VOLUME 45 ISSUE 4 JULY-AUGUST 2005 . How to Keep

VOLUME 45 ISSUE 4
JULY-AUGUST 2005 .
How to Keep
Your Church Small
(I found the following from something I
read once—Bro. Jim Shemwell)
1. Make prayer optional. Let only the
few who can stand up in front of everybody and impress them with their fluent vocabulary do the praying for the
entire body of
believers.
2. Encourage Bible study only for
those who already know all there is to
know about God and living godly
lives.
3. Ignore conflict and avoid it all
costs, even if it means compromising
your integrity. If you avoid troublemakers long enough, they will grow
tired and just leave.
4. Try to keep people from truly loving
and caring for one another. Let the paid
staff do that—after all, what else are
they paid for anyway? If members can
concentrate only upon themselves, then
a lively atmosphere of grumbling and
complaining will be maintained by all.
5. Be more concerned about survival
than reaching out to others.
6. Try to keep things the way they
have always been. You ruffle fewer
feathers that way because you only
have the same people in worship every
week. If others don’t feel they can worship like you’ve always done it, then it
is their problem.
7. Don’t invite strangers, especially
unbelievers to worship service (not
services plural), because one service
should be good enough for everyone.
(How else will you get to know everybody?) Inviting strangers only encourages change, and could possibly cause
a power shift from the old and established to the new and experimental.
Two of the doctors on the Mission Team that our Associational nurses participated
with on the KBA Medical Missions trip April 2-9. Three nurses from our Association
participated on the trip: Sue Connors, Pollye Hyatt, and Dee Wiswell.
People treated Physically
And Spiritually Across the Border
By April Medical Missions Team
Pollye Hyatt and Sue Connors pose by one the
mission churches serving as a clinic.
The Kaskaskia Baptist Medical Missions Team that
went to Mexico April 2-9 had an experience not only
to minister to the medical needs of the people across
the border, but to their spiritual needs as well.
Sue Connors, Pollye Hyatt, and Dee Wiswell, three
nurses from the Kaskaskia Baptist Association,
joined a missions team of about 18 doctors doing
ministry in Mexico. Over 400 people were treated by
the combined medical missions team and eight people gave their hearts to Christ.
Sue Connors was emotional as she described her
experience down there.
“It was wonderful,” she said. “It was absolutely indescribable. We had two doctors that were extremely
dedicated doctors and humble Christian men who
took their mission very, very seriously. Their mission
was to take Christ to the people.”
Pollye Hyatt also found her experience with
the mission team to be quite moving.
“Dr. Ronald Yamamoto (one of the doctors on
their team) said, ‘Isn’t interesting that we go
through life like Moses in our early years to
figure out that we think that we are somebody,
but in the middle years we realize that we are
a nobody and in the latter years we realize that
God can do remarkable things with nobodies
like us?’”
“Although our two medical teams assessed
and treated over 100 people each day, ages
ranging from babies to the elderly, God provided enough medicine, wisdom, and stamina.
Compassion, competence, and Christcentered work for Jesus Christ was evident
among all of us. We were a group of people
who had never met, brought together for His
Glory and I felt that we accomplished remarkable things.
Dee Wiswell concurred with the other ladies
on the trip. She told KBA Missions Director
that it was “a great experience,” and wished
that she “could do missions all the time.”
More pictures of this mission trip and the
others will be posted on the Association at
www.kaskaskiabaptist.org.
Continue to pray for our
Mexico Missionaries!
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Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
Gleanings & News From The State & Association
Please pray for our July Mexico
Mission Trip!
You Too Can Help!
(Way To Participate in
El Paso/Mexico Ministry without
leaving home!
Mission Bible School Packets
(At this time we have 15)
Please pack these items in a two gallon
zip-lock bag: One package pencils, one package
pens, one box of 24 count crayons, child’s
safety scissors, rectangular eraser, school glue,
comb, two toothbrushes, toothpaste, and two
Tootsie Roll Pops. Include $1 of cash in each
kit which will be used to purchase small novelty toys and school payer. (We want to purchase the paper in bulk when we arrive there
rather than to weigh us down in transporting the
items.) Packets need to be brought to the Association office by July 13.
For more information and applications, contact KBA office
at 618-432-7133 or www.kaskaskiabaptist.org to download
applications from missions section at
www.kaskaskiabaptist.org
WMU Ladies Retreat
“Following the Master’s
Footsteps”
KBA CAMPGROUNDS
AUGUST 12-13
COST $10.00
Speaker: Ann Caruthers,
Missionary from South Africa
Registration Deadline August 1st.
Register through KBA Office
618-432-7133
Free Christian Concert! All Day!
September 10th
Fairfield Cumberland Presbyterian
Route 4, Outer West Delaware
Fairfield, IL 62837
(618) 842-2219 (618) 847-5281
Prayer is the most vital part of this ministry! Everyone can pray even now as
preparations are being made. We would like special groups of prayer partners
especially during the week of July 22-30 when our mission teams will be ministering in El Paso and Mexico.
We need people who will commit to praying for our safety in travel and that
souls will be brought to the Lord as a result of our labors. Please inform the
Associational office as to what your plans are so that we can provide you with
specific prayer lists as the time draws nearer.
Vandalia Christian
Academy
Vandalia Christian
Academy seeks to build young
Christian lives through a godly
academic environment and
embolden them
to be a witness in their
communities and beyond!
Contact Information
Vandalia Christian Academy
P.O. Box 395
Vandalia, IL 62471
618-283-9073
A Ministry of Vandalia FBC
Join Us For the
KBA 165th
Annual Meeting at
Temple Baptist Church
September 10, 2005
Greenville Christian
Academy
Isaiah 40:31
School Mission
Greenville Christian Academy educates
students through a Christ
Centered curriculum that nurtures their
intellectual, spiritual, social, physical, and
emotional development.
Contact Information
Greenville Christian Academy
949 Airport Avenue
Greenville, Illinois
618-664-2175
A Ministry of Smith Grove
Baptist Church
Second Annual
Pastor’s Conference
September 10th, 2005
Temple Baptist Church
9 a.m.
Speakers will include Elmer Towns,
Liberty vice president, and Roger
Ellsworth, former IBSA president
(1995-1996). Special music will be
provided by Sons of the Father.
Sessions are open to all
who wish to attend.
Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
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KBA MEXICO MISSIONS TRIP
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Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
Boy’s Camp June 6-10
fts
a
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New Friends
Swimming
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Discipleship
Growing in Christ
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Learning Rocket Science!
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Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
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Church Openings within the
Kaskaskia Association
Calvary Baptist Church: Is seeking a
full-time pastor.
Carlyle Baptist Church: Is seeking a
full-time minister.
El Calvario Spanish Mission: The
Spanish mission in Effingham is seeking
a bilingual pastor who could serve fulltime or part time.
Eternity Baptist Church: Is seeking a
full-time youth minister.
Glenridge Baptist Church: Is seeking a
part-time pastor.
Marshall Creek Baptist Church: Is
seeking a part-time pastor.
Zion Hill Baptist Church: Is seeking a
full-time Associate Minister of Children
and Youth. If you have any questions
about these positions call the KBA office
at 618-432-7133.
Winners of KBA Bible and
Speakers Tournament
Twelve children and
three youth won medals in
the KBA Bible Drill and
three youth won in the KBA
Speakers Tournament on
April 17 at Carlyle FBC and
advanced to the State Level
where they also won.
Children who participated included: Rochelle
Howard, Andrew Howard, Nathan Howard, and Joy Dice
from Covenant of Grace
Church in Salem; Anna
Wheeler, Caleb Wheeler,
Aubrie Wheeler, Christyanne
Wheeler, T.J. Sutton, and
Tyler Sutton from Vandalia
FBC; and Emily Chambers and
Kyleen Chambers from FBC
Carlyle. Youth speakers included: Isaac Howard and
Jason Howard from Covenant
of Grace; and Nathaniel
Wheeler from FBC Vandalia.
We wish to extend our congratulations to these young
people for a job well done.
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WMU LADIES RETREAT
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Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
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Church News, Prayer Requests and Praises
CALVARY — Please be in prayer for our
sister church as they seek a new pastor.
Please also be in prayer for the church
as they continue to work with the new
Hispanic mission in Effingham.
CARLYLE — Please be in prayer for our
sister church as they seek a new pastor.
Carlyle will be having their Vacation Bible
School June 27-July 1. The church will
also have a booth for their upcoming
county fair in July.
CENTRAL CITY— The church will host
their 2005 VBS, “Holy Land Adventure:
Jerusalem Marketplace,” beginning Sunday, July 10 and continuing through
Thursday, July 14, 6:15 p.m. -8:30 p.m.
for children ages 4 through those who
have completed 5th grade. A celebration
for friends and family will be held on the
last evening. Central City Baptist Church
recently honored 8th grade (Kristen Hollingsead, Haylea Swartzlander, Bronson
Verhines, Rachel Wernsman, Lois Wilson), high school (Curtis Cates, Cristi
Cox, Jesse Smith) and college (Sara
Nuxoll—Southwest Baptist) graduates. A
Young Men’s Sunday School Class for
men of approximate ages 25-40 years of
age will begin on Sunday, June 12. The
class will be led by Richard Rich.
EMMANUEL—The Ladies Spring Banquet
was attended by 48 women; with guests
from California and Indiana and one
family with five generations. The theme
"Footprints" was carried out with shoes
filled with spring flowers and finished
with a chalk drawing of Jesus carrying a
person across his shoulder. Artist Linda
Barthelmey drew with background music
of "walking in Jesus' footsteps. Pastor's
wives from the area did a sketch,
dressed as 'bikers', giving all present
some great laughs. Emmanuel collected
$400 for their Annie Armstrong and $140
for the 30 pieces of silver offering.
ETERNITY — Eternity Baptist Church
has celebrated over 20 baptisms since
Easter. The church will be hosting a
youth Rally on Saturday July 18th at 7
p.m. A worship team from Two Rivers
church of St. Louis will provide the music
and the pastor from that church will be
preaching. All churches and youth
groups are invited to attend. On July
18th-22nd the church will be hosting
their VBS Ramblin Road Trip from July
18th-22nd. Their youth department has
grown in recent months with between 45
to 50 kids attending. From July 13th15th “Champions for Christ,” an evangelistic team from Texas, will be leading a
youth revival. From August 19th-21st
the Potter’s Puppets, the church puppet
ministry, will perform at the Centralia
Balloonfest on August 20th and 21st.
Starting on September 7th, the church
will begin again its Bible Skills, Drills,
and Thrills program, a program similar
to AWANAS where children learn Scripture and participate in activities.
FLORA — A ministry team from Flora
participated in the Evangelism Mission
Trip to Mexico June 3-10. The church
will have its Ramblin Road Trip VBS the
week of July 25-29.
GLENRIDGE — Be in prayer for our
sister church as they seek a new pastor.
MARSHALL CREEK—Be in prayer for
our sister church as they seek a new
pastor. Marshall Creek is putting the
finishing touches on their new family
life center. The church celebrated three
baptisms in May and had their Vacation
Bible School June 6th-10th.
MULBERRY GROVE—Mulberry Grove
will be holding their VBS on the week
of July 25-29 with the Lifeway Ramblin
Road Trip curriculum. The church will
also continue their men’s Bible studies
on Monday evenings with a study in
the book of Mark. The studies begin at
7:30 p.m. and any man is welcome to
attend, even if they attend another
church, says Pastor Gary Loeffler. The
gospel group, Sons of the Father, will
perform at the church morning service
on July 3rd at 10:45 a.m. On July 8th,
the church will host a movie night with
a showing of Spiderman 1 and 2. On
July 12th-13th, Mulberry Grove will be
sponsoring an Illinois Department of
Agriculture camp, “Field to Fork,”
where young people learn to cook. It
will be held in the church kitchen from
9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The church will
also host a community singspiration
with all Mulberry churches participating
on July 31st at 6 p.m.
SALEM — Salem FBC celebrated Pastor
Andy Dewitt’s recent achievement of a
Doctorate of Ministry Degree from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
in a service Sunday night, June 5. Recently Salem FBC sent care packages
to soldiers serving in Iraq. Packages
included food, snacks, socks, drink
mixes, stationeries and other items. On
June 17-18th Salem FBC will be participating in Relay for Life. The church will
host a car wash and will be selling purple bracelets for $3 a piece which say
“hope.” FBC Salem will be starting its
church softball season on June 4 and
will continue throughout the month of
June. In other news, several youth
from the church will be participating in
summer missions. Danette Jones will
be leaving on June 17 for 10 days in
Honduras. She is teaming up with the
Southern Illinois Fellowship of Christian
Athletes. Timothy Chapman will be going
to Bulgaria July 24-August 9, and Mallory
Simmons will be going to Romania from
July 27 to August 10.
SMITH GROVE — Smith Grove has reported a good inaugural year for
Greenville Christian Academy. Supporters of the Academy gathered for a “Soar
Like Eagles Banquet” at Greenville College on April 28th. The church is currently enrolling members for the fall.
Those interested in attending should call
GCA at 618-664-2175. Eleven people
from Smith Grove participated in the
recent Associational trip to Mexico June
4th through the 11th. Sami Ryan, one of
the Smith Grove youth, said the trip was
“awesome” in the way that God moved.
TEMPLE — On April 10th, Temple celebrated the ordination of Dale Ayers as
deacon. On Sunday evening April 17th,
youth minister Matt Robbins brought the
message preceding the Centralia Community wide Youth Crusade. Paul Vick, a
guest evangelist from Texas, led a service on April 20th. There were 235 in
attendance and 13 accepted Christ. In a
service on April 24th, five were saved
and six members rededicated their lives
to Christ. The Homecoming Gospel Choir
will be at Temple on July 24 at 6 p.m.
There will be many featured soloists and
groups that will be singing gospel favorites
WATSON— The church had a Mother’s
Day banquet Saturday, May 7th. In other
news, the church also remodeled the
pastor’s office, foyer, and the library.
Improvements in the foyer included a
table, mirror, and light donated in the
memory of Kathryn Bales by Leanne and
her sisters. A picture was purchased in
memory of Mary Ann McCoy. Curry Carpet donated the carpet and tile. Watson
had revival services June 1-4 with a potluck that concluded the services held
that Saturday. Missionary Kelley Carruthers and Gary Pate preached with
Gary Beck leading the music.
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Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
Building Disciples at
Kaskaskia Boys Camp
“We have been emphasizing that to
build something we need a vision, planning and directions. We need to then
follow them,” Williams added.
“We have been learning much about
Noah who also had to follow God’s
instructions.”
Besides the ten boys participating in
youth camp, four young people served
on the summer staff. They included:
James Bryan, Chris Cobble, Steven
Hall, and Kyle Steinman.
Many Souls Won to Christ with
Associational Evangelism Trip
Quenton Wadkins, a nine-year-old member of
First Baptist Church of First Baptist Church Patoka, helps assemble picnic a table for the KBA
Campgrounds.
Ten participants in Boy’s Camp gained
valued construction experience as a part
of their camp experience June 6-10th.
Steve Williams, pastor of St. Elmo
Baptist Church, organized the week’s
curriculum around the theme: “God Is
Still Working On Us.” To help illustrate
that theme, he had campers help construct four picnic tables for the campgrounds.
“They had to work together,” Williams
said. “They had to follow directions.
This is the first year the Association has
sent an evangelism team to Mexico and as
of press time, Wednesday, June 8th, it was
reported that 68 souls were won to Christ
in the first two days they were down there.
The team, consisting mainly of members
from Smith Grove and FBC Flora, arrived
Sunday, June 5, and began going door to
door with translators, Monday, June 6. KBA
Evangelism Director Bill Thompson reported the “team was excited about the 68
souls that were won.” More about the trip
will be reported in the next Visitor.
The deadline for submitting
information for the September-October
KBA Visitor is Thursday
August 4
KASKASKIA YOUTH
DIES IN CAR CRASH
Jennifer Hall, 18, daughter of Mike and Deborah
Hall, died on May 6 from injuries sustained in a car
accident occurring west of Springfield, near Berlin,
Illinois.
Jennifer was born May 30, 1980 in
Centralia. She was active in Kaskaskia Baptist
Associational camps and participated in
Associational mission trips to Mexico.
Jennifer was a 2004 graduate of Rushville High
School and was attending Hannibal-LaGrange
College in Hannibal, MO. She was a member of
First Southern Baptist Church, Rushville.
Her father Mike Hall, is a former pastor of St.
Elmo Baptist Church and presently pastors First
SBC Rushville. Her grandparents are members of
St. Elmo, Eternity, New Harmony Baptist churches.
She leaves behind her parents, Mike and
Deborah Hall; brother, Stefan; grandparents,
William and Martha Hall, Centralia, and Virgil and
Louis Jones, St. Elmo, and her fiancé, Jared
Pierce, Sandoval.
Jennifer was a great blessing to the Association
and all her knew her. On behalf of the Association
we wish to extend to her family and friends our
most profound heartfelt sympathy and prayers.
Kaskaskia Baptist Visitor
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Patoka, IL 62875
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7362 Seven Hills Road
Patoka, IL 62875
618-432-7133
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