The Ohio Independent Baptist, October 1963

Your State Missionary • • reception given state arm as work starts • • m1ss1onary We have found a warm reception on the part of the pastor and churches as we have begun our mini try a State Missionary for The Ohio Association of Regular Bapti t Churches. We have been kept busy speaking in the churches, at minister ial gathering and Associational Meeting and ther e i much interes t in the branch church ministry . The question is ometime asked , "What does it take to tart a new church?" In the first place, it takes an ade– qua te field. Our Lord Jesus Chri t aid that the fi eld is the world and that the fi eld is white unto harvest . Ohio is a vast mission field with its ever-expanding cities and growing population. There may be an area near you where there is no gospel testimony and where a church could and ought to be started . In the second place, it takes an adequate program. A few famili es seem to be im– pressed with the need for being mis– sionaries in their own community. A meeting pl ace need to be found where ser vices can be held . A full time pastor needs to be secured who can be helped finan.cially by other churches in the ar ea until the new church begins to grow. An area wide canva s must be Rev. Earl D. Umbaugh taken and the information from thi canvass be put into the hands of the new church. A continuing vi itation program mu t be carried on if the new church is to grow and develop. In the third place, ther e mu t be an adequate message. This me age was epitomized for us by J e us when He aid, ''- If any man thir t , let him come unto me and drink. ' Her e we have everyman' need - " If any man thirst" . We see everyman' opportunity, ' let him come unto me" and everyman r e pon ibil– ity in the word , ' 'and drink". Groundwork started in Wilmington, New Vienna, for possible churches Rev. Ear l D . Umbaugh , our new state missionary, met recently with the outh Bethel Fellowship to con ider the possibility of two new churches in Southwe5t Oh10. Pastor from the area were invited t o Grace Baptist hurch. edarvi lle, where Rev. Don- ald Moffat is pastor, to meet Bro ther n1baugh and to consider these areas. After the meeting, Rev. M r. n1- baugl1, lcnn rcenwood, H arold reene, John D. eeter and Donald Moffat drove to Wilmington, hio, al o to visit cw ienna nearby. Accordi11g to tl1ese 1nen, tl1c J)OS- ibili ty of establi l1i1 g Bapti t cl1urches in tl1ese two cities is great, therefore 1 ottr co111111it tee \.Vere establisl1c<.l ,~li th tl1e al,o 1 e n1e11 a cl1air111an. tl1er factors e11ter i11 to lead tl1~ c 111e11 to believe ll1at C,od i Ylorki11g in t11e 11 arts of n1en to g f or\varcl ,..vitl1 a " rogra11l of I roJJagatio11' ' to The OHIO INDEPENDENT BAPTIST e tablish two new churche . ix people in the Wilmington area who Ii ten to Rev. G lenn Gr eenwood' radio br oadca t have aid they wan t a church tha t teache what they hear on h is broadca t Rev. David anine, f orn1er pastor of Fir t Bapti t ht1rch , Blanche~ter, ha long h ac.i a burden for Wiln11ngton And a pa~tor 1n West a. who i fron1 Ohio, \at<l that he l1a a l1ttrden to be a pa'\ lor in Wil111ington. Roy Ra r11sey, a bt1sincss111un fro111 Hla11c l1cster, is concer11cd abot1t a cl1t11 cl1 for cw Vic1111'1 , a cit}' t)f ()()0 peOJ)lc. cht1rch l)t1ildi11g is avail- able for $2500 bt1t \Vill 11 ell so111 ~ 50()() wortl1 of r no\ 1 ati11g l> for~ ervicc "' are ~tarted. 13 tt l 11 r c , r l ,,, cl1t1r l1e , r bei11g i l i cs \\ 1 }1erc; t tl lie I. 1.. 11 grot111d\\'Ork i being laill ; 1 ll \\' ill stJr I)' giv~ tl1 i11 r, ! Don't Go To Church By Wymon Parsons If you would live a selfish, elf– cent.e~ed life, satisfied with your own uff1c1ency and subject to no power greater than your own ; if sincere and intimate fellowship with other in seek– ing the highest that man can kno',\' is a waste of time - then don' t go to church. If you would accept all the bles ing that God has granted to life on thi earth , - the sun and r ain, the moon and tars, spring flower and grass , the mount~in and eas and running streams, without once gatherino with others to lift your heart in prai;e and thank giving to the Giver of all the e blessing - then don't go to church. If you can benefit by uch contri– butjon to social welfare as hospital , chool , pri on reform , and other humanitarian advances without giving a pas ing thought to the Church the Mother of them· if you can live in a world made better by the live of countle men of goodwill, without ~rying to add your bit to thi heritage: 1f you can thu draw on the bank of the aint without making any de– posit your elf - then don' t go to church. If you favor totalitarian form of government that you cannot appreci– ate the fact that the Church i the grea te t bulwark again t all form of dictator hip - then don't go to church. If you woL1ld eek no \\ Ord of en– couragement or hope in 1 our hot1r of di tre : if in the tragic and bi tter experience of life 1 OLl care not for the cot1rage and con1fort and c n 'Olation of a living f a1th: 1f life pre ·ent ) ot1 wi th no pr blen1~ that den1and lcar in ight and 10 ·pirat1on - then d n 't go to churcl1. If ) otir l1Jc ha\ be n trongcr anJ 111ore r11ea11ft1l becatt e yot1r p.. 1.rent, l1t1tl ~l , ital rcl1g1011 , a11ll 1 ct \ ot1 ,,,ant to <.ll!ll\ vot1r ch1ldre11 the "1111e \\ hole ,0111c 111flt1l.:tl c and l1cl~1ft1l l:'\a111r l~ - th~11 don't go to cht1rch. ..1 u t "'' a it " \' ) tl art: - .. \,,}1 rt: i on ,vl1 ,vill a pt l<) ' \ ' , Ilf\:::S " l() all tlli '?" 11, or ti all , 11 ,vot1 ltl b 11 rd t 1 i 11 tl , l> t t t 1 ra t i a 11 111a 11 1 l il ll llOd l f l)S ll - llf al n (Continued on p ge 11} Page 3, OCTOBER 196