Some exciting news…
Our church was selected to host the 2029 Global Independent Baptist Fellowship (GIBF) meeting, and I am already excited about how God will use the meeting to help preachers and to help us too. Yes, even the host church is blessed. It’s a lot of work, but as we saw in 2012 and 2017 when we hosted before, it’s an honor!
The GIBF is a fellowship of pastors, not a convention of churches. It includes four main components:
- Meetings. People gather twice per year for a three-day conference in various places around the country. Last week’s meeting was in El Paso, and next February is in National City. The year after that, in Tucson. These meetings are an encouraging time of preaching, singing, and encouragement for everyone who attends.
- Bible college. While our church hosts a Bible institute to train people locally, I love that Heartland Baptist Bible college teaches the same doctrine and philosophy of our church. It’s not for everyone, and it’s not the only Bible college we support, but it is the Alma Mater of our staff and a great place for ministry training.
- Baptist Times magazine. My favorite part of the BT magazine is the thoughtful cover articles every issue. This issue’s topic of church membership was excellent! The magazine also gives updates on churches like ours all over the world, showing that there are “7000 others who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”
- Missions. When churches can work together, the Gospel goes to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, AND the uttermost part of the world at the same time (see Acts 1:8). US church planting and foreign missions happens so much faster when a group of churches gather to support laborers in the Gospel!
We have three years to prepare! Our “Be Debt Free for Ministry” offering goal in May is $200,000, but anything above that will also go toward updating our facilities over the next three years:
- New monument sign and entrance
- New landscaping
- Repaired parking lot
- Exterior paint
I have vision far beyond, but this is a great start, and I believe God will allow this to be! It’s exciting serving the Lord.
-Pastor Ryan