BAPTIST NEW MEXICAN 5/24/2014

Transcription

1 BAPTIST NEW MEXICAN 5/24/2014 The Baptist New Mexican is published weekly by the Baptist Convention of New Mexico. To receive the complete paper each week for one year, send $5.50 to the Baptist New Mexican, P.O. Box 94485, Albuquerque, NM The editor's address is The views and opinions expressed by writers of letters and articles appearing in this paper are not necessarily those of the editor. INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Bible Work Leads to Scholarships MY TURN: The Editor s Perspective TESTIMONY BNM e-edition Kingdom Advances Among N.M. Deaf Speakers Tournament Wife Ministered Alongside Pastor Husband 63 Years NEW MEXICO ROUNDUP MISSIONARIES WITH N.M. TIES THESE ROADS WITH DR. B McCollum Celebrates 20 Years in Gallup New Mexico Women of Worship Debut NEW BOOKS HEART MEDICINE Bible Work Leads to Scholarships The 2014 New Mexico Children and Youth Bible Drill, which were held May 3 at Del Norte Baptist Church in Albuquerque, turned out to be an exciting weekend for children and youths from across New Mexico. The weekend was the culmination of a great deal of study and learning, as the young people had to do well enough in their own church and associational drills to compete at the state level. I am always amazed at how well the children and youth have worked to participate at the state drill, said Krista Peterson, who directs children s and women s ministries for the Baptist Convention of New Mexico, which sponsors the annual competitions. This year s group did a remarkable job learning Bible verses and studying God s Word. They were very well prepared.

2 It takes a lot of time and intense study for kids and students to learn Bible verses and to be able to find any verse or book in the Bible within eight to 10 seconds, Peterson explained. Most adults can t do that, so I am always impressed with their work. The Youth Bible Drill, for grades 7-9, required the students to quote verses, look up Scripture passages in eight seconds, recite doctrine and answer Bible questions. All four of the participants were from First Baptist, Ruidoso. The firstplace winner was Teresa Roberts. The second-place winner was Mia Montoya. And third place went to Brianna Stoddard. Each of the winners received a full scholarship to any BCNM camp. The Children s Bible Drill, for grades 4-6, took place on Saturday morning. Children had 10 seconds to find Bible books and Scripture passages. They also needed to recite correctly verses they had learned. There were five children who received perfect scores on the Children s Bible Drill, Peterson said. They were Whitney Peck of Del Norte Baptist, Albuquerque; Olivia Parker of First Baptist, Ruidoso; Abby Bergstrasser of Del Norte, Albuquerque; Elisandro Velo from First Baptist, Artesia; and Josslyn Romero from First Baptist, Ruidoso. Kim Treece and I always appreciate the team of people that helped to judge, score, keep time, watch children and call the drills, Peterson said. Those who performed those important tasks this year were Garry and Peggy Schwalk of First Baptist, Carlsbad; Lillian Moon of Del Norte Baptist, Albuquerque; Hannah Bergstrasser of Del Norte Baptist, Albuquerque; Vickie Czlapinski of First Baptist, Bloomfield; and John Roe of Eastern Hills, Albuquerque. A special thanks to Del Norte Baptist Church for being a gracious host, Peterson said. Each church that participated also should be honored for their investment in leading youths and children to study and know God s Word, Peterson added. Many church leaders and parents spent numerous hours helping these youths and children succeed, she emphasized. The churches that participated were Del Norte Baptist, Albuquerque; First Baptist, Artesia; First Baptist, Ruidoso and Gila Valley Baptist Church. We did have one Youth Speaker this year, Abigail Pearce, Peterson said. She did a beautiful job of presenting a speech on knowing God s will and earned high marks from the judges. Pearce is from First Baptist, Texico, and is the daughter of Dan Pearce, the director of missions for Eastern and Tucumcari associations. Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, Texas, and Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, both offer a $1,000-per-semester scholarship to the winners. Those who are interested in participating in next year s competitions and would like their names added to the mailing list should Peterson at kpeterson@bcnm.com or call her office at (Albuquerque area), or ext. 333.

3 Photo cutline: The five who received perfect scores in the Children s Bible Drill were (from left) Josslyn Romero, Elisandro Velo, Abby Bergstrasser, Whitney Peck and Olivia Parker. Photo cutline: Winners of the Youth Bible Drill were all from First Baptist, Ruidoso: (from left) Teresa Roberts in first place, Mia Montoya in second place and Brianna Stoddard in third place. Photo cutline: The children and youth who participated in the New Mexico State Bible Drill and Speakers Tournament on May 3. MY TURN: The Editor s Perspective Take That Vacation! By John Loudat, Editor Tis that time of the year pastors far and wide understand that summertime is the time many of their flock will be somewhere else besides their regular pew (or chair or theater seat). Many of these leaders recognize that it would be a good time to remind members that the ministries of the church will go on even while they re away; in fact, summer can be one of the busiest times of the year, as the warm weather accommodates all kinds of creative activities to reach people in the community for Christ. Thus, some members need to be encouraged to stick their offering in an envelope and mail it those weeks they ll not be able to drop it in the offering plate. Perhaps the most important thing pastors communicate with their people, though, is that it is no sin to take a vacation. In fact, for those of you who realize that vacation is another word for rest, God demands it! Many of us suffer from a very common malady of having more that we would like to do than can be accomplished in the time God has given us. One way many have tried to deal with that is by reducing the number of hours we don t do anything, because we re asleep. It didn t take us too long to figure out that s not a very good option; it just impairs our ability to get things done when we should be able to, when we re awake (or half-awake). You don t need to be a rocket scientist to know that you can do much more, and you can do it more effectively, when you get the sleep you need. Another strategy that doesn t work very well is to use every waking moment of every single day working on something on your to-do list. My list, which I now carry around with me on my digital devices, is divided into two categories: things I have to do that are related to my work/ministry and things that are related to my personal/home life. I work hard just about every day to cross off at least as many items as I ve added to the list, but some days, everyone knows, that s just impossible. Not long ago I realized that there was one

4 task that I wasn t doing as often as I needed to, partly because it was missing from my list. It was a simple case of out of sight, out of mind. There are simply some things I never get around to unless I write them down and take the time to look at what I ve written down. This is often one of those things. In fact, it is an item that, I believe, should be on the to-do list of every born-again child of God rest. It s hard to believe that any of us would ever forget about such an easy, and enjoyable, task. It s also extremely important, especially since it is something we are commanded by our God to do every single week. God explicitly said that He gave us the command to remind us that He took time to cease from His work of creation, and it s OK if we take time off from our work, as well (Exodus 20:11). And He wants it to remind us what He has done for us, in delivering us from slavery to sin and into an eternal, abundant life (Deuteronomy 5:15). It also is an important way we can acknowledge our understanding that, in the words of the late great preacher, Vance Havner, If we don t come apart, we will come apart. In the Old Testament, God not only commanded His people to observe a day of rest, the consequences of not doing so was death. Thankfully, today we re released from that requirement, but the fact that there ever was such a penalty drives home how serious God was when He issued the command. It s still serious in that not getting the rest you need could still kill you. Just ask your doctor. So, your pastor is right to encourage you to take another form of rest, your vacation, and you re right to insist that he takes all you ve entitled him to too. It will significantly enhance what the Lord is able to accomplish through him and the congregation he has been called to lead. TESTIMONY God s Mighty Work Among Deaf in N.M. (Photo) By Joyce Smith For the past 15 years, Joyce and Olen Smith have served as the Baptist Convention of New Mexico s missionaries to New Mexico s 5,000 Deaf people. They are retiring soon and will return to Easley, S.C., where they were both born and grew up. Joyce Smith reflects below on the past 15 years they have served in the Land of Enchantment. Olen and I arrived in New Mexico in That year was spent traveling the northern part of the state, talking to pastors regarding interest in starting Deaf ministries in their churches. We also were visiting all the state agencies who served the Deaf in any capacity, the School for the Deaf, meeting Deaf people throughout the year, and waiting to see where God wanted the Deaf ministries to begin. First Baptist Church in Santa Fe was open to this new ministry, and the work began there in March of The church has been very supportive of all our work

5 across the state for the past 15 years, for which we are extremely grateful. Other ministries began soon thereafter, in Taos, Española, Shiprock and Farmington. In 2001 Kevin Clark began coming annually to preach across the state. His wife, Debbie, accompanied him in 2003, and by 2005 larger Deaf teams began to come and work with us from other states. A Deaf ministry began at Hoffmantown Church in Albuquerque in It became a church for the Deaf in 2011, with Bobby J. Graff as pastor. Red and Barbara Flett led the work in the southern part of the state. The statewide annual Deaf Revivals began in A team of hearing and Deaf came from Merrimon Ave. Baptist Church, Asheville, N.C., our former church, and worked with us in all the northern areas. In 2007 Deaf pastors and laymen from several states began coming annually to work with us in reaching Deaf people for Christ and praying that churches for the Deaf could begin. In house groups were started, as the Bible Storying Cloth was being taught in homes and during Wednesday night Bible studies at churches with Deaf ministries. People in the communities or villages with only two to five Deaf people living there were invited to attend the Bible studies in homes. Sometimes there would be only one person; other times two or three would meet. It continues to be a challenge in these outlying areas, but the Deaf Christians are faithful to do what they can. Four communities where there are a group of Deaf Christians ready for a church for the Deaf or a meeting place where they can practice their cultural way of worship and in their own language, American Sign Language, are Santa Fe, Farmington, Roswell and Las Cruces. This will be our last year to serve as missionaries to the Deaf in New Mexico. We are so grateful for the privilege and the joy of experiencing God s mighty work among the Deaf in New Mexico, for His Glory. BNM e-edition Everyone who receives the print edition of the Baptist New Mexican also has access to its enhanced e-edition. To create a login (once) and access the current and previous e-editions, go to and click on Baptist New Mexican under QUICK LINKS, Baptist New Mexican e-edition, the red e button, and Login, where you may create your login (you ll need the account number and zip code from your mailing label) or log in with the ID and password you created. Detailed instructions may be found by selecting Baptist New Mexican e-edition on the BNM s main page and Instructions for Viewing e- Edition. For more assistance, call (Albuquerque), or ext. 311.

6 Kingdom Advances Among N.M. Deaf By John Loudat Much prayer and preparation during the year, responses from Deaf missionaries and participation from the leadership of Deaf ministries in the state served to make the 2014 New Mexico State Deaf Revival/Outreach a blessed event, reported Joyce and Olen Smith following this year s effort. During the annual revival/outreach April 12-20, 10 New Mexicans came to know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior and 21 Christians rededicated their lives to the Lord. As usual, the Baptist missionaries had to deal with a number of unexpected challenges, like the death of the 30-year-old brother of a Deaf believer. On Saturday many Deaf and the missionaries went to the funeral, and one of the missionaries from Missouri, Gerardo Comos, led a hearing woman to faith in Christ, said the Smiths, who are the Baptist Convention of New Mexico s consultants/church planters/strategists with the Deaf. Many of the Deaf wept as they rededicated their lives to Christ, they added. Eight of the missionaries came from three other states five from North Carolina, two from Missouri and one from Louisiana. They worked with members of the New Mexico Baptist Hands-on-Mission team to take the gospel message to Deaf people in 12 communities and rural areas in between. The south/southwest team was led by Red and Barbara Flett; the central team was led by Gary and Linda Meier and Amy Wickham; and the north/northwest team was led by Priscilla Martinez, Veronica Benado, Aaron Martinez and the Smiths. The 35 traveling missionaries shared Christ in Albuquerque, Aztec, Belen, Chama, Eagle Nest, Farmington, Las Cruces, Los Lunas, Rio Rancho, Roswell, Santa Fe and Shiprock, and their three vans and seven automobiles logged 4,560 miles during the week, the Smiths said. Several members of Albuquerque Deaf Baptist Church prepared a potluck dinner during the effort as well as a celebration for newlyweds Aaron and Leslie Martinez. Before the nine teams hit the road, everyone gathered for the day at the BCNM s building in Albuquerque on Saturday, April 12, for a time of training. That day they learned, and practiced, how to use a number of evangelistic tools, including the Bible Story Cloth, EvangeCube and evangelistic tracts. They also learned how to prayerwalk and prayerdrive, since that would be the first thing each team would do when they arrived in the communities where they would share. Before they left Albuquerque, they met together on Sunday, April 13, in the Gathering, Sandia Baptist Church s fellowship hall, to be commissioned to the important task. One of New Mexico Baptists newest churches, Albuquerque Deaf Baptist Church, meets at Sandia, in the Refinery, each Sunday. This year marked the first time the annual commissioning service was held at a Deaf church. All the previous

7 services were held at First Baptist Church in Santa Fe, for which the Smiths are very grateful, they emphasized. The move this year demonstrated that the advancement of the gospel work among Deaf Baptists has matured to the point where it is something they are able to do themselves, Joyce Smith told the Baptist New Mexican. The missionaries were encouraged that morning by Bobby Graff, pastor of the host church, to use the gifts that God had given them. The service was concluded with church members gathering around those who would go out across the state and Graff asking God to give them his power and protection and to open the hearts and minds of lost people to the message the missionaries would share. Over the next five days, Deaf people came together for cookouts, meals, worship services and Bible studies, doing what they had been commissioned to do, in homes, nursing homes, churches and a park. They returned to Albuquerque Friday evening for a cookout at the BSU Christian Challenge prepared by ADBC members. Following a time of fellowship, sharing and debriefing the next day at the Baptist Building and a final meal together at a local restaurant. The followup with each person who made a decision will be done by the Deaf ministry leaders in each of the areas where each made a decision for Christ, the Smiths said. The missionaries had been encouraged in their important assignment by family members and friends, and by 50 3rd-5th graders from First Baptist Church, Easley, S.C., and Merrimon Ave. Baptist Church in Asheville, N.C. The cards were in each child s handwriting, assuring they would be praying for the missionaries during the week of revival, and on each card was a Bible verse, as well, the Smiths said. This was an encouragement of love and thanks to the missionaries. This was the 10th year for what has become an annual statewide evangelistic effort to reach the people group that numbers 5,000 in the state. It also was the last one to be led by the Smiths, who will be retiring to Easley, S.C., where they were both born and grew up, sometime this summer or fall. We are so grateful for the privilege and the joy of working with God s people in New Mexico and experiencing the mighty work of God among the Deaf in New Mexico, for his glory, the couple said. Photo cutline: This year s Deaf missionaries show off some of the witnessing tools they used during the Deaf revival. (Photos by Loudat/BNM) Photo cutline: Joyce Smith (left) observes this year s Deaf missionaries practice using a variety of evangelistic tools during the training event prior to the annual Deaf revival.

8 Photo cutline: Bobby Graff encourages this year s Deaf missionaries to use the gifts that God has given them, during the commissioning service for the Deaf revival. Photo cutline: Stephanie Soto signs special music during the commissioning service for this year s Deaf revival. Speakers Tournament (Photo) Abigail Pearce, who participated in the Speakers Tournament, is shown with her parents Dan and Miriam. Wife Ministered Alongside Pastor Husband 63 Years (Photo) By John Loudat Antonia (Toni) Valdez of Roswell, the wife of longtime pastor Samuel Valdez, died May 4 at the age of 81. Born in Roswell, Toni Escobar graduated from Valley Baptist Academy in 1952 and has been a beloved and devoted member of First Baptist Church of Roswell for several years. Toni Escobar married Samuel Valdez 63 years ago this August, and she ministered alongside him for the next several years as he pastored churches in Texas, First Spanish Baptist Church in Dexter from , and Trinidad Baptist Mission in Roswell. She also helped her husband lead First Baptist, Roswell s televised Spanish Bible study for a number of years, and from she worked passionately in the church s Jireh Ministries, touching countless lives. Survivors include her husband of nearly 63 years; daughters Diana Castro and her husband Louis of Roswell and Pristinia Aragon of Roswell; four grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and sisters Tina Torres and her husband Bob and Reba Escobar. Memorial contributions may be made to the Jireh Ministries Fund at First Baptist Church, 500 N. Pennsylvania, Roswell, NM NEW MEXICO ROUNDUP In Memoriam (Photo)

9 John A. Rains, who served First Baptist Church, Elida, faithfully for more than four decades as a deacon, Sunday school teacher and trustee, died May 6 at the age of 92. Survivors include his wife of more than 61 years, Billie; a son, Johnny Rains and his wife Jane of Roswell; two daughters: Connie Dixon, the Baptist Convention of New Mexico s missions strategist, and her husband Herschel of Elida, and Terri Hymes and her husband Dale of Lubbock, Texas; seven grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. Born in Melrose, Rains moved with his family to Post, Texas, where he graduated from high school in That same year he moved to Elida and started working at Kemp Lumber Company, which he eventually purchased. He worked there for more than 60 years, until his retirement in In 1953 he married Billie Don Hodges in Portales. After serving in the Army in Arkansas, he and his wife returned to Elida. Rains was a member of the Elida Lions Club and served on the Elida School Board, the Elida Fire Department and the town council. Memorial contributions may be made to the New Mexico Baptist Children s Home, 2200 S. Ave. I, Portales, NM AVAILABLE & WANTED Items in this section are published without charge as a service to BCNM churches and individuals. Publication does not constitute endorsement. First Baptist Church, Eunice, a Southern Baptist faith-oriented church, is seeking a full-time pastor. If you feel God leading you to southeastern New Mexico, mail résumé to First Baptist Church, Attn: Pastor Search Team, P.O.Box 1449, Eunice, NM 88231; or to eunicefbc@valornet.com. 5/24 Tohajiilee Baptist Mission is looking for 90 interlocking chairs. The mission would appreciate any donation of chairs. If you are considering replacing the chairs in your church, consider donating your old ones to Tohajiilee Baptist Mission. Pastor Jerry Johns may be contacted at (505) /24 The New Mexico Baptist Children s Home in Portales is seeking a Christian couple to work as houseparents for a great group of kids. We offer a competitive salary with benefits plus room and board. If this is your calling, please contact Bill Marker at (575) or bill.marker@nmbch.com. 5/31 Nadine Baptist Church, Hobbs is accepting résumés for a bivocational pastor. The church is located six miles south of Hobbs off of Highway 18. Résumés should be sent to Nadine Baptist Church, Pastor Search Committee, 5821 S. Bronco Dr., Hobbs, NM 88240; or rash7254@gmail.com. 5/31 MISSIONARIES WITH N.M. TIES

10 Joseph and Leann Andrews, missionaries to American Peoples, will be on Stateside assignment April 15, 2015, through Oct. 15, They may be contacted at La Vista Grande, Albuquerque, NM Randall and Joan Bell, missionaries to European Peoples, will be on Stateside assignment beginning Sept. 1, 2014, through Jan. 10, They may be contacted at Robert and Kay Holcomb, missionaries to Southeast Asian Peoples, will be on Stateside assignment beginning Feb. 18, They may be contacted at Kelly and Jeanne Manire, missionaries to European Peoples, will be on Stateside assignment beginning Feb. 25, They may be contacted at Carol Smith, missionary to European Peoples, will be on Stateside assignment beginning Feb. 3, She may be contacted at THESE ROADS WITH DR. B How Can We Make Our Church Grow? By Joseph Bunce, BCNM Executive Director One of the conversations that I often have with folks across New Mexico is centered on one question, How do we make our church grow? My response is simple, but not easy. First, I think we need to answer, Is it really our church? The answer to that is No, it s the Lord s church. The fact of the matter is that ONLY God can grow His church. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 3:6 that it is God that gives the increase. We need to consider not how to make it grow, but what is keeping it from growing. I may be old school, but I still believe in what was coined as church health. Healthy churches tend to be growing churches. When we abide in Christ, there is fruit, or growth. Healthy churches have healthy members, not perfect members but people striving to model their lives after the Scripture s instruction. So, what does a healthy church look like? May I suggest that an answer to that question requires a trip to the New Testament book of Acts? Here we find 10 characteristics of a spiritually healthy church in Acts 2: This is not an exhaustive list, but it is a good place to look at your personal life and see if you are a healthy church member. Does my life reflect these 10 characteristics? Can I find these 10 characteristics in the church where I am a member? 1. Worship every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts

11 2. Evangelism and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved 3. Discipleship devoted themselves to the apostles teaching 4. Ministry and many wonders and miraculous signs were done 5. Fellowship devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to the fellowship 6. Stewardship selling their possessions and goods, they gave 7. Unity all the believers were together and had everything in common 8. Leadership they devoted (committed) themselves to the apostles 9. Mission the promise is for you and your children and for all who were far off 10. Prayer to the breaking of bread and to prayer We might also want to ask, Do we really want to see our church grow? Growth means change, and change is not always comfortable. It has been my experience that when people say they desire growth, they always have a qualifier as to what they mean. It might mean we would like for there to be more people attending that are just like us. This inhibits church growth. Consider: When a church grows, you cannot know everyone. When a church grows, people are saved and baptized. When a church grows, new leaders are developed or discovered. When a church grows, dollars are redirected to missions and evangelism. When a church grows, people are willing to relinquish control. When a church grows, we are willing to allow others to make decisions and our preference is not over-bearing. When a church grows, people become more important than programs. When a church grows, we give up our parking place and our pew without complaining. When a church grows, there is a sense of excitement just wondering what is going to happen next. Can I be so bold and ask, do you really want to see the church grow? Please know that I love and pray for New Mexico Baptists, but I pray that there will be more of us and we will see the church grow! Dr. B Need a smile? We are in the NBA playoffs so perhaps this joke is fitting. After a basketball game, the coach found a cell phone on the gym floor. He picked it up and handed it to one of the referees, saying, Here s your phone. What makes you think it s mine? the referee asked. Easy, the coach replied. It says you missed 13 calls.

12 THANK YOU for your giving to the Cooperative Program and Mission New Mexico! These are mission offerings you can support year-round. Given this year through May 16: Cooperative Program $1,375,198 Mission New Mexico $45,976 McCollum Celebrates 20 Years in Gallup (Photo) By Troy Harp and John Loudat Members of First Baptist Church in Gallup honored their pastor, Jay McCollum, and his wife, Anne, on Sunday, April 27, for the two decades they have served the congregation and community. The church honored the couple with a love offering and a church-wide celebration after the morning worship service. Many former members and longtime friends of the couple also were present. Before coming to Gallup, McCollum was pastor at Providence Baptist Church in Paris, Texas, for 11 years. Since he has been in Gallup, he has been on several World Changers trips with the church s youth group, traveled to Africa on mission trips, and served on a number of committees of Western Baptist Association. McCollum served as president of the Baptist Convention of New Mexico from , and he has chaired the BCNM s Christian Life Committee since He was appointed to the Southern Baptist Convention s Committee on Committees in 2006 and 2013, and he set a record in 2007 for serving as the longest serving trustee in the history of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission after serving two full terms and most of another term. Earlier this year McCollum was named by the New Mexico Chevy Dealers as January s hometown hero. Troy Harp is First Baptist, Gallup s music minister. New Mexico Women of Worship Debut By John Loudat Nearly 100 people were part of history the first Saturday afternoon of this month, as the new choir known as the New Mexico Women of Worship presented their inaugural concert at Sandia Baptist Church in Albuquerque. The star of the performance? That would be Jesus Christ, the group s director, Lamar Morin, told the crowd of Baptists and others from across the state and as far away as Portland, Ore.

13 He loves you, Morin told the crowd that numbered around five dozen, reiterating the message the women presented impressively in 13 songs they had learned in less than 24 hours. The choir was made up of 18 singers and an accompanist from 12 churches located in Albuquerque, Bosque Farms, Chama, Las Cruces, Los Chavez, Moriarty, Raton, Rio Rancho and Roswell. The longtime accompanist of the New Mexico Singing Churchmen, Cheryl Vaughn, accompanied for the new group for the first half of the concert, but she was delighted to be able to join the singers for the second half, while Jennifer Pinkston took over at the piano. Women eligible to be part of the new choir include full-time, part-time or volunteer pianists, organists, accompanists, instrumentalists, choir directors/leaders (of any age group), worship leaders, ministers /pastors wives, or women in other creative worship ministry group leadership positions, explained Morin, leader of the Baptist Convention of New Mexico s leadership development team, who also directs the Singing Churchmen. The women also were required to submit a brief audition recording and be endorsed by their pastor. And they spent 2½ hours rehearsing the night before and worked from 9 Saturday morning till the concert began at 3 p.m. learning the 13 numbers they would sing. For more information about the new group including application information, group guidelines, pastor endorsement forms and audition recording formats go to or call Morin s assistant, Katie Carroll at (Albuquerque area), or ext. 313, or Morin at (Albuquerque area), or ext Photo cutline: The inaugural concert of the New Mexico Women of Worship was held May 3 at Sandia Baptist Church in Albuquerque. (Loudat/BNM) NEW BOOKS These are announcements, not advertisements of new books. Listings are not to be construed as endorsements of the books. MELISSA, by Frank Page and Lawrence Kimbrough. B&H Publishing. Melissa is a heart-rending yet hope-inspiring story from the pen of parent/pastor Frank Page. As a parent, Page, who is now president of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, walks the reader through the passion of loving a child unconditionally, the pain of the most devastating loss and the perseverance of a saint who knows in whom he has believed. As a pastor, his heart s sensitivity is filled with heaven s hope and he weaves these together with the help that hurting families are desperately seeking. You will weep. You will

14 smile. You will thank God for His peace. It will be an invaluable resource for you in dealing with the ministry of suicide prevention. THE WITNESS, by Josh McDowell. Tyndale Fiction. From Monte Carlo to Morocco to Egypt and into Petra, Marwan Accad is pursued by authorities for murders he did not commit. Tracked by advanced intelligence-surveillance technology, his every location is eventually found out, thrusting those he loves into danger. Nurtured by a bitter past that equipped him with what he needed for his company to thrive, Marwan Accad never looks back. Yet the way forward promises only uncertainty and living each day is a lie in which corruption and greed play in the lives of man. Even as Marwan races against time to find his pursuers and their motives, he must grapple with what is beyond his life and what is eternal. AN UNHOLY COMMUNION, by Donna Fletcher Crow. Lion Fiction. From the College of the Transfiguration on Ascension morning, Felicity finds herself swept up in worship as she listens to the timeless words. But her delight quickly turns to horror when a black-robed body hurtles over the precipice and lands at her feet. The police, ignoring the strange emblem of a double-headed snake clutched in the dead man s hand, label the death a suicide. Matters grow worse as Felicity and her fiancé encounter the same sinister symbol as they lead a youth pilgrimage through rural Wales. Lurking figures follow them, and then a body is found. Were these suicide or murder? HEART MEDICINE A customer-service rep for a car rental company received a call from a driver who needed a tow. He was stranded on a busy highway, but he didn t know the make of the car he was driving. The representative firmly asked again for a more detailed description of the car beyond a blue four-door. It s the one on fire! Blooper: Church newsletter classified: Fred Hectler of the SonShine Class has an American flag with 60 stars for sale, plus pole. Taken from BLOOPERS, BLUNDERS, QUIPS, JOKES AND QUOTES by Jim Kraus. Copyright 2005 by Jim Kraus. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.