|
TGOC'S NEW
"MYSTERY MAN"
Many of you who have been reading this newsletter for the past year or so know that for quite some time we have been quietly searching for a very unique individual to work with us—one who possesses the skills to help with things such fund raising, business management, speaking on our television and radio programs, touting TGOC amidst both  congregations and individual Christians, answering daily correspondence, etc. In fact, it was exactly one year ago this month that we included a "special update" in this newsletter to inform you about our continuing efforts to locate such a person. We were looking for "just the right man" who not only could help ensure the future of this work, but who also could help us take it to the next level of productivity. From the beginning of our initial search to this very hour, we have not been slack in our efforts. Over the past several months we have received a number of résumés from interested individuals. As a result of those résumés, we even were able to interview some of the interested applicants.
It is now with great pleasure that we inform you that our efforts have finally borne fruit! We have found the person whom we think is "the perfect fit" for the position we have been trying to fill. In fact, since the final arrangements were made several weeks ago for him to join us in our work, the TGOC staff has been experiencing a sort of "Eureka—we finally have him!" type of euphoria. In our next newsletter, we will be introducing our "mystery man" to you for the first time, and will be telling you much more about him.
For now, we simply wanted to let you know that our search is over, and that we are thrilled with how everything turned out. However, while we are on the subject of our new staff member, we would like to take this opportunity to explain how you can help him help us. Initially, one of his primary tasks will be to travel around the country speaking on behalf of TGOC in order to raise funds. The simple truth of the matter is that our work has grown so rapidly, and to such an extent, that we have outgrown our current level of financial support. As you no doubt noticed in our last newsletter (July 8, 2008), we have already received more than 1553 free-media requests this year, and have sent those free DVDs and CDs into 41 of the 50 states in America, and into 29 different foreign countries. We have no intentions of cutting back on the amount of free materials we are distributing in our efforts to "take the whole Gospel to the whole world." But if we want to continue doing what we have been doing in the past—and even do more in the future—then we must find additional sources of steady, monthly income. Not surprisingly, then, that will be at the top of our new staff member's "to-do" list, once he comes on board.
After you have read our next newsletter and have been formally introduced to the newest member of our team, we hope you will contact him (or us) with a request that he visit the area in which you live (or the congregation of which you are a member) in order to speak to people there in an effort to possibly secure new funding for TGOC. We truly need such additional funding, and would appreciate any help you can give us—especially since in just a month or two congregations will be starting their budget-planning process for the 2009 fiscal year.
As always, we would appreciate your prayers on behalf of our work. Also, if you know of anyone who could benefit from our efforts (by viewing or listening to our programs, taking our online Bible quizzes, reading transcripts of our lessons, etc.), please share with them our Website address ( www.thegospelofchrist.com ) or this newsletter. In the meantime, be watching for the announcement in our next newsletter of who our new "mystery man" actually is.
TGOC ANNOUNCES
PROGRAMS THREE AND FOUR
IN ITS NEW
"GREAT BIBLE LESSONS" SERIES
We are pleased to announce in this newsletter the availability of the next two lessons in our newest series of programs, Great Bible Lessons, for which Ben Bailey serves as the speaker. In his lesson on "Daily Christian Living," Ben centers most of his comments on Christ's comment in Luke
9:23 ("If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me"). Ben suggests that in this passage there are three prerequisites for daily Christian living. First, we must have a desire to live daily for Christ. As Jesus said in “John 7:17, "If anyone wants to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority." Second, we also must deny ourselves and recognize that this life is not "all about us." Rather we must be living sacrifices for Christ, as Paul stated in Romans 12:1 when he wrote, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." Third, we must take up our cross daily. In other words, we must have a deep dedication to Jesus. Revelation 14:4 says of the redeemed, "These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes." In 1 Corinthians 11:1 Paul said, "Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ." Those are the kinds of attitudes we today need to have as we strive for "daily Christian living."
In his lesson, "Benefits of Being 'in Christ'," Ben begins by pointing out that there frequently are certain benefits to being in the right group or association. For example, if we are in a credit union, we can get cheaper rates on a loan. If we are a member of Sam’s Club, we can get groceries a little cheaper. If we are in AAA, we can get better rates on motels or roadside services for our cars. After making those observations, Ben then says, "Now I would like to discuss with you the benefits of being a member of the greatest group you can imagine. Being 'in Christ' is by far the most wonderful association you could ever have."
When it comes to benefits of being in Christ, Paul summed it up well in Ephesians 1:3 when he wrote, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ." Every spiritual blessing is ours if we are in the body of Christ (the church). But, as Ben asks, "What are some of the benefits found "in Christ'?" In his presentation, Ben goes to great lengths to explain a number of those blessings, including redemption from sin, victory through Jesus, the fact that we as Christians "get a second chance," the fact that we have been promised a heavenly inheritance, the fact that we have access to God's grace, and so on. Such "benefits" are available only to those who are Christians, and are things for which every faithful child of God should be eternally grateful.
Both of these new lessons are now available on our Website, where you will find them in video, audio, and written transcript formats. We invite you to examine them for yourself, and to share them with others.
BIBLE QUIZZES
NOW AVAILABLE FOR
TGOC'S "TOPICAL SERIES"
As readers of our newsletter are well aware by now, in addition to the Bible quizzes that are available on our Website on subjects like the Old Testament, the New Testament, history and geography, and prophets and miracles, from time to time we also make available Bible quizzes that are based on some of our video programs. In this edition of our newsletter, we are pleased to announce that we have now added a brand-new group of quizzes to our Website to accompany our newly revised Topical Series of lessons. The first four of those quizzes (out of a total of eight) have now been posted. We invite you to go to our Website ( www.thegospelofchrist.com/quiz ) to test your Bible knowledge by taking these new quizzes. |
