request a copy or update mailing information, please call 800-949-9988 or email info@WatersEdgeServices.org.

Copyright 2021. All rights reserved.

Contributors Coy Cypert Sheryl Hash Carla Hinton Christa Rogers Alexandra Toy Marcus Wehmuller

Production Mike Schueler Editor-in-Chief Anna Dellinger Managing Editor Marissa Crowson Visual Editor Jacob Blaze Design

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#BECAUSEYOUGIVE

HOPE AFTER THE STORM A group of Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) volunteers from Arkansas attach a tarp to the roof of a home in Independence, Louisiana, following Hurricane Ida’s landfall August 30. The natural disaster devastated southeastern Louisiana with 150 mileper-hour winds, bringing with it severe flooding, power outages and substantial damage to as many as 1 million homes. #BecauseYouGive, Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers from eight states provided more than 26,000 work hours and more than 175,000 meals to victims of the hurricane.

Serving individuals and families affected by natural disasters gives SBDR volunteers opportunities to show the love of Christ and share the Gospel. WatersEdge planned giving professionals can help maximize your gift to Southern Baptist Disaster Relief.

Contact us today at 800-949-9988 or give@WatersEdgeServices.org or donate online at WatersEdgeServices.org/give.

Photo by Alexandra Toy 6

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#BECAUSEYOUGIVE

PRISON PREACHERS Oklahoma Baptist University’s (OBU) Prison Divinity Program began its inaugural semester with a convocation service September 7 at the Lexington Assessment and Reception Center in Lexington, Oklahoma. The program’s purpose is to change prisons from the inside out, bringing radical transformation through the teaching of God’s Word. Inmates enrolled in the four-year bachelor of arts program will receive the same Christian Studies degree as students on the university’s campus. Upon graduation, the men will be sent as field ministers to other prisons across the state. Pictured with the inmates are OBU President Heath Thomas (right) and Bruce Perkins, program director. #BecauseYouGive, OBU can offer degrees ranging from engineering and nursing to theology and music to a wide variety of students. WatersEdge giving experts can multiply your gift’s impact to OBU. Contact us today at 800-949-9988 or give@WatersEdgeServices.org or donate online at WatersEdgeServices.org/give.

Photo by Coy Cypert WatersEdgeServices.org

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Beneficiary Beneficiary Designation Designation WITH WAY NO HASSLE. ABENEFIT ASIMPLE, SIMPLE,MINISTRY TAX-EFFICIENT TAX-EFFICIENT WAY TOTOGIVE. GIVE.

By Christa Rogers vice president client engagement By ByChrista ChristaRogers Rogersvice vicepresident president , ,,client clientengagement engagement

B B

eneficiary designation allows eneficiary eneficiary designation designation allows allows you to give assets like life you you toto give give assets assets like like a aa life life insurance policy or retirement plan insurance insurancepolicy policyororretirement retirementplan plantoto to ministry after your passing. one ministry ministryafter afteryour yourpassing. passing.ItIt Itisis isone oneofof of the easiest and most tax-efficient ways the theeasiest easiestand andmost mosttax-efficient tax-efficientways ways to support Kingdom work, because totosupport supportKingdom Kingdomwork, work,because because updating a beneficiary designation updating updating a a beneficiary beneficiary designation designation doesn’t tochanges your will typically typicallyrequire doesn’t doesn’tchanges require requirechanges toto or trust. your yourwill will orortrust. trust.

Begin contacting WatersEdge.

Begin Begin byby by contacting contacting WatersEdge.

WatersEdge.

Our giving professionals will guide Our Ourgiving givingprofessionals professionalswill willguide guide you through the process of requesting you youthrough throughthe theprocess processofofrequesting requesting and completing a beneficiary designaand andcompleting completinga abeneficiary beneficiarydesignadesignation form from your account provider. tion tionform formfrom fromyour youraccount accountprovider. provider.

We’ll also document the ministry We’ll We’ll also also document document the the ministry ministry or ministries you wish to support. oror ministries ministries you you wish wish toto support. support.

You may choose to send the funds You Youmay maychoose choosetotosend sendthe thefunds funds directly ministry place them directly directlytoto toministry ministryoror orplace placethem theminin in an endowment that multiplies your ananendowment endowmentthat thatmultiplies multipliesyour your ministry impact through perpetual ministry ministry impact impact through through perpetual perpetual annual distributions. annual annualdistributions. distributions.

HOWIT ITWORKS WORKS HOW HOW IT WORKS

Contact Us and Contact ContactUs Usand and Share What Asset Share ShareWhat WhatAsset Asset You Plan to Give You YouPlan Planto toGive Give

Name WatersEdge as Name NameWatersEdge WatersEdgeas as Beneficiary Using Beneficiary BeneficiaryUsing Using Designation Form Designation DesignationForm Form

Document the Ministry Document Documentthe theMinistry Ministry Your Gift Will Support Your YourGift GiftWill WillSupport Support

Asset Gifted Death as Asset AssetGifted Giftedatat atDeath Deathas as Endowment or Outright Endowment Endowmentor orOutright Outright Gift to Ministry Gift Giftto toMinistry Ministry

BEFOREYOU YOUGIVE GIVE BEFORE BEFORE YOU GIVE Work with WatersEdge document the ministry • ••Work Workwith withWatersEdge WatersEdgetoto todocument documentthe theministry ministryoror or ministries you wish support and how distribute ministries ministriesyou youwish wishtoto tosupport supportand andhow howtoto todistribute distribute the funds. the thefunds. funds.

B B10 B

GG G EE E NN N EE E RR R OO O SS S I TII T T YY Y

Fall 2021 Fall Fall2021 2021

On your beneficiary designation form, sure designate • ••On Onyour yourbeneficiary beneficiarydesignation designationform, form,bebe besure suretoto todesignate designate “The Baptist Foundation Oklahoma dba WatersEdge “The “TheBaptist BaptistFoundation Foundationofof ofOklahoma Oklahomadba dbaWatersEdge WatersEdge Advisors” as the beneficiary, include our tax ID number Advisors” Advisors”asasthe thebeneficiary, beneficiary,include includeour ourtax taxID IDnumber number (EIN 73-0623038) and specify the gift percentage.

(EIN (EIN73-0623038) 73-0623038)and andspecify specifythe thegift giftpercentage. percentage.

KEY BENEFITS

1

GIVE WITH EASE AND SIMPLICITY Most beneficiary designations require a single form and typically don’t necessitate changes to your will, trust or estate plan.

2

REDUCE POTENTIAL TAX BURDEN Depending on the asset, these gifts can reduce or eliminate income taxes for your heirs, as well as minimize estate taxes, if applicable.

3

PROVIDE CONTROL AND FLEXIBILITY Beneficiary designations are revocable until your death; you control which ministry or ministries you want to support and the asset percentage each beneficiary receives.

WHICH ACCOUNTS WORK WITH BENEFICIARY DESIGNATION GIFTS?

RETIREMENT PLAN

LIFE INSURANCE

Give funds from a traditional IRA, Roth IRA, 401(k), 403(b) and more.

Direct a portion or all of your policy’s death benefit to ministry.

DONOR ADVISED FUND

COMMERCIAL ANNUITY

REAL ESTATE

Some annuities have remaining value after the annuitant’s death, which can be given to ministry.

In many states, your land or home can be gifted to ministry with a “transfer on death” deed.

Donate remaining balance in your DAF at your death.

BANKING AND INVESTMENT ACCOUNTS Gift remaining funds in your checking, savings or brokerage accounts at your death.

Beneficiary designation is a simple way to ensure that, after your death, your assets will go to the ministries you love most. To learn more or make a gift, start a conversation with a WatersEdge giving solutions professional today.

800-949-9988 | give@WatersEdgeServices.org | WatersEdgeServices.org

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WHY I GIVE CARL AND JAN PETERSON

By Anna Dellinger • Photo by Marcus Wehmuller

T

he Petersons have come a long way from saving pennies for postage stamps. Through years of humble living, saving, paying off debt, tithing and listening to God’s direction as they transitioned between jobs, Carl and Jan Peterson are now in a position to give extravagantly.

“We basically started with nothing and saw how God blessed us,” Carl says. “We understand that God owns it all.

Out of the abundance we have now, we cheerfully give to support the work of proclaiming the Gospel.”

Pre-Born!, Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children and The Spring (formerly known as Dayspring Villa).

In 2019, the Petersons were inspired by a book about generational giving and decided to start meeting with their children annually to determine which ministries their family will support. When Jan’s brother passed earlier this year, the Petersons inherited $200,000 — $200,000 they are excited to use to create an endowment through WatersEdge.

At multiple points in his career, Carl found himself without a job: “The first time I lost my job was probably the first time our faith was tested … we had a sick baby, no jobs and no health care,” Carl says. At another time, both Carl and Jan were laid off on the same day. “We both got unemployment checks and tithed from those,” Carl says. Soon, however, God provided jobs, and the Petersons were able to increase their giving again. “God was always faithful,” Jan says.

Endowment is attractive to the Petersons because they know what it’s like to watch something grow. Every year, Carl puts hours of work into his vegetable garden, and Jan preserves what God grows throughout the summer. Endowment invests gifts for long-term growth while making annual payments to charitable causes. With wise management, an endowment’s market value grows over time, multiplying distributions. What’s more, the Petersons’ children and grandchildren can continue giving to the endowment and watch it grow generation after generation.

Over the past few years, the Petersons’ income has outpaced their needs. So, they decided to give more to Kingdom work. The Petersons have used a donor advised fund and IRA charitable rollovers through WatersEdge to give to ministries including their local church, Mission:Dignity,

“God has given to us over and over again,” Jan says. Carl adds, “We want other people to give because of the joy we’ve experienced from giving. That’s what we’re doing with our family; we hope that future generations will continue to give back.”

“We basically started with nothing and saw how God

blessed us. We understand that God owns it all.”

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THE SEED THAT OKLAHOMA BAPTISTS PLANTED IN 1946 IS BEARING FRUIT THAT WILL SUSTAIN MINISTRY FOR GENERATIONS. THIS NOVEMBER, WATERSEDGE CELEBRATES ITS 75TH ANNIVERSARY.

By Mike Schueler & Anna Dellinger

T

The story of WatersEdge — of The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma — is your story. For three-quarters of a century, your giving has enabled WatersEdge to serve and strengthen Oklahoma Baptists. Our purpose is to financially empower donors and ministries to transform lives with the Gospel.

Join us on a journey 75 years in the making as we reflect on our shared history and stand in awe of what God has accomplished through your generosity.

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the

1940s

THE FOUNDERS – Andrew Potter (center right), Robert Kerr (center left) and T.B. Lackey (far left) helped spearhead the creation of The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma. Their names are among those listed on the organization’s certificate of incorporation from the state of Oklahoma.

establish a program in 1927, but … the financial crash in 1929 brought it to an end,” wrote the Foundation’s second president, Thomas E. Carter.

“In 1934, interest in endowment came to the front again. … However, the chaos of the Depression in the ’30s defeated this attempt.”

THE EARLY YEARS W

atersEdge was born on November 6, 1946, as The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma.

World War II had ended only a year earlier, and messengers to the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma (today Oklahoma Baptists) voted to create an incorporated trust agency. An article in the Baptist Messenger, the convention’s newspaper, declared “Baptists Make History …” and explained that the new agency’s purpose was the “investment and protection” of funds given to endowment in support of Baptist causes.

At the heart of the Foundation’s genesis was a growing desire among Oklahoma

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Baptist leadership to ensure financial stability for Baptist institutions across the state. During Oklahoma’s territory and early statehood years, several Baptist schools and a Baptist hospital were closed due to a lack of funding. Oklahoma Baptist University (OBU) was of particular concern since inadequate finances forced the school to temporarily suspend operations in 1912, just a year after it opened. Memories of these early shortcomings manifested at least two noteworthy attempts to pursue endowed funding of Baptist ministries, but war and financial turmoil stymied the convention’s endeavors.

“A real effort had been made to

Endowed funds for all Oklahoma Baptist causes totaled a meager $76,000 in 1946. Now that the convention finally had an organized means to acquire, manage and distribute endowed gifts through the Foundation, the real work — raising money to build endowment — could begin.

Andrew Potter, executive secretary-treasurer of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, was instrumental in the Foundation’s creation and was elected to serve part time as the Foundation’s first executive secretary-treasurer (president). John W. Raley, president of OBU, was chosen to serve part time as the Foundation’s assistant executive secretary (vice president). Working together, Potter and Raley spent much of their time publicizing the fledgling Foundation, educating churches about its role in advancing Baptist ministry throughout Oklahoma.

The Foundation began to receive gifts, but slowly. By 1949, endowed

assets had grown to $187,000 and Potter was not pleased. Significant traction, he realized, would require more than two part-time employees.

He sought out Auguie Henry, pastor of First Baptist Church of McAlester, Oklahoma, to take the lead.

Henry was hesitant, as the transi-

1944

tion meant leaving a large, vibrant congregation, a pay cut, and pouring his life into what his friends advised him was a “thankless and uncertain job.” But Henry could not deny God’s calling, and on September 15, 1949, he became the Foundation’s first fulltime executive secretary-treasurer.

The First Gift

On July 1, 1944, a businessman from Enid, Oklahoma, named R.A. Lemen gave what would become the first gift received by the Foundation. Known as “Bob” to family and friends,

1946 | November 6 WatersEdge is born as The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma. Assets under management total $76,776.29.

1947 | February 14 Andrew Potter is elected as the Foundation’s first executive secretarytreasurer. Federal Judge W.R. Wallace is elected as the first president (chairman) of the board of directors; former Oklahoma Governor Robert S. Kerr is elected as board vice president.

Lemen donated 651 acres of land in the Texas panhandle to the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma that was sold for about $32,000. His intent was to create an endowment that would pay the salary of a missionary to China sent

1947

The First Logo

through the Foreign Mission Board (today the International Mission Board, or IMB).

Oklahoma Baptist Uni-

Lemen died 14 years later, in 1958, but his gift

versity designed the

continues giving. Today, the R.A. Lemen Trust

Foundation’s seal, which

is valued at more than $204,000 and distrib-

served as the organiza-

utes nearly $8,000 to IMB each year. Since

tion’s logo for decades.

1946, Lemen’s gift has distributed more than

Andrew Potter and John

$430,000 to international missions and will

Raley chose the symbols

continue supporting IMB’s work to spread the

featured on the seal, and

Gospel across East Asia in perpetuity.

Raley worked with OBU’s School of Fine Arts to have the image drawn.

R.A. Lemen

1947 | April 3 John Raley is chosen as the Foundation’s first assistant executive secretary. The first check written to the Foundation, a $1,000 endowment gift for OBU from J.A. Carnes, is presented to the board.

1948 | November 28 Sixty-one people gather at Oklahoma City’s Skirvin Hotel for the first meeting of “The Thousand Dollar Club,” the Foundation’s first major effort to raise endowed funds for Baptist ministries.

It was adopted by the Foundation’s board of directors on April 3, 1947.

1949 | September 15 Auguie Henry is elected as the Foundation’s first full-time executive secretary-treasurer. Assets under management total $187,000.

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the

1950s

AND

1960s

encourage churches to give to the Cooperative Program (CP) and allow the leadership of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma to allocate CP funds to the Foundation as they saw fit.

BECOMING A HOUSEHOLD NAME W

atersEdge entered the 1950s poised for growth. Months earlier, Auguie Henry had become the organization’s first full-time executive secretary-treasurer (president). Assets under management totaled $187,000; within the decade they would exceed $2 million and top $10 million by the end of the 1960s. But this growth was not a foregone conclusion at the start of Henry’s 18-year term as the Foundation’s chief executive.

Among other hard truths, research revealed that there were significantly fewer wealthy Baptists in Oklahoma than previously believed.

This was compounded by Henry’s suspicion that, “… more endowment funds were being given by Oklahomans to Harvard University than were being given to endowment for all Oklahoma organizations and institutions.” Henry was also concerned that the Foundation’s endowment-building efforts could harm the state’s Cooperative Program giving, reducing the funds that Oklahoma Baptist churches contributed to support Baptist work

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on the state, national and international levels. He refused to ask churches to allocate a percentage of their budget to the Foundation for endowment, instead choosing to

The weight of Henry’s influence during this formative period in the Foundation’s history cannot be understated. Much of the growth the Foundation experienced was the direct result of his Christ-centered leadership, belief in the generosity of Oklahoma Baptists, desire to see lives changed with the Gospel and vision for what God could use the Foundation to accomplish. During the 1950s and early 1960s, Henry directed the Foundation to begin multiple new initiatives, including

an emphasis on biblical estate planning, offering construction loans for churches, the introduction of charitable gift annuities, as well as providing loans and scholarships for students attending Baptist colleges and universities.

Henry’s administration oversaw gifts that helped found many of the Baptist institutions we know today, including Boys Ranch Town (a campus of Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children), the Golden Age Home in Hugo, Oklahoma (the first location of what would become Baptist Village Communities), Baptist Memorial Hospital in Oklahoma City (now Integris Baptist Medical Center), and the construction of the first Baptist Student Unions (today Baptist Collegiate Ministries) at the University of Oklahoma in Norman and Oklahoma A&M College (Oklahoma State University) in Stillwater.

Henry is also responsible for making the Foundation a household name among Oklahoma Baptists. He worked tirelessly to bolster awareness of the Foundation’s work, devoting extensive time and resources to promotion. Henry and other Foundation staff spoke at churches, Baptist associations and revivals, as well as in secular environments such as civic clubs, community meetings

and schools. He commissioned the publication and distribution of promotional literature like brochures, booklets and tracts, many of which he wrote. Weekly columns in the convention’s newspaper, the Baptist Messenger, served to educate and remind Oklahoma Baptists about the ways the Foundation could serve them, especially in the area of estate planning.

Those early promotional efforts paid off. In 1953, charitable gifts given to Baptist ministries through the Foundation exceeded $1 million annually.

By the close of the 1960s, the Foundation had assisted Oklahoma Baptists in the creation of approximately 3,000 wills and trusts. More than 330 church loans had been made to Oklahoma congregations, topping $7.1 million. A grand total of $15.5 million had been received in charitable gifts, more than $10 million of which was put into endowment for the ongoing benefit of Southern Baptist ministries.

1950 | April The Foundation observes Oklahoma’s first “Make Your Will Month” to promote Christian estate planning.

1953 | May 18 James and Florence Johnson of Oklahoma City give 160 acres of land and $547,000 to found Boys Ranch Town in honor of their late son, Jimmy.

1953 | August 12 J.E. Nunn of Sayre, Oklahoma, creates the Foundation’s first charitable gift annuity.

1953 | December 31 Annual receipts of all charitable gifts given through the Foundation exceed $1 million for the first time at $1,243,908.14.

1954 | June The Foundation’s first church loan is made to First Baptist Church of Dewey, Oklahoma, for $20,000, following the start of the church loan program in 1953.

To accommodate the expansion, the Foundation’s staff grew from two to nine by the time of Henry’s retirement in 1967. Thomas E. Carter, who had served the Foundation for six years as Henry’s righthand man, became the Foundation’s third executive secretary-treasurer January 1, 1968.

1958 | November The “Golden Age Home” opens in Hugo, Oklahoma, the first of 12 senior living centers managed today by Baptist Village Communities. A gift of 68 acres of land in 1956 from William and Nora Baskett sparked the initiative to build the home.

NEW GIVING STRATEGIES – Lula Wiley, a retired public school teacher from Oklahoma City, signs the paperwork to create one of the Foundation’s first charitable gift annuities on October 24, 1953. She is assisted by Auguie Henry, Foundation executive secretary-treasurer, and W.R. Wallace, president of the Foundation’s Board of Directors. Upon her death, Wiley designated the remaining funds in her annuity to be given as endowment to Oklahoma Baptist University.

1959 | April 15 Oklahoma City’s Baptist Memorial Hospital, known today as Integris Baptist Medical Center, admits its first patient. The Foundation was instrumental in securing and managing gifts for the hospital’s construction.

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“A Tower of Strength” Leaflet

“Have You Made Your Will?”

Brochure

“The Causes You Support Today Must Continue

“Have You Put The Will of God

to Live” stated a 1950’s era Foundation leaflet

in Your Will?” asked an early

advertising estate planning and trust services.

1950’s era brochure promoting Christian stewardship through estate planning.

“BSU: Build Now for Tomorrow” Brochure c. 1952

“Money placed in the Baptist student union building is an investment in Christian character,” declared a brochure encouraging giving to build Baptist student centers at college campuses in Norman and Stillwater.

“A Pillar of Strength” Brochure

c. 1959

A general brochure explaining the Foundation’s purpose and how it served Oklahoma Baptists.

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The Beginning of Boys Ranch Town Boys Ranch Town founders James and Florence Johnson (left) talk with Auguie Henry, Foundation executive secretary-treasurer. On May 18, 1953, the Johnsons gave 160 acres of land and $547,000 through the Foundation to create Boys Ranch Town in memory of their only child, Jimmy, who died at age 14.

1960 | June 24 Federal judge W. R. Wallace is killed in a car accident. Wallace served as president (chairman) of the Foundation’s Board of Directors; U.S. Senator Robert S. Kerr is chosen as his successor.

“During its first 20 years the Foundation had become a household name in many Oklahoma Baptist homes, and had gained the respect of professional and business people over the state.”

— AUGUIE HENRY, Executive Secretary-Treasurer Taken from “A Pillar of Strength” by Auguie Henry.

1966 | July 28 Louise M. Prichard dies, establishing an estimated $5 million scholarship fund through her estate for the benefit of ministerial and missionary students attending Oklahoma Baptist University. Today, the Prichard trust has grown to $9.9 million and provides more than $378,000 in scholarships each year for OBU.

1962 By 1962, the Foundation assists more than 300 individuals with estate plans each year.

1967 | December 31 Auguie Henry, the Foundation’s first full-time executive secretary-treasurer, retires. During his administration the Foundation made 331 church loans totaling $7.1 million, helped create more than 3,000 charitable wills and trusts, and grew assets under management to $7.89 million.

“A Guaranteed Life Income For You” Brochure

“How The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma Serves You” Brochure

“You live on what you give

“The Baptist Foundation is

when you invest in an annuity,”

your service agency,” declared

explained a 1950’s era bro-

a brochure that detailed the

chure promoting newly

ways the Foundation helped

introduced charitable

individuals, churches and

gift annuities.

Baptist organizations.

1954

1968 | January 1 Thomas E. Carter becomes the third executive secretary-treasurer of The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma.

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WATERSEDGE REFLECTIONS “WatersEdge is a trusted partner who works directly with IMB and who advocates for the needs of IMB missionaries serving all around the world. WatersEdge not only invests in securing resources to support more than 3,600 missionaries, but they also come alongside our ministry-support teams to equip us to better serve our givers. We have a shared mission to help our partners worship our Lord and Savior through the resources they have been given and then give forward to transform lives.”

– PAUL CHITWOOD President, International Mission Board (2018-present)

“I arrived at Oklahoma Baptist University (OBU) in 2008, just in time to

“We view WatersEdge as a strategic partner.

They have become so much more than a finan-

cial storehouse or resource. Their staff has fully

embraced our mission and have helped guide us as

Recession. The difficulties in balancing budgets and the terrible performance of the stock market pro-

we’ve grown and expanded across the nation. They

vided one of the greatest

I’ve come to treat their staff as an extension of ours.

Kellogg and the professionals at WatersEdge walk along-

you and fight for the people we serve and the health

of the greatest blessings of my time at OBU. And, as God

we are today without them!”

WatersEdge, we emerged with a much stronger and deeper

are professional, passionate and always available.

challenges I would face in my service there. Having Robert

They truly get in the middle of the mission with

side us during those lean and challenging years was one

of the organization. We truly would not be where

always does, He proved Himself faithful. With the help of

– LANCE LANG Founder & Executive Director, Hope is Alive (2013-present)

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experience the Great

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reservoir of resources on the other side of the storm.”

– DAVID WHITLOCK President, Oklahoma Baptist University (2008-2019)

“Never did I imagine when I

c. 1995

was first asked to serve on the Foundation’s board that I would have the privilege and opportunity to serve for over 30 years. Nor did I dream that I would get to be a part of an organization, second to none, in what it does and how it does it.

I have been witness to good times and bad, ups and downs in the market, and the making of forward thinking changes — many times on the cutting edge, but always necessary to the advancement of WatersEdge for the sole purpose of maximizing distributions to beneficiaries, now and in the future.”

– RANDY J. LONG Board member and advisor, WatersEdge (1990-present)

“The beautiful picture of the relationship between WatersEdge and Baptist Village Communities (BVC) can be summed up in an endowment gift called ‘Ruth’s Flower Fund.’ A wonderful lady

named Ruth Blevins (left), who loved flowers and gardening, gave a gift which results in hundreds of plants being shared

with residents who live at Baptist Village of Oklahoma City.

The campus comes alive each spring with the beauty of flowers as residents experience the joy of gardening. All of us at BVC are greatly blessed by Ruth’s generosity and love.”

– BILL PIERCE President, Baptist Village Communities (1993-present)

“We are called to be good stewards of the resources that

God has provided and entrusted to us, and the Founda-

tion’s call is to come alongside Christ followers to educate, encourage, and empower them to be generous for the sake of the Gospel. These gifts have saved unborn babies from

abortion through Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children; led youth and college students to Christ through Falls Creek and Baptist Collegiate Ministries; blessed

wounded and hurting communities through disaster

relief ministries; protected and provided for our senior

adults through Baptist Village Communities; prepared young adults for ministry through Oklahoma Baptist

University; and brought the Good News to every corner of the world through missionary work. To be a part of

an organization that brings glory to God through folks

ministering to so many people in so many ways and in so many locations is incredible.”

– KATHY HATCHETT Vice President of Estate Planning, WatersEdge (1995-2020)

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the

1970s

and

1980s

DIGITAL ACCOUNTING – Foundation staff Celinda Olszewski (seated), Shryln Treadwell and C. Duane Riley crunch numbers using the organization’s first computer system (c. 1986).

RAPID EXPANSION T

he groundwork laid by Foundation leadership in the 1950s and ’60s paved the way for rapid expansion in the ’70s and ’80s. This period in the history of WatersEdge is marked by technological leaps, significant advancement of the Foundation’s work and swift gains in financial resources given for the benefit of Baptist churches, ministries and organizations.

Assets under management (AUM) multiplied from approximately $10 million at the start of 1970 to more than

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$77.8 million in 1989, an increase 1,000 times greater than the $76,000 the Foundation managed at its inception four decades earlier. During this time, the Foundation became the Southern Baptist Convention’s second-largest state Baptist foundation as measured

by AUM, which remains true today.

In 1973, Thomas E. Carter retired after five years as Foundation executive secretary-treasurer and was replaced by C. Fred Williams. The following year board members approved a change to

Williams’ title, replacing the outdated “executive secretary-treasurer” with “president.” The title of board “president” was changed to “chairman.”

Williams and his successor, Bob Ross, continued to develop and expand promotional efforts begun under Auguie Henry’s administration. This included pioneering the use of radio and television advertisements to broaden the Foundation’s appeal in support of Baptist causes, particularly in the area of estate planning.

More than 1,000 individuals were assisted with wills in a single year for the first time in 1980; that number would climb above 1,700 per year by the end of the decade. Estate planning seminars tailored to the specific needs of pastors, women and seniors were introduced. Regional offices were opened in the cities of Lawton and Shawnee, Oklahoma, further extending the Foundation’s reach.

To support this growth the Foundation’s staff nearly doubled, expanding from about 12 to 22 full-time employees by 1989. The increased workload was also facilitated by the Foundation’s transition to the digital age in 1980, when the organization computerized its accounting. The installation of a then state-of-the-art computer system dramatically sped account processing

and reduced errors. The $50,000 system included four computer terminals, three disk drives and two printers.

Many significant gifts, large and small, were made by Oklahoma Baptists during this time, including the land that led to the creation of the Owasso campus of Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children and the Baptist Village of Owasso. For the first time in 1975, the Foundation’s annual endowment distribution surpassed $1 million and exceeded $5 million by 1985.

On January 1, 1986, Bob Ross became the Foundation’s fifth president following the retirement of C. Fred Williams. That same year, Oleta Carmack, a banker from Hinton, Oklahoma, joined the Foundation’s board of directors as its first female member.

1971 | December 9 Ray and Ola Mae Smith give 135 acres of farmland through the Foundation that is used to build the Owasso, Oklahoma, campuses of Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children and Baptist Village Communities.

1973 | June 1 C. Fred Williams succeeds Thomas E. Carter as the Foundation’s executive secretary-treasurer (president). Assets under management (AUM) top $15 million.

1975 Annual endowment distributions reach $1 million.

1980 | May 31 More than 600 loans totaling $22.7 million have been made to Baptist churches since the creation of the Foundation’s Church Building Loan program in 1953. AUM exceeds $24 million. For the first time, over 1,000 individuals are assisted with estate plans in a single year.

1982 Two gifts of $300,000 each are received by the Foundation and are used to create OBU’s first endowed faculty positions.

“A Christian Life Style” Flyer

c. 1980

Board of Directors

A flyer from the early 1980s

C. Fred Williams (center) with the

promoting Foundation estate

Foundation’s board of directors.

planning services.

1986 | January 1 Bob Ross becomes the Foundation’s fifth president.

1989 AUM surpasses $76 million — 1,000 times greater than the $76,000 managed by the Foundation at its birth in 1946.

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the

1990s

GROWTH AND HARDSHIP W

atersEdge was poised for continued growth as it entered the 1990s and crossed the threshold into a new millennium.

More funds were being distributed to Baptist ministries than ever before in the organization’s history, bolstered by the momentum built during the previous two decades. But there were unexpected hardships ahead, too — storms that, once weathered, would ultimately strengthen the Foundation for the future.

Assets under management tripled during this period, rising from $77.8 million in 1990 to $269.5 million at the end of 2009. Endowment distributions also experienced steady growth, climbing to highs approaching $10 million. But in late 2008, the Great Recession dealt a serious blow to this progress. Foundation assets lost 25 percent of their value, shedding more than $70 million.

SWEET SERVICE – A trip to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts prepared the Foundation’s senior staff to serve the sweet treats to messengers at the 2004 Annual Meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma.

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Thanks to protective management strategies, this loss was considerably less than the 32 percent drop experienced by the market as a whole. However, within three years, the Foundation had fully recovered as assets under management exceeded pre-crash levels by 2010 and endowment distributions rebounded by 2011. Other hardships overcome during this period include fallout from the bursting of Oklahoma’s energy bubble that decimated the state’s economy in the late 1980s, as well as the economic turmoil that followed the 1995 bombing of Oklahoma City’s Murrah Federal Building and the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Foundation staff continued to grow in numbers during the 1990s and 2000s — and in professionalism. Up to this point, the organization had been primarily comprised of ordained ministers. But President Bob Ross, himself a former pastor, realized the Foundation’s work was becoming more complex and required specific skills. He began hiring financial and legal professionals with experience in accounting, investments, trust law and estate planning.

Leadership also sought other solutions to channel more resources to Baptist causes. In 1998, Ross led the transition to a cost-recovery fee structure for trust administration services, resulting in a 25 percent fee reduction that saved Foundation beneficiaries millions. This cost-saving focus continued after Ross’ retirement under Robert Kellogg. In 2004, Kellogg directed the Foundation to permanently reduce its annual Cooperative Program allocation from the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma from $274,000 to $50,000, and again to $25,000 in 2011. This move allowed the convention to direct more funds to frontline ministries like Falls Creek, a savings totaling $4.3 million as of 2021.

Kellogg is the Foundation’s sixth and current president. When he assumed the role in 2002 at age 40, he became the youngest chief executive in the Foundation’s history and the first layman (non-pastor). In 2021, Kellogg became the longest-serving Foundation president, surpassing Auguie Henry’s 18-year tenure.

Estate planning continued to play a central role in the Foundation’s partnership with Oklahoma Baptists in

the 1990s and 2000s. During these decades, staff assisted an average of 640 individuals and families each year with estate plans, and future anticipated gifts from these plans rose from $1.5 million in 1992 to as high as $21 million in 2006. Other significant milestones include the first church loan made outside Oklahoma, the introduction of an investment program to help churches grow cash assets and the implementation of a spending policy to stabilize endowment distributions.

c. 1990s

Growing Churches

During the decade he led the Foundation’s church building loan program, Ron Fannin (standing) assisted hundreds of churches with financing for construction

1990 Melinda Warren becomes the Foundation’s first female vice president.

1992 Pleasant View Baptist Church in Derby, Kansas, receives financing for an $850,000 project, the Foundation’s first loan outside the state of Oklahoma.

1995 Churches begin investing cash assets through the Foundation’s new Church Funds Management program.

1996 | November 6 The Foundation celebrates its 50th anniversary. AUM is $135 million and will exceed $150 million by the close of 1997.

and renovation projects, returning millions in loan interest back to ministry in the process.

2000 The Foundation introduces donor advised funds as a new option for charitable giving.

2002 | April 26 Robert Kellogg becomes the Foundation’s sixth president.

“Building Tomorrow Today” Graphic

2009

An illustration created to pro-

This ad, reminding donors of a year-end

mote church building loans was

deadline to make charitable gifts from

used in the 1993 issue of the

their Individual Retirement Account

Foundation’s “Pillars” newsletter.

(IRA), appeared in Generosity magazine.

1993

IRA Giving Ad

2006 | December Estate planning efforts yield a record $21 million in future gifts to Baptist ministries.

2008 Foundation assets lose 25 percent of their value during the first six months of the Great Recession.

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the

2010s

and

2020s

NEW LIFE – A young woman rises from the Entry Pool at Falls Creek following her baptism. She is one of hundreds who accept Christ each summer at Oklahoma Baptists’ student camp, which is supported by endowed gifts managed by WatersEdge.

LAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR THE NEXT 75 YEARS 28

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A

spirit of innovation and collaboration characterized the 11 years from 2010 to November 6, 2021 — the 75th anniversary of WaterEdge. During this period, the Foundation deployed new technologies, forged relationships with Baptist ministries across the country, introduced new services, overhauled internal systems and adopted a new name to prepare the organization for another 75 years of service.

upgraded its client-focused accounting software, transitioning to two new, enterprise-wide platforms that streamlined workflows and provided clients with real-time access to account information. The Foundation also enhanced its auditing processes in 2018, providing greater transparency and accountability of financial information through the addition of an industry-leading “SOC 1” examination (Service Organization Controls).

Technological advancements began in 2012 with the implementation of online giving. Though commonplace today, the addition was a major step for the Foundation, providing donors with the ability to support ministry through its website. The digital giving revolution was further manifested in late 2016 with the creation of the MustardSeed mobile app, one of the world’s first charitable giving platforms built on rounding technology. More than $40,000 was given through MustardSeed during the app’s two-year lifespan.

New services introduced during this period include Ministry Accounting and the Church Extension Fund. As its name implies, Ministry Accounting was designed to lift churches’ bookkeeping burden through outsourced accounting, payroll and contribution tracking services. Dozens of congregations have adopted the service since its launch in early 2019, saving ministries an average of $5,000 per year in software and employee costs. The Foundation’s Church Extension Fund (CEF) was also created to assist churches.

Better known under the name “Ministry Investments,” the CEF allows ministries outside Oklahoma to grow cash assets at above-market yields.

The Foundation’s estate planning work also went digital with the launch of a new estate planning website in 2015.

The site was the first of its kind among Southern Baptist foundations and functioned as a virtual estate planning guide. Paired with an animated video series featuring the fictional “Patterson” family, the website walked donors through the estate planning process, helping them gather relevant information to make important end-of-life decisions. The site is still in use today and has helped hundreds leave gifts to Baptist ministries through their estate plans.

Innovation was happening internally, too. In 2018 and 2019, the Foundation

The Foundation’s investment, accounting and loan services played a critical role in expanding collaboration with Baptist churches and organizations outside Oklahoma. Active in fewer than 10 states in 2010, today the Foundation provides services across 24 states, primarily through formal and informal partnerships with sister Baptist foundations and state Baptist conventions.

Like previous periods, rapid growth was again part of the Foundation’s story in the 2010s. At the start of the

2010 Assets under management exceed pre-Great Recession levels by 2010; endowment distributions rebound by 2011.

2011 Shryln Treadwell becomes the Foundation’s first female Chief Operating Officer.

2012 Online giving is added to the Foundation’s website, allowing donors to support Baptist ministries digitally.

2013 The Foundation adopts a new vision statement known as “25x25” — its goal is to distribute $25 million annually to ministry by the year 2025.

2015 A new logo, meant to symbolize the Gospel spark ignited by a donor’s gift, is debuted as a replacement for the Foundation’s former “pillar” logo.

2015 | November The Foundation’s virtual estate planning guide is launched, giving individuals and families the freedom to create or update their estate plan from anywhere.

2016 | November The MustardSeed app debuts, allowing users to make charitable giving “effortless” by automatically rounding up everyday purchases and donating the change to ministry.

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decade, the Foundation managed $269 million in assets. That number would balloon to more than $600 million by the fourth quarter of 2021, despite the persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic that claimed millions of lives and rattled the world’s economies beginning in early 2020. Driving this growth was an innate desire to channel more resources to ministry and a new vision adopted in 2013 to distribute $25 million to ministry annually by the year 2025.

Providing Hope and Homes 2021

WatersEdge donors and staff stand with Oklahoma Baptist

But the decade’s most significant milestone came in the fall of 2020 when The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma changed its name to WatersEdge.

Inspired by Scripture, the organization’s new name reflects the growth experienced during the past 75 years — but not a change in purpose. With the addition of loans, accounting and other ministry-focused offerings, the term “foundation” no longer accurately represented the broad suite of biblically grounded financial services that WatersEdge provides to individuals, families, churches, ministries and institutions across the United States. And while Oklahoma Baptists will always remain at the heart of those that WatersEdge serves, today the new name is also opening doors to assist Southern Baptists outside the state as well as like-minded ministries — an idea that past presidents like Andrew Potter and Auguie Henry had built into the organization’s DNA from the very beginning.

Ultimately, the WatersEdge name positions The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma for another 75 years of serving and strengthening ministry.

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Homes for Children President Greg McNeece (center) in a spring groundbreaking ceremony at the organization’s Owasso campus. Once completed, the new “super” cottage will house

2016

up to 16 at-risk children.

MustardSeed App

If the introduction of online giving was a major technological step for the Foundation, the MustardSeed app was a flying leap. Built for Apple’s iOS platform, the app was designed to engage the “next generation of donors.” It promised to make giving “effortless” by allowing users to “change the world with your spare change.” MustardSeed worked by automatically rounding up

Online Giving Debut

everyday purchases made on a user’s

2012

credit or debit card to the nearest

The addition of online giving to the

dollar. The app then donated that digi-

Foundation’s website was the focus

tal “spare change” to the ministry of

of an ad featured in the spring 2012

the user’s choice. While met with prom-

issue of Generosity magazine.

ising early success, the experimental app was ahead of its time and was ultimately shuttered in 2018 due to lingering technical challenges and sluggish adoption rates. More than $40,000 was given through MustardSeed during the app’s two-year lifespan.

2018 | March The Foundation completes its first SOC 1 examination providing donors and ministries with greater transparency and accountability of Foundation financial practices.

25x25: The Bold Idea That Drives Us 2013

In 2013, President Robert Kellogg had a “bold idea” — a vision to dramatically increase the funds that the Foundation provided to Southern Baptist ministries. Known as “25x25” (25 by 25), the vision was to distribute $25 million to ministry annually by the year 2025. The number initially seemed impossible to many staff members since, at the time, the most the Foundation had ever distributed in a single year was $9.4 million

2020

New Name, Same Purpose

On November 9, 2020, The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma changed its name to WatersEdge.

Rooted in Scripture, the WatersEdge name was inspired by the many miraculous biblical events that occurred at or near the water’s edge, from Moses parting the Red Sea to Jesus calling His first disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.

The latter most directly represents the hope that illuminates the WatersEdge name — lives so transformed by an encounter with Christ that they were willing to leave everything to follow Him. It is this kind of radical change that drives WatersEdge to financially empower donors and

tion’s official vision statement, and today Kellogg’s bold idea is on track to become reality. The Foundation has exceeded 25x25 benchmarks every year since 2013 and has already hit the $25 million mark once in 2019.

To date, the initiative has

2019 | January 1 “ iPhi,” the Foundation’s new account management software for donors and trust clients, goes live.

ministries to transform lives with the Gospel.

in 2011. But 25x25 was adopted as the organiza-

2018 | May 1 The Foundation begins registering its Church Extension Fund outside Oklahoma to help churches and ministries in other states invest cash assets and finance projects.

Generosity Personified Carmen Henderson gives through WatersEdge using solutions like charitable gift annuities, which provide her with a steady income stream while simultaneously supporting her favorite ministries — Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children and Baptist Village Communities.

“I get so much satisfaction and joy to give

2019 Ministry Accounting is launched, a new service designed to save churches money and time through outsourced accounting, payroll and contribution tracking services.

2020 Robert Kellogg surpasses Auguie Henry’s 18-year tenure as the Foundation’s longest-serving president.

whatever I can each year,” says Henderson, who lives in Owasso, Oklahoma.

distributed a total of $177 million to ministry with a projected total of $290 million by 2025.

2020 | November 9 The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma changes its name to WatersEdge Advisors and WatersEdge Ministry Services.

AUM exceeds $500 million.

2021 AUM reaches $600 million, nearly 8,000 times greater than the $76,000 in assets the Foundation managed in 1946.

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IMB WEEK OF PRAYER

Doing More Together

By IMB Staff

T

he mission strategy of Henderson Hills Baptist Church in Oklahoma City was forever changed when their missions pastor, Mike*, read a sobering statistic: only 5 percent of global missions work is done among Northern African and Middle Eastern (NAME) people groups.

Mike knew the Lord was calling him to lead Henderson Hills to do something about it.

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“As I read that statistic, it just hit me,” he says. “I looked at the missions team at [our church] and realized we weren’t even doing 5 percent of our missions work among NAME peoples. I knew that had to change.”

Otis Neumann*, a missionary with IMB’s Northern African and Middle Eastern Affinity, appreciates the advocacy of Mike and his church.

“His vision has inspired others, including Hispanic churches and Oklahoma Baptists to make NAME peoples a priority for prayer and missions work,” Otis says.

For two years Mike and the missions team prayed about a specific, unreached people group. Along with a team from their church, Mike and his wife traveled to Europe in 2012.

Left: CREATIVE CAREERS – Professions unique to Northern Africa and the Middle East include camel herder, coffee grower, olive cultivator and falconer. Right: CULTURE CROSSROADS – There are 505 million people living in Northern Africa and the Middle East.

Within the population, there are currently 531 unengaged, unreached people groups.

They met an IMB missionary who gave them a glimpse into how God was at work among NAME peoples there.

Otis says that going to Europe first to connect with immigrants from NAME is a good way for churches to develop a love for the people and make them a priority in their mission vision.

“Europe is a modern crossroads of people from Northern Africa and the Middle East,” he explains.

“From Europe, Southern Baptist churches have the unique opportunity to partner with IMB and share the Gospel with people who come from some of the most difficult to access places in the world.”

Two years after their trip to Europe, Mike and his missions team made their first trip into Northern Africa. Since then, Henderson Hills has sent multiple mission teams every year. They focus on building relationships, prayer walking and meeting community needs.

In February 2020, the church sent a missionary couple from their church to Northern Africa to serve with IMB. Even during the height of the pandemic when travel was restricted, the church looked for ways to support the work overseas through prayer and encouragement.

“From Europe, Southern Baptist churches have the unique opportunity to partner with IMB and share the Gospel with people who come from some of the most difficult to access places in the world.”

Otis and other missionaries pray for more churches to be bold in their mission efforts.

“When churches partner with IMB, we can do more together — and there is so much left to do in Northern Africa and the Middle East,” Otis says.

“Today, there are many people groups we cannot directly engage with the Gospel because of where they live.

But, through prayer, we can press forward into new places and push back the darkness with the light of Christ.”

PRAY that God will call out more churches to join the work to reach Northern African and Middle Eastern peoples with the Gospel.

PRAY for more long-term missionaries in the fields among the unreached.

PRAY that the light of Christ would break the barriers that keep many from hearing the Gospel.

*Names changed or omitted for security WatersEdgeServices.org

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IMB WEEK OF PRAYER

Momma and the Miracles

By IMB Staff

S

tephen and Erin Spencer* minister in a region of Southeast Asia where tribal warfare is ongoing, civil unrest is on the rise and foreigners are blacklisted from entering certain regions. However, the Good News is entering homes and hearts. One of those hearts is a woman who goes by the name “Momma.”

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Momma has seen miraculous answers to prayer — a pig raised from the dead, rashes disappear and a woman healed from paralysis. The Spencers say prayer transformed Momma’s village, and answered prayers are leading many to Christ.

When Momma first heard Bible stories, she told her family, “There might

be something to this Living God they’re talking about.”

One day Momma’s daughter came with the disastrous news that their pig had died. In this area, a pig can be sold for the equivalent of two or three months of income. “Is there anything this ‘Living God’ can do?” her daughter asked.

Left: FISHERS OF MEN – Many people in this region stay busy with work — like selling f ish — and don’t have time to talk, but COVID-19 slowed down the pace of life and people now have time to listen and engage in Gospel conversations. Right: SPREADING THE GOOD NEWS – Families are hearing the Gospel for the f irst time in a Southeast Asian village where IMB workers are partnering with local believers. Though access to many areas in this country is restricted to foreigners, locals can travel to these areas to share the joy Jesus brings.

“Momma marched down to the pigpen where this crowd had gathered from the village and didn’t know what else to do,” Stephen explains. “She just crawled into the pigpen and got down on her knees and said, ‘God, if You’re real, then show these people that You’re real.’

And while she was praying, the dead pig stood up.”

Momma believed and was baptized the next day.

Erin said one miracle after another keeps happening. When the Spencers visit Momma, they say, “So, tell me what God did this week.”

A woman in Momma’s village became immobilized and was bedridden with severe pain for four months. Village members began placing bets on what day she would die.

shared the Gospel and prayed for the woman. Ten minutes later, she was sitting upright in a chair. The next day, the woman walked out of her house to greet Stephen and Erin and later committed her life to Christ.

“It was a testimony of the power of God because everybody in the village knew what condition she was in,” Erin says.

Though God opened hearts, many remained skeptics.

“It’s hard sometimes being the only one out here, and everybody thinks you’re crazy, and there isn’t anyone who understands and can relate to me. Sometimes I get discouraged,” Momma told the Spencers.

When Momma heard hundreds of Christians in Stephen and Erin’s partner churches were praying for her, her eyes lit up in appreciation and wonder.

“Now I know that I will never be alone,” she said.

Momma has faithfully shared the Gospel during the pandemic, and 11 people have committed their lives to Christ.

The Spencers say prayer transformed Momma’s village, and answered prayers are leading many to Christ.

*Names changed or omitted for security

“I know you can pray, and God does things. Will you pray for my wife to die? Because she’s just in agony,” the woman’s husband asked Momma.

PRAY with Momma that the Lord will continue to move in people’s hearts.

Momma asked him if she could pray and ask God to heal her. Momma

PRAY for courage for the new believers.

PRAY for the Spencers and for other IMB missionaries in Southeast Asia who are ministering in places of civil unrest.

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MINISTRY FINANCE

A Church for the City WITH STAINED-GLASS WINDOWS AND ORNATE PILLARS JUXTAPOSING STAINED CONCRETE AND STEEL, FRONTLINE CHURCH’S DOWNTOWN OKLAHOMA CITY LOCATION MERGES HISTORICAL BEAUTY WITH A MODERN RENOVATED SPACE FOR THE COMMUNITY.

By Carla Hinton • Photos by Marcus Wehmuller

T

he transition from house church living room to one of the most beautiful worship facilities in the state was quite the upgrade for Frontline Church of Oklahoma City.

Josh Kouri, Frontline’s founding senior pastor, says the striking combination of architecture and historical importance, along with location and ample room for growth, is what first attracted him and other church leaders to the building back in 2011.

Frontline recently remodeled its space and accommodated growth spurts with a $6.3 million loan from WatersEdge in December 2019. Of the $6.3 million, $3.8 million was used to refinance existing projects and the remaining $2.5 million was used for renovations. The major portion of the renovation took place in the multilevel East Wing. Renovations include

a new children’s space, an elevator for greater handicapped accessibility, new offices for staff, and spacious rooms for meetings and gatherings.

Kouri says the church decided to finance the project with WatersEdge because of the organization’s history of good stewardship and partnership with churches.

“It’s their heart for the local church,” he explains. “They’re making it possible for a lot of people and ministries to do good work.”

A RICH HISTORY AND A BRIGHT FUTURE The building has a long and storied history. It housed not one but two churches before Frontline purchased it and relocated its headquarters there. Built in 1911 with the addition of the East Wing in 1940, the building WatersEdgeServices.org

37

was once the worship space for First Christian Church of Oklahoma City (Disciples of Christ), then later, CityChurch. The building is also on the National Registry of Historic Places, known for its Neo-Classical Revival style of architecture.

Kouri says the building fit within Frontline’s mission to be a church for the city — something he and his wife, Nancy, felt was important when they planted the church in their home back in 2005.

“Our heart was to be a Gospel-focused church for the good of the city — to care about preaching the Gospel but also demonstrating the love of God, being the hands and feet of Jesus,” he says. “As the church grew and we needed more space, this building was a clear symbolic center for mission in the heart of the city. We knew this would be a great base to love and serve the city and to train people to go and start ministries in other parts of the world.”

Growing from 20 people meeting in Kouri’s home to multiple congregations with multiple services in only 15 years demonstrates God’s blessing on Frontline’s work. The church continues to fulfill its mission from its central location in downtown Oklahoma City, and from four additional congregations

Top Left: LIGHT OF CHRIST – Josh Kouri, founding pastor of Frontline, leads his congregation in their mission to love God, love people and push back darkness in Oklahoma City and beyond. Bottom Left: TIMBER! – Parents and kids at Frontline Downtown couldn’t be more pleased with the new children’s wing – complete with giant Jenga. Right: FINISHING TOUCHES – As major renovations wind down, workers turn their attention to finer details like doorknobs and paint.

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“As the church grew and we needed more space, this building was a clear symbolic center for mission in the heart of the city. We knew this would be a great base to love and serve the city and to train people to go and start ministries in other parts of the world.” in south Oklahoma City, Edmond, Shawnee and Yukon. The church has also planted what Kouri describes as “daughter churches” in other states and in places around the globe like the United Kingdom and India.

RECLAIMING THE SPACE As the church continued to grow, leadership realized it was time to expand the Frontline Downtown building.

Renovations began in earnest once the loan was secured with WatersEdge.

Anyone seeing the new space might find it hard to imagine just how much work has been done.

“This whole East Wing was closed for decades,” Kouri says. “It was full of dead birds and there was water damage. It was in terrible shape.”

Kouri and other church members are excited to see the space take shape. New heating and air conditioning and plumb-

ing were installed, along with an additional stairway, elevator and chair lift.

Hope Wilson, the church’s connections director, says the East Wing gives the church more space to complete its Gospel-centered mission. “It’s opened up a lot of opportunities for us,” she says.

“It’s been sweet to have that space.”

Holly Shockley, along with her husband, Jake, and their three young children, have attended Frontline for about 10 years. Shockley served as a youth leader at the church several years ago.

“The old children’s space was open but a bit of a hodgepodge,” she remembers.

The new space, Shockley says, is “clean and inviting … The fact that we have a separate space for kids — that they get to grow, birth through high school, and make it their own — is a very exciting thing.”

Shockley also loves the idea that the expansion will give Frontline Downtown and the church’s community partners more opportunities to use the building during other days of the week besides Sunday. “That just warms my heart,” she says.

Kouri couldn’t be more pleased with how the renovation is turning out thanks to the partnership with WatersEdge.

“The whole idea is to repair this place to love and serve the city and to see the Gospel get planted in the next generation,” he says.

Renewing and Redeeming WatersEdge partners with congregations to bring new life to church facilities through renovation and new construction. But unlike traditional lenders, the interest from a WatersEdge loan is poured back into Southern Baptist ministries that change lives with the Gospel. Contact a lending expert today to learn more or apply. loans@WatersEdgeServices.org | 800-949-9988 | WatersEdgeServices.org/loans

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WATERSEDGE NEWS

MILESTONE

Shryln Treadwell President & Chief Operating Officer

streadwell@WatersEdgeServices.org

Since 1986, Shryln Treadwell has represented WatersEdge with poise and professionalism. This summer marked 35 years of service for Treadwell, who has devoted her career to supporting Oklahoma Baptist donors and ministries. At age 27, she stumbled across an opening at The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma (now WatersEdge) and the rest is history. “It was the perfect job at the perfect time,” she says. “So I stayed and just kept investing in Kingdom work.” During her tenure, Treadwell has steadily risen through the ranks, moving from an entry-level assistant accountant to second-in-command.

She has worked closely with senior leadership to implement strategic plans, develop essential policies and build a dedicated staff. Today, Treadwell’s influence touches nearly every aspect of the organization’s day-to-day operation. Her wisdom and passion have helped shape WatersEdge into one of the largest Christian financial services organizations in the Southern Baptist Convention.

Her impact will be felt far into the future as WatersEdge continues to multiply Kingdom work across Oklahoma, throughout the United States and around the world.

NEW RESOURCE

PROFESSIONAL DISTINCTION

Giving Solutions Guide

Megan McCoy

Terms like DAF, CGA, CRUT, CRAT and QCD can make planned charitable giving sound like a foreign language. But the new Giving Solutions Guide from WatersEdge simplifies this philanthropic alphabet soup, making it easy to navigate the myriad of strategies available to help you multiply your giving and maximize tax benefits. Download the Giving Solutions Guide for free at WatersEdgeServices.org/GivingGuide.

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Estate Planning Specialist

mmccoy@WatersEdgeServices.org

Megan McCoy has earned the recognition of Certified Estate Planner (CEP) from the National Institute of Certified Estate Planners. The distinction represents McCoy’s professionalism and diligence as she guides individuals and families through the estate planning process.

“It’s a tool that allows me to better answer clients’ questions as I help them give to ministry,” she says. Estate planning protects families and supports Kingdom work, which is why it’s important to have an expert like McCoy on your side.

Make an appointment to create or update your estate plan today at WatersEdgeServices.org/plan.

LAST LOOK

MAKE YOUR WILL MONTH “Let God’s Will be in your Will…” encourages an early 1950’s Foundation poster promoting Christian stewardship through estate planning. Under the leadership of Auguie Henry, the Foundation’s second executive secretary-treasurer (president), “Make Your Will Month” was begun as part of an initiative to lead Oklahoma Baptists to protect their families and support ministries by making a will, a critical component of an estate plan. At the time, it was estimated that only about 300 Oklahoma Baptists had a will or trust in place to distribute their estate following their death.

Today, Kingdom-focused estate planning remains a central part of the ministry of WatersEdge. If you would like help creating or updating your estate plan, make a free appointment with one of our estate planning specialists at WatersEdgeServices. org/plan or by calling 800-949-9988.

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Giving Do Good And Secure Your Future With A Charitable Gift Annuity A charitable gift annuity provides the security of a guaranteed lifetime income while allowing you to support Gospel-centered ministries that will impact the next generation and beyond. Start a conversation with our giving professionals today.

GET STARTED:

WatersEdgeServices.org/CGA or 800-949-9988