After a week away, I’m not exactly rested, but I AM rejuvenated!
I just came back from a preaching conference in Oklahoma, after which we added on a few days for family vacation. It felt like three little trips in one.
GIBF MEETING
First, we attended the Global Independent Baptist Fellowship meeting where hundreds of pastors from all over the country gathered for preaching, singing, and fellowship together. To me, this year’s preaching was especially encouraging, as every single sermon was helpful in some way. The meetings are always good, but sometimes I come away with a few “duds” (kind of like YOU feel when I preach here!) I guess I’m saying that this year there were no “duds.”
If the Lord wills, I’ll use tonight’s message to summarize the week and recap the most helpful thoughts from each. Come back tonight for more—I am so excited to share how God helped ME, and also share what a “Fellowship” is. We’re not Southern Baptists or part of any other convention, but we do loosely cooperate with other churches, and it is a cause that goes far beyond our Temecula Valley. I’ll talk more about that tonight.
SHAWNEE. About 10 years ago, my friend Richard MacQueen started an independent Baptist church in Shawnee, OK. There were Southern Baptist churches in the area but they were loose in their convictions on God’s Word, they were run by deacons, and they were dead or dying, so God called him to start that church, and it is thriving! We ministered by singing and preaching on Sunday, and we were so encouraged by the life in that place!
BRANSON. On Monday, our family went with the MacQueens to Branson, MO, stopping along the way to meet up with friends like the Palmers (many of you remember them from the Román’s wedding) and our former intern, Karsten Blevins. Our families played together at the AirBnB on Table Rock Lake, and we talked late into each night about every topic under the sun, mainly about church (that’s why we had to come home to get some rest after our vacation!) We enjoyed the Calvary Baptist Church services in Branson on Wednesday, and then left early Thursday morning to get back home.
THANK YOU. Thank you for praying. Thank you for texting. Thank you for serving and growing and edifying the church in love. Thank you for ministering last Sunday, and both Wednesdays we were gone. Every time I’m away, it’s a nice little breather, but it makes me pine for home. Glad to be back at CBC.
—Pastor Ryan Rench