My Last Birthday Ever!

Today I celebrated my last birthday, for the rest of my life.  This year I turn 29.  Next year on this day, I will be celebrating the one year anniversary of my 29th birthday. 

 

This is the message the kids in our summer program left for me right before Bible class. 

The Northeast Annual Sunday School Teachers Convention

This past Saturday it was my pleasure to be down once again in Southington, CT at Central Baptist Church. This year I was asked to teach a workshop session regarding the singles ministry. The hand out for that workshop will be posted on the Fundamental Baptist Singles’ Fellowship site at a later date.

The first workshop I attended was with Pastor Jerry Cleveland of Pioneer Valley Baptist Church in Westfield, MA. I have always held Pastor Cleveland in high regard and admire him greatly. His workshop dealt with the Pastor-Teacher relationship. His main thesis was the SS Teacher is a sort of pastoral assistant, an outreach of the pastor’s ministry in the church. Since he cannot be all places doing all things at once, he begins to seek out and equip others who can do the work of the ministry.

The next workshop I took was given by this year’s keynote speaker, Dr. Eric Capaci. Dr. Capaci is the pastor of Gospel Light Baptist Church in Hot Springs, AR. I must admit that I was somewhat skeptical of a man I have always seen associated with Hylesite circles. His topic concerning how to boost church attendence seemed to fit that mold. Yet, Dr. Capaci’s message was Scripture-based and even what I would call lightly exegetical. In fact, you may hear it on the Delve podcast at some date in the future. I was also able to conduct a short interview with Capaci that will be aired on the podcast soon.

Next up for me was a workshop on how to prepare a Bible lesson with my old friend and former pastor, Edward Jesanis. I thoroughly enjoyed his workshop. Of course it is easy to say that considering that towards the beginning of the hour he made some very flattering comments about yours truely. He referred to me as a theologian and complimented my teaching style with children. Very nice. After those comments, nothing else really mattered to me so I fell asleep. Just kidding! The rest of the workshop was excellent, and with his permission his outline may be posted here on the blog in the future (no, the comments about me were not on the hand out)

My final workshop of the day was with Evangelist Bryan Dodson. I have known Mr. D for a few years now and have come to grealty respect his ethical, moral and Biblical apporach to ministry. His workshop dealt with the need for written policies. In this day and age, we need to seriously consider how best to protect the children and people God has out under our care.

Things wrapped up for me with a nice dinner with my old friend Evangelist Don Woodard. Of course, it was really nice since he paid! Brother Woodard has been a constant source of encouragement and I count his friendship a privillege. Also at dinner, I met for the first time, Evangelist Steve Schwanke. Brother Schwanke is just starting out in evangelism having graduated from Ambassador Baptist College. He is heading up New England Baptist College’s Nehemiah Challenge, a promising designed to stir up local youth groups.

          

   Pastor Barry Brown        Dr. Capaci and Dr. Woodard

Next up:  This saturday’s Second Annual Baptist Singles’ Conference!  Don’t miss it!

Prisons, Pits, and Palaces Part 2 with Dr. Jim Berg

 This week on the Delve into the Depths Podcast…

Song – Savior Medley
Bible Truth Men - He is Alive
Sermon – Prisons, Pits and Palaces pt. 2
Dr. Jim Berg – Bob Jones University

Download the mp3 file here
Listen to the stream here
Subscribe with RSS feed here

Dr. Jim Berg

Other Helpful Links:

The Wilds Christian Camp

For a complete listing of all archived podcasts,
please visit our podcast page at:

http://delveintothedepths.podomatic.com

Preaching Again at Heritage

Last night I had another opportunity to preach over at Heritage Baptist Church in Norwood, MA.  Pastor Steve Hathaway and his family were away on vacation and asked me to fill-in in his absence. 

It is encouraging to see the growth this new church-plant has undergone.  I recall being there for their opening service and I consider it a privillege to continue to help when I am available.

The evening went very well overall with a little of 20 in attendence.  Once again I was called upon to lead the music, which always leads to laughable moments.  I feel bad for the very talented (and recently married) young lady at the piano…  Keeping up with all mistakes and slaughtering the great hymns of the faith must be hard on someone who knows what she is doing.  As we sang How Great Thou Art, I told the congregation to move on to the fourth verse.  The songbook only had three verses listed.  But that’s ok, I meant to say the third verse.  Yet, for some strange reason, I found myself halfway through the second verse… 

The message I preached that night was entitled Make Your Calling and Election Sure, taken from II Peter 1:3-10.  We looked at the list of qualities Peter tells us to add to our faith.  But what if these are not present in our lives?  Peter says we are blind, cannot see afar off, and have forgotten that our sins have been purged.  Then we see that we are to make our calling and election sure.  This lead me to ask upon what are you basing your salvation?  When proceeded to take an in-depth look at the gospel itself.  Using the Romans Road, we took each verse in its context (a rare thing these days).  Within the proper context, each passage gives us a deeper and complete understanding of what salvation is reall all about.  Here’s a sample:

Rom 3:23 – Not just someone who sins, but a unprofitable wretch capable of absolutely no good.
Rom 6:23 – Not just a good gift, but a contrast between two polar opposites…
Rom 5:8 – Not just God’s love, but great love upon the undeserving, the work of Holy Spirit and Christ’s worthiness and sacrifice
Rom 10:13 – Not merely a sinners prayer, but the confession (to say the saem thing, to agree with God’s pronouncements) of a believing (understanding) heart

I’ll try to make an audio file of the sermon available when time allows.  Again, I’d like to thank Pastor Hathaway and the fine members of Heritage Baptist Church for their hospitality, friendliness and opportunity to preach the Word.

Missions Conference at Pioneer Baptist Church

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of attending a missions conference up at Pioneer Baptist Church in Brattleboro, VT.  Pastor Laughman and the folks up there did a fine job hosting the event which began with a delicious Italian dinner.  Let’s say I had my fill, and them some…  Some of you may remember Pastor Laughman’s gospel presentation from a recent Delve into the Depths Podcast.

Four missionaries were present for the conference.  The actual program began with a challenge from Missionary Todd McClure who is headed off to reach the people in Portuguese speaking nations.   His challenge spoke of a crisis that costs from II Kings 4:1-7. 

 Following him was a presentation from Evangelist Edward Jesanis.  Brother Jesanis gave us all some hard facts concerning the difficulties of the pastorate here in New England.  His ministry is to new and struggling churches, a ministry of helps.  Unlinke most evangelists who may stay for only a week or two, the Jesanis family pulls their 5th wheel in for 3-5 months in order to help the church in all of its ministries and outreach.  Brother Jeasnis was also my pastor while serving at Galilean Baptist Church in Stafford Springs, CT. 

Next was a challenge from Missionary Doug Carragher.  Brother Carraher’s ministry is to the Armed Forces.  His fascinating testimony kept us all at the edge of our seats.  Growing up in CT, he had never once heard the gospel, though he had been a member of the Roman Catholic Church for most of his life.  He began searching out different denominations and venues through which he hoped to settle the issue of religion in his heart.  Yet, found nothing of value.  Then one day he meet what seemed to be his first genuine Christian, one who knew for sure he was on his way to Heaven.  This young man was stationed on the same army base.  In a surprising turn of events the young Christian died just a short time after having met Carragher and before sharing the gospel with him.  After his funeral, a gospel-preaching chaplin finally presented the true way of salvation. 

The main message of the night was delivered by John O’Mally, the vice-president of World Wide New Testament Baptist Missions.  Brother O’Mally encouraged us to give the more earnest heed to our trust of the gospel.  His text was Hebrews 2:1-9.  He told us to:
1.  Beware of our Accountability to God
2.  Beware of our Responsability to Man
3.  Beware of the Opportunity We Have

Overall it was a wonderfully convicting conference.  Thank you Pastor Laughman and Pioneer Baptist Church. 

Special Father’s Day Podcast

Special Father’s Day Podcast:

Song – Dad
Mac Lynch - My Son, Give Me Thine Heart
Sermon – If I Could Have My Father Back
Evangelist Don Woodard - Candlestick Revival Ministries

Download the mp3 file here
Listen to the stream here
Subscribe with RSS feed here

 

Evangelist Don Woodward

Prisons, Pits, and Palaces with Dr. Jim Berg

 This week on the Delve into the Depths Podcast…

Song – All your Anxiety
Ambassador Baptist College – Reflections of Revival
Sermon – Prisons, Pits and Palaces
Dr. Jim Berg – Bob Jones University

Download the mp3 file here
Listen to the stream here
Subscribe with RSS feed here

Dr. Jim Berg

Other Helpful Links:

The Wilds Christian Camp

For a complete listing of all archived podcasts,
please visit our podcast page at:

http://delveintothedepths.podomatic.com

Frankness from Fenway, pt 3

Let us continue on these wonderful rantings…  For those of you just coming across this little blog, I’ve been posting some my observations and thoughts gleaned from a trip to Fenway Park last week.  While others watched the game, I was scribbling on a napkin.  And now, more from the napkin…

Observation:  There I was, in a crown of over 25,000 people.  They were all there to see the game, many of them even sticking it out through all the rain and delays.

Thought:  I wonder how many of them have any idea concerning their eternal destinies.  I wonder how many of them have ever heard a pure and correct gospel presentation.  To be honest, I am not normally one who keeps a lot of tracts on hand.  I may have one or two in my pocket, but normally I keep them in my car along with a small New Testament.   I prefer a one-on-one conversation when I can.  Though I did get a chance to witness to the gentlemen next to me (who seemed to have a hard heart), that still left at least 24, 996 people left (I exclude him, myself, my pastor and another Christian we had the opportunity to meet).  I wondered if they would ever hear.  So many people live their entire lives the best they know, play by the rules, and generally think of themselves as good people, only to die and spend eternity in torment.  We need to have a burden for those God has placed in our path.

Frankness from Fenway, pt 2

Yesterday I began posting my observations and thoughts from my time at Fenway Park last Saturday.  From the scribbled napkin, here are a few more:

Observation:  Sports fan show a fierce commitment to their teams. Looking around I found myself in the midst of a sea of blue and red Redsox paraphernalia.  Everywhere you looked you saw the logo hats, jerseys and even raincoats.  Some people even went as far as painting their faces and carrying signs hoping to be seen on national TV.  Yes, even I wore my Redsox hat and shirt (don’t worry, it had a collar…).  Just imagine the financial commitment of each ticket holder.  The price for my ticket was $45 (of course mine game from the good graces of my loving Pastor).  Of course, those were the cheap seats.  Add to this the highly over-priced concession stands and souvenir shops.  Such dedication has its price.  Then of course, there was the 5 hour rain delay.  People stood in the rain for over 5 hours just to see this game!  I am sure that had this game gone into extra innings, a good amount of people would have stayed till the end.  For now, the Redsox are in first place, but for years we floundered and failed, not winning a world series since 1918.  But still the fans came out to support the team all those many years. Why would people put themselves through all of this – dedication to the team, team spirit as they say.  They want everyone to know their loyalties. 

Thought:  Imagine if the average church-goer showed this amount of loyalty to their local church.  Imagine the offerings that we could take if people gave the same amount to the church that they gave to sporting events and activities.  What would happen if the fierce loyalty given to the average sports team were funneled into their relationship to Christ?  How many times do people leave the church over petty disputes and squabbles?  We fight with churches, pastors, fellow believers and at times even God Himself, yet still find it within ourselves to remain true to our team.  Extra innings?  A great nail-biter is always good to watch.  A sermon going past 12:00pm, not a chance!  I guess that kind of shows us where our priorities are…  It simply amazes me that people show this much devotion to a game.  They are devoting themselves to a sport that does not in the least effect their daily lives, incomes, families or world events.  They are devoting themselves to a bunch of spoiled brats who most likely will never meet in person and are not even aware that their fans even exist.  Yet again, we have a pastors and church leaders who go out of their way to get to know everyone, help as best they can and faithfully minister the Word every week.  But of course, they can’t throw a fastball. 

Tomorrow – More Frankness

Frankness from Fenway, pt 1

It was early Saturday morning when the instant message came.  Pastor Peter Laitres (North Baptist Church) had invited me out to the Redsox game over at Fenway Park.  The game starts at 1:20 and we’ll be home by 6 he assured me.  Little did we know we would be sitting through one of the longest rain delays in history, or so I am told.  At least I was under the roof, Pastor Laitres didn’t fare so well sitting in the grandstands.  The Sox eventually lost the game 7-4 to the Texas Rangers.  Our 1:20 start time didn’t get us home till after 11:30pm!Now, not being the biggest sports fan in the world, my mind started to wonder.  Yes, I know I am a geek.  In front of me is an exciting baseball game, and a napkin.  Guess which one I am focused on?  Yes, the napkin.  While the game goes on in front of me, with thousands of cheering fans beside me, I am scribbling down notes on this napkin for these blog posts.  Yes, during a major league baseball game, I am thinking about the blog.  What a geek.  I even called my beautiful girlfriend Jill and asked her to update the blog with the rain delay message (Thank you, Jill!).  You see, I’m always thinking about my beloved blog readers…

The truth is, I have a very limited interest in sports.  Sure, as a kid I collected baseball cards, attended the games and kept up with all the stats.  But, as Paul said, there came a time when I put away childish things.  So there I am at Fenway, with plenty of time on my hands.  As I look around me, the following observations and thoughts go through my mind:

Observation:  Being there, up close and personal, is a far cry from merely watching on tv.  Watching on tv provides many distractions.  Who knows what’s on the next channel during the commercial break?  Sometimes even the commentators words get in the way of the actual play on the field.  Yet, being there, you see it all unfiltered. The fans around me were actively engaged in the game -  Cheering and applauding every move, and even trying to provide encouragement through chants and synchronized clapping.  I didn’t need a play-by-play man to tell me what happen, I could see it for myself. 

 

Thought:  I wonder how many Christians have failed to realize this truth?  Our relationship with Christ was meant to be loved up close and personal.  As we personally draw closer to God, we begin to leave the filters behind.  For so many Christians, all their spiritual knowledge is only gained through a filter.  They know what they know through sermons, pastors, books and articles. Their pursuit of spirituality takes them further away from the God they claim to desire.  As any pastor knows, it is so easy to study Scripture without ever having to open the Bible.  We are quick to pick up the latest book or theological journal, and are content with what they find there.  Study is important and the preaching of the Word is an absolute necessity to spiritual growth.  Yet, we must realize that in this priesthood of the believer, we must take seriously our own responsibility to interact with Scripture ourselves.  We must enter into the throne room of grace through our own prayer life.  The Christian life was never meant to be lived in the filter.  Filters help and have a purpose, but our God must be worshipped, served and loved up close and personal.  Why not live for the Lord ourselves instead of living vicariously through the thoughts of others?

“What this country needs is a man who knows God other than by hearsay.” – Thomas Carlyle (as quoted by Woodrow Kroll in How to Find God in the Bible, pg.13)

Tomorrow – more observations and thoughts from the napkin.