"As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker for your benefit. And as for our brothers, they are messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ."  (2 Corinthians 8:23)

The cooperation seen so often in Paul's life demonstrates one of the great imperatives of God's kingdom: that his people can and must work together to accomplish his purposes. Whether it was with Barnabas, Silas, Timothy, Titus, or several others mentioned in his letters, Paul shows us the value of kingdom cooperation.

Obviously, we believe this is an important idea for evangelists. It's why we are financially supporting two men who are working together to plant a church in Harrisburg, PA. It's why our elders encourage our minister to spend time with other preachers often. It's why we bring in guest speakers and have some of our men preach on occasion. There is value in fellowship and cooperation between those who preach. As Paul said of Titus, we are partners and fellow workers for the benefit of God's people.

But the verse has value for everybody who lives in Christ. We are recreated (2 Cor. 5:17) in Christ to be in community and fellowship with each other. As Paul and Titus were fellow workers, we are all fellow workers toward the same goal: the glory of Christ. I encourage you to think about some good that you can do for God's glory. And then think of some other saints you can get involved in that. Make an effort to be fellow workers and partners in the gospel, so that in all things, Christ may be given the glory that he deserves.

- Dan Lankford, minister

Many churches have a significant percentage of their members who are single. Excluding children, many of the adult members are not married. There are a number of reasons for this ever growing demographic in the Lord’s church.

• Human lifespan is longer – there are more widows and widowers
• The divorce rate is higher – sometimes even among Christians.
• Many never marry – some are unasked; some are unanswered. And a higher percentage than ever either decide not to marry or else they are waiting until later in life to marry.

I realize that this can be very discouraging to some who fall into this category and who would love to be married if the right situation would arise. Some are content in their singleness and have made a conscious decision not to marry.

But I am afraid that there are too many single Christians who feel that they cannot serve the Lord effectively because they are single and so, as a result, as powerful force is left untapped in many congregations.

There are many positive and valuable things that a single Christian can do and I would like to remind you of some of those things in the hopes that we can mobilize a group of disciples who can make a huge difference in the life of a church in the here and now and a great difference in other people’s eternal destiny.

1)  Do not become discouraged.

Being single is no reason to have a low self-esteem. Singles sometimes ask, “What’s wrong with me?” Nothing is wrong with you, except perhaps that you are focusing on the wrong thing. Look to your strengths, talents, and abilities. (Married people who concentrate only on what they can’t do or don’t have will never be happy either.)

There are many great men and women of God in the Bible who were single (either never having married or having lost a spouse). In the Old Testament, some of them were Elijah, Daniel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Mordecai. In the New Testament, we have Paul, Mary, Martha, Lazarus, John the Baptist, Timothy, Barnabas and, of course, Jesus.

When you find yourself feeling lonely, do something for someone else to take the focus off of your aloneness. Visit with friends, enjoy the children of others (buy them things; take them places you would like to go, like the zoo, a museum, etc.). Just keep busy doing something.

2)  Recognize your opportunities.

The apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 7:7-8, recommends the single life. He is not forbidding people to get married (1 Timothy 4:3), but he wants you to realize that you are definitely not a second class Christian if you are unmarried.

The fact is that marriage divides a person’s interests into two areas – serving the Lord and being with your mate. An unmarried person has the time to do things for God that married people often cannot do. Notice this passage from 1 Corinthians 7:32-35:

“But I want you to be without care. He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord – how he may please the Lord. But he who is married cares about the things of the world – how he may please his wife. There is a difference between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman cares about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit. But she who is married cares about the things of the world – how she may please her husband. And this I say for your own profit, not that I may put a leash on you, but for what is proper, and that you may serve the Lord without distraction.”

He continues on to discuss one who does not give his daughter in marriage and says that such a one have chosen what is better. There are some advantages in being single over being married. (There are also advantages in being married over being single. It is not all one sided in either direction.)

Some advantages a single Christian has are:

• Can be more spontaneous
• Freer to come and go
• No one to answer to about time
• More time to study the Bible and pray
• Have get-togethers at your place (make it a potluck)
• More time to attend gospel meetings in other places
• Often in a position to contribute more than average to the church
• Galatians 6:10

3)  Maintain sexual purity.

This is very important. A single Christian must work very hard, with the Lord’s help, to keep himself or herself pure.

There are two important things to watch out for – your friends (1 Corinthians 15:33) and your activities (Ephesians 5:11).

Remember that you are be the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16). Don’t let your unmarried status be an excuse to sin it up. Think about the example you are setting for others.

4)  Help others.

One of the biggest problems of single Christians is turning inward, only being concerned with self. Give of your self to others (Acts 20:33-35; Matthew 20:25-28).

Matthew 19:10-12 speaks of those who refuse marriage (“make themselves eunuchs”) for “the kingdom of heaven’s sake.” Being single often gives you more time to help others.

• The needy – James 1:27
• Sick, hungry, lonely people – Matthew 25:31-46
• Spiritually weak – Galatians 6:1-2
• The lost – Matthew 4:19

Conclusion

If you find yourself in this situation, by choice or by circumstance, use it to the glory of God. The church has a huge army of single, godly men and women out there who need to be mobilized in His service. Realize that this is an opportunity to serve God and the church and the world around you in a way that will make a difference in the lives and eternity of others. May God richly bless you.

--Roger Hillis    

Consider Paul’s words about the human heart before and after Christ: “...you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Eph. 4:21-24)

When our lives are transformed—which we often call ‘converted’—by Christ, a change takes place at the core level of existence: the heart. This is why we must always recognize the difference between a person’s need for conversion and his need to “learn the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:26). We need true conversion; not just moral improvement.

Look again at Paul’s words. Do you see the contrast between “deceitful desires” and “renewed in the spirit of your minds”? Conversion means more than living a better moral life; it means changing what we want. Does that mean that we will no longer be tempted? Of course not. But it does mean that we no longer dwell on those desires—the ones that corrupted our lives and robbed us of salvation and joy in God.

For those of us in Christ, our prayer should be that God would transform our minds, that he would make us altogether new people, and that our desires for that which is holy will grow ever stronger. I pray that every person who names Christ is truly converted to be a Christian at every level, down to a change in the heart.

- Dan Lankford, minister

The recent story of the Thai soccer team stuck in the cave was an international sensation, and rightly so. So many elements of the story touched our hearts and showed us that there is good in the species made in God's image. I'd like to highlight one more element of that story.

After divers discovered the boys and their coach were alive, many people made return trips into the cave to bring food, oxygen bottles, and lights to them. They also carried letters from their families who were anxiously waiting outside. One of the most touching letters is the one in the picture: the letter to the coach—the man who had been responsible for their children when all of this took place.

And I don't need to say much about it, except to point out that in any language, forgiveness sounds good. Those parents' common attitude toward the coach stands as a powerful example of how we, as Christ's people, ought to think about those who have made really bad choices.

Sin is a trap that we enter by our own choice and from which we cannot escape by our own power. And while it is tempting to stand in the safety of salvation and be bitter toward someone "who got themselves into this mess" as the coach had done, how much better would we be to learn the lesson of these parents (the same attitude that the older brother should have had in Jesus' prodigal story in Luke 15)? Our task is not to be upset at the sinner, but to be passionate & excited about his rescue.

- Dan Lankford, minister

I hope you are enjoying and profiting spiritually from this series I have been writing on the subject of Strengthening the Local Church. A few have commented to me that they are benefitting from these articles and I truly pray that they are being helpful to you.

For the next few weeks, starting next Monday, Lord willing, I want to focus on the value of several groups in the church, people who can use their talents to help the church to grow spiritually and numerically.

There seems to be a feeling on the part of way too many Christians that, if they can’t ever serve as a preacher or elder or deacon, they really aren’t very important to the Lord and His work.

That is most unfortunate, because the Bible teaches that God loves every person, without partiality or favoritism (Acts 10:34-35; Romans 2:11; James 2:1-4). Every person, male or female, is important to the Lord and vital to accomplishing His will in the world.

Each of us is a unique individual, created in God’s image, with an immortal soul, to glorify Him while living on the earth. You know people I may never know. You love people I have never even met. You have, within your realm of influence, people who need to be saved and who may have been placed in your life by God, so that you can touch them with the gospel. And if you don’t do that, it may well be that no one else ever will either. And that is true for me also. And it is true for all of us who are Jesus followers.

Two passages make it abundantly clear that every one who is a disciple of Christ is important to His work.

1 Corinthians 12:12-31 compares the church to a physical body and teaches us that every part of the body is important to its proper functioning. No one should feel more important than anyone else, as we perform our work for Him. No one should feel inferior to others either. We all matter to God.

The context of this passage deals with the spiritual gifts that first century Christians were given before the New Testament was completed. Some thought themselves better than others because of their gift and some didn’t think they were as important as others because they got a different gift than someone else. But they were all to work together, just as all the various parts of our bodies work together. Although we do not have these same miraculous gifts today, we are all gifted by God with natural talents and abilities that should be used to help other people come closer to God and to glorify Him in every way we can. And Paul points out that, even with the miraculous aspects of their gifts, the greatest gift of all is to love others.

Romans 12 is an entire chapter of the New Testament that emphasizes how we are different, but that we should all use our abilities in a way that honors the Giver. You can do things I cannot and you are accountable to God to do what you can. And I need to do whatever I can.

Well, with that introduction, if the Lord doesn’t come back first, I plan to spend the next several weeks discussing what various groups of Christians can do that will strengthen the church where they worship.

The groups I plan to discuss, if I am able, will be:

• Single Christians
• Older Christians
• Women
• Teens/Young people

I hope you will benefit from this short series within the larger series of Strengthening the Local Church. May the Lord richly bless you as you seek to do His will.

--Roger Hillis

There are a number of essentials when it comes to having a growing church. One of the most important factors is having a sense of direction that comes from a leadership in tune with God’s word and the needs of a lost world. I want to discuss three vital principles about the needs of a church that will grow and prosper in a hostile world.

These leadership principles must be present in a church that wants to grow. God’s plan is that leadership be provided in a local church by scripturally qualified shepherds who lead and guide the people toward heaven. Many churches do not have elders who can lead the church in that way, but even if there are no “official” leaders, someone must keep the church on track in following God’s will. If there are no elders, someone must point the church in the right direction. Often, this task falls to the preacher, so here are some things I hope will help.

1)  Forward thinking

Far too many churches worship their past and continue to cling to outdated ideas and methods to try to reach the lost. Just because a Bible correspondence course had 400 students and the church baptized 50 of them back in the 1960’s doesn’t necessarily mean it will still work today. (I am not against using correspondence studies; if they are up to date in appearance and challenging in content, they can still work. But we often use old fashioned looking stuff today to save money in a world where we can do much better with little expense.)

Paul said, in Philippians 3:12-14, that he was going to press on in his service to God, without being bound by his past. (Whether you think he meant his past failures or his past successes doesn’t matter; he was going to keep moving forward from that point onward.)

Decisions need to be made involving Bible classes, budgets, buildings, etc. that should be geared toward helping people make it to heaven. We should not simply be interested in keeping house or just holding our own (while we wait until we have elders).

Two questions should drive our decision making process. First, is it scriptural? Second, will it help people go to heaven?

2)  Focus on really important matters

In Matthew 6:33, the Savior reminds us not to think too much or to worry about the things of this world, material possessions. Rather He says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things (physical needs, rh) shall be added to you.”

The Lord is not saying that we don’t need to take care of ourselves physically, but He is emphasizing that we must learn to put first things first. Some things are just more important to God than other things and we should learn which is which and have those same priorities.

I don’t know who said it first, but a lot of people have repeated it and I think it certainly has value for us today. “The main thing is keeping the main thing the main thing.” Doesn’t that make sense?

There are some really important goals we need to accomplish. We need to help people to become Christians. We need to help new Christians to grow spiritually. We need to help the weak to grow stronger. We need to help the fallen to return.

In the final analysis, it is all about souls and saving them to the glory of God.

The devil will make certain that there will be many distractions, anything that can derail us or cause us to procrastinate in doing the right thing.

• Some people will get sick physically.
• Someone will hurt your feelings.
• Not everyone will do the right thing.
• You will study the Bible with people who do not obey.
• Some Christians will just quit.
• Temptations will grow stronger and more frequent.

But in the midst of all of these difficulties, the ship must stay the course. That’s really the point of Luke 9:57-62. It shows us how important serving Christ is and we must never give up.

3)  A deep sense of dependence on God

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

We are dependent on Him for everything we do. He is the One who save souls (1 Corinthians 3:6); we are simply seed spreaders. He is the one who builds up Christians (Philippians 1:6); we are merely the vessels He works with and through.

We must emphasize prayer to God in all we do as we pray for ourselves and for others.

If we try to do things by our own strength, in our own way, for our glory, with human ideas, we will fail.

It is not about us. It is all about Him. It is all for Him.

Conclusion

Those who lead in a local church need to remember these principles in the decisions they make.

God’s plan is for elders and deacons and every church needs to work to have that scriptural organization. Even then, the shepherds should continue to use these divine principles to guide us to heaven.

Until then, these ideals and values can be used to help the church prosper and please God.

--Roger Hillis

RogerLeeHillis@gmail.com

Whether it is a computer, a phone, an iPad, or a TV; the average person spends several hours per day either working or playing in the realm of digitized information. Is this is a bad thing? Is it a good thing? In reality, all digital devices are amoral—neither right nor wrong. What matters is who we use them. So consider a few admonitions:

• Don’t allow yourself to be distracted from what’s important in front of you by what is happening through the screen world. There are times when work and social connection can and should be made to wait.
• Don’t believe someone who uses a lot of technology has automatically disconnected. Sometimes, a phone call or text or FaceTime is the most authentic connection available, and it’s a good thing we can have that.
• It’s important to connect directly and deeply. Especially among Christians, we need to be able to talk about the ins and outs of life, even when that is personal and painful. Of course, we must balance that with the Bible’s warning not to be a busybody (2 Thess. 3:11), but we do need to be able to connect enough to share in matters of faith.
• Be honest about how you are approaching your relationships. Are you texting because it’s too uncomfortable to talk face-to-face? Then you probably need to talk in person. Are you using time on Facebook to fill the void of loneliness in your marriage? Then put it down and talk to your spouse. Does Instagram help you gain a sense of self-worth? Go read about God’s love for you and see your worth in that.

Stay live. Always care for people. Make the most of the time (Eph. 5:19).

- Dan Lankford, minister

Some of my fondest childhood memories include attending Vacation Bible School at various congregations in the Southern Illinois community I grew up in.

The church where my family attended started conducting a VBS early in my lifetime. It was always a highlight of my young summers and I enjoyed it so much that I usually went to 3 or 4 different VBS sessions each year.

I most clearly remember a wall chart that one of our elders used to help us learn the books of the Bible, both Old Testament and New Testament. It was made on a huge sheet that covered a big part of one wall of the auditorium. It was popular in those days before projectors and Powerpoint to use bed sheets with charts drawn on them in gospel meetings and other teaching settings. Gospel meetings would often consist of a single chart on a bed sheet discussing various subjects or book studies from the Bible and the preacher would use that chart every night. At VBS, we learned the divisions of the testaments: Old Testament as Law, History, Poetry, Major Prophets and Minor Prophets and New Testament as Gospels, History (Acts), Epistles (or letters) and Prophecy (Revelation). And then we would all say the books in order every day.

I recall a time when attending another congregation’s VBS and having the lady who taught my class say to me, “Wow, you can really find those verses in your Bible. You are the fastest one in the class.” Do you think that made me feel good? Of course it did and I remember it more than 50 years later.

There is tremendous value to the local church that can be seen in conducting a Vacation Bible School. Our desire is to teach the Bible to as many people as possible, right? In my experience, as a child and as an adult and a preacher, more guests are willing to attend something like a VBS than almost any other special event.

If the congregation where you worship doesn’t have a VBS (maybe you used to have one, but haven’t in the last several years), it might be a really good teaching opportunity that can reach some lost souls for the Lord.

In 2017, I had the privilege to preach regularly for a church that was between preachers. Early in the year, someone mentioned that they were disappointed that they didn’t have very many children. A lot of churches are like that and it is a very difficult trend to reverse. Young families with small children are drawn to churches that have other children to be friends with their children. So if there are only a few young ones, many families decide to worship where there are more kids. It can be a self-defeating cycle.

I asked why they quit having VBS because I knew they had previously enjoyed good crowds at VBS. They told me that they didn’t think they had enough children to have a Vacation Bible School. But it seems to me that this is exactly why it would be helpful to have one. If you don’t have VBS and it would attract others to the church, why not try having one? It will be small at first but if you have faith that God’s word will not return to Him void, then it is worth the effort. If you have four children and they each bring a friend, you have planted seeds of God’s truth in the hearts and minds of eight young people.

That church had seven children in Bible class on Sunday before we did a one day VBS on Saturday. We had 41 children to attend classes that day and 40 adults. Everyone was thrilled, of course and we repeated the effort in 2018 with similar results.

There are lots of ways to conduct a VBS. Many churches have a 5 day study – Monday through Friday, either in the day time or the evening. A recent trend has been to have these special classes for children for 3 days, Sunday through Tuesday. We tried an idea that I had read about several years ago from a church in Indiana that had a one day Saturday study. We chose that plan to start with and began at 9:30 and ended at about 2:30 in the afternoon. Individuals paid for a lunch break at a local pizza shop and then we came back for more classes and songs.

Our theme was Faith, Hope and Love, 3 classes with 3 separate Bible stories. We wrote our own class material. It was marvelous and the children had a wonderful time and the church members really worked very hard to invite people to the class and to prepare and deliver the lessons.

The biggest benefit from VBS is that it shows our young people how important they are to the church and therefore, to the Lord. It helps children to be excited about learning the Bible and that is always good.

It is also helpful for adults as well. Churches that have VBS in the evening usually have better attendance and teachers who volunteer are able to do so, even if they work during the day, so you have a bigger pool of workers.

Songs are a really important part of a VBS. The children always enjoy them, plus you can teach them important things in song. Songs may make it easier for them to memorize the days of creation, the sons of Jacob, the judges, the books of the Old Testament and New Testament and lots of other valuable things.

Remember that you are planting seeds of truth in young hearts. What was it that brought the prodigal son to his senses in Christ’s parable? It was what he had been taught when he lived at home with his father. So he had rebelled against that for a while (haven’t a lot of our young people in the church made this same tragic choice?) but he was brought back by what he remembered from his youth.

A Vacation Bible School does not have to be “big” to be a success or to have an eternal impact on souls. If you have ten children and show them that they matter to the Lord, it can make a difference in eternity. The number is not the important issue. If you have 2 or 3 children, make this a special event that they will remember forever.

But if you aren’t going to work hard to prepare useful and practical Bible lessons, if you aren’t going to make much effort to invite friends, neighbors, family members, if you don’t really want it to succeed, don’t waste your time and effort. If it is worth doing, it is worth doing right.

If you are willing to really work at this, VBS can be a powerful teaching opportunity for the people of God. Do it right and you will reap eternal rewards that will honor and glorify God and save souls.

--Roger Hillis

In John chapter twenty-one, Peter and six other disciples are fishing on the sea of Galilee. When the sun comes up, they see the resurrected Jesus waiting for them on the shore. When they all arrive on land, they find that Jesus has already kindled a fire and made breakfast for them.

The whole scene is very sweet, especially in its place at the end of the Gospel story. After all that has happened to Jesus himself and to his disciples through their years of traveling and ministering together, and after all the times they have faced opposition and rejection together, the Lord affords them the tranquility of breakfast and a rest from their diligent labor.

That occasion fits seamlessly into a pattern that Jesus sets in plenty of other places in the Gospels. He frequently talks about giving rest to his people, and he gives them rest in many ways. It is one of his most famous promises to all generations: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:28-29)

That promise is a major part of the Gospel message, and obviously, it is a much more significant gift than the breakfast prepared and served to the apostles. But, small as it is, that meal teaches us that Jesus cares about us when we are tired, when we feel aimless, and when we need repose. And if we are looking for him, he is always willing to meet us where we are with just the right offer of splendid, sweet rest.

- Dan Lankford, minister

In the fall of 2007, Lisa and I drove to Florida to do something we had never done before. We were taking our daughter, Lesley, to Florida College to begin her college career. It was fairly traumatic for us, the first time she would live away from us after 18 years of being with us all the time. And she is our first born child, so we just had never experienced this.

To top it all off, we lived in Kentucky and she was going to be in Tampa, Florida, some 14 or so hours away. It wasn’t like we could just visit her on the weekend whenever we wanted. Her mother and I felt a sense of sadness, but we didn’t want to say anything about it so Lesley wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the whole thing. She was excited about meeting new friends and anticipating her studies that would take her closer to the college degree she sought and so she was looking forward to the experience while we were dreading it.

We pulled up to the girls’ dorm where she was going to be staying. It was the same dorm her mother had lived in when she attended Florida College. After we parked, Lisa and I looked at each other silently and took a deep breath (it was probably more like a sigh, to be honest). Here we go.

The first person to come flying out of the dorm to help us carry Lesley’s luggage and clothes inside was Ralph Walker. His familiar and genuine smile gave us some instant comfort. We had met Ralph through mutual friends years before but really didn’t know him well. We had heard him speak on various occasions and he was always encouraging to listen to and we felt a little better knowing that someone we trusted would be close enough to help if she got into trouble. After helping us find her room and carry everything in, Ralph was ready to assist the next family.

But before he left, he put his arms around Lisa and me and told us that it was going to be a great year for Lesley, that we had made the best decision in choosing to send her to Florida College and assured us that she would be fine. (We already knew all of that, but it was reassuring to have a friendly and kind reminder.)

A bit later in the school year, actually her second semester there, she was driving her little car to a Sunday evening church service with some friends. They had become quite close and Lesley often took them wherever they needed to go. They were not far from campus, headed toward the congregation where they all had placed membership, and the car broke down. Driving down the road, all of a sudden, there was a really loud screeching sound. When they stopped, the noise stopped and they realized they had to quit moving so they pulled over on the side of the road. None of the friends knew anything about fixing a broken car and they were not sure what to do.

Lesley was getting ready to call Triple A auto services and, as she was looking for her AAA card, a car pulled up and the driver asked them if they needed some help. They were uncertain about whether that was a good idea to have someone they didn’t know to help them but they noticed he was not alone. They could see that his wife was with him in the car, so they said, “Sure.”

To make a long story short, as they talked, they discovered that the man helping them was Ralph Walker’s son in law, Joe Cable. He and his wife, Bonnie, were headed to their own evening services, saw someone who needed help and without even realizing that everyone in the story was a Christian, Joe offered to do what he could to help them. It turned out to be a broken muffler and Joe twisted a metal clothes hanger around the muffler and the chassis of the car so it wouldn’t drag on the ground and they all went on their way. Lesley’s car was fairly loud without a functioning muffler, but it got them where they needed to be and a few days later, she had the car repaired.

All of that happened because Ralph and Paula Walker reared a godly daughter (three of them, actually) with values that included helping people in need and when she married, she chose a husband who had been taught those same values. And although it cost them some time and inconvenience (they were probably late for services), they did the right thing and helped. I have never met Joe and I doubt that he is a Samaritan, but he learned that parable of Christ well enough to put it into practice. If I ever get the chance to meet the Cables, I will shake his hand and thank him for teaching some young people a valuable lesson about kindness.

Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise” (Luke 10:37).

--Roger Hillis