First Baptist Church of Eagle Butte
P.O. Box 170, Eagle Butte, SD 57625
(605) 964-3617 (Office) / (502) 216-3782 (Pastor’s Cell)
July 9, 2020
Dear Friends,
It has been a long time since I last corresponded with you. The pandemic has put this reservation through the ringer, much like every other place on earth. And because of the shutdowns, life has run more slowly than usual. But in our fallen world, there are only two certainties: everything changes; everything ends. And for us, the pandemic is ending. We are returning to normal, at last.
A terrible drought has hit the prairie, and many crops and cattle have died as a result. But a remarkable respite came last week, when our church devoted concerted effort to praying for rain. No rain was forecast in the immediate future, but the following day it rained twice! God is there, dear brothers and sisters, and He is listening!
Christmas on the Web
This Christmas, I tried something new. For the first time, I released a video series on the internet. Using my computer’s camera, I filmed myself talking about Christmas. Each day, I talked about a different aspect of the Incarnation, or traced some Christmas tradition back to its origins. There were 25 videos, in total. Every day, I made a new one and posted it on Facebook. It made for a fine lead-up to Christmas Day.
Anti-Graffiti
In the past months, I have also had the opportunity to indulge one of my favorite hobbies. I call it “anti-graffiti”. Whenever a gang sign or inappropriate message gets spray-painted onto the wall of a building in the neighborhood of our church, or of my house, I buy some spray paint and cover it up. I have had 4 occasions to do this recently. In the pictures you see above, I probably shouldn’t have used green paint. But still, it is an improvement.
The Giveaway to End All Giveaways
Here at First Baptist Church, we have the regular ministry of hosting giveaways for the community. Clothing, dishes, and any number of other items are set out in our church, prepared for anyone in need to pick them up and carry them away. Kind benefactors like you are the one who donate our giveaway items, and through your generosity we host 3-4 giveaways per year.
But as you all know, this past year put a stop to all giveaways on the reservation. Opening up the church for dozens of people to walk through, touching lots of different things along the way, could create a superspreader event. And yet, the donations continued to come in. So we carefully preserved all the various donated items. And we waited.
Finally, after an entire year of waiting, we were able to open the church once again. And because of the vast number of donated things we had accumulated, we were able to host the GREATEST. GIVEAWAY. OF. ALL. TIME! It lasted for two weeks, and involved thousands of donated necessary items. The people of Eagle Butte, for their part, had not been able to go to a giveaway in a long time, so the demand was high. Your donations made for something really special, and I thank you so much!
Tremendous Help, Given by Old Friends
For several years, First Baptist Church has enjoyed a beautiful friendship with Burkemont Baptist Church of Morganton, NC. Burkemont was my original home church, when I used used to live in Morganton. They have hosted a VBS at our church in the past, and it was wonderful, but their greatest help to our ministry has been in the form of construction. Some of their work has been so skillfully and quickly done that it might as well be magic.
Early this summer, the team from Burkemont came with what may have been their most ambitious project yet. They intended to install new laminate flooring in our sanctuary, main hallway, and kitchen.
These men were so motivated that I didn’t even get a chance to show them around the church. They took one step in the front door and immediately started planning how to get the flooring installed. They finished every floor, fixed the roof in two places, re-set a door that had been off, and installed a retractable screen in the sanctuary-SIGNIFICANTLY more work than they had originally set out to do. And they accomplished all of this an entire day earlier than they had planned. Now, thanks to them, the church is in the best physical shape of its life. Thank you, Burkemont!
Windswept Academy Weathers the Storm
Our Christian School, Windswept Academy, has undergone a crisis recently. Just before the pandemic, nearly half of its staff went through major transitions in their lives and moved to other states (for a variety of different reasons). Then, while the pandemic raged across America, it became nearly impossible to hire anyone new. This made the prospect of finishing the school year very bleak for them.
I was already serving as the school’s Chaplain and part-time Lakota teacher. But those who ran the school asked me to help fill the holes in the staff for a short time. And I filled them. Not very well, but I filled them. Sometimes, I ran the kitchen. Sometimes, I was a P.E. instructor. Sometimes, I supervised the high schoolers. Rarely was anything the same, from day to day.
Through a concerted effort by the entire staff, we managed to finish the school year. God was kind to us and the children, allowing them to finish their programs of study. For the second year in a row, Windswept has hosted its very own high school graduation, and at least one of the students is planning to attend college in the Fall.
Already, it looks like the staffing situation will be better next year. But if you or someone you know is looking to go onto the mission field, give me a call. Windswept is a great place to do just that!
The Lord Grants Me Healing
Midway through the pandemic, when my wife and I had spent months (mostly) inside our home, I noticed a small black scab on my nose. No matter how long I left it alone, it would not go away. Finally, I became concerned that it might be more than a scab. After visiting a very qualified dermatologist in the area, I was told that I had a rather large cancer beneath the surface of my skin. We immediately scheduled an appointment to have it removed.
The doctor was very kind. She numbed me up so completely that I couldn’t feel the scalpel at all. When she was finished, a tumor the size of a dime had been removed from my face, and I had a whole bunch of stitches. But I’m happy to report that i have now made a complete recovery. Even my scars are now mostly gone. Praise the Lord!
Baptisms, Glorious Baptisms!
Our church rejoiced a month ago, as two of our regular attenders (Reggie Kills a Hundred and Gerald High Elk) came forward to request the ordinance of Baptism. Each of these men had already placed their faith in Jesus, and had been baptized as infants. But they wanted to be baptized as believers, to show the world that their faith was in Christ, and Him alone. It was a beautiful service, and they could not have been more pleased. May God be praised for motivating these two believers, as they mature in their faith, and journey towards His Kingdom.
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.
Pray, also, for our volunteers, that their strength will be renewed, and that they will not be overwhelmed by the many tasks that are involved in ministry.
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,
Ben Farrar
Pastor
First Baptist Church of Eagle Butte
