Moving Forward! Exciting things are happening here at South Holly! Our congregation is discussing whether or not to call a younger pastor to join the Farlows and the Hendersons on staff here at South Holly. An important part of a church-planter's job is to bring the church to a point where they both need and can financially support a full-time pastor. Pastor Sam and Pastor Rod plan to remain on staff, as missionaries, to assist with the transition. We are earnestly seeking God's direction in this decision, and we covet your prayers for our church. We have had a month-long season of praying and fasting, asking God for wisdom regarding our future. God has a plan, and His plan is good. We're looking forward to what He will do in the coming months. Rod's Treatments Rod continues to have regular medical treatments for his birth defect. We recently received some very encouraging news from his main surgeon. The doctor said, "We know we're getting close, be
"I think we're there. Our prayers have been answered!" The words we had longed to hear from Dr. Yakes had been spoken. As of Friday, July 24, Rod's ongoing medical treatments are finished! Yet as we reflect on this journey, we have MUCH to Praise God for! God allowed us to have a significant ministry with many, many medical personnel. Rod would often be asked - "What do you have to tell me about the Bible today?" One day, a nurse liaison said to us, "We were talking about you before you came in this morning. Why are you always so patient? Why do you never get frustrated with all the schedule changes and long wait times?" Rod's answer - It's God. At one point in the course of treatments, Rod asked if he could pray with Dr. Yakes before his treatment, which he gladly accepted. As a beloved pastor used to tell us, "You can get a lot of gospel in a prayer!" From then on, before every treatment, Dr. Yakes called all the medical person
"The Gospel in front of one million people" - that is the desire as expressed by Pastor Popp, our lead pastor at South Holly Church. Please remember that although South Holly has grown and has made huge strides in the last year, it is still relatively small, with an average attendance of 76.5 people per Sunday in the month of February. But rushing in where angels fear to tread, I (Rod) put together a “brainstorming session” on how to reach one million people - and not just touches - but presenting the Gospel to one million people. After collecting many ideas from the eight of us in attendance, we categorized them into one of four quadrants representing differing levels of “Value” and “Do-ability”. Taking these categorized ideas, and looking at skill-sets as well as the church calendar, we now have a preliminary sequence of Action Items that are ranked as high value and high do-ability. Here’s the ringer, a few days before the Brainstorming Session, I was chatting with