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May/June 2012 | Volume 4 Issue 1

Independent Assemblies

2 • connection

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MayInterstate Fellowship MeetingMay 14, 2012Calvary TempleEdmond, OKRev. Dale Drain(405) 348-2334

JuneInterstate Fellowship MeetingJune 11, 2012Vassar Full Gospel ChurchMulhall, OKRev. Ralph Yost(405) 649-2441

JulyNational Minister’s ConferenceJuly 9-11, 2012Embassy SuitesNorman, OK

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connection • 3

connectionMay/June 2012

ContentsCalendar

Challenges of Ministry in the Local Church

Restoring the Apostolic and Prophetic

Abraham’s Sacrifice: The Pathway to Life

Two Critical Questions for Every Pastor

Board Members

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Independent AssembliesPO Box 1546Ada, OK 74821(580) 310-0222

Ministry in the local church can be challenging, but it also can be wonderful. In my opinion, pastors and their spouses have some of the most difficult jobs in the world. But we serve a God who strengthens and supports us, and the key to overcoming with victory is to stay connected to Christ Jesus! If we remain in Him, “he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.”

1. The Challenge of Hunger for Revival- God wants to move and restore His people in these days but pastors do great harm to their churches when they try to `import’ revival. Revival is a sovereign move of God! What works in one church or region of the country, may not work in another place.

2. The Challenge to Change- In my travels, I visit churches, whose buildings, songs, decor and dress make me think I have stepped into a time warp.How can a young couple with children or a college student connect with these types of churches? They are saying, “Can I connect here, and fit in here? Will someone love me and relate to me?” We must examine our traditions and see if they are of God or just of man. Traditions are fading. Families are changing.

The message is always sacred, but the methods are not. God’s Word doesn’t change, but we must change to reach `all men’, as Paul said in 1 Cor. 9:22 NIV “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.”

3. We Face a Compromise in Doctrine- A recent survey showed that over 50% of Evangelical Christians believe there’s more than way to Heaven than through Christ alone. That’s heresy! John 14:6 NIV “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” One of Satan’s choice tools is `religious deception’.

Multi-culturalism and a tolerance of all religions has `watered down’ the true message of salvation, portraying the road to God as wide. Some say, “People may leave you if you preach this doctrine.” People leave churches

all the time; why not determine why they leave? If people leave a church because they were offended at the Word, they will be forced to deal with those issues by God; not man.

4. Young soldiers need old horses- Each generation needs the other! As church leaders, we must think generationally. The last verse in Malachi speaks of a day when God will send His Spirit to “Turn the hearts of Fathers to children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I smite the earth with a curse…” The opposite of a curse is blessing, signifying that there is blessing when we blend the generations in worship and the Word to advance the Kingdom of God!

5. Issue of Non-Biblical Preaching- Testimonies, inspirational stories and motivational speaking all have their place, but we need the word of God! We need to hear about the blood, the cross, Heaven, Hell, the gifts of the Spirit. 2 Tim 3:16 NLT “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.”

6. How do we grow a Great Church? “Unless the Lord builds the house, the laborers build in vain”. “I will build my church”...Good preaching and teaching alone won’t get it done. God will have to build His house! We must desire to build a family, not just a crowd. Every member is a minister. The doctrine of `the priesthood of the believer’ teaches that we all have a responsibility in the Lord’s work.

No matter how small your beginnings and humble your situation, what seems impossible to man is possible with our God! Do we face great challenges? Yes, but we serve the great God who framed the world out of nothing, and hanged it on nothing. He can do something with your life and His church!

My encouragement to every pastor and church leader today is to FINISH STRONG-

Col. 4:17 NIV “See to it that you complete the work you have received in the Lord.” One day soon, He will say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many. Enter into the joy of the Lord!”

Challenges of Ministry in the Local Church

by: M

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John Sokolis didn’t start out in life with an inclination to a life of ministry. He wasn’t a pastor’s son, he didn’t grow up in a Christian home but at age twelve he went to a summer church camp where he saw a vision of Christ. “It’s wasn’t a Spirit-filled ministry and the counselor basically talked me out of what I saw as good thoughts,” said Sokolis.

The Holy Spirit again visited him, this time in prison at age eighteen. “He said, ‘son I’m gonna set you free and use your life to set many people free.’” After his short stay in jail, at age nineteen God restored him to his family and he started preaching.

“I preached anywhere I could find a crowd. I used to drive around with a PA system in the back of my truck and preach to people. It’s been said that I preached in every nook and cranny in Arizona. I did that for five years. Later I went to college, got a ministry degree and took extra classes” Mentored by Glen Foster, nationally acclaimed author, pastor and evangelist, Sokolis entered full time ministry.

He could not have guessed then that he would eventually operate in all five ministry gifts at various times in his life. Having started out as an evangelist, he pioneered three churches in Arizona between 1975 and 1981. From there he traveled full time as a teacher until he accepted a pastorate in Muskogee, Oklahoma where he’s successfully pastored since 1986. As an apostle and prophet, Sokolis is active on the mission field at home and abroad while continuing to teach on the gift and office of the prophet.

“Ten years ago I wrote a book and a manual on the prophetic. From this manual I developed ‘The School of the Prophetic’ and travel to churches to teach them how to be released in the gift of prophecy. I’ve seen such dramatic change with that. Several pastors tell me that their church is different after this teaching has

been released.”That change he said, is credited to restoring the

anointing of the apostle and prophet and returning to God’s order for church government. “God is restoring government from His perspective and churches are going to begin to operate under the apostolic and prophetic anointing. There will always be pastors but I’m more convinced that a ministry team brings balance. In Corinthians it says, ‘He established first apostles, then prophets and then miracles.’ We’re not seeing the miracles in the churches today like we should. When we get that anointing released in our churches we’ll see unprecedented miracles released when people come back under God’s order.”

Leery of the stigma sometimes attached to the prophetic, Sokolis brings teaching that dispels fear and teaches the difference between the gift and the office of a prophet. Over the years, he learned that faith works by love. “Everyone thinks the prophet comes to expose sin and bring gloom and doom. Yes, sometimes you will pinpoint sin but most people know if they’re in sin. We have to understand that the prophetic today has to be out of the heart of God, which is the love of God toward humanity. It’s the goodness of God that leads men to repentance and there’s going to be a level of judgment we’re going to walk in. The prophetic declares God’s purpose and will over a person.”

His passion for souls keeps him busy blazing a trail to seven countries and more frequently in Mexico where he and his wife Brenda oversee seven churches. He is available to bring his curriculum to churches, working in synergy with pastors to see the office of the apostle and prophet restored to the Church of Christ. As he continues to pastor and travel, he hopes to bring balance to the Body of Christ.

For more information visit voiceofprophesy.org or call 918.682.1540

by: Mindy Wood

RestoRing the apostolic & pRophetic

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momentum

independentassemblies fellowshipunit ing ministr ies worldwide

July 9-11N a t i o N a l m i N i s t e r ’ s c o N f e r e N c e

e m b a s s y s u i t e s • n o r m a n , o k

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Check-in BeginsManagers ReceptionService: Kemp HoldenYouth Meeting

BreakfastWorkshops IWorkshops IILunch Missions UpdateService: Kemp Holden

BreakfastWorship, Ordination andPresbytery Service

3:00 PM5:30-6:30 PM

7:00 PMTBA

6:00-8:30 AM9:00 AM

10:30 AM12:00-1:30 PM

2:00-3:00 PM7:00 PM

6:00-8:30 AM9:00-12:00 PM

Monday, July 9th

tuesday, July 10th

Wednesday, July 11th

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Pastor Kemp Holden served as Founding Pastor of Harvest Time Tabernacle in Fort Smith, Arkansas for over 38 years, leading it from humble beginnings with 27 people, to one of the region’s largest churches globally impacting over fifty nations of the world.

He then led the transition and passed the baton of pastoral leadership to his successor, Marty Sloan. Pastor Holden serves as Pastor Emeritus of Harvest Time.

Kemp also serves on the Greater Fort Smith Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the Board of Directors for the Community Rescue Mission, and is the President of the School Board of Union Christian Academy, (K-3 - 12th grade). He is also the Chairman of Worldwide Missionary Evangelism, Inc. a fellowship of over 400 ministers.

His ability to effectively communicate Bible truths and sense of humor make him a much sought after speaker both here in the U.S. and abroad. His local television and radio ministry also spanned 38 years.

Kemp is an avid outdoorsman and loves to fish and hunt. He and his wife, Carol reside in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Joe McgeeFamily Relationship Dynamics

Kemp holdenChurch Growth and Development

Youth Ministry TodayJosh Mayo

Media and Personal Developmentgary eby

Church Design on a DimeJimmy MilliganW

orks

hops

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Pastor Danny Wegman of Pathway of Life Church in Dallas, Texas fathers a church of 2,000 members but like many minister

with mega sized congregations, he started out in a building barely holding a few dozen. From country church to a true Texas sized ministry, Wegman shared a few secrets about his own pathway to today.

After moving from the country to the big city metro, the church did grow and later moved into a working class, multi-cultural area. “I’ve always loved the fact that Heaven will be like Joseph’s coat of many colors. I wanted the church to reflect the ethnic cultures so we started embracing the African American and Latino community. We began celebrating

the diversity in our community and because of our effort to reach out to many cultures, God allowed the dream of a multi-cultural, diverse congregation to come to pass” said Wegman.

With that step of obedience came fruit to the tune of six to eight hundred congregants and yet, something wasn’t right. “Everything was great, things were going well but I felt like we weren’t progressing. I decided to get away for a few days to pray and God started speaking to me about Abraham. He said, ‘you’ve got to be willing to kill your Isaac.’ I wrestled and wrestled with that.”

Upon his return the Lord again spoke to him during worship that Sunday morning. “He said, ‘This church is your Isaac. Are you

Abraham’s Sacrifice: The Pathway to Life

by: Mindy Wood

connection • 9

willing to kill it?’ I got up to preach and started with Abraham and the altars. I’m not an emotional person but I couldn’t keep from weeping. I told them, ‘Today my Isaac has to die and this church is my Isaac.’”

With his wife and staff tearfully trembling at such words, they could only assume he would resign but God had something different in mind. “What had to die was the way we did church,” said Wegman. “Up to that point, it had all revolved around me. If I left for a trip, offering was down and attendance would drop. It had been a continual cycle of me making it happen and I decided I wasn’t going to make it happen anymore. I came to realize that the focus of this church would no longer be on my performance.”

From then on, the structure of the ministry changed and the focus shifted to equipping the church to grow. “God’s called us to be an organism that moves, not an organization. It’s not all up to one voice, it has to be a body functioning together. We started celebrating people and their gifts. Our membership is a little over 2,000 and most Sundays at capacity. There’s nowhere to sit. We’ve continued to grow because the culture of our church is teamwork, everyone taking ownership of the ministry.”

Today they’re in their third building including a separate stadium for children that seats 400 and a youth center seating 200. Each ministry team has a leader. The structure is designed so that ministry can function if the leader isn’t present. If the team’s direction doesn’t match the vision, the leader reassesses the work. With around 200 volunteers, Wegman said they are deliberate about showing appreciation and celebrating their efforts as well. It’s hard work considering the extensive and creative outreach to the community.

“You can’t reach those you can’t relate to,” said Wegman. To relate to the Latino community, they hosted a Cinco De Mayo celebration and because most of the crowd was non-English speaking, brought in an interpreter to speak following a massive egg hunt on Palm Sunday (winning them the title of “the world’s largest egg hunt,” numbering 75,000 eggs). “We’re doing our best to target those areas and celebrate others outside the doors of the church.”

As far a mission statements goes, it seems to be flexible. “Our vision changes to fit what is happening in our church. Last year it was connection, reaching within the church to build relationships and recruit people to ministry. This year our vision is ‘Community: Cultivating, Caring and Connecting. Everything we do is to reach our community by bettering it. Whether it is feeding the homeless through our ACTZ Street Ministry, serving nearby public schools or simply painting the local fire station, our purpose is always the same, the vehicle is always different.”

In retrospect, Wegman attributes their growth to that fateful turning point. “When the focus shifted off of me, we saw God bless this. We grew when this became a team.”

For more information, visit ploc.cc

10 • connection

There are two questions that every pastor will ask when preparing a message.

FiRst: “What do these people want me to say?” is dangerous because if this is your goal you will never preach a good message. Why?

• You won’t be reformed enough for some people…and too reformed for others.

• You will be too serious for some…and not serious enough for others.

• You will use too much Scripture for some…and not enough for others.

• You will come across to some people as too nice…and to others as too harsh.

• You will really encourage some people…and really frustrate others.

• You WILL say something at some point that will be completely politically incorrect…will offend someone…and they will let you know.

• People WILL take what you say out of context…and tell others that you said things that you never did actually say.

I could go on…but I think we all know that preaching to impress people leads to a dangerous place in ministry…because we can never please the crowd all the time, and doing so is a recipe for insanity! (Paul was on to something when he wrote Galatians 1:10!)

second: “What does Jesus want me to say?” When what He is saying gets in our hearts and sets us on fire (Jeremiah 20:9), that is what we must preach!

• We must be consumed by Him and not controlled by others!• We must be obsessed with the Almighty and not with what

all the people think.• We must seek to honor HIS call on our lives rather than “their

call” to the church!• We must share Christ.

We cannot allow the One who called us to merely be our “good luck charm.” You know: we throw together a message and then ask Him to bless it.

We must hear His voice and then preach, knowing people will be offended, people will get upset, but ultimately people will come to Christ and His name will be lifted higher!

His name, not our reputation, should be our obsession.

sermoncentral.com

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by: Perry Noble

tWo cRitical questions FoR eveRy pastoR

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southeast oklahoma districtRev. Billy Hunter

Antlers, OK(580) 298-2740

southwest oklahoma districtRev. Donnie Miller

Cyril, OK(580) 464-2224(580) 512-3657

northeast oklahoma districtRev. Mac Blackwell Locust Grove, OK(918) 479-6057

north texas districtRev. Marc Jones

Denton, TX 75751(903) 675-6011

southeast texas districtRev. Herb Hawthorne

Baytown, TX(281) 723-2278

south central texas districtRev. Jerry Edmon

Elgin, TX(512) 281-5316

Midwest Regional districtRev. Mark Maynard

Granite City, IL(618) 931-4106

arkansas districtRev. Charles Kendrick

Alexander, AR(501) 303-0831

Mickey Keith PresidentPO Box 1546 Ada, OK 74821 (580) 310-0222mickey.keith@gmail.comwww.life623.com

Ken anderson Secretary/TreasurerPO Box 1120 Lexington, OK 73051(405) 527-6030 kda@valornet.comwww.libertygospelok.org

Robert JohnsonDirector of World MissionsPO Box 978 Blackwell, OK 74631 (580) 363-2734roj@clarionmissions.orgwww.clarionmissions.org

Jerry edmonBoard MemberPO Box 862 Elgin, TX 78621 (512) 281-5316Jedmon1234@aol.comwww.fwcelgin.com

dr. ted estes Vice PresidentPO Box 2248 Claremore, OK 74018 (918) 341-8344pastorted@lifechangerchurch.comwww.lifechangerchurch.com

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