Postcard placed Vietnamese couple on path to faith
NORMAN, Okla. (BP) -- Tri Phan and his wife MyDung knew little about Christianity when he began his Ph.D. studies in 2004 in environmental engineering at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. They had just arrived from Vietnam, and only Tri spoke English. After living in Norman for nearly a year, MyDung told her husband she wanted to find a class where she and their daughter Annie could learn English. A few days later, a postcard arrived from Bethel Baptist Church announcing an open house ...
Prosecutor faces pastor’s ‘provocative question’
YUKON, Okla. (BP) -- As a prosecutor for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, attorney Travis White was familiar with asking probing questions and trying to ascertain the truth. However, White wasn't prepared for "a very provocative question" from Chris Smith, teaching pastor at Yukon Church in Yukon, Okla. Smith had come by White's home after the attorney attended Yukon Church the previous Sunday. At the end of the visit, Smith asked White about his relationship with the Lord.
Invitation to church puts K.J. on path to a life-changing prayer
MOORE, Okla. (BP) -- When Kelly "K.J." Williams, 32, was invited by a friend to join him in church, Williams didn't know that the pastor had specifically prayed that morning, "Lord, put someone in my path with whom I can share Jesus today." In introducing himself to Williams after the worship service, pastor Bobby Shatto of First Baptist Church in Maud, Okla., recounts, "I could tell that K.J. had some things going on in his life. I felt that he was looking for someone who would really care about him."
100-year-old’s baptism ‘best thing that’s happened to me in years’
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (BP)--It was a time when a T-bone steak cost 15 cents and 100 pounds of sugar were sold for $4, a time when walking was the mode of transportation and a large percentage of America's population lived on a farm. It was the turn of the century, 100 years ago, Jan. 28, 1900, when Lorena Garlington was born on a farm near Corsicana, Texas. It was Dec. 5, 1999, when Lorena was led into the baptismal waters at the Huntington Beach Baptist Church in California.
Agnostic accepts pastor’s challenge, finds heart softened, life changed
HOUSTON, Mo. (BP)–“I wish I would have known the Lord 40 years ago,” confesses Bill Gray. “It would have made my life a whole lot easier.” Gray, 44, holds a degree in veterinary medicine and, until a year ago, was a self-described agnostic. While growing up in Davenport, Iowa, Gray occasionally attended church services with […]
Evangelist’s drawings help people see Jesus’ life-changing message
OTTUMWA, Iowa (BP)–Can a drawing of a mule pulling a plow bring a man to faith in Christ?Chalk artist Randy Davis drew such a picture during a revival service at Faith Baptist Church in Ottumwa, Iowa. Then, with a special black light, Davis illuminated a “hidden message” drawn in fluorescent chalk. For serviceman Dan Keith, […]
Drug convict-turned-minister leads teens, dad, mom to faith
HUNGRY HORSE, Mt. (BP)–“He showed up one Sundaymorning. He was a rough-looking character,” Andrew Goodwin,pastor of Hungry Horse (Mont.) Baptist Church, says indescribing his youth director, and former drug dealer, WillO’Neal. “He had hair all the way down his back and a real thicklong beard.” Will, and his wife, Tamera, had just arrived in HungryHorse […]
Teen’s gift of witnessing leads classmates to Christ
PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. (BP)–That Andrew Whaley is no ordinary teenager is obvious from the moment this 14-year- old speaks. Even his mother, Patsy, is quick to point out, “He’s always spoken with authority, totally confident and never shy.”Andrew grew up in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., as the only child of Paul and Patsy Whaley. When Andrew […]
