STATE MISSIONS: Lighthouses Save Lives

“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:14-16).

I will never forget, years ago, a person walked into our church service and took a seat. I could tell by his demeanor that he was troubled about something. So, after services, I made it a point to go to him, give him a personal welcome and ask him if I could do anything for him. It seemed he just needed someone to talk to.

He shared that his wife had left him for another man, and his mother died shortly after. But the straw that broke the camel’s back was when his only son committed suicide. This man was contemplating ending his life. It was only after seeing our church sign that he decided to come inside. After sharing Christ with him, he invited Jesus into his heart. To this day, he can be found happily remarried and still serving the Lord.

I wonder how many despondent individuals and families on the verge of disaster could share a story much like this one. My personal story found Vicki and me 20 years old and having just become parents. Having a child and being children ourselves, we packed a diaper bag and drove to the church nearby because we knew we owed it to our son to bring him up to know God and His son, Jesus. Like the man above, we were not invited — “and a child shall lead them” (Isa. 11:6).

Visible churches are lighthouses to many wandering in the darkness of their sin. My first song leader, Bruce Owens, sang “The Lighthouse,” which goes along with our Scripture text. “If it wasn’t for the lighthouse, where would my life be?”

Church buildings are not cruise ships. They are fishing vessels. They are billboards shouting, “Jesus is alive!” They are to let down their nets. They were designed to fish. A church that fails to catch fish (men) through conversion has really lost its purpose to exist. Paul reveals Jesus’ love for His church in the following: “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-12).

From Our Missionaries

Misión Creciendo en Cristo (Growing in Christ), North Little Rock: Juan Carlos Posadas writes, “Wednesday night, the Ladies’ and Youth discipleship groups gathered around a campfire. We studied Matt. 5:13-16 about what it means to be the salt and light of the world. We asked ourselves if we were keeping our neighborhood from corruption and guiding our friends to Christ.

After praising our Lord with songs and a good biblical reflection, each participant had the opportunity to prepare a S’more. The sisters brought food to share and champurrado (a hot drink with chocolate and corn flour).

“Thursday, the leaders of the Hispanic churches of Arkansas had a business meeting with two sermons, fellowship and a delicious lunch.

“Sunday, Oscar Lopez began a series of studies in the book of Ecclesiastes. I thank God for Bro. Lopez’s life and that he is willing to serve the Lord and is preparing himself at the Bible Institute.”

Ebenezer, West Little Rock: Ruben Isturiz writes, “Tuesday afternoon, we returned from our time with our children at fall break at the university. That evening, I went to teach my class at the Hispanic Theological Institute of our Association. Thank God, everything is going well. We are trying to finish before Thanksgiving.

“Thursday morning, Ebenezer hosted our annual Arkansas Hispanic Missionary Baptist Association meeting. Thank God, everything went well at our meeting. We elected officers and heard the reports of the previous Board of Directors. That evening, we continued giving the Awakening workshop by the Novo ministry (novo.org). As I have told you, we are giving this workshop to pastors and leaders from Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and Venezuela. We only have two more weeks to finish the commitment, and we are planning what we will do in 2025.

“Sunday was inspiring, with a Celebration Service emphasizing missions. We prayed for the persecuted church in the world and, this week, we prayed for Cuba. We also prayed for the ministry of Lifeword and took a special offering for them.

“We continue to prepare leaders. For now, it is a little slow, but I know it will bear fruit in time. Keep praying for us, and thank you for your support.”

Faith Chapel, Flippin: Johnny Shew writes, “We had another great week at Faith Chapel. A good number and a great time of worship!

“I got to attend the Jonesboro Association’s annual meeting on Saturday. I had a wonderful time, and seeing so many good friends was good. I have been a part of their brotherhood for about 10 years now. Our mother church belongs to that association, and even though it is about three hours from Flippin, I love going to fellowship with them. John Travis brought a wonderful message I needed to hear, and Prospect Baptist Church was a wonderful host! I also got to give them a report on the new building and the state of the mission and thank them in person for their prayers and support. It was a good trip, and it was well worth the drive!

“We wish we could visit you all and tell you about our mission, and if you want us to, we will. We love sharing what God is doing here in Flippin.

“We are still waiting for countertops and water heater hookups to have running water and get moved into the new building. The flooring contractor was supposed to come back last week for a final coat of sealer and burnishing, but due to equipment problems, he is behind and thinks he will get to us next week. We need those things done before we move in furniture and chairs. We are still waiting for three interior doors that have been ordered for several weeks, and we are not sure what the delay is. So, we did get a little work done on the building, but mostly, we waited for these things. We are getting so close and more excited every day.

“Thank you all again for your prayers and support. We pray God will bless your faithfulness. We thank Him for you!”

Faith Journey, Benton: Bryan Clay writes, “Bring on the cooler temperatures and crisp fall days! I am so thankful God blesses us with the beauty of all the different seasons. Like the different seasons of the year, we have different seasons in our lives, but the one who remains constant in all things is our Lord, Jesus Christ. He is always faithful to His children through all the seasons of our lives.

“We kicked off the fall season with a chili and hot dog fellowship this week! We enjoyed the time spent with our Faith Journey family and had a great time of Bible study, testimonies and prayer. We talked about the things God has done in our lives this week and the opportunities that He put in front of us to share about Him and His saving grace to others around us.”

Misión Gracia Soberana (Sovereign Grace), NWA:Roberto Marcelletti writes, “This week was emotional for me as our church celebrated Pastor’s Appreciation Day. When we arrived on Saturday for our congregational devotional, the Lord spoke to our lives through the lives of several men of the Bible, such as Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samson, David, Elijah, Peter and Paul. They were not a collection of heroes, but their lives spoke of a great Redeeming Hero who makes ordinary people do extraordinary things for His glory and our good.

“After our time in the Word, Bro. Franklin interceded for our brothers and sisters and for the need for committed leadership. At the end, they told Patty and me to leave and that they would take care of cleaning the church and getting it ready for our Sunday service. They had a surprise for us. On Sunday when we left, other brothers arrived and spent the entire Saturday afternoon cooking and making the church pretty for Sunday’s celebration.

“On Sunday, we started our Sunday School at 11 a.m. with a new topic “God is There.” We had a very good attendance and questions. Then at 12:30 pm we had our service with a special time of worship, and after the message the children of Sovereign Grace had surprises for us for the celebration of the day of the pastoral family and for my birthday. After the service, we went to the fellowship hall to enjoy delicious dishes prepared with much love by our beloved sisters.”

Epic Life, Pea Ridge: Jake McCandless writes, “This week was tough week, but a good one. We’ve been encouraging our leaders to be missionaries in their neighborhood and network (like we are), and to host home groups.

“We haven’t had a weekly Connection Group at our house. We’ve hosted regular meetings there, but not the weekly ones like other families have; but as of last week we are now doing so. It’s a lot of work, and both days we hosted were a nightmare. To list all the things that happened would take forever, but here are a couple: the first week we were scheduled to host, we spent the night before in the emergency room because Amanda had an issue with her gallbladder. Then this week, she rolled her ankle while teaching and had to come home from work. I share all that to just say it is tough on our coaches hosting. Pray for them! I’m proud of them.

“We ended the week with a hayride, which was incredible! We had around 40 attend, including 12 first-time guests! Each of the guests were incredible stories of how that worked out. It was a reminder to keep inviting and to keep throwing parties.”

El Faro #2 Hispanic Mission, Cabot/Jacksonville: Michael Hight writes, “This week was a good week. The local Hispanic Association met Thursday in Little Rock for their annual meeting. It was exciting to see their commitment to missions and the BMA of Arkansas.

“We have set the first Sunday in November as the new launch date. We have had to postpone it two times due to illness but, Lord willing, we will be able to stick to this day. Our meeting time will be at 3 p.m. on Sundays. Please pray for us! The enemy has shown himself opposed to this work, but God is greater than any enemy we face!

“We are meeting at 6603 John Harden Drive, right between Jacksonville and Cabot on the service road. Again, I ask you for your prayers!”