Saturday, January 26, 2008
I Have Returned
Today, I returned from Tulsa at approximately 10:00am. I really enjoyed myself while I was there. If you have any questions about it, please feel free to ask me via comments. I will be more than happy to fill you in. or at least try to. :-)
Friday, January 25, 2008
Apostolic Doctrine, Holiness, & Revival
Hey everyone, I apologize for posting so late tonight. After church, I stayed around and fellowshipped, went out to eat, and just a little while ago got back to the hotel. I see that the number of hits have more than doubled since before church tonight, which makes me glad that folks are reading and enjoying my blog and my thoughts; and, hopefully I am helping to widen your understanding about this meeting and the WPF as well.
Tonight was, in my humble opinion, the greatest portion of the whole meeting. There were well over 1,500 people (mostly preachers) in attendance tonight. Some great independent brethren were there as well, men such as, Bro. Steve Pixler and Bro. Joel Holmes. There was no business held tonight, but we simply had church. Bro. Johnny Godair preached the greatest message that could have ever been preached for the beginning of a new church fellowship. He preached on the subject "Apostolic Doctrine, Apostolic Holiness, & Apostolic Revival". Tonight, Bro. Godair layed everything we believe in as Apostolics on the proverbial line. He left no unanswered questions regarding our Apostolic Doctrine, and Holiness beliefs, and emphasised that when we preach the whole truth, revival will not leave, but revival will come (Just as it has come to his own church, which is regularly attended by over 1,000 people, might I add).
It would be well worth your time and money to purchase the cd of the message tonight. In fact, on the website, (http://worldwidepf.com) cds of the entire conference are supposed to be for sale (except for Q&A period) sometime relatively soon.
I, personally, am very excited about what is happening, and what will be happening in the near future. Very excited! I hope to attend the Branson meeting as well, and if I am able to go, I will try to do my best to keep you updated during that conference as well.
Tonight was, in my humble opinion, the greatest portion of the whole meeting. There were well over 1,500 people (mostly preachers) in attendance tonight. Some great independent brethren were there as well, men such as, Bro. Steve Pixler and Bro. Joel Holmes. There was no business held tonight, but we simply had church. Bro. Johnny Godair preached the greatest message that could have ever been preached for the beginning of a new church fellowship. He preached on the subject "Apostolic Doctrine, Apostolic Holiness, & Apostolic Revival". Tonight, Bro. Godair layed everything we believe in as Apostolics on the proverbial line. He left no unanswered questions regarding our Apostolic Doctrine, and Holiness beliefs, and emphasised that when we preach the whole truth, revival will not leave, but revival will come (Just as it has come to his own church, which is regularly attended by over 1,000 people, might I add).
It would be well worth your time and money to purchase the cd of the message tonight. In fact, on the website, (http://worldwidepf.com) cds of the entire conference are supposed to be for sale (except for Q&A period) sometime relatively soon.
I, personally, am very excited about what is happening, and what will be happening in the near future. Very excited! I hope to attend the Branson meeting as well, and if I am able to go, I will try to do my best to keep you updated during that conference as well.
Triple the benefits. Half the price
Pretty good deal, eh?
Now, I won't act like I'm an expert on any of these subjects, as I am only a very young man. However, it seems to me that two very important issues in this meeting besides doctrine, morals, ethical issues, holiness, etc, which was all WELL covered earlier this morning, are the subjects about "Dues" and "Insurance". My dad, who just left the UPC, said that the Dues are about half with WPF. ($60.00 monthly, however, you do not pay extra to your district. All a minister is required to pay is $60.00 monthly.) Not only that, but insurance benefits, which were a total of $10,000 with UPC, would now, with WPF, be a total of $30,000 (20k minister, 10k spouse). Thus tripling the value. An insurance man explained all this to everyone in the meeting today.
So, from my perspective, it seems like a pretty good deal! :-) Obviously, this does not have much significance morally or spiritually, but it sure is fun to talk about!
Now, I won't act like I'm an expert on any of these subjects, as I am only a very young man. However, it seems to me that two very important issues in this meeting besides doctrine, morals, ethical issues, holiness, etc, which was all WELL covered earlier this morning, are the subjects about "Dues" and "Insurance". My dad, who just left the UPC, said that the Dues are about half with WPF. ($60.00 monthly, however, you do not pay extra to your district. All a minister is required to pay is $60.00 monthly.) Not only that, but insurance benefits, which were a total of $10,000 with UPC, would now, with WPF, be a total of $30,000 (20k minister, 10k spouse). Thus tripling the value. An insurance man explained all this to everyone in the meeting today.
So, from my perspective, it seems like a pretty good deal! :-) Obviously, this does not have much significance morally or spiritually, but it sure is fun to talk about!
Alot of Q&As
I must say that I am very pleased about the spirit and attitude with which this meeting is being held. Not one derogatory word has been said against the UPCI or any other organization. In fact, One thing that was expressed in this meeting that really pleased me is that it has been said that we are NOT anti-UPC. And, UPC, or any other church, group, or organization ‘bashing’ will NOT be tolerated.
In the Q&A session which was held at 2pm today, these questions were brought up, “Will the WPF allow men who are not members of the organization to preach at WPF meetings?” and “Will the WPF endorse meetings sponsored by men who are not members of WPF?”, to which Bro. Booker answered basically that if they believe the Apostolic message and Acts 2:38 and the doctrine, then yes, we will allow them to speak at our meetings, even if they are not WPF. And, we will support meetings which are sponsored by men who are not WPF, if they believe the same message.
One question was asked specifically if any men were added to the General Council list without consent. Bro. Crawford Coon very thoroughly explained how that a few months back, the six men that are in the Executive Council thought and discussed every name on that list before calling them or putting them on a list. When it came time to call these men for their approval, they divided up the names among the six of them to call and request their support and to be in the General Council. Every man in consideration was called upon; and every man considered accepted. Bro. Coon then said that three of four men of that number (much later, and after the list was already in print) called and asked that, because of various reasons including sickness, and church problems, that their names might be removed from that list.
When they heard the accusations made about the men’s names being on the list without their permission, the six got together again trying to figure out if one of the names could have possibly been mistakenly overlooked, or what else may have happened to cause this accusation. They thoroughly examined their list, and each man confirmed each name they had called and that their permission to be added to the list had been specifically given. Every name was accounted for. So, like I thought, these were simply false accusations.
Interestingly enough, every session is being recorded and put onto cds for sale. I’m sure they will have a store on the WPF website where you can purchase the cds of the meeting.
In the Q&A session which was held at 2pm today, these questions were brought up, “Will the WPF allow men who are not members of the organization to preach at WPF meetings?” and “Will the WPF endorse meetings sponsored by men who are not members of WPF?”, to which Bro. Booker answered basically that if they believe the Apostolic message and Acts 2:38 and the doctrine, then yes, we will allow them to speak at our meetings, even if they are not WPF. And, we will support meetings which are sponsored by men who are not WPF, if they believe the same message.
One question was asked specifically if any men were added to the General Council list without consent. Bro. Crawford Coon very thoroughly explained how that a few months back, the six men that are in the Executive Council thought and discussed every name on that list before calling them or putting them on a list. When it came time to call these men for their approval, they divided up the names among the six of them to call and request their support and to be in the General Council. Every man in consideration was called upon; and every man considered accepted. Bro. Coon then said that three of four men of that number (much later, and after the list was already in print) called and asked that, because of various reasons including sickness, and church problems, that their names might be removed from that list.
When they heard the accusations made about the men’s names being on the list without their permission, the six got together again trying to figure out if one of the names could have possibly been mistakenly overlooked, or what else may have happened to cause this accusation. They thoroughly examined their list, and each man confirmed each name they had called and that their permission to be added to the list had been specifically given. Every name was accounted for. So, like I thought, these were simply false accusations.
Interestingly enough, every session is being recorded and put onto cds for sale. I’m sure they will have a store on the WPF website where you can purchase the cds of the meeting.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
All going smooth so far
Hey everyone, I'm sorry to be posting so late. The meeting tonight went pretty lengthy. Seven preachers spoke for about 20 to 30 minutes apiece. Bro. T. L. Craft was the first to speak, and in his beginning remarks, he stated, "For those who want to know why I'm here... I'm here because I WANT to be here." When he said that, Bro. Adam leaned over to me and said "There's something for the forums."lol (I'm sure most of you know about all of the letters that have been circulating about this meeting, and why people are going, etc.) Then Bro. Booker, Bro. Odom, Bro. Johnny Godair, Bro. Coon, Bro. Kenny Godair, and Bro. Wilson all spoke. Then we had food afterward.lol
As I told you previously, I was asked to help usher for this weekend. Which I did tonight. Bro. Adam and Bro. Scotty, who are also ushers, counted the number of people in the sanctuary, along with two other ushers, and counted over 1,000 people in the meeting tonight. (I hear more people are expected to come tomorrow.)
I'm so glad that I've been able to come to this meeting; and even to be apart of it is cool too. :-) (for Mama & Preston ->) I said hi to Bro. Marty Bales, Bro. Keith Nix, Bro. Kelly Nix, Bro. Les Murphy. Bro. & Sis. Meaderds from LaGrande were there too - said hi to them. I told Mark King that we loved his "Announcements Sermon".lol There was many more people there that we know who I didn't have time to greet tonight. I'll see them all tomorrow though.
Anyway, I need to be at the church tomorrow morning at 8:30 to set up my laptop again for the Bible Quizzing booth, then church starts at 9. Tomorrow will be a long but very good day!
PS - if anyone has any questions or comments about my posts or about the meeting, or even if you just like to read my comments, please post in the "comments" section. I want to know that people are actually reading my blog, and that I'm not just posting to see myself type.lol So please at least post your name so I know who's reading.lol
Thanks,
BTW, tell your friends about this blog, maybe they'll enjoy reading my thoughts on the Apostolic Summit too!
As I told you previously, I was asked to help usher for this weekend. Which I did tonight. Bro. Adam and Bro. Scotty, who are also ushers, counted the number of people in the sanctuary, along with two other ushers, and counted over 1,000 people in the meeting tonight. (I hear more people are expected to come tomorrow.)
I'm so glad that I've been able to come to this meeting; and even to be apart of it is cool too. :-) (for Mama & Preston ->) I said hi to Bro. Marty Bales, Bro. Keith Nix, Bro. Kelly Nix, Bro. Les Murphy. Bro. & Sis. Meaderds from LaGrande were there too - said hi to them. I told Mark King that we loved his "Announcements Sermon".lol There was many more people there that we know who I didn't have time to greet tonight. I'll see them all tomorrow though.
Anyway, I need to be at the church tomorrow morning at 8:30 to set up my laptop again for the Bible Quizzing booth, then church starts at 9. Tomorrow will be a long but very good day!
PS - if anyone has any questions or comments about my posts or about the meeting, or even if you just like to read my comments, please post in the "comments" section. I want to know that people are actually reading my blog, and that I'm not just posting to see myself type.lol So please at least post your name so I know who's reading.lol
Thanks,
BTW, tell your friends about this blog, maybe they'll enjoy reading my thoughts on the Apostolic Summit too!
Almost Time
This morning, we went to Cracker Barrel and as we were leaving, (this is for Mama ->) I spotted Bro. Donny Martin with his wife and someone who looked alot like an older Dayvonna Sparks. (I'm guessing it was their daughter.) As I walked up to their table, Sis. Martin immediately recognized me as a "Brown".lol They seemed pretty happy to see us.
So, this morning was pretty busy for us. At around 9am we brought Bro. Booker to WPF headquarters for meetings, then we hung up banners for the meeting around the balcony in the sanctuary, and also in another big fellowship room where refreshments will be available after the services. We just got back to the hotel (about 5 1/2 hours later).
This meeting is going to be big! From the people that are here so far, I hear that the number of ministers attending should be well over 1,000. Tonight at 7pm the conference is scheduled to start. I am supposed to be there by 6pm however, because I, along with my dad, Bro. Adam Pierce, Bro. Scotty Blair, Bro. Arlin Pierce, Bro. Mikhael Berrier, and some others have been asked to be ushers, and we have an "usher" meeting at 6pm. So I have a couple hours to sit and relax in the hotel room.
So, this morning was pretty busy for us. At around 9am we brought Bro. Booker to WPF headquarters for meetings, then we hung up banners for the meeting around the balcony in the sanctuary, and also in another big fellowship room where refreshments will be available after the services. We just got back to the hotel (about 5 1/2 hours later).
This meeting is going to be big! From the people that are here so far, I hear that the number of ministers attending should be well over 1,000. Tonight at 7pm the conference is scheduled to start. I am supposed to be there by 6pm however, because I, along with my dad, Bro. Adam Pierce, Bro. Scotty Blair, Bro. Arlin Pierce, Bro. Mikhael Berrier, and some others have been asked to be ushers, and we have an "usher" meeting at 6pm. So I have a couple hours to sit and relax in the hotel room.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Here
At approximately 10:30(Central Time), my plane landed at TUL. As we exited the plane, we stepped into about 20 degrees worth of cold. Quite a change of climate from Rialto.lol I hear it's supposed to snow here this weekend too. Our group checked into the hotel which we had reserved for our stay, and that is precisely where I am now. The meeting starts tomorrow night at 7 at the WPF headquarters.
Bro. Joel Booker and Bro. Kevin Reighard are operating the Bible Quizzing booth here for before and after the services, and are borrowing my laptop for to show pictures of quizzing, quizzers, and tournament schedules.
Bro. Joel Booker and Bro. Kevin Reighard are operating the Bible Quizzing booth here for before and after the services, and are borrowing my laptop for to show pictures of quizzing, quizzers, and tournament schedules.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Just bought my plane Ticket!!!
Hey everybody!
If you don't know what the "Apostolic Summit" is all about, allow me to briefly fill you in.
My pastor, Rev. Larry L Booker, along with several other men of God have been in the process of forming a new "ministerial fellowship" for some time. The "Apostolic Summit" in Tulsa, Oklahoma (January 24-25, 2008) will be the first meeting of this new fellowship which has recently been given the name "Worldwide Pentecostal Fellowship". (http://worldwidepf.org/)
The purpose of this meeting is to provide an alternative fellowship that will continue to take a stand against worldliness, rather than giving in to the pressures of the world or to be "accepted" by the world. I think the thing that really brought this all to a head was the "resolution #4" issue at the General Conference in Tampa - the decision to allow UPC churches to advertise on television. (And the thought was that this will lead to permitting televisions in UPC homes. From what I'm hearing now, that was a very accurate assessment.)
At first when I heard about this conference, I didn't know if I would be able to go, because of work, school, money, etc. However after giving it not very much thought, I decided that I REALLY wanted to go to this meeting. I had discussed the whole issue with my dad at many different occasions, and he told me that he really wanted me to go to Tulsa. However we didn't know if Bro. Booker would allow me to go, since I am not a minister. Last Monday, December 31, while I was at the mall, my dad talked to Bro. Booker on the phone about the possibility of my going with them to Tulsa. This was answered in the affirmative. Actually, Bro. Booker wants Preston to go too, but I don't think he will be able to, because he has to help in our church's "Winter Youth Retreat" while Bro. Berrier (our youth leader) is in Tulsa with all of us.
Anyhow, when I met up with my dad, he told me Bro. Booker's answer, to which I rejoiced with exceeding great joy. That night, as soon as we got home from the mall, I got on my laptop, and an hour later I had my plane ticket and reservations for a round-trip plane ride to Tulsa, Oklahoma. WOOHOO!
If you don't know what the "Apostolic Summit" is all about, allow me to briefly fill you in.
My pastor, Rev. Larry L Booker, along with several other men of God have been in the process of forming a new "ministerial fellowship" for some time. The "Apostolic Summit" in Tulsa, Oklahoma (January 24-25, 2008) will be the first meeting of this new fellowship which has recently been given the name "Worldwide Pentecostal Fellowship". (http://worldwidepf.org/)
The purpose of this meeting is to provide an alternative fellowship that will continue to take a stand against worldliness, rather than giving in to the pressures of the world or to be "accepted" by the world. I think the thing that really brought this all to a head was the "resolution #4" issue at the General Conference in Tampa - the decision to allow UPC churches to advertise on television. (And the thought was that this will lead to permitting televisions in UPC homes. From what I'm hearing now, that was a very accurate assessment.)
At first when I heard about this conference, I didn't know if I would be able to go, because of work, school, money, etc. However after giving it not very much thought, I decided that I REALLY wanted to go to this meeting. I had discussed the whole issue with my dad at many different occasions, and he told me that he really wanted me to go to Tulsa. However we didn't know if Bro. Booker would allow me to go, since I am not a minister. Last Monday, December 31, while I was at the mall, my dad talked to Bro. Booker on the phone about the possibility of my going with them to Tulsa. This was answered in the affirmative. Actually, Bro. Booker wants Preston to go too, but I don't think he will be able to, because he has to help in our church's "Winter Youth Retreat" while Bro. Berrier (our youth leader) is in Tulsa with all of us.
Anyhow, when I met up with my dad, he told me Bro. Booker's answer, to which I rejoiced with exceeding great joy. That night, as soon as we got home from the mall, I got on my laptop, and an hour later I had my plane ticket and reservations for a round-trip plane ride to Tulsa, Oklahoma. WOOHOO!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)