The Ohio Independent Baptist, October 1991

, Is Your Church Really 11 lndependent? 11 O ne of our cherished Baptist distinctives i that we believe in an " independent local church." Our churches are free from the control of hierarchies or denomination– alism . Our churches are self-governing and an werable directl y to Chri t, no t Lo any human organization or individual . The word ' independent" mean " free from control ," but it also means " not dependent." I s this true of our churches? I s your church trul y " independent?" Let me ask you a few questions: • Was your pastor raised in your midst? • Do you have a Bibl e school, college, or sen1inary which prepared him or your missionaries for the ministry? • Do you print your own Sunday school literature? • Do you write all your own musi c? • Do you write and publish all tbe books you use f or Bible tudie , and all your pamphlets and tracts? • Do you have your own Christian radio and TV talion ? • The missionaries you support- are you their sole support, providing 100% o f their support needs? • Do you provide for all the spiritual growth needs o f your congregation– periodicals, confer ences, seminars, films, tapes, etc.? Is your chur ch truly ' 'non-dependent?' ' No, none of us is completely independent! We are not only dependent upon tbe triune God, but we are al so dependent on one another. A s we think about new church development in Ohio, we are very dependent on one ano ther . Few o f our churches have tl1e re ources to u lain a church planting program alone, but together we are able to accompli h thing for God ' s glory which none of us could accomplish alone. The goal of the OARBC i to develop a church planting program for Ohio which i s l ocal church generated, yet coordinated. Together we can do it. The way we propose to do this i s with a " new church developer"--one man, charged with the responsibility of developing and overseeing a church planting program for the state o f Ohio . In the past ( the l ate 50s through the mid 70 ) much was accomplished by having a church p lanting pecialist devoting his time to a new church program. We are experiencing a resurgence o f tl1e burden and vi sion for church planting in Ohio. As we join together to make it happen in our state we can anticipate great things in tbe next few years ! Galli Pro- - Pastor Joel Harriman Chairman, Ta k Force on Church Planting olis Senior Wins een Award R yan Snedaker, a senior in the First Bapti L hurch Pro-Teen Club of Gal lipolis, won l sl place in Pro-Teen Inlernational Scoring. To achieve thi s honor , Snedaker scored 4,989 points out o f a possible 5,000. Ile memori zed 180 verses o f Scripture, answered correctl y 597 Bible quc tion out o f a possible 600. He daily had devotions for U1e year and brought 20 vi iLOr to Wednesday Teen Dible Study . Ryan read 20 hristian books and weekl y did a practical hristian work assignment. The final challenge was the writing o f a l ,500 word lheme on the topic, "My Favorite Book of U1e Bible." Sneck'lker cho e U1e b ok o f Revelation. Iii U1cn1c received a score o f 92.5. Snedaker recei ved an al t-expense paid 11 day trip to tJ1e I Jol y L.and. A tJ1c top senior in lhe nation, he recei ved a $200 cho larship to any hristian college. Il ro-Teens i s a yout11 organization ba ed in Rocky M ounl, NortJ1 Carolina, which invol ve thousands o f teenager across t11c nation. Ryan received his award at 'fhe Wild , a teen youtl1 camp l ocated in the Smokey Mountain o f North arolina. Dr. Archie onn i s the pa~lor and Al v i s f>oJlard is youU1 pastor al I_:;ir L 1,apt i t. Church Multi-Peril Group Insurance Plan for Ohio Association of Regular Baptist Churches Administered by RUPP AGENCY, INC 1357 We t Lane Avenue Columbus, OH 4322 1 call toll-free: 1-800-282-9258 Buses & Vans For Sale 15-84 passenger vehicles available Buy quality for less at ~r,t,,,/1:'f Transportation IJl,;"jw~ Equip. Sales Corp. 6401 Seaman Rd ., Oregon. OH 43618 41 9-836-2835 Toll- free nationwide 1-800-227-3572 "Big church discounts" ask for Bud Graham ~ Bapt ist hi ldren's I lon1e I -. • & fanli ly nl.inis lries - • __J =-..:.,....,.=_ °'/ -. '- Dr. Don Worch President Family Counseling Foster Care Child Care Homes Maternity Care Adoption 354 West Street Valparai so, Indiana 46383 Ohio 513-322-0006 Iowa 515-964-0986 Indiana 219-462-41 11 Michigan 517-681 -2171 Church Pew Padding • Adds Comfort and Beauty to Old Pe.,,vs • On-Si te Insta llation • 15 Year Guarantee • Stays in Place ... Will Not Slip or Slide like a Loose Cushion • Nearly 50 Colors of Fabric Call 1-800-232-1822 The American Pew Padding Co. 676 E. Sixth Ave . Lancaster, Ohio 431 30 7