Voice of Hope

At the General Assembly conducted in Nashville in August of this year, I met the religion editor for WKRN news (Channel 2) in Nashville. Since that time, we have talked on more than one occasion, and not too long ago, the editor, Jamey Tucker interviewed me concerning a study released by Baylor University on "The State of Religion in America." You can see that interview at our state website, http://tncogop.org. Today, I sat with Jamey again for a story to be aired later this week on WKRN. I will be posting the interview segment on the state website after it airs. I told you the above, so that it might engender interest on your part to check, out Jamey's blog. I read it on a regular basis and find Jamey's reporting to be fair. If you would like to read his blog (and I encourage you to do so) you can find it at: http://faithandethics.com

Last night, Debra and I were honored to sit among the great pastors and companions of the Church of God of Prophecy in Southwestern Tennessee. The occasion was a special fellowship meeting, the third of its type in Tennessee. District Presbyter, Bishop Robbie and Kathy Wier extended a warm welcome to their church at Abundant Grace Ministries, and along with some from their local church, prepared a great meal of catfish, hush puppies and barbecue, along with all the trimmings. Every pastor in the Southwestern Tennessee area was present along with their spouses and the time of fellowship and discussion was great. We look forward to meeting with all of the pastors and their pastors on a regular basis. God bless.

Last night, Debra and I met with most of the pastors of Northwest Tennessee for a time of fellowship and a meal. We met at a local restaurant in Dyersburg, Tennessee, and were enriched to be in the presence of such wonderful men and women of God. Special thanks to Bishop Clayton Mahan, District Presbyter for putting the event together.

Last Saturday, I traveled to the Murphy House, located just outside of Fields of the Wood in Cherokee County, North Carolina. The occasion was the anniversary of the 2nd General Assembly of the Church of God. There were about 22 present in the J.C. Murphy house that was the site of the first General Assembly in 1906. The second assembly was held at the Union Grove, Tennessee church, and it was in this assembly that the name Church of God was officially adopted. Pastor Don Johnston of the Fields of the Wood church opened the service with prayer which was followed by a time of singing. Dr. David Roebuck, Historian for the Church of God (Cleveland) and our own General Overseer Emeritus, Bishop Fred S. Fisher, Sr., spoke and I closed the service with a word of prayer. I am thankful that while God allows us to have wings, that we can have roots too! God bless.

Last night, members, friends and ministers of the Church of God of Prophecy in Districts 9 and 10 gathered at the Lakeside church in Wesmoreland for the "Keep the Flame Burning" conference. After a boost from each of our capable staff in attendance, the worship team and special singers from the Lakeside church led us into the Presence of the Lord. At the conclusion, I delivered a message, I feel like the Lord has given me for the Church of God of Prophecy in Tennessee. It was well received and many had their needs met by the Lord during the altar service. Special thanks to District Presbyter, Bishop F. Leon Graves for the organization and moderation of the meeting.

Augusta Maine Jackson, 90, Clarksville, went to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2007, at General Care Convalescent Center. The funeral will be held at 1 p.m. Monday at McReynolds-Nave & Larson Funeral Home with Sister Buna Lampley officiating. Burial will be in Yarbrough Cemetery. Visitation will be from 2 to 7 p.m. today and from 10 a.m. till hour of service Monday at the funeral home. McReynolds-Nave & Larson Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. Mrs. Jackson was born Sept. 9, 1916, in Montgomery County, to Joe and Birdie Kelly Jackson. She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Robert Jackson. Mrs. Jackson was a member of Cumberland Furnace Church of God of Prophecy and was a homemaker. Survivors include her daughter, Kathleen (James) Mackens of Clarksville; a son, Robert R. "Ronnie" Jackson of Clarksville; four grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Family and friends will serve as pallbearers. Arrangements in...

I just learned of the passing of Augusta Jackson, mother of Kathleen Mackens. Kathleen's husband James is our pastor at the Cumberland Furnace church. I do not have any of the arrangements but will post them as soon as possible. Please join me in praying for the Mackens family.

I learned today of the passing of Ruby Green, wife of Everet Eskew Green, who served under appointment for many years in Tennessee. The visitation is tonight at the Hood funeral home in Crossville tonight from 6-9 pm and the memorial service will be tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. I spoke with Brother Green on the phone, and he told me that they had been married for 66 years. Will you please join me in praying for this precious family?

I just learned a few-minutes-ago about the sudden passing of Johnny Chancey (Age 49), son of one of our ministers at the Daisy church. The funeral services are tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. in Daisy. Please join me in prayer for the Chancey family.

Brother Bailey came through the surgery well today. Thank you for your prayers. He is still recovering and in need of a touch of the Lord. Thanks.

Our State Mens Ministries Director, Brother Chuck Bailey is scheduled for spinal surgery tomorrow in Nashville. Brother Chuck has been in excruciating pain for some-time-now, and none of the other treatment options have worked. Will you please join me in praying for Brother Chuck. Many of you may not know that Chuck and his family became members of the Church of God of Prophecy when I was serving as the Senior Pastor at Columbia, TN. I actually mentored him, and our former State Overseer, Bishop Wayne Hall appointed Chuck to the State position he now serves in. He is a great "armor-bearer" and has been a blessing to a lot of people. You can see his website at: http://mensministryintn.org

I would like to invite you to check out our new State's Men's Ministries Directors website. Brother Chuck Bailey has worked hard to make a nice upgrade to the old one and we would appreciate you checking it out. To see the site CLICK HERE or type http://mensministryintn.org

I just returned home from a meeting at one of our churches tonight. Debra and I drove most of the day to get back home, but I was able to have one cup of coffee at home before leaving the meeting. There is a lot happening around us! I am told almost daily of people being saved, and of baptisms and of people joining the Church of God of Prophecy in Tennessee. I am convinced that as we go on, we will continue to hear aobut the great things God is doing around us. Our pastors, their families and the other ministry and members of the church work so hard to see the Will of God done in our churches, and they are all to be commended. I thank God for His goodness, for His love and for His mercy in my life. I pray today (as the day is ending) that you will be blessed by God like never before.

Tonight, the Lord blessed as the has was filled with worshippers at our Southwestern Tennessee district meeting. Bishop Robert Wier and the Abundant Grace church extended a warm and gracious welcome to everyone in attendance. All of the churches in this section were represented, with the exception of the Jackson church, who will join us at Big Sandy in a few weeks. After the service, the host church served a wonderful meal and the fellowship was great! Thanks to everyone present for making this a memorable event.

Hello. I trust today is a goo day for you, and that the Lord is blessing you abundantly. I am posting a little early today, because the day's activities are going to keep us moving, and I don't want to miss an opportunity to write something today. As I write, Debra and I are at a McDonald's (you know the Irish restaurant) finishing up a cup of coffee before hitting the road. Gordonsville Family Worship Center In just a few minutes, we will be heading out for Gordonsville where Debra is scheduled as a guest speaker at the local church for their ladies day. Cindy Peoples, the pastor's spouse invited Debra some-time-ago, and she has been looking forward to visiting the church today. It is only about an hour away, so we still have time to get there. John and Martha Cassidy We have to leave Gordonsville immediately after Debra finishes in order to get to Cleveland for the 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration for John and Martha Cassidy, long-time members of the Church o...

From the General Overseer: Forgiveness Illustrated Divinely We have such wonderful people in the Church of God of Prophecy all around the world. That was reinforced this week when we received an email from Rwanda, hearing that a patriarch of faith in the national church had died. This email news came from our overseer in Rwanda, Brother Redias Nkundabera. Sister Karrera (the widow of our former National Overseer and our present overseer's mother) lost her mother. As you will read in the email, all of her children and grandchildren, other than Sister Karrera and her children, were killed during Rwandas genocide of the early 90's. She has been a fortress of faith and grace to that community where such violence raged. The report reads, This elderly lady has been our only surviving, oldest member of our church in that district, She has been a widow for 20 years and she was 98 years old. She also lost all of her 6 sons and 2 daughters, with her 12 grand children. My mother was the o...

As you know, I have reminded you of the Marriage Retreat that is scheduled for next month. It appears that we will have a good-sized crowd, and anticipation is growing. Remember, you need to get your application in as soon as possible to make sure you have your room reserved. God bless.

As you know, this past weekend, we shared a new educational intitiative to be implemented in Tennessee. For those of you who were not in attendance, I will briefly share the three parts of the program. 1. Ministerial Intensives . The annual ministerial intensive has been a tremendous success, and has been the opportunity for seasoned ministers to "pour into" the lives of our newer ministers. These intensives will continue in the future, with particular attention given to SPECIALIZATION. By specialization, I mean intensives for particular people-groups, i.e., deacons, children's workers, youth workers, associate ministers, etc,. 2. School of Practical Ministry/Mentoring . All experts agree that mentoring is one of the long-lost methods of instruction that have fallen by the wayside. In 2005, the Ministerial Review Board implemented a one-year internship for ministerial candidates, and many have participated in, and graduated from their internship. We will expand ...

Earlier, I posted about dedicating our granddaughter, Reagan to the Lord at the Peerless Road Church. At the time, I didn't have a photo to post. Just received this one today of our family and wanted to share it with you. God bless.

This past weekend, ministers gathered from all across Tennessee to participate in the 6th Annual Ministerial Intensive at Camp Hickory Hills, near Dickson, Tennessee. The course, Training for Reigning, a course developed by Dr. Ron Cottle, President Emeritus of Beacon University. This course is typical of the courses that will be presented as a part of our new educational initiative introduced this past weekend. Our instructors did a wonderful job of presenting the material, and at the end of the intensive, Dr. Ian Bond and Dr. Milford Gamble from Beacon presented their program. Special thanks to all involved.

As you know, the Ministerial Intensive is upon us. It appears that the attendance is going to be up and we are expecting a great time together. It's not too late to register, just contact Londa at her email address by CLICKING HERE and letting her know of your plans to attend. If for some reason, you find out at the last minute that you can attend, come on and we will register you when you arrive. I know that we will also have another State Overseer visiting, as well as Dr. H.E. (Bubba) Cardin. Please make sure to be with us if at all possible. God bless.

I talked with Sandra O'Kain today on my way to Vanderbilt Hospital. She informed me that they were waiting on an ambulance to take Glen back to Dickson, and that he was being released. Thank you for your prayers.

Today, Debra and I visited Sharon Caruthers at the Baptist Hospital in Nashville. She is looking good and seems to be doing well. She still needs our prayers.

I am pleased to announce our new state men's ministries website. Our director, Chuck Bailey has been putting this together for some time. It is a great site for resources for your local men's ministries. Just click the link below to go there. http://www.mensministryintn.org/

Excitement is building as we move closer to our annual Marriage Retreat. We are moving this year to the MainStay Suites in Pigeon Forge. This is a GREAT facility, and I know that everyone attending will be happy we've moved. Applications are coming in everyday, and it looks like we're going to have a full-house. I am writing tonight to remind you that after February 8, 2007, the hotel will start dropping rooms from our block. If you are planning attend, PLEASE make sure you don't miss this deadline.

This afternoon, I waited with Pastor Vernon Caruthers, while Sister Sharon underwent surgery at Baptist Hospital in Nashville I was there when the surgeon talked with the family. Everything seemed to go well. Please help me to continue to pray for the family.

Glen O'Kain, our pastor at Dickson has been admitted to Vanderbilt Hospital. He is in a real need of a touch from the Lord. I visited with him this afternoon, and while he was in good spirits, he is looking for a miracle. Please help me pray for him.

I've learned that Sharon Caruthers, spouse of our pastor at Campaign, Tennessee is to undergo surgery tomorrow. She has been in much pain and is in need of a special touch from the Lord. Will you please join me in praying for her, and for a successful surgery? Thank you so much. God bless.

Jan. 27,2007 - West TN Youth Sponsored Outreach Memphis Union Mission Outreach www.memphisunionmission.org We will meet at Abundant Grace Ministries to carpool to the Mission. We will be serving lunch from approximately 11am until 2. If we have more than 30 people to work we may be used to accomplish other tasks other than just serving lunch. Afterwards, or if we have lots of volunteers we may have a group visit a Bibles for China Thrift Store to help with organization. Please wear clothing suitable for serving and/or working. During the holidays the homeless and needy are remembered well, but what happens after the holidays? Come out and join the youth of West TN in a hands-on service to our fellow man. All ages above 10 are welcome! Please Let me know if you and your group are coming by Jan. 15th so that we will know how to plan. You can call me at (901)355-3211 or you can reach me at Gigid1@AOL.com .... God bless, Gigi West TN Yout...

Tonight, members and ministry of Districts 1, 2 and 3 gathered at the Knoxville (Arrowhead) church for the first of many meetings to be held across the State of Tennessee. The meeting was well attended, and there was a great freedom of worship. Bishop R.D. Ledford did a great job of moderating the meeting, and each of the state staff present gave a synopsis of the work under their direction. There was a powerful demonstration by the youth, and by the Clinton church. I was blessed to minister the Word in the service, and we are so thankful for the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Our next of these meetings will be next Sunday night at the Crossroads church in White Bluff. The services will begin at 6:00 p.m.

As I write, it is almost 12:30 a.m., eastern time. We are in Cleveland, and will be attending the morning worship services at the Peerless Road church, where I will be dedicating our granddaughter Reagan to the Lord. After that, I will be traveling to Knoxville for the first District meeting of 2007. I am asking you to join me in prayer for Cliff Dilldine. Cliff is a friend of mine in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. His wife, Ina served in our office as Prayer Coordinator and Senior Ministries when I served AR/OK as overseer. Their son, Dusty serves as the Regional Treasurer, and his wife Rhonda Dilldine served on my staff as Regional Worship Director. This past week, Cliff received some troubling news and is in need of a physical touch in his body. Cliff is a good man, and has served our church faithfully. Will you please help me pray for my friend? God bless you and thanks so much.

Welcome to Connections! Dear Dr. E.C., Thank you for signing up to receive Connections, an e-newsletter from the Church of God of Prophecy International Offices. Here you will find the latest news and information on upcoming ministry events. We hope you enjoy all that you will read here. Send us your comments and thoughts by emailing connections@cogop.org. In this E-Mail. . . 1. From the General Overseer: International Offices Season of Seeking 2. Mission News Update: Building Gods Church in a War Zone 3. Heritage Ministries and Fields of the Wood 4. Stewardship Ministries: Year-End Contributions Receipts 5. Update from North American Presbyter 6. Connect 07: Practical Tools for Reaching Todays College Students and Young Adults 7. Draw Near to Him: Leadership Development Institute 2007 8. Upcoming Events 9. To Unsubscribe From the General Overseer: International Offices Season of Seeking Many may not know that th...

This coming Sunday night at 6:00 p.m., the state staff will be with me at the Knoxville (Arrowhead) for the frist of our District Meetings hosted throughout the state. This meeting will be a powerpacked meeting, of worship, fellowship and the Word. I am encouraging everyone to attend and join in a move of the Holy Ghost. You can find the entire list of meetings under the "UPCOMING DATES" page at our State Website. We look forward to seeing you there!

Just a few-minutes-ago, I returned from visiting Pastor Jerry Payne at Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville. You would not believe the transformation that has taken place in his life. On the way to the hospital, I spoke with our pastor at Bellshire, Pastor Shannon Bowdoin, who had just visited with Jerry. He said that Jerry was on cloud nine! While entering the hospital, I saw Pastor Jim Mitchell of Baggett's Chapel in the surgical waiting area. He had just been to see Jerry in his room and told me the same thing. The truth is, Jerry couldn't stop preaching, crying and laughing. My spirits were really lifted after being with Jerry for even a few moments. I couldn't help but laugh when Jerry said, "you've got a new preacher in Tennessee, Brother McKinley." His wife Jewell replied, "he hasn't been like this in years." Thank God for His wonderful, marvelous, miraculous grace!

Today, I visited Pastor Glen O'Kain. He has been moved to Horizon Medical Center in Dickson, Tennessee. After being released from Vanderbilt Hospital, he was moved to NHC nursing home in Dickson, Tennessee. Please help me pray for Glen, he has served faithfully througout his entire ministry, often at churches others would not. He has been at Dickson for the past 12 years. Thanks and God bless.

I trust your new year is off to a good start, and that the Lord is blessing you richly. I am writing today with more information regarding the Introduction of our new educational initiative in Tennessee. As I mentioned in my letter to you, we will be hosting Dr. Ian Bond and Dr. Milford Gamble of Beacon University at our intensive to answer any questions you might have about the formal portion of our program. They will be with us at the ministerial intensive conducted at the State Campground, January 12-13, 2007. I need to know if you will be joining us. Here is some important information for you: 1. If you will be staying at the campground for the entire intensive, the cost is $25. This will cover food and lodging. 2. If you are staying off-site, the cost will be $15, which will include your food. 3. Books are an additional cost of $10. 4. If you will be attending ONLY on the Saturday afternoon session, we can provide lunch for $5. IMPORTANT**** We need to know if you are plan...

Debra and I visited with Bishop Jerry Payne, pastor at the Grimsley church. He was still in the intensive care unit, but was doing great. We spent time with Julia and enjoyed the opportunity to just sit and visit, but also to see the joy and the anticipation in her face. I will keep you updated in future posts. God bless.

I have some great news to report. It is 12:30 a.m., January 2, 2007 as I write, and I have just returned home from Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville. I spent part of the afternoon and all of Monday evening at the hospital with Bishop Jerry Payne and his family and friends. This evening, Brother Payne underwent liver transplant surgery. When I left the hospital at around midnight, the doctors had sent finished the surgery and were sending him to recovery. It appears that the surgery was a success! Please pray for Brother Payne that there will be no complications and that he will recovery quickly. Also, please join me in praying for Jewell, J.J., Julia and the rest of the family. I will report later as to his progress. God bless.