Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Stories From The Front Lines: One of the greatest joys of serving the Lord is to see the lives changed by the Lord. I would like to tell you a few stories of how Jesus has changed lives here already:
A man in his late 70s named John started visiting us a little over a month ago. John got saved in the 70s and was a faithful member of a Baptist Church at that time. However, he got away from the Lord and was out of church for around 20 years. Well, the Lord brought him back. He has been on fire for the Lord ever since he came back. For a while, he was living with a lady due to the financial benefits of that arrangement. One Sunday, he marches up to me right after the service and says, “Pastor, I need to talk to you right now! I’ve been living in sin. I know that. I’ve got to get right with God right now. I want to please Him and serve the Lord right here at Keene Baptist Church!” What a wonderful thing for me to hear! The next week, I learned that back in the 70s, John led the grandfather of a whole family in the church to the Lord. The direction of a whole family was changed back in the 70s because of his faithfulness. Now, he gets to go to church with that same family (13 people total).
One of the joys of Keene Baptist Church is that the people love to sing! The congregational singing is passionate and loud. A few weeks ago, I was working in our church office at our meeting place when there was a knock on the door. A lady introduced herself as the director of the facilities. She said that she wanted to meet me in person and tell me that for over a month, she has sat in her office in the basement each Sunday morning to listen to the service. What really caught her attention was the congregational singing. She said that she could tell that the people really believe what they are singing. Those that say the old hymns are boring have evidently never visited Keene Baptist Church. She hasn’t showed up to a service yet, so pray that God will continue to work in her heart.
I was having a conversation with a man in the community last week about the church. I asked him how he heard about Keene Baptist Church and he said, “Everyone in this county knows about Keene Baptist Church. Your tracts and information are everywhere!” While we have been faithful in outreach, what that conversation really pointed out to me is that the people of Keene Baptist Church are faithful to be a light during the week. Praise God! What a joy it is to serve the Lord here in Keene!
Prayer Requests:
- Pray for the special unspoken prayer request of Keene Baptist Church (talked about in the last few prayer letters).
- Pray that God will continue to bless our outreach efforts.
- Pray for souls to be saved.
- Pray for God to be glorified in this community.
In Christ and for His glory,
The Shives Family