December 2010 In this issue Saved for a Rainy Day, 1 You’re Not Alone, 2 Passing the Faith Along, 3 Water Bottles and Dimes: A CBO Testimony, 4 Refreshing Unity, 5 A Sticky Kind of Love, 6 Guidance from IRS on Cell Phone Rules Is Still Pending, 7 Deliberate Action Can Change a Church’s Future, 7 For Leaven’s Sake: Spiritual Arrhythmia, 8

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t was a dark and stormy night. The winds shifted, the barometric pressure dropped, and the humidity rose. They had scheduled the event far in advance, but a washout threatened. When the heavens opened the next day, however, no one was seen running for cover. Instead, everyone bathed in the showers of blessing poured out that day, and the only washout was the washout of sins by the blood of the Lamb. Fifteen people responded to an altar call, and at least half of those surrendered their lives to Jesus Christ for the first time on that stormy September day. Fellowship Church of God in Spokane, Washington, stepped out on faith to plan a neighborhood rally for Christ, but when the forecast looked grim, they had to put all their trust in God. The congregation, which usually saw a weekly attendance of ninety, organized an event in their parking lot that drew three hundred people—amid drenching rain! CHOGnews

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By Carl Stagner

“This was a huge project and our first year doing this,” Cary Peden, pastor, points out. “Our church leadership had never attempted anything like this before, and to my knowledge, it turned out to be the largest event in the fifty-plus year history of our church in this neighborhood.” Spokane Fellowship wanted to take a risk and do something big to reach the community. The church leadership team carefully examined their recent history, and as Cary observes, “Some good things where happening, but it became all too easy to avoid the truth that we lost some people, little sacrifice or risk was taken, and walking in faith and trust in God was largely unnecessary.” While they did erect a large tent for shelter, at least two forces opposed their goal: unfamiliarity with planning events of this magnitude and the gloomy weather forecast. This is where they had to leave the results up to God.

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You’re Not Alone

By Carl Stagner embers of the clergy now suffer from obesity, hypertension and depression at rates higher than most Americans. In the last decade, their use of antidepressants has risen, while their life expectancy has fallen. Many would change jobs if they could.” That’s according to the New York Times, August 1, 2010. The results of a survey conducted by George Barna suggest that 25 percent of pastors don’t know where to turn when they have a personal or family concern or conflict. Several additional studies have found that approximately 80 percent of pastors believe that the ministry negatively affects their families. Pastors, you don’t have to face the mounting pressures of the ministry alone. Families and friends of pastors, there’s a way that your pastor can find the support that he or she needs. “SHAPE is the best thing that has happened to me in ministry,” Dorothy Hall, SHAPE cluster leader, exclaims. “SHAPE connects you to other people who are

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in ministry—you’re not alone. There’s a network of people that you can relate to.” Dorothy explains that she cannot adequately express her appreciation for the Church of God ministry program that meets the needs of pastors and their families right where they are. Sustaining Health and Pastoral Excellence intentionally connects pastors who experience the same stress and pressures that come with kingdom work. “In ministry,” she continues, “particularly for me, there’ve been times when I’ve had assignments where I’ve just really felt like I’ve been in Siberia. You can feel drained because there’s not a lot of support coming back to you. SHAPE gives you that support.” The success of SHAPE has been so widespread that its functions have recently expanded beyond the clergy. A pilot program, Sustaining Health and Relational Excellence (SHARE), was implemented at Grace Place in Hermitage, Tennessee. According to Paul Dreger, SHAPE director at Church of God Ministries, SHARE

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intentionally targets the congregational leaders, not just the pastors. Tommy Dove, pastor of Grace Place, looks forward to what how God will use SHARE in the coming months. “What we shared at the orientation opened my eyes to the fact that we go to church together, we meet together monthly, but we don’t really know each other. SHARE will help us go deeper in our relationships and take our people deeper, as well.” Dorothy recognizes that at first glance, many pastors do not necessarily believe this program is all it’s cracked up to be. She recalls that many pastors have expressed concern over their busy lives and how SHAPE would essentially be another item to cram into their schedules. She insists that after one SHAPE session, the resounding response from pastors is, “I just can’t believe this. I wouldn’t miss this for anything. It’s just that good.” Over two days near the end of October, SHAPE participants and leaders held a rally at the state camp in Tennessee. “The highlight of the two days was just sitting together, telling stories, and laughing,” Tommy recounts. “SHAPE and SHARE have the potential to revive our Reformation.” SHAPE is a ministry initiative designed to provide you with a network of resources focused on you, your family, and your ministry. It is designed to increase ministry effectiveness, sustain the health of the whole person, and guide your enhanced growth as a pastor, person, and family member. To learn how SHAPE can benefit you or your pastor, contact Paul Dreger at 765-648-3023, or toll-free at 800-848-2464, ext. 3023, or by e-mail at [email protected].

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Passing the Faith Along

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reetings from Chiang Mai, Thailand, where we are deeply appreciating the warm temperatures and the clean air. We’ve just returned from areas that didn’t have either. The ancient city of Kathmandu, Nepal, is one of them, but we loved it anyway. It’s dirty, noisy, and crowded, and the air is so thick with dust, diesel fumes, and incense that you can just about chew it. But the city is fascinating. Narrow, winding streets lined with small shops give it a unique charm, as do the many palaces and Hindu temples in the city. The Church of God was started in Nepal by a missionary from India named Amos Moore. He arrived in Kathmandu twenty-eight years ago when it was illegal to be a Christian. But he came, bought a bicycle, and started quietly to work. He says he never criticized Hinduism, just made friends, listened, asked questions, and shared his faith as he answered their questions. There are now fourteen Church of God congregations in Nepal with trained pastors in each one. And there are some amazing stories. Here is just one: After walking straight up a mountain for the better part of a day, Amos arrived in his friend’s village just as dusk was falling. The friend wanted Amos to tell the whole village the things Amos had been telling him. The friend took him to the local witch doctor, the most powerful authority in

By Don and Caroline Armstrong the village, to get permission to speak. The witch doctor was curious, so he fed Amos, asked him questions, and eventually let him speak to the whole village. Many were receptive, and a church was planted up there. Amos made many trips back up the mountain and was hosted each time in the witch doctor’s house. To make a long story short, it took seven years to convert the witch doctor, and he is now the pastor of that church on the mountain! We’ve known this story for several years and were thrilled on this trip to meet this former witch doctor. But the best part was that we also got to be present for the ordination service of his son into the ministry. It was quite emotional to watch this new pastor take his place with the other pastors as his wife and little boy looked on. How inspiring to realize that young toddler is growing up in church today because one man from India came to Nepal with money enough for a bicycle and with a calling to tell people about Jesus. What’s a little lung congestion compared to witnessing that? Don and Caroline Armstrong serve as your regional coordinators for Global Missions in the Asia-Pacific region. If you would like to financially support their ministry, you may contribute online at www.chog.org. Or checks can be mailed to Church of God Ministries, PO Box 2420, Anderson, IN 46018-2420. Write Project 42.10035 in the memo line to assign your gift accordingly. CHOGnews

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In an economy devoid of much hope, Spokane Fellowship promoted the event as Hope Sunday. To encourage people to attend, they planned a variety of carnival games and brought in a dunk tank. They served free food to the community and featured gospel music and a Christian rock band. “Having the big tent attracted attention from our neighbors, who just came over to listen to music and have something to eat,” Cary recounts. Once the community was engaged with the music and the fun, a speaker presented the message of salvation. The Holy Spirit moved in a powerful way from this point forward inside the tent. Cary continues. “One guy show up that had just got out of prison that weekend. No one knew him, and he had heard nothing of the event, but just ended up here. He sat right in the front row, and then gave his heart to Jesus before the altar call was even finished!” And the washout continued as more and more people decided to cleanse themselves in Calvary’s tide. Spokane Fellowship sees a deluge on the horizon.

Water Bottles and Dimes: A Christ’s Birthday Observance Testimony

By Lisa Shaffer

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or many years, our small congregation (average attendance of thirty-five) was only minimally connected to the Church of God movement. One of these small connections was in the area of financial giving, especially to the Christ’s Birthday Observance offering. But God had other plans for us this year! While attending our state family camp meeting at Whitehall Camp, one of the pastors shared how his small congregation had funded youth camp attendance by distributing twenty-ounce drinking water bottles to the congregation and asking them to fill them with dimes to raise funds for their teens. While he was talking about youth going to camp, I was thinking about two of our teens who went to camp and received a wonderful gift: salvation in Christ! What a better way to honor Christ than to save for his birthday gift! On September 20, 2009, each member of our congregation was given a decorated water bottle to fill with dimes for the Christ’s Birthday Observance offering. It wasn’t just about filling the

bottle; it was also about being reminded of Jesus every time we saw a dime, and being intentional in think ing about our offering. Over the next three months, the testimonies came pouring in. Folks who had never been known to witness or even mention Jesus were asking for dimes as change in the grocery store and telling all who would listen that they were saving their dimes for Jesus. One couple received a reminder that God was with them during an emergency visit to the hospital when the cafeteria cashier gave them dimes instead of quarters for their change. Another couple had been saving all of their change for years. They

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were thrilled to spend an evening sitting at their kitchen table, sorting out all the dimes for Jesus. They filled two bottles! It was a wonderful moment of worship on December 20, 2009, for Cardiff Road Church of God in Nanty Glo, Pennsylvan ia, when people placed t hei r f i l led water bottles under the Christmas tree. The final tally of these gifts for Jesus was $1,025.67, a big improvement from the previous year’s total of $118. None of us will ever look at a dime the same way again. Some of us were so touched by this idea of “tithing our dollars for Jesus” that we started our bottles for 2010 shortly after this powerful worship experience. I hope that this story will encourage others to be open to the Spirit’s leading in the area of creative ways to inspire congregations to support the wonderful work of the Church of God through the Christ’s Birthday Observance offering. Lisa Shaffer is the wife of Richard Shaffer, pastor of Cardiff Road Church of God in Nanty Glo, Pennsylvania. Other churches are actively implementing unique methods for raising Christ’s Birthday Observance offerings. Some plan a year in advance, designating weekly giving to CBO. Others coordinate offerings with larger giving campaigns. For more information about Christ’s Birthday Observance and unique ways to raise these funds, visit www.wchog.org or call 866-778-0804.

Refreshing Unity

By Carl Stagner

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even local churches—representing six denominations and one reformation movement— worshiping together in one place. No quarrelling, no competition, no division. It’s a refreshing thought: the minor differences that often separate the body of Christ are instead transformed into a powerful witness to the world. Cornerstone Church of God in Erlanger, Kentucky, takes a bold step each Thanksgiving season to emphasize Strategic Value Five: Refresh! Renewing our efforts toward relational connectivity and identity (John 17:21–22) for every individual, church, and agency of the Church of God. In spite of denominational differences, they are reaching their hands in fellowship to every bloodwashed one. Christmas Eve services are popular; Easter sunrise services are commonplace. But special church services celebrating Thanksgiving? Not so common. On the Tuesday evening prior to Thanksgiving, Cornerstone Church of God participates and contributes to a community worship service. Gene Blair, pastor of Cornerstone, suggests that Thanksgiving is incredibly important for churches to celebrate. He says that

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“Sorry we’re late. Magi have the worst time getting through airport security.” ©2010 Kevin Spear www.kevinspear.com [email protected]

the world may not always see Christians as possessing much gratitude, so they need to emphasize a spirit of Thanksgiving throughout the year. Once the church realizes they are greatly blessed, it must pass these blessings along to others. “God said to Abraham, ‘I’m going to bless you so that you will be a blessing to nations.’ We need to be a blessing to our community.” In the process of practicing Strategic Value Five (Refresh!), Cornerstone Church of God, united with the other participating area churches, exercises Strategic Value Two: Permeate! Engaging every individual, church, and agency in the Great Commandments (Matt 22:37-39). In unity, each church brings offerings and nonperishable foods to support a local police chaplain’s fund. These monies and food offer God’s love to needy families in crisis situations. When the Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Pentecostals, Disciples of Christ, the Church of Christ, and the Church of God reformation movement come together to worship the Lord, it’s a pure foretaste of heaven’s bliss. It’s a bond of perfectness. They join in the singing of traditional Thanksgiving songs, including “Come, Ye Thankful People, Come” and “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” “There’s something about a worship CHOGnews

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service that unites God’s people,” Gene reflects. “It’s amazing that whatever the denomination, when we worship, we’re just God’s people.” Worship leaders rotate their responsibilities from year to year. The pastors take turns presenting scriptures during the service. Each year, a different church hosts their facility. The believers unite in corporate prayer for their community and celebrate God’s blessings by giving back to their community. “We’re not in competition,” Gene explains. “We work together. We may have particular nuances that separate us, but we share in the celebration of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. When the world sees all these different Christian groups separated, they don’t get a good picture of God’s church. When they see that we can work together and work toward kingdom-focused goals, it’s a strong witness.” Cornerstone Church of God regularly experiences the refreshing power of intentionally connecting with the reformation movement and the greater church of God. “We’re much more effective when we work together,” Gene concludes. “It’s a reminder that the whole body of Christ is greater than our individual congregations, and that we are working together to make our community better.”

A Sticky Kind of Love

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t was a first for the small church in the quaint community of La Junta, Colorado. Never before had they dared try something of this magnitude. No longer could this congregation keep their enthusiasm contained inside four walls. Their mounting excitement to break out of their comfort zones and think outside the box was uncontainable, and the results of their victory over inertia was very—pause for emphasis—sticky. The idea, Trunk or Tr e at , m ay not be new to churches across the country, but for this town of just 7,500, the idea was brand new. For First Church of God, the idea was innovative and provocative. Trunk or Treat provided an opportunity for First Church of God to engage its community in a manner not previously attempted and, at the same time, show the love of God to its hundreds of passersby. The presence of candy was evidenced by the sticky fingers of neighborhood children, but the presence of the Holy Spirit was evidenced by the sticky hearts of the church volunteers who made fresh connections with local families. When asked why the church is shifting much of its energy to the community around them, Clint McBroom, pastor, replied, “Within a community that thrives on loyalty to the community, to be able to give back means a lot to them.” He continues, “Regardless of our events at the church or how we handle them,

our purpose at the end of the day is to make disciples. We do this by reaching out to the community that is placed right around us and to those who are searching for what we have already found!” The congregation, despite its lack of extensive experience with community-outreach act iv it ies, showed strong supp or t . I n a d isplay of u n it y, nea r ly a l l of t he families of the church volunteered in some ma n ner. Ma ny decorated t hei r veh ic les. Ot hers i ntent iona l ly mingled with the t r ic k- or -t r e at er s and their parents. The ladies of the church prepared hot chocolate, which was given to shivering neighbors.

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By Carl Stagner

Drawn to the church volunteers, area families expressed nothing but appreciation for the evening’s event. “They loved it!” Clint exclaims. “I don’t know how many times that I or other church members heard someone f rom communit y say, ‘This is so neat! Where did this idea come from?’ Or kids say, ‘We love this church!’ It warms my heart to know that God was smiling down all evening adding his blessings to this event.” Three hundred local children and about five hundred-fifty adults attended First Church of God ’s Trunk or Treat, all in a two-hour period. Clint is thrilled with the success of the outreach and eager to lead his flock to do even more. “As we continue to find unique ways to reach the lost, we plan to bring those in that God can grow so they can go and make disciples of all nations. Many people are searching and we believe that God placed all of us here to help those people come to the throne of God!”

Guidance from IRS on Cell Phone Rules Is Still Pending

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oes your church or ministry issue cell phones for business or ministry use? Although the Small Business Jobs Act (SBJA) was signed into law on September 27, we still await guidance from the IRS on the application of the law. We know that the law change provides some relief from burdensome substantiation requirements. Section 2043 of the SBJA removes cellular phones (and “similar telecommunications equipment”) from the definition of listed property in Section 280F, thus relieving employers of the special conditions that included onerous documentation in accordance with Section 274(d)(4). Congress added cellular phones and other equipment, which it collectively calls “cell phones” in the Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989 (Pub. L. 101-239), which contains the definition of “cell phones.” But the new law does not address whether an employee’s limited or de minimis personal use of employer-provided cell phones is nontaxable to the employee. The law does not affect the IRS’s authority to determine the appropriate characterization of cell phones as a working condition fringe benefit or a de minimis fringe benefit. It may be prudent to await specific guidance from the IRS on this issue before making any permanent policy changes with regard to cell phone benefits. Before employers make any permanent policy changes with regard to their cell phone benefits, it may be prudent to await specific guidance from the IRS. The full text of IRS Notice 2009-46 is available at www.irs.gov/irb/200923_IRB/ar07.html. This article was first published by ECFA on November 4, 2010. Republished by permission. This text is provided with the understanding that ECFA is not rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice or service. Professional advice on specific issues should be sought from an accountant, lawyer, or other professional.

Deliberate Action Can Change a Church’s Future

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irst Church of God in Saltville, Virginia, is like so many other congregations. They love the Lord and each other. Their Sunday morning attendance runs slightly over a hundred people. And they too are feeling the affect of the economic recession. Nevertheless, First Church is uncommon in one respect. They have decided to take a bold step now that will change their future—forever. Working in partnership with the Church of God Foundation, the Saltville church decided to take advantage of a pilot program being offered by the Foundation designed specifically for small congregations. This program allows smaller congregations to establish an endowment with as little as $1,000. Then, as congregation members contribute to the endowment, it will grow and eventually produce dividends that will return money to support the church’s ministry. Since the corpus (base money in the endowment) is never touched, the money continues to generate dividends, providing a perpetual income stream back into the church. As gifts cause the endowment’s corpus to grow, so too do the dividends. “We recognized that we must take deliberate action now to change our future,” said Pastor Kenny Howard. “So our board carefully considered what the Foundation was offering and determined that we could make a difference in the future ministries here at Saltville by creating an endowment with the Foundation. Our hope and prayers are that by planting the seeds today, we can have the resources for a mighty harvest in the future.” There are multiple ways to grow an endowment. Immediate gifts can be received, of course, but there are also other options. A congregation member might include the endowment in his or CHOGnews

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her will and estate plan. Or the endowment could be the named beneficiary of a member’s charitable gift annuity. To help the congregation learn of the many options available, the Foundation offers free seminars designed to help churches grow their endowments. Maybe your congregation should consider an endowment. Please contact the Church of God Foundation at 877549-4438 or [email protected] to discuss the possibilities.

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CHOG Factoid

Christ’s

Spiritual Arrhythmia

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few years ago I was sitting at my office desk when my heart began racing as though I were running an uphill marathon with a boxcar of uranium ore strapped to my back. In addition, my ticker was skipping beats. It would pound furiously, pause, and then start hammering away again—a bit like a caffeine-infused snare drummer with a stutter. At the time, I was editing a unit of Sunday school lessons. And though I find scriptural exploration more exhilarating than most people, I sensed that more was afoot than simple adrenaline overload from studying the book of Leviticus. After a trip to the emergency room and subsequent tests, the problem was identified as atrial fibrillation, complicated by a slightly enlarged heart and a leaky valve. It was a surprising experience for someone who was accustomed to having his brain act as the organ most likely to exhibit erratic behavior. Of course, spiritual hearts are just as prone to go haywire as physical ones— and the risk can be just as substantial. As with the four-chambered wonder pump that powers blood through our circulatory system, a spiritual heart can malfunction with few, if any, visible signs that anything is amiss. The biblical figure we often refer to as the rich young ruler seemed spiritually hale and hearty enough (Luke 18:18–23). In terms of keeping the Law, this guy had been earning religious merit badges since back in the days when he was teething on stone tablet replicas of the Ten Commandments. But Jesus is a specialist when it comes to matters of the heart. He sensed abnormalities below the sur-

By Sam Collins face and quickly pinpointed the man’s unseen problem: a heart more in sync with the allure of wealth and position than with God and the things God cares for. Christ calls his followers to develop hearts that beat in rhythm with the heart of God. That’s far more demanding than following a few religious rules and regulations. Lest we become like the rich young ruler, we need to do more than occasionally submit our interior lives to the spiritual equivalent of placing a cold stethoscope on our chests for a split second and then rushing on with our regular activities. Monitoring our true spiritual cardiovascular fitness demands inescapable diagnostic procedures: immersion in the Word of God, prayer, Spiritguided meditation and examination of self, confession, and patient listening in order to pick up the pulse and rhythm of the Source of all life. That requires commitment. That requires time. That requires consistency. But there is no alternative. Without the necessary vigilance, congestive spiritual heart failure can overtake any of us—even those who’ve never even slightly bruised, much less broken, one of God’s formal commandments. The views expressed in this column are not necessarily those of Church of God Ministries or, at points, even the writer, but are written with tongue firmly planted in cheek to hopefully provoke a leavening bit of laughter and a smidgen of thought.

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Birthday Observance offerings

support ministries in

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countries and much more