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CREATIVE INTERIM PASTORATE

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  The Bible often speaks of a local church as a flock and its pastor as a shepherd. When a pastor resigns or retires, that flock needs a new shepherd, but the candidating process can take months or sometimes even years. Gospel Fellowship Association in Greenville, South Carolina, provides a solution. They have a team of retired pastors who serve as interim shepherds in various states. Altogether this team of men represents nearly 1,000 years of experience. Pastor Paul Stevenson writes, “What an amazing privilege to serve with these dedicated servants.” He has completed four assignments as an interim, with the fourth church recently calling a pastor on January 4, 2026. Churches, and the pastors who serve with Gospel Fellowship Association, agree to a document called “Expectations in the Interim Ministry.” These include ministering the Word of God, being a person of integrity, providing spiritual leadership in helping to find a pastor, leading the church staff, and evangelizing...
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CREATIVE PUZZLE

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  It has been going on for years. The kids would ask what Carmen wanted for Christmas, and the answer would be the same. Current pictures of the family. This year they all took her at her word. All of them. The ones from Georgia and Pennsylvania and Minnesota. The in-laws and out-laws. Our immediate children and their spouses. The newlyweds and their spouses. And all the grandchildren. Everyone in one big picture. However, there was a catch. We had to put it all together because the pictures were part of a 1014-piece puzzle. Chad and Sarah planned it and ordered the puzzle from Snapfish. Carmen and I loved putting it together and planned to glue it and mount it, which may still happen one day. But the immediate plan is to disassemble it. We have a family reunion planned this summer and we want everyone to have a chance to work on it together. What fun that will be! We have assembled many puzzles over the years. But we have no doubt that this is indeed the best puzzle ever...
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CREATIVE QUESTION: WHAT WILL WE DO IN ETERNITY?

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  Simple question, simple answer: everyone knows we will sit on the clouds and play harps. Wrong! Donald Gray Barnhouse, in his commentary Illustrating the Gospel of John , suggests one possibility for the activity which may capture our attention in eternity. “If you are botanically minded you can go to God and say, ‘I love your flower thoughts. I’d like to classify a million varieties.’ And God will say, ‘Let there be a million varieties, and you can go to work on them.’” We do know that in eternity we will “do all to the glory of God” (I Corinthians 10:31). Jesus prayed, “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me” (John 17:24). So, all activity in eternity will be for the glory of God. Explorers will explore the wonders of God’s new creation for His glory. Scientists will investigate newly created botany and zoology and chemistry to the praise of His glory. Musicians will compose, arra...
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CREATIVE CELEBRATIONS

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  Merry Christmas! On Christmas Day Carmen and I celebrated God's Gift, His Son our Savior. Today we celebrate our gift to one another of 56 years of married bliss. Each of you have been a blessing to us through your support for and response to the Christian Creativity Blog posts. We are praying that this coming year will be yet another time for service to the praise of His glory for each one.
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ANNUAL CHRISTMAS QUIZ

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  CHRISTMAS QUIZ – 2025 1.      How many gifts in total were given in “The Twelve Days of Christmas?” a.       156 b.      364 c.       12 2.      According to tradition your Christmas decorations should be down by when? a.      January 5 b.      New Year’s Eve c.       Boxing Day 3.      Which Old Testament prophet predicted that Christ would be born in Bethlehem? a.       Isaiah b.      Jeremiah c.       Micah 4.      What animal did Mary ride on their way down to Egypt? a.      Donkey b.      Camel c.       Horse 5.      Where was St. Nicholas born? a.      Tur...
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CREATIVE BELLS

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  RING FOURTH. No, that is not misspelling. No, I did not mean to write RING FORTH. RING FOURTH is the name of the handbell choir at FOURTH Baptist Church. I know that because the choir director is my wife, Carmen Allen. RING FOURTH will be using their creative bell ringing to celebrate the birth of Christ this weekend. Saturday night and Sunday night at 6:00 p.m. the church will present a program called “In Bethlehem.” The bell choir will be joined by the orchestra, children’s choirs and the church choir in the production. “Bell ringing involves teamwork,” says Allen. “Every ringer depends on the rest of the group and the rest of the group depends on every ringer. Imagine 130 fingers on one piano each playing just two or three of the notes to make a complete song. That’s teamwork.” All are invited to the program this weekend. The address of Fourth Baptist Church is 900 Forestview Road, Plymouth, Minnesota. If you cannot attend in person, plan to watch the livestream. R...
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CREATIVE CHRISTMAS CHILD

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  Churches in more than 100 nations will be handing out Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts this season. Thirty-nine of those boxes were packed by the Golden Agers at Fourth Baptist Church of Plymouth, MN. It has been such a privilege to work with the Golden Agers this fall. They have been participating in Operation Christmas Child for several years and this year was no exception. Donations for items to be packed in the shoeboxes exceeded expectations and a delightful morning was spent putting those items into the boxes along with a personal message and a picture of the Golden Ager who packed the box. Some of the boxes were so full they reminded me of the verse in Luke 6:38, “Give, and it shall be given unto you: good measure, pressed down and shaken together and running over.” Accompanying every box were prayers for those who would be receiving them. The Samaritan’s Purse website says “many shoebox recipients also participate in our 12-lesson follow-up discipleship progr...
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