"For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.   Jeremiah 29: 11-12

The Pilot
A newsletter of the Pilot Mountain Baptist Association       
April 2017 
A word from Walker,

Last month I wrote on the organizational deterrents to change. This month I want to tackle the personal struggles we have with accepting and moving through change.
 
Even though change is an inevitable fact of life, at some juncture every person will wrestle with various aspects of change.  One of the primary struggles we have in personally dealing with change is refusing to honestly assess where we are in the present moment. Whether we are lost in some form of nostalgia over the "Good Old Days", or suffer from "Scarlett O'Hara Syndrome" where we put off dealing with difficult realities, the end result is that we are resistant to objectively evaluating our current condition. This is a hard nut to crack. People can become plain irrational in their refusal to talk about what is really going on with them in the here and now.
 
What we need to do to confront this refusal to look at the truth is ask ourselves the question:  What is the cost of not facing the truth today? For instance, if my blood pressure and blood sugar are both high, what happens if I ignore these indicators? Changing my diet and increasing my physical activity might be difficult, but not changing would most likely bring about a worse outcome. The same kind of thing happens with churches that are in the throes of decline that still refuse to face the truth of their situation. At some point, a refusal to change will need to be compared to the cost of doing nothing. Change is hard, but dying is a lot more difficult!
 
The second big hurdle I see for individuals to embrace change is the fear of loss. This is tough. It is very difficult to let go of things you prefer or are used to. It often feels unfair. I understand. I have a physical condition that causes my body to not react well to red meat. I love steak. But if I eat red meat my blood pressure goes out of the roof. For a long while, I did not want to give it up, but in order to insure the quality and maybe even length of my life I had to let that form of enjoyment go. This same thing happens to people and to churches. To give up something feels very scary and almost threatening, and none of us like to feel that way.
 
The best way I know to confront my fear of loss is to ask myself the question:  What is most important in my situation?  When it came to red meat my overall health was more important than my taste buds. But this is a challenging question to ask because our personal preferences get in the way. When people are afraid of loss they end up exalting their desires to a conviction status. It is not that they simply like something but they feel that they can't do without it. I have had multiple conversations with churches where they were "aging-out." They wanted young people to come, but they were unwilling to change one iota in ways that made the church more applicable to young people's lives. You can't have it both ways. You can't refuse to change and simultaneously help your church grow.
 
I hope these insights are helpful as you think about how to help your church make necessary changes for it to fulfill the mission God has given it. We are currently developing a Revitalization Model for churches in the PMBA. I will let you know when it is ready to roll out.
 
On a personal note I want to thank all those who showed up on March 6 th and voted for me to become your new Executive Director. I am both humbled and excited about this assignment. Please continue to pray for me as I seek to lead in a way that pleases the Lord and blesses our churches.
 
Your fellow servant in Christ,
 
Walker Armstrong
Executive Director PMBA

Benjamin Caleb Webb
Pastor
Crestwood Baptist Church

Matthew Taylor
Youth Director
Walkertown Baptist Church

Travis Hoeben
Associate Pastor of 
Youth & Children
Lewisville Baptist Church

Wanda Daubenmeyer 
Administrative Assistant
United Baptist Church

Wendell Boles
Youth Director
Macedonia Baptist Church


Baptist On Missions

April 21-22 Region 5 Disaster Relief Training will be taking place in Rockingham County .  Click here for more informaion

May 6th The Baptist On Mission golf tournament will be held at Oak Hollow golf course   Click here for more information

June 26- July 1 FBC Walnut Cove will be hosting the Stokes/Forsyth Deep Impact camp. Deep Impact is a missions camp for middle school and high school students. If you know of any projects that they could work on, please contact me and let me know. 

Yard Sale Giveaway
      
 We need your help! 
 
We are currently accepting items for the annual Yard Sale Giveaway in May.  If you can help, we are in need of the following:   Household/Kitchen items of all kinds;  Linens -  Towels -  Curtains - Lamps - Yard items, etc. Instead of hauling your treasure to Goodwill or attempting to have a Yard Sale, donate to the Bread of Life Ministry's Yard Giveaway!  
 
If you would like more information, please call the  PMBA office @  336-830-8189.  If you need us to pick up, call Jerry at 336-2540-3124.  We can only take small furniture items for this event. 

Note:  If you have a full size refrigerator, let us know. We can use a large size refrigerator at the PMBA Resource Center. 
Upcoming Conferences

Revitalize 2017 April 8, 2017 - Crosspointe Baptist Church, Concord, NC
One-day training and equipping conference for pastors and church leaders lead by nationally recognized church revitalizers with a focus on renewing churches and changing lives.  $35. For info: http://operation-transformation.com/revitalize

Upcoming Events

April 29 - First Responders Day -
We are asking our churches to focus on the First 
Responders who make our lives so much safer and better.  Please consider an event that will honor the police, firemen, EMT's, paramedics, emergency room doctors and nurses, etc. A list of ideas for possible projects can be found on our website.

May 6 - Community Day -- Love Your Neighbor -- Plan a day for the neighbors in your community.  Looks for ways to focus on the people. Making them more aware of your church and services to the community.  Go to www.pmba.org  for a complete list of possible projects.

May 25 - PMBA Senior Adult Luncheon at Old Town Baptist Church at 12 Noon.  Make plans to attend and invite neighbors and friends.  We have wonderful, uplifting entertainment, a great meal prepared by Betty Huff and her Crew, and door prizes!!!  Tickets are on sale for $6.50 per person. Make checks payable to PMBA (for Senior Adult Luncheon) and mail to P.O. Box 11843, Winston-Salem, NC 27116-1843.  Call in the number of tickets you need and put your check in the mail.  We will mail them out to you immediately. 

Pi
ck a day from the above list or set aside another day for your church to focus on your community...your neighbors...first responders near you
!
Claim all three days or just one day.  Make a difference!  Contact Karen Taylor (336) 830-8189 or (336) 414-0812 if you would like help in planning an event or if you would like to partner with another church close to your community.

Let Us Hear From You!

If you have a ministry event that you would like for us to send out to PMBA congregations, please email shelley@pmba.org.  We can send either an e-card invitation or place your notice in  The Pilot   Newsletter.
Openings Among 
PMBA Churches

  • First Baptist Church of Stanleyville is seeking a part-time Administrative Assistant to assist three Pastors with clerical duties. Please email resumes to tewelch@stanleyvillebaptist.org or mail to First Baptist Church of Stanleyville, Attn:  Personnel Committee, 851 Ziglar Rd, W-S, NC 27105
     
  • Walkertown First Baptist Church is seeking a part-tiime Minister of Music. Please send resumes to:  Personnel Committee, Walkertown First Baptist Church, PO Box 310, NC 27051
  • Union Hill Baptist Church is seeking a part-time Youth Minister and a part-time Pianist.  For further information, please contact:  Pastor Christopher Burcham email: burchpastor@triad.rr.com phone: 336-575-1870.
  • Iglesia Bautista de Union Cross is seeking a Bivocational Pastor for a local PMBA Hispanic congregation. Please call Miguel Alvarez @336-722-3257
  • Griffith Baptist Church is seeking a part-time Minister of Music. Please send resumes to: Search Committee, Griffith Baptist Church, 1987 Old Salisbury Rd, Winston-Salem, NC 27127

PMBA SUMMER OPENINGS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS:
We are currently accepting resumes for our Summer Intern Program. If you know of  college students in your church who need summer employment and love to work in Ministry, have them send their resumes to karen@pmba.org.  Resumes will be accepted from now until May 10.  Our plan is to hire 4 summer interns this year.  The interns will work in Vacation Bible School, help with Sports Camps, participate in Student Life and Deep Impact projects, and assist with youth ministries upon request and availability.  Call Karen at 336-830-8189 for more information. 

Please note:  Check  out our website:  www.pmba.org for job openings from local businesses. 
Please help us pray for:




Benny Sprouse  - Pastor of Unity upon the death of his father.

Barbara Benge - member of Bethany Baptist Church and PMBA volunteer, She is in Room 223, Winston-Salem Rehab Center on First Street.

Kathy Hughes  - member of King Cowboy Church wife of Pastor Rick Hughes, with serious health concerns. 

Sandra Pollard  - member of Ardmore Baptist Church, ongoing chronic illness.

Cliff Willis   - Pastor of Willow Oaks Baptist Church - recovering from some health issues.

Giles Smith - member of Lewisville Baptist Church and served on the PMBA Senior Adult Ministry Response Team for many years.  - cancer 

Please keep these people in your prayers this month.  If you would like to have someone added to our list or if you would like to send a note of encouragement, please contact the PMBA office at 336-830- 8189 for their address.
If you know of someone who would like to receive The  Pilot Newsletter, please call the PMBA office at 336-830-8189 and give us their email address or home address.  Or, email their contact information to shelley@pmba.org.

Please share this information with others in your congregations.