Headquarter Happenings

July 2, 2015July 7, 2015

The Burden of a Young Missionary

Josh Wagar’s Testimony

The following article is a testimony presented during Family Fellowship Week, 2015. It is from Joshua Wagar. You can listen to the audio version here. Brother Wagar and his wife Sarah are missionaries to Chuuk, Micronesia. If the article was a blessing to you, click here to email Brother Wagar your thoughts.

The Wagars have an app for your phone so you can stay up to date with their ministry. Click the link to download the app for your preferred mobile Operating System: iOS or Android.

I have been asked to share my burden with you. Normally, for me, it would be very hard to separate my burden from my call. However, they are two very different things. I believe that in reality, the burden is the fuel for the fire that we could define as “the call.” A calling is what Jeremiah expressed in Jeremiah 20:9 when he exclaimed, “Then said I, I will not make mention of Him, nor speak any more in His name. But His Word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.” A calling is something that we must do, and if we are not doing it, we feel that we will die. Everyone has a calling. Some people have a calling to a certain people group like the Chuukese. Some people have a calling to work with bus kids, while other people may have a calling to minister to older folks. Some people are called to the people that they interact with at work. If you are saved and breathing, you have a calling. What is the one thing in your life, right now, that if you stopped doing, life would not be worth the living? That is your call.

Now, a burden is different. A burden is something you can lose if you are not careful. Yes, even a missionary can lose his burden. Jeremiah did. Jeremiah’s burden disappeared for a bit. It was stamped out by the world and the pressures of life and ministry. Because he lost his “fuel,” he tried to stop obeying his call. However, he could not. I want to be transparent with you. Sometimes, burdens are easy to lose. We get our priorities out of order and let other burdens of life outweigh the one burden that God has put on our heart. Do you recall what it is like when you go out on bus visitation every single week, and it has been a while since you have seen anything truly amazing happen? It is right then, in that moment, that we start thinking of all of the pressures surrounding us: finances, family, job, church obligations, etc. Then for a moment, however brief it may be, we lose that burden and we think, “So what if a new kid does not come? Why does it even matter?” But then, that calling, that relentless, unceasing calling comes back into play. At first, we do not want to obey it. Then, as God continues to tug at our heart, we cannot help but regain our burden.

Burdens are tricky things. We can only have a true burden when we get our eyes off of self and put them up to Jesus Christ in the partnership of praise. I am struggling with this. I have to be in Chuuk. That is my calling, my passion, and my drive. When I let that get in the way of my God, I lose my burden. Chuuk becomes a job – something I have to do out of obligation rather than commitment. However, when I focus my attention back on God, I am reminded of my call and ultimately the burden from the Lord that drives me.

I have three burdens today:

First, I am burdened to see God work. Psalm 63 says, “Oh God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land where no water is; to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen in the sanctuary.” I have grown tired of hearing how we live in a supposed “Laodicean age,” and we just let that be an excuse for our complacency. They just cannot be reached because we are in that Laodicean age! That is simply not true. Since when did God stop showing His power? I am ready to see the world reached for Christ, for churches to get back on fire for God, for Christians to be revived, and for God to do a work in my heart. I am ready to see God’s power and glory in a personal and real way every day. I am ready to see God take these 50 insignificant islands in the middle of nowhere and transform them for His glory. I am burdened to see Him use Sarah and me in a way that has never been done. Why should He not? We are setting out for a work that is 100% impossible by all rules and statistics. I am burdened to see God break through and throw those rules in the garbage. I am burdened to continue fighting complacency in my own life and to see God move and take me and revive me. With every fiber of my being, I am burdened for a genuine, personal, and real revival in my soul. I am simply burdened to be used of God. I know that I am called. I know that I have a purpose. If I can put it this way, I am burdened to regain my burden – to live life to the fullest extent that I can to please God. Again, I simply want to be transparent. I wish I were this perfect model of a missionary, someone like Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Adoniram Judson, or any other of the greats. But, I am not. I am burdened, not to live up to what I think their expectations would be, but to have the relationship with the Lord that they did. God did impossible things through these men. I am burdened to be that kind of a man – a man who’s character stands the test of time, not because I am great, but because I know my God and I am able to stay close to Him. Of all of my burdens, this is the greatest.

Second, I am burdened for the church. We live in a day of wide-spread complacency. A day in which many people think that if they are not called to preach, then they must not have much to do. My burden is to show you that God still uses the church, and therefore, if you are part of the church, you have a purpose. In Mark 2, the Bible relates a story about four men that brought a lame man to Christ. It took four men to get one man to the Master. They never fought for a title, tried to be recognized, or wanted fame. In fact, we do not even know their names. They simply wanted to get someone to Jesus. The Bible says that when Jesus saw their faith – the faith of all five men – He did the miracle. It takes more than a missionary to get the Gospel out. It takes a team. We all have a corner of the cot for which we are responsible. Not all of it involves money only. I am burdened for the church to see that missions is more than a dollar in the plate. It is time, effort, love, and work all poured out. Missions is the act of taking God’s glory to somewhere that it has not previously existed. Therefore, missions is across the street, in the next cubical, kneeling at night with your kids, or in Micronesia. I am burdened for the church to arise and get back into the battle. Too many people and organizations are simply trying to drag the cot to where it is supposed to be rather than working together to lift and carry. Money never stopped Jesus. I am burdened to see the church gear up for one last good fight before the Lord returns, rather than seeing it continue to hunker down like a scared child in the night and just wait out till the Lord’s return. Now, I am not saying every church is like this, and I am not saying your church is like this. I am saying that if we do not guard our hearts against this type of thinking, we all have the potential to stop working together as a team, as an army, and simply go into the coasting mode. What if the men that brought the lame man to Jesus did not have faith? They probably would not have even begun to pick up that cot. This lack of action would have resulted in the lame man never encountering Jesus. Lost folks do not normally come to Jesus on their own. They need help. I am burdened to see the church rise up and meet the need.

My final burden is obvious. About two months ago, Typhoon Maysak devastated the islands of Chuuk. Much was destroyed and lives were lost. What if we had been there? What if we had had the opportunity to witness to the ones who died? What if we had another established church there that could have reached out and touched the lives of the affected ones? We were not there. We were here. Now, I know that obviously this is where God has us at the moment. However, I cannot help but be reminded about how Chuuk is where we are supposed to be. Sarah and I are burdened for our people. We are burdened, not only to get the Gospel out, but to disciple and see people grow. My heart is heavy with the burden of getting to Chuuk. We are not great people, but we are willing to be used of the Lord. I am burdened to see what God has in store and what He will do there.

I am burdened for a man named Dwight. He is just like you and me. He works as a security guard as well as a municipal police officer. At night, he goes fishing in order to provide for his family. He works hard trying to do the right things. However, no matter how noble or sincere he is, Dwight is on his way to Hell because he refused to accept the Gospel. Dwight, along with thousands of other Chuukese people, is lost. The reality of it is, however, that many of them have probably never had the opportunity to hear the Gospel like Dwight. I am burdened for an almost forgotten people. Are they my calling? Yes. But even more so, they are my burden. The fuel to my fire. We are compelled to go to Chuuk to preach the Gospel, but if we were not burdened for Dwight, and others like him, what would be the point of the calling? It would be empty. What is our ultimate purpose? It goes back to the first burden – to see the power and glory of God working in places where it has never yet had the opportunity to work.

July 2, 2015July 6, 2015

The Lord is in Control

Ruth Ann Arthur’s Testimony

During Family Fellowship Week, Mrs. Arthurs gave this testimony. We wanted you to have a printed copy to read. You can listen to the audio version of it by clicking here.

This is the first time I’ve been to Family Week for ten years, and it is a joy to be here. We were on the field for all of those years except 2011 when Dave was too ill to come.Psalm 68:19 says “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation.”  I stand before you today to tell you that I am the recipient of a wonderful life from the Lord.  The Lord has blessed us, has been so good to us, and I just thank Him that He has done so many things for us.

I came to know the Lord when I was 13 years old.  My parents decided to get a divorce, and I couldn’t believe anybody who had been married for 14 years would divorce.  My Grandmother saw that we came to the town where she lived.  She was in a little fundamental Baptist church, and she took us there.  It was no time until I realized that I needed Christ as my Savior, and I received Him into my life.

I had a young pastor who believed in really discipling his people. He would give me a list of verses and tell me to learn them and come to his home the next week and say the verses. I did that for weeks. I still remember those verses today. So, I thank the Lord for my first pastor.

When I was about 14 or 15, and we were having a missions conference, the Lord spoke to my heart about serving him, and I submitted then and told the Lord I’d go and be a missionary wherever He wanted me to go.  I met Dave several years later at Bob Jones University, and one of the first things he said to me was “I’m going to be a missionary,” so we had that connection.  We later married, and the Lord gave us 48 years on the field.  I just thank the Lord – you couldn’t ask for a better life.  If you want to know who has had a good life, I can tell you – I’ve had a wonderful life.  But you know life is not without difficulties.

We had difficulties, of course. It wouldn’t be life without difficulties, would it? I guess one of the biggest difficulties we had was with the land situation on Pohnpei. There were squatters there and people in the neighborhood who wanted the land. They resisted when the Governor told us that we could have that land. They harassed us; threw rocks at our building and on the roof and doors. Pastor Wingard remembers that. They threw a rock when he was visiting, and just missed him as he closed the door. We had all sorts of problems.

I remember one day when several men from the neighborhood and their clan came into the yard and called for Dave to come out. Dave went out there and faced probably 15 men with machetes. They held the machetes in a threatening way. I didn’t know what to do so I stood up by our door, which was on the second floor. I got my camera and took pictures.   I don’t know if that intimidated them or not! We faced this sort of thing for several years. It took us 12 years to get the lease for the land the Governor had promised us before we got there. These were very difficult times. I think my lowest point was there on Pohnpei. After so much harassment and after seeing how Dave was threatened, I came to the place one day when I thought I needed to get a large piece of cardboard and a marker, and put it out by the street and say “I give up; you can have this land.” Of course the Lord didn’t let me do that, and I didn’t tell Dave because I was ashamed, and I didn’t want to discourage him. I think one of the greatest things in a marriage is that most of the time you both aren’t down at the same time. The other one can encourage you, and Dave encouraged me plenty of times as I tried to encourage him.

Then in 2004, we faced something else. Dave was diagnosed with leukemia. The doctor told him he had about one and a half to three years to live. I remember Dave and I stood in the hospital room hugging each other and saying, “The Lord is in control.” As we cried together that day we were determined to do what we could for the illness, but to remember that the Lord was in control.

I Samuel 30:6 says, “But David encouraged himself in the Lord.” The key is “in the Lord.” We can encourage ourselves sometimes, but when it is really important, we need to encourage ourselves in the Lord. The doctor had said one and a half to three years, but God gave Dave nine and a half years. Most of that time was spent on the field, which is what Dave wanted to do. He wanted to be there serving. He actually went back in January 2012, when the doctor told him he could only stay there for three months. He told me he wasn’t coming back in three months. He did return to the U.S. in November 2012, when he got an infection, but he came back to Pohnpei. The Lord was still in control.

Dave died in September 2013, and once again I acknowledged “the Lord is in control.” We must live our lives like that. You’ll always have difficulties, and if you haven’t been to the field yet, just take my word for it – you’re going to have difficulties. Nehemiah says “the joy of the Lord is your strength.” I choose the Lord, and I choose joy.

July 2, 2015July 6, 2015

Family Fellowship Week ’15 Theme

Church bulletin theme The theme for this year’s Family Fellowship Week was “Choosing Joy.” It was taken from Habakkuk 3:17-18. The theme’s passage speaks of figs without blooms, vines without fruit, olives without oil, fields without meat, and flocks and herds who don’t return to their place of keeping. These conditions are enough to make anyone despair. However, Habakkuk states, “Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation.”

We trust that as you read over this edition of Headquarter Happenings, you will be encouraged to rejoice in the Lord, regardless of the circumstances in which you currently find yourself. We also hope that you will be motivated to join us next year! Family Week always begins on the third Monday in June. In 2016, we will meet at the Valley Baptist Church in Edinburg, VA, from June 20-23. Come and be a part of this great event!

“Feed your faith on the Word of God, and your doubts will starve to death.”
– Lester Roloff

“A lot can be accomplished by education or association, but nothing takes the place of a relationship with God.”
– Bill Wingard

“It is a struggle to climb the mountain of victory, but you can roll down to the valley quickly, and you will get hurt on the way down. The struggle is worth the effort.”
– Tim Danie

“The quickest way to turn off the blessings of the Lord is to murmur about His blessings on someone else.”
– Danny Whetstone

“Every miracle or movement of God costs somebody something, but God will use that to enrich you and to make you a greater servant of those to whom you minister.”
– Danny Whetstone

“Nothing thrills me more than when God visits my pew.”
– Russ Bell

“Our joy is not based on happenings, but on what happened at Calvary.”
– Barry Goodman

“Spending time with God is not extra curricular study; it is our main subject.”
– David Fulp

“We must embrace the promises of God instead of employing the plans of man.”
– Barry Goodman

“If you can see the end of your circumstance, you are not living in faith.”
– Jeremy Kobernat

“If you don’t have a strategy for when you are overwhelmed, you’ll be confused when trouble comes.”
– John O’Malley

Lancaster Josh playing guitar Teen boys Three ladies Mens Quartet Four girls Clines

July 2, 2015

From Our President: July 2015

We are living in ever changing times. It seems that the changes have been many in the last few years. There has been an all out attack in America on so many things where we believe the Bible to be very clear. We can simply say that this was all foretold by God through His infallible Book. We can say that the real problem is Washington and Hollywood. The truth is that the real problem rests at the door of the church of the living God. We are in churches around America. Many of our churches will drop in attendance from Sunday morning to Sunday night by twenty-five to fifty percent, and even more by Wednesday night. Much of the work and giving is being done by a handful of the overall congregation. Church people have for years voted for men and women who have openly declared their position against God, without apology. Righteousness has been replaced by a rewritten and misinterpreted bible that has excused ungodliness, not by the world, but by many churches. We must have revival.

We have preached fearlessly against everything under the sun. We have argued about every difference between us theologically and socially. There is little doubt that if we continue down the same path, we will reap the same result. Yes, we must preach against the sin of the world. Yes, we will always have differences. In spite of these things others have been able to receive the blessings of God by way of revival. We must get back to prayer, biblical exhortations, godly living and fervent witnessing.

Obviously the world is moving in a godless direction, but since when was that any different? Unfortunately, the church has moved down that same path to its own destruction, staying just far enough from the world to point to small differences. God has commanded us to “come out from among them.”

You might be living in a country where this is not true, but your ability to stay there probably rests on the ability of the church in America to support your ministry. It is vital that we join our hearts together in prayer for the enormous needs that we have in Christianity in the U.S.A. There is no doubt that our God is able to raise up another nation to take the gospel to the world, but I pray that He does not have to do so. Would you challenge your people to earnestly pray that our churches will experience a move of God that will result in a move toward Him?

Righteousness will see a nation exalted by God. Sin will bring a nation down, and judgement will soon follow. God has been merciful and patient, but how long can we expect that to continue?

June 25, 2015July 2, 2015

Prayers & Dates – July 2015

Click the link above to download a PDF of prayer requests and praises as well as the birthdays and anniversaries for July. Note: You will need to login to SecureCloud in order to view this document. Once you have logged in, click on Files Shared, then Headquarter Happenings, then scroll to the month you would like to view. This step protects people with WWNTBM in restricted access fields.

June 1, 2015

Featured Article: Mountain Claiming

“Give me this mountain.” (Joshua 14:12)

Forty-five years before, Caleb had seen a mountain. He and eleven other men had spent forty days in a secret hike through what was then enemy territory. On the trek they had spied on the Amalekites, the Hittites, the Jebusites, the Amorites, and the Canaanites. But what most caught Caleb’s eyes was a mountain where the gigantic sons of Anak lived in fortified cities.

The leader of the reconnaissance party had been Caleb’s friend Joshua. Together they had felt the assurance of the Lord surge in their hearts as they quietly looked upon the doomed enemies. Their souls were alive with the optimism and certainty of a victory guaranteed by their almighty God.

I think Caleb mentioned his particular interest to his partner. Maybe the two of them clasped hands on the idea, prayed together, and praised the Lord for His goodness.

But to their dismay the attitude of their ten friends began to sour. Day after day the tone of conversation became more despondent. What had started out as an exciting adventure was turning into a terrifying nightmare. The overwhelming number of their opponents had chipped away the surface faith of the other men and exposed their unbelief.

All this had happened nearly a half a century before. Now, five years into the Promised Land conquest, Caleb once again set his eyes on the mountain he and Joshua had sighted. The promise God had made to the faithful young spy was alive and healthy in the now old fighter’s mind. Although he had had to wait for an entire generation of Israelites to die off, the Lord had preserved his strength and brought him to this moment. The time was ripe for the fulfillment of his dream.

So Caleb stepped forward to claim his mountain prize. It should not surprise us that Joshua had not forgotten it, nor had God.

It is never fun to watch youthful dreams fade into mist, but the Bible is full of examples of just that. Abraham waited decades for the promised son. Joseph spent years wondering how on earth the bowing sheaves and stars could possibly become a reality. For forty years the shepherd Moses silently grieved over a mission that appeared lost forever.

Using our own mistakes or those of others, God will often weave into our life’s work lengthy seasons of waiting. Do not give in to disheartening thoughts of weakness, age, or liabilities. Stay ready and expectant. And definitely don’t rush matters your own way. Abraham and Moses tried that and both regretted it deeply. When the time is right for us to claim the mountain God has promised us, the wisdom and strength will be there.

Dear Father, it is in me to always want answers right away. I feel like ignorance is necessarily bad, and that if I can’t understand everything around me, I am missing something I deserve. Teach me to relax and trust when dreams seem to fade into the distance. Knowing You is my highest priority and Your will, in Your good time, is all I want. Amen.

June 1, 2015

Prayer & Dates: June 2015

Click the link above to download a PDF of prayer requests and praises as well as the birthdays and anniversaries for June. Note: You will need to login to SecureCloud in order to view this document. Once you have logged in, click on Files Shared, then Headquarter Happenings, then scroll to the month you would like to view. This step protects people with WWNTBM in restricted access fields.

June 1, 2015June 2, 2015

From the Memo Board: June 2015

Important Dates

June 15-18
Family Fellowship Week in Greensboro, NC

June 30
Adjusted payday for those who normally receive support on the 29th

July 3
The Office will be closed in celebration of Independence Day

The Alethia Project

During the 2005 Missions Conference, a group of students at Ambassador Baptist College felt a burden to carry the Word of God and Biblical materials in other languages via the Internet. In order to accomplish this task, The Aletheia Project set the following goals:

Design websites that are culture-specific and user-friendly
Provide Bible translations based on the Received and Masoretic Texts
Supply Biblical materials to the language groups of the world

Their mission is to use the Internet to reach non-English speaking people with the Gospel and to help believers to grow in grace.

John O’Malley and Norman Johnston are founders and advisors to this project. We would encourage you to learn more and to get involved by going to their website at tapbibles.com. You can also connect with them on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Graduates

Several in our missions family are graduating this spring. Please be in prayer for them as they seek the Lord’s will concerning future plans.

Al Bonikowsky received an Honorary Doctorate from Bob Jones University.

Kyle Boylston graduated from high school.

Jon Daniel received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brookhaven Baptist College.

Megan Daniel graduated from high school at Bethel Christian Academy in Kinston, NC.

Michael Deatrick received a Bachelor of Science in Missions degree from Ambassador Baptist College.

Rolando Ortiz received a Doctorate of Pastoral Ministry from Brookhaven Baptist College.

Hanna Zimmer graduated from high school.

Special Guests

The Kenneys
The Kenney’s treated the staff to lunch while they were here.

Pepsi Lancaster has helped with several office tasks.

June 1, 2015June 2, 2015

From Our President: June 2015

“But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen — the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy: So that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people:for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.” (Ezra 3:12-13)

God had intervened in an amazing way to have the Jews released from their bondage so that they could return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Fifty thousand people would make this one thousand mile journey on foot. Others would follow later. The first thing that they repaired was the altar. Not a bad idea for those attempting to have God’s blessings on what they are doing. Once the altar was complete they began collecting the materials to rebuild the temple. In a few months the foundation of the temple would be complete. Only the foundation! You will note in the verses above that the young men shouted, and the ancient men wept. Those standing by must have been confused by what they saw and heard. It was difficult to distinguish which was the loudest – the shout or the weeping.

I consider this with wonder and amazement. Here we have old men that could remember the glory of the first temple. They stood at the sight of the foundation and looked back at the glory they once enjoyed. The young men stood in the same spot looking at the same thing and looked ahead at what God might do in the future. When the ancient men looked forward they could not see very far. Their vision was limited by the distance they could see ahead. However, when they looked back they could see and remember many wonderful things. When the young men looked back they could not see very far, and had very little that they could remember.

I want to encourage the young men that see into the future and are challenged by the amazing prospects of what God might do through them. I once stood at their vantage point and felt my heart race with what might be. Please don’t misunderstand if I speak much of the past with a tear in my eye. I can see things back there that I miss today. At the same time I promise you that I will do nothing to diminish your shout about the hopes you have for tomorrow. Dream on brother, and press forward to see those visions come true. I will rejoice with you, because I know that my day will come for you also. The dreams that you have today will be your memories in the distant future. Make good memories by obeying God every moment of every day.

May 1, 2015

Featured Article: Remember

“Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;” (1 Chronicles 16:12)

Guess who in the Bible is first said to remember something. God! He remembered Noah who was floating on the flood. Obviously, the verb needs a slightly modified definition when applied to Him, since we can hardly say that He ever forgot anything. But this subject is a fascinating one. Have you ever stopped to ponder the reality of memory?

What a blessing it can be! God is so good to have given us this ability. He could simply have left it out of our makeup, that we not have the capability to rehearse and relish the wonderful experiences of the past. I woke up a little while ago, in the middle of the night, thanks to jet lag. I found myself reliving the many kisses I recently placed on the sweet face of Chloe, our beautiful, brand new grand daughter! She is thousands of miles away now and I can’t go visit her in the morning nor gently rub her soft, fresh cheek . . . But I can savor the experience in my mind, smile, and thank the Lord for the gift of memory.

This verse is part of David’s happy song of praise to God when the Ark was placed in the Tabernacle. It was a personal habit of his to go over and over the wonderful works of his Master, to stop and revel in the truth of divine mercy, and he encourages us to do the same. There is something quite spiritually healthy about it, and it is especially useful in those duller moments of life when we are tempted to despondency or self pity.

Can you remember the moment you put your faith in the Lord Jesus? Pause for a second, and think about it. How about the day you led a soul to Christ? Can you remember a specific moment of divine protection, when you should have been severely injured or died? Can you recall a special incident of financial need when the Lord touched another of His children to come along side of you to meet it? Can you think of a song, sung by a choir or congregation, that sent your soul soaring into the heavenlies? What about the memory of the first time you met your spouse, or gazed at a majestic mountain peak, or held a newborn?

Each of these are treasures God allows to stay in our memory bank. They can be powerful tools of encouragement when put to proper use. Throughout the Scriptures the Lord tells us to pull out these spiritual weapons during key moments of life. We find His people benefitting from this practice as they faced major battles, dark moments of disappointment, or times of confusion.

God has placed eternity in our hearts and part of what that includes is the capacity to remember His marvelous works and bask in the assurance of His grace.

Dear Father, thank You for such a special gift. Help me to recall often those kind gestures You so generously sow along my path. And Lord, thank You for remembering me, every day of my life, even when I have forgotten you. Amen.