TIME FOR OUR KNOW YOUR BIBLE ANNUAL COMMITMENT
Know Your Bible is Northside’s largest outreach ministry and has been sowing the seed for 37 years. If you are new to Northside you may know very little about this television ministry, but can learn a lot more in a couple of weeks. About this time each year we use a Sunday morning sermon time to tell the congregation about the ministry and ask for an annual gift or commitment to finance it. If you are a long-time member, you’ve heard the story many times. But it is a different story every year because new viewers have watched the program, asked questions, or enrolled in the Bible Correspondence Courses. For some of those new viewers the difference is eternal, and we get to rejoice over what God has done through our efforts. So, be praying and thinking about your personal or family commitment to KYB this year. Here are a couple of recent happenings…
I was in the produce section evaluating bananas when I noticed a woman coming toward me with a big smile on her face. I presumed I’d been recognized, and I was correct. She told me that she watches every week and loves the program. She was obviously very “evangelical” and a serious fan of the program. Then she surprised me. She said, “The greatest thing is that my husband watches with me. He’s a Muslim. He won’t listen to me, but he watches you. It’s going to make a difference.” She thanked me repeatedly for KYB. (Actually, she was thanking you for your gifts that make the ministry possible.)
I got an email from a viewer in Hutchinson who wanted to talk about being baptized. I arranged for Wayne DeWindt, the minister at Eastwood in Hutch, to contact her. He immediately did so, and after a few conversations, she said she wanted to be baptized at Northside. Wayne and I met Vicki at our building on a Tuesday and had a great discussion. Vicki is one of the nicest ladies you could ever meet. She definitely knew what she needed, and wanted, to do. Sandy and Becky helped her get ready and I immersed her into Christ. Afterwards, as Wayne read some scripture and prayed, I saw a gracious and grateful Vicki. She was soooo happy! It made the story of the eunuch in Acts 8:39 much more real: “And when they came up out of the water… he went on his way rejoicing.” I’ve invited Vicki to visit Northside sometime so I can introduce her to you. I would love for you all to meet her. A few days after her baptism I received a thank you card form Vicki. It came to me in the mail, but actually it was thanking you for your gifts that make the ministry possible.