Missions
West Side Church of Christ
Gospel Broadcasting Network
“Preach the Gospel to every creature” is a charge current in every generation until the end of time. Admittedly, reaching every soul with the message of salvation is challenging, considering the world’s population of over six billion could double by the year 2040! Coupled with the fact that about a hundred precious souls are dying every minute, the problem the Lord’s people face in reaching a world rapidly rushing into eternity is obvious. However, since God desires that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, we must believe He has given His people the power and potential to solve the problem of reaching every soul with the truth.
A large part of the solution to the problem is now in production...
"GOSPEL
BROADCASTING NETWORK"
...a satellite network, broadcasting the
truth and nothing but the truth, 24 hours a day, seven days a week...
GBN is
under the oversight of the Highland Church of Christ in Dalton, Georgia.
The primary thrust of the network is:
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To establish in viewers of all ages a strong belief in the existence of God through a heavy concentration of Christian evidences,
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To establish in viewers the conviction that God has revealed Himself and His will to man through the Bible; and
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To encourage the proper response to God’s Word—obedience to the plan of salvation and adherence to the New Testament pattern of worship, work, and Christian living.
In many places brethren are threatened by false
teaching. A saturation of sound Bible teaching via GBN may help
strengthen them to withstand error and to stand for the truth. In areas
where the church is practically nonexistent and brethren are striving to
grow in the faith, GBN’s
programming may be viewed, possibly videotaped, to edify these Christians
and assist them in their evangelistic efforts.
Memphis School of Preaching
A few years before the beloved N. B. Hardeman was taken home by the Lord he made
this statement, "If I could start over I would have a school in which only
the Bible would be taught." He could see the need for greater emphasis on
Bible teaching. He was in no wise opposed to secular education, but his main
interest was in the purity of the church and the propagation of sound doctrine.
His statement would not exclude such related courses as would be beneficial to
the preacher, such as Bible Geography, Church History, etc., but he recognized
the growing interest in the secular and the decreasing interest in the sacred
and divine. No man in this century has done more to promote the restoration of
primitive Christianity than did Brother Hardeman through his influence at Freed-Hardeman
College.
With this idea from Brother Hardeman in mind, and having observed the beginning
of such effort, it was decided to launch such a school east of the Mississippi
river. Trips were made to several cities and the proposition laid before
elderships. After two years of effort it was arranged to begin the school in
Memphis, Tennessee. This was because of the fact that considerable interest in
such a school was generated in Memphis, and the location seemed ideal to serve
the eastern part of the nation, since no other school of this kind existed then
east of the Mississippi. The school was launched in September 1966, with fifteen
men enrolled from seven states. Since then the school has enjoyed substantial
growth and considerable success can be claimed for the graduates who are now in
the field.
The elders of the Forest Hill Church of Christ, along with those who serve as
faculty of the school, strongly adhere to the principles of the Restoration
Movement. They believe the Bible to be the verbally inspired word of God,
perfect, sufficient, and fully authoritative, and that it is just as applicable
today as when given by the Holy Spirit through inspired men, and that it shall
always be able to supply every need of man morally, spiritually, socially, and
even in the realm of economics.
It is the desire and intent of this school to send forth men who love the Lord
into the fields of labor, and who will always be set for the defense and
proclamation of the gospel of Christ. Effort will always be made to conduct this
school in a manner worthy of the confidence and support of those who love the
truth.
The Memphis School of Preaching is located in the metropolitan area of Memphis, Tennessee.
The Memphis School of Preaching exists for the purpose of training men to be ministers of the gospel, offering such courses in Bible and related subjects as necessary to that end. It is proposed to give such assistance as needed to men who for various reasons are unable to attend a regular college, or who have degrees and do not find it practical or expedient to do so. This school shall strive for the highest quality possible in teacher, student, and courses of study. This school shall also be open to others than preachers, who desire to better themselves in the Lord's services, and who will comply with all requirements of the school. Website: www.msop.org
The West Side congregation is currently sponsoring Kyle Gilpin while he starts this fine brotherhood school.
Support James Murrell and Bill Shannon, Memphis School of Preaching.
This is the West Side congregation commitment to support 12 preaching students at the Andrew Connally School of Preaching in Tanzania for their 24-month course of study. Our commitment to these students began in July of 2003.
The Gimme Five Program begun in 2001, originally with seven couples from the Marriage Enrichment Class. Thinking they would each contribute $5 per month to the work in Tanzania, the intent was to support one preacher student in the Andrew Connally School of Preaching $35 each month and continue to do so for several years. With the approval of the eldership, the entire congreagtion was later encouraged to contribute, and since that time the amount has grown to some $450 contributed each month. The Gimme FIVE program now supports preacher students, missionaries from America, Tanzania, and Uganda, as well as paying rent so village churches have a place to meet each Lord's day. It also contributes monthly to the Cy Stafford Family's Work Fund in Tanzania.
Truth for the World is a mission work of the Churches of Christ. The work is overseen by the Elders at the Duluth Church of Christ, Duluth Ga, USA. Truth for the World. Worldwide evangelism. Radio and TV programs air worldwide. Free Bible correspondence course. Articles, tracts and transcripts are made available on their web site at www.tftw.org
"Preaching the Gospel" TV program with brother James Watkins airing on Fox 21/27 TV
Sunday mornings 8:00-830am.
(Salem Cable Channel 8 and Cox Cable Channel 8; Roanoke UHF 27; Lynchburg UHF 21)
Tri-Cities School of Preaching & Christian Development
Website: http://tcsop.com/
The West Side congregation
is currently supports Doug Blevins & Kevin Canup.
Burt Jones conducts approximately 45 Gospel Meetings, Singing Schools and Lectureships each year, having currently visited 35 states to congregations both large and small. Sponsoring congregation.
Editor-in-Chief:
J.C. Choate
Managing Editor: Byron Nichols
2148 N. National
Springfield, Missouri
USA - 65803
This quarterly evangelistic magazine of 116 pages in paper-back form is published in 13 special editions for different parts of the world.
Home page for Potter Children's Home and Family Ministries. The mission of Potter Children's Home and Family Ministries is to be a tool in the hands of supporting churches of Christ and individual Christians to deliver God's justice and mercy to children and families in need.
www.potterministries.org
House to House/ Heart to Heart
The Jacksonville Alabama church began an
extensive mission work in 1995 publishing House to House/Heart to Heart (HTH).
Circulation for 1999 is estimated to be 1,000,000 copies by over 100 churches of
Christ in 17 different states. The paper is arranged so that only the
front and back pages need changing. West Side writes the "Thoughts
from the Heart" column, our leaders names and our meeting times are placed
on the front page. We can also include any information we need published
(e.g. Radio/TV programs, Gospel Meeting, VBS).
The West Side church began distributing HTH in 1997. We have found this to be an exciting opportunity to reach out to those who are not members of the Lord's church. Jesus commanded us to "Go..." (Mark 16:15), and we believe that includes houses across the street as well as those across the oceans. We at West Side feel strongly on reaching our own neighborhood. Our goal is to reach each family in our community with the Gospel. We have distributed some estimated 180,000 copies of HTH to the Salem area. We know that all are not "good soil," but there has to be a percentage who are honestly seeking to learn the Truth and please the Father. We want to have positive contact with them as often as possible and HTH will provide the necessary vehicle for helping to accomplish this goal.
Readers of HTH are exposed to a wide range of Bible
topics and articles --- from the existence of God to the creation of the world;
dangers of false doctrine, the restoration movement, God's love, and the
necessity of church attendance. Included in HTH is the "HOW
MAY WE HELP YOU?" section which is a clip and mail section that can be
completed and returned to use. We offer enrollment in the "Survey
of the Bible" Study Course, the "Visualized Bible Study"
video series, requests for daily Bible reading schedule and our weekly
bulletin, and requests from those who want to know what God requires for them to
be saved. There is also a "FEATURED TRACTS" section that
is a service to our readers. They simply check the Bible subjects of
interest and we send them the requested tracts.
The annual publishing schedule for HTH:
House to
House/Heart to Heart -
taught you
publicly, and from house to house Acts 20:20
The West Side Church of Christ provides CD's to interested people of all services, plus Gospel Meetings and Special Speakers. The Church duplicates, hand delivers or mails these at no charge. Tom Richardson is handling this for the congregation.