Apostolic Truth Tabernacle - Visited

It may be helpful for me to tell you that this is the church that meets in the small shopping center shared with Bell Office Supply. There is a large sign in the window that simply says "Apostolic Truth Tabernacle" and lists a phone number. Since there were no service times listed I called the phone number that morning and learned the church service would begin at 10:00 AM.

I arrived there a few minutes early which is usual for me (in most other things too). There weren't very many cars in the parking lot or in the church building for that matter. I have, especially recently, started getting used to visiting some small churches. I counted a total of 13 during the middle of this service. This was my smallest church so far.

The pastor, James French, introduced himself to me and invited me to call him Brother French. I think almost everyone in the church came to meet me, the highest percentage so far, bless them. We started off with some praise songs, some familiar some not which has, understandably, been my experience. I was pleasantly surprised by how easily I was still able to "enter in" even in such a small group with limited musical resources. I actually wondered for a bit if the angelic hosts were helping this little church group out with the singing. It certainly felt like it.

I was able to share with the pastor after the service the primary reasons for my visit. They invited me back and I hope to visit them again next year.

The principal verse I walked away with (I like to use scripture to form my prayer) was 2 Chronicles 7:14.

"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." - 2 Chronicles 7:14 (KJV)

During the IHOP-SS sets we like to narrow it down even further and try to use the apostolic prayers to form our prayers and singing around. I will need to continue in prayer to see how the Lord leads us in prayer through His holy word.

- Wade Baker

Siloam Church of Christ - Visited

I had a good visit with Siloam Church of Christ as the Wednesday night set at the IHOP-SS continues to pray for the 52 churches of Siloam Springs.

Siloam Church of Christ's service began at 10:30 AM and I was greeted by an older gentleman at the door. The church building appears small from the outside and the portion of the interior being used as a sanctuary is also quite small. I estimate there were about 20-30 people there and it seemed nearly full even though someone remarked many people were out of town due to the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

Several people were kind to come meet me and introduce themselves. I was able to share with a couple of individuals the reason for my visit but I did not get clear ideas as to what to pray for. The gentleman I believe is the pastor introduced himself but I didn't feel I had the opportunity to speak with him at more length. I did quickly find someone I share a mutual acquaintance with and that is always nice.

Being Church of Christ we sang all the songs without instruments. They do this so well I hardly missed them. Some of the youth also participated in the service by reading certain scriptures. I've seen this a couple of times in the various churches and always like it.

I'm really open to what the Lord puts on my heart to pray for Siloam Church of Christ. This will probably be the first time I've had so little direction from the visited church itself. It will require an increased trust in the Lord and may also provide others who pray with us an opportunity to share what the Lord puts on their hearts without the usual direction. This could prove to be an encouraging and exciting surprise. I look forward to it, as usual. Sundays and Wednesdays always seem like the highlights of my week. Bless the Lord, O my soul!

- Wade Baker

Fellowship Bible Church - Visited

Here's a link to the reason I'm visiting the 52 churches of Siloam Springs the 52 weeks in 2009.

I was surprised by how many of the 75 or so folks at Fellowship Bible Church I actually knew. I was reacquainted with Brian Kyle as I stepped out of my truck in the church's parking lot. Brian reminded me we'd been on a lengthy caving trip together with our mutual friend Brent. We walked into the church building together and Brain was kind to point me to the main sanctuary.

I took a seat somewhere near the middle and saw that a coworker, Elizabeth Smith, was on the worship team. I saw her husband, Corey, come in just a moment later. As people started filing in I saw Toby Thompson and his large family and then Randy Torres and his family of four. The couple next to me introduced themselves to me and welcomed me as did several others.

After a time of worship music the Pastor, Kevin Rees, delivered an excellent teaching from the book of Acts. I met Pastor Rees for the first time after the service. We had corresponded by email prior to my visit and he had shared with me the topics of prayer for their congregation.

There were others I recognized after the service. Coworker Kirk Demaris was there with his wife I think. I know coworker Nick DeYoung and his growing family go to FBC but were home with the new baby that weekend. My wife, Gina, also has a coworker and her husband that go there.

The church normally has Sunday School afterward but this weekend was an exception due to an offsite picnic following the service.

I told them how much I was looking forward to us praying for them and waved as I returned to my truck. I drove what couldn't have been much more than a mile back to Antioch Church and caught the last half of the 2nd service.

It turns out Fellowship Bible will also be conducting a prayer service this Wednesday at 7PM and they have committed to pray for us as we pray for them. That may be a first and is certainly a blessing. I'll look forward to seeing more of them in the future.

- Wade Baker

St. Mary's Catholic Church - Visited

I followed through with my plan and attended Saturday afternoon mass.

The apparent size of the church seems smaller than what I have been used to (smaller town) and with them offering 3-4 services each weekend I didn't expect the Saturday afternoon mass to be that well attended. You can imagine my surprise when I pulled into the parking lot several minutes early and found it quite full. I was encouraged by this. I was concerned I had chosen a service time that would limit my interaction with the greater fellowship. I was glad to see that I had nothing to worry about.

I parked my truck (a vehicle of humility), grabbed my bag (it has my bible, journal, pens, etc.) and followed the stream to the door. A nice man was holding it open. I walked in and found a seat toward the front where there always seems to be ample space regardless of denomination.

There was a reserved section to my right across the aisle with about 20 youth all wearing same kind of shirt. Just beyond them, almost in the corner, I saw a couple people with guitars. That was a new one for me, guitars in a Catholic church. A quick glance around the room showed no space for any other larger instruments so I guess that made sense. I was glad to see them (one classical and one 12-string I recall).

We started off with a song and then went right into the mass. The youth in the reserved seating helped with scripture reading and prayer and then the priest (I hope that's right) delivered a very meaningful message about how faithful followers of Christ bear fruit. It was then announced that the 20 or so youth present were preparing for an upcoming confirmation service the following weekend. The father explained that this is when the Holy Spirit comes on a person, the gifts are made full and He places His seal upon them.

I was very grateful for this helpful explanation for I recognized this event as what others call Baptism of the Holy Spirit. This was something I could definitely help lead others in prayer for. The Lord always has such great timing.

At the conclusion of the service I met my pew partner Jim Woods. He's an older man with some physical difficulty who uses a cane. I explained to him the reason for my visit and he seemed genuinely touched. I told him about how I was raised partly in the Catholic church in Myrtle Beach and it turned out he once lived 4 hours from there. We talked about "the good old days" and golf, exchanged names and said good-bye.

The father was greeting folks as they walked out. We shook hands and introduced ourselves to one another. He told me his name is Father Tyler. I briefly explained the reason for my visit and told him we'd be praying for the youth's confirmation service and let him know that I also emailed the church for additional prayer requests. We thanked one another and I headed for my truck.

No matter which fellowship I visit each week I still get that "butterflies" feeling each time. Usually they are about different things depending on my preconceptions about a particular church no matter how accurate or inaccurate they may be. I find I am usually wrong and I don't recall a time when I walked away from a visiting church not experiencing joy and feeling the blessing in my heart.

It is my honor, given to me by God, to pray for St. Mary's this week and to lead others in agreement for our brothers and sisters there.

- Wade Baker

St. Mary's Catholic Church

Continuing to pray for the 52 churches of Siloam Springs, I'm visiting St. Mary's Catholic Church this weekend to help prepare for next Wednesday's prayer time. They have a number of services each weekend, both english-speaking and spanish speaking. I normally go for the largest-attended most traditional service time but I'm making an exception in this case.

If I attend their morning service I can also attend my home church's 2nd service but I'd be getting out pretty late and being Mother's Day I wanted to be available as soon as possible to join the family for lunch that day.

So St. Mary's actually has a Saturday afternoon mass at 4:30 PM. I didn't have any other plans during that time and that will allow me to attend the 1st service at Antioch and have plenty of time for Mother's Day lunch.

Gina's parents, Ronnie & Zula, have been very understanding as this ministry has certainly affected my ability to join them for this tradition we've maintained more than a decade now. I try to make a way anytime I can, find a win-win so to speak. I have to say, I think the Lord sometimes even uses these changes in approach to put me in the right place at the right time when I might not otherwise sense his calling in that direction. I know that was true with last weekend's visit with Eastgate.

I believe St Mary's will be church visit number 18 year to date. I wasn't really counting in the beginning but more and more people have been asking so I thought I'd be better prepared instead of guessing or trying to figure it out every time. So I'm getting closer to the half way point. In fact, around the time I leave for Redding, or the Sunday I return should be around half way (end of June, the 6th month).

I have been able to get a hold of someone at St. Mary's in advance which personally I generally prefer. I also prefer to do this primarily through email which is not always available or possible. So I try it whenever I can and don't worry about it if I can't. It's been amazing to see what the Lord does even without advance notice. I think out of the 4 "best" speaking engagements so far, that I am currently recalling, 3 of them had advance notice. So it certainly doesn't hurt.

I am somewhat familiar with the Catholic congregations. I was actually christened in a Catholic church when I was a little baby. I have pictures to prove I wore the little white dress-looking garment. Someone may even still have it for safe keeping, although I could be wrong about that. Because my birth parents divorced when I was 3 I remember growing up and visiting the local Catholic church any weekend we were visiting with our father. I even remember us looking to send me to their school but it didn't pan out.

So between the age of 3 and say 13 I recall countless mass services and other church related functions, even when I was a little older. My father, Jim, was involved with the Knights of Columbus for probably at least a couple of decades. At one time both my father in SC and my grandfather in CA were Grand Knights and there was an article written about having the son and father on the two coasts.

So that's probably a good segway into our family's long running history with the Catholic church. My late grandfather was Catholic most likely further back than my lifetime and probably further back than that. That side of the family came from Canada.

All this to say that I have relative comfort visiting our local Catholic church because of this legacy and experience.

I also have to say, I have been quite inspired, especially in latter years with many of the firm and mostly unpopular stances the Catholic leadership has maintained. This would especially include areas like the sanctity of life and sanctity of marriage, obviously very pro-family. I know also in this community and those around us that the Catholic church is a real help to many of our spanish-speaking brothers and sisters. There's even a faith-based organization not too far here that helps with immigration. In addition to the service that provides it's also certainly one creative way to grow a church. Our local Catholic church, among others, has also served as a voting location which I'm grateful to be able to do in a house of worship. I could see that potentially becoming a conflict of interest, separation of church & state, legal issue someday.

I'm sure I probably know a person or two who attends St. Mary's but not that I can recall. There's hardly been a church yet I haven't known at least one person. I've been especially blessed by that. I've always left with more friends than I started with.

So in the meantime I hope to hear back from my email contact how we can best pray for St. Mary's Church.

Thank you for bearing with my especially long write up. I really want to offer more of an inside personal view into this outreach. I imagine there are many who would be interested in joining me on this journey and this may be the easiest way to bring as many of you along as possible. So far I haven't had anyone actually join me yet for a visit, or express interest for that matter. The number of people that come to Wednesday nights and that also otherwise ask me about it tells me they are certainly interested. But, if you are not called to this particular task you certainly should be doing what you are called to. If the Lord ever does lead you to join me I'd be very interested in hearing from you. I could especially use a little help with translation at some of the Spanish speaking services.

I look forward to visiting St Mary's and the Saturday afternoon could turn out to be a nice change of pace and another example on a long list of truly divine appointments.

- Wade Baker

The 52 Churches Is Now This New Blog

It was barely a week ago I started my first blog and now I have 3. There are certain topics arising that I feel are important unto themselves and deserve undivided attention. Will I have 3 times the work? I hope not. I expect I will blog much the same but use the 3 different addresses like folders. It sounds like I need a website. Well, I'm glad you agree. That is being worked on.

I am currently working with a dear partner on that and it is in its beginning stages. The address is as follows:

http://www.poolofsiloam.com/

Feel free to check it out. It looks like it's going to be a slow build for now so check back every so often.

For now I'm hoping to build content in the blogs. Maybe someday this will all come together.

In the menatime, like before, I will most likely be moving articles over here. Hopefully I won't lose any.

- Wade Baker

Eastgate Free Will Baptist Church - Visited

I probably think this each time but it's true. I will definitely remember today's visit with my brothers and sisters at Eastgate Free Will Baptist Church. Every visit with each of the 52 churches that call Siloam Springs home (by address) is unique, special and memorable. What helped set this particular fellowship apart really began for me Friday afternoon. I mostly covered that in a previous post. I sensed that conversation with Steve was yet another divine appointment I just wasn't sure to what extent.

Because Eastgate's service didn't start until 11:00 AM I was able to also attend the 9:00 AM service at my home church, Antioch, first. This continues to be very important to me, staying rooted and grounded in a home fellowship while visiting so many other churches.

I pulled into the parking lot at Eastgate, found a space and walked in. I set my bag down in a pew toward the back (had difficulty getting through the aisle) and the pastor was quick to greet. Steve Hill had done a great job of telling the pastor I was coming and after a few words he invited me to share this morning from the pulpit. I readily agreed and now that the aisle was once again clear moved my stuff to a pew in front.

Pastor Jerry Sadler made a few announcements and then was quick to introduce me as being with the International House of Prayer - Siloam Springs. He invited me up, handed me the microphone and I apologized for my cold-induced whispered speech. The first thing that always seems to overwhelm me in these opportunities is the sincere privilege and honor I feel being in that position. It seems I can't help but try to communicate that to that fellowship. I'm sure it never comes across as deeply as I feel it.

I went on to explain what the House of Prayer is doing - praying for the 52 churches of Siloam Springs, one each week of this year and that we would be praying for them specifically this Wednesday night. I explained that I personally visit each church to better understand who we are praying for.

Quickly I transitioned into two other points I felt led to share. The first was regarding the sign they have out by the highway. I blogged a little about this already a few days ago but what I said to the church family was how much I knew that it was a part of their ministry. I shared with them how just last weekend I heard from a young lady visiting our community how the Lord had used their sign to speak to her. I think this is where I heard my first "Amen!". I'm not certain because frankly it surprised me. I haven't heard too many of them from where I was standing at the time. I was blessed and encouraged by it.

I used the telling of this testimony to move into my second point and that was a verse I felt led to share with them. I read John 9:11, "He answered and said, A man called Jesus made clay, and anointed my eyes, and said to me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight." That brought at least another "Amen!". I was starting to like this. I invited the congregation to think about what it would mean if we thought about the greater church of Siloam Springs as being a "pool of Siloam". "Amen!" That people are drawn from hours away, as was the young lady last weekend, to see the Lord in this place and ask for a touch of Him in their lives. "Amen!"

That was all I had so I closed my Bible, reminded them we are praying for them and thanked them again before taking my seat in the pews. The pastor and all the congregation were so very gracious and it touched my heart. They were having a luncheon afterwards and invited me to stay.

On our way to the fellowship hall the pastor and his wife invited me into the office. We shared with one another what the Lord had been doing through our lives and the ministries He had called us in to. The theme the pastor and his wife asked us to pray about over and over was raising up laborers. They sensed an increasing need for those who are called to teach. "May the word of the Lord run swiftly."

We we're there 10 minutes or so before our appetites moved us into the fellowship hall. There was plenty of delicious food and the conversations were also sweet. And I didn't catch the name of the lady that made the strawberry dessert but that recipe alone could cause a surge in attendance in that church. Growing up, my parents always commented that my brother Chris & I would always remember the church by the food. Somethings never change.

- Wade Baker