The Bible Story Family

  My next book table will appear at the Central Baptist Seminary’s Fall Conference on October 15. I appreciate the opportunity to display at their fall and spring conferences each year. The theme for the conference next week is Moral Injury. The effects of Moral Injury are often seen among those who work in the military, in emergency services, and in health care. But they can happen as the result of any circumstance where people make choices which they feel are contrary to their moral commitments. In order to address this very current topic, Central has invited Chaplain (Col.) Chris Melvin to speak. He serves as State Chaplain for the Arizona National Guard and has done doctoral studies focused on Moral Injury. He served two tours in Afghanistan and one in the horn of Africa. The first session of the conference begins at 8:30 a.m. in Plymouth, Minnesota at Fourth Baptist Church where Central Seminary is located. This is a conference you will not want to miss. And while there, b

  You mount your horse in the arena which says “City of Destruction.” The gate opens to provide access to “The King’s Highway.” As the campers ride through the woods, they are reminded to “Put on the full armor of God.” Wranglers tell them about the “Slough of Despond” and the Good King who sends helpers for their journey. They ride past the “Cross” and enter “Doubting Castle,” home of the giant “Despair.” Leaders remind them of the “Key of Promise,” God’s Word, and the way to escape the castle. From there they ride over the “Hill of Difficulty,” and through the “City of Vanity” until they finally reach the “Celestial City.” Where can you take such a ride? Become a junior-age camper at Camp Chetek in Wisconsin. The “Pilgrim’s Progess” trail ride is the brainstorm of Stacy Malmanger who has worked with what she calls the “King’s Horses” since 2013. Every camp horse which has entered the horse program since that time has been given a Bible name: Enoch, Nicodemus, Boaz, Naomi, Havilah,

  A chance encounter with a college student on an airplane provided the idea for a yearly chart of spiritual disciplines. She was not using her chart in this fashion, but the impetus was there for a very valuable resource for spiritual development. Take a sheet of paper and draw a graph, twelve across and thirty-one down. Label the top in accordance with the twelve months of the year and the side with thirty-one days of the month. Those without thirty-one days can be adjusted at the bottom. Use colored markers to indicate the spiritual discipline which had the greatest impact on you for a particular day. Squares can also be divided to indicate more than one discipline. You don’t need to wait until January 1 to start. You can start tomorrow with the square that represents September 28. I have chosen five spiritual disciplines for this particular chart. Use those, or substitute some of your own choices, like meditation, rest, music, or church attendance. Consistent completion of th

  When I was a young man working my way through seminary, I had a program on WCTS called “Music and Poetry.” That was soon after the station began broadcasting in 1965. I also filled a time-slot in the early morning which consisted mainly of news and music. It was during that time that I would often play a cut from and record of the song “I’ll Never Be Lonely Again.” That was a subliminal message to my fiancée down at Pillsbury Baptist Bible College in Owatonna, Minnesota. That song let her know that I was on the air and was thinking of her. WCTS is still on the air and this week they have been holding their Share-a-Thon. Their phone center has been busy taking calls. Special guests have been interviewed by Program Director Steve Davis. A financial goal has been set which will help them continue to present gospel programming for the year to come. “WCTS Radio exists to minister the message of the Gospel to our community through music and Bible teaching. We also stream programming to

  The theme for the Minnesota Baptist Association Southeast Ladies Meeting tomorrow?             CHANGED MY MIND The place? First Baptist Church, Lake Benton, Minnesota. The speaker? Carmen Odens Allen FUN FACTS: Lake Benton is the town where Carmen was born. Her father, Arthur Odens, served as pastor of First Baptist Church. I won’t tell you when, because then you will try to guess her age. Lake Benton is the town where Carmen and I began our ministry. I served as pastor of First Baptist Church from 1974-1976. Lake Benton is the town where our third child, Kent, was born. Actually, it was in Hendricks, Minnesota, because Lake Benton didn’t have a hospital. The current pastor of First Baptist Church, Lake Benton, Richard Riley, and his wife Heather,    were students of ours when we taught at Pillsbury Baptist Bible College. FINAL NOTE: If you live near Lake Benton, be sure to attend the meeting. Carmen is going to do a great job! (And I am proud of her!)

  CREATIVE LEGOS Kids love Legos. Especially an abundance of Legos. An abundance is exactly what is available when a Lego Vacation Bible School is held in Germany. The Luke Snell family has been ministering in Ingelheim, Germany, for the past four years. During three of those years they have conducted a Lego Vacation Bible School. A woman by the name of Crystal Buegel provides the plethora of pieces capable of creating a small city. Each day the students, ages seven through twelve, work on assembling the pieces into a city of which they can be proud. Legos provide the attraction. During the course of each day, the Gospel provides the spiritual food the Snells have gone to Germany to share. Lego-themed games and crafts fill out the rest of the time. Once the city is complete, the students choose a name for their creation and elect a mayor. “Their parents are invited to hear the songs the kids learned, hear about our church, and then tour the city,” says Luke. The ladies of the c