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Bob's Blog - June 22, 2022
June 22, 2022
Steve McCraw is the Texas Department of Public Safety Director. He testified yesterday before a Texas Senate Committee hearing on the shooting and the police response at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Steve said that nothing stopped the police from entering the building and engaging the shooter other than their commander, who refused to issue the order to go. The police had rifles and body armor and were on the scene within three minutes, yet they waited an hour and 14 minutes before going into the classroom.
Our mission as followers of Christ is, in part, to rescue people with the gospel who would otherwise die without hope. We know of the need and we know what meets that need. We know that we have the resources, the personnel, and the opportunity. Do we have the will and the commitment?
Healthy churches help start and sustain healthy churches globally because Christ has designed local churches to be the means by which the gospel is advanced all over the world. We carry out our mission by being a healthy church and by helping spread the reach and influence of healthy churches. Yesterday, I was given a newly published copy of “What is a Healthy Church” by Mark Dever that had just been translated into Bengali. We paid for this translation. We, you, me, us – Cornerstone Baptist Church paid for this to be done and it is being distributed to pastors and church planters in Bangladesh. I am so grateful for this! We have also paid for another book, “Expositional Preaching” to be translated and printed. It is in the final editing stages and is close to being printed. The pastors that we work with in Bangladesh are so grateful for GOOD resources in their own language. The reception has been so good. We plan to keep this train of translations rolling.
Why are we able to be part of things like this? It is because so many of you have the will and the commitment to see healthy churches established and sustained. Your faithfulness as a member of this congregation is huge! You may think that you are just one, but never forget that little soldiers build big armies. Without the church, we would never be able to coordinate with other ministries and churches to pull off the things that we do. Without you, we have no church and without the church, the mission fails. It’s not every day we get to see such tangible evidence of plans and collaboration, but yesterday we did and it is really overwhelming. Jerry will be doing a video with Shakil about this and a few other things to make you aware of how God is working in a hard-to-reach region.
Finally, a little housekeeping issue. Often on Monday mornings, I go through the building and check many of the thermostats because in the warmer months, some people get too warm in their ABF class or café and turn the thermostat to 55 or colder! I’m guessing that they would never do that in their own home or apartment, but then when class is over, the thermostat is left that way. Guess what happens all Sunday afternoon, evening, and Monday morning? Seriously, sometimes it feels like a meat-packing plant. I know that the custodial crew tries to adjust these back too, but please, please, please, if you want your room to be cooler, remember that your AC unit is working several other rooms where people are adjusting their thermostats too. In other words, be flexible and patient. Please don’t ever turn the temperature to 55 and if you make it cooler, please move it back when you leave the room. Wouldn’t you rather our dollars go to more good books being translated than making rooms unnecessarily cool when no one is there? I thought so. Thanks!
Grace and peace,
Bob
Sunday’s text: 1 Samuel 18:6-16