11 1 September-October 2015 Volume 44 Issue 2 OBEDIENCE: Our Worthy Response Ordained and licensed ministers are invited to aend a Pastor’s Retreat, November 5-7 in Pismo Beach. The cost is $120 per person, double occupancy, or $220 per person, single occupancy. Contact Mike Kilcrease ([email protected]) to register. Join us for the 6th Annual Man Alive Men’s Conference at Harmony FWB Church in Fresno on Saturday, September 12. This year we will be focusing on “Identy,” who we are as men of God, as husbands and fa- thers. $10 per person, lunch included. Bookmark our website! mycafwb.org
THE VOICE (ISSN 890-4502) is published bi-monthly by the California State Association of Free Will Baptists. Correspond-
ence can be sent to The Voice P.O. Box 8577 Fresno, CA 93747-8577 or to [email protected].
All articles and columns represent the personal view of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Cal-
ifornia State Association of Free Will Baptists or its members. While the editor is responsible for the content of the pub-
lication, it does not follow that every viewpoint is that of the editor. Edited by Mike Kilcrease, CAFWB Executive Secretary.
Articles 3 A Call To Obedience - Chuck Lowas
4 Pastoral Purity - Chad Williams
6 What If Church Wasn’t About You? - Mike Kilcrease
12 Who Needs Church? - Rick Scroggins
Columns 7 Sweetwater - We Lacked For Nothing
9 CCC - A New And Better Day For CCC
10 Missions - The Irvine Church Plant
11 Youth - Theology, Practice, Youth & Life
13 Events Calendar
14 Women - Top 10 List
15 People Profile - Michael Egleston
Discovery: Michael Egleston
The PEOPLE PROFILE aims to introduce our readers to someone you
may or may not know through simple “This or That” questions as
well as deep, thought provoking questions. Michael Egleston is the
Pastor at Discovery FWB Church in Stockton, CA. Michael and his
wife, Amanda, have been married for 4 1/2 years. They have an
almost two-year old daughter, Adeline. Michael has been at Discov-
ery for 7 months and has been in ministry for 10 years.
PEOPLE PROFILE
The Voice 15 September-October 2015
Coke or Pepsi? Coke, especially the Mexican taco truck bottles with the real sugar. Ocean or mountains? Mountains, I don't like to swim so there is no reason to go to the wa-ter. Mac or PC? Mac. What is on your radio right now? NPR - that's all I listen to all day. I may put on iTunes and listen to podcasts or sermons. But it's mostly NPR. I like to stay up with what's going on. Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram? Definitely Facebook. I maybe have one tweet or one picture on Instagram, but that’s it. I use Facebook to stay in contact with friends from the military, etc. What are you reading right now? Right now, I'm reading "Desiring the Kingdom" by James K. A. Smith. Along with that, "Existential Rea-sons for Belief in God" by Clifford Williams. What is your favorite movie?
These are tough questions! I'm not a "favorite" kind of guy, but I would say Michael Collins with Liam Nee-son, Julia Roberts, and Alan Rickman. What do you wish people knew about you? One thing I wish people knew about me is that I'm an introvert. I want to say, "Don't think I don't like you." I’m just a quiet person who generally keeps to myself. It takes a lot of work to be outgoing with peo-ple. I have to make an effort to engage with people. Is there anything that surprised you when you first got to Discovery FWB Church? It was how important deacons are. I have watched deacons at other churches, but I didn't have to de-pend on them too much as a part of my minis-try. Coming to Discovery, I realize how beautiful God's provision is in providing deacons. I don’t know what I would do without them. What is your biggest failure? I'm just starting out, so I don't think I've had a chance to fail yet. But I would have to say that quitting school and not going back yet is a regret I have. I had to stop working on my Master's in order to let my wife finish hers. I was working two jobs and trying to go to school, which wasn't working. So I haven't fin-ished my Master's yet, and I haven't gone back. What is one thing you wish you had learned before going to Discovery? I wish I had learned more about church administra-tion. I learned a lot about theology and hermeneutics and methods for preaching and church history. But I had no exposure to tax laws or the business side of
Come see the new offices, library and classrooms
and then be a part of the banquet as CCC cele-
brates a new beginning.
33 3
The Voice 3 September-October 2015
Obedience is a tough topic because it means something different for each of us. Yes, there are cer-tain things that we are all called to as followers of Christ, but then there are also very personal things that God calls each one of us to. Some will be lifelong call-ings and some will just be things He has called us to today. But God knows our hearts and He knows what will stretch us, grow us, cause us to rely on Him more and what things will make permanent changes in us. Permanent changes are always what God is looking for. He is not trying to catch us in a good moment so we will do what He wants right then, but He is trying to build a heart inside of us that will be so in tune with Him that we will seek His desires FIRST, every moment of every day of our life. For some that will be easier than others...but He knows that too. Obedience is simply love being acted out toward God (John 14:15). It is us saying back to God, "We recognize that You did the most You could to show us that You love us, so in our love back to You, we will be obedient to the things You have called us to as Christians...and the things You have personally called us to."
Romans 12:2 tells us that we are not to conform to this world, but to be set apart. That alone is a major act of obedience. To go with the flow of the world is much easier than stepping out of what the world considers the "norm" and standing on God's holy word.
But we see in 1 Peter 1:13-16 that acting in self-control, placing our hope in Jesus and not slipping back into our old ways of satisfying our desires are all acts of obedience to help us live a more holy life. Peter says that we should choose to be holy "in everything you do." Why? To be more like Jesus. He also goes on to say that God has no favorites. He will judge you and reward you according to what you do. This means you shouldn't try to keep up with someone else and call that obedience. You also shouldn't compare your sins to someone else and say you’re more obedient than they are. God sees YOUR heart and God knows the
things He speaks to YOU. He knows the life you have been pulled out of
and He knows the personal struggles you deal with. So He also knows when something He calls you to do is going to be a struggle or easy...and that is why He chose you for that specific task. He doesn't want to leave you where He found you with a ticket to heaven. He wants to completely change and transform you from who you used to be into someone who reflects Him.
And He knows that when we act in obedience our faith is increased, our love for Him is increased and the light we shine for Him is increased. These are things that He focuses on the most. More than ever before, I have heard it said lately that "people need to do what makes them hap-py." That is no surprise since the enemy would love to disguise sin with happiness. Yes, I said the enemy will use sin to make you happy. Happiness is a tempo-rary emotion that can come and go with the change of any situation. Ever met a happy drunk person? Did you see them again the next morning when they were sobering up? What seemed to make them so happy the
night before didn't seem to be causing too much happiness later. And that is just one example. The enemy uses sin to entice people into a cheap imitation of "happiness." But God wants to fill your life with joy, not happiness. Joy can stand up through a storm. Joy and peace will trump happiness any day. And when Joy comes from the Lord, nothing can take it away. Trust me, I know. Satan will try, but God just keeps giving you more joy and peace because you are fol-lowing His will for your life. God wants to teach us through obedience. And when we open that door
to Him, He will make permanent changes in our heart and in our life. Ask Him what He desires from you personally and let Him show you how blessed your life can be when you show your love back to Him through obedience. And when the enemy tries to bring in fear, allow God to supply what you need to over-come that too! Let us pray together! God, thank You for giv-ing us choices. That alone shows us Your true love for us. Holy Spirit, help us to choose what pleases God and let our love flow back to Him in our obedience. Help us live our lives by the truth of your word and allow that to guide us to be where you need us to be so we can do your work. And help our obedience be a light that shines so that others will see Jesus in us. In Jesus name, Amen.
A Call to Obedience
by Chuck Lowas
The Voice 14 September-October 2015
REASONS WHY MOMS
should join us at
WOMEN’S RETREAT
You can get up out of
bed without the AGONY
of stepping on a LEGO
You won’t have to vacuum for
THREE days from tossed
Cheerios or Smashed Cheetos
(Unless the games get out of hand)
You will be able to answer your
phone without children asking for
something the minute you get on
the call. (although reception is
bad…so enjoy a phone free zone)
Your husband will not yank the
blanket off in the middle of
the night…you can have it
You can enjoy 5 meals that
you don’t have to COOK
(and you won’t have kids tell
you that they DON’T like it)
You can get to all services and
sessions ON TIME (after all, we
know it’s your husband & kids that
cause you to be late)
You won’t have to break up
any FIGHTS (all bets are off
during the Xplosion Factor)
You won’t have to FIGHT over
the remote (mainly because
there are NO T.V.’s)
Your HUSBAND will have
to run the household and
will appreciate you even
more for ALL that you do.
When you return home you will be REFRESHED and realize how much you
miss ALL OF THE ABOVE (except stepping on Legos)
WOMEN’S RETREAT PROJECT
Every year we have the joy and opportunity to bless a ministry in the Oakhurst area. This year we will be collecting
needed items for Sugar Pine Christian Camps. Once a year Sugar Pine hosts a camp for children in foster homes,
and for kids in similar situations. Many of the kids don’t have the basic necessities needed for camping...So what
can we provide? Feel free to bring gallon-size zip lock bags with hotel-sized items: Soap, shampoo, conditioner, a
toothbrush, toothpaste, water bottle, and an encouraging note for the student receiving your bag (let them know you’re pray-
ing for them!). For more information about the retreat email us at: [email protected]
44 4
The Voice 4 September-October 2015
At our last leadership meeting, I urged our team of pastors and deacons, “Gentlemen, watch your life and doctrine closely.” It was a brief exhortation, but one I intend to regularly share with those in positions of authority in our church. I suppose over the course of my ministry I have watched too many of my friends and fellow leaders shipwreck their lives and ministries. People who were once zealous and who had tremen-dous potential had grown spiritually lazy, thereby al-lowing calamity to destroy what God had desired for them. In some cases their stumble initiated great harm to the work of the Gospel leaving a wake of hurt and confused people. “Watch your life and your doctrine.” These are words our leaders need to hear more often. They are qualifications our laity must demand from their leaders.
Eugene Peterson argues that most contemporary congregations in the West would readily and satisfactorily accept church leaders with the training equiva-lence of a six month trade school that em-phasized classes in: 1) creative plagiarism, 2) voice control for prayer and counseling, 3) efficient office management, and 4) im-age projection (Working the Angles, 1987). In his opin-ion, as a result of this lowering of the spiritual bar, ec-clesiastical leadership has replaced sound Biblical qualifications with “games and gimmicks and programs without end under the illusion of being practical.” As pastors begin to only seek the practical gimmicks, the more essential foundations of their calling are neglect-ed. This neglect breeds spiritually unqualified leader-ship that almost always results in spiritual calamity.
Having now read scores of manuscripts per-taining to pastoral leadership, each attempting to be-dazzle the reader with the latest and greatest
“essential” steps for restoring strong ecclesiastical leadership, I have come to the conclusion that most of these texts hardly offer any spiritual insight into “Christian” leadership. Instead, they represent a col-lection of cultural strategies or skill sets employed by businesses, politics, football or whatever other field requiring managerial leadership. The only difference between secular and much of the Christian leadership material is that the “Christian” approach adds a few proof texts from Scripture to make the author’s ideas sound like they originated from the mouth of God. Don’t get me wrong. I believe there are principles from many different types of leadership books that I can take on board to help me understand my culture and how to lead in it. However, many Christian leadership books forget the most fundamental requirements to solid ecclesiastical leadership, mainly: 1) how one lives and 2) what one teaches.
Paul’s Take on Leadership
The Apostle Paul reminds us that sound pas-toral leadership requires more than a cacophony of motivational strategies and managerial expertise. He exhorts young Pastor Timothy, “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you
do, you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Timothy 4:16). A Christian leader’s ultimate goal is the salvation of the lives surrounding him, and according to Paul, the simplest and truest form to attain this goal is through a straightforward strategy: life and doctrine! Notice, no men-tion of a certain skill set in order to be-come a leader; no charismatic personality; no time management skills; no strategic planning; no personnel, nor human re-source training. In Paul’s second letter to Timothy he repeats similar instructions urging Timothy to, “Do your best to pre-sent yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. Avoid godless chatter, be-cause those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly” (2 Tim 2:15-18).
Again, essential leadership traits included two qualifi-cations: 1) presenting self to God (life) and 2) handling the Word (doctrine).
The Elders
Paul adds similar leadership requirements for the role of the elders (πρεσβυτέρος/presbuteros). He writes, “An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing
Pastoral
Purity by Dr. Chad Williams
“Gentlemen, watch
your life and doctrine
closely.”
— Youth (continued from page 11) —
among you . . . shepherd the flock of God that is
among you . . . being examples to the flock“ (1
Peter 5:1-3, ESV). Youth pastors, church leaders,
volunteers, and parents alike are examples to
those both young in age and young in faith. They
are longing to see a theology of God that goes
The Voice 13 September-October 2015
— Moderator (continued from page 12) —
these were unable to fix themselves. We all need
a Savior. No matter how good or bad we were,
our sins reeked before God. The church was
there for me when I needed it. The church point-
ed me to Christ. The church encouraged and
prayed for me.
Troubled people need to church. Jesus said,
“Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
Burdened people need to church. Life is full of
troubles and sorrows, but in Christ, we find rest.
Imperfect people need the church. At their best,
churches are made up of imperfect people. I’m
glad God allows imperfection in His church. I’m
glad God doesn’t require perfection. If he did,
none of us would have a chance. God isn’t look-
ing for perfection in us. He is perfecting us. He
shows us Grace. We should show Grace to oth-
ers.
Who needs the church the most? Lost people.
The sad thing is most don’t realize they are lost.
They are like children wandering. They don’t real-
ize that they came from God. So they search for
purpose and meaning in their life, not realizing
that God is so close. Yet, they don’t know how to
find Him. They don’t know where to look for help.
This is why the church must seek the lost. This is
why the church must go to the lost. Jesus’ mis-
sion was to seek and to save that which was lost
(Luke 19:10). His mission should be our mission.
The church is desperately needed today. The church cannot afford to sit and do nothing while the lost perish. The church cannot wait for the lost to find it. The church must seek the lost.
September 2015
September 6: San Joaquin Assoc Church Invasion
(Modesto FWB Church)
September 7: Labor Day
September 12: Men’s Conference @ Harmony Church
Pastor Don Ellerd, Keynote Speaker
September 16-18: D6 Conference (Louisville)
September 24-26: Women’s Retreat (ECCO - Oakhurst)
October 2015
October 10: Center Assoc Worship Meeting (Grace FWB
Church, Selma)
October 16: CCC Banquet
November 2015
November 5-7: Pastor’s Retreat (Pismo Beach)
November 11: Veteran’s Day
November 26: Thanksgiving
beyond memorizing verses, attending church,
and dressing modestly. They want a faith that is
more than a list of rules and regulations. This
kind of theology is not demonstrated in the pulpit
or in the front of the classroom. It is exhibited in
compassionate and incarnational interaction with
others, patient and prayerful consideration of
life’s challenges, and meaningful and impactful
service to the hurting and disenfranchised. It
opens us up to experiencing God with them.
Jesus said, “Let your light shine before others,
so that they may see your good works and give
glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew
5:16). Let your students and your children see
you living your practiceable, meaningful, and im-
pactful theology in everyday life.
55 5
The Voice 5 September-October 2015
dishonest gain. Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, up-right, holy and disciplined. He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it” (Titus 1:6-9).
Once again, at its foundation, Pauline lan-guage underscores that efficacious Christian leader-ship emphasizes two central qualifications: blameless life (vs 6-8) and sound doctrine (vs. 9). The Pauline standard for who should be appointed to places of authority in the office of bishop (έπισκοπον/episkopon) and deacon (διακόνος/diakonos) (see 1 Timothy 3) include similar language that calls for an exemplary life and sound teaching of Gospel truths. Apparently for Paul, all ecclesiastical leadership origi-nated with how well a person lived and what they taught. The absence of either of these characteristics eliminated any prospective shepherd.
The Dogs: Disqualifications
Inversely, Paul uses the example of life and doctrine to point out those who are not quali-fied to lead the churches. In his letter to Timothy he notes that, Hymenaeus and Philetus failed in both categories of life and doctrine. They were “ungodly” and had “depart[ed] from the truth.” He would caution Timothy against the two, believing that the contrary effects of their leadership would spread like gangrene (2 Timothy 2:16-18).
Paul’s pastoral epistle to Titus repeats the at-tributes of detrimental leadership. You guessed it …“Watch out for those who are not concerned with life and doctrine!”
“For there are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach-and that for the sake of dishon-est gain. Even one of their own prophets has said, "Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons." This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of those who reject the truth. To
the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, noth-ing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good. (Italics mine)
Paul never mentions high grid-low grid leadership styles, strategic planning techniques, five steps for church growth, or twenty-one irrefutable laws necessary to enhance leadership in the emerging Christian communities. Instead, efficacious Chris-tian leadership begins and is most efficient through the implementation of an exemplary life and teaching sound doctrine. According to Paul, no resume was thick enough with stellar accom-plishments and talents for leading the church if the two foundational qualifications did not exist. Yet in the modern church milieu we seldom re-mind our leaders of their most basic job assign-ment. Consequently, many of them have unwit-tingly lost the urgency to strive for Paul’s leader-ship standards. Instead, they treat Pauline leader-ship requirements as suggestions rather than place them at the heart of pastoral ministry.
Pastors, deacons, elders, church leaders, are you carefully watching how you live and what you teach? No leadership book will help you in your min-istry more than being diligent in modeling the charac-ter of Christ and learning/teaching the depths of his Gospel. I’ve seen too many pastors who fell prey to the Siren’s call of the latest leadership book while ne-glecting the biblical yardstick for effective leadership. Before you pick up the next latest and greatest Chris-tian leadership text ask yourself, “Is my life and my doctrine in order? Am I striving for holiness? Am I dili-gent in my study of the Scriptures?” Paul says those who can say “yes” to those questions will be far more effective in saving themselves and those whom they lead than those leaders who merely commit to the latest leadership trends. Your people don’t need to see your leadership skill, they need to see Christ in your life and teaching.
Laity, implore your pastor and your leaders to lead by following the Biblical benchmark. Declare to them, “We want you to lead us by showing us how to live and by telling us what we need to believe in this broken world. Don’t waste your time on the gimmicks. You have a more important calling. Model the holi-ness of Christ in our topsy-turvy days where few have seen what it means to live like Christ. Diligently de-vour the Scriptures and tell us the uncompromising truth that God has revealed to us in His Word. Lead us through your life and doctrine.”
“Watch out for those who
are not concerned with life
and doctrine.”
CAFWB Moderator
The Voice 12 September-October 2015
Who Needs the Church?
by Rick Scroggins
I don’t like organized religion.” How many times
have you heard that? I’ve heard it a lot. “All
those churches want is my money.” “I don’t need
the church.” It seems the ones that need the
church the most are the ones that don’t want
church at all. Let me say first, what they need
and what we all need is Jesus Christ. I love the
church. I don’t always like everything that goes
on in the church, but I’m for the church. Let me
tell you why I’m for the church.
I’m for the church because of who organized it.
God organized the church. The Greek word for
church is “ecclesia.” It means “to be called out.”
The church is made up of those that have been
called out. Who called them out? God. The
church is not man-made. It was instituted by God.
If you don’t like the church because it’s organized
religion, blame God, he organized it.
The church by the New Testament definition is
“the body of Christ” (Ephesians 1:22- 23, 1 Corin-
thians 12:12- 13). The Holy Spirit launched it and
empowered it in Acts 2. If you don’t like those
Bible thumpers, door knockers, and soul seekers,
blame the Holy Spirit. He started it.
This church that is so despised by the world is
what Jesus Christ gave his life for. He loved it
(Ephesians 5:25). The apostle Paul gave his life
extending its influence. He said his greatest sin
was trying to stop the church (1 Corinthians
15:9). He considered himself the least of the
apostles because he persecuted the church.
I’m for the church because it’s founded upon the
Word of God. The true church gets its directions
from the Word of God. The true church preaches
the whole counsel of God. The true church be-
lieves the Word of God.
I’m for the church because it’s founded on Je-
sus Christ. It’s founded on his deity
(Colossians 2:9). The church is founded on
the fact that Jesus Christ is the Word (John
1:1). The church is founded on the work of Je-
sus Christ, His death, burial, and resurrection
(1 Corinthians 15:1- 4). Not only did Jesus die
on the cross, but he rose from the dead, and
ascended to heaven (Acts 1: 9). I’m for the
church because Jesus Christ is coming back
for it.
I suppose the greatest reason why I’m for the
church is because of what it has done for me.
The church has blessed me so much. It has
taught me the truth. It has encouraged me. It
has corrected me. The church has done more
for me than any other organization. But, in
fact, the church isn’t an organization. It’s an
organism. The church is a body of believers,
therefore it is a living, breathing thing. The
church has blessed me with fellowship. It has
given me real friends. It has given me brothers
and sisters. It has given me a real family. A
family that laughs with me, and cries with me.
So, who needs the church? The answer to this
question is quite simple. Everyone needs the
church. Yes, of course, it is Christ that we
need above all. So, since He is coming back
for the church, we all need the church.
Why would people be against church? Three
reasons come to mind. The lust of the flesh,
the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Sin
keeps us from God. Pride keeps us from seek-
ing God. Our flesh keeps us from yielding to
God.
So, who needs the church?
First, broken people need the church. Those
who have come to the end of themselves.
Those who have been broken by the world
and sin. This fits so many people today. Peo-
ple that are unable to fix their lives on their
own. All of these came to Christ broken. All of
(continued on page 13)
66 6
The Voice 6 September-October 2015
Out,” yet we sit in our sanctuaries expecting the lost to find us. We celebrate the sacrifices of the early church (consider Barnabas’ sacrifice of his own pos-sessions to support the church), yet we are unwilling to sacrifice our own preferences for the greater good of the church or in order to serve the needy and lost.
In Mark 12:28-34, Jesus is confronted by a scribe who wants to know which commandment is the greatest. Jesus’ response should be a reflection of what we see in churches. It should be a reflection of how we look at church itself. Jesus responds by first placing a love of God at the forefront of biblical belief and submission. Jesus says that we are to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30 ESV). Do we find this attitude in our worship? Our first motivation in church, and as the church, must be to love the Lord our God with everything that we are and have. We are to glorify His name. We are to sing praises to Him. We are to share His Word. First and foremost, we are to focus on God.
This means that we need to stop thinking about what the church can do for “me.” In the im-mortal words of John F. Kennedy, “ask not what the church can do for you, ask what you can do for the church.” Well, maybe he would have said that if he were a preacher.
Secondly, Jesus says that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:31). The early church in Acts demonstrated a commitment to this com-mand in extraordinary ways. They would serve each other. They would focus on the needs of the “other”
(continued on page 8)
What if church wasn't about you? What if church wasn't about how much you enjoy the music or the preaching or even the people? What if church was about worshipping God? What if church was about serving others?
Recently, I was thinking of a conversation that I would have with my son. Over the last 18 months, he has enlisted into the military, got married and moved away from home. And, in what might seem as typical for people of his age group, he and his wife have chosen to not go to church on a regular basis. And over the course of several months, I have already heard the excuses as to why they don’t want to go to church. “I’m tired on Sundays. It’s uncomfortable to find a new church. What if I don’t like the music?” You get the picture. But I knew that they needed to be in church. So, as I prepared to talk with my son about my desire to see him and his wife in church again, I began to think of the excuses I might hear. And that’s when it hit me.
Church is not about you!
Each of us can come up with myriad numbers of excuses why we don’t want to go to church on any given Sunday, or why we don’t want to go to Church A but will instead go to Church B. Or how we might grumble about the worship music, the way the pastor or preacher dresses, or, God forbid, someone uses a translation that we don’t use.
For many years now, people have turned the church experience inward in a way that it was never intended for. We see it all over our church campuses and all over the lives of believers. We become so pre-occupied with traditions that we begin to forget about our commission. We are commanded to “Go
“We must stop approaching our
churches and worship services
like consumers, looking at what
appeals to us the most and start
looking for ways to express our
complete love and devotion to
God.”
What If Church
Wasn’t About
You?
by Mike Kilcrease
The Voice 11 September-October 2015
Theology, Practice, Youth, and Life
By Trent Walley
How practical is your faith? Better
yet, how visible is your theology?
Several years ago, while on a youth group re-
treat, our bus broke down. We were at the top of
a mountain in the Smokey’s half way between
where we were staying and the adventure of the
day. A multitude of questions started rolling
through my mind; and I, as any self-respecting,
flexible male youth pastor would do when prob-
lems arise, went into “automatic, save-the-day
mode.” I pulled all my youth workers to the side to
form a plan of attack. I began reeling off ques-
tions. “How do we get the students off the moun-
tain and to the next location?” “What do we do
about the bus?” “What do we do about transpor-
tation back to the cabins?” Then, add all the other
questions running through my mind which I did
not ask like “How are we going to pay for this?
We are 10 hours away from home, at the end of
the week, what if we can’t get the bus fixed in
time? What do we do about housing for an extra
night or two?”
When I looked back to see what our students
were doing, I realized they were in a circle, hold-
ing hands praying. I was both proud and embar-
rassed. You see, the morning’s group Bible study
was from 1 Peter 5. We talked about “humbling
ourselves” before God when trials come and
“casting all our cares and anxiety on Him.” I got
so caught up in fixing the situation, in what I could
do, that I missed experiencing what God wanted
to do. Prayer should have been the starting point.
I missed that visible and practical moment to
practice my theology. Our days are full of mo-
ments to encounter God working. How often do
we experience those moments?
According to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary,
theology is “a system of religious beliefs or ide-
as.” This definition sounds rather cold and life-
less, and when we hear the words “theology” or
“doctrine” our brains want to shut down before
the naturally assumed boredom begins. A better
way to define theology is as knowledge that al-
lows people to experience God in everyday situa-
tions. This requires theology to be meaningful,
impactful and practiceable. (No, practiceable is
not a word in the dictionary, but it fits.)
Kara Powell relates a story about a young la-
dy, Natalie who had drifted away from her faith
during her college years. Natalie shared a telling
description of her parents, “Our family always at-
tended church, but I never saw my dad or step-
mom pray or read the Bible on their own.” Re-
search shows millennials are looking for real
meaning and purpose in religion, and they are
frustrated when they see faith talked about but
not lived out in practical, relevant ways by the
significant people in their lives. They want to see
a faith that is real and livable.
Peter, when addressing the leaders of the
scattered church, affirmed “I exhort the elders
(continued on page 13)
77 7
Donations are accepted and greatly appreciated at: The Barrier PO Box 1195 Mariposa, CA 95338-1195
By Sam Hensley
“We Lacked for Nothing”
Each year as “One of 100” draws near – I die a thou-
sand deaths! Will the needed funds come in to pur-
chase all the materials that are required to complete
the projects? Can we do all the necessary prep work
that must be accomplished before the main work
force arrives? Then, will the folks come and of those
who do, will they be willing
and capable to accomplish
each delegated task?
What about the food and
the preparation? – It’s not
easy to set a table in the
wilderness without all the
modern conveniences. Lo-
gistically it has the poten-
tial to be a nightmare.
Then, (and this is para-
mount) will those who
come have the right atti-
tude – one that will simply
glorify Christ?
It’s difficult to put into words much less to graphically
explain; and I know each year that we write about
how successful each preceding event has been…but
this year was simply off the chart. It was stupendous!
After One of 100, when everyone had gone, I walked
from David’s cabin, down the forest road leading to
the amphitheater. I paused and stood in amazement
realizing—it was merely last year that we broke
ground. I recall vividly telling the fellows as we dug
the first of nine footings that it would take several
years to finish the amphitheater.
I’m so thrilled that sometimes I don’t have a clue
what on earth I’m talking about. The amphitheater is
almost completed. All that is lacking is the sidewalk
leading up to the stage
area, which will be com-
pleted this fall, Bobbie’s
flagpole, and three large
metal crosses donated by
Fairfield. Glory. God is
able.
From the amphitheater, I
made my way up what I
now refer to as “the
path.” This area is located
where three new decks
were built and had an
enormous amount of tailings (rocks from the mine)
scattered all over the forest floor. It was a mess. Late
one afternoon, Vickie Dowaliby and her three daugh-
ters began to gather those rocks and construct a
(continued on page 8)
We’re Moving We have officially set our date to be Califor-nia bound… October 5th. The moving trailer will be dropped off at our house near the end of Septem-ber. We’ll pack it tight with all of our belongings and then make our way to the west coast. We started this full-time fundraising portion of our church planting journey back in January. At that point we were fa-cing a mountain of support to raise because of the expense of the area we are planting in. God has pro-ven Himself to be faithful as he has placed a desire in the hearts of many believers to partner with us to see the vision of a new church in Irvine become a reali-ty. We currently have 85% of the needed monthly support and we fully believe the remaining amount will be pledged before we make our move. Also, please keep us in your prayers around the be-ginning of September as Lauren and I will fly out to Irvine for a couple of days to try and find a house to rent. Our Church Has a Name We purposefully have taken a long time to decide on a name. But, we are excited to announce that our church has a name… Grace City Church. We have felt from the beginning that God was lead-ing us to plant a church with "grace" in the name. We considered several different options over the past few months, but finally settled on Grace City. We feel like the name really conveys our goal of being a
Free Will Baptist church that both serves and impacts the city of Irvine with the Grace of Jesus Christ.
How to Pray and How to Help Prayer Request:
The selling of the Kwiatkoski's house
Moving plans for the team over the next few months
Wisdom during this planning stage of the church launch
Financial support for us and the Dillard Family
Our selection of a house in Irvine
Needs: Here are just a few items we will need after we arrive in Irvine. If your church is looking for a missions project to raise money for, here are a few suggestions:
20 ft enclosed trailer - $4000-5000
Musical instruments - $3,000
Portable Speakers - $2500
Projectors - $1500
Portable cribs - $350 www.irvinechurchplant.com
The Voice 10 September-October 2015
Stephen & Lauren Kimbrell
with Lily Kate, Ainsley, and Carter
88 8
The Voice 8 September-October 2015
—Sweetwater (continued from page 7) —
pathway. I had to leave that evening and return
the next morning. I chuckled as I left – thinking
they don’t have a clue what they’ve started. The
next day when I returned, it absolutely blew my
mind what they had accomplished. It is beautiful.
Walking up “the path,” I arrived at three of the
five new decks completed this year. These decks
are somewhat secluded, surrounded by Dog-
woods and tall pines. They are situated in an ab-
solutely serene and beautiful setting. I am sure
they will become a popular camp site for future
campers.
Continuing up the path and around the bend was
another awesome sight. Five more decks that
had the rails installed and stained and ready for
campers. Down the forest road I came to several
piles of cut brush, fallen trees and soon realized
the thick, overgrown forest is taking on a park-
like appearance. Most of our youth took on this
project. Several men felled trees, trimmed back
low lying branches…while the youth did the dirty
work by stacking all this fallen timber for the chip-
per.
As I made my way back to the cabin, I realized
more than ever that what makes all this happen
ARE THE PEOPLE WHO SIMPLY CARE. They want
to make a difference in the lives of others, those
same people that Chad Williams preached about.
Those that Christ died for and need a savior. And
every deck that is built, every meal that is cooked,
and stone placed in “the path” is so some child or
teenager can hear the message of Christ. To each
of you that gave, that labored, prayed and gave of
yourself – God bless you and thank you for caring.
Oh, and we lacked for nothing – task completed.
Glory!
— What if Church Wasn’t About You? (continued from page 6) —
person, their neighbor more than themselves. They were selling their own possessions for the sole pur-pose of helping others who had a need. Now, I’m not saying you need to sell your car or your home and give the money to the church. But as a matter of the heart, are we forgoing some luxuries in order to help those less fortunate?
Our churches are plagued with people who are more concerned with their own comfort and pref-erences in Sunday worship services than with focus-ing on the object of our worship, the Lord God. We must stop approaching our churches and worship ser-vices like consumers, looking at what appeals to us the most and start looking for ways to express our complete love and devotion to God.
What if church wasn’t about you? What if church was about praising and glorifying God for all the things He has done? What if we looked at the sermon as an opportunity to hear the Word of God and be changed by it? What if we actively sought out the lost and gave them our seats in the sanctuary? What if we stopped going to church and actually be-came the church?
