Posted: 4/09/08

Bible Studies for Life Series for April 20

Perseverance means going the distance

• Genesis 26:1-3,6,12-22

By Gary Long

Willow Meadows Baptist Church, Houston

Our culture is full of contests that require perseverance. There are athletes who strive to go the distance. Some high schoolers study long hours to gain knowledge and achieve high grades so they can get into college and win scholarships. At the time of this writing, there is a great question about who can go the distance to win the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Looming larger still is the question of who can go the distance to win the whole presidency.

All of us are called to persevere, and most everyone knows a certain amount of drive and determination are required for even modest successes. But perseverance in the life of a Christian may have different meanings and purposes.

While Joseph may have had his coat of many colors, Isaac, his forebear, had his wells of many frustrations. Having grown successful in the land of Abimelech king of the Philistines in Gerar, Isaac was envied by the Philisitines. Seemingly for spite, they filled in the wells his father’s servants had dug and asked Isaac to move away. “You’ve become too strong for us,” they said.

So Isaac moved, only to have this same type of problem. His servants dug a well and found water but lost it to the herdsmen of the area who claimed it as theirs. He lost another well in a similar fashion, and it wasn’t until a third well was dug that Isaac’s people were able to live in peace. Isaac persevered and after this God appeared to him one night and extended the blessing of Abraham to Isaac. Isaac would prosper and flourish by God’s hand.

It is possible to conclude from this text that God extended the blessing from Abraham to Isaac because Isaac persevered. The writer orders the story to give us this theological read. It is possible, however, to read the blessing’s extension apart from Isaac’s perseverance in digging more wells in the face of opposition, and this is probably a more theologically sound reading.

What we can say for sure is that perseverance in the face of opposition is modeled by Isaac in a meaningful way for modern readers. Consider the ways Isaac’s perseverance can strengthen your students in the midst of struggles.

Isaac focused on God’s clear directions to stay in Canaan rather than the logical plan of going down to Egypt to find food in the midst of famine. God tells Isaac to stay put, and Isaac responds obediently. Likewise, believers today are able to persevere more completely when we know we are following God’s path for our lives.

Further, God’s direction to stay in Canaan didn’t make good sense, yet Isaac stayed and prospered among Abimelech’s people. We can reasonably conclude then, that God doesn’t always offer up options that make sense to our human reason. There are times when we are called upon to take a risk, to make an illogical move, to go contrary to conventional wisdom. Moreover, God sometimes calls for action that will be costly in the short term but in the long run will yield a substantial harvest.

Isaac understood his directions to remain in the land of Canaan in the light of God’s promise to bless him. God essentially said, “Look, I promised all this to your father Abraham, and I’m going to do the same for you. But you have to trust me.” It was probably tempting for Isaac to move to Egypt where food and wealth were plentiful. But he fought his instincts because he remembered the promise of God to Abraham.

He likely remembered that promise in the context of nearly being offered to God as a living sacrifice until the angel of God stepped in (see last week’s lesson, 4/13, you should revisit Genesis 22.15-18).

Ask your students to consider how palpable and powerful that promise was for the young Isaac to have heard as he crawled off the pile of wood he was nearly offered upon. By the time we get to Genesis 26, this promise of prosperity means a great deal to Isaac, and he understands the concept of obedience to the point of death—so hanging out in a famished land because God told him to would have been easier because he fully understood that God’s promises were a good thing.

We can find encouragement and endurance when we focus on all the goodness promised to us through the riches of God’s son, Jesus Christ. We are enriched in our perseverance by focusing on these same ideals:

1. Focus on God’s directions first. Persevere when we believe we are doing what God wants us to do.

2. Perseverance in the face of absurdity is a waste. But sometimes God calls us to unconventional obedience.

3. Perseverance is easier for us when we see it in light of all that God has promised us.

Bonus teaching aid

The Disney feature length cartoon Hercules contains a song about the perseverance of a teenage boy to become a real life hero. You can listen to the song “Go the Distance” for free and see the scene from the movie at this website: http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=lenkR5XzSJc. This clip provides you an example of someone who is determined to persevere, but you can use it to make the point that “going the distance” in the life of a Christian calls for God’s blessing and encouragement.

Posted: 4/08/08

Texas raid prompts First Baptist ministry

By Ken Walker

ELDORADO, Texas (BP)–A Baptist congregation housed about 80 women and children April 4-6 after a raid on the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) near Eldorado, Texas.

Members of First Baptist Church in Eldorado embraced the opportunity to minister in Christ's name, pastor Andy Anderson said.

First Baptist also loaned the state of Texas the use of two 25-seat church buses to help transport more than 180 women and children from the 1,619-acre polygamist compound.

"Our folks were eager to step in, and not just our folks, but the entire community," Anderson said. "We have church members who provided a large bulk of the money needed [to buy food]. We also had a huge outpouring from the community."

In addition to church help, the pastor said a statewide grocery chain provided food, while Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo about 45 miles north sent nearly 200 cots to Eldorado.

First Baptist's pastor received a call the morning of April 4 from Schleicher County Sheriff David Doran, alerting him that there would be a need to transport people from the compound of the sect that broke away from the Mormon Church. FLDS' leader Warren Jeffs was convicted last year of two counts of being an accomplice to a rape for his role in arranging and performing a marriage between a male follower and his underage cousin.

Similar reports apparently triggered the Texas raid. The Salt Lake City Tribune reported April 6 that authorities had issued a warrant for Dale Barlow, who is being investigated for marrying and impregnating a 16-year-old girl in Eldorado.

The Eldorado Success newspaper reported in May 2004 that Jeffs' flock was in the midst of a major relocation from the Utah-Arizona border to this southwest Texas town of 2,000, located about 250 miles west of San Antonio.

Known as the YFZ Ranch, the newspaper said the FLDS purchased the property under a shell company's name and told local residents it would be used as a corporate hunting retreat.

Initial news reports indicated 183 women and children were located at the compound. However, the Success reported the morning of April 7 that Texas' Child Protective Services (CPS) now acknowledges relocating 219 residents — 159 children and 60 adults.

Anderson said he and other church members spent all day April 4 and 5 shuttling women and children from the YFZ ranch to the Schleicher County Civic Center or First Baptist.

Approximately 100 residents were taken to the civic center and the remainder went to the church's fellowship hall, the pastor said.

They stayed at the two venues until noon on April 6, when state authorities transported them to Fort Concho, a historical site in San Angelo, Anderson said. The old pioneer days fort contains adequate housing for the women and children, Anderson added.

In addition to First Baptist, members of Community Baptist Church provided food and sent members to help with cooking, the pastor said, and members of First United Methodist Church and Eldorado Church of Christ also played an active role in the ministry effort.

The churches were limited to providing food and shelter, with personal contact handled by CPS staff members, Anderson said.

"I think it was for privacy issues, to allow the women and children to feel comfortable [and] so they wouldn't feel they were in a fishbowl," Anderson said.

"They were obviously tense and under stress. But overall, I was impressed with the women. They held up well and showed good parenting."

Although First Baptist members willingly stepped in to help, the effort caused cancellation of the church's Sunday School classes. Because of a mistaken belief that Sunday services also wouldn't be held, their normal attendance of 140 was down about 30 people, Anderson said.

This isn't the first time the Baptist General Convention of Texas church has been in the media spotlight.

Numerous reporters descended on the town after a bus accident in Louisiana in October 2003 killed eight senior adults who were on a First Baptist-sponsored trip to historic sites across the Southeast.

Though unprepared for the onslaught of attention they received then, Anderson said people were ready for the latest media frenzy.

"I've had several questions from people about the level of stress," Anderson said. "But for the most part, we didn't think about the stress it was causing. It was just a joy and an opportunity to minister."

Ken Walker is a freelance writer based in Huntington, W.Va.

Posted: 4/08/08

Missouri layman proposes
Peace Committee for state convention

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

REPUBLIC, Mo. (ABP)—As battles continue to roil the Missouri Baptist Convention, one prominent layman in the state is proposing a miniature re-creation of the Southern Baptist Convention Peace Committee.

But the convention’s president—cautioning that he had not gotten a chance yet to look at the proposal—said, “I’d be in favor of everything I could do to promote and bring about peace, but I’m not sure a peace committee is going to be an answer.”

President Gerald Davidson said he had only received a copy of Missouri Baptist layman Kent Cochran’s proposal the night before and hadn’t had time to review it in detail due to travel.

Davidson, retired pastor of First Baptist Church of Arnold, Mo., noted that he was a veteran of conservatives’ successful efforts on both the state and national levels to take control from Southern Baptist moderates.

“I go back to the ‘80s, you know; I was involved in the struggles then, and the (SBC) Peace Committee didn’t solve many problems at that time,” he said.

Cochran—a Republic, Mo., layman who is also a veteran of the SBC and MBC struggles against moderates—sent a news release detailing the proposal to media outlets. Cochran’s release said he mailed the proposal to all members of the MBC executive board, scheduled to meet April 14-15. He is not a member of the body.

The proposal asks the board to establish a committee of 14 members representing the two “major sides” in a struggle that, since 2006, has divided the convention into warring factions of conservatives. The committee would “research the perceptions, activities, expectations, history, present and future of Missouri Baptists focusing particularly on the three issues of: theology, methodology, political activity and any related matters that involve Missouri Baptist life,” according to the proposal.

Conservatives in Missouri, led by Missouri Baptist Laymen’s Association founder Roger Moran, cemented their control of the convention’s governing structures in 2001. Many moderate churches in the state withdrew support from the convention, with some joining a new alternative body, the Baptist General Convention of Missouri. Many of those churches were later kicked out of the MBC because of their ties to the new convention as well as a nationwide moderate group, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

But intramural disputes between Missouri conservatives and ultra-conservatives over the convention’s former executive director, Moran’s control of the nominating process and funding for church plants associated with a nondenominational emerging-church network boiled over in 2006. That year, Moran and allies attempted to force a showdown over then-MBC Executive Director David Clippard. The executive board later fired Clippard.

Moran and his allies accused Clippard and others of negligence in approving a $200,000 loan for a St. Louis church start, called The Journey, that was part of the Acts 29 church-planting network. They particularly criticized The Journey for an outreach activity that involved convening a theological discussion group at a St. Louis-area brewpub. Moran claimed that it—and all churches associated with Acts 29—were out of step with what most Southern Baptists believe about the acceptability of alcohol use.

The conflict eventually led to a group of prominent conservative pastors who had worked with Moran in his efforts against moderates to organize against their former ally. The group, calling itself Save Our Convention, held rallies and backed Davidson and a slate of officers for convention posts at the body’s 2007 annual meeting.

Moran—who ran for first vice president—and the other MBLA-backed candidates all lost to the Save Our Convention candidates by wide margins. It was the first time in eight years a slate of MBC officers won without Moran’s backing.

In March, Moran’s organization announced it would gear up and try for a comeback at the next MBC annual meeting, scheduled for October in St. Louis. Along with a press release signed by scores of pastors and laypeople—including Cochran—Moran’s group put out a document detailing what it considers the moral and theological excesses of the Acts 29 movement.

David Sheppard, the informal leader of the Save Our Convention group and pastor of First Baptist Church in St. Charles, Mo., released a statement decrying Moran’s tactics.

“Roger’s whole approach has always been guilt by association,” Sheppard said. “He has identified about 10 churches in the Missouri Baptist Convention that are questionable on these matters. I am absolutely positive that every one of us could find that many churches in this convention that we have serious concerns about their practices and perhaps their beliefs. If we go after everybody’s list of 10, pretty soon we can narrow the convention down to those 10 that agree with us.

“This is about the legalistic powerbrokering of a few people who want absolute control of this convention,” Sheppard’s statement continued.

Cochran’s proposal is modeled after one that established the SBC Peace Committee in 1985. The committee was charged with finding a resolution to the moderate-conservative war that had been raging in the SBC since 1979. It conducted interviews and presented several reports, including a final one that SBC messengers approved at the convention’s 1987 meeting.

However, many moderates denounced the report, saying its conclusions were inaccurate and biased in favor of the conservatives’ rhetoric. Most eventually left the SBC for other groups, including the CBF.

Moran, reached by telephone April 3, said he had only heard about Cochran’s proposal the night before and had not yet seen a copy.

“Generally, Kent talks to me, but he didn’t mention anything to me about it,” he said. Moran declined to discuss his reaction further, citing a policy of only answering questions from the MBC’s and SBC’s in-house news organs. But he directed attention to the anti-Acts 29 manifesto on the MBLA website. “The stuff you’re talking about is on the website, and you can probably draw some logical conclusions about that,” he said.

Kerry Messer, MBLA’s president and a lobbyist from Festus-Crystal City, Mo., said April 3 that he had not heard of the proposal or received it as of the evening of April 2. “This is brand-new news to me,” he said.

Davidson said he didn’t know if the proposal would even get a hearing at the April 14-15 meeting.

“Well, I don’t even know that we’ll bring it up at the executive board meeting,” he said. “You know, the agenda was already pretty well set. I’ll just seek a little counsel about this.”

Posted: 4/08/08

Explore the Bible Series for April 20

When all hope seems lost

• Genesis 39:21; 40:2-15, 20-23

By Donald Raney

First Baptist Church, Petersburg

Have you ever felt trapped by circumstances beyond your control? Perhaps you received words from a doctor you thought you would never hear. Maybe you found yourself swept into some type of problem at your workplace.

Nearly everyone has been faced with financial or family difficulties which come upon us suddenly and from which there seems to be no escape. Often the suddenness or severity of these circumstances can rob us of all of our sense of security and lead us to feel hopeless.

There are a number of ways which people deal with these feelings. Some may be overwhelmed with depression or become apathetic. Others choose to simply try and run away from the situation while others become easily agitated or hostile. Each of these reactions in one way or another demonstrates a lack of faith and trust in God. It is easy to affirm our faith in God when life is smooth, but often we fail to use those times to strengthen our foundation in faith as a defense against the difficult times.

Joseph certainly knew well the feeling that all hope was lost. As we examine his story, we can see how we might face those times without losing hope through exercising our faith.

We can trust God (Genesis 39:21)

He had been sold into slavery by his own brothers. The wife of his first master had lied about him and convinced that master to have him thrown into prison.

Sitting in an Egyptian prison cell, Joseph certainly could not see how the dreams he had once had could possibly come true. Life had not progressed the way he had expected, and now hope for simply being able to live without chains seemed to be fading.

Yet in the midst of describing Joseph’s situation, the writer of Genesis briefly interrupts the flow of the story to explicitly state that God still was watching over Joseph. While there is no indication God met or spoke with Joseph as he had with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, this single verse makes it clear God was working behind the scenes to bless him and insure his success.

It is a sad fact that when we face our own difficult times, the first thing that fades is our trust in God’s protection. Without that sense of divine security, hope can quickly diminish. Yet the story of Joseph assures us that whether we can see or sense where and how, we can trust God always is working on our behalf.

We can serve others (Genesis 40:2-8)

With all that had happened to him, few people would have blamed Joseph for feeling sorry for himself and refusing to associate with others. Yet Joseph seems to have understood that withdrawing into himself would not have improved his circumstances. He knew God had given him a special ability—his insight into the meaning of dreams—and it was his responsibility to use it regardless of his feelings concerning his situation.

Often during trying times, even the most unselfish people can turn inward as he or she seeks to work things out on his or her own. Circumstances can blind us to the needs of others around us. Yet it is a characteristic common to all people that if we focus on serving and helping others work through their problems, our own issues are diminished and seem to resolve themselves.

The story of Joseph shows us that when hope seems lost, reach out and serve others and watch for hope to return.

We can seek help (Genesis 40:9-15)

As difficult as it can be to reach out to help others when we are experiencing difficult times, it can be equally difficult to seek or ask for help from others. Growing up, we are taught the importance of paying our own way, handling our own problems and overcoming our own obstacles. Our human pride and desire to avoid looking weak can cause us to refuse to seek help from others.

Having used his gift to help two fellow prisoners, Joseph asked them for their help. They were to be released, and Joseph asked that they tell pharaoh about him. Seeking help from other people does not demonstrate a lack of faith in God’s ability to assist you in your time of need. It demonstrates an awareness of the fact that, just as God calls on us to help others, God can use the gifts and position of others to help us.

We can be patient (Genesis 40:20-23)

One of the most frustrating aspects of the life of faith is that our timetable rarely aligns with God’s. God almost never seems to act when we feel he should. After Joseph’s interpretations of the dreams of the cupbearer and baker came to pass, he certainly must have felt his days in prison were about to end. But the cupbearer forgot about Joseph.

Two years passed before a dream of pharaoh reminded him of Joseph and he told pharaoh about Joseph. The Bible does not provide information about Joseph’s life in prison during those two years, but it should be noted that when the moment came, he was ready to respond. Once again, he had apparently refused to withdraw into self-pity as it became clear he had been forgotten. He patiently waited, ready to respond and trusting God would not forget him.

When a difficult situation comes upon us, most often our foremost thought is we want it removed now. Patience may be a virtue, but it is one which is very hard to develop because it grows most effectively during tough times. Yet if we truly desire to follow God into the future he has planned for us, even when all hope seems lost, we need to learn to patiently wait trusting in God.

Posted: 3/28/08

Fundamentalists of all stripes
want to turn back the clock

By Marv Knox

Editor

Despite all their theological and cultural differences, fundamentalists of every faith share at least one common characteristic—resistance to modernity.

That’s the assessment of scholars and firsthand observers who have evaluated the varieties of religious expression.

“Fundamentalism worldwide is religious anti-modernism,” noted Roger Olson, professor of theology at Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary in Waco.

The battle with modernity raged on American soil about a century ago, when Protestant fundamentalism resisted “the liberal modernist effort to change theology in light of new scientific and rationalist theses,” said Bill Leonard, a church historian and dean of the Wake Forest University Divinity School.

So, the more recent rise of Islamic fundamentalism is neither unique nor surprising, he said. “Militant action against dissent and pluralism and certainly modernity has worked itself through major elements of Christianity worldwide. … The Muslims are just now confronting that.”

And Muslims aren’t alone, said Rick Shaw, a former missionary who now is dean of Wayland Baptist University’s Kenya campus. He has seen radicalism not only among Christians and Muslims, but also Hindus.

In addition to the common denominator of anti-modernity, multiple factors or impulses transcend theological boundaries and propel adherents toward fundamentalism or militant religion. They include:

• Dogmatic faith.

“Fundamentalism begins not with militarism but with a particular dogmatism about defining the nature of faith over against heresy and secular unbelief,” Leonard stressed. “That then often, though not always, can lead to militant terminology and sometimes militant action.”

It’s like a theological call to arms, added Rob Sellers, professor of missions at Hardin-Simmons University’s Logsdon School of Theology in Abilene.

“When the guardians of orthodoxy begin to feel as if ‘heretical’ views are growing in popularity, the defense mechanisms begin to set in place,” he said. “One has to defend one’s own interpretations or faith and, consequently, one has to speak with certainty to the point of ‘unassailable’ authority.”

Entitlement to authority is easy to justify if you’re defending the Lord of the universe, noted Dan Stiver, a theology professor at Logsdon. Religious extremists may see themselves having “divine permission to attack and destroy someone else,” he explained.

“Ironically, the faith that should elicit a higher form of morality easily descends into giving one permission for the ends to justify the means, because one is fighting for God.”

The distinction between healthy faith and militant religion is narrow, Stiver acknowledged.

“A healthy crusader is focused and aggressive but is not so willing to let the end justify the means, keeps loving the enemy at the forefront—like Martin Luther King Jr.—and more quickly can identify with and have compassion even for the opponent.”

Religious people who make the shift toward extremism often do so based on how they read their holy writings, Shaw observed. “I’ve seen this in radical Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.”

Ironically, moderate followers of those religions are no less faithful to their scriptures, but the distorted, extreme interpretations propel some adherents to radical faith, he said.

That’s not so surprising, given the power of faith on people’s lives, Stiver reported.

“One of the aspects of religion is it’s very powerful, and people come to religion because they have legitimate needs that are met,” he said. “You would want to fill the God-shaped void in a positive way and not in a way that looks like hating your enemy instead of loving your enemy. But it can get circumvented.”

• Identity.

People of faith often gravitate to extreme positions because of what they seek in and for themselves, the scholars stressed.

An external focus on “being against something” provides longed-for identity, Stiver noted. “It’s a defensive posture in the sense of often ‘circling the wagons.’

“It’s usually defined by a pretty tight system of labeling what’s right and wrong—black-and-white thinking. There’s good, and there’s evil.

“Out of that comes a great deal of energy that motivates one to fight. The sense is you get a lot of fulfillment, identity, purpose and meaning in one’s faith from fighting this good fight.”

While such behavior manifests itself as theological, “it’s more psychological or sociological,” Stiver asserted.

Similarly, Shaw pointed to one dimension of psychology—personality—as a contributor to radical religion.

“Among Muslims and Hindus, there is one subpopulation attracted to (radical) faith disproportionately—young men,” he explained. “It is rare that I’ve ever met a young woman who is a radical Muslim or Hindu.”

In the United States, young African-American males are disproportionately attracted to militant forms of Islam, he added.

In all the groups, “young men are attracted to masculine structures and disciplines that have been absent in the clan or extended family,” he observed.

In a related way, culture also provides a dimension of radical religion’s identity.

“The culture clash is a major issue,” Leonard said. “That still goes on. Particularly in Christianity in America in the last 30 or 40 years, you can see how that culture clash has surfaced—still opposing the world, but letting it in the back door.”

Sometimes, militant religion seeks to bring back a culture that never was, Shaw said.

“Perhaps there’s an element of nostalgic longing for a collective memory,” he said, noting that memory often is selective. “There is desire for restoration, often for an empire that never existed in the first place.”

• Fear.

“Fear is the basis of many forms of fundamentalism,” Sellers stressed, citing “fear of difference, of change, of ambiguity or not having all the answers, of ‘worldliness,’ of radicality, of the future, of those who are different.”

“This fear causes some other typical characteristics—a glorification of the past or of orthodoxy, a certainty about one’s own faith or interpretation of one’s own faith; an entrenchment mentality, a feeling that ‘truth’ must be guarded against encroaching heresy and difference, an unwillingness to fellowship with/cooperate with/tolerate those who see faith issues in another way.”

Fear is a dimension of focusing on what Stiver calls “externals.”

“Perhaps this is easier than dealing with the hard work of inner transformation,” Stiver said. “Jesus seemed to be criticizing just such a tendency in the Sermon on the Mount where he kept pointing back to inner transformation, which, of course, does ultimately result in change in the outer world. …

“The problem is that the inner quest for peace can never be satisfied without inner transformation. Hence the pattern of defeating one enemy only to find another enemy as an outlet for religious zeal.

“There will never be an end of outward enemies in this cycle, because the religious quest is displaced from oneself to someone else. Ironically, such an obsession with defeating outer foes reveals a lack of faith in God … that vengeance is God’s. Rather, militants have to do the work of God themselves.”

• Politics.

Radical religion “often is coupled with a political agenda,” Shaw insisted. The pressure can come from the right or from the left, and often it targets “present political structures,” he added.

And sometimes, religion provides a political excuse for more self-serving interests, Leonard observed.

“Some may have (adopted radical faith) because they didn’t get a piece of the culture,” he said. “You can make a case that while Muslims cite religion, another reason for their militancy is they don’t have a piece of the global pie.”

Posted: 4/03/08

Explore the Bible Series for April 13

When Tempted to Sin

• Genesis 39:1-20

By Donald Raney

First Baptist Church, Petersburg

It is one of the truly universal characteristics of human life that everyone faces temptation. We all face them on a daily basis. Temptations come in a wide variety of forms and what might be a strong temptation for one person may not be a real issue for someone else who faces temptations in other areas.

Yet regardless of their form or intensity, all temptations have the same goal – to entice the individual to focus on satisfying his or her own personal desires rather than seeking God’s desires. One way many have chosen to deal with temptation is simply to redefine what acceptable behavior is. Since so many of temptations involve natural human desires, they excuse the behavior involved in yielding to the temptation as a part of life. Such an attitude has led many to question, “whatever happened to sin?”

This has increasingly been true within the larger society in the area of sexual activity. “Sin” and “temptation” have disappeared from the vocabulary of many who now speak of “natural desire.” Yet the Bible is clear that certain behaviors are “sin” and are outside of God’s design for our lives, but because of the presence of Satan and the reality of our selfish sinful human nature, we are constantly bombarded with temptations which seek to draw us away from that design. As we look at the life of Joseph, however, we gain insight into how we might respond to temptation in a way that will please God.

Be Spiritually Sensitive (Genesis 39:1-4)

One of the often overlooked aspects of Joseph’s life is the apparent absence of any reference to God. While God seems to have regularly appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, there is not a single reference to God speaking or appearing to Joseph. In fact, God seems to withdraw from the story of this family after Genesis 36. Yet for the reader who has followed the story, it is clear that God continued to work behind the scenes in protecting and blessing Joseph.

At each step in the story Joseph finds success by using the gifts and abilities which God had given him. Even though he had been betrayed and sold into slavery by his own brothers, Joseph refused to focus on plotting revenge or self-pity. Joseph was continually sensitive to opportunities to use his gifts to help others and God blessed him as he did so. Temptations most often do not come in a single major frontal attack. They usually begin with small steps which seek to lead us into small compromises which in turn dull our spiritual sensitivity. Joseph teaches us that our best weapon against temptations is to maintain careful watch over our attitudes so that we avoid those small “excusable” compromises and remain spiritually sensitive.

Be Spiritually Oriented (Genesis 39:6-9)

Not only did Joseph remain spiritually sensitive to temptation, he also maintained a spiritual orientation. He understood that the most important things in life are not physical things. Many who had experienced the betrayal and slavery which Joseph had experienced may well feel that they deserve anything offered to them if later given the opportunity. Yet Joseph recognized his later good fortune as a blessing which did not give him license to violate God’s standard.

He knew how quickly a position of favor could be taken away. He knew that there were more important things than satisfying his selfish physical desires. One of the things which any temptation seeks to do is to lead the individual to feel that he or she “deserves” to object of the temptation. When we fail to maintain an orientation on the things of God, we become susceptible to temptations. This is what Paul had in mind when he said, “do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14). In order to find success in standing against the temptations of the kingdom of this world, we must be spiritually oriented to the things of the kingdom of God.

Be Spiritually Determined (Genesis 39:10-15, 19-20)

Joseph could have been spiritually sensitive to the presence of temptation and spiritually oriented to the things of God and yet still have yielded at the moment of temptation had he not also been spiritually determined to consistently resist whatever temptation arose. It is unclear exactly how long Potiphar’s wife continued her advances, but it was certainly over an extended period of time. Yet Joseph had apparently set in his mind that there were certain things that he simply would not do, and he persisted in his resistance as long as the temptations continued.

Satan is an extremely patient enemy. He will continue to entice us to sin over days or weeks or more, knowing that if we ever yield once, it will be easier to tempt us next time. Often he will tempt us to the same sin in a variety of ways to catch us off guard. We may occasionally recognize temptation for what it truly is and tell ourselves to keep a proper focus, and yet ultimately yield because we lack the determination or have failed to set certain boundaries which are not open to compromise. If we want to consistently be successful in resisting temptation, then before the moment of temptation comes, we must set those boundaries and then be spiritually determined never to cross them.

Posted: 4/04/08

Children go on mission with Mom

By Marilyn Stewart

New Orleans Seminary

NEW ORLEANS—Ten mothers and 14 children—ages 6 to 13—from Arlington traveled to New Orleans recently with one goal in mind—doing missions together.

“Children, especially boys, often look to their dads as a model for leadership,” said Gina Pierce, mother of two. “But I want my sons to see that God has called me, too.”

The group from Lake Arlington Baptist Church in Arlington worked through Mission Lab, a ministry of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary that customizes mission trips to fit the age and strengths of the mission team.

Children with painted faces, such as Briana and Ashlynn, enjoy the activities at a block party led by volunteers from Lake Arlington Baptist Church in Arlington.

Through partnerships with organizations that provide neighborhood rehabilitation, child-care, care and support for the homeless, people recovering from addiction and those living with AIDS, Mission Lab creates mission opportunities with a goal of creating missionaries.

“We have a love for missions, and we wanted our kids to see that in us,” Pierce said. “There’s no better time to show them than when they are young.”

Lake Arlington Baptist involves families together in missions at home, she said, but the mothers wanted to give the children a wider vision for missions. In New Orleans, the team did yard work, distributed food to the homeless and sponsored a block party.

Sarah Summit, a fourth-grade teacher and a single mom, said she wanted to spend time on mission with her son, Bailey, age 6, because she wanted missions to make an impact on his life.

“We’ve gone through a lot together, but I want him to know that we don’t look at our own circumstances,” Summit said. “I want him to know that taking Jesus to others is the most important thing in his life.”

A second team from Lake Arlington Baptist Church on the trip included another mother-son duo. John Aaron Matthew, Lake Arlington’s college minister and a New Orleans native, led a team of five college students to his hometown, where his mother joined them. Chris Matthew, a professional artist, painted children’s faces at the block party. Matthew said his mother was influential in his commitment to ministry.

“Growing up, I saw my Mom minister to the needs of others,” Matthew said. “She was a good example that whatever gift God has given you, even something like face-painting, can be used for God’s glory.”

Her involvement in Woman’s Missionary Union and as a Mission Friends leader, as well as other church activities, was important in communicating her faith to her children, Matthew said.

“Our kids saw my husband’s and my involvement in giving time and talents to the Lord, even if we didn’t have money to give,” Matthew said. “That’s an important part of what it means to ‘train up a child.’”

Summit believed the opportunity to serve others made a lasting impression on her son. During a phone call home, Summit said her son talked at length about the homeless and how the group prayed for them.

Kim Thibeaux, mother of two, said that seeing the homeless living in tents under a bridge in one section of the city opened the children’s eyes to their own blessings. Her son, Jordan, age 11, was touched by the conditions in which the homeless were living.

“Kids usually think that staying in a tent is fun,” Thibeaux said. “But they saw that they (the homeless) are not making campfires and roasting s’mores.”

The trip afforded new experiences for the children and a view of New Orleans’ distinctive culture and architecture, including its many brightly-colored homes.

Cody Pierce, age ten, said it would be “cool to have a green house.”

His brother Caleb, age eight, when asked why he came on the trip said, “Jesus told me to in my heart.”

Posted: 4/04/08

Hardin-Simmons honors
outstanding young alumni

Hardin-Simmons University has honored an international social worker, a hospice and health care executive and an educator as outstanding young alumni.

Dickson Masindano, Mike McMaude and Laura Pogue were the 2008 recipients of the award, presented annually to distinguished Hardin-Simmons graduates under age 45.

Masindano is director of Buckner International’s work in Kenya. He earned a master of education in counseling and human development at Hardin-Simmons in 2001.

Laura Pogue	Dickson Masindano	Mike McMaude

Under his direction, the Baptist Children’s Center in Nairobi has doubled its residential care for orphaned children, and it has developed into a comprehensive community center that offers a medical and dental clinic, an elementary school and vocational training. Masindano also introduced a pioneering foster care program that has been duplicated throughout Kenya.

He and his wife, Josephine Natembeya, have two children, Miriam and Jescinta, and a foster son, Oscar. They attend the Munyan Memorial Baptist Chapel, housed on the campus of the Baptist Children’s Center in Nairobi.

McMaude is president and chief executive officer of Voyager Hospice Care and was the founder of AccuMed Home Health, a regional provider of home nursing with a focus on serving Medicare beneficiaries. Under his direction, AccuMed grew from the start-up phase to 42 locations in seven states and more than 1,500 patient admissions per month.

Prior to founding AccuMed, he was the president of Amedisys’ Home Health division, which he grew from approximately $25 million to over $100 million in annual revenues, and engineered a dramatic turnaround in profitability. He also completed acquisitions of more than $80 million in revenue and grew the organization from 20 to more than 70 locations.

McMaude earned a bachedlor of business administration degree in marketing from Hardin-Simmons in 1990. Mike continues to serve Hardin-Simmons as a member of the board of development. He and his wife, Melinda, live in Austin.

Pogue holds numerous positions at Hardin-Simmons University—dean of general education studies, chair of the department of literature and languages, associate professor of English, and director of the graduate program in English.

Pogue earned two degrees from Hardin-Simmons—a bachelor of arts degree in English and mass communication and a master of arts with a focus in creative writing in 1991. She received her doctorate in literature from Baylor University.

Early in her academic career, she published various poems in small literary journals and has read her poetry in a number of Texas venues. Pogue has been session organizer and chair for the Texas Teachers of College English Association’s Special Session and other organizations, helped direct HSU’s former Mosaic Texas Culture conference, is a member of the University Women’s Organization, and has recently completed a three-year term on the executive board of the Conference of College Teachers of English.

She is faculty sponsor for the HSU chapter of the English honor society Sigma Tau Delta and sits on eight HSU committees.

She and her husband, Jimmy, have two children—Jamie, age 9, and Kathryn, 6. They are members of Pioneer Drive Baptist Church in Abilene.

Posted: 4/04/08

Missouri Baptist Convention
faces $10 million countersuit

By Vicki Brown

Associated Baptist Press

CAMDENTON, Mo. (ABP)—The Missouri Baptist Convention could face paying more than $10 million to a developer over land formerly owned by Windermere Baptist Conference Center.

William Jester of Springfield, Mo., has filed a counterclaim to legal action convention officials originally filed against him and the conference center in 2006. The developer filed the countersuit in Camden County, Mo., where the lakeside conference center is located.

Jester accuses the original plaintiffs of hurting his business and defaming his character through the original lawsuit and publicity associated with it.

As part of a debt-restructuring plan to cover the costs of an expansion, Windermere transferred 943 acres of its original 1,300 to National City Bank of Cincinnati in late 2005. The bank then sold the property to Jester’s Windermere Development Company Inc.

The convention sued, seeking to stop all land transactions at Windermere pending the outcome of a separate convention-filed suit against five institutions that were formerly affiliated.

The institutions, including Windermere, had removed themselves from the convention’s control in 2000 and 2001. In 2002, the convention filed suit in Cole County, where it is headquartered, to regain control of the agencies’ boards.

In that case, Cole County Circuit Court Judge Richard Callahan ruled Windermere had acted legally when its trustees changed the center’s corporate charter to appoint their own successors. The convention plans to appeal that ruling.

The convention sought to have the Windermere property returned to it as an outcome of that lawsuit.

“They tried to take Mr. Jester’s property in the Cole County case without enjoining him or his companies as parties” to that suit, Jester attorney Burton Shostak of St. Louis noted.

In the separate Camden County suit, the convention sought to prevent Jester from beginning development of the property.

Jester’s counterclaim charges the convention with making unsubstantiated and negative claims publicly, primarily through its in-house news journal The Pathway. Comments “relative to defendants’ business capabilities, financial capabilities and the status of ownership … are derogatory and were made without any effort to confirm” their accuracy, Jester’s suit notes.

Attorneys for Jester claim the convention or its representatives warned prospective lenders against financing development of the property. He alleges the convention acted “with evil and malicious intent” and “outrageously when they intentionally interfered with the defendants’ valid contracts and business expectations.” The state convention also acted “with reckless indifference” to Jester’s rights.

The developer claims the interference has cost him more than $10 million in possible sales or development of the disputed property.

In his counterclaim, Jester is seeking at least $10 million to compensate for those lost profits. He also asks the court to grant punitive damages “in an amount that punishes them.”

“The financial damage they have done to my clients is beyond substantial, and we are looking to the plaintiff individuals and organizations to right that wrong,” Shostak said.

Jester filed his counterclaim against the plaintiffs in the MBC’s suit against him, including the MBC Executive Board; former MBC president Bob Curtis; and convention-elected Windermere trustees Larry Atkins, pastor of First Baptist Church in Buckhorn, Mo.; Don Buford, pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in Big Spring, Mo.; James How of Washington, Mo.; Don Laramore of Caledonia, Mo.; James Robinson of Branson, Mo.; and Charles Schrum of Lebanon, Mo.

The plaintiffs in the Jester case have 30 days in which to respond. Then depositions will begin, according to Shostak.

Posted: 4/03/08

Bible Studies for Life Series for April 13

Exploring Devotion – the Hard Work of Covenant

• Genesis 22:1-19

By Gary Long

Willow Meadows Baptist Church, Houston

The problem with devotion to God is not that it wanes to nothingness, but that our devotion usually shifts to something else. We humans were built for worship, so it’s not a matter of whether or not we worship – but a question of whom we will worship. Is it going to be self and the charms of this world? Or is it going to be the god who creates, renews, forgives, and restores us?

This is the central question faced by Abraham when asked by God to sacrifice his precious son Isaac. Recall the details of this boy’s miraculous birth. First, Sarah and Abraham were childless for many years so Abraham had relations with and conceived a child by Sarah’s slave Hagar. Then, at the age when women are well past child-bearing, Sarah gave birth to Isaac. This boy Isaac was Abraham’s pride and joy. “Whom you love” is how Genesis described Abraham’s affections.

Abraham was being tested by God to display where his loyalties lay.

It is a messy, uncomfortable text because we modern day readers have a hard time connecting to the idea of child sacrifice. We’re left with unsettling questions: Why would a loving God demand such a thing? What would Isaac’s version of this story sound like? Did Isaac resist? How does Isaac relate to his father Abraham after this event? And if we are willing to live this story and give our very best to God, can we expect God to stop us from sacrificing something precious at the last moment?

The tempting and easy answer is “it’s just part of the mystery of God.” However, we shouldn’t resort to that answer too soon, because we may miss some truth that will aid us in the struggle of living the life of faith. Too many times our Bible studies and sermons sanitize the stories of the Bible to make them palatable (and to fit in an hour long worship service!) when instead we should ponder and puzzle over the oddities of the text.

A Demanding God

Why would God demand the offering of a first born? The sacrifice of a child was a cultic practice common in Abraham’s day, but it reads as offensive in our context. This story demonstrates in a radical way the very nature of loyalty which God demands of those who would follow faithfully. It is possible to be a believer and devoted follower, but this idea that God would demand of Abraham the very most important thing in his life indicates to us that there must be nothing – truly nothing or no one – who comes between us and our devotion to following God’s will.

This is a hard truth for Christian, both new and old. The oft held view in the pew is that church participation on Sunday morning and maybe Wednesday night is a full expression of loyalty to God. But this story demands that we examine the ways in which we compartmentalize faith and bring into the light of day the demand that we integrate our beliefs into all we do. Our lives must somehow verify the fact that there is nothing between us and God on our priority scale. If God would demand Abraham’s very best and most precious, there is no reason to think God would expect less of us.

Isaac’s Experience

If Isaac could speak to us, what would his version of the story look like? As a boy who is old enough to take a three day trip, climb a mountain while loaded with firewood, and have the presence of mind to ask “where is the lamb for the sacrifice?” we can guess that Isaac has a sense of what is going on when he gets bound and laid down on the altar. He’d seen a sacrifice before and had most likely figured out that he, although precious to his father, was about to play second fiddle to the God of the cosmos.

A hard question to ask your learners is this: Is there ever a time when too much religion is bad for a family? Bad for a child? What is it like to be the child Isaac in the household of the faithful Abraham?

I remember the story told to me by a woman in the first church I served as a pastor. She was a few years older than me, in her mid-30’s at the time, and she and her husband were raising two teenagers and working hard. Our families were out one Sunday afternoon water-skiing and discussing life. I mentioned how thankful I was that her father had been so devoted to our church and that he was really a pillar of the church. Her response was polite, but direct. “As a little girl it was pretty hard to see him spend so much time serving the church, though. I’d rather him been more of a daddy than a deacon.”

Reading this story as a young boy terrorized me. It left me worried that God would demand that of my father. While this story is really about the testing of Abraham, there must be at least a passing thought as to what the implications of faith are on our children and spouses, not to mention friendships and employment. There is a degree to which we modern followers must be balanced in our approach to church participation. Isaac’s experience at least begs the question of how parents must work to balance out family and faith.

What if God Doesn’t Stop Me?

Genesis 22.15 says, “…because you have done this an have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you…” The story is frequently used by preachers to encourage church folk to make sacrifices in a modern way by giving of their resources to support the ministry of the church. The logic is that if we are willing to sacrifice like Abraham was, then we will be blessed as well. While that may be a reasonable way to read this story in our world, it is important to note that God might not stop us at the last moment like God stopped Abraham. There are no guarantees that the result of testing by God will be prosperity like it was for Abraham.

We are guaranteed that God will test us, and we are guaranteed that God will use that testing to change us, shape us, and direct us. What matters, as a result, is that as we consider the reasons God might be testing us, we must also be determined to grow from testing and sacrifice.

Posted: 4/03/08

Two Texas teens on 2008 national Acteens panel

By Julie Walters

Woman’s Missionary Union

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—Two Texas Baptist teenagers have been selected to serve on the national Acteens panel by national Woman’s Missionary Union.

Kristi Damon, 17, of First Baptist Church in Amarillo and Paige Baker, 18, of Humble Area’s First Baptist Church were selected based on their strong commitment and active involvement in missions and Acteens, the WMU missions organization for teenage girls in grades 7–12, coupled with exemplary leadership and involvement in their community and church. Church leaders highly rcommended both young women.

Paige Baker	Kristi Damon

“Kristi demonstrates all of the qualities we want in Acteens,” said Sabrina Dubberly, her Acteens leader. “She’s a young girl who has grown in her faith and her service during her years as a member . . . a young lady who demonstrates her faith by her appearance, her attitude, and her service.”

In addition to ministering in her community through Acteens, Damon’s missions involvement includes teaching Vacation Bible School three years in Mexico and once in Brazil.

“Missions is important to me because it gives me hope for the person I am sharing Christ’s love with,” Damon wrote in her application. “He or she may or may not make the decision that day, but at least I know I planted a seed. Not only does God command us to teach others about Christ, but as Christians we should yearn to.

“Having a relationship with God, showing his love, and teaching his story to people who haven’t heard it is what Christianity is. You can travel to another country or look to the person beside you and share the greatest story ever told.”

Damon served on her school’s student council, is a member of the National Honor Society and numerous clubs, and has served as chairman on several school committees. She also mentors seventh grade girls and tutors elementary school students.

Likewise, Baker is also a proven leader and very active in missions and Acteens—even though her church no longer offers Acteens. When Humble Area’s First Baptist Church discontinued Acteens, the group’s leader, Debbie Taylor, looked for opportunities to start a new group and involve more girls in missions. Taylor and Baker travel to downtown Houston every week to the Fletcher Baptist Mission Center.

“We hold Acteens at the center with the under-privileged Hispanic girls in the area,” Baker said.

Although it’s a 40-minute drive one way, Baker and the others are now in their second year of meeting with the inner-city Acteens group.

“The girls love being able to talk with Paige about their problems and questions,” Taylor said. “She helps prepare the lesson, the prayer calendar or presents new activities. Paige is an exceptional young Christian woman with a love for the Lord, a love for helping others, and a love for share Christ with others.”

In school, Baker is president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Christian Student Union, and she is a member of the student council, Spanish club, National Honor Society, band and choir.

Baker and Damon will serve with four other national panelists this year—Gretchen Allie of University Hills Baptist Church, Charlotte, N.C.; Kailee Barfield of First Baptist Church, Fort Mill, S.C.; Rachel Krome of Brown Deer Baptist Church, Oostburg, Wis.; and Amanda-Grace Richey of Burks Branch Baptist Church, Smithfield, Ky.

“Recognizing outstanding Acteens is one way we help foster young, emerging leaders for the future as missions advocates and leaders of WMU,” said Wanda Lee, executive director-treasurer of national WMU. “The Acteens panelists are always a shining example of the high quality of Christian youth in our churches today.”

Suzanne Reece, ministry consultant for national WMU’s student resource team, agreed.

“One look at the 2008 National Acteens Panelists will encourage all of us that teenage girls are serious about their relationship with Godm and they are committed to being involved in his work in the world,” observed Reece. “These students are not the kind to wait for someone to tell them what mission project is next. They are the ones who actively seek ways to minister to others and then bring their friends and fellow Acteens along. These young women are leading the way for Acteens and missions involvement.”

Along with the other 2008 National Acteens Panelists, Baker and Damon will serve from Feb. 1 to Dec. 31, and each will receive a $1,000 Jessica Powell Loftis Scholarship for Acteens from the WMU Foundation.

Throughout the year, they will have the opportunity to write articles for The Mag, the missions magazine for Acteens, and for the Acteens Web site, www.acteens.com. In addition, panelists work together as a focus group to help shape the future direction of Acteens.

They also will participate in the annual WMU missions celebration and annual meeting in Indianapolis, Ind., in June, prior to the Southern Baptist Convention.

As panelists, they will have the opportunity to interact with missionaries and national leaders involved in missions, and may be requested to speak to church, associational, and/or state Acteens and WMU groups.

Applications for the 2009 National Acteens Panel are due to WMU headquarters by Dec. 1. Applications will be available on the Acteens Web site at www.acteens.com and in the fall issue of Acteens Leader.

Posted: 4/03/08

Chef found recipe for
happiness at Dallas church

By George Henson

Staff Writer

DALLAS—John Jost had no idea what God was cooking up when he led him to Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas as the church’s chef.

Jost began his training as a classically trained chef in Germany, and had worked in hotels throughout the United States. But was looking for a job when God began dropping the bread crumbs that led Jost to the Wilshire kitchen.

David Norris, a member of the Wilshire staff, was working alongside a chef-friend of Jost’s at an charity event to help the homeless, and he mentioned the church was without a cook. The friend called Jost and told him about the job.

“Why would I want to work at a church?” Jost recalled asking. “I’m not a church-lady kind of cook. I need a hotel.”

But Jost was finding it difficult to find a job with benefits. So, he spoke to his father about the prospect of working at the church.

“My father told me that he was praying for me to find something that would work for me,” Jost said. “But at this time I was not a man of faith, so I wasn’t doing any praying.”

Norris called Jost to tell him about the job, and the benefits attached to it grabbed his attention.

“At that time in my life, the benefits package was huge, because my body was breaking down,” Jost admitted. At the time, he weighed more than 500 pounds.

When Jost came to Wilshire for a job interview with Norris, he recognized it was different than the environment where he had worked in hotels.

“He talked to me exactly the same in person as he had on the phone. People didn’t do that at that time. My size always caused them to treat me differently when they saw me, but he didn’t,” Jost recalled.

In July 1997, he accepted the job. But he told them up front, “I’m here to work—not to be Bible-thumped, and I don’t want to hear ‘God this’ and ‘Lord that’ and ‘Jesus loves you.’”

“I thought religion was something I could do without,” he said.

But he was not prepared for the unconditional acceptance he discovered at Wilshire.

“They just welcomed me and accepted me just as I was,” he said.

In particular, Jost felt encouragement from two women in the church—Clairene Herold and Jorja Krause, who Jost calls “my angels.” They constantly sent him notes of appreciation, he said.

“They were my two angels guiding me on the path. I was beginning to think about becoming a Christian, but thought I was too big a sinner,” he said.

Their kindness finally broke through to him one morning, when they were worlds apart. One of the women left a note on Jost’s desk. As soon as he read it, an e-mail from the other, who was vacationing overseas, arrived on his computer. They both, with no idea of the other’s having done so, had left him the exact same message—Philippians 4:13: “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

While he was still pondering that apparent coincidence, he opened two fortune cookies. One said, “Take the next step.” The other said, “Sometimes we’re not ready but have to go ahead.’

He talked to Pastor George Mason about making a faith commitment to Christ but told him, “I’m not ready.”

“None of us are,” Mason said. “And we all fall, but then we have somebody to fall back on.”

Jost was baptized May 16, 1999. Early in his Christian walk, Jost acknowledged he fell often, but God remained faithful to him.

About this time, friends and family began to grow concerned about the impact Jost’s weight was having on his health. One of those most concerned was a friend in Germany who is now his wife, Christine.

“She began to tell me: ‘I’m so afraid. I fear for your life,’” he remembered. From Christine, he first learned about gastric bypass surgery, and in February 2001, the procedure was done. He lost 50 pounds the first month. Over time, his weight dropped from 525 pounds to about 270 pounds.

“My spirit was saved in May 1999, and my life was saved in 2001,” he said.

After his health improved, he began to think more of a future with Christine, whom he had met more than 30 years ago when he first arrived in Germany to begin his training as a chef. He recalled being smitten by her at first sight, but since he had returned to the United States, she had married someone else. Once that marriage ended, they began talking daily.

Eventually, she came to the United States with her two daughters, Stefanie and Alexandra. Christine was baptized in June 2006, and they were married that August.

When Jost arrived at Wilshire, he saw it as short-term employment until he “could find a job as a real chef.”

Now he says, “I will be here until they cart my tired bones away, and I retire.”

The authentic Christian community he found at Wilshire changed his life so dramatically he can’t imagine what would have happened to him otherwise, he said. But he is fairly certain he would not have lived this long.

“Here, I found a family of real people with foibles, dreams and talents who were willing to accept me just as I was. They gave me a new life and it kept me alive long enough to be rejoined with the love of my life.

“They gave me so much more than a job.”