WOODVILLE—When Pastor Jordan Wilson reflects on all God has done in the three-and-a-half years since Tyler County Country Church began, he is in awe.

Standing in a 16,000-square-foot, two-story building in Woodville, Wilson can point to so many moments of God’s faithfulness and provision.

Tyler County Country Church—better known in Woodville as “TC3″—reaches about 300 people each week with the gospel.Jordan and Emily Wilson started Tyler County Country Church—known as TC3—after being approached by First Baptist Church in Woodville and six other churches. Those congregations saw the need for a new church in the area to bring the gospel to a segment of the population they could not reach successfully.

Initially, they tried launching a cowboy church—a western-heritage congregation. But they soon discovered the model did not quite work for the people they were trying to reach.

Just the right fit

Wilson learned about a new Country Church model through his work with Texas Baptists, and he found it was just the right fit.

Hunters and fishermen feel at home at TC3.“There are certain elements that make Country Churches successful, and we believe we can take those tools and use them within our context to reach people,” he said.

From playing country music to enjoying a relaxed dress code and atmosphere, the model has allowed visitors to feel right at home. It also embraces the outdoor Southern culture—a good fit for a large segment of the community who enjoy hunting and fishing.

Reaching the unchurched

From the beginning, Wilson believed TC3 would be a church that would reach people who were not already in church.

“We never aspired to reach people who were at other churches. We aspired to reach people who were at home on Sunday mornings,” he said.

“We are also a church for people who know they don’t have it all together. It’s OK to come to Country Church—to come home and be who you are. … We embrace the grace God has given us through Jesus. No matter what they’ve experienced, they will not be judged. They are just going to be loved.”

The church has seen 50 professions of faith and baptisms. Starting out with just a handful of members, the church now averages well over 300 attenders each Sunday, and leaders pray to fill every seat in the 450-seat worship center one day.

First impressions matter

The sounds of a bluegrass band welcome worshippers at TC3 in Woodville.As guests drive up to TC3, trucks line the parking area. A bluegrass band fills the air with soothing rhythms and harmonies. Walking into the lobby, six large whitetail deer mounts line the wall of the balcony, with a bison, elk and turkey at eye-level. A welcome center and “outpost” with church apparel also draws visitors.

For Wilson, first impressions make a difference, and each element was selected intentionally. Striving for excellence in everything they do also has been a primary motivator for the church leaders.

“It sets the stage for country people to feel at home and for God to move,” he said.

God blessed

When TC3 began, the congregation met on the county fair grounds, then moved outside when they outgrew the space. Later, the church moved to a school cafeteria for several months. One day, Wilson received a call that changed everything—a donor wanted to give the church 30 acres of land to have as its own.

“God blessed us with this property of 30 acres, debt-free. There is no other explanation than it was God’s blessing,” Wilson recalled. “We purchased our own tent, and for two years, we met for church right here on the property.”

In October 2016, TC3 opened the doors on its new two-story facility, with six children’s classrooms and a spacious multi-purpose lobby.

“Anytime a blessing comes in life, there’s always a temptation to relax and stop moving forward,” Wilson said in a church report last year. “While that’s good for a season and maybe necessary, what’s happening at the Country Church over these last few years is only the beginning of what we believe God wants to do through this church.

“We pause for a moment and give thanks to the Lord and those who he’s used to make all of these great things possible up to this point, but we also continue to look forward to our future. It is our hope that God would use this church as an example of what could be and will be all throughout our region and to other rural parts of the country.”

Opportunity for multiplication

Although the congregation is only three years old, TC3 has a heart to start new churches.

“Other churches came together a few years ago to plant our church, and we feel called to do the same,” Wilson said.

With an average of 5,500 churches closing their doors in America each year, Wilson sees the need for new church models to reach the state and country for Christ. Through the success they have seen at TC3, he believes many aspects of the Country Church could be duplicated to reach nearby communities similar to Woodville. 

“It’s easy to see the glamorous side of church planting—and it is the most rewarding thing you will do in your whole life. But I want people to understand and know that it is some of the hardest work you will do as a minister,” Wilson said.

Wilson expressed gratitude for the support he has received through the Baptist General Convention of Texas church-starting staff. He encourages other individuals prayerfully considering planting churches to utilize the resources that have led to his church’s success.

“It means a lot to know that somebody is ready to come alongside, support and build you up and help you,” he said of the church-starting team. “It would be really easy to feel like you are an island on your own.

“But we’ve got a team of people who really come alongside us and supported us, through local churches, our association and our growth-review team. When we join together, we can accomplish great things—a lot bigger things than we can when we are separate.”   

This article originally appeared in Texas Baptists Life magazine. 

CONROE—Bruce Freeman often helps people put their computers back together. Whether someone walks in with a virus, malfunctioning software or some other computer malady, the president of Freeman Computer Services is there to help.

Now he uses those same skills to help vulnerable single mothers build new lives for themselves and their children.

Laptop computers for single mothers

Freeman, a member of First Baptist Church, has repaired and updated four laptops donated by Sunday school classes for women in the Buckner Family Pathways program, which provides housing so the single mothers can focus on their educational goals. He’s also removed viruses from several other computers that belong to women in the program.

Freeman’s not stopping there. He’d like to provide a laptop for every mother in the Buckner program. He sees how hard they work to improve themselves and make it possible to support their families.

“As long as these women are working hard and going to school, I’ll help them any way I can,” he said.

Helps women succeed in educational advancement

Freeman’s work is critical to helping the mothers succeed in college. Because of the nature of classes, computers have become vital to coursework. Without the laptops, the mothers would struggle in school.

“The generosity of Freeman Computer Services means so much to the ladies we serve,” said Anna Rodriquez, program director of Buckner Family Pathways. “It helps the ladies advance in their education. Everything is on the Internet. You can’t just go to class and think that’s it. You have to go online to get your assignments. You have to go online for group discussions.”

Donated laptop computers—rather than desktop units—particularly help the single mothers who juggle a large number of tasks each day, such as taking care of their children and working in addition to maintaining their course loads. A laptop empowers them to study when they can.

“A laptop is mobile, so you can work where you need to be,” said Buckner Family Coach Carrie Johnson. “When you’re trying to go to school and raise your children, that’s really important. It gives you the flexibility a single parent needs to succeed.”

Freeman encourages individuals and groups to donate computers at Freeman Computer Services for Family Pathways. He and his team will update the computers and put them to use improving the lives of women in need. 

“Bring your laptop in, and we’ll take a look at it,” Freeman said. “We’ll see if we can get it up and going. If we can, then we’ll get it ready for these ladies. It’ll help them in school and help them provide for their families.”

BELTON—As an Olympic gold medalist and two-time heavyweight boxing champion, George Foreman understands what victory means. But a near-death experience led to his greatest triumph, when he found faith in Christ, he told an audience at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.

Delivering the McLane Lecture in the Frank and Sue Mayborn Campus Center arena March 22, Foreman recalled the day he told his life story to his son.

“I realized that I’d raised a nice boy, but he didn’t know anything about me,” Foreman said. “So, I took him on a long ride and told him my story.”

Troubled youth

As a boy, Foreman skipped school most days, he said. Years later, after dropping out of school, he fell in with some young men from his neighborhood who tended to get in trouble.

After an evening spent evading police, Foreman decided he needed to change his life. He applied to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Corps program. During his tenure with the program, Foreman first considered trying boxing.

“One night, I was in the Job Corps center, and a boxing match came on the radio, and after the fight was over, the kids said: ‘George, you think you’re so big and tough. Why don’t you become a boxer?” he recalled.

‘A dream had come true’

Taking up the challenge, Foreman transferred to California, where he began training for the boxing ring. A year later, Foreman competed as part of the 1968 Olympic team in Mexico City, where he ultimately won the gold medal.

George Foreman shared his larger-than-life story when he delivered the McLane Lecture in the Frank and Sue Mayborn Campus Center arena at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.“That was probably the happiest moment I’ve ever had as an athlete,” Foreman said. “For the first time in my life, a dream had come true.”

Following his success at the Olympics, Foreman entered professional competition.

“One fight after another, I had these knockouts, one after another,” Foreman said. “Then finally, they wanted to match me for the heavyweight championship of the world.”

Foreman was reluctant to fight for the title, he acknowledged, since then-champ Joe Frazier was one of the most intimidating fighters in history.

“They said Joe Frazier was the kind of fellow who, if you hit him, he liked it,” Foreman remembered. “If you missed him, he got upset.”

Foreman went on to overwhelm Frazier, knocking him down six times in two rounds before being declared the winner and new heavyweight champion.

Foreman also recounted his epic 1974 bout with Muhammad Ali in Zaire, touted as “The Rumble in the Jungle.” Foreman was winning the fight for several rounds before he tired, and Ali knocked him out before the end of the eighth round.

“Have you ever heard of a rope-a-dope? Well, meet the dope,” he said, pointing to himself. “When I lost that match, it was the first time I was ever faced with devastation.”

Life-changing experience

Foreman discussed several other fights—some he won and others he lost—before he told a story about the night he lost a close 12-round decision in Puerto Rico and nearly died in his locker room after the match.

He described the near-death experience as the moment when he found his faith in God.

A near-death experience led George Foreman to faith in Christ.“I jumped off the table and said, ‘Jesus Christ is coming alive in me,’” Foreman said. “I screamed: ‘Hallelujah! I’m clean. I’m born again.’”

Following this experience, Foreman quit the ring and spent 10 years working as an evangelist. Ultimately, he returned to boxing to support his family and his gospel ministry.

In 1994, Foreman challenged Michael Moorer for the world championship. Foreman, then 45 years old, trailed Moorer nine rounds. However, in the 10th round, Foreman landed a knockout punch and became the oldest heavyweight champion in history.

Foreman closed his lecture with words of advice for students.

“All of you have got the world right in your palms now. Learn all you can,” Foreman said. “Your life is before you, and you can do whatever you want, but believe God and put him first.”

The McLane Lecture brings internationally recognized speakers to UMHB each year to present their experiences and insights about leadership, government and business. The annual lecture is made possible by the gifts of Temple residents Elizabeth and Drayton McLane Jr. 

AUSTIN—Dozens of Texans testified before the Senate Education Committee on a bill proponents hailed as school choice but which critics called a voucher scheme that would violate religious liberty and undermine public education.

SB 3 by Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, would create educational savings accounts and tax credit scholarships. The programs would use public funds to benefit parents who want to enroll their children in private or charter schools, including parochial schools, or pay for homeschooling expenses.

“This is just a choice. It’s another option. We’re not trying to decimate anybody,” Taylor said in response criticism his bill would harm public schools. “This is competition to a healthy degree.”

Negative impact on public schools that accept all students

John Ogletree, pastor of Metropolitan Baptist Church in Houston and longtime board member of the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District, signed on about 8 a.m. to testify against SB 3 at the March 21 hearing. But Ogletree said he “left disappointed” around 5:30 p.m. to return to Houston before having the opportunity to testify.

The Senate Education Committee heard testimony for about an hour at 9 a.m. before the full Senate convened, and then the committee resumed public hearings mid-afternoon and continued late into the evening.

The next day, Ogletree expressed regret he did not have the opportunity to let the senators know the negative impact the bill potentially could have on students in his school district and other public schools.

“I wanted them to look at what harm it could do to school districts that are trying to provide the best education possible for all students,” he said.

“We know this is not about helping minority students get into private schools. It’s a panacea for the private schools and for the upper-middle-class families who can afford them.”

Concerns about religious liberty

Gus Reyes, director of the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission, finally testified about 9:30 p.m., citing religious liberty concerns about the bill.

“The mission of most private religious schools is inherently different from public schools and should be supported through voluntary contributions, not state coercion,” Reyes said. “We support parents’ right to choose the best educational setting for their children, but we do not believe in using state funds to support private religious education.”

Charles Luke with the Coalition for Public Schools and Pastors for Texas Children likewise expressed concerns about public taxpayer funds being redirected to private religious education.

“We have some huge concerns about that because taxpayer funds are going to be used for religious content,” he said. “It can be religious content of all kinds and all manner.”

Luke noted concern the legislation would violate both the “free exercise” and “no establishment” clauses of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Homeschooling groups lined up on opposite sides of the bill. Representatives of the Texas Homeschool Coalition supported it, calling it a victory for parental rights, while leaders of Texans for Homeschool Freedom opposed it, saying it opens the door to state regulation of their curriculum.

Civil rights and civil wrongs

SB 3 drew support from advocates for private schools. Some echoed the language of Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who have framed the measure as a “civil rights issue,” protecting the rights of parents to choose how to educate their children.

David Hinojosa, policy director for the San Antonio-based Intercultural Development Association, countered by characterizing voucher-style programs without strict safeguards as “more civil wrongs than civil rights” because they fail to meet the needs of low-income students, particularly minority students.

“They are segregating students based on race and national origin, and they are not leading to an increase in student achievement,” he said, citing studies from other states with similar programs. 

Editor’s Note:  The Senate Education Committee voted 7-3 on March 23 to approve SB 3. Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo; Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio; and Royce West, D-Dallas, cast the three “no” votes.

PEÑITAS—In seven days, volunteers from around Texas changed the lives of seven families in one Rio Grande Valley community.

Teams from across the state worked in Peñitas to build more homes simultaneously than Buckner International ever had attempted during a spring break mission effort.

“We have never seen an effort come together like this,” said Javier Perez, director of Buckner Domestic Missions. “This is a significant step forward for each of these families. It’s a week of transformation that will resonate throughout the community for years to come.”

Eleven teams scattered across the colonia, working from sunup to sundown, to construct homes for vulnerable families who qualified for a homebuilding project through the local Buckner Family Hope Center. Families earn points to qualify for a house by volunteering and attending Hope Center classes on job skills, parenting, managing finances and developing strong family relationships.

In addition to building homes, some volunteers led a sports camp and taught classes—including financial planning and a tutorial on how to can food—at the Hope Center.

David Henry from University Baptist Church in Houston worked on a Buckner International homebuilding project in a South Texas colonia. (Photo / Aimee Freston)“It’s not just about the work; it’s about the people,” said David Henry from University Baptist Church in Houston.

Volunteers traveled to the Rio Grande Valley not only to serve families, but also to make themselves available as God’s servants, he emphasized.

“God gives each of us those gifts and talents, and it’s up to us to make sure we find the spots to use them,” he said.

The construction of a new home is part of helping each family attain its goal of economic self-sufficiency.

“We seek to transform the lives of vulnerable families in all we do,” said Rebecca Estevanes, director of the Hope Center. “Little is more transformational than ownership of a safe, secure, stable home. These families have worked hard to strengthen themselves by learning new skills, becoming better parents and developing strong relationships. Volunteer teams … help catapult families even further forward by building homes that reflect the families’ newfound strength.”

For the first time, a group of Peñitas fathers served by the Hope Center worked on a home for their neighbors. The men were so excited by the project, they started work a week early.

Francisco Gutierrez had the opportunity this spring break to work alongside volunteers who built his own home last year. (Photo / Aimee Freston)“Giving back is one of the key components we teach at the Hope Center,” said Gabriel Flores, who leads the center’s fatherhood classes. “When they saw the need for a new house in their community and the opportunity to make that happen, they jumped at the chance. Many of these guys have the skills needed to build a house. They use them all the time. Now, they’re using them to strengthen their community. It’s truly beautiful.”

Francisco Gutierrez, who attends the fatherhood class at the Hope Center, was particularly eager to help one group of volunteers. They were the same group that built his new house during spring break last year.

“They made an impact in my life,” he said. “I feel the need to lend them a hand, because they have invested in me. I realized the amount of effort a mission team takes to come here, and I’m grateful that they come. It brings me joy to help the mission teams and my own community in this way.”

MARSHALL—East Texas Baptist University students spent spring break demonstrating the love of Christ by serving people in the jungles of Belize, in a storm-damaged area of South Louisiana and on the beaches of South Padre Island.

“We are grateful to have committed Christian servant leaders in our East Texas Baptist students, who are willing to sacrifice their vacation time for the blessing of others,” President Blair Blackburn said. 

Water ministry in Belize

Lisa Seeley, director of global education and the ETBU Great Commission Center, led 10 students to recover water wells and share the gospel of Jesus in Belize. The team worked in Otoxha, a remote jungle village without electricity or running water. 

East Texas Baptist University students served during spring break in Belize recovering wells and sharing the Good News of Christ.“Seeing how different our cultures are was eye-opening,” sophomore Abbey Sturdivant said. “Even though we are so different, we are all equal in the eyes of God.” 

ETBU partnered with Hope Springs Water—an Athens-based ministry—to support the organization’s mission of drilling and reclaiming water wells and teaching public health and hygiene-related practices.  

During their time in the jungle, the ETBU students slept in hammocks inside a thatch building. The students were impressed by the generosity of the families in the region.

“The families in the Belize jungles have so little, yet they were so willing to share with us,” freshman Cristal Monzon-Hernandez said. “We were blessed beyond belief by the people of Otoxha as we sought to be a blessing. God is truly at work in the hearts of the people of Belize.”

Home building in Louisiana

In Slidell, La., ETBU students participated in Habitat for Humanity’s Collegiate Challenge. The group worked with the East St. Tammany Parish Habitat chapter to help build a home. Students hung floor joists, decked flooring and framed walls on an elevated pier and beam home that will be above flood level once completed.  

“The work is more strenuous than anticipated but is very rewarding at the same time,” sophomore Joe Soto said.

Slidell sustained serious flood damage due to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and Hurricane Isaac in 2012, and it suffered another setback from floods last year.

Before Katrina, the East St. Tammany Parish Habitat chapter only built one or two houses a year. Due to an increase in volunteers and financial support, the chapter has been busy building 50 to 60 homes a year in Slidell for families in need of quality housing.  

“Overall, this experience has been challenging, but it’s worth all the hard work,” sophomore Jake Williams said. “It’s awesome how our work this week will impact a family we’ve never even met before and to provide them with a quality home.”  

Beach Reach on South Padre Island

On South Padre Island, 40 ETBU students ministered to other college students in conjunction with the Texas Baptist Student Ministry’s Beach Reach mission. The ETBU students worked late at night and into the early hours of the morning, giving rides and feeding pancakes to other students who had indulged in all-night parties.

God presented ETBU students scores of opportunities to minister and to share their faith in Christ as they helped students remain safe during spring break, BSM Director Marc Yates said.

“Throughout the week, ETBU students planted seeds in the hearts of the students with whom they shared the hope of the gospel,” Yates said.

Kelsey Dagle, a junior at ETBU, described an encounter that confirmed to her why she was on the mission trip.

“A group of six people got on our van, and immediately the conversations were spiritual,” she said. “We didn’t do anything. God was already doing a work in them

“By the end of the ride, which was well over an hour, four of the students rededicated their lives to the Lord. Praise God for his faithfulness to his promise, not only to me, but to all of us Beach Reachers, that he is present and moving on the island.”

HUNTSVILLE (BP)—Michael Rios understands good intentions do not necessarily keep anybody out of prison. Life change demands a strong spiritual foundation, he knows now.

“I’ve been in prison before,” he said. “I came in when I was very young. I had the right ideas, I had the right intents—get out, get married, have a life.”

Dressed in a white prison uniform, Rios speaks slowly but directly, his tattooed hands slowly gesturing to accentuate his words. He has been in prison longer than some of his fellow inmates have been alive. Although Rios had the “right intents,” bad choices kept him locked up, and now he is serving a life sentence.

A sense of weariness can be detected in his voice, but curiously, it is overshadowed by another sentiment—hope. His years behind bars afford him an insight into prison life that opens doors to provide the other inmates exhortations of eternal value.

“I see a lot of myself in these guys,” Rios said. “They want to go home, but if they have no foundation in God, they’re going to fail. … God gave me a chance, and I failed, so I try to reach out to others so they won’t fail.”

Seminary extension grads serve fellow inmates

Rios is one of four field ministers at the Estelle Unit in Huntsville, deployed after graduating from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s baccalaureate prison program at the Darrington Unit in Rosharon. The program equips life-sentence inmates with a theological education and then sends them to other prisons across the state to invest their lives in fellow inmates.

“We weren’t born to live in this box,” Rios preaches. “We were born to be fathers, husbands, leaders and servants in our community.

“You’ve made maybe 3,000 decisions to get you over here. All you have to do is make that one decision to help you get out, which is (to follow) Christ.”

Southwestern launched its Darrington extension program in 2011, with Rios and fellow Estelle field ministers Raymond Ramirez and Michael Ryan in the inaugural class of 33 inmates who graduated in May 2015 with bachelor of science in biblical studies degrees. An additional 33 inmates—among them Billy Jones, Estelle’s fourth minister— graduated the following year. These 66 men have since been deployed to other units—or, as they view them, mission fields—with Rios, Ramirez, Ryan and Jones all assigned to Estelle.

‘Shaped me to be what God wants me to be’

All four of Estelle’s ministers, who surrendered their lives to Christ while in prison, attest their seminary extension training affected them greatly.

“It really has taken me out of my shell,” Rios said. “It’s molded me and shaped me to be what God wants me to be.”

Ramirez added: “A lot of my questions were answered. And that has impacted me so much that it has given me a desire to teach, to pass on what I’ve received. So now, that’s actually what I’m doing. I’m doing a lot of mentoring, a lot of discipling, a lot of teaching.”

Since arriving at Estelle, Ramirez learned sign language in four months in order to minister to the prison’s deaf community. He often is asked how he managed to accomplish such a feat, and his response is straightforward: “Man, I don’t know. I’m freaking out about it myself.”

Ramirez also works with the unit’s Spanish community and runs a “mini-seminary” within the English-speaking community, walking his students through a theological curriculum he wrote based on his seminary education, complete with exams, quizzes, book reviews and presentations.

Rios, meanwhile, has become the guards’ go-to counselor for inmates in need, even gaining access to the high-security wing of the prison. Ryan leads Bible studies and does room visitations in the medical facility.

And Jones “tier walks” the north end of the prison, walking the runs from cell to cell and engaging the inmates in conversation. He also does counseling and teaches a discipleship class, covering such topics as biblical history and interpretation and how to do evangelism.

‘It has to be God doing these things’

Through the course of their ministry, Rios, Ramirez, Ryan and Jones have found simply being present for the inmates and assuring them they are loved can reduce even the most hardened criminals to tears. The experience of having such people open up and share their deep, intimate thoughts has led Rios to conclude: “It has to be God doing these things.”

“People over here really need somebody,” Ryan added. “So, God didn’t just put me over here and give me this education for no reason. He gave it to me not just for the knowledge, but so I can go be available for somebody.”

Chris Carter, senior warden at Estelle, said the efforts of the four ministers have transformed the culture of the prison. A basketball tournament last fall, for example, saw people of every race participate, without fights or issues of any kind. Previously, the warden says, the inmates would have been unwilling to stay in the same room with one another.

Because of the field ministers’ influence, the inmates not only had fun together during the tournament, but between periods of play, they all prayed together.

“When you introduce God into a culture, they stop fighting. The aggression goes away,” Carter said. “They start looking for ways to build each other up as brothers. They don’t look at each other as enemies anymore.”

Disciples make disciples

In line with this changing of culture, the ministers have begun to observe an eagerness in their disciples to make disciples of their own. Jones witnessed one of his students approach a member of a gang known as “the Aryan Circle” after learning an evangelism method called the “3 Circles Life Conversation Guide,” developed by the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board.

The student asked if the gang member had ever heard of “the three circles.” Intrigued simply by the word “circle,” which he assumed related to his gang in some way, the gang member said “no” and then inquired about them.

“And so the (student) was able to present the gospel using the three circles to him, and now the (gang member) comes to church every Sunday,” Jones said.

Similarly, Rios noted, he often is told: “I want to do what you do. You need to go ask the warden if I can get a (security pass) and just come walk with you.”

Although honoring such a request may not be possible, Rios nevertheless affirms the sentiment.

“That’s one thing I try to do—encourage them to seek the gifts that God gave them,” he said. “And I try to help them grow and become good servants and good leaders and just stay humble.”

The field ministers accept as a guiding Bible verse 2 Timothy 2:2, which says, “The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

“I believe that by helping them instill (the values and principles from the Bible) in themselves, they can accomplish what I’ve accomplished, but even beyond me,” Ramirez said. “They can accomplish more than I even have, because that’s what the Bible is able to do.”

The Baptist General Convention of Texas chaplaincy office named Georgia Risenhoover coordinator of the Native American Missions Initiative for chaplaincy.

Risenhoover, who coordinates Texas Baptists’ Hands on Ministry training program for volunteer chaplains, is a Cheyenne River Sioux (Lakota) and a fifth-generation descendent of Chief War Eagle. Her father was born on the Cheyenne River Reservation at Eagle Butte, S.D.

“Native Americans, especially tribal leaders, are accepting of Georgia because she’s a descendent of a well-known and respected chief,” said Bobby Smith, director of BGCT chaplaincy, who noted President Martin Van Buren presented Chief War Eagle a peace medal.

“Beyond heritage, the primary reason Georgia is a perfect fit for this position is because of her heartfelt concern for the spiritual and physical needs of all peoples, no matter what their ethnicity. But I do think God has especially prepared her for a vital role in what will be one of the greatest evangelistic efforts in the storied history of Texas Baptists.”

Georgia Risenhoover Risenhoover noted “the stark reality of a nation of people on reservations who are wrestling with unrelenting poverty, drug cartels, and with astounding rates of suicide, rape and murder, disease, alcoholism, drug addiction, domestic violence and infant mortality.”

“The conditions that exist in some Third World countries would be an upgrade for many reservations, where many Native Americans die of starvation and the bitter cold of northern winters,” she said. “But the needs on reservations are not merely for the physical necessities of life, but for the spiritual planting and growth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

BGCT Executive Director David Hardage emphasized the importance of training and equipping indigenous Native American Christian leaders.

“What we propose doing spiritually is a massive undertaking that will take time, a lot of prayer and boots on the ground,” he said. “It will take trained Native American pastors, missionaries and people in all areas of ministry to help bring Native Americans on many reservations out of spiritual and physical poverty.”

Risenhoover will conduct training events on reservations, speak to mission groups in churches and in other venues, and help identify Native American pastors for church starts on reservations.

“We are in the initial stages of this initiative and understand how important it is to provide Texas Baptists with factual information on each step of the process,” Smith said. “But this initiative is actually global in scope, so we anticipate Baptists from around the world becoming engaged in it. Georgia is available to speak to any church or mission-related organization in a church, and we are developing materials that will help any church to become fully engaged in this initiative.”

To contact Risenhoover, email georgia.risenhoover@texasbaptists.org or call (817) 578-7073.

HENDERSON—What does a job-training ministry do when most of the employment opportunities in the region evaporate?

An East Texas Christian Women’s Job Corps site responded to the challenge by following a micro-enterprise model that has worked in developing nations. The ministry in Henderson created an artisans’ group who make and sell their own jewelry and other crafts.

Christie Gambrell is executive director of Christian Women’s Job Corps of Rusk County. (Photo / Ken Camp)“I’ve never worked well within the box,” said Christie Gambrell, executive director of Christian Women’s Job Corps of Rusk County.

For a decade and a half, Gambrell has worked outside the box to meet the needs of women in her area.

CWJC—a nationwide ministry of Woman’s Missionary Union that marks its 20th anniversary this year—prepares unemployed or underemployed women for the workforce by teaching job skills and life skills in a Christian context.

Texas Baptists have helped launch multiple CWJC sites around the state through their gifts to the Mary Hill Davis Offering for Texas Missions.

Women from First Baptist Church in Henderson and London Baptist Church in New London started the CWJC site in Henderson, but they struggled to find someone to direct it.

A furloughing missionary who had befriended Gambrell and knew her background as a former Christian school administrator asked her at lunch one day if she would be interested in applying for what then was a volunteer position.

“I said: ‘I’ll only do it for a year. Then I need to find a real job,’” Gambrell recalled. “I’ve been here 15 years now.”

Big challenges in a small town

Henderson has a population of less than 14,000, and more than one-fourth live below the poverty level.

“One of the biggest challenges here is that networking is a key element of Christian Women’s Job Corps, and we are about as rural as you can get,” Gambrell said.

For some services, the closest sources are 30 miles away in Longview or 45 minutes away in Tyler or Nacogdoches.

Soon after she arrived at CWJC, Gambrell conducted a community needs assessment. She discovered a significant number of Spanish-speaking women in Rusk County who needed English-as-a-Second-Language instruction. However, several people in Henderson told her others had tried to launch classes and failed.

“We found out they had only been offered at night,” she said. After a little investigation, she learned the Hispanic women would not participate in evening activities when their husbands were home from work, but they were eager to attend morning classes.

So, CWJC began offering morning ESL classes in 10-week semesters, along with ongoing literacy and high-school-equivalency classes and eight-week blocks of life-skills courses.

The site received a $10,000 grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to help support its adult literacy programs, and it also has received United Way funds earmarked for literacy initiatives.

In addition to classes offered at the site near First Baptist Church in downtown Henderson, the ministry also offers life-skills classes at the Son Shine Lighthouse, a transitional shelter for women near New London.

Balancing spiritual needs with physical needs

“Scheduling is a huge challenge, especially since some of my teachers teach in more than one track,” Gambrell said. “Another challenge is keeping our focus on the great spiritual needs of our women rather than being caught up in their felt needs—physical, emotional, family, work, financial and so on.”

Gambrell uses a chronological Bible storying approach—first used by international missionaries among illiterate or preliterate people groups—to teach unchurched women in the Christian Women’s Job Corps-sponsored programs a comprehensive overview of Scripture.

“They ask questions that church people don’t ask,” she said. “I’m a pastor’s daughter, but when they ask some questions, I have to say, ‘I’ll need to check the Internet on that one and get back to you.’”

Developing artisan groups

To help the women in the program learn more about other cultures and how Christians minister around the world, Gambrell introduced them to WorldCrafts, a WMU-affiliated fair trade endeavor that helps artisan groups around the world market their crafts.

Artisans at Christian Women’s Job Corps of Rusk County create jewelry sold by World Crafts, a free-trade program sponsored by Woman’s Missionary Union. (Photo / Ken Camp)About that time, the economy in Rusk County—which is dependent on the energy industry—took a serious downturn. Women who had worked hard in the Christian Women’s Job Corps programs faced difficulty finding meaningful employment, even after they developed what should have been marketable skills.

After CWJC of Rusk County launched its own artisans’ group, Gambrell thought about WorldCrafts.

“I wondered if they would accept us,” she said. “After all, we were doing a lot of the same kinds of things as groups overseas.”

Gambrell talked about marketing their products to a WorldCrafts representative who she asked to see a sample. Gambrell sent a Fruit of the Spirit bracelet, which features nine colorful stones representing love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

“It’s been our biggest seller” since WorldCrafts began carrying it, she said. The artisans have created four other products WorldCrafts markets. All the proceeds from the sale of WorldCrafts items go directly to the artisans.

Selling handiwork at a local boutique

Locally, the artisans sell their handiwork at Possibilities, a boutique in downtown Henderson.

After checking several potential locations, Janet Richardson—a CWJC graduate who volunteers with the ministry now—secured space at Possibilities. Initially, the shop’s owner told Richardson she had no space available and suggested other local shops.

Richardson told her: “No, that’s OK. God wants us to be here.”

The owner promptly made space for the artisans.

Teresa Belmarez (left) sells her crocheted creations at Possibilities, a boutique in downtown Henderson. Janet Richardson (right), a Christian Women’s Job Corps graduate who works as artisan coordinator, secured the space in the store when she told its owner, “God wants us to be here.” (Photo / Ken Camp)Richardson—who is Gambrell’s neighbor—enrolled at CWJC after spending more than 20 years as caregiver for her son, Nathan, who had Duchene Muscular Dystrophy. As a cancer survivor with other health issues, she found fulfillment serving with the ministry in computer tech support, as well as a designer and artisan coordinator.

Richardson also redecorated a room at Tabitha’s Closet, a clothing outlet for CWJC students and graduates, to create a crocheting corner and sewing room, where women meet every Friday morning to learn needlework, some of which they sell at Possibilities.

Artisans appreciate the supplemental income the sale of crafts provides, Gambrell said. Even more, the activity “boosts self-esteem” as the women discover other people value the work they do and find beauty in it, she added.

Read more articles like this in CommonCall magazine. CommonCall explores issues important to Christians and features inspiring stories about disciples of Jesus living out their faith. An annual subscription is only $24 and comes with two complementary subscriptions to the Baptist Standard. To subscribe to CommonCall, click here.

GATESVILLE—Martha Parrish bakes brownies and sets out snacks on the kitchen counter. Her husband, James, sweeps the floor and turns on the front porch light.

Guest and visitors at the Central Texas Hospitality House receive a warm welcome from James Parrish. (Photo / Nan Dickson)After all, it’s Friday afternoon, and the Parrishes always expect weekend guests at the Central Texas Hospitality House.

Late in the afternoon, an anticipated guest calls to say his truck won’t start, and he can’t make the drive from South Texas, but count on him for the next weekend.

The first couple enters the living room about 6 p.m., exhausted after driving more than 300 miles from Corpus Christi to Gatesville. Others arrive later Friday night. The Parrishes anticipate a greater number the next day.

At the Central Texas Hospitality House, a weekend home-away-from-home for families who visit inmates in Gatesville-area state prisons, “every weekend is different,” Martha said.

Most guests make the journey from South Texas or West Texas. Many others travel from Oklahoma or New Mexico. Since the Parrishes arrived at the Central Texas Hospitality House in fall 2015, they have welcomed guests from 33 states and four foreign countries.

“We had one visitor from Denmark,” James recalled. “Another guest led her to Christ while she was here. She went back home a different person.”

The Parrishes’ houseguests trek to Gatesville to visit family members incarcerated at any of the 10 prisons in Gatesville, Marlin or Burnett. Those facilities house more than 10,000 inmates, and they draw about 100,000 visitors a year.

About 80 percent of the female inmates in Texas Department of Criminal Justice units are housed in the region, and about 3,000 male inmates are in nearby prisons.

“We have a lot of grandparents bringing kids,” James said. “We have husbands and fiancés who come to see women in the units.”

Martha Parrish serves breakfast at the Central Texas Hospitality House. Her husband, James, said, “She keeps track of the number of guests by the number of biscuits she bakes.” (Photo / Nan Dickson)Guests are welcome to spend Friday night, Saturday night or both nights at no cost. In addition to free lodging, Martha prepares breakfast early every Saturday morning, and area churches provide the Saturday evening meal, which volunteers from the congregations enjoy alongside the guests.

Fellowship around the table gives church members an opportunity to see the guests as people not that different than themselves, James said.

“Almost all the people who come here (as overnight guests) felt insulated from the prison population,” he said. “They thought, ‘That’s not something that could happen to us.’ But no one is immune. It can happen to anyone—any family. It could be someone they love.”

Martha Parrish (right) welcomes Cyndy Smith, a guest from Oklahoma, to breakfast at the Central Texas Hospitality House. (Photo / Nan Dickson)The Parrishes have rejoiced with families who have been reunited—incarcerated parents who have the opportunity to see a son or daughter for the first time. They also spend a lot of time sitting with guests who pour out their hearts and shed tears—eager to talk with someone who listens without judging.

The Parrishes understand heartache. On July 4, 1988, when they were serving as Southern Baptist missionaries to Ecuador, James stopped at a gas station is Esmeraldas to fill up before meeting another missionary family to enjoy a day at the beach.

Barbara Hood (left) appreciates the safe and welcoming atmosphere she and her granddaughter, Gabriella McDaniel, enjoy at the Central Texas Hospitality House. (Photo / Nan Dickson)As he stood beside his truck while an attendant primed the gas pump, he saw a spark. An explosion and fire claimed the life of the Parrishes’ 3-year-old son, John Martin, and seriously burned his 7-year-old brother, Stephen. James also sustained serious injuries when he struggled to pull the boys from the burning truck.

The Parrishes served one term on the foreign mission field. James—who was born in Gatesville and grew up in Hamilton and Grand Saline—spent 27 years in pastoral ministry, serving churches in Texas and Tennessee, before he and Martha moved to Hamilton to be near his aging mother.

That’s when they met Charles and Mary Alice Wise, longtime members of Trinity Baptist Church in Gatesville. The Wises worked more than four decades as volunteers in prison ministry, and they helped launch the Central Texas Hospitality House.

For 16 years, Baptist associational leaders and volunteers like the Wises dreamed of a place where they could offer free overnight lodging to the visiting families of inmates. For seven years, volunteers staffed a small house in Gatesville that served as a welcome center for Saturday visitors to prisons in the area.

After years of praying, planning and fund-raising, and with help from the Baptist General Convention of Texas, they finally opened the Central Texas Hospitality House in September 2014. One year later, the Parrishes accepted the role as directors.

Gail Mills (right), a Central Texas Hospitality House guest from Oklahoma, embraces Martha Parrish. (Photo / Nan Dickson)“We’ve learned a lot, and we’ve made a lot of friends,” Martha said.

Friends include volunteers who help with the ministry, such as the “Monday Morning Angels”—senior adults who arrive every week to mop the floor, help wash laundry and reset the 10 guest rooms after they have been used over the weekend.

She also numbers among those friends guests she and her husband welcome each weekend—and for whom she cooks biscuits and gravy each Saturday morning.

“She keeps track of the number of guests by the number of biscuits she bakes,” James said.

Count Armando and Lucy from Corpus Christi among those friends. They were two of the first guests the Parrishes welcomed one year ago, and they continue to make an every-other-month trip to Gatesville to visit their incarcerated daughter. Before they discovered the Hospitality House, the couple made the exhausting trip to and from Corpus Christi in one day.

“It’s so peaceful here,” Lucy said as she relaxed in a chair in front of the fireplace in the Hospitality House living room. “When we get here, I feel like all my worries are gone for a little while. We just love it.”

She and her husband appreciate the warm welcome they receive from the Parrishes, as well as the friendships they have developed with other guests.

“We are all going through the same thing,” Armando said.

Many guests would have to sleep in their cars or drive all night if the Hospitality House did not provide free lodging, the Parrishes noted. Others could afford a motel room, but they eagerly offer donations equal to the cost of lodging because they prefer the atmosphere the ministry provides.

“Many of them are carrying a heavy load, and it can be overwhelming,” James said. “There’s a lot of clamor in their lives. We provide a place of peace. … In many of their lives, there is a lot of noise and disorder. Here it is quiet, and they can find some peace.”

Read more articles like this in CommonCall magazine. CommonCall explores issues important to Christians and features inspiring stories about disciples of Jesus living out their faith. An annual subscription is only $24 and comes with two complementary subscriptions to the Baptist Standard. To subscribe to CommonCall, click here.

DALLAS—Nancy Horton and her daughter, Rachel Haas, walked around the Buckner International campus in Dallas. They came to see the place where so many children found a home in the early part of R.C. Buckner’s ministry.

A guide took them through the heritage center, showed them around the campus and ended in front of the log cabin in which Buckner was born. There, they listened as the guide explained how Buckner began his ministry to orphans in Dallas. Tears began to streak down Nancy and Rachel’s faces.

“At that moment I felt the power of the Holy Spirit in a single room,” Rachel said. “As we looked at each other with tear-filled eyes, I grabbed my mother’s hands, and I said, ‘It’s because of R.C. Buckner that we’re standing here today.’”

Rhonda Horton and her sister, Rachel, grew up listening to Nancy tell them about their great-grandmother, Rebecca Barker Trent, who grew up at Buckner Orphans Home. Rebecca and her siblings were orphaned after their parents were killed during a robbery.

Rebecca Barker Trent (center)—who grew up at Buckner Orphans Home in Dallas—is surrounded by (left to right) daughter-in-law Carolyn Trent, granddaughters Rebecca Maxwell and Nancy Horton, and son Kenneth Trent.“Even as small children, we always knew our great-grandmother was orphaned and that she was raised at Buckner,” Rhonda said. Because of that, “there was always a feeling of appreciation, love and thankfulness. Since I was a little girl, I knew about Buckner, and it always meant the world to me and my family.”

At the Buckner Orphans Home, Rebecca found a home, Nancy said, but more importantly, her faith was formed and molded by the ministry of R.C. Buckner and the caregivers at the home.

At the orphans home, Rebecca was trained as a telephone operator. Eventually, she married Henry Trent. They moved to Houston, where Henry operated a grocery store, and Rebecca cooked at a café in the same building.

The couple instilled the importance of faith in the lives of their children, which has impacted generations.

Nancy’s father became a pastor and was in involved in ministry 73 years. Even now at a senior retirement community in Houston, he continues to lead Bible study once a week.

Nancy also married a minister. For more than 40 years, she and her husband, Ron Horton, served in churches. Ron now has Parkinson’s disease and is in assisted living, but like Nancy’s father, he also teaches Bible study once a week.

Buckner played another significant role in the Horton family through Rhonda. She was working on her graduate degree, and she felt lost. Her classmates were looking for prestigious internships to help advance their careers. Rhonda felt pressured to do the same, but her heart wasn’t in it.

Nancy and Rhonda Horton appreciate the influence the ministry R.C. Buckner began had on four generations of their family.“When I thought about it, and talked about seeds that are being planted, I thought about my grandfather, who was a minister, who did all these things in Christ’s name,” she said. “My father is also a minister, and he’s gone out and done wonderful things in Christ’s love. I looked at myself and, … I asked, ‘What have I done in Christ’s name?’”

Rhonda cried out to God that night and felt compelled to open her Bible to James 1:27: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

The verse reminded her of Buckner, and she remembered the ministry had summer programs for college students. That summer, Rhonda served through Buckner on a month-long mission trip to Russia, where she ministered to orphans. Her time in Russia healed her heart, she said.

“Through that experience, that’s one of the true times I’ve ever felt the Spirit in my life, and it was such a feeling,” Rhonda said. “I remember not wanting it to end. I would chase after this feeling every day of my life into eternity. That’s how wonderful it felt, and through that experience, it has given me hope.”

To the Horton family, the ministry of R.C. Buckner that started with Rebecca at the Orphans Home carried through to their entire family, and they count it as a beautiful legacy.

“The life of Dr. Buckner is a beautiful illustration of how God can do great things through one person with an obedient heart,” Rachel said. “As described by Jesus in the parable of the sower, the seeds of faith that Buckner planted in the heart of Rebecca produced a crop yielding many times what was sown.

“We are standing here today as living proof of how Buckner’s ministries bless lives, and we’re just one story.”

“And it’s not just about the past,” Rhonda added. “It was great that Buckner was there for my great-grandmother, but if Buckner had closed, what would my story be today? I’m one of those seeds that were planted generations and generations ago, and Buckner is giving opportunities for people who really need to experience God and have their hearts filled in a way they never thought would happen.”

In a wide-ranging interview, former Baylor University President Ken Starr said he thinks former head football coach Art Briles is “an honorable man,” while also saying a need remains for full transparency regarding the school’s damaging sexual assault scandal.

Read it in the Waco Tribune-Herald.