connection Independent Assemblies Fellowship
Feeding the multitudes and saving souls!
Jesus’ Leadership Leading by Example
Summer 2009 | Volume 1 Issue 1
calendar January
March
Southeastern Oklahoma Fellowship Meeting Friday, January 30, 2009 4:30 PM Centerpoint Christian Fellowship 10 miles west of Antlers, OK Pastor Don Phyllis Burcham (580) 271-2299
Interstate Fellowship Meeting Monday, March 9, 2009 Life Community Church Ada, OK Pastor, Rev. Mickey Keith (580) 427-6230
February
North Central Texas Fellowship Meeting Monday, March 16, 2009 Refiners Fire Ministries Intl. 1611 W. Ennis Ave Ennis, TX Pastor Leland Hall (972) 642-9008
North Central Texas Fellowship Meeting Monday, February 16, 2009 John Beard Ministries Hilton Garden Inn, I-20 and Duncanville Road Duncanville, TX John and Elizabeth Beard (972) 291-3512
April
Southeast Texas Fellowship Meeting Friday, February 27, 2009 7:00 PM Baytown, TX Herb Hawthorne (281) 723-2278
North Central Texas Fellowship Meeting Monday, April 20, 2009 Victory Temple 2101 Acosta Dr Grand Prairie, TX Pastor Leland Hall (972) 642-9008
Arkansas Regional Fellowship Meeting Tuesday, January 27, 2009 4:00 PM New Beginnings Church Center Ridge, Arkansas Pastor Charles Kendrick (501) 303-0831
Interstate Fellowship Meeting Monday, February 9, 2009 Living Faith Church Moore, OK Pastor, Rev. Jimmy Milligan (405) 794-3104
Pastor’s Wives/Women in Ministry Brunch Friday, March 6, 2009 10:00 AM Living Faith Church 825 N.W 24th Moore, OK (405) 794-3161
Interstate Fellowship Meeting Monday, April 13, 2009 Life Changer Church Claremore, OK Pastor, Dr. Ted Estes (918) 341-8344
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Executive Board
connection Summer 2009
Mickey Keith
President PO Box 1546 Ada, OK 74821 (580) 310-0222 mickey.keith@gmail.com www.life623.com
Dr. Ted Estes
Vice President PO Box 2248 Claremore, OK 74018 pastorted@lifechangerchurch.com www.lifechangerchurch.com
Ken Anderson
Secretary/Treasurer PO Box 1120 Lexington, OK 73051 (405) 527-6030 Fax: (405) 527-1074 kda@valornet.com
Robert Johnson
Director of World Missions PO Box 978 Blackwell, OK 74631 (580) 363-2734 roj@clarionmissions.org www.clarionmissions.org
9 Departments 2
Calendar
4
Missions Spotlight
7
Recommended Reading
8
Minister's Bio
10
Features 5
Jerry Edmon
Board Member PO Box 862 Elgin, TX 78621 (512) 281-5316 Jedmon1234@aol.com www.fwcelgin.com
Board Blog
Jesus' Leadership Leading by Example
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World Missions Feeding the Multitudes and Saving Souls!
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Clarion World Missions Robert Johnson
Guatemala 2007
Dominican Republic 2007
Mexico 2007
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Clarion World Ministries actually began in April, 1972. Pastor Robert O. Johnson answered the call of God to conduct an evangelistic tour in Colombia, South America. It amounted to much more than expected. On Good Friday, seventy-five sinners responded to the altar call in an afternoon service in Baranquilla. Over the next few days, many instant and miraculous healings occurred, including several blind eyes and one deaf man. Similar results were to follow in Santa Maria, Bucaramanga and Cucuta. A few years later he was asked to return for more crusades and to add Leadership Training Seminars in the day services. Then in December 1983, an evangelistic tour of the Philippine Islands, mostly in the jungle towns of Mindanao, resulted in the establishment of Asian Christian School of Ministry in Dumaguete on the island of Negros, After that, the ministry rapidly expanded into many countries, including North India, Malawi, Zambia, Peru, Haiti, Mexico, Nepal, Uganda, Rwandi, Zimbabwe and Brazil, pretty much in that order. The ministry was incorporated in November 1987; its main purpose to provide training and equipment necessary for National pastors and evangelists to reach their own nations with the gospel. Our primary focus has always been on the remote and neglected regions that have little or no help from the established church in the outside world.
leadership Jesus’
by: Gerrit Vuuren
I
n John chapter 10, we read about the Good Shepherd and the predicament of the sheep under His care. The disciples have now been following Jesus day and night for three years. In the process He has been leading them, teaching, and providing for them. They have left all that they had behind, and Jesus became their whole life. However, their lives were at the verge of an unexpected change. Jesus was beginning to condition the disciples to the fact that He would not remain with them forever. They had to gain a new level of understanding on the situation. To achieve this, Jesus began to turn their focus onto the way that He has been leading them for the past three years. He is the Good Shepherd, and they are the sheep. But soon things would change drastically. He would still remain the Good Shepherd, but they, [the disciples], were soon to become shepherds, and the new followers of Jesus would become the flock under their leadership. Knowing them intimately, Jesus realised what their weaknesses were, as well as their concerns. Later on, He would put their minds at ease with knowledge of the coming Comforter, but for now, He needed to teach them about His leadership style, the style that they were to reproduce, and which every disciple through the ages was supposed to apply. They did not have leadership experience, and they were not trained in the best colleges or universities. All they had in their favour [thank God for that] was ex-
perience that they gained from observing Jesus’ own leadership. They saw and experienced how He led His followers. However, did they understand the dynamics of leadership: more specifically His leadership? I doubt it. Then Jesus began explaining the dynamics of His leadership style in the form of a parable, as He so often did. Firstly, there were several parties involved in the process of life. Among others, there was the Good Shepherd, the Son of God, their Master, the one telling the parable. Then there was the enemy, Satan, also known as the Devil, snake, wolf thief and some other names he thoroughly deserves. The flock of sheep were easy for the disciples to identify, as Jesus talked about the sheep on many previous occasions. Many Christians I am sure have noticed that the Christian walk is not a simple interaction between man, God and devil, as some so dearly want to assume. In fact the life of a true [reborn] Christian is everything but simplex. Firstly our need for a Saviour did not start within ourselves, but was created by God. Similarly, we are only able to love God, because He first loved us, and did not turn His back on us. Also the fact that we are by nature sinners, is not because of something that our parents did wrong. The Christian life is one of the most complex institutions that exist. That is because we live on different planes simultaneously. We are both flesh and spirit in the same life. Therefore we are bound by a set of rules and s spiritual dynamic set connection • 5
cont. from pg 4
by our Creator, God. We cannot earn it a good standing with God by good works, which would imply receiving merits for knowledge or promotion because of extramural services. Oh, how simplex that would be. No, we live in a very complex, and dynamic realm. We have to receive the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. That is it. Nothing more, and nothing less. However, repenting, and accepting Jesus as Saviour, hard as it is for some, is the easiest part of the equation. Although I have known many, who found it hard to conceive, believe and put into action, the Word reminds us that Jesus is constantly ‘knocking at the door of our hearts’. All we have to do is open up and let Him in. Then, [thus believe the adherents to the simplex Christian life] begins a life of moonshine and roses. However, may I say that this contradicts Jesus’ own words, where He invited all that will follow Him to deny themselves, take up their crosses and then follow Him. [Matthew 16:24 and other] This does not appear like the simplex happy-go-lucky, onmy-way-to-heaven theory coming true to me. However, we do have joy, peace, love and many other things at a level that the unsaved cannot experience. [Jesus was telling about His leadership style…] Firstly, His leadership of a person only assumes after rebirth. [John 3:5] Until then he/she was following other leaders, but at rebirth, he/she comes under the leadership of Jesus Christ. Put differently, they are now part of the fold. How do you enter the fold? According to Jesus nobody can legitimately enter, except through Him. He is the only way in, but it is interesting to note that there may be several others attempting to call the sheep out. Strangers for instance, will be calling on them to get them to leave the safety of the fold, not for the sake of spiritual growth, but to get them back in the ‘world’. [In this sense, your ‘old’ friends are sometime
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the most dangerous enemies.] Jesus calls such leaders ‘strangers’ in John 10 verse 5. However, the good news is, if you entered the fold in the [only] legal way, you will not answer to the voice of the stranger. On this point, many people have asked me what illegal ways there are to enter the fold, and I love to tell them about the illegal way that I tried for many years. I considered myself part of the fold although I had never been born again. No sir, I was a ‘Christian’ because I belonged to the state church, like the rest of my family. However, I understood the difference when one night, life became too much for me, and I thought of committing suicide. That night, sitting alone next to our kitchen table, I realised that I needed a Saviour, and attending the ‘politically correct church’, was of no use to me. [You may also find the parable of the wedding good reading in this regard. But, says Jesus, the stranger is not the only person to bother you. There are also thieves, who will try to ‘steal’ you out of the fold. [Complicated, isn’t it?] The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (John 10:10 KJV) Have you had those ‘smooth-shavedwell-spoken-guy-beautiful-girl’ partnerships knocking at your door? They look so good, and they speak so beautifully, and they seem so honest, it is a wonder they do not steal more sheep out of the fold. But, what they do NOT have, is the anointing of the Holy Spirit! [This is the topic of a future article, so do look out for it.] And just when you think ‘phew’ I am rid of those now. I am a child of God, and all will be smooth-sailing in future, you open your eyes with a shock to meet the wolf. [The same person who also is also personified as the snake, lion, devil etc.] In short, brothers and sisters, Satan is out to destroy you, and he will not leave you alone until the day that you finally enter your Father’s house.
Velvet Elvis Bell, pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., offers an innovative and intriguing, if uneven, first book. This introduction to the Christian faith is definitely outside the usual evangelical box. Bell wants to offer “a fresh take on Jesus”—a riff that begins with the assertion that Jesus wanted to “call people to live in tune with reality” and that he “had no use for religion.” Bell invites seekers into a Christianity that has room for doubts (his church recently hosted an evening where doubters were invited to ask their hardest, most challenging questions). He mocks literalists whose faith seems to depend on a six-day creation, and one of his favorite people is a woman who turned up repeatedly at his church, only to tell him that she totally disagreed with his teachings. He cites his church as a place of forgiveness, mystery, community and transformation. Bell is well-versed in Jewish teachings and draws from rabbinic wisdom and stories freely. His casual, hip tone can grate at times, and his footnotes, instructing readers to drop everything and read the books that have influenced him, grow old. Still, this is faithful, creative Christianity, and Gen-Xers especially will find Bell a welcome guide to the Christian faith.
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Making guests welcome at your church is serious business. Church consultant Gary McIntosh knows the truth of that statement: after moving to Tulsa, Okla., and encountering a chilly reception in various congregations, his grandparents stopped going to church. They never regularly attended for the rest of their lives. “We must get ready for company!” writes the Biola University professor in his book, Beyond the First Visit.” “Company’s coming to our church every Sunday, and what visitors perceive in our welcome will influence their feelings and response to church and the Lord for years to come.” Five ways he recommends hosting your guests:
Craig Groeschel (born December 2, 1967) is the founder and senior pastor of LifeChurch.tv, a church with thirteen locations in six states. Groeschel is known for his visionary leadership and inspiring, authentic and often confrontational style of teaching. He is married with six children and lives in Edmond, Oklahoma, a suburb of Oklahoma City, where LifeChurch. tv is based. Groeschel was born in Houston, Texas and grew up in southern Oklahoma. He attended Oklahoma City University, a private university in Oklahoma City affiliated with the United Methodist Church, on an athletic scholarship, pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing. Shortly thereafter, he met his wife Amy, and the two married in 1991. That same year, Groeschel entered the ministry as an associate pastor in the United Methodist Church. He attended Phillips Theological Seminary, which is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
1. Arrive early to make sure everything is ready for their arrival. 2. Greet them warmly at the entrance, escort them to their seats and help them understand what is taking place. 3. Anticipate and answer as many questions as possible in advance so they don’t have to ask. 4. Do something extra to make their visit special. 5. Walk them to the door and invite them back. Don’t just make this a simple checklist, McIntosh says. He advises putting these statements on paper, with room beneath each one, and then noting ways your church accomplishes these objectives. When finished, take a different colored pen and write a second list of additional ways you can fulfill each goal. Consider reviewing the lists with appropriate groups in your church.
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Craig Groeschel (born December 2, 1967) is the founder and senior pastor of LifeChurch.tv, a church with thirteen locations in six states. Groeschel is known for his visionary leadership and inspiring, authentic and often confrontational style of teaching. He is married with six children and lives in Edmond, Oklahoma, a suburb of Oklahoma City, where LifeChurch. tv is based. Groeschel was born in Houston, Texas and grew up in southern Oklahoma. He attended Oklahoma City University, a private university in Oklahoma City affiliated with the United Methodist Church, on an athletic scholarship, pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing. Shortly thereafter, he met his wife Amy, and the two married in 1991. That same year, Groeschel entered the ministry as an associate pastor in the United Methodist Church. He attended Phillips Theological Seminary, which is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
Feeding the multitudes and saving souls!
C
an you imagine being a single mother with 9 children living in quarters smaller than a single car garage and in some cases even smaller? Your home built of nothing more than sticks, old wood and pieces of plastic. Rusty old sheets of corrugated tin tied together and laid across the top of the walls for a roof. Imagine no running water to wash or cook with, no electricity for lights, no bath or shower for bathing, no furnishings. Just imagine you and your nine children sleeping on a cold dirt floor. No modern conveniences, no conveniences at all, just barely an existence. This was the scene as I visited with a mother who had asked me to come in out of the rain to talk about how a terrible hurricane had stripped away all that she had and now she was trying to survive. As I stood there in her home I was heartbroken as I looked around and the only things that this dear sweet woman owned were a few clothes, a couple of cooking pots and a picture of Christ hanging on the wall. She be-
gan to tell me of her plight, she told me that her children were unable to go to school because the school was too far away. Then she shrugged her shoulders as if to excuse that obstacle and say “besides I couldn’t afford the school fees and school uniforms anyway.” She had a few sticks smoldering in the corner, as she was getting ready to prepare a little rice for her children. This was the one meal that her children would eat today. What seemed to be so common to her was causing a lump in my throat. What made this harder to imagine is that this family had been living in these conditions for almost 5 years. On May 22, 2004 we received a report concerning 4000 coffee plantation workers and their families that had lost jobs, their homes and now were in dire crisis. These families had been laid off when the Coffee plantations closed down. They were asked to leave and now are living under tents on the side of the highway that stretches through the Matagalpa area headed for Managua. These families were making a des-
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board blog T
he phrase “ready, aim, fire” has existed for decades, referring to the common-sense procedure of firing a weapon. However, stemming out of the Internet boom of the ’90s was a business philosophy called ready-fire-aim, which described a different strategy for success: First, “get something out there” (a Web site, a social network, e-commerce, etc.), and claim some space. Once the product and portal was “out there,” then it was time to do the fine-tuning on the business plan and strategy. Interestingly enough, the ready-fire-aim thinking caught on among churches, becoming more or less the traditional way of building. While this might have worked in the boom-or-bust mentality of Internet expansion, we find ready-fire-aim to be a cavalier method of managing God’s resources. Unfortunately, this is the way most churches go about facility planning and construction. Consider the story of Oak Hill Baptist Church in suburban Atlanta.
Dr. Ted Estes is the pastor of Lifechanger Church in Claremore OK and has served on the Executive board for x amount of years.
Regional Representatives Southeast Oklahoma District Rev. Billy Hunter Antlers, OK (580) 298-2740
Southeast Texas District Rev. Herb Hawthorne Baytown, TX (281) 723-2278
Southwest Oklahoma District Rev. Donnie Miller Cyril, OK (580) 464-2224 (580) 512-3657
South Central Texas District Rev. Jerry Edmon Elgin, TX (512) 281-5316 Fax: (512) 281-5956
Northeast Oklahoma District Rev. Mac Blackwell, Locust Grove, OK (918) 479-6057 North Central Texas District Rev. Daniel Sue Kemp, TX (903) 498-4704 Cell: (214) 205-8647
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Midwest Regional District Rev. Mark Maynard Granite City, IL (618) 931.4106 Arkansas District Rev. Charles Kendrick Alexander, AR (501) 303-0831
cont. from pg 9
perate attempt to walk the 100 plus miles to the capital city of Managua in hope of finding work or pressuring the government to assist them. Of the 4000 families at least half of these are young children. As we had received the report the group had ceased their journey due to lack of food and difficult weather. It is not only hot from temperature but the rainy season has begun and the humidity feels like 200%. The rain also makes travel by foot difficult with small children. WME answered the call and provided approximately 3 tons of rice, beans and cooking oil. When we arrived with the food they were rationing wild bananas to the families because it was the only food they had left. Along with providing this life saving food we took in a team of Nicaraguan pastors, lay people, and a well-known Nicaraguan praise and worship team to encourage and witness the hope and salvation avail-
able through Jesus Christ. From 1:00 pm, we witnessed, sang, prayed and preached the love of Christ. By evening over 1,500 desperate people had surrounded the school bus used as a staging area. As the sun began to set a most unusual event took place in the lives of the people. The team draped white canvas sheets over the side of the school bus and set up a video projector. As the crowd watched, the side of the bus lit up as the Passion of Christ movie was presented to the vast audience. I don’t know where the film came from, all I know is that this was the first movie most of these poor migrant workers had ever seen and from the response of the children, young people and adults that made up this mass of suffering humanity it was the first time they had ever seen so visually the price that Jesus paid for their salvation. The crowd of families and children was so thick that they literally stood from the time we arrived at
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