First Baptist Church of Eagle Butte
P.O. Box 170, Eagle Butte, SD
57625
(605) 964-3617 (Office) / (605)
891-1704 (Pastor’s Cell)
January
5, 2013
Dear
Friends,
Christmas time has come and gone,
and the warmth of that happy time of year has been a blessing to us in this
cold season. This very, very cold
season. Last Sunday, wind chills drove
temperatures down to negative 47 degrees. How cold is that?
Well, imagine that it’s a cold
January morning where you live. You look
out at the thermometer and notice that it’s 33 degrees outside. You get out your heavy winter coat and
resolve to drive carefully, as it could get icy later.
Now imagine that it’s eighty degrees colder than that.
The national weather service tells
me that, as I write this, Anchorage, Alaska is 36 degrees warmer than we
are. A little research on Google taught
me that, on Sunday, Eagle Butte had temperatures only slightly warmer than
Mars. Seriously. Wooly Mammoths are starting to roam the
landscape at this point. It’s that cold.
A Little Construction Project
Before the cold became too intense,
I had the time to do a little improvement project around the church. I was never very handy with tools, but since
I came to this city, I have found that it’s best to learn how to do as many
things as possible. Our church
basketball goals, which are used during our Friday night youth activities, had
both been destroyed- the first by the wind, and the second by a vandal. With the help of some very nice hardware
store workers, and with the loan of a church member’s jigsaw, I managed to cut
out two nice basketball goals for us to use.
I even poured concrete into the bases, to give them more stability. Here’s hoping that these goals will stick around
for years to come!
Wise Men Come from Afar, Bearing Gifts
In Late November, we were visited
by four wonderful people who have been friends of this church longer than I
have been its pastor. Their names are
Frank and Brenda Raper, and Jim and Carol Johnson. They drove all the way up from Clarkesville,
GA, where they, their fellow members of Bethlehem Baptist Church, and listeners
of the Christian radio station WCON had put together a trailer full of gifts
for the people of Eagle Butte. They brought
sports equipment (including a basketball goal) to Windswept Academy. They brought toys, games and clothing to the
nearby community of Bear Creek. They
left diapers, toys and various gifts at the church, so that we could find a
good home for them. We are grateful for their generosity, as it was all given
in the spirit of…
Christmas!
Christmas! Christmas!
Christmas! Christmas! Christmas! Christmas! Christmas! Christmas! Christmas!
Oh, didn’t I mention? I love Christmas! It is second only to Easter when it comes to
miraculous celebrations. The very idea
that God Himself, who holds galaxies in their proper course, would become a man
(and not just pretend to become a man-REALLY become one of us) is such a great
and wonderful thing that only the Perfect Sacrifice made at Easter could
possibly surpass it. At First Baptist
church, we see that as a great cause for celebration, so we made it our business
to make the season one to remember.
In the pictures above, you can see us
during our annual Christmas party. There
are snacks and refreshments to be had, while we decorated the sanctuary. In the pictures below, you can see close-ups
of some of the decorations we put up-a Christmas tree, A light-up manger scene
for the outside of the building, and a smaller nativity for the inside of the
sanctuary. This last decoration was
carved out of Cottonwood root by a local artist.
Our children’s Sunday School
teachers began work just before Halloween on a small Christmas pageant called,
“What God Wants for Christmas”. All the
children in our Sunday School were involved.
There was singing, poetry, and a Gospel-centered message. They gave two performances-once for the
church, and once for the residents of the Manor-a local nursing home. In the picture just below this text, you see
the children with speaking parts, all in costume. Below that, you see them performing. And on the bottom, the residents are enjoying
the show. But this was only a small part
of our Christmas festivities.
During our Christmas service, the
children performed their pageant for everyone.
And afterwards, there was a special potluck, at which the Sunday School
kids ate and fellowshipped alongside of the adults who had just enjoyed their
performance.
After the meal, there were presents
for the children to open, donated by good people from all over the country,
through the First Nations Baptist Association.
This was complimented with some goody bags full of candy, which we gave
them as well. All the children seemed
pleased with their gifts. Oliver, who
you can see on the bottom there, was especially happy about a can of Silly
String-which he promptly sprayed all over me!
For some of these children, they would have very little else this
Christmas besides this, so we were happy to do what we could. Our people were happy, and our Savior was
glorified. That’s what I call a
successful Christmas, eh?
Plans for the New Year
Due to hectic holiday schedules,
our women’s Bible studies have been delayed for a little while. But beginning this month, they will be back
with a vengeance, as the women of our church begin to look at the lessons that
can be learned from the life of Gideon, as it is written in the Book of
Judges. All the women involved with this
activity are enthusiastically looking forward to maturing their faith and
fellowshipping with the other women.
So perhaps you are wondering how you can become a partner with
us in our ministry here in Eagle Butte? If so, then we are happy to tell
you, since we welcome assistance from the body of Christ. Here is what we need
the most:
Prayer.
It may be
true that our church is getting along very well at the moment, and that God is
doing great things here. But it is precisely when a church is being used
by God that Satan does all in his power to destroy it. So please pray, my
brothers and sisters. Pray that our leadership will keep their hearts
pure and humble, and that we will live at peace with each other. Pray
that we will be protected from the power of the enemy, and that God’s Holy
Spirit will shine through in our lives. Pray that the Lakotas in the
community will come to know the Lord, and that the commitment they make will
not be a superficial group of words, but a real change in their Spirits that
will alter the course of their lives for eternity.
E-mail
addresses.
For those of you who have e-mail addresses, please send them to me. That
way, these monthly newsletters can be forwarded to everyone in your church who
wants one! Just send your name and e-mail address to me at benfarrar777@hotmail.com, and I’ll make sure you
receive this newsletter as often as it comes out.
Financial
Assistance.
Our church is fortunate to have members who are generous in their giving. But
some of our most generous members are, nevertheless, very poor. We have
long been blessed with assistance from outside churches and individuals, and we
try to use those gifts wisely and well.
If
any one of you wishes to bless the church with a financial gift, you may send
it to:
First Baptist Church of Eagle Butte
P.O. Box 170
Eagle Butte, SD 57625
May
God bless you all, and draw you closer to Himself each and every day.
Yours
in Christ,
Rev.
Ben Farrar
Pastor
First Baptist Church of
Eagle Butte
