First Baptist
Church of Eagle Butte
P.O. Box 170, Eagle Butte, SD 57625
(605) 964-3617 (Office) / (502) 891-1704 (Pastor’s Cell)
September 21,
2017
Dear Friends,
There has been a LOT going on in
the last few months! So much so, in
fact, that if I wrote it all down it would fill up…well, a newsletter.
Despite the usual gorgeous scenery
that South Dakota offers during the summertime, the entire region has been
plagued by drought for months. The
ultimate culmination of this has been the wildfires in the Northwestern United
States, which you have most likely heard about on the news. These very fires have recently come so close
to us that you could actually smell the smoke, and anyone with serious
allergies had to stay indoors.
But despite these things, we have
had a fantastic summer, which has been marked by multiple miracles. Where shall I begin?
Windswept Academy Graduates!
How can an entire school graduate,
you ask? How about if it expands to
include a high school? This is the
remarkable thing that happened this summer at Windswept Academy, our local
Christian school. Its’ students are
growing older, and they needed a high school where they could continue their
Christian education. In an outstanding
show of cooperation and teamwork, over a hundred Christians from across the
nation pooled their efforts to make Windswept High School a reality. The blessings of God are evident were evident
at every step along the way. City
permits were approved just in time for construction to begin. Whenever a stage of the construction needed
to be done quickly, it was always finished just in time. Volunteers from our church, as well as from
partner churches all over the United States, poured their time and energy into
this place, until it was raised from bare earth to completion. The last necessary thing was done only two
days before the new students arrived.
Truly, the Lord’s timing is perfect!
Eager Hands, Eager Hearts
We were very fortunate to be visited by our friends from First Baptist Church of Ramsey, Illinois. From the time they arrived till the time they set out, they were hard at work on a dozen projects. They assisted with Windswept’s building project. They hosted a backyard Bible club in our church parking lot, and hosted a giveaway to promote it. In their spare time, they even helped us cut denim into shoe patterns, as part of an African relief effort that our church is doing. And when they weren’t doing any of those things, they went to a park and made friends with the local children. We were grateful for their service and happy for the kindness they showed to us!
Old Friends Return
For the past seventeen years, our
church has been pleased to enjoy a relationship with Hamilton Baptist Church of
Virginia. But at no point has our familiarity
dulled our enthusiasm for working together to reach the community for the
Gospel! This year, Hamilton arrived with
a coalition of other churches from the eastern United States. Working together with volunteers from our
church, they put together a Vacation Bible School, as well as a basketball
camp.
The festivities began with a large
block party in our church parking lot on Sunday afternoon. There was food, face painting, bouncy houses
and general merriment. This gave the children
of the community an opportunity to register for VBS. Then, the very next day, Vacation Bible
School started with gusto. In addition
to sitting under sound biblical teaching, the children played games, made
crafts, and sang songs about God. On
Wednesday, I presented the Gospel to about ninety children. It was beautiful.
While all of this was going on, a
smaller team went to the nearby community of Cherry Creek and held a basketball
camp there. After earning the trust of
the young men, they would give them their testimonies. Then, after a hard day of playing, they would
return to Eagle Butte and do it all over again!
The people of Hamilton have become
so close to us over the years that we feel as one with them. And in Christ, we really are!
Beyond Eagle
Butte
Sevier Heights Baptist Church of
Tennessee is another of our longstanding friendships. But instead of focusing their efforts
primarily on Eagle Butte (the largest city on the reservation), Sevier Heights
has a different approach. They use our
church building as a base to house their team during their stay. Then, each day, they would split their team
into parts and visit four of the smaller settlements. And when I say small, I mean consisting of a
few hundred people at the most. This
year, they went to Red Scaffold, Bear Creek, White Horse and Swiftbird. At each
of these towns, they brought Vacation Bible School to the children of the
community, and built relationships with the people of the area. But they did not stop there.
Because of Inependence Day
celebrations, the team was unable to work in one community on July fourth. But God had it all covered in His divine
providence. Matthew Dickerson, pastor of
the Baptist church in Laplante, had a large room that was in need of a paint
job. And the young people of Sevier
Heights were more than happy to lend a hand.
What a blessing to have these young people among us!
Katie Shenk: The World’s Greatest Intern
A few years ago, a group of
Mennonites from Ohio visited our church and partnered with us in ministry. Among the youth of that group was Katie
Shenk. She heard that our church accepts
summer interns, and became interested.
Earlier this year, she told me of her interest in coming to serve
alongside us in ministry. After a fairly
rigorous application process, she arrived in Eagle Butte and began her
internship-both with First Baptist Church and with Windswept Academy.
Katie exceeded expectations at
every turn, listening carefully to instructions and following them
closely. Whenever she had not been given
a specific task, she looked for additional work. She assisted with all of the ministries of
the church and school during the course of the entire summer-and that was no
easy task. She taught Sunday School
lessons to children. She designed a sign
that could be placed in the windows of local houses, allowing them to be picked
up for Sunday School more efficiently.
She was a gem.
On of the things that Katie had
expressly wanted to learn on her internship was leadership. While leadership is a difficult thing to
teach, I was ready to try. I gave her a
book on leadership to read, and also gave her some periodic instruction on
things I had learned on the subject. But
leadership is a thing that can never be learned until you do it. So I assigned her the task of designing a
project, all on her own, that would involve leading other people and benefit
the community in some way. The
assignment was vague, but that was where her leadership was meant to come
in.
Katie responded effectively and
well. She designed a small fair, taking
place at Windswept Academy, that was intended for students of the school. It had games and prizes for the children, but
it also served as a means for distributing hygiene products to children who did
not otherwise have them. On the
appointed day, it turned out to be a big success! The children came in great numbers, and
really enjoyed themselves! I call
Katie’s internship a great success, and wish her well now, as she heads off to
college.
Allies from Nebraska
This year, we received a
visitation from Grace Bible Fellowship, who in recent years has taken a great
interest in the nearby community of Cherry Creek. Over time, they have taken the children of
that community on fishing trips, and distributed bicycles to them. This year, they used our church as a base and
struck out for the community of Cherry Creek each day. There, they would conduct a basketball camp,
as well as a Vacation Bible School. It
turned out great! The young people of
Cherry Creek were enthusiastic, and quick to participate. After only knowing the people of that
community for a short time, the people of Grace Bible Fellowship are really
beginning to form some friendships with the children. So happy to have them as our allies!
Summer Camp!
For years now, First Baptist Church
has held a tradition of sending children to Victory Center Bible Camp (located
in nearby Fort Pierre). There, they
learn Bible verses, participate in daily chapel services, and play lots and
lots of fun and exciting games.
Oftentimes, the children of our community cannot afford to go to camp,
even though the prices are reasonable.
So our church has been pleased to sponsor children who cannot go. But in recent years, that has changed, and
changed for the better. Because of
generous donations from our brothers and sisters in Christ from all over
America, we have been able to sponsor more children than ever before. This year, we sent a whopping eighteen
children., and two of them prayed to receive Christ! We are so blessed to be a part of this
wonderful ministry!
Our New Friends from Far Away
Trinity Lutheran Church of North
Carolina made a trip here, with a plan to do a Vacation Bible School. But I must admit that, when they arrived, I
was a little skeptical. They were
friendly and polite, but the bulk of their group arrived only one hour before
their VBS was scheduled to begin! “Oh
no!”, I said to myself. “They’ll never
get everything ready in time. They can’t
prep a VBS in an hour; no one can!” Boy,
oh, boy, was I ever wrong! They sprang
into action, with a level of precision that demonstrated their having done this
many times before. They decorated the
entire church, set up all their prepared craft stations and games, and did a
lot of cooking. By the time the first
children walked through the door, everything was ready. Throughout the week, the children played
games, sang songs, studied the Bible, and even learned some beginner-level
martial arts! It was a fun week for
everybody!
First Baptist Church Gets a New Roof
Until recently, our roof had been
constructed from asphalt tiles. These
had degraded over time, leading to a situation where our roof was in bad shape,
and beginning to leak. Something had to
be done, quickly. And that is when God
blessed us immeasurably in the form of a team of skilled workers.
Youth for Christ Holiness Church,
of North Carolina, volunteered to make the journey and install the roof for
us. We only needed to buy the
materials.
Twelve hours a day, for four days,
they labored in the intense heat to install a new roof-made from metal. The result was phenomenal. It was beautiful and functional at the same
time. I’ve been told the First Baptist
Church can expect to have no problems with its roof for the next twenty
years. What a blessing God has bestowed
on us through our fellow servants!
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-and you can get it in
color! 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
