August 22, 2016 Illinois Baptist

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with BCHFS, including 21 years as its leader.

Hydrick currently is director of clinical services for Florida United Methodist Children’s Home. He previously worked at

CONVENTIONAL WISDOM

Snapshots from the world of Illinois Baptists

In August, Pope Francis decried the fact that school-age children are being encouraged to “choose” their gender. Only about a third of Americans—and a little over half of evangelicals—agree with that position, according to a survey by LifeWay Research.

cultural shift on gender

“It is morally wrong for an individual to identify with a gender different than the sex they were born.”

Just over half of evangelical Christians believe it’s morally wrong to identify with a different gender than one’s biological sex, followed by several other faith groups:

the cooperative program

Giving by IBSA churches as of 08/12/16

$3,650,235

Budget Goal: $3,876,923

Received to date in 2015: $3,737,966

2016 Goal: $6.3 Million

The Illinois Baptist staff

Editor - Eric Reed

Graphic Designer - Kris Kell

Contributing Editor - Lisa Sergent

Editorial Contributors - Meredith Flynn Morgan Jackson

For questions about subscriptions, articles, or upcoming events, contact the Illinois Baptist at (217) 391-3119 or IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org

The Illinois Baptist is seeking news from IBSA churches. E-mail us at IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org to tell us about special events and new ministry staff.

POSTMASTER: The Illinois Baptist is owned and published every three weeks by the Illinois Baptist State Association, 3085 Stevenson Drive, Springfield, Illinois 62703-4440. Subscriptions are free to Illinois Baptists. Subscribe online at IBSA.org

NATE ADAMS

mission illinois offering

Investing in churches

Now is the time of year when most Illinois Baptist churches are preparing to promote and receive the annual “Mission Illinois Offering,” which is devoted to advancing the gospel among more than eight million lost people, right here in our state.

Most of the time when we describe our mission priorities here in Illinois, we talk about the desperate need for new churches, especially in northern Illinois, and in large, lost cities like Chicago. And indeed, the MIO is helping start about 25 new churches every year.

And many times we talk about the vast and strategic mission field of Illinois college campuses, where thousands and thousands of tomorrow’s American and international leaders are being trained, often with little or no exposure to the gospel. The MIO supports collegiate ministries too, on more than two dozen campuses.

Your gift through the Mission Illinois Offering also helps support the Christian Activity Center in East St. Louis, and human need ministries like disaster and hunger relief, and IBSA-coordinated mission trips from Illinois to the ends of the earth.

But I received a promotional e-mail the other day that reminded me we often don’t talk enough about one of the most important ministries that the MIO makes possible—the ongoing investment of our missionaries and staff in the health and evangelistic growth of IBSA churches. Local churches are our greatest missionary asset as Illinois Baptists, and our investment in their health, growth, and leaders is as important as planting new churches, reaching college campuses, or meeting human and spiritual needs.

The e-mail was from a church consulting firm. It offered training over a 3-day period on topics like church health models, conflict resolution, overcoming barriers to church growth, and individual church leader development. I thought to myself, ‘That’s what our staff does all the time!”

IBSA carefully measures our staff’s time investment in training and consulting with local churches. Consistently we have had direct consultation with 750-800 churches each year. Considering that ministry is delivered primarily by about 20 traveling staff, that means each staff member is serving an average of 40 churches, all year long!

But what really caught my attention about the church consulting firm’s letter was the cost of its 3-day training—$950 per student, with a minimum of 15 students. That would be over $14,000 for three days of help. To do that for 800 churches would cost more than $11 million. Our Mission Illinois Offering goal this year is $475,000.

I realize that’s not a precise apples-to-apples comparison, since Cooperative Program giving also funds our state mission work, and since IBSA does far more than training and consulting. But I hope it makes the point for you that it made for me. Every IBSA church has a staff of church health and growth consultants at its disposal, and their help is valuable! Your church’s gifts through the MIO and CP enable that staff to be available for your and hundreds of other IBSA churches—week in and week out.

Sometimes it’s awkward to ask for financial support. And maybe it’s a little easier to ask churches to support church planting and missions than to point to the “return on investment” that churches also receive through training and consulting. But if you stop and think about the value of what your church both receives and provides for other churches through your state missions giving, I hope it will make you want to give a truly generous gift through the Mission Illinois Offering this year.

Nate Adams is executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association. Respond at IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

MIO supports our greatest missionary asset: the local church.

the evangelical view

Pastor ‘Date Night’ aims to encourage

Moody, MBTS partner up

Moody Publishers will begin publishing books featuring the “For the Church” mission and slogan of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Moody will launch a “For the Church” imprint, meaning certain books will carry the FTC logo and slogan. “It is a way for both FTC and Moody to reach a greater audience with this common vision of equipping ministry leaders and laypersons with solid resources for gospel ministry,” said Jared Wilson, director of content strategy and managing editor of the seminary’s For the Church website.

Springfield | An August 12 event for pastors and their wives gave around 70 couples an opportunity to enjoy a meal, be encouraged, and laugh together about some of the challenges of ministry life. All without paying for a babysitter.

The “Pastor Date Night” was held at the IBSA Building in Springfield and sponsored by LifeWay Christian Resources. Illinois Disaster Relief volunteers were on hand to provide free childcare.

Pastors and their families “need an outlet, a safe place to come to network with other pastors, to just enjoy the fellowship and the companionship, to be strengthened and encouraged from other pastors,” said Kevin Carrothers, president of IBSA and pastor of Rochester First Baptist Church.

Carrothers helped facilitate the event after talking last fall with LifeWay’s Mark Dance,

from the front: BCHFS’ new director

Continued from page 1

Methodist Children’s Home of Mississippi as executive director; Mississippi Children’s Home Services as senior director of program development; and Crossroads Counseling Center as counselor and consultant.

He is a graduate of Mississippi College in Clinton, Miss., and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, where he earned master’s degrees in Religious Education and Marriage and Family Counseling.

“My family and I were humbled by the offer to join the ministry of Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services,” Hydrick said. “We have prayed and sought God’s guidance throughout this process and have felt an

Follow the latest Illinois Baptist

who explained the vision for the Date Nights held around the country. The format for the night was simple: an hour for a catered dinner, and an hour for a panel discussion facilitated by Dance, LifeWay’s associate vice president for pastoral leadership. Dance and his wife, Janet, were joined by Carrothers and his wife, Jennifer, and Doug and Vickie Munton to answer questions submitted by Date Night attenders. Munton is pastor of First Baptist Church in O’Fallon.

Topics included raising kids in a ministerial family, and how to wisely use social media.

The focus of Date Night was on the health of the pastor and his family, Carrothers said. “All of us have struggles. All of us go through seasons that are more difficult than others. Our pastors need that kind of encouragement.”

Midwestern/Moody’s For the Church titles include “Discerning Your Call to Ministry” by Midwestern President Jason Allen and a three-part series by Joe Thorn, founding and lead pastor of Redeemer Fellowship in St. Charles, Ill., titled “The Heart of the Church,” “The Character of the Church” and “The Life of the Church.”

Drop-in Bibles

A church in Sweden is planning to use drones to drop thousands of electronic Bibles over ISIS-controlled territory in the Middle East. “Our ambition is to pass on the hope and love of the Christian gospel to a population living in closed areas where they are being denied human rights,” The Word of Life Church in Uppsala posted on its website.

The Bibles are contained in a pillbox-sized device with a digital display that requires no electricity. The church noted that Bibles previously have been taken into restricted areas of the former Soviet Union, China, and North Korea. “This is not something new, with the exception of the practical approach.”

– Baptist Press, The Christian Post

overwhelming peace and excitement about joining His work in Illinois.”

Hydrick and his wife, Susanne, have four children: Addison, Morgan, Bradley, and college junior Laura Beth (not pictured).

– From Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services

Get breaking news in The Briefing online, posted every Tuesday at www.ib2news.org.

PEER-TO-PEER – Panelists Jennifer and Kevin Carrothers, Mark and Janet Dance, and Doug and Vickie Munton answer marriage, family, and ministry questions from the audience at a Pastor Date Night in Springfield.

Russell Moore on “the social and political witness of Christianity in a new era”

Older generations could assume that the culture resonated with the same “values” and “principles.” They could assume that the culture wanted to conserve their “Judeo-Christian heritage.” Increasingly, the culture doesn’t see Christianity as the “real America.” If Christianity is a means to American values, America can get by without it, because America is learning to value other things….

If we ever were a moral majority, we are no longer. As the secularizing and sexualizing revolutions whir on, it is no longer possible to pretend that we represent the “real America,” a majority of God-loving, hard-working, salt-of-the-earth cultural conservatives like us. Accordingly, we will engage the culture less like the chaplains of some idyllic Mayberry and more like the apostles in the Book of Acts. We will be speaking not primarily to baptized pagans on someone’s church roll, but to those who are hearing something new, maybe for the first time. We will hardly be “normal,” but we should never have tried to be.

– Adapted from “Onward: Engaging the Culture Without Losing the Gospel”

The Midwest Takeover

The Midwest has been big this summer. Big enough that we in our office coined the phrase, “The Midwest Takeover,” as a way to describe how Baptist leaders from our region have been significantly more visible than in recent years.

The takeover started with the new slate of officers elected at the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis: An Illinois pastor and three Missourians were chosen to fill national SBC posts, while an Iowan will head up next year’s Pastors’ Conference.

Then, Sandy Wisdom-Martin, who led Illinois Woman’s Missionary Union before moving to Texas, was chosen to lead National WMU (see our interview on page 5).

There’s even evidence of a Midwestern swing in the national election, as Indiana Governor Mike Pence works to bring solid, traditional values to Donald Trump’s controversial campaign.

The national election has crystallized the need for “Midwestern values,” as the culture shifts in ways most thought it never would, and as leadership we can be proud of seems hard to come by.

In the SBC, the election of Midwestern leaders may well represent a new day for the denomination. One with the understanding that Baptist thought and doctrine isn’t just

“We’re all ministers of the gospel and of the Word and of Jesus Christ. So it is imperative, I think, that we acquire the tools and the knowledge for a lifetime of ministry ahead.”

ELIZABETH YAO-HWA SUNG ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF BIBLICAL AND SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY

rooted in the Deep South, and that while traditionally SBC-strong states have much to offer in the way of ministry innovation, so do “pioneer” regions.

Like Illinois, where FBC O’Fallon pastor and newly elected SBC First Vice President Doug Munton has served for more than 20 years. He is strong in his support for the Cooperative Program, Southern Baptists’ chief method for funding ministry and missions. But he’s also honest about the challenges of pastoring in a suburban community made even more transient by its proximity to Scott Air Force Base.

Midwestern leaders understand the challenges Baptists face in a changing world, because they’ve met those challenges as workers in regions with few evangelical churches. Our region isn’t the buckle of the Bible Belt, Munton told the Illinois Baptist in May, but God can do things people say can’t be done, like growing a church in the Midwest.

We usually think of pioneers as starters, people who are willing to do hard, unheardof things—impossible even—for the sake of a better future.

As the work of sharing the gospel and making disciples gets more difficult, this influx of the “pioneer spirit” could be just what the SBC needs.

TEDS faculty are gifted men and women who represent a wide spectrum of international backgrounds, church and ministry involvements, and evangelical theological positions, but they are united around the centrality of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, and the inerrancy and authority of Scripture. They minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement, but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for our students.

IN FOCUS

Proud moment

Sandy Wisdom-Martin elected to lead National WMU

BY LISA SERGENT

Birmingham, Ala. | The news spread quickly among Illinois Southern Baptists that one of their own was named to serve as executive director/treasurer of Woman’s Missionary Union.

Sandy Wisdom-Martin, an Illinois native who grew up near the small town of Marissa, was unanimously elected by the WMU executive board at a special-called meeting July 29-30 in Birmingham, Ala. She directed women’s missions and ministries for IBSA from 2001 until 2010, when she moved south to serve as executive director of WMU of Texas.

“Many of us here in Illinois are ‘busting our buttons’ with pride and gratitude for Sandy’s selection, because we consider her one of our own,” said IBSA Executive Director Nate Adams.

About Sandy

A coal miner’s daughter, she’s an Illinois native who grew up near the small town of Marissa

Was the first recipient of the Darla Lovell Scholarship given by Illinois WMU

Earned a bachelor’s degree in social work from Southern Illinois University in 1987 and a master’s from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., in 1990

Served on the state Acteens Panel, led five Acteens Activator Teams, and was a seminary intern

Served as a Cooperative Program Missionary with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention from 19912001

Served as IBSA women’s missions and ministries director from 2001-2010 before becoming executive director of WMU of Texas in 2010

Led the first international WMU Habitat for Humanity Team, which traveled to Ghana to build houses

Is married to Frank, a Sandwich, Illinois, native and hospice social worker. They are the parents of one daughter, Hannah, a high school senior

Was called by retiring WMU Executive DirectorTreasurer Wanda Lee “one of the most capable state leaders I have ever known”

Assumes her new responsibilities October 15

“People eagerly hear her, respond to her, and follow her because of her personal integrity and character, and because she clearly follows the Lord’s leadership in her own life.”

Wisdom-Martin was highly involved in Illinois WMU as a student, serving on the state Acteens panel and several Acteens Activator mission teams. She also was the first recipient of the Darla Lovell Scholarship from Illinois WMU while studying at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.

While at IBSA, she served as president of Mississippi River Ministries and led the first international WMU Habitat for Humanity team, which traveled to Ghana to build houses.

“I am thrilled beyond words in Sandy’s selection as Executive Director of WMU,” said Evelyn Tully, who directed Illinois WMU prior to Wisdom-Martin. “Her missions commitment, her ministry lifestyle, and her exemplary relationships have uniquely prepared her for this tremendous responsibility.

“I know Illinois missions-minded women will be her strong prayer supporters.”

The Illinois Baptist interviewed WisdomMartin via e-mail shortly after her election:

Illinois Baptist: Congratulations! We’re so excited one of our own is on her way to Birmingham!

Sandy Wisdom-Martin: Thank you. That means a great deal to me.

IB: Let’s start with the name and role of your organization. What does “woman’s” and “auxiliary” mean in the 21st century?

SWM: Our leaders have all said in different ways, “We are not a women’s organization, we are a missions organization.” My first full-time ministry supervisor, Julia Ketner at the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, said, “We shout missions and whisper WMU.”

We are not about perpetuating an organization. We are about making Christ known in the world. If we focus on who we are, we will fail. If we focus on Christ and the mission he has given us, we cannot fail.

IB: What will you take from your Illinois/IBSA experience to Birmingham?

SWM: I am a product of Illinois Southern Baptists. The daughter of a coal miner and foundry worker. The first Illinois Southern Baptists I knew were my Christian parents who worked hard and served well. I learned lessons too numerous to mention. The members of Clarmin Baptist Church poured

Continued on page 6

Building a WMU Habitat for Humanity house

Sandy serving through the years: Ministering at Uptown Baptist Church in Chicago

their lives into mine giving me every advantage possible as a young Christ-follower.

A new pastor’s wife introduced our church to Acteens and I discovered what God was doing in the world. State missions camps and events, as well as Acteens Activator teams, sealed my heart for missions. Then came the opportunity to rub shoulders with heroes of the faith who served with the Illinois Baptist State Association. In college, the Nine Mile Baptist Associational WMU council invited me to join their team. They let me teach conferences. I was awful. They loved me anyway. Baptist Student Union at SIU-Carbondale became one of the most important discipling influences of my life.

And that’s only the beginning. The Illinois Baptist paper is not large enough for me to list the ways or the people who have impacted my life. I take with me to Birmingham a priceless heritage passed down to me by faithful Christ-followers.

IB: How will you make WMU relevant for a new generation of women?

SWM: We have challenges to be sure. The future will demand higher visibility and more options. I find that when people understand what we really do, they value us.

As WMU, we have these six objectives: pray for missions, engage in mission action and personal witnessing, learn about missions, support missions, develop spiritually toward a missions lifestyle, and participate in the work of the church and denomination. While we want people engaged in all six objectives, ministries seem to be the way to capture people’s heart for missions initially.

So, in Texas, we began doing things like building houses in partnership with local associations. We converted an old bus to a rolling WorldCrafts store and have sold more than $100,000 in WorldCrafts products while teaching shoppers about fair trade and missionaries who work with artisans. We have a truck and generator being converted into a “Suds of Love” laundry unit.

Once we get people involved initially, we invite them to go deeper in missional living. We strive to engage missional disciples for life.

IB: It seems like a lot of churches have moved away from missions education programs like Girls in Action and Royal Ambassadors. Do you think people need to be reminded (or taught for the first time) why missions education is important?

SWM: I think the experience of 2015 should be enough to remind people of the importance of missions education. Between 600-800 international missionaries were brought home (because of budgetary shortfalls at the International Mission Board). When people know about the needs of the field, they respond by praying and by giving. When they don’t know, the reverse happens.

I think we have moved away from missions education because we have moved away from the Great Commission. We are failing at the one thing Jesus told us to do which is “make disciples.” Making disciples is a lifelong process.

I am who at I am today because Illinois Southern Baptists began pouring their lives into mine and discipling me through local church missions education, missions education camps, associational missions, campus ministry and statewide missions activities. I grew up passionate about the Cooperative Program because that was what I was taught. We lived and breathed missions in my small country church. It was not an option. It was part of the DNA of our congregation.

IB: People today are awfully busy. How can WMU leaders find time on the church schedule for missions education?

SWM: We live in a wonderful age where resources are readily available and creativity abounds. There are countless ways to engage in missions education and involvement. WMU provides premier missions resources. I think the problem is not with church schedules or other issues. I think the primary problem is that we have forgotten our “why.” Our identity is with Christ. We believe Christ gave his all for us. We follow his teachings and his example. We do it all for the sake of Christ. We believe we are people made in the image of God with infinite worth because we are his creation. We know we are broken people in need of restoration and healing. Through Christ’s forgiveness, mercy, and grace, our lives are being made new. We are passionate about telling his story and how it has changed us. We want every culture to know his story and be changed by it as well. We give our lives to that pursuit. That is why we do what we do.

IB: What does partnering with the International Mission Board look like now, with a new leadership team and reduced missionary force from funding challenges?

SWM: I’m looking forward to discussions with both IMB and NAMB (North American Mission Board) when I get settled, but believe our partnership will focus on reaching the nations for Christ as it always has. WMU actively promotes the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and Week of Prayer for International Missions, encourages members to pray for missionaries daily through the missionary prayer calendar, coordinates stateside housing, provides water filters through Pure Water, Pure Love, and so much more.

IB: What is WMU’s main point of connection with NAMB, given its church planting focus?

SWM: Through our partnership with NAMB, we help participants live out the six objectives we discussed earlier. We count it a joy to be able to tell the stories of all our missionaries, as well as support their work through extensive promotion of the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering and Week of Prayer. We also support NAMB missionaries through Christmas in August, scholarships for MKs (missionary kids), and more. When it is possible, we continue to invest our lives in their ministries through hands-on involvement.

IB: How do you make missions cool in a world without borders? What is the compulsion to “Go…” when “all the world” seems so close these days?

SWM: For more than 125 years, the name of our organization has been said incorrectly in many venues. We are named Woman’s Missionary Union because it is the individual woman who understands and responds to God’s call on her life.

That is how we make missions cool. We help each individual understand their own giftedness and God’s call on their life to make disciples. It’s not about what you do. It’s about who you are in Christ. You were created in the image of God for His purpose and glory. We are here to help nurture that call.

Making friends at a medical clinic in Peru

Working with teens at an Illinois mission camp at Lake Sallateeska in Pinckneyville

MISSION

One body, many (moving) parts

Summer sends Illinois mission teams to serve the global church

BY MEREDITH FLYNN

For one week in June, a church in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was transformed into a hospital.

People came to see doctors, pick out eyeglasses, have their teeth cleaned, and fill prescriptions at the pharmacy. They heard the gospel and were prayed for by members of an Illinois church who traveled to South America to serve on behalf of a church there.

“We love identifying churches that have a heart to reach their communities,” said Scott Foshie, pastor of Steeleville Baptist Church. The June 2016 trip was his eighth to Brazil, and Steeleville is the third church he’s led to be involved in medical missions in the country.

Each year, thousands of missions volunteers from Illinois go somewhere—near or far—to intentionally share the gospel and serve with fellow Christians. This summer, they were in Brazil, Honduras, Italy, and Hungary, and many places in between.

Foshie’s church partners with a congregation in Rio de Janeiro each summer to put on a medical clinic. There are medical professionals on the mission team from Illinois, but also some who go as support staff for the clinic and pharmacy. Every volunteer is trained in evangelism.

Continued on page 8

A member of Steeleville Baptist Church’s mission team treats a young woman at a temporary medical/dental clinic in Rio de Janeiro.

The Steeleville church was one of many in Illinois that took mission trips this summer to serve local churches.

PHOTO: HAPPY PATIENT

This summer, they saw 331 medical patients, filled 1,207 prescriptions, extracted 423 teeth, and checked 304 sets of eyes. By the end of the week, 179 people had made professions of faith.

For Foshie, the trips are really about strengthening local churches in Brazil. There is tremendous physical need, he said, but people are open to hearing the gospel. And churches are growing, despite a lack of resources.

As a pastor in Tennessee several years ago, he was leading music at an associational meeting when he heard a dentist speak about mission trips he had taken to Brazil.

“It just grabbed me,” Foshie remembered. “The images on the screen of the people. I just really sensed the Lord calling me to be available to go.”

Now, Foshie is calling others to go with him. The Steeleville church is planning their next trip for Summer 2017.

“A lot of times you think, ‘I’m taking Jesus to somewhere,’ but really, when you get there, you find out Jesus is alive and well, and he’s working, and you find out he wants to reveal himself to you.”

Help that’s helpful

In Honduras, Kay Werner’s mission team saw poverty like many of them had never seen before.

“Members of the team said it was just sometimes too much to take in,” said Werner, who led a group of volunteers from her church, Crossroads in Brighton, to work at a mission in the capital city of Tegucigalpa.

Before they left, Werner’s team watched a video series titled “When Helping Hurts,” about biblical ways to alleviate poverty. And in Honduras, they saw first-hand how much is donated that can never be used—winter coats and ice skates, for example. The Brighton team made it their mission to provide much-needed help and encouragement to workers at the mission.

They assisted with construction projects, but only as support for the local workers, who were mixing concrete by hand, Werner said. “Our purpose right now is not to come and teach them how to do it differently,” she told the team. “We are (here) to support the full-time workers, that’s our purpose.”

In Italy, an IBSA GO Team took a similar approach as they worked on behalf of the only evangelical church in Trieste, a city of 200,000. (For photos from more GO Teams of students and leaders, see page 9.)

The Italy team worked with Pastor Elio Vannelli of Trieste Evangelica to complete a painting project the church has undertaken for three years

in a local school. Each June, the church paints one floor of the school. This year, volunteers from Illinois painted the fourth and final floor.

“The school authorities’ confidence in our commitment grew during this time and this year the Lord opened many doors,” Pastor Vannelli wrote in a recent prayer newsletter. “The coordinator of the school asked us to explain to the parents during the final party why we did all this with a generous spirit and service. We could share how our service spirit comes from the generosity, service, and love of Jesus for us.

“We had the opportunity to lay the foundation for contacts and future collaborations during that night. We pray for fruit from these contacts.”

The breakthroughs are “three years in the making,” said GO Team leader Charles Campbell, who has been working with Vannelli to find the most effective ways to help the local church there.

Since the team was in Italy, the painting project has opened doors for an after-school ESL program and a two-week camp where Trieste Evangelica will be allowed to share the gospel.

Like going home again Richard and Sharon Brummitt first got a vision for doing missions in retirement when their son was serving as an International Mission Board missionary in Hungary. More than 10 years later, the couple from New Song Church in Zion are working to mobilize others in Lake County Association to join them as they help to strengthen Hungarian churches.

The Brummitts were in Hungary this summer to serve alongside a Baptist church in the town of Erd as they hosted a two-week camp at a local school. The camp, which included games, songs, and a daily English lesson, has helped the church build relationships in its community, the couple reported.

At each week’s closing celebration, Pastor Gyuri Varga was invited to speak, and a church member gave a personal testimony.

“This was the fourth year that the church has put on summer camp for the school children,” the Brummitts wrote in a follow-up report on their trip. “The quality of the program and the love shown to the students during the camps has given the church an outstanding reputation in the city, opening doors for future opportunities in their community.”

Lake County Association has entered a three-year missions partnership with Baptists in Hungary, planning to trade mission teams like the one that served this summer.

Going to Hungary “feels like going home” because of the welcome they receive, Sharon Brummitt said. It’s a welcome they hope many more in Illinois will experience in the years to come.

“We would love to have more people join us.”

LEND A HAND – A team from Crossroads Community Church in Brighton helped the staff of a mission in Honduras with construction projects and Vacation Bible School.

PRAYER PARTNERS – Volunteers from Steeleville Baptist Church partnered with a church in Rio de Janeiro to host a medical clinic where patients were prayed for and heard the gospel.

HOOPLA – At a jungle-themed camp in Hungary, kids played games, heard Bible stories, and received an English lesson from American volunteers.

‘GO’ ye into all the world

Teens serve new churches

BY MORGAN JACKSON

Chicago | In July, IBSA and Judson University held the third-annual ChicaGO Week, a mission experience for students that partners them with leaders planting new churches in the city and its suburbs.

“Church planter’s hearts, [they’re] just a little bit different than a lot of people’s [in ministry],” said student pastor Danny Walls, who took 34 students from First Baptist Church in O’Fallon to their first ChicaGO Week this summer.

Being a pastor of a yet-to-be established or newly-established church is a different beast, said Walls, “and it’s a cool thing to get to hang out and hear their heart and their vision and see what God’s doing through them. It’s pretty awesome.”

The group kicked off their week by partnering with Dave Andreson, pastor of Resurrection City Church in Chicago’s Avondale neighborhood. They helped clean up the middle school where the church has met, and held a carwash to raise money so that lead in the building’s water pipes could be treated. A Mercedes dealership even brought by some cars to be spruced up.

Volunteer Kaitlyn Walker said the carwash gave the group opportunities to start conversations with people and let them know why they were in Chicago that week. “There was this one lady, when I was drying off her car, who was just telling me about her life,” Walker said. “Starting a conversation and meeting someone new like that was really cool.”

Elizabeth McNicol said her favorite part of GO Week so far had been helping people in need. The carwash allowed them to raise money for a good cause, she said, and “it was a fun time to get to know each

other more, while still praising God and experiencing the joy that comes from that.”

Opening doors

The O’Fallon students also worked in South Chicago Heights, where Transformation Church is working to reach their neighbors, which include many young families.

The demographic breakdown in the community is about 38% white and then a pretty even split between African-American and Hispanic residents, said Transformation Pastor Alex Bell. And 79% of the population is under the age of 50.

“Within a mile of the church there are about 10,000 people alone,” said Bell. So although it’s not in the heart of the city, the suburban community is very dense with many in need of the gospel, he explained.

Transformation Church has about 60 members and held weekly sports camps this summer. Averaging around 40 kids, these weeks served as an opportunity to get to know the surrounding community and share the love of Christ with the youth that attended.

During ChicaGO Week, the students from FBC O’Fallon got the chance to kick soccer balls, shoot hoops, and get to know the kids in South Chicago Heights. Many also took some time to prayer walk and pick up trash in the neighborhoods surrounding the church.

Referencing the prayer prompts they were given, Elizabeth McNicol said, “I prayed a lot for the police department, that they [would stay] safe.” The main thing she prayed over places she passed, though, was that those inside would come to know Jesus.

ChicaGO Week is supported in part by the Mission Illinois Offering and Week of Prayer, which will be observed by many churches September 11-18. Go to missionillinois.org to watch “Students on Mission in Chicago,” a video about student volunteer Lily Ohl’s first trip to the city.

ITALY – Volunteers partnered with a church in the northeastern city of Trieste to finish a school painting project.

JAMAICA – The GO Team helped with Vacation Bible School in several locations, held worship services, and distributed Bibles.

CITY PLANTING – Students from FBC O’Fallon worked alongside church planters in Chicago as part of an annual hands-on mission week.

GUATEMALA – Team members, including Andrew White (right) of FBC Mascoutah, shared the gospel using a special soccer ball designed to be a witnessing tool.

IBSA’s 2016 student-focused mission teams traveled to Europe, the Caribbean, and Central America.

Recapturing gospel urgency

An Illinois mission team’s experience ignites a fire for the gospel in their churches at home

mission

September 11-18

What are we praying for?

When the youth group from Calvary Baptist in Elgin first met Jaeuk Jeong, he told them about the multi-ethnic church he’s planting in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood. Then he led the students in prayer—for two hours.

South Asia last spring,

Bethalto | It took a trip to Bangladesh to remind Gail Faulkner of what she’d lost by living for 10 years in the comfort of the United States.

“Without realizing it, I had become comfortable and apathetic,” said the former International Mission Board missionary, who served with her husband, Chip, in South America and the Caribbean before moving to Bethalto, where he pastors First Baptist Church.

“I did church,” Faulkner said, “but I didn’t realize until God took me away that I had lost the passion and the urgency of the gospel.”

In Bangladesh, on a mission trip with several other women from Illinois, Faulkner found what she’d been missing—the understanding that the light of the gospel shines the brightest in the darkest places. Now, back in Illinois, Faulkner and her mission teammates are telling their churches what they experienced in South Asia, so that others might hear and respond to the call to go.

Every year, more than 24,000 Illinois Baptists are involved in sharing the gospel, both in their own communities and through short-term mission trips to places around the world. When those teams come back from their mission field, their churches benefit from their experiences, said Mark Emerson

“It personalizes the mission work,” said Emerson, associate executive director for IBSA’s Church Resources Team. People in the pews can feel disconnected from mission work because the people and places are foreign to them.

“But having people in our own church participate in a mission trip allows us to put a face to the missionary. And it also shows

us that it can be done. You know, we know the person who did that.

“And if they can do it, we can do it too.”

‘Just go’

Lindsay McDonald is a “living brochure” for missions. That’s how Emerson describes the pastor’s wife from First Baptist Church, Casey, who returned from South Asia ready to share the story of what God did through their team and is still doing in Bangladesh.

“She is just overflowing talking about that story in her church, in her association, all around the state, and she’s contagious,” Emerson said. “People are catching what she has.”

In the small town of Casey—known for the world’s largest rocking chair and bird cage, among other landmarks—Lindsay and her husband, Jon, are leading their church to think through how to reach their community, their state, their country, and the ends of the earth with the gospel.

“I hope that I can be a catalyst for other people to go,” Lindsay said after her experience in Bangladesh. People can see the pictures she took and hear her stories, “but they haven’t really seen it with their heart until they have been there. And if I could encourage everyone to go, I would say, ‘Just go. Just step out in faith.’”

People in their church are ready to move to a new stage of missions—personal involvement, Jon said.

“I think the ladies going on the trip lit a fire in our church that’s burning brightly. I think people are beginning to see that ‘I am responsible to make sure that the gospel goes to Jerusalem, and Judea, and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth.’”

That’s what the students say they will most remember from their experiences at ChicaGO Week in July—the very long time they spent in prayer before they dared to take the gospel to the neighborhood. Youth are often fed a diet of pizza and fun with some Bible study on the side, but two straight hours pleading for open doors for witnessing prior to their witnessing excursion is the kind of experience that can change a person. And a church.

As the Mission Illinois Offering & Week of Prayer approaches, we are reminded that both halves of this equation are vitally important. The goal for state missions is $475,000. That will fund evangelism and missions, church planting and compassion ministries, and church leadership development especially in Illinois. This is our most direct means of supporting the missions that matter to us here in Illinois.

But prayer for state missions is needed just as urgently. Without prayer, we have no fuel for our work, no vision of God’s plans for Illinois.

“You do not have because you do not ask,” the apostle James chides his readers (4:2, HCSB). Could that be true when it comes to state missions?

Now is the time to pray for the salvation of more than 8 million lost people in Illinois. Now is the time to pray for missionaries, church planters, and churches to lean into their work with renewed spiritual commitment.

And not just for one week a year, but all year long. Visit www.missionillinois.org for resources for prayer, teaching, and giving.

‘LIVING BROCHURES’ – A group of Illinois women served in

building relationships, sharing the gospel, and coming home to tell the story.

SPORTS

Victory in Jesus

Believing athletes credit Christ at Rio Olympic Games

Rio de Janeiro | Micah Christenson’s Olympics weren’t going well, at least early on. Christenson and the U.S. men’s volleyball team lost their first two matches and were on the brink of being ousted from the tournament.

Then, they won three straight matches to earn a spot in the quarterfinals.

The roller coaster ride isn’t new to Christenson (left), who spent the last year playing professional volleyball in Italy. When he first arrived, he couldn’t speak the language and was living alone for the first time in a foreign country. He didn’t have any friends on the team.

But during that time, Christenson said, he learned what it meant to depend upon the Lord.

“It really allowed me to really just surrender to God and to give everything to him because I really had no control over what things were happening there,” he said. “I was just begging God to take everything, just trying my best to trust in everything that he had for me there.”

Christenson is one of several athletes who used their platform in Rio to speak about God’s goodness, and why their faith takes priority over athletic success.

Continued on page 12

Mackenzie Brown, archery

Will Claye, triple jump Caeleb Dressel, swimming

SIMONE MANUEL

Simone Manuel, the first African American to win an individual medal in swimming, was quick to credit God for her accomplishment.

“All I can say is all glory to God,” Manuel said through tears in an interview after winning the silver medal in the 50-meter freestyle. “It’s definitely been a long journey these past four years. I’m just so blessed to have a gold medal…I’m just so blessed.”

Manuel, who finished her Games with four medals, and her family are part of The Church Without Walls in Houston, Texas. After the race, Pastor Ralph Douglas West tweeted, “It makes me proud to see Simone give God the glory in this monumental moment in her life.”

Mackenzie Brown, the fourth-ranked archer in the world, was upset in the round of 16 on August 8, ending her hopes for a medal and bringing her first Olympic competition to a close. Despite the disappointing outcome, Brown’s Olympic journey was made with the support of her family and home church, Flint Baptist Church in Flint, Texas.

“She really walks the walk,” Senior Pastor Sam DeVille said of Brown. “She really is a true disciple of Jesus Christ.”

Track and field athlete Will Claye said his purpose is to use the gifts God has given him to their fullest potential. “Some people, I feel like, don’t even use their gifts in the right way,” he said.

“I think I have a choice. God gave me this gift and I can use it the right way or the wrong way. The right way is to go out there and to glorify his name in all that I do.”

Claye left Rio with two prizes: a silver medal, and a fiancée. Claye proposed to his girlfriend, hurdler Queen Harrison, right after his medal-winning performance in the triple jump.

Despite the excitement of competing in his first Olympics, Nathan Schrimsher’s experience in Rio was mingled with sorrow. Last year he unexpectedly lost his father, who was actively involved in Schrimsher’s training in modern pentathlon, an event that consists of fencing, shooting, swimming, horse riding, and cross country running.

“Sometimes you don’t understand everything at the moment, but I’m trying to walk by faith and trust in the Lord,” said Schrimsher, whose event started late in the Games’ second week. “I just keep putting one step in front of the other,” he said. “I can’t do that on my own, but just pray and trust that I rely on the Lord for that.”

The Bible is written all over swimmer Caeleb Dressel’s face—literally. The Scripture references change with each event, but a favorite for the 19-year-old is Isaiah 40:31: “but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles…”

Dressel, who won a gold medal in Rio in the 4x100-meter medley relay, said the Scripture references he wears are not just for him. “It’s the reason I’m in the sport,” he said in an interview last year after U.S. Nationals, “not just to go fast times, but to inspire people and show them where I find my happiness with what God’s given me.”

After U.S. divers David Boudia and Steele Johnson won the silver medal in the men’s synchronized 10-meter platform event, they told NBC how their faith prepared them to compete.

“When my mind is on this and thinking that I’m defined by this, my mind goes crazy,” Boudia said. “But we do have to know that our identity’s in Christ. We’re thankful for this opportunity to be able to dive in front of Brazil and for the United States. It’s been an absolutely thrilling moment for us.”

– Read more of Tim Ellsworth’s reports from the Rio Games at BPNews.net

Steele Johnson and David Boudia, synchronized diving

SCHRIMSHER

Pastor, go on a mission trip table

I am ashamed to admit that I haven’t always understood why being on mission both personally and as a church is so vital. I used to skip the “missions” chapel services in seminary because I wrongly believed that missions and being a pastor were two separate callings. I just wanted to be a pastor. Sadly, the first church I pastored wasn’t very missionminded because I wasn’t.

However, I am now convinced that one of the vital roles of pastors and church leaders is to lead the church to fully embrace God’s call to be involved in their local community and beyond. My heart now understands that the church should be a strong community of mobilized missionaries. It is now my desire to lead the church through preaching, mission trips, and other creative ways so that missions becomes part of our church’s DNA.

I believe that one of the first ways to lead your church to be on mission is to be a leader who is on mission. I am convinced that when the leader of a church is passionate about the mission of God and living a missional life, that focus and zeal will naturally overflow into the hearts of those in the pew.

All throughout Scripture we clearly hear God’s call to missional living. We see a clear gospel focus when Christ sends out the 12 disciples in Luke 9 and again when he sends out the 70 in Luke 10. We hear God’s heart when we read the Great Commission and Acts 1:8. In our head, we can know that God wants us to live this life with passion for the gospel, but it is so hard to keep the main thing the main thing.

When being on mission becomes part of the leader’s DNA, the church hears about it through his preaching, sees it through his life, and feels it through his tears for people who are lost without Christ.

Though my mind is now thoroughly convinced of the importance of leading my church to be on mission, I must continually remind my heart about God’s mission. Here are some of the practices that help my heart to be missions-minded:

Personally participating in at least one mission trip a year. These times are good for my walk with God. I need to see God move in ways I cannot explain. Often these trips become spiritual revivals for my heart. I try to alternate between going oversees and going somewhere in the U.S. each year.

Reading missions books and biographies of missionaries. Some of the books that make me cry are “10 Who Changed the World” by Daniel Akin, “The Insanity of God” by Nik Ripken, “The Hole in our Gospel” by Richard Stearns, and “Seven Men” by Eric Metaxas. Attending missions training sponsored by IBSA, and conferences sponsored by the North American Mission Board. Some of the conferences that have recently helped my missions heart are NAMB’s Send Conference, the Midwest Leadership Summit hosted by IBSA, an IMB Mission-

ary Commissioning service, and the IBSA and SBC Annual Meetings.

I’m not always looking for new programs or new ideas at these conferences, though I often come home with an idea for how we can do missions differently or better at Immanuel.

Talking with missionaries. I love hearing their heart, their struggles, and their successes. You can connect with church planting missionaries on a vision tour hosted by NAMB or IBSA, and the International Mission Board is always happy to send a missionary on furlough to preach at your church.

Most missionaries also send out regular e-mail prayer newsletters. While these messages remind me to pray for the missionary, they also encourage me as I read about some creative things others are doing all across the world for King Jesus.

Spending time with other believers who are on fire for Jesus and who are getting it done sharing the gospel. Often, these lunches and the time I spend with these kinds of believers greatly challenges me.

What a joy it can be when a church understands that God has commissioned them to be the light in a dark world. What a joy it can be when church members leave to plant churches, surrender to ministry, lead their co-worker to Christ, and go to the nations.

The steps you take to fuel your missions heart are steps toward God’s heart, enabling your entire church to be on mission! Keep chasing him, my friends.

Sammy Simmons is pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Benton.

fresh ideas

Shop with purpose

s scoping out garage sales part of your weekend routine? These easy tips can turn a garage sale-ing hobby into a simple, effective witness opportunity:

1. Get ready. Go to the bank and get lots of $1 bills. Any purchase provides interaction with the seller. Keep church brochures or business cards in your car or handbag. Before you leave to go garage sale shopping, ask God to guide your conversations and actions. And include your children. Give them some dollars to garage shop with you. Encourage them to be friendly and helpful, and invite kids to church events.

2. Go garage sale-ing. As you approach each sale, notice bumper stickers, kids’ toys, the lawn, etc. Observation enhances conversation. Speak to the host as you arrive. Pay attention to others around you—neighbors, strangers, workers, and children. Browse the treasures at the garage sale and find at least one item to buy. Be gladly willing to have conversations. You’ll likely have plenty in common since you live nearby. Mention something about your church. If you discover someone has no church or relationship with God, invite them to your church or make a plan to talk again. Before you leave, share a church brochure.

If you’ve invited someone to church, share your contact info and say, “If you ever decide to check out a worship service and don’t want to go alone, just call or e-mail me.”

Watch for ways to meet needs. If someone mentions a life crisis, ask if you can pray for that need, offer to assist, or share a Christian resource. It may seem easier to leave a witness tract secretly by the cash box, but a neighborly conversation and personal invitation is probably more effective.

3. Host your own sale. These same ideas apply for having a garage sale at your home. People from all walks of life will arrive. See each person through God’s eyes. Pay more attention to people than to your profits.

Consider scheduling your sale prior to big church events, such as Vacation Bible School. Invite guests as you talk.

Jesus instructed his followers to tell about him “as you go” (Matthew 28:19-20). So next weekend, as you go for a morning of garage sale-ing, make it more than just a shopping trip. Share Jesus as you go.

© Diana Davis’s new book, “Across the Street and Around the World,” will be released this fall.

DIANA DAVIS

When a leader is passionate about the mission of God, that zeal will overflow to people in the pew.

meet the team

Meet: Bob Evaul

Zone Consultant, Zone 7

Kaskaskia, Louisville, Olney, Palestine, Rehoboth, and Westfield Associations

Family: My wife, Carol, was born and raised in Annapolis, Md., and that is where we met and married. We have four children, all married. Three of them live in Illinois (in Anna, Pinckneyville, and Vandalia), and one is in Texas preparing with her husband to go to Spain as church planters.

We also have nine grandchildren, including a new grandson born Aug. 5.

Illinois history: Carol and I came to Illinois in 1997 for a furlough (we were church planting missionaries in Bolivia). We moved here permanently in 2001, and almost from the very beginning, have been involved in Hispanic ministry. In 2003 I became the catalytic missionary for SIHOP (Southern Illinois Hispanic Outreach Project). For the last four years I have pastored Oconee Baptist Church.

Favorite thing about church: As a pastor, I better say that my favorite thing about church is everything! Truthfully, I have enjoyed experiencing answered prayer, worship, and fellowship with the members of our church. I enjoy sermon preparation, especially when I see or hear that the Holy Spirit through the sermon has impacted their lives.

Favorite movies: Perhaps the old “Ten Commandments” and “Ben Hur.” The two that stand out the most, I suppose, are “Chariots of Fire” and “The Sandlot” (for the kid in me). These choices really show my age, don’t they?

Favorite Scriptures: John 3 and 4, Acts 16, and Romans 8:37-39. My favorite verse is Romans 1:16.

NeTworkiNg

Find more information on ministry positions at IBSA.org/connect

Send NetworkiNg items to IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org

Summer campers dive deep

34 students start ‘journey of faith’ people

Welcome

Joey Krol will begin a new role Sept. 4 as senior pastor of Galilee Baptist Church in Decatur. Krol, a graduate of Colorado Theological Seminary, previously served at SouthTower Community Church in Dawson, and as manager of WLUJ Christian Radio in Springfield. He and his wife, Aubrey, have two children.

In Memory

Lake Sallateeska | Of all the words used to describe summer camp, “intense” probably wouldn’t make most campers’ top 10. But for one young man at Lake Sallateeska this summer, the word fit what he learned about following Christ.

Camp Director Scott Slone came upon a conversation between two junior-highers during a devotional time at Sallateeska, IBSA’s camp facility in southern Illinois. The students were discussing what keeps people from trusting Jesus, and Slone chimed in about the cost many people pay—even with their lives—to follow Christ.

One of the students looked up and said, “Man, this is intense,” Slone remembered.

“It was a defining moment for me as I watched this young man process what it truly means to be a disciple of Christ,” said Slone, who pastors First Baptist Church,

Elkville. The next day, the student surrendered his life to Christ.

He is one of 30 kids and teens who decided to follow Christ during IBSA’s three weeks of summer camp at Lake Sallateeska. At Streator Camp in northern Illinois, four more students accepted Christ, and two dedicated their lives to full-time ministry. Together, the four weeks of camp included 370 participants, an increase in attendance of more than 30% over last year.

“I consider it a great privilege to be able to partner with our IBSA family in teaching our young people what it means to follow Christ,” Slone said. “It truly is an intense journey of faith.”

IBSA’s summer camp strategy is to partner with local churches and associations to facilitate each week of camp. For future camp info and more opportunities for children, go to IBSA.org/kids.

Donald Frank Lusk, Sr., 89, died June 29 in Flora. A life-long farmer and bivocational pastor, Lusk pastored churches in Sailor Springs, Ingraham, Cisne, and Arrington Prairie, and was a member and deacon of the former Oak Street Baptist Church. He also was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II. Lusk is survived by children Linda, Cindy Lou, Donald, and Bill; 11 grandchildren; and 29 great-grandchildren.

Affiliating with IBSA

Churches that wish to apply for affiliation with the Illinois Baptist State Association must submit an application for membership by September 19. To request a packet that explains the application process, contact Sandy Barnard at (217) 391-3107 or e-mail SandyBarnard@IBSA.org.

Logan Street Baptist Church, Mt. Vernon, is seeking a full-time senior pastor. Please submit resumes to lsbcsearch@gmail.com, or Logan Street Baptist Church, Attn: Pastor Search Committee, 601 S. 21st St., Mt. Vernon, IL 62864.

Calvary Baptist Church, Streator is seeking a bivocational pastor who is Southern Baptist and agrees with The Baptist Faith and Message (2000). Please send resumes to P.O. Box 324, Streator, IL 61364, or e-mail calvarystreator@gmail.com.

Pastors are invited to a January Bible Study preparation retreat at Lake Sallateeska Baptist Camp Oct. 10-11. This year’s study, with materials created by LifeWay Christian Resources, is on the book of Malachi. Russell Fuller, professor of Old Testament Interpretation at Southern Seminary, will lead the retreat. For more information, call (217) 638-2110.

READY FOR THE RACE – Campers at Lake Sallateeska (pictured) and Streator Baptist Camps studied Hebrews 12:1-2 and what it means to run “Our Amazing Race” of faith in Christ.

EVENTS

August 27

Sunday School Resource Conference

What: Learn to grow your church through small groups

Where: IBSA Building, Springfield

When: 8:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m.

Cost: $10, includes lunch and materials Register: IBSA.org/education

September 10

Church Library Conference

Where: FBC Pinckneyville Info: DebbieMuller@IBSA.org

September 11-18

Mission Illinois Offering Web: missionillinois.org

September 17

Living Proof Simulcast

What: Teaching by Bible study leader Beth Moore simulcast from Chicago

Where: IBSA Building, Springfield

Cost: $10 if affiliated with an IBSA church, $15 all others Register: IBSA.org/women

September 23-24

Illinois Changers

What: Hands-on mission projects for students

Where: Lake Sallateeska and Streator Baptist Camps

Cost: $25 per person, includes Friday lodging, optional Saturday lodging is $10 Register: IBSA.org/students

October 1

Children’s Missions Celebration

What: Missions stories, crafts, and more for kids in grades 1-6

Where: IBSA Building, Springfield; Hillcrest Baptist Church, Chicagoland

Cost: $15 if affiliated with an IBSA church Register: IBSA.org/kids

October 9

Youth Encounter

What: IBSA’s premier student evangelism event

Where: Hillcrest, Chicagoland; Tabernacle, Decatur; Marion Civic Center

Cost: $25 per person, includes dinner Registration (and full list of worship leaders): IBSA.org/students

dave says

Learning and living

I’m a recently retired widow, and my husband always took care of most of our finances. We never had any debt, but after starting to learn a little bit about how money works, I’m worried that there may be too much of it invested in CDs (certificates of deposit). The total nest egg is a little over $1.5 million, with $300,000 of that in CDs. There’s also a $317,000 annuity, a 403(b) and around $900,000 in IRA mutual funds. I also have two homes and a new car that are paid for. How do you think I should handle things going forward?

AI’m really sorry to hear about your husband, but you two did a fantastic job with your finances. You’re worth at least $1.5 million, and you have no debt. You’re set for life, but you’re wise to want to be careful.

The CDs give you some stability, but obviously they’re not earning much of anything. I think of them as money kicked up in a hammock—it’s not working for you. You both worked hard for that money, so personally I’d like to see it working hard for you now. If you’ve had good luck with a variable annuity, that’s fine. You’ve also had very good luck with your mutual fund investing. So, with all this money in different areas, you’re definitely diversified. It’s just a matter of wrapping your arms around it all and developing a deeper understanding of things going forward.

At this point, I would urge you to find an investment professional in your area with the heart of a teacher—someone who’s not trying to sell you stuff. You want to learn, and I’m really impressed by that. It’s a smart and necessary thing. Every time you see an investment person, whoever it may be, your goal should be to leave the room smarter and with more understanding than you had before.

DAVE RAMSEY

Buy the car?

QMy wife and I are 31 years old, and we have no debt except for our home. We also have an emergency fund and college savings in place for the kids. Over the last several months we’ve saved $22,000 for a newer car, but we’re also worried about retirement. We’ve been putting 15% of our income toward retirement, and we’re concerned that maybe we shouldn’t spend the whole $22,000 on a car. We make around $100,000 annually and have $50,000 in our nest egg. What do you think?

AIn your situation, a $22,000 car is not unreasonable at all. You guys are both 31 years old, and you’re going to be in great shape for retirement if you just keep doing what you’ve been doing. On top of all that, you’ve got your emergency fund in place, in addition to a nest egg and car savings. If I’m in your shoes, I’d go out and find the best car $22,000 can buy.

You’re doing all the right stuff. Your kids can go to school debt-free, and you’re going to have the house paid off in no time. In short, you’re going to retire multi-millionaires at the rate you’re going—as long as you keep on keeping on!

Think about this, too. As a general trend, most people’s incomes go up throughout their lifetimes. That being the case, chances are you’re going to make and invest even more money in the years ahead. You and your wife could easily retire with $5 million to $10 million sitting there.

You’ve done a great job together. Keep up the good work, and enjoy that car!

Financial advisor Dave Ramsey is a prolific author and radio host.

FAITH, FAMILY & FREEDOM FALL BANQUET

Former Presidential Candidate, Retired Congresswoman, Mother of five, & Foster Mom to 23 Children

i lead

Leading from the inside

When you need leadership or advice, how do you determine who to ask? You probably look for people with knowledge, skill, expertise, and experience. We seek the input of people who are or have already been in the thick of it. We look for people on the inside.

My wife, Gloria, and I have been foster parents since 2012. Even before we jumped into that deep pool, I championed the call of God in Scripture for his people to be concerned and involved in the care of those Christ calls “the least of these,” including orphans.

I’m sure some were moved by the truth of God’s Word and the conviction of the Holy Spirit. After all, my church soon partnered with a Mexican orphanage. But it wasn’t until Gloria and I actually fostered children that people began to ask us about what it was like. It wasn’t until we were caring for some of these most needy and desperate children, “the least of these,” that our advice had the power to persuade, the ability to encourage, and the credibility to lead.

It wasn’t until the truth of God’s Word—to care for the defenseless and helpless—was clothed in our action that we had a real voice to speak into the lives of both believers and the lost. We must lead from within.

That kind of leadership demands that we get sweaty and soiled, exasperated and frustrated. But it is also when we lead from within that God gives us reputation, honor, and experience, so that through our lives he gets his hands on other people’s lives.

More importantly, when we lead from the inside, God is getting his hands on our own lives. Textbook answers become a thing of the past. Thin platitudes are supplanted by the weight of experience and wisdom. God sharpens the dullness of our talk with the incisiveness of action. We go from being hearers of the word to doers of the word, and that’s the difference between being a fan and a follower.

Doesn’t it mean everything that the Son of God clothed himself with the stinking and broken flesh of humanity and dwelt among us? You see, even Jesus led from within. Where are those places in life and ministry, in our homes, in the workplace, in the church, where God is calling you to lead from within?

He invites us to join him there.

John Yi is IBSA’s second-gen church planting catalyst in Northeast Illinois.

Church needed here...

Location: Pingree Grove (Kane County)

Reaching: Unchurched single adults and families

Characteristics: This village, located less than 10 miles west of Elgin, is a community of predominantly upper and upper-middle class families. The homes in this suburban development are mostly new construction.

Prayer needs: Pray for a church planter to be open to God’s leading to reach this community with the gospel, and to start a church.

devotional

Reason to celebrate

But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”

(Matthew 19:14, ESV)

As I reflect back on the summer, VBS was a personal and church-wide highlight. During that week I often thought about the little children coming to Jesus and seeing him welcome them with open arms. Jesus took great delight in blessing the children.

This biblical picture of Jesus and the children reminded me that the diligent and tireless efforts put into VBS were well worth it. The children were so open and receptive to hearing the Word of God, the good news of Jesus. For many it was the first time that they had ever heard the gospel. For others it was a daily sowing of the gospel seed in their lives. Throughout the week there was great joy radiating from the smiles on the faces to the singing of “Submerged” (the LifeWay VBS theme).

The greatest moment came at the end of the week when one of the students shared with her teacher that she wanted to become a follower of Christ. There was joy in the church and “joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Lk. 15:10).

PRAYER PROMPT: Heavenly Father, may we not grow weary of doing good and sharing the gospel. Amen.

Kevin Carrothers serves as pastor of Rochester FBC and President of IBSA.

Pastors, join the IBSA Pastors’ Prayer Room on Facebook. E-mail oweaver7307@ gmail.com.

inspirations

pinterest.com/illinoisBaptist

Speed dating for small groups

Vale Church in Bloomington holds an event called “GroupLink” that connects small group leaders with new members and attenders. The object in a 90-minute session is to give people exposure to new leaders and topic or ministry they want to lead. “It’s kind of like tailgating and a job fair combined,” said Connections Pastor Mark Weaver. “There’s food, fun, music.” Every leader has a spot in the room. People tour, ask questions, and eventually sit with a leader and other interested people to see if they want to form a small group. So far, it’s working really well.

An interview with Mark Weaver is featured in the Fall issue of Resource magazine, which is produced specially for IBSA churches. Check your church office for a copy, or ask for a free subscription at Communications@IBSA.org.

Pole event expands

The annual prayer emphasis near the start of each school year expanded to a full week. “See You At the Pole” day is Wednesday, September 28. Students are urged to gather at the flagpole in front of their school at 7 a.m. to pray. Organizers of the event, which is now 25 years old, have called for a “global week of student prayer” September 25 through October 1. The goal is to gather and pray each day, and from those gatherings to launch student prayer groups and Bible studies at school. The theme is “We Cry Out, a generation seeking Him!” from Psalm 24:3-6.

KEVIN CARROTHERS