The Ohio Independent Baptist, August 1966

''Thank you, Lord, for the Petunias!'' I think it' time omeone ·aid a kind ~·ord about Petunia . Every gardener i <; eager to show hi dahlia , ro e . or lilie . but I have never had an,,one in,·ite me to look at Petunias. ., Our conservatories hold flower ho~ s featuring the earliest tulip to the la t poinsettia, but no one ever exhibit a Petunia. Brides carry flow- er ranging from edelwei to lillie of the valley. but no bride would con ider carrying a Petunia. Everyone ignore the Petunia but the bloon1- i n' thing goe right on bloomin'. It' ti111e omeone appreciated it. Flower remind minister of people. and a group of people has about a n1any varietie of "plants" as does a garden. Every group has a few ' 'azal– eas··~ which produce only if soil and un hine are to their liking; "iris" which rot if they are not constant} y in the unshine. We could go on and on: from the Ha ters' ' that wilt, to the '·snapdragon ' that ru t, from the \hrinking ' 'violets' ' to the stubborn ··glads.·· There is a regal ' 'chrysanthemum" that stand out in a crowd and fits into a situation only if in command; the tender ' 'morning glory", which blooms at the beginning of a day but fade at noon. Every variety of people needs ome special attention to 111ake it bloom except the "Petunia." Perhaps you can under tand why ·· Petunia ., are dear to a minister· heart. The)' are those per'ions 'A'ho go right on doing their part \>\'ithout an}' special attention. o one f us cs over the111. pan1pers or ct1ltiv,1te~ then1. o <Jr1c prai ses the111 for their dependahilit y or loyalt y. But like the '" J>etunia' in the garden. the}' don't Sl:c r11 t 1111nd. I hey contribt1tc tl1eir eff rt , v. ithot1t c:XfJCCLing to \Vin a 1, It:1e ril>IJ011. I he)' gi,,e uf their l1eaLtl)' \\' ithottt begrt1dging the den1anc.l of other . They cau e no trot1ble. cre,lte no commotion. Like the "Petunia", they ju t keep blooming the very be l the)' can. It takes all kind of people to make this world. Every minister kno"' s that some varieties will always need pecial attention to help them bloom. He expects that. There are al– ways those who need extra encour– agement and tho e who want to be recognized for every deed. There are always tho e who wa11l to feel important. Thi i all in a da)'' . work. But when the day is 1ini hed and if it ha been e pecially difficult and di appointing, there ari e from the quiet of a pa ·tor's tttdy, a very imple prayer 'Dear Lord. thank you for the HPetunias." ' '2nd TO OHIO'' ro MICt\\0~" , , btJ the ' ,.5 176 Churches cf the it,ch. A.xsoc,ation of ~Jtrldr &pti!.t ChurLik-s MICHIGAN ON THE MOVE lN THE G A.R.B ~ ! flti' 1. S 1 1q ENJOY YOUR STA) We regret that we do not have ,t better picture but th1 i better th ,tn nt)ne at ,tll! While attcnJ1ng the 11a- • tional c; .A.R. B. . conference 111 (, ran ti Rapids. our attention \\i a'> Jra~ r1 le) tht\ bcat1tift1l '>tg11 in\ 1ti11g folk to 11ch1gan. 1 he '>tg11 \\ ,l'> r11adc l)y ottr L1rother. Re, . Don Jennings l)I LOS ANGELES BAPTIST COLLEGE I NEWHALL, Dr . Jo.hn R. Oun ' in id, nt & GRADUATE THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY CALIFORNIA - - . . A CHRIST CENTERED COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES C. Lloyd Button, M. A. Dean • Six Maiors (A .B. & 8 . S. Degree) • Outstanding Faculty • Good Employment • ' 'Com nd nioy The un' ' Lovely New Campus r11e for Cat log Today LABC Newl1all, C l1for ,11 I H O ilO II D P I DE f BAP IS Fenlon. i\1ichigan. It really i a lovely . 1gn. Along with other accon1pli hn1ent achieved by the Michigan churche ,, it Ii ted the following. . . "Leader in ew hurches Establi bed:' Our brother, Rev. Ben Jenning (Don· dad) , being a loyal Ohioan (he pa tor the Graham Road Bapti t Church, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) print– ed a little card which read. . . "2nd to Ohio.'' Thi he carefully placed over the word "Leader' ' cau ing the Michigan sign to properly read. . . ' '2nd to Ohio in ew Churches E tabli bed! ' In the above picture, Brother Don Jenning can be een landing at the left of the ign with "Thun1b down" to the correction, \vhile to the right i our Brother U mbat1gh de ignating "thun1b up!" It wa all in good fun, but it i~ nice to know that Ohio did lead all of the other tate in the nun1ber of new churche establi hed! We added eleven churche thi year. We prai c the Lord for ending a n1an like Earl Umbaugh our way! Subscribe to: Ohio Independent Baptist Only $2.00 per yea r Box 7 Cedarville, Ohio CLEVELAND HEBREW MISSION INC. Founded 1904 Witnessing to Jews in Cleveland, Ohio · Charleston, W . Va.; Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The largest staff in the history of the Mission augmented by a radio ministry at home and abroad, and a mailing ministry 1n the Unit6d States and abroad. Presenting Christ to our lord s brethren by visitataon, Bible classes, correspond– ence courses and literature. Staff members are happy to visit churches in the spirit of Act 1 S:4 to present the work of the Mission through inspirational report~ and by coloted )I ides . " Brethren, my (our ) heart' s de)ire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they o, ig ht be saved." Write for your free copy of " The Trumpeter for Israel" our qua1rterly ,nag· azi ne devoted to the work of J e ish evangelism. Gerald V. n1el er, upt . Cleveland H bre Mi ion P. 0 . Bo 18056 Cl v I nd, Ohio 4 118 AUGUS 1966 PAGE I