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by Dr. Tony L Lynn PLYMOUTH, MI – The COVID-year took away a lot. Some items, events, and people taken from us, were more precious than words can express. For those of you suffering the grief of loss, I am sorry. I am praying for you. I hope to shed light on some unbelievable wins that I saw this past year. These wins cannot remove any deep sorrow, but I hope to remind us that the COVID-year didn’t take everything. God did some miraculous things, and I cannot wait to tell you, so you can tell others who will tell others. You get the idea. Here is what I mean. 6 Church Launches First, no less than six church plants launched during this challenging year: Trails Church, Farmington with Phillip Box; Rhiza Church, Ann Arbor with Tito Diaz; Fresh Start Christian Community Church, Detroit with Robert Lodge; CrossLife Church, Bay City with Mick Schatz; Calvary Church, Port Austin with Michael Goforth; and Grumlaw Hartland became the second campus to Grumlaw Grand Blanc with Shea Prisk. These men and their teams are valiant and they are victorious on the other side of some of the biggest challenges they have ever seen in their lives. 4 Shared Spaces Second, some established pastors and church leaders, in longtime churches, were secure enough to share their facilities when church planters were shut down due to COVID restrictions in the public buildings they were leasing. I thank God for Bethany Church, Grand Blanc; Westside Church, Flushing; Cedar Street Church, Holt; and Grace Presbyterian, Farmington. The leaders in these four churches are titans because they did not hoard for themselves what others needed. Ask church planters Eric Stewart, Jason Loewen, Austin Wadlow and Phillip Box what they think of these four established churches and the leaders, and you will understand the depths of their gratitude. 4 Properties Gifted to Church Plants Third, some established congregations decided to entrust their property, building and funds to church planting teams they’ve known for a brief time. Four church plants benefited tremendously from the generosity and kingdom vision of four established churches and their loving leaders. Imagine this reality: A collegiate church plant in East Lansing is gifted 7 acres and a building of 20,000 sq. ft. for one dollar. An inner-city church plant is given 5 acres and a building of 6600 sq. ft. across the street from West Bloomfield High School for one dollar. A Redford church plant set-up a 99-year lease for a building and acreage for a one-time cost of $1,000 with utilities included. A church plant in the southeastern portion of Michigan received back half of the purchase money from the seller after the sale was completed. Only the Lord can bring about unexpected offers and achievements like these. As you look back on 2020, I hope you will understand that you are part of these victories. Because you pray, you participate, and you provide provisions by contributing to the annual offering for the North American Mission Board (NAMB) and to the Cooperative Program of Great Commission Baptists you participate in these wins. If you want to lead your family, small group, or church to give financially to these amazing achievements driven by the Lord, please go to bscm.org/cp, and follow the details on how to give. My wife and I contribute recurring gifts. You may give once or recurring. It is up to you. Best of all, give to these offerings with the members of your local church. Share in the achievement. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dr. Tony L. Lynn is the State Director of Missions for the Baptist State Convention of Michigan. Before coming on staff at the BSCM, Tony served as lead pastor for more than six years at Crosspoint Church in Monroe, Michigan. He and his wife, Jamie, also served with the International Mission Board in Africa and in Europe. #APRIL21

by Mick Schatz ROSCOMMON, MI – One of the pleasures in life we get to enjoy, especially here in Michigan, is the change of seasons. Each season is unique and has its own natural beauty for us to enjoy. Nevertheless, the one thing true about every season is that each season does eventually come to an end. Such is true in life and here at Bambi Lake. Over the last ten years Bambi Lake has enjoyed and greatly benefited from the volunteer work of Katie Nettle. After having spent much time here at Bambi attending retreats and summer camps, Katie began to hear the call of God on her heart to become a full-time volunteer staff member at Bambi Lake. She and her husband Donovan and her son Noah, moved to the camp and began to live full-time on the camp property. Katie immediately became an unforgettable and significant part of the Bambi story. Her amazingly oversized heart for service and helping others has brought many a smile to guests. Her willingness to do whatever it takes to get the job done has been demonstrated many times. My first witness to this occurred quite soon after I first arrived as the Director at Bambi. We were in the middle of an event, and the drainpipes in the kitchen backed-up and the grease pit began to overflow. Without hesitation, Katie stuck her hand down in the super nasty stuff and began to de-clog it by removing the nastiness. Honestly, I was trying not to hurl my lunch, but Katie was undaunted and did what had to be done in the moment. There have been other moments similar to that such as back-ups in the laundry room, and emergency situations as she life guarded the lakefront. Whatever was necessary Katie has always been willing and ready to jump in and do what it takes. Katie’s love for God has always fueled her love to serve our guests here at Bambi. After serving God and serving others here at Bambi for the last ten years, Katie will be leaving us at the end of April and venturing into a new season of her life with her family in Alabama. We are super excited for her as she starts this new chapter in her life, but we will miss her infectious laughter, her faithfulness, and her servant heart. Katie, thank-you for the godly impact you have made on countless teenagers and adults over the last ten years. Thank-you for finishing well - here at Bambi Lake. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mick Schatz serves on the staff of the Baptist State Convention of Michigan. He is the State Director of Spiritual Enrichment and Retreats and lives at Bambi Lake. #APRIL21

by Scott Barkley ROY, N.M. (BP) – Pastor Roy Mitchell will never forget that summer in the late 1970s when he got plastered every day. A young man at the time, Mitchell was a hired hand at a ranch in northeastern New Mexico. Part of his job that summer was to go with the owner’s son and apply plaster to cattle troughs. Before the fiberglass ones more common today, the troughs were made of steel and would develop leaks over time. For the leak to be fixed, the plaster had to be applied all over and not just in the problem areas. That’s not what Mitchell remembers most about the summer, though. “My friend was strong in his faith and witnessed to me. At the time my wife was wanting to go to church, but she wouldn’t if I didn’t go with her,” he said. “Eventually I felt bad about her not going to church, so I went.” Two Sundays later Mitchell prayed for salvation through Christ. He and his wife Karen became regulars and joined a discipleship group. He left the ranch after getting the chance to buy a saddle shop in Tucumcari, 175 miles east of Albuquerque, and began attending First Baptist Church. Mitchell, now pastor of First Baptist Church in Roy as well as First Baptist Springer, N.M., said he surrendered to a call to preach in 1982. However, he didn’t feel it was confirmed until on a church mission trip to Brazil. “We split into different teams for evangelism. My pastor and I had been talking about my struggle with the calling, but I became a team leader and preached down there,” he said. Before then, Mitchell had preached on a couple of Wednesday nights – “When you can do the least amount of damage,” he joked. But the experience in Brazil turned his calling from a struggle to solid. He would continue to work on ranches and build saddles, but also preach the Gospel. “God took something and did good with it,” he said. His first church was in Cuervo, N.M. “If we were all there it was nine of us,” Mitchell recalled. “The town was right on I-40, but not near anything.” A year later Mitchell accepted a call to be pastor of First Baptist in Floyd. That also placed him closer to Eastern New Mexico University, where he was a student. The university offered religious classes even though it was a state school. Mitchell credited those classes, taught from different denominational perspectives, with strengthening his preaching. “It was good,” he said. “It challenged me to think about my faith.” After another pastorate in Cimarron, Mitchell decided to go back to work on a ranch. “I could better provide for my family cowboying,” he said. Still, he continued doing pastoral supply and interim work in eastern and northeastern New Mexico for almost 20 years. Two months before their daughter’s wedding, Karen was diagnosed with cancer. She died in 2009 after 33 years of marriage. When Roy was on that mission trip to Brazil where his call to ministry was confirmed, Karen had been pregnant with the couple’s first child, Della Luticia, who would be called “Ludy” after Roy’s great-grandmother. Their son Arlyn, born in 1988, died in 2019. “He was a diabetic and had kidney failure,” Mitchell said. “That was fixed and he had 72 days free from it, but then was diagnosed with cancer. He died a week before his 32nd birthday. “If I did anything right in my life, it’s that both of my kids served the Lord and owned their faith.” For the last two decades Mitchell, 68, has managed a ranch 13 miles east of Logan near the Texas line. Until a few weeks ago, he spent the last two-and-a-half years driving 90 minutes – 12 miles on dirt, 50 on pavement – to First Baptist in Roy to preach at the 9 a.m. service. After that, Mitchell would get in his Ford truck and drive another 45 minutes to preach the 11 a.m. service at First Baptist in Springer. Those days began with leaving by 6:30 a.m. for breakfast at First Roy. After preaching his second sermon, lunch followed with members of First Springer. At 4 p.m. he would arrive home with his wife Susan – a widow until they married 10 years ago and with whom he dotes on multiple grandchildren. “First Roy was a little bitty church and I had a good ranch job,” Mitchell said. “I’d worked for my employer, Rex McCloy, for 20 years. When he hired me, I told him that I preached on Sundays and he said that wasn’t a problem. He has supported and prayed for us and was proud of what we were doing.” When members at First Baptist Springer needed a pastor, the idea was floated of Mitchell preaching for both congregations. “The people at First Roy were excited about it and thought it was a great idea,” he said. It’s easy to see why. Technically a Texas native, New Mexico is Mitchell’s longtime home and he’s every bit the cowboy, from the Sam Elliott handlebar mustache to the skill in telling a story. More important, his calling as a pastor is well-noted. Jeff Ogata and his wife Misty were new attendees at First Springer. Ogata had heard Mitchell preach in the ’90s and was eager to hear him again. They hit it off immediately, and Ogata, who had been feeling a call into the ministry, had a mentor. Ogata watched Mitchell survey the crowd at his son Arlyn’s funeral and express how he’d never spoken to a group that large. He talked about his son and shared hilarious stories, sure. But then it became an evangelistic event. “He looked at everyone and said he was going to preach the Gospel,” Ogata remembered. “I looked at my wife and said, ‘I want to be like that. That’s so cool.’” Ogata and his wife would remain under Mitchell’s preaching, but at First Baptist in Roy after the couple began attending there last year. That summer, Ogata and his wife planted Rayado Creek Family Fellowship, sent out from First Roy. The Roy church is an aging fellowship. With the Ogatas departure, First Roy was going to lose one of its younger families. Nevertheless, the church sent them out gladly and will even join Ogata’s church for Easter services. “They’re our sending church,” Ogata said. “It was very important for me to have their blessing.” “We just want to go over there and tell those young people that we support them,” Mitchell said. “It wasn’t a sacrifice on our part, but the right thing to do.” Like everywhere else, COVID affected Mitchell’s ministry. Members of First Springer decided to put off meeting in person, whereas those at First Roy continued gathering. Ogata’s church, located on land once owned by Old West figures Kit Carson and Lucien Maxwell, met outside. Mitchell also joined other pastors in learning how to use Zoom. It wasn’t all bad, he said. “We have around a dozen meeting in person, with another dozen joining us online,” he said. “It’s been beneficial not only because a lot of our people drive a long way, but also if they have health concerns. One man who lives in California but comes out here occasionally stays in touch with us through Zoom. We have others who join us from the Dallas/Fort Worth area.” Richard Anderson was another connecting online. Not one for church, he had been battling cancer and frankly, didn’t care for Mitchell. “He didn’t like me,” the pastor admitted. But Anderson’s wife Diana did. So, he had little choice but to hear the messages Mitchell delivered over the computer. Those messages talked about a healing Savior who could fix the problem areas. It wasn’t a patchwork job either, but one that covered everything, like plaster. “He ended up getting saved,” Mitchell said. “We baptized him a few months before he passed.” Mitchell is the kind of pastor who doesn’t think of himself as a shining star. He doesn’t have to, because others do that for him. He simply sees himself as a reflection of the Son, someone who God took and did something good. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Scott Barkley is national correspondent for Baptist Press. #APRIL21

by Diana Chandler PHILADELPHIA, PA (BP) – Americans bought more Bibles in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic spread, industry leaders said, but a major study shows Bible engagement during the pandemic was no greater than the previous year. Both Lifeway Christian Resources and Thomas Nelson Bibles saw increases in Bible sales, which a Thomas Nelson executive described as an increase seen industry wide. But the American Bible Society (ABS), in conducting both its annual State of the Bible research in early 2020 followed by a special COVID-19 study months later, found that Bible engagement slacked after the pandemic began. “While State of the Bible data show that Scripture engagement was up significantly in January, compared to the same time in 2019,” ABS said in its report, “by June Scripture engagement had fallen to below 2019 levels.” January’s Scripture engagement of 70.9 million adults, or 27.8 percent, marked the highest level since 2011, ABS said, but by the first week of June, engagement had fallen to 22.6. The decrease means 13.1 million Americans were no longer consistently interacting with Scripture, a change ABS contributed to the “significant pressure” of the COVID-19 crisis. While women were previously more scripturally engaged than men, engagement during the pandemic appeared equal between the two genders. While industry leaders didn’t reveal the percentage increase in sales, they were up at both Lifeway, which sold 2.5 million Bibles in 2020, and at Thomas Nelson, which said it saw its best sales in eight to 10 years. Lifeway’s Bible sales remained strong as the pandemic began, indicating a “significant increase” in online sales April through June. “We believe the growth in Bible sales during those early months of the pandemic was no accident, as people often go to the Bible as a source of hope in times of crisis and uncertainty,” said Lifeway President and CEO Ben Mandrell. “People draw hope from Scripture because in it they see a God who is with us during our suffering. The Bible, as God’s words to us, is a reminder that He doesn’t leave us to walk through difficult times alone. Scripture has a way of bringing hope and healing in times of difficulties.” The Tony Evans Study Bible and the She Reads Truth Bible drove sales with the Holy Land Illustrated Bible, the Ancient Faith Study Bible and the CSB Scripture Notebooks seeing strong showings. The Heroes Bible did well during the pandemic, with editions specifically designed for doctors, nurses, emergency medical personnel, military members, firefighters and law enforcement personnel. Philip Nation, vice president and publisher of Thomas Nelson Bibles, described sales as “one of the best years in many years in terms of the number of Bibles that we’ve seen produced and purchased by what we assume to be a clear mix of established Bible readers and new Bible readers. “Most Bible publishers have seen an increase in Bible sales just across the board during the pandemic.” Thomas Nelson is focusing on Bible engagement through its Abide Bible and complementary Abide Bible book journals, Nation said. “Now we see a greater need in the marketplace for people to have editions of the Bible that focus on personal engagement with the Scripture and not just simply informing them of the scholarship,” Nation said. ABS conducted its initial 2020 State of the Bible study in January and early February, including 2,010 interviews with adults in all states and Washington, D.C. ABS followed the initial research with a special COVID-19 study May 28-June 10, surveying 3,020 adults from across the nation. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Diana Chandler is Baptist Press’ senior writer. #APRIL21

by Diana Chandler WASHINGTON (BP) – Church members are in the minority for the first time in at least eight decades, with just 47 percent identifying with a congregation, Gallup said in a poll released today (March 29). The number was 70 percent in 1999. A growth in adults with no religious preference and lower rates of church membership among people who do have a religion are major trends driving the decline, Gallup said. Younger generations hold the highest rates of those with no religious preference, including 31 percent of millennials and 33 percent of adult Generation Z (those born in the mid-1990s to the early 2010s). Concurrently, among those who do affiliate with a religion, declines since the turn of the century were highest among younger generations, with the share of millennials declining from 63 percent in 2000 to 50 percent in 2020. Ed Stetzer, dean of the School of Mission, Ministry, and Leadership at Wheaton College, said the trend for people to drop their loose affiliation to religion will only accelerate. “Unless we want to be a regional group of Christians who only talk to ourselves,” Stetzer said, “we’ll need to redouble our efforts in evangelism and church planting to engage an increasingly secular context.” Pastor Larry Anderson, president of the State Directors of Evangelism, said the study has several implications for the church. “Some people will do what I call ‘date’ your church for years, while never committing to participate in a formal new members’ class, but will be faithful in attending, tithing and even serving,” Anderson said, “and we need to discern how we will count them moving forward.” Anderson, an executive with the Baptist Resource Network serving Pennsylvania/South Jersey, is based in the Eastern region of the U.S., which Gallup identified as suffering the greatest decline (25 percentage points) since 2000. The South, home to the Bible Belt, suffered the lowest decline, but also saw a 16-point drop in church membership since 2000. New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary apologist Bob Stewart said the task of apologetics has not changed, but the poll results could signify that the means used to communicate the Gospel might need to change. He clarified that he’s not a statistician, and that his comments are more speculative than critical. “Apologetics is about commending and defending the Gospel; it’s about stating clearly why one believes that Jesus is Lord. To do that, we use evidence and reason, we don’t simply take a picture of where a group of people are on a particular day,” said Stewart, the NOBTS Greer-Heard chair of faith and culture, and director of the Christian apologetics program. “The task of the church hasn’t changed. But these findings may mean that the means by which we communicate the Gospel need to change.” Both Anderson and Stewart said the data could also reflect generational differences regarding how church membership is valued. “First the loyalty to one church is not as common as it once was, as millennials and Gen Z will visit several different churches as they feel led,” Anderson said. “Second, the need to join a church and become a member under the authority of a pastor and submit to the ‘processes’ of church culture does not seem to be as appealing of an option to those who can come and go as they please with no pressure.” Stewart said it’s not news that different generations behave differently. “My sense is that millennials are very big on community but tend not to value ‘joining’ or ‘membership’ in a formal organizational sense. This doesn’t mean that they don’t value belonging in an organic sense,” Stewart said. “The WW2 generation was largely composed of joiners who valued organization. Baby boomers, on the other hand, were church shoppers who bounced around from one church to another, depending on what their perceived needs were at the moment.” The numbers may also reflect changes stemming from how people join churches today, Stewart said. “With previous generations of Baptists the ‘invitation’ or altar call was emphasized; in many of today’s churches, invitations are downplayed,” he said. “That doesn’t mean that evangelism or discipleship is minimized, but the emphasis is no longer as much on joining, which is reflected in membership, as it is on serving and belonging.” Stewart emphasized the importance of such knowledge as which churches are losing members most, and whether they are evangelical, Baptist, mainline or liberal. “I do know that ‘none’ (those not affiliated with a religion) does not necessarily mean atheist or irreligious,” he said. “At the end of the day, my advice is: (1) pump the brakes, don’t overreact; (2) investigate, look critically at the entire survey; don’t just read the summary article; (3) critically examine what your church is doing and why; and (4) ask God how you should be about making disciples and commending and defending the Gospel.” Anderson advised that churches will need to learn how to serve members who don’t attend every Sunday, and “not guilt or shame” those who no longer see attending every week as normal. Churches will need to learn how to serve hybrid members who attend at times in person and at times online, and churches need to shift their focus to equipping and sending. “We must stop seeing the church as the ending place but the sending place and shift our focus to counting those being equipped and sent out of the building,” he said, “as opposed to how many people we have coming into the building.” The poll updates a 2019 Gallup analysis that examined the decline in church membership over the past 20 years. Findings are based on responses to a battery of questions Gallup asks Americans twice each year about their religious attitudes. Each three-year period consists of data from more than 6,000 American adults. A summary of the findings is available here. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Diana Chandler is Baptist Press’ senior writer. #APRIL21

by Jamie Lynn PLYMOUTH, MI – The Pandemic Pastor Relief Fund has been able to help many Pastors in Michigan who were struggling during this difficult last year. The 2020 State Mission Offering was generously given by the Michigan churches and 100% was set aside to help pastors. There were 19 requests received for the fund and a total of $36,000 has been given so far. Here are some of the reasons for the requests: An up north pastor, his wife and daughter all 3 contracted COVID A co-vocational pastor’s wife lost her job due to extended quarantine A pastor’s wife lost her job due to restaurants being closed A pastor hasn’t been supported in months due to the church not meeting in-person A pastor’s wife lost her job due to COVID and the church loss of income due to quarantine. Reduction of income from the church and financial support due to quarantine Bi-vocational pastor out of work due to shut-down. Family is struggling. Loss of income from church due to pandemic quarantine. The pastor is now seeking outside work. A Pastor of an older congregation who hasn’t had in-person church and has difficulty with online services, struggling with chronic health conditions. A church has been barely making it financially through last year and now the pastor has developed major health issues. Bi-vocational pastor and wife lost their outside jobs due to quarantine shutdown. Medical bills and surgery costs with loss of income in the church due to the pandemic. Pastor wife lost her job that supports her husband and has mounting medical bills. Loss of income from the church and discovered stage 4 liver cancer. The pastors and their families that have received these relief help have been so grateful. Many have sent a thank-you note filled with gratefulness and words of thankfulness. They expressed how having a convention of churches surrounding them kept them from feeling alone and overwhelmed in their situation. Two pastors expressed their gratitude this way: "I am so humbled by the parts each of you played in thinking of an old grouchy former pastor. The incredibly generous gift from Michigan Southern Baptists went into our checking account a couple of days ago and will help out greatly in medical bills and daily living. I know MOST of this came from small struggling congregations whose pastors were compensated FAR less than have I been during my 17 years at Emmanuel. I can guarantee that Annie Armstrong will be a little more benefited by Laurie and me, as will the other SBC and BSCM mission causes. Thanks again. I am trying to figure out how to write a letter to each and every BSCM congregation who contributed to last year's Frances Brown Missions offering." "I can’t tell you how much this means to me. The last few months have been a real test. I lost my mom in December to COVID. My wife was diagnosed with lyme disease. In 2021 I have had unexplained pain in all of my major joints. When my wife damaged the car and house backing out of the garage, it was all I could take. I never expected to receive a gift like this. You have been a huge blessing and encouragement to me. Thank you so much. Hopefully I will get an opportunity to repay the blessing. Please let everyone know." These relief checks would never have happened if it weren’t for Michigan churches generously giving to the Frances Brown State Mission Offering last year. Many of our Michigan churches have done well through the difficult time, but there are others who have struggled. It is a wonderful moment to see how Michigan churches have stepped in to help other their sister churches that needed a little help this year. This is a huge thank you to all who gave to the State Mission Offering – Pandemic Pastor Relief Fund. You are helping so many Michigan Pastors and their families. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jamie M. Lynn, I'm married to a God warrior, have 3 wonderful married children and 9 super grandkids. I love working at the BSCM office to help the churches in the Great Lakes area to thrive, serve God by drawing others to Him and to love their communities. #MARCH21

by Rob Freshour HIGHLAND, MI – I turn 60 this year. Crazy! I read a report years ago suggesting if a person reaches age 60, they are expected to live another 22 years on average. I may graduate to glory by the time I am 82. The first six decades evaporated like misty breath in Michigan winter. None of us knows how many days we have left here. We do know the rest of our lives starts now. How can I make the rest of my life the best of my life? The best way I know to make a difference is to invest in other people. I look around these days and see much to distract us and discourage us. Maybe I can deposit a word of hope here, a little ray of sunlight and blue sky in this grey season. These days, I shepherd a delightful Michigan church who for two years prior to COVID-19 averaged 60 people in attendance. Midway through February 2021, we are seeing 29 people per Sunday. (We suspended in-person gatherings for most of 2020.) Most days, I am thrilled to do what I do now. Some days, however, I slip into the muck of what Priscilla Shirer calls “comparative righteousness,” a deceitful and dangerous substitute for truth. Our foe delights in trapping us with wrong metrics and lesser motives for dubious pursuits of questionable success. We pastors are especially susceptible to the allure of numbers. Almost six out of ten churches today average less than 100 people in Sunday worship. This number has been expanding for more than a decade now. According to a 2015 study, less than 20 percent of these churches have “high spiritual vitality.” Depressing, right? Numbers can be our friend. They can also trick us. Sam Rainer reminds us that churches of 25, 50, and 100 are common. If we pastor a smaller church, we may feel less significant than larger churches. Larger churches are the exception, not the norm. What we see or think we see with our physical eyes cannot compare to what is actually true, what is happening in the spiritual realm, the real world. Some simple reminders keep me hopeful. First, healthy church growth ONLY accompanies healthy personal growth in the leadership. Church growth that does not is risky and perilous to the leader, the church, and the community. (Think RZIM as a reference.) Jesus tells us He will build His church (Matthew 16:18). We are invited to partner with Him to populate Heaven with our friends, our family, our neighbors, and the nations. My advice: You do you, and let Jesus do Jesus. By the way, “you do you” for a Christ-follower is always letting Jesus do Jesus. Jesus did attract large numbers; however, He shepherded a small group. At most, the size of His congregation was 70 or 72 people (Luke 10). His shepherding style was to make disciples whom He then charged to do what He did – make disciples. We cannot make disciples from the pulpit, no matter how large an audience we draw. Jesus does not compare us to other disciples. As with Peter, when the Lord deals with us, He calls us to love Him and to follow Him. He is not in the habit of talking to us about someone else’s story (John 21:20-22). Everybody needs Jesus. Not everybody thinks they need Jesus, but most will wonder at some point. Live your life in such a way that when the people who know you wonder if they need Jesus, they will think of you and decide you might be able to help. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rob Freshour came to Michigan in 2002 to join the BSCM-Church Growth Ministries Team. In 2006, Rob went to pastor one of our Michigan churches. Today he pastors the Highland Community Church in Highland, MI. #MARCH21

by Trennis Henderson KNOXVILLE, TN – How can your church start a missions group like Love World to help young women develop a heart for missions? Kim Cruse, a former International Mission Board collegiate church planter in the Philippines, insists the need is urgent. “If you can put missions into the DNA of a new believer or of a young believer early on in their Christian life, they will always see missions as important,” she emphasized. Cruse, who began serving last year as Tennessee WMU’s missions discipleship specialist, poses the tough, thought-provoking question: “Where are the future IMB missionaries going to come from and where are the future mission supporters going to come from if we're not able to engage and connect and get these younger women involved in missions? “This has been a burden of WMU for many years,” she said, “so I love what has happened at Wallace” Memorial Baptist Church in Knoxville. Missions leaders there launched Love World in 2019 to reach and involve women from age 25 to 40 in missions discipleship and support. The response has been noteworthy. In addition to listening to missionary guest speakers and praying for missionaries, Love World participants are involved in such hands-on missions projects as hosting a monthly fellowship brunch for international moms and partnering with Welcome House Knoxville to serve refugee families. Those ministries are particularly fitting since Wallace Memorial is named in honor of Dr. Bill Wallace, a revered Southern Baptist medical missionary and martyr who served in China for 17 years until his death in a Chinese communist prison in 1951. Seven decades later, Wallace Memorial and Love World echo Wallace’s commitment to global missions service. “God put missions on my heart many years ago,” noted Kimberly Poore, a Love World team member. “As a mother of young children, it's not easy just to pick up and go somewhere, but there's so many opportunities locally that we are able to reach internationals. “God has opened that door for me to be able to do that even within our church,” she added. “He just opened the doors to the international moms group. Our kids are playing together and creating friendships and just loving on one another.” Love World’s quarterly gatherings “have given us the opportunity to be educated and to share mission opportunities within our area and also within the world that we can be a part of,” Poore shared. “A wonderful aspect of our Love World is just gathering together, praying for missionaries together and bringing awareness to the different mission opportunities within our world.” Cruse said in her conversations with other WMU leaders, “I frequently refer them back to Wallace’s Love World group. This is a group that has found a way that's working, that younger women are responding. “Every time they gather, they have 20 to 30 young women that are getting more and more involved,” she pointed out. “They're inviting their friends and some of them are really being engaged with missions for the first time.” Love World’s ultimate goal, Cruse concluded, “is really to draw the hearts of these young women into God's purpose of making His glory known around the earth and giving them opportunities to experience that firsthand.” To learn more about engaging young women in missions, contact Kim Cruse at kcruse@tnbaptist.org. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Trennis Henderson is the national correspondent for WMU (Woman’s Missionary Union). A Baptist journalist for more than 35 years, Henderson is a former editor of the Western Recorder of the Kentucky Baptist Convention and the Arkansas Baptist News state convention newsjournal. #MARCH21

by Cindy Truesdail Michigan Campers on Mission (MI COM) is busy! Praise the Lord! We are continuing work on the Faith Fellowship Housing Project in Lansing. It has been cold and even drafty in the house, but insulation is getting put in now and things are moving along. It will be a joyous day when we see the deserving families move in and feel the comfort of a home. Ladies gathered at Heritage Baptist Church in Grand Blanc for a sewing event and have made 26 fleece blankets, 18 hooded towels, and 20 bears to be donated to foster and refugee children in Michigan. Some are still making these items in their homes, desiring to minister to these children. What a blessed day we had together as we worked and fellowshipped together. MI COM focuses on mission projects in the State of Michigan. We are a fellowship of Christian campers who desire to use camping interests and skills in the furtherance of the Gospel of Jesus and to assist churches of similar faith in planning projects to improve and support camps and churches. Many mission opportunities are available for us to be a part of, such as: campground ministries; construction projects; maintenance and lawn work; sewing projects; helping small churches hold Vacation Bible School; minister to and supply help to individuals, and families in their times of need; provide needs for foster and refugee children; and much more. Whether you are a tent camper, an RVer, or a trailer camper; a seasonal camper, a weekend camper, or a full-timer; a retired couple, young family or single individual; there is a role for you as a part of the COM family. A COM member does not have to have a camper, many projects we work with, such as Bambi Lake Baptist Retreat Center, offer rooms for the workers. We are praising God as we welcome new members to Michigan Campers on Mission. We have very few requirements for membership: that the person loves the Lord and is born again, that they want to be on mission for Him and wish to help. There is no fee to join and you are not asked to do what you are not able to do when on a work project. If you would like to become a member, to www.michigancampersonmission.org and sign up. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rick and Cindy Truesdail have been married for 27 years. Together they have 5 children and 14 grandchildren. During their early years together, they worked as leaders of a Single Adult Ministry. Rick is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a licensed SBC minister. He served as Associate Pastor with a Spanish-speaking church in Flint for 10 years and Cindy served as the Pastoral Assistant. They are currently active members at Heritage Baptist Church, Grand Blanc, and are eager to work with Campers on Mission in their retirement. #MARCH21

DELTA, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Shahid Kamal’s God is a living God—One who answers prayer. Shahid and his wife, Maroofa, spend their lives introducing Him to the more than 300,000 South Asians who call the Greater Vancouver area home. “Hindus have many visible gods, and Sikhs have many gurus,” said Shahid, who planted South Asian Community Church in Surrey, part of metro Vancouver. “In the midst of this complex situation, we are trying to help them to know, believe and receive Jesus Christ.” And over and over again, the Kamals see that transformation happens through prayer. “Our prayer ministry is one of the successful connecting points,” Shahid said. “Many came to our church for the very first time for prayer. They have specific prayer requests. And, praise God, God answered them and showed them that He’s a living God.” Prayer Requests For the church’s prayer ministry to continue to open doors for the gospel. For South Asians in Surrey to be drawn toward Jesus. For more information about the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering and Week of Prayer for North American Missions, visit www.AnnieArmstrong.com. #MARCH21

by Tom Bradley GRAND RAPIDS, MI – As an urban church planting pastor on the northwest side of Grand Rapids, Michigan, I am immersed in an environment that reflects two constant realities — beauty and brokenness. To some degree, we all see this. Suburban or urban, our world is immersed in the throes of the Fall; however, in my previous years of suburban pastoral experience, the stark realities were just never quite as blatant. Brokenness is always present in our world, but it was better camouflaged in the suburbs. In my urban neighborhood, brokenness is in my face, every day. In my 30-plus years as a pastor in the suburbs, I never had someone arrested on my two-foot front lawn, had someone go through my trash for recyclable material, and never had someone accost my wife while she planted flowers in the yard. This is one way to look at my street. But that’s not the whole story, because with the gospel, the same street can take on a very different flavor. Our neighborhood during the pandemic Last summer, distress was particularly heightened in my neighborhood because of the COVID-19 pandemic. People increasingly looked to substances to manage stress, and the drug activity dramatically increased. One house on my street seemed like a fast-food drive-through—minus the food. Cars pulled up, the window rolled down and money and goods exchanged. I would look out the window and say to my wife, Merri, “Well, at least business is booming for somebody during the pandemic.” With the increased drug activity also came increased chaos, angry shouting and threats. Nonetheless we sought to love our neighbors in Jesus’ name, prayed with them and cared for them as opportunities came up. Sometimes it was doing something simple like running a hose or an extension cord next door when their utilities were shut off. Honestly, it was also awkward at times, and we often felt out of place, not knowing what to do. But wherever we confront spiritual darkness—in the suburbs or the city—we have a choice, and as people who believe the kingdom of God is forcefully advancing, that choice is clear. We choose to press into the discomfort, the awkwardness, that some may come to know Him. Neighborhood block party When Merri and I began the journey of starting CrossWinds West Side three years ago, we committed ourselves to being agents of change, to confront the darkness and proclaim the good news about Jesus with whatever abilities we have. During the stressful pandemic summer many in my neighborhood were feeling isolated, cut off, fearful and depressed. So, we decided to throw a block party. It was a little unusual during the pandemic to throw a party, but our city was starting to realize the stress of social isolation and celebrated our desire to get people together, while respecting social distancing. I went around the neighborhood and shared our plans to throw a block party for everyone and got signatures from most of the neighbors to shut down the street. One of my neighbors — admittedly little rough around the edges — told me, “This is a good thing. Let me know if someone doesn’t want to sign your sheet, and I’ll take care of it.” I thanked him but didn’t take him up on the offer. The city then gave us a permit to shut down our street for two hours and even brought out barricades the day of the event. Our CrossWinds team came out with food and helped run games for the kids. Merri and I were nervous about whether or not our neighbors would come out, but slowly they did. From across the street, Luiz and her family dragged a large propane grill to the side of the street and made delicious pupusas, a thick flatbread common in El Salvador and Honduras. Others started coming with food and chairs and the party began. So, for a couple of hours my street — the neighborhood — came together. Some greet me on the street now as pastor. Another neighbor from one of the dealer houses broke down in tears and asked if I could pray for them. Another neighbor asked me last week if I do weddings — their daughter and boyfriend, who share two kids, want to talk to me about it. Relationships are being built, and conversations about the gospel are starting. This is the same street, but in some ways, it’s also becoming a different street. May it continue to become a road leading many families to know Jesus as Lord. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Tom and Merri Bradley planted CrossWinds West Side in Grand Rapids, Michigan three years ago. If you would like to learn more or receive their newsletter feel free to contact them at pastortom@windschurch.net. #MARCH21

by Carl N. Miller HARVEY, MI – Our church is small, just 22 members, but the heart of our people is meeting the needs of others. But no matter the size of the congregation, there are many things you can all do to serve God, one another, and your community. Harvey Baptist Church is entirely lay-led, unpaid volunteers from the worship team, to audio visual workers, leaders in every area, maintenance and janitorial staff, office and kitchen workers, and pastor. 2020 was a challenging year for individuals and churches everywhere. We closed for a month, spending one of those Sunday’s cutting and piling wood for a family with medical issues. Many of our ladies provided meals for families with various needs. But soon our people began asking if we could not meet since we had plenty of room to social distance. So, while many larger churches were still closed, we began to meet every Sunday. Yes, we still have some families who continue to self-isolate, but most feel the need to worship our Lord together. Many give to our Dollar-A-Week account where we encourage those who can, to put a dollar or more a week into a jar. This money has helped pay rent for a lady hospitalized, bought food for many, aided in medical expenses, paid some dental and medical bills, and provided a variety of ministries. In 2019 we gave out $1,721 and in 2020 an amazing $6,328. We have collected money in baby bottles for the local Care Clinic with $1,236 raised in 2020. This helps meet the needs of pregnant moms, counseling, etc. We are actively involved in helping the Gideons provide Bibles for local hotels and other ministries. In 2019 we provided $2,035 and in 2020 it reached $2,435. In 2019, we packed 172 Christmas shoeboxes for Samaritan’s Purse, and this past year we had 106. We provide a Thanksgiving Meal to those in our community every year around Thanksgiving. We usually have 75 people attend. Of course, we had to change plans this year and only serve those we have immediate contact with. Tables were set up where families sat together, and our Hostess,Sonja Hiller, arranged 3 servers to keep everyone safe. We had a much smaller group of about 30 but the fellowship was invaluable. In early December for the last several years, we have had a Kid’s Christmas Shopping Day. Up to 50 kids can sign up. Our people purchase gifts during the year, or give money for gifts so each child can bring a list of 8 family members they want to shop for. A shopper is assigned to each child, and areas are set up to wrap the gifts. The kids are served pizza and juice and have a place for crafts and games. There is absolutely NO charge. Obviously, this was a challenge this year, but kids have had so many disappointments that we felt we had to work something out. So, we extended our shopping hours to last from noon to 4:00. This allowed us to have kids come by family every half hour. No food or games were provided. We cut our workers down from 32 to 8 (and they worked hard!). Each worker took a child shopping and wrapped their gifts. We were able to provide for 27 children. Our congregation is small. And like so many Michigan churches, the challenges have been big. But that has not stopped our call to serve our community and to be a witness for Jesus Christ. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Carl N. Miller has served as volunteer pastor of Harvey Baptist Church in Harvey, Michigan in the beautiful Upper Peninsula since 2013. He is married to Leafa Miller who is a wonderful partner in the ministry. He loves the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and the church's location on the south side of beautiful Marquette. #MARCH21