River Region Christian - February 2023

Feature Articles

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Faith @ Work: Kelley Herring

CEF of Alabama’s State Director Kelley Herring shares about her passion to reach children for Christ, her work as a biblical counselor, and why she believes being in community is crucial for believers.

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The Groan and Glory of Work

by Scott Sauls

If you have ever said, “I’m just a _______” or “I just do ________ for a living” you’ll find encourage ment and reason to think differently about the importance and value of your work.

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Isaiah 58 Ministry Clothing Women Through Faith and New Futures

by Kym Klass

Learn all about this ministry providing muchneeded items for women at a “store” at Santuck, including clothing, shoes, accessories, hygiene items, and makeup. They help women being released from Tutwiler Prison in Wetumpka and Montgomery Women’s Facility. Also, they serve women who have had house fires and need help starting over and women leaving abusive relationships with nothing but the clothes on their backs – and sometimes, a child at their side.

FEBRUARY 2023

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Publisher’s Note

Jason Watson

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Pastor's Perspective

Daniel Gillenwater, The Church at Eastern Oaks

page 15

Moments with Kym

Kym Klass

page 16

The Intersection

Bob Crittenden

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Women Arising

Pastor Kemi Searcy

page 24

Counselor’s Corner

Sarah McCrory, LPC

page 28

Dave $ays

Dave Ramsey

Columns In Every Issue

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Books to Read

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Faith @ Work

Our Mission...

We believe the Good News concerning the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is worth sharing with our friends and neighbors in the River Region. Each month we deliver this life-changing message to the centers of activity across our community in a user-friendly and relevant way to empower and equip all those seeking to grow closer to God. Join us in this mission by sharing a copy with your neighbor or by becoming an advertising partner starting next month.

Editor

DeAnne Watson deanne@readjourneymagazine.com

Publisher

Jason Watson jason@readjourneymagazine.com

Research Editor

Wendy McCollum

Contributing Writers

Tim Challies

Bob Crittenden

Pastor Daniel Gillenwater

Kym Klass

Sarah McCrory, LPC

Dave Ramsey

Kemi Searcy

Advertising Opportunities

Jason Watson

ads@readjourneymagazine.com

(334) 213-7940 ext 702

Digital Manager

Scott Davis

Ad Design

Tim Welch, Welch Designs

River Region Christians is published monthly by Keep Sharing, P.O. Box 230367, Montgomery, AL 36123. For information, call 334-213-7940. River Region Christians is copyrighted 2023 by KeepSharing. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.

The opinions expressed in River Region Christians are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of the owners, nor do they constitute an endorsement of products or services herein. River Region Christians has the right to refuse any content that is not consistent with its statement of faith.

From the Publisher

Struck By a Potent Arrow

Are you hoping to be struck by Cupid’s arrow this Valentine’s Day?

Valentine’s Day is often associated with romantic love, but as believers in Christ, we know that love is so much more than just a feeling. In fact, Jesus himself defined love as something that goes beyond emotion and extends to action. That combination is a much more potent arrow to be struck by in both intimate relationships and as we engage the world.

In John 15:13, Jesus says, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” This is the ultimate example of selfless love, and it’s a reminder that true love involves sacrifice and putting the needs of others before our own.

As believers, we are called to follow Jesus’s example and love others in this way. This doesn’t necessarily mean that we must physically lay down our lives for others (although it could in some circumstances), but it does mean that we should be willing to put the needs of others before our own. How does this look? This might involve volunteering our time or resources, offering support and encouragement to those who are struggling, or simply being there for someone when they need it most.

On Valentine’s Day, it’s a good time to think about how we can show love to those around us. This might be through small acts of kindness, such as sending a thoughtful card or gift, or simply spending quality time with the people we care about. But let’s also remember that love is not just something we do on one special day a year - it’s something we should strive to show every day.

The Bible tells us the greatest commandment is to LOVE God and then to LOVE your neighbor. Love is a powerful change agent to a hurting world and when God’s love flows to us and then through us our spouses, children, neighbors, and co-workers will experience God in their lives.

As we celebrate Valentine’s Day, let’s remember the ultimate example of love that we have in Jesus. May we seek to follow His example and show love to others in all that we do.

Pastor’s Perspective

by Pastor Daniel Gillenwater, The Church at Eastern Oaks

More Than a Feeling

In the Fellowship Hall of the church I pastor, we have a bulletin board where we post various ministry rotations and volunteer assignments. This board is always decorated, and the theme changes every month. With the arrival of February, our bulletin board will be decorated, as I’m sure so many others will, with the theme of love. Everything will be done in red and pink. There will be hearts… there’s even a picture of a cute brown teddy bear dressed like cupid. If that doesn’t scream “LOVE,” then I don’t know what does!

As everyone knows, February is the month we celebrate Valentine’s Day. While there is nothing wrong with a holiday that celebrates romantic love, I believe we live in a society that, by and

large, has no idea what true love is. Most people define love as a feeling. Love is an emotion, and as an emotion, it comes and goes. We need a better definition of love. Love is so much more than a feeling. Thankfully, God’s Word gives us the truest and best definition of love.

In the fourth chapter of his first epistle, the Apostle John has quite a bit to say about love. Specifically, look at how he defines love in 1 John 4:10, “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” Biblically, love is defined NOT as a feeling or an emotion. Love is defined as the selfless act of God sending His Son to die on the cross for our sins. That is what love looks like. Utilizing this biblical definition of love, let me make two important points that will help us love others better.

First, love is a choice. God did not have to send His Son to die for our sins. He chose to. Furthermore, we know love is a choice when we read about the two Great Commandments. In Matthew 22:36, Jesus is asked, “What is the great commandment in the law?” He responds in the following three verses by saying, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first

commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The Lord would not command us to love if we could not do so. Therefore, we clearly see that love is choice. With the Lord’s help, we can choose to love Him and love others, and this is exactly what we should do. We should choose love. Are you married? Choose to love your spouse. Are you a parent? Choose to love your children. Do you have a job? Friends? Choose to love your neighbor as yourself. This is something you can do whether you “feel like it” or not.

Second, love is an action. God dem onstrated His love not with mere words alone but by sending His Son to die on the cross. This was an action. This was the most important action in the history of the world. This one action made forgiveness and salvation possible for anyone who will put their faith in Jesus. Therefore, if love is an action, I need to demonstrate love to those in my life. While saying “I love you” is important, it’s not enough. Love is an action. Love needs to be expressed through action. Yes, tell those in your life that you love them, but don’t stop there. Show them with your actions that you love them.

This February, our culture will celebrate love. However, they too often celebrate nothing more than a feeling. Love is so much more. Celebrate true love this February. Choose to act in love to those in your life. Most importantly, share the greatest love story ever told. Share the Gospel.

Pastor Daniel Gillenwater a Montgomery, Alabama native and is the Senior Pastor of The Church at Eastern Oaks where he has served since December of 2004. He received his Master’s and Doctorate degrees from Beeson Divinity School. Pastor Daniel has been married to Hanna for 19 years and they have two children, Lydia and Ford.

Always Longing

by Stephen Morefield

We can tell a lot about ourselves by what we long for, by what we desire, by what we dream about, by what consumes our thoughts when we lie in the quiet darkness of night. I don’t think I’m wrong in suggesting that few of us spend much time dreaming about Heaven. Most of our longings extend little farther than what we can see, have, and experience here on earth. And yet the consistent message of the Bible is that there are treasures and blessings beyond this earth that are so beautiful, so wonderful, so desirable, that the best of earth’s joys will pale by comparison.

This longing is the subject of Stephen Morefield’s book Always Longing: Discovering the Joy of Heaven. He, like so many of us, has always known that Heaven is good, but has still preferred to focus his thoughts and desires on this world and this life. He has always known that Heaven is a wonderful place, but he still didn’t want to go there because he had other plans, other dreams, other things he wanted to accomplish. “Sports, college, ministry, marriage, kids—those sorts of things. I had too much to do to want to go to Heaven. I also had a healthy fear of death. Who wants to die? Not me. No thanks.”

But as time went on he came to understand some very good news. “I was completely wrong about Heaven, and you probably are too.” He was wrong in what he understood about Heaven and wrong about wanting to be here more than he wanted to be there. He realized that we live best when Heaven consumes our thoughts and fills our desires. We live best when we live with a longing to be absent from the body and home with the Lord.

He begins the book by asking simply, does Heaven matter? He follows Randy Alcorn in showing that we were made for both a person and a place, and “that person, experienced in the presence of that place, will meet every single need we could ever have. Complete satisfaction is possible. All of our longings tell us it must be. But only in this divine gift of a person and a place will we ever find it.” The second chapter faces the reality that we must all die and considers what happens after death. He balances the horror of death with the beauty of finally being in the presence of God.

We would be lying if we said that this world is only full of sorrows and woes, for that is not the case. We experience many blessings here and enjoy many pleasures. And it is good and honoring to God when we embrace them. Yet these pleasures are not meant to captivate us, but to point us to the fulfillment of our longings—to the presence of that person in that place. And this book does a commendable job of directing our longings in just that way.

And Then There Was One

by Mary Echols

Mary Echols lost her husband very suddenly and unexpectedly after he suf fered a heart attack. And in the aftermath of her loss she was desperate to find out how much of her experience of loss was typical. “I began looking for something I could read that would allow me into some one else’s journey and help me to see that the little things I was stressing over were okay,” she says. “I needed to know that someone else couldn’t change the sheets, that someone else washed her spouse’s clothes with hers, that someone else would open his bathroom drawer that held hairbrush, aftershave, cologne, and breathe in his scent. I needed to have these things validated!” Because she couldn’t find anything, she decided to journal her journey and the result is And Then There Was One: An Emotionally Raw Journey Through Spousal Grief.

The book’s format is what I have found typical for a book that has been written in a time of deep grief in that it is comprised of short thoughts that are often very urgent and very poignant. Some of it is written as if to her husband, some as if to herself, and some as if to an unknown reader like you and me. She recounts returning home to find her husband slumped in his chair and tells, how though she was a seasoned RN, nothing had prepared her for the moment. She tells about the early hours in which, as if in a terrible dream, she went through the motions of calling her children, and the early days in which she cried herself to sleep in a bed that was now cold and empty.

The day comes when she realizes she may be tempted to turn some of her husband’s things in a shrine and resists that temptation. The day comes when she realizes she doesn’t mind making decisions for just one person instead of two and living according to the plan and schedule of only herself. By the end of the book she has emerged from the worst of her sorrows. She may not be healed, but she is healing. She may not be over her sorrows (as if anyone ever is) but she is once again getting on with life.

In my assessment, this book has two notable strengths. The first is related to Echols’s realness. She simply lets us into her journey as she goes through it and is honest about her joys and sorrows, her fears and doubts, her submission and her anger. The second is related to her faith. She writes as a Christian who mourns, but not without hope, and who grieves, but not without a sense of God’s will being expressed even in something as tragic as death. This is a beautiful, hopeful little book and one I’m glad to recommend.

RRC: Who or what helped you understand the person of Jesus Christ?

KH: I attended Blue Lake Camp in Andalusia, Alabama, during the summer of my 5th-grade year. My camp counselor, Freida Daughtry Gatewood, shared the Gospel with me, and I prayed to receive Christ.

RRC: How did you keep your two daughters, Francie (24) and Mary Phyfer (22), involved in mission work/activities during their youth?

KH: Our church has a huge heart for missions, so it was easy for us to get involved. When the girls were around five and seven, we started serving at Bell Street, a weekly service to children and teenagers. A few years later, we went to help with the children’s ministry at Frazer’s Asbury Campus. We took other mission trips as a family, and

when they were teenagers, they went on mission trips with the youth group. They also were in a mission program called Christian Youth in Action (CYIA), a ministry of Child Evangelism Fellowship. CYIA students learn to share Bible stories with the Gospel message with children. These children are then extended an invitation to receive Christ as Lord and Savior, and many of them do.

RRC: How has your trust and faith in God sustained you during difficult times?

KH: The truth is I would not have made it without Jesus Christ. He has given me stability in an unstable world. His Word is a solid rock on which you can build your life.

RRC: For parents who desire their children to know God but are unsure how to train them, what information can you share?

KH: As your life transforms, they will see and experience that. Share with your children what you are learning, and spend time praying and asking the Lord to help you understand His Word and apply it to your life. Get your family involved in a Bible-believing church. Read a children’s Bible with them regularly. As you walk through life together, look for opportunities to share your faith with them. When your children are arguing and need to forgive each other, talk to them about how much Christ has forgiven us and how He wants us to forgive each other. Be intentional with your teaching opportunities, and don’t be afraid to talk with them about God. If you have questions, please contact cefstateal@gmail.com.

RRC: Your work with Child Evangelism Fellowship has been long-term. How has it impacted your life?

KH: I have seen the Lord open hearts and minds and draw children into a relationship with Himself. I have seen Him bring together people and events to help further His Kingdom. It has amazed and encouraged me!

RRC: Through your journey of becoming a counselor, is there anything you wish you knew prior and why?

KH: The journey to becoming a biblical counselor was filled with studying, learn-

ing, praying, and growing. I’ve learned that because people go through varied circumstances/struggles, each case for me still consists of all those things.

RRC: Please share why you’re passionate about people having a faith community inside and outside of church and not being isolated.

KH: A life-or-death situation is how serious I believe it can be. God created us for the community. We need other believers in our lives for accountability, wise and godly counsel, and so the gifts God has placed in each of us can help strengthen the other. When people are isolated, they are more anxious, fearful, and depressed. I find myself saying a lot to people, “Do you have a church home? Do you have a church in mind you’d like to try? If not, please come to mine.” Once someone finds a church home, they need to be involved in small groups where they can grow spiritually, know others, and be known.

RRC: Does your community of faith always stand behind you in a time of need? How?

KH: The Christian community has been the hands and feet of Christ in my life on so many occasions. When I was so grief-stricken I couldn’t stand, they helped nurture me back to life through prayers, letters, cards, books, food, time, acts of kindness, help with my children, Bible studies... just so many things.

RRC: Primarily, you work with women and teens. How does your faith handle societal issues such as premarital sex, teen pregnancy, and divorce?

KH: My faith tells me that God loves people and that premarital sex, teen pregnancy, and divorce happen because we live in a fallen world. My faith in Jesus Christ says there is nothing that He cannot redeem. There is no circumstance He can’t use for our good and His glory. If you read the Scriptures, what you will find is that our highest good in this life is to be transformed into the likeness of Christ.

Kelley has been married to Torey Herring for eight years and they have two adult daughters, Francie Parker (24) and Mary Phyfer Parker (22).

IN ADDITION TO OUR POWERFUL RADIO BROADCAST, Faith Radio is also involved in these areas of Christian media: Podcasting,

Making It Easy To Know The Bible

His

Jo Hancock on Saturday, February 11, from

until noon. Registration may be made online at hisvessel.org.

Compassion International presents Casting Crowns Healing Tour

Compassion International presents Casting Crowns The Healing Tour: An Awakening FNDN Event on Saturday, March 11, beginning at 7:00 pm. This event will be held at the Montgomery Performing

• How much you’ll need to retire

• If you are on track for your retirement goals

• Which IRA is right for your retirement needs – Roth or traditional

• The importance of asset allocation and how it can help as you work toward your long-term goals

It’s more than just money. Investing is about realizing the possibilities of your future.

Steven Curtis Chapman at MPAC

Thursday, March 30, 7:00 pm

Steven Curtis Chapman is bringing brand new music on his upcoming tour, “Still”. Join us this Spring as SCC encourages you through his music and inspires you through his stories. But don’t worry, in addition to new music he will “still” be playing some of his well-known favorites you’ve enjoyed over the years! For tickets, visit www.mpaconline.org.

Frazer Church Welcomes Chris Tomlin and His Stories of Worship

Frazer Church, 6000 Atlanta Highway, is excited to host Chris Tomlin and his STORIES OF WORSHIP tour! Tickets for the March 25, concert are on sale at christomlin.com. Enter the code ALWAYS for $5 off your ticket. For questions about tickets or seating, please contact kaitlin.harper@premierproductions.com.

Whether our work is done at home or out in the community, as volunteers or for a paycheck, an essential question has to do with how faith relates to our work.

Currently, there is a global, emotional crisis related to work. Most people in the world deeply dislike their work. One Gallup poll revealed that more than anything, what the world wants is a good job—more than food, shelter, safety and peace—a good job. And yet, as another poll revealed, a full 87% of workers are disengaged from and miserable in their jobs.

In the movie, Office Space, the main character, Peter, visits a hypnotherapist to help him with his lack of motivation and disdain toward his mid-level job. In that meeting, he says the following:

So I was sitting in my cubicle today and I realized, ever since I started working, every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that’s the worst day of my life…I’d say in a given week I probably only do about fifteen minutes of real, actual work.

Though intended to get a laugh, these words hit home for a lot of us. Our work doesn’t feel meaningful but because our perspective about work lacks a biblical imagination. Dorothy Sayers says that the church is largely at fault for this crisis. According to Ms.

Sayers, rather than foster a robust vocational imagination in its people, the church has allowed work and religion to become separate departments.

Assuming she is correct, what is the way forward?

The Reason For Work

We need to work because work is in our blood. As carriers of the divine imprint, as bearers of the image of God, we are by nature vocational beings.

Have you ever considered that the very first thing God reveals about himself in the Bible is that he, God, is a worker? “In the beginning, God created…” That’s right. God, the Maker of all things, put his hands in the dirt. He started by creating water, earth and sky, all designed as hospitable spaces for life. Then came the plants, the land creatures, the birds, the fish, and they the crown of his creation—man and woman. Then, at the end of his work, God looked at everything he had made and called it very good (Genesis 1:1-31).

But work did not stop with God. After creating everything, God put Adam and Eve in his garden and told them to work it and tend to it, to cultivate it…to make culture as they exercise dominion on God’s behalf over the world God had made (Genesis 2:15).

My former mentor and colleague Tim Keller is fond of saying that history began in a garden and ends in a city. In Genesis, the first chapters of history past, everything

energy, imagination and resources to leave God’s world better than we found it. If you’ve ever wondered why children instinctively “get to work” each morning,

Consider janitorial work. Several years ago, I met a man named Joe. In the course of getting to know each other, Joe asked me the standard get-to-know-you-question: “So, what do you do?” As a minister, before I answer that question I prepare for one of two standard reactions: excitement followed by a long conversation about God and church, that causes people to either trust or distrust

turned to him and I asked him what he did for work, he responded in a way I will never

What? Just? He just pushes a broom? Who in the world told him that he should say or think “just” with regard to his work?

I thought to myself, “What would the world be like without janitors, or for that matter caregivers, shelf-stockers, repairmen and women, mothers and fathers, seamstresses, bus boys, police officers, construction workers, mechanics and others who, though their jobs may be lower in profile and pay, are such high impact and importance that the whole world could not move forward, and in many cases would also fall apart, without them?”

And what about the dignity of Joe and his essential work? Regarding Joe’s work and all work, there are two statements incorrectly attributed to Martin Luther, but that are deeply important statements nonetheless:

The maid who sweeps her kitchen is doing the will of God just as much as the monk who prays— not because she may sing a Christian hymn as she sweeps but because God loves clean floors…[and]…The Christian shoemaker does his Christian duty not by putting little crosses on the shoes, but by making good shoes, because God is interested in good craftsmanship.

The Groan (and Future) of Work

We’ve already seen that God, after he completed his work of creation, looked at what he had made and said it was very

good. God looked at his work and celebrated. He was satisfied. And because God put his image in us, we, too are wired to take pride in our work.

But something went wrong along the way. Unlike God in his work of creation, our work fails us, and we fail our work. Due to lack of motivation and skill and capacity, we struggle to produce the kind of work that will truly satisfy us. Even with our best work, the enjoyment gets ruined when someone or something comes along and ruins it. Cars break down, children choose foolishly, parishioners sin against God and each other, lawns grow weeds, roofs leak, food spoils, investments flop, and the best books don’t get read.

There are theological reasons for this reality. Ever since Adam and Eve sought independence from God, work, just like every other good thing in God’s creation, has been under a curse. God said to Adam:

Cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it…thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you…by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground (Genesis 3:17-19).

Because of this cosmic curse, even people with the best jobs experience frustration and anticlimax in their work. Always seeming to envision more than we are

The journey to mend his heart led

Qua was born with tricuspid atresia that required a series of open heart surgeries as an infant. But as a teen, his health took a dramatic turn. Qua’s pediatrician and cardiologist recognized something wasn’t right with his heart and sent him to Children’s of Alabama. Our team was standing by when he arrived by helicopter, and within two weeks he received a new heart. He rebounded quickly and was back at home a few weeks later, thanks to the expert heart team here at Children’s of Alabama.

able to accomplish, we become stuck… stuck between our innate, primal need to work and an inability to do it well and to sustain it for the long haul.

When my friend Brian, a professional writer, was dying from cancer in his midthirties, I asked him what he looked forward to the most in the New Heaven and New Earth. Do you know what he said? He said that the thing he looks forward to the most is having no more writer’s block.

Scripture promises, “no eye has seen, no ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9). It also promises that the good work he has begun in us, every good work—whether it be the work of becoming more like Jesus in our character, or the work of painting just a leaf when we dream of a tree—the God who is both Creator and Restorer, and the Architect and Builder of his great city—will be faithful to complete that work (Phil 1:6). And as he completes that work, he will also look to us through the finished work of Jesus and say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt 25:23).

The work you do now will go on into eternity. It’s a leaf on the Creator’s tree.

Scott Sauls is an author, blogger and pastor in Tennessee.

Learning Boundaries, Following His Path

I’m a giver and a people-pleaser, and if asked to attend a meeting, take on another task, or join a group, I’m quick to say yes.

Until recently, when I said no to a meeting on a Saturday at noon. My daughter was home from college, and we had barely seen each other that particular week. She was returning to her university in Oklahoma the Saturday of the meeting, and I had a personal life to catch up with: errands, laundry, packing for a mission trip, errands, cleaning my home, meeting with dog sitters, errands. Sitting for a second.

My friend who invited me understood. The meeting carried on. I considered for a few seconds how I could manage it all, and did what is hardest for me: I said no, and set my own personal boundary.

My health was too important – mental health, physical health – and I found myself sitting at home early evening having completed what I needed, instead of having also attended a two-hour meeting, and then playing catch up all day to complete my tasks by late evening. And exhausted. Stressed. Wondering why I’m so tired all the time.

We’re called to serve. It’s the part of my life – of God’s calling for us – I thrive on. Providing outreach. Giving back to a community. Sharing my testimony. But you can’t give if you’re depleted. And constantly worrying and wondering how you’ll get everything done.

“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:7-8)

I lived on autopilot for years as a single mom – and with an active daughter. Academics, soccer – school and travel teams – while working full-time with two dogs. I know I’m one of millions. But it wasn’t until my daughter left for college 18 months ago that I was able to sit. Reassess. Start doing for me.

I found more intentional time in His word. Took those deep breaths I advised to others for so long. “Don’t forget your ‘me’ time,” I’d say, while not providing my own body and mind with the nutrients it needed to match the pace I kept. “Yes – ha – I’ll take my time later!”

The pace hasn’t slowed over the past year and a half. But the focus has shifted.

Once I didn’t have the 24-hour schedule that raising my daughter entailed, I found boundaries. I found that while my schedule has stayed busy, my mind has learned to slow down.

“Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”

(Matthew 5:37)

I learned to say ‘no,’ so I could say ‘yes’ to where I needed to be. To where my heart called, my mind, my passions, my outreach. I learned to say no so I could grow where God wanted me. Where He placed me. The road on which He led me.

Then, I learned to say ‘yes,’ because it’s where my bound-

2022 in the Rear-View Mirror

I take time near the beginning of a new year on The Meeting House on Faith Radio to review prevalent topics impacting the Christian community from the previous year. Recently, I shared information from 2022, including comments from a variety of guests from the show.

No doubt, the year’s top story impacting the Christian community is the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Dobbs case, involving a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks. Five justices on the high court voted to strike down the almost 5-decade-old Roe v. Wade ruling, which had resulted in legalized abortion in America.

The decision in the case returned the question of abortion to each state. Pro-life laws that had been passed and put on hold by courts and “trigger laws” that would ban many abortions in the eventuality of Roe being overturned went into effect. The decision has provided an opportunity for those who believe in the sanctity of life, based on Scripture, to build on years of compassionate service and continue to reach out to women and their families in crisis pregnancies.

Not all have been supportive of the court’s decision, and concern has been voiced through the political process. Unfortunately, there are those who resorted to violence against pregnancy resources centers and churches, intensified by a supposed draft leak of the majority opinion weeks before the high court actually issued its decision.

Other court actions were notable during 2022, including three U.S. Supreme Court decisions that upheld religious freedom. I covered the rulings in a previous column - here are some highlights:

In one case, Shurtleff v. Boston, the right of a Christian group to have a Christian flag flown in a special celebration at City Hall in Boston was upheld.

Another case, Carson v. Makin, restored the rights of parents to send their children to religious schools in a special program in the state of Maine allowing parents to choose other high schools in rural areas where it was impractical to place a high school.

Then, there was the case of Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, in which the Court ruled that a football coach who had walked to midfield to pray following games and had been terminated was within his Constitutional rights to participate in that free exercise of religion.

This term of the U.S. Supreme Court features the 303 Creative case, in which a graphic artist and web designer is challenging a Colorado law that would force her to support same-sex marriage, contrary to her religious beliefs.

In 2022, there was an apparent advancement in the promotion of transgenderism, which is a rejection of God’s created order and His plan for sexuality. There was welcome pushback on several fronts, with Christian organizations involved in the opposition to this dangerous agenda.

The state of Alabama, in its 2022 regular session of the Legislature, passed a bill that would prevent minors from receiving treatments and undergoing surgeries intended to help them to “change” his or her gender. The bill also included a section that would prevent inappropriate sexual material from being taught to young children in the state’s classrooms. The new law was challenged and a portion of it has been temporarily restricted from going into effect.

From the exposure of the gender change surgeries being performed at a Nashville hospital to “detransitioners” speaking out about their experiences, the gender change industry certainly had a day of reckoning during 2022. “Detran sitioners” are individuals who have been duped in order to try to surgically change their sex, only to find out that they had sustained permanent damage based on an empty promise.

ertheless a federal appeals court - the 2nd Circuit - toward year’s end upheld the policy of a governing body over youth sports in the state of Connecticut, allowing male athletes to compete against females.

The area of same-sex marriage returned to the headlines as a new bill was passed that provided a legislative companion to the 2015 Obergefell deci sion, but Christian leaders voiced concern that under the law, those who stand on the Biblical concept of one-man, one-woman marriage could face repercussions for their viewpoints.

These are just some of the many issues impacting Christians during 2022. We can continue to be in prayer for our leaders and pray for the Church to have a solid witness in a culture in which we find ideas being em braced that contradict Scripture. For more information, I encourage you to visit FaithRa dio.org and check out the “Top 10 Topics of 2022” Podcast in the Media Center.

by Kym Klass

When Dawn Green began her work helping imprisoned women through Isaiah 58 Ministry, she says her heart went out to them because she knew she could easily be sitting alongside them.

She knows decisions from her past as a young adult could have had detrimental effects. There were parties, bars, and marijuana. Enough goings on, she said, that when she sees the women helped through Isaiah 58 – which exists to serve women leaving prison and others starting new – she knows “only God saved me from hurting someone else or myself.

“When I see the women, I tell them they’ve already done the hardest things: being arrested and living in prison. I encourage them by telling them they can succeed. ‘You can do this,’ I tell them. I tell them my situation, and they can relate to that.”

Green has served as ministry director for about six years, working alongside several others. Isaiah 58 Ministry falls under Santuck Baptist Church in Wetumpka and shares God’s truth and love with any woman in crisis.

The ministry provides much-needed items for women at a “store” at Santuck, including clothing, shoes, accessories, hygiene items, and makeup. They help women being released

from Tutwiler Prison in Wetumpka and Montgomery

Women’s Facility. Also, they serve women who have had house fires and need help starting over and women leaving abusive relationships with nothing but the clothes on their backs –and sometimes, a child at their side.

One of the remarkable things Isaiah 58 does is pack a suitcase for ladies leaving Tutwiler and the Montgomery facility. So many women leaving the facilities have burned bridges with their families and leave prison with no support. Their families also might be unable to provide hygienic items or clothes for them. They may have already spent what savings they had on legal fees.

Isaiah 58 was founded about nine years ago by Traci Martin, a former missionary chaplain at Tutwiler. Green said the Lord revealed to Martin that as she talked to the ladies, she found a great need to help them start over. So she went through the

“We had a lady go into prison with diabetes and who ended up losing both legs while in prison,” Green said. “We helped get her shorter dresses so the material wouldn’t get caught in her wheelchair wheels.”

Women from churches all over Central Alabama help the ministry and those at Santuck.

“It has been an awesome experience to work with these ladies and see how imaginative they are,” Green said of the different church volunteers donating items. For example, one church held a “delicates” party, where women were asked to bring undergarments to an event for entry, which were later donated to Isaiah 58 Ministry.

First Baptist Church in Wetumpka held a “Jeans in June” event. Hundreds of pairs were donated. A Russell Mills truckload once unloaded boxes upon boxes of sweatpants, jackets, and bras.

“It’s a blessing to those who give,” Green said. “And for those who receive.”

A past moved passed

Growing up, Green was a quiet child, compliant. And said her family – including two older siblings – just assumed that as she became older, she would continue being “good.”

“I grew up in a nice home,” she said. “With a mom and dad who loved me. I knew they were coming home every night and that food would be on the table. I just craved belonging and acceptance.

“What happens in America if you leave kids alone – they’ll find other kids who are alone. Then, there was alcohol and, eventually, marijuana. Since I spent more time with my friends than my family, I wanted to belong. Only in recent years did I put it all together. I never wanted to do the bad things; I just wanted to fit in.”

Green attended bars and parties and said the Lord saved her from a bad situation, and she “finally surrendered. And I said

of different things to try and be suc cessful when they get out,” she said. Suitcases for the women are stored in the main waiting room at the prisons – and aside from the clothes and hygiene products inside of each of them, there is also a Bible and devotional material, and a notepad and pen.

Prior to Covid, in 2019, the ministry gave 989 suitcases to women at both Tutwiler and Montgomery’s facilities. During Covid, everything shut down, and it has since taken time to get back to where they once were.

In 2020, there were over 300 suitcases given to women. In 2021, about 205, and last year, 291.

“We work totally off of donations,” Green said. “We receive more items than we do cash. Cash goes toward hygiene products and undergarments.

“We’re located in the old (Santuck) church building. We started with one room and now have closets in 10 classrooms filled.”

Green said her natural personality was “one of a scared little bunny.” But today, she knows God’s calling has her reaching beyond her comfort zone. She says, “Maybe He just wants us to be willing.”

“You do what He calls you to do,” she said. “I can’t change people, but God can. Only God can. It just brings you closer and closer to Him.

Donation and volunteer opportunities

Volunteers work on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m., assisting ladies who come in to shop for much-needed items. In addition, donations to the closet are accepted on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 a.m. –11:30 a.m. Call the Santuck Baptist Church office for information: (334) 567-2364.

Kym Klass is a contributing writer and Communications Director of the Media Ministry at Frazer Church in Montgomery.

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Love and the Four Horsemen

Most of us can recite all or some of the “Love Chapter” from 1st Corinthians 13, and I’ll be honest, I have always found it a bit intimidating. Mainly because when I do the old youth group exercise and put my name in the place where love is, I fall short! I believe part of that is because God is LOVE, so God is all those things, and I am not, which is why I need Jesus. However, as a marriage counselor, I think the characteristics highlighted by Paul are lovely goals to aspire to, with the perspective that perfect love from another human is not a reasonable expectation. The ideas Paul talked about thousands of years ago can be seen in research as foundations of a healthy marriage.

One of the foremost researchers on marriage, The Gottman Institute (led by married couple John and Julie Gottman) have made some amazing discoveries through their study of married couples over long periods of time. For example, they found that four types of communication styles were significant predictors of marriage failure. The Gottmans call these the Four Horsemen of the Marriage Apocalypse. Believe it or not, the antidotes to the four horsemen are directly addressed by God through Paul, in his message to the Corinthians about love.

When our partner communicates an issue or concern, how we respond can

significantly affect the trajectory of our marriage. If you want to focus on making your relationships stronger and resistant to failure, check to see if these four things are present in your marriage and replace them with the antidote:

Criticism happens when you verbally attack your partner’s character, place blame, or look for and point out faults. A criticism in conversation may look like, “because you were running late, you are selfish”. However, Paul said, “love does not dishonor others.” The Gottmans suggest that the antidote to criticism is a gentle start-up, which means instead of blame and attack, use “I” statements and express a positive need. This might sound like, “when you were late, I was scared and worried; it would help me if you could call next time to let me know what was going on.”

Contempt is the most serious and is the most highly correlated with divorce. You communicate contempt when you attack your partner’s sense of self in an attempt to convey disgust and make them feel bad about themselves. Paul said, “Love is patient and kind,” and it “does not delight in evil.” The Gottmans say that instead of focusing on the negative characteristics of our partner, we should instead focus on their positive qualities and be thankful for the positive actions.

Defensiveness is when everything your partner says sounds like an attack, which could be an interpretation problem. A person responding from a defensive position would say, “It’s not my fault,” or “I forgot to unload the dishes, but you forgot the day before.” Do you give your partner the benefit of the doubt? Do you accept that their perspective is valid? Paul said, “Love is not easily angered,” and “love is not proud.” So the antidote for defensiveness is to take responsibility for our own actions, which looks

like “I’m sorry, you are right, I did forget to unload the dishes.”

Stonewalling is when you withdraw from your partner when things get uncomfortable. Do you respond with the silent treatment? An example of stonewalling is when your partner does something that makes you angry and when they try to apologize or talk to you, you ignore them. Paul said, “love keeps no record of wrongs,” and love “rejoices in the truth.” The antidote to stonewalling is recognizing and communicating, “I am upset because what happened hurt me. I do want to talk about this, but I need a few minutes to take a walk, calm myself down and get my thoughts together.”

Because God is love, he helps us to be loving, and it is the love of Jesus that “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” It is HIS love that “never fails” so that when ours does fail, we can recognize our fault and continue to move forward in relationship with the one we have chosen to love. It is important to remember human love is a shadow of the love we will experience when we are with Jesus forever.

“For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears... For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:9-12)

Sarah McCrory is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Registered Play Therapist (RPT) and a National Certified Counselor (NCC). She has had success with utilizing different counseling modalities but she finds that over time, her counseling style has become more Person-Centered, because each individual has their own needs and personality and responds differently to different types of therapy. Sarah is a TBRI (Trust Based Relational Intervention) Practitioner, trained in Theraplay and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing).

Our Statement of Faith

In keeping with Protestant theology, we believe that the Bible, as contained in the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, is fully inspired by God and therefore iner rant in the original manuscripts. The Bible is the only essential and infal lible record of God’s self-disclosure to mankind. The Scriptures are the authoritative and normative rule and guide of all Christian life, prac tice, and doctrine. They are totally sufficient and must not be added to, superseded, or changed by later tradition, extra-biblical revelation, or worldly wisdom. The Bible is perfect in every way and shows us how to become and live as Christians.

The way of becoming a Christian is by faith alone in Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, who came to us, born of a virgin, in full human form while remaining fully God. Jesus was, and is, perfect, and was crucified so that others could live. Three days later He rose from the dead, never to die again. He ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, where He, the only mediator between God and man, continually makes intercession for His own. Those who have faith in Jesus as their Lord in this life, and Savior from damnation in the next life, now live by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, becoming more like Jesus everyday.

We believe that God is one God. The one God has three persons: the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Just as God is one, so also, all believers are to be one. We believe in the unity and fellowship of all those that have faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We are one in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, His Body, which is composed of all men, living and dead, who have been joined to Him through saving faith.

*All editorial content published needs to be in agreement with our Statement of Faith

Adoption

Location: Vaughn Forest Church, 8660 Vaughn Road, Montgomery APAC, Alabama Pre/ Post Adoption Connection Support Group: This group provides education and social interaction for adoptive families. Meets 3rd Tuesdays, 6-7:30 p.m. For more information call Jill Sexton at 409-9477.

Alcoholic / Addiction

Location: Caring Center of FBC, 52 Adams Avenue CrossRoads Support Group is for addicts/alcoholics and family members. Meets at 6 p.m. Tuesdays and follows a Christcentered 12-step program. Call 264-4949.

Location: Christchurch Anglican Church, 8800 Vaughn Road next to Southern Homes and Gardens

Celebrate Recovery meets every Friday night. Dinner at 6:00, nursery available for children 4 and under. Large Meeting starts at 6:30. For more information, contact Dolly McLemore 334-301-3490.

Location: Dalraida United Methodist Church 3817 Atlanta Highway, Montgomery

An Alanon meeting is held at 9 am on Saturday mornings. Call 272.2190 for details.

Location: Grace Presbyterian Church, Corner of Bell Road and Atlanta Hwy. Alcoholics Anonymous and Alanon meetings are held Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, at 6 p.m. An Open AA Speaker meeting is held on Saturday at 6 p.m. An Alanon & AA held on Sundays at 2 p.m.

Location: Grace Point Community Church, 78223 Tallassee Hwy (Hwy 14), Wetumpka

Celebrate Recovery- every Tuesday night- 6:15pm. All are welcome! These meetings are a safe and loving environment for individuals seeking to conquer their hurts, habits and hang-ups! gracepoint.info.

Location: Heritage Baptist Church, 1849 Perry Hill Rd, Montgomery, AL

Route1520 is a Christ-centered recovery movement dedicated to showing the way home for men impacted by sex and pornography addiction. Meets: Mondays, 6:30 –8:00 PM CST. No Childcare Provided. Email montgomery@route1520.com, visit http://www.route1520.com/ men/groups-for-men/ or call 877.200.1520.

Location: Journey Church, 435 Sheila Blvd, Prattville

Celebrate Recovery - Christ-centered 12-step for anyone struggling with addiction or life-challenging issues. Mondays beginning at 6:15 pm. Childcare available.

Call John Pearse at 303-243-4308 or visit myjourneychurch.com.

Location: Landmark Church, 1800 Halcyon Blvd. RSVP- This is a 12 step spiritual recovery program for overcoming addictions. Wednesday @ 6:30pm in Rm. 121 of the Life Center.

Location: Prattville Church of Christ, 344 E Main St. CASA - 12 step (Christians Against Substance Abuse) spiritual recovery program, for overcoming addictions. Class begins each Wednesday evening @6:30 PM. Please call 334-365-4201 for additional information.

Location: St. James UMC, 9045 Vaughn Road

Celebrate Recovery meets every Thursday night from 6-8 pm in the Youth Room. This is a Christ-centered 12-step group for anyone struggling with an “addiction or life-challenging issues.” For information, call Chris Henderson at 334-215-0427.

Location: First United Methodist Church, Wetumpka 306 W. Tuskeena Street

‘Fresh Start’ Recovery meets every Thursday, 6-8pm (meal included). In 2011, Fresh Start Motorcycle Ministry (FSMM) began when God laid it on the heart of a lifetime biker to minister to those with his background. All are welcome, not a requirement to own/ride a motorcycle. For any information contact ministry leader, Paul Henderson, 334-201-5428.

Location: Trinity Presbyterian Church, 1728 S. Hull Street, Montgomery Route1520 is a Christ-centered recovery movement dedicated to showing the way home for men impacted by sex and pornography addiction. Meets Wednesday from 6:30-8 pm. For more information email riverregion@route1520.com, visit http:// www.route1520.com/ men/groups-for-men or call 877-2000-1520.

Alzheimer’s / Dementia

Location: First UMC, 2416 W. Cloverdale Park, An Adult Parkinson/Alzheimer’s respite ministry meets from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Lunch is served. Contact Daphne at 834-8990.

Location: Frazer Church, 6000 Atlanta Hwy An Alzheimer’s and Dementia Caregivers’ Support Group meets on the first Thursday of each month at 10:30 a.m. in Room 3103. Call 495-6343. for more information.

Cancer

Location: Aldersgate UMC, 6610 Vaughn Rd Cancer Survivors Support Group is sponsored by Samaritan Counseling Center. We would love to have anyone (patient or family member ) join us. Thursdays at 1 pm. Please call before attending just to make sure we are meeting that week. Please call Debbie D at 4674578 or Ben W at 202-1912.

Location: ChristChurch, 8800 Vaughn Road

Cancer Support Group for general cancer. Tuesday afternoons at 1 pm. For more info, please call Christy Holding at 531-1390 or Debbie at 467-4578.

Location: Frazer Church, 6000 Atlanta Hwy.

Central Alabama Multiple Myeloma Support Group meets from 10 a.m. to noon the second Saturday of every month in Room 3105. We have guest speakers, video presentations, printed information and a group that welcomes sharing their journey with myeloma in an informal setting. Refreshments are provided. Contact Joe Crowley at 334-207-4385 or jpcrowl46@yahoo.com

Location: Frazer Memorial UMC, 6000 Atlanta Hwy.

Location: Frazer Church, 6000 Atlanta Hwy.

Women of Hope Breast Cancer Support Group, providing education, awareness, and mentoring for breast cancer patients/survivors, family and friends, meets the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 5:30 p.m. in Room 8114. Call 220-4599 or e-mail womenofhope@charter.net

Divorce

Location: First Baptist Church, 305 S. Perry Street Divorce Care Wednesday nights @6:30-8:00 pm in Room 405B. Child care is available. Contact Kathy Cooper at 241-5125 for information.

Location: Frazer Church, 6000 Atlanta Hwy Divorce Care meets each Tuesday from 6 – 7:30 p.m. Come to the Library area. This group will provide support & guidance to assist you in working through the issues, pain & pressures surrounding divorce. Call 495-6343 or email rnave@frazer.church.

Gambling

Location: Cedarwood Community Church, 10286 US HWY 231 in the Wallsboro/Wetumpka community. The church is 1 1/2 miles past Tutweiler prison.

Gamblers Anonymous, Saturdays at 6 pm. and Mondays at 6:30 pm. Call 567-0476.

Location: Mental Health of America, 1116 South Hull Street, Montgomery. Sundays @ 5 pm.

For more information about the GA meetings call 334399-6918. For information about counseling services or to request a guest speaker please call the Alabama Council on Compulsive Gambling at 334-277-5100.

Grief

Location: Cornerstone Christian Church, 301 Dalraida Road

River Region Survivors of Suicide meets on the second and fourth Thursday of every month (excluding holidays) from 6:30-8:00 PM. Welcomes anyone regardless of their religious beliefs. Contact Cheryl Vinson at riverregionsos@gmail.com.

Location: Eastmont Baptist, 4505 Atlanta Hwy. Compassionate Friends is a national self-help support organization for families grieving the death of a child meeting first Tuesdays at 7 pm. Call (334) 284-2721.

Location: Church of the Highlands, 4255 Taylor Rd. Eryn’s Embrace offers hope and healing to children and teens grieving the loss of a loved one through peer support groups. Meets the 2nd Tuesday of every month from 4-5:15. More info: www.erynsembrace.org; erynsebrace@gmail.com; Erin Camp 334-657-1871.

Location: First UMC, 100 E. Fourth St, Prattville Grief Share, led by Dave Dageford. Call 365-5977 if

through adulthood. Meets the last Thursday night of each month. For info, contact Alice Scarborough (334) 462-4775 or Gwen Ellis (334) 567-8754.

Location: Millbrook FUMC, 3350 Edgewood Rd

Grief Share meets Sundays from 5-7 p.m. For more information or to sign up, please call the church office at 285-4114 or email churchoffice@mfumc.org.

Location: Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church 1550 E. Washington Street

Grief support group meets every Monday at 6:00 P.M- 7:00 P.M. For additional information, please contact Alice Glover at (334)281-2754.

Parenting

Location: First Baptist Prattville, 138 South Washington

Moms LIFE (Living In Faith Everyday) meets twice monthly from 8:30 - 11:45 am in the chapel at the Church from AugMay. We offer a time of fellowship, Bible study, musical guest, special guest

Tuesdays, 9:30-11:30 a.m., September through May. Contact Tiffany Alewine at 241-5165.

Location : Landmark Church, 1800 Halcyon Blvd. Single Moms Support Group, Wednesday nights at 6:30 p.m. in classroom 118. For information call 277-5800.

Location : Perry Hill UMC, 910 Perry Hill Road

Single Moms’ Care and Support Group meets 2nd and 4th Thursdays from 6:15 - 8:00 PM. December meeting will be on the 11th. Free snack supper provided to moms and children. Child care for infants -16 years. Call 272-3174.

Location : Redland Baptist Church, 1266 Dozier Rd, Wetumpka

A MOPS group will be held 1st and 3rd Tuesday’s of every month during the school year, and has scheduled play dates and moms nights out through the summer and beyond. While moms are in a MOPS meeting, their children are lovingly cared for in the MOPPETS program. Email Denise Braswell at deniseorscott@yahoo.com.

Location: Young Meadows Church, 5780 Vaughn Rd River Region MOPS (Moms of Preschoolers) meets on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays from 9:30 to 11:30 am

Should We Wait to Buy a House?

Q. Is it even worth it to buy a house these days? I’ve always been told buying a house is the adult thing to do and that it’s a great investment, but I can’t find anything decent and livable in my area for less than $350,000. My wife and I are debt-free, and we’re expecting our first baby in January. I was hoping to get your advice.

A. I can understand how things might feel a little hopeless in your current situation. You’re probably feeling the weight of the responsibility a new life brings to the picture. Things are getting real really fast, aren’t they? Believe me, I get it.

The truth is you may not be ready to buy a house today. And that’s okay. Having a new baby on the horizon doesn’t mean you have to run out and buy a home. That little boy or girl isn’t going to

know the difference between a house and an apartment for a long time. Right now, giving your child a safe, loving environment is the most important thing.

a home for another two or three years? Home buying should always be done with patience and wisdom.

There are two or three things that make buying a home a great long-term investment versus renting your whole life:

1) Rents go up every year. If you lock in a good, fixed-rate mortgage, that payment will stay the same.

2) The value of your home will increase. When you rent, you don’t own your residence, and you won’t benefit from the value of it going up.

Now, looking down the road, is owning a house worth it? Yes. But it’s not worth doing it at the wrong time or in a stupid way. You first need to make sure the income is there. Then, you need an emergency fund of three to six months of expenses in place along with a strong down payment. So, what if you don’t buy

3) Our study of 10,000 millionaires showed that most say two things were integral parts of their ability to build wealth: Good retirement investments and a paid-off home.

A house is a great wealth-building tool, and it can also stabilize the biggest line item in your budget—housing.

for big smiles and even bigger innovations.

Treating patients and families with genuine compassion, kindness and respect is the rule here, not the exception. But while a smile can make you feel welcome, it can’t make you feel better. That’s why, at Jackson Hospital, we never stop working to bring advanced treatments and technologies to the community – including state-of-the-art Robotic Surgery, which can lead to less pain, reduced scarring and shorter recovery times. YOUR HOME FOR HEALTH