JULY, 2004

Hello, everyone!
AUGUST 2 GATHERING

H opefully you have received the invitation to a special Prayer Gathering on the
eve of the special election. Please spread the word; it would be wonderful to
fill the Old Stone Church in Branson and the United Methodist Church in Kimberling
City to overflowing. Just as important, please be praying now. How? That the Holy
Spirit guide and direct the people of the State of Missouri to vote on these critical
issues – that God’s holy and perfect will be done. The Body of Christ must stand up;
as Tony Evans said at a Promise Keepers meeting, “It is time for Christians to come
out of the closet!” Prayer is good and important; prayer that is a crying out from
the depths of our spirits is critical. There is an Old Testament pattern that serves
as a model: When the people of God were sinful and when they were complacent,
disaster came; when the people of God repented and cried out to God with sincere
and earnest hearts, God delivered them.

CORRECTION belonging to Jesus’ Church means

S peaking of repentance, I have

repented to Pastor Sue Ewan. I
had almost all of the letters stuffed
and sealed when I realized that I had
spelled her name wrong on one of the
flyers (there was a full page one and
there were also two smaller ones for
pastors to use as bulletin inserts). On
the full-page flyer she is listed as
“Sue Ewing”. So, I publicly state: It is
EWAN! She graciously permitted me
to go ahead with the mailing as is.
“THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST”
more than merely believing in Him.
Many Christians today merely ‘cast a
vote for Jesus.’ The attitude is, ‘I
voted for Christ. That makes me a
member of His party.’…Jesus says
belonging to His Church goes much
further than that. And that involves a
life of self-denial and taking up a
cross. (Matthew 10: 38)…The fact is,
Christ’s Church has never been
approved or accepted by the world.
And it never will be. If you live for
Jesus, you won’t have to separate
yourself from others’ company; they’ll
do it for you…Yet, Jesus adds, this is

T his is the title of one of David

Wilkerson’s “Times Square Pulpit
Series” messages, dated
May 10 of this year. Following are
some excerpts: “What is the true
gospel of Jesus Christ? Even most
non-believers know the Bible contains
four gospel accounts, Matthew, Mark,
Luke and John. So, what is the
essence of these gospels, or ‘the
good news’? When Christians
speak of the gospel of Jesus
Christ, what is it we’re talking
about?…1) Jesus says His Church is
one of self-denial and a cross…Clearly,
the path that leads to true fulfillment.
(Matthew 16: 25)…2) Jesus’ Church is
a place where sinners repent of sins,
with their heart and their mouth.
(Romans 10: 8-11)…What was Jesus’
first message? He preached
repentance…you may think Christ’s
gospel of repentance sounds like a
downer. But…a repentant heart
brings true life. (2 Corinthians 7: 10)…
3) Jesus’ Church is a place where you
may hear a hard, troubling message…
In Christ’s Church there will come
offensive words. Yes, you will hear a
message of good news, a gospel of
love, mercy, grace and long-suffering.
But there are also messages that dare
not be tampered with. And those
messages include the preaching of
Christ’s blood and the cross…The sign
of every true follower of Jesus is that
of surrender to Christ’s every word…
4) How do you think Jesus would start
a church in your city or town? The
first thing Christ would do is go on a
weeping tour throughout your city.
(Luke 19: 41-42)… What made Jesus
weep? It began with a heartbreaking
walk he took around the city. He was
overcome with grief at the sight of so
many people who had no peace…As
He walked through the temple; He saw
tables of moneychangers,
merchandising the things of God. There
was no real prayer, no fear of the
Lord. And Christ wept over it all….
Today would Christ find His people
praying?…God help us never to soften
His gospel…Encourage pastors who
preach the true gospel of Jesus
Christ…Thank the Lord that…the Holy
Spirit is allowed to do His true work in
your midst. When the gospel of Jesus
Christ is preached with conviction,
heaven opens and devils flee.”
IHOLY SPIRIT INTERRUPTION
just now received a phone call from
an UP Team member who received the
invitation to the Prayer Gathering.
She wanted to reinforce the
importance of the call to prayer. She
said something fascinating: “We were
created to pray.” That is an awesome
statement. We were created in God’s
image and likeness in order to have an
intimate and eternal life of union with
Him, with Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. Prayer is the
dialogue between God
and us, now as well as
in heaven. God seeks
for us to communicate
with Him, to make it the
most important event of our daily life
– to make all of life a living prayer.
Thank you!
PRAYER WALKING
Y ou have heard this concept
described here before. I strongly
encourage you to prayerfully consider
doing this, within your sector of
prayer and/or elsewhere in our area.
In the most basic sense, prayer
walking is: Going to a specific place
or area, ideally with at least one more
person (based on “where two or three
are gathered together…”, but alone is
fine also) and quietly praying for the
people and needs there, as the Holy
Spirit guides. It is not something
done in a way to draw attention, it is
not “Bible waving”; if it is two or
more, it is quiet sharing of prayers. Is
it necessary to physically be in a place
to pray for it? Obviously not; but it is
a proven way to focus prayer, to
“claim the land for God,” to intercede
for people and situations. For
example: A few weeks ago, six men – I
was privileged to be included with
them – met in downtown Rockaway
Beach and walked through the
business district, praying that God
bless the people and that His will be
done. We specifically prayed that
there be economic blessings without
casino gambling and the baggage it
normally brings with it; but, again, we
sought to yield to God’s perfect will.
One of the prayer walkers was a local
businessman there, and another was a
county official. A second example:
Two-three people have quietly walked
the Herschend Family Entertainment
properties in this area and prayed for
the employees, the guests, for safety,
for Christ’s love to touch people, for
economic success. If the Holy Spirit
prompts you to go to a specific place
and pray, invite someone and do it. If
you are uncomfortable because it is
new, I would be happy to go with you.
I was talking recently with one of the
people who prayer walked at Silver
Dollar City; she said that she was a
little nervous before we did it, but
that it proved to be a wonderful and
uplifting experience. Be creative also:
Prayer driving is an option – either by
yourself or with others. I know an UP
Team member who drives to the
parking lots of churches and prays for
the pastoral teams and the
congregations. My older son is a
pastor in Colorado; once a week
members of the congregation
physically go to another church – with
that pastor’s blessing – and pray
inside the church. I have a request:
When you do some form of prayer
walking, formal or informal, alone or
with others, would you please let me
know? I would like to keep track of
this so that I can continue to
encourage prayer walking by sharing
examples and success stories. Just
leave me a message at 336-7076 if
you get my voice mail, or drop me a
note at 7347 W. State Hwy 76,
Branson 65616, or e-mail me at
bburton@silverdollarcity.com. Also,
please let me know when you have
prayers answered, whether through
prayer walking or through your
regular intercession. That will be a
great encouragement to us all.
ON THE LIGHTER SIDE: ANIMAL
STORIES
W
hile cleaning out the aviary of a
rundown British zoo, the keeper
found a finch that had dropped dead
from old age. He put it in a sack.
Later he found two
dead monkeys in their
cages. He put them
in the sack, too.
When he went by the
lion’s cage at feeding
time, he thought about
what he had in the sack and decided
not to let the contents go to waste.
So he emptied the sack into the cage.
But the lion wasn’t happy and roared,
“Not finch and chimps again!”…Guide:
“I never guide hunters anymore, just
fishermen.” Hunter: “Why?” Guide:
“I’ve never been mistaken for a
fish.”…”I came face-to-face with a lion
once. And can you believe it, I found
myself alone and without a gun.”
“What did you do?” “What choice did
I have? First, I tried looking straight
into his eyes, but he slowly began to
creep towards me. I moved back, but
he kept coming. I had to do some
quick thinking.” “So, how did you get
away?” “I just left him and passed on
to the next cage.”…A woman
went to the pet shop to
buy a parrot. When she
picked out a rare breed,
the owner congratulated
her on her choice. “If you’d
like, I could send you the bill
at the end of the month,” the pet
owner said. “No, thanks; I’d like to
take the whole bird today.”…Two
frogs were sitting on a log, feeding on
passing insects. One remarked to the
other, “Time’s sure fun when we’re
having flies.”…(and the last one:
Whether you get this one may have
something to do with your age, or
maybe not)
A pig went
to the bank for a loan to buy some
trinkets for his new house. One of the
bankers said, “Hi, my name is Mr.
Paddywhack. How can I help you?”
When the pig explained, the banker
frowned and said, “I’m sorry, but we
never lend money to animals.”
“Please,” said the pig, “I promise to
pay it back.” “Perhaps you had better
speak to the manager,” said Mr.
Paddywhack. The manager appeared,
and the pig repeated his request:
“Please, all I need is a little money to
buy some trinkets.” The first banker
replied, “I told him we don’t lend
money to livestock.” The manager
threw his hands up into the air and
said, “Oh, for goodness sake! It’s a
knicknack, Paddywhack, give the hog
a loan!
CHURCH ARMY, BRANSON
S
teve Brightwell, the National
Director of Church Army, USA, is
leading a service in The Old Stone
Church on the evening of Saturday,
July 24. He will be commissioning the
“Peace in the Storm Fellowship of
Believers” as the first Church Army
USA congregation. The Saturday
evening services there are both fun
and inspiring – proving that those two
words can indeed go together. If you
would like more information, call the
Church Army office at 339-3804.
Steve Baughan, the local Director is
doing a terrific job. I recently
received a card from the previous
Director, Tim Scheuer, who is now the
National Director of Australia. He
misses the area but God is blessing
his work and his family. Please pray
for Church Army everywhere, as it
ministers to people in need of Christ’s
healing love. A recent Church Army
Branson Newsletter included a
testimony from Cody: He smoked pot
and drank alcohol beginning in the
third grade; he then discovered
cocaine at age 14. When he came to
Branson, he got caught up in an
alcoholic lifestyle and attempted
suicide. Then he met God through
Church Army. He writes, “Since I’ve
accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and
Savior, I read the Bible now. I go to
the weekly Peace in the Storm service,
I have been baptized, and I want to
give away what has been given to me
and to help people who are suffering
as I once was…God’s Grace and Love
working in my life is the most
beautiful thing that’s ever happened
to me. I want to tell people about
what they are missing and to lead
others to Christ. I know that God
wants me to make a difference for
Him and that’s why He kept me alive
through all the situations I’ve been in.
Most importantly, I have learned to
give God all the credit for everything
that has happened.” Church Army is
included in the UP Team in two
sectors: Churches and Ministries and
Social/Civic Services.
RECRUITMENT
T here are literally thousands of
“praying people” in Stone and
Taney Counties (and in Polk and Cedar
Counties to the north, where a sister
UP Team is now located). People who
are already committed to prayer
understand the mission of the UP
Team – that God’s perfect will be done
– and recognize the immense
importance of intercession. I truly
believe that getting to the point of
having every hour of every week filled
with prayer is just the first step; think
of the power of having every slot filled
with two, three, four or more people!
Current members and sector leaders
are the key people in spreading the
word and encouraging others to
commit to an hour a week. This
should never be positioned as a “hard
sell”; it is mentioning the UP Team to
people who already pray, to prayer
groups, to pastors, and asking them
to pray about joining, while not
moving away from current prayer and
prayer group commitments. Silver
Dollar City has a “hire-a-friend”
program; it encourages employees to
invite friends and family to consider
working for the Company. Of course,
they utilize a monetary incentive; the
incentive I can offer is the spiritual
satisfaction of being used by the Holy
Spirit as a vessel for increasing
focused prayer. You believe in the UP
Team, or you would not be a member;
please share your enthusiasm with
others. And, I would be absolutely
thrilled if you can open doors for me,
or you, or others, to speak to
churches, prayer groups,
organizations, etc. Thank you! And
thank you for your faithful
commitment to prayer, as we move
steadily ahead in our third year of
seeking God’s richest blessings for our
area and the people who live and work
and visit here.
SHARING A “VISION”
S everal weeks ago, I had the
privilege of sharing my
testimony at a men’s prayer
group, during breakfast at a
restaurant in Forsyth. Afterwards,
a man came up to me and shared
a dream that he recently had. If
you are like me, that kind of
comment produces the spiritual
antennae going up and asking the
Holy Spirit for
discernment. Well, as
soon as he shared what
he had seen, I knew
that it was truly from
God. I believe it will
resonate with many or
all of you, as it did with
me: He saw the Branson
area (not just the city, the two
county area – and I am quite
comfortable in saying now the
entire State of MO) as a
lighthouse on a hill. At the bottom
of the hill and for as far as one
could see there was confusion and
stress and desperation, but on the
hill there was serenity. People
from far away saw it and flocked
to the lighthouse, for they wanted
to know what made the area
different. The light was Christ,
and He was drawing people from
around the nation like a magnet,
to be refreshed, renewed and
encouraged to spread His love
elsewhere. The man also saw on
the hill a farmer tilling his field –
and since it was the Ozarks, the
tilling was very difficult, with
many rocks and clumps of clay to
remove. The message to him, and
it sure sounds right to me, is that
we are not yet the place God in
His plan truly wants us to be;
there is tilling to be done, sin to
be repented for and removed. But
our area and our State can truly
be a key element in God’s moving
our nation to revival, to a new
awakening. This is not a “Hurrah
for us!” but a continuing call to
live 2 Chronicles 7 -- “If My
people, who are called by My
Name, will humble themselves,
and repent…I will heal their land.”
There is a strong need for prayer
and action – and for the realization
that fervent and “crying out”
prayer is action in God’s sight.
MORE ON THE LIGHTER SIDE:
CHILDREN
D epending on whether you
have small children or can
remember when yours were small
or have experienced the children
of other people or your
grandchildren, this may
be funny at best or
nostalgic at worst:
From an anonymous
mother in Austin,
Texas: “Things I have
learned from my
children (honest and
not kidding)…1) A king size
waterbed holds enough water to
fill a 2000 square foot house 4
inches deep; 2) If you spray hair
spray on dust bunnies and run
over them with roller blades, they
can ignite; 3) A 3-year-old’s voice
is louder than 200 adults in a
crowded restaurant; 4) If you hook
a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the
motor is not strong enough to
rotate a 42 pound boy wearing
Batman underwear and a
Superman cape – it is strong
enough, however, if tied to a paint
can, to spread paint on all four
walls of a 20X20 foot room; 5) You
should not throw baseballs up
when the ceiling fan is on. But
when you use the ceiling fan as a
bat, you have to throw the ball up
a few times before you get a hit.
(A ceiling fan can hit a baseball a
long way, and the glass in
windows, even double paned, does
not stop a baseball hit by a ceiling
fan.) 6) When you hear the toilet
flush and the words ‘uh-oh,’ it’s
already too late; 7) Brake fluid
mixed with Clorox makes smoke,
and lots of it; 8) A six-year-old
can start a fire with a flint rock
even though a 36-year-old man
says they can only do it in the
movies; 9) Certain Legos will pass
through the digestive tract of a 4-
year-old; 10) Play dough and
microwave should not be used in
the same sentence; 11) Super glue
is forever; 12) No matter how
much Jell-O you put in a swimming
pool, you still can’t walk on water.
Also, pool filters do not like Jell-O;
13) VCRs do not eject PB&J
sandwiches even though TV
commercials show they do; 14)
Garbage bags do not make good
parachutes; 15) Marbles in gas
tanks make a lot of noise while
driving; 16) You probably do not
want to know what that strange
odor is;17) Always look in the
oven before you turn it on; plastic
toys do not like ovens; 18) The
spin cycle on the washing machine
does not make earthworms dizzy.
It will, however, make cats dizzy,
and cats throw up twice their body
weight when dizzy; 19) 80% of
men who read this will try mixing
the Clorox and brake fluid!”
FUND RAISER
L ove INC has an ongoing fund
raising effort to help support this
important ministry. They are
recycling cell phones and ink/laser jet
printer cartridges. If you have any of
these ready-to-be-discarded items,
please call Cally at 336-7056. Also,
Love INC requests your prayers for the
upcoming School Readiness Fairs – for
a “cup-runneth-over” donation of
school supplies.
The goal is to serve 500 children this
year. If you would like to help with
this effort, cash donations may be
made to the Bank of Kimberling City.
For more information, call Cally or
Anita . Love INC is working with a
client, a single mom with two kids, And as I lay me down to sleep, I
who is looking for a stacking know it will be alright;
washer/dryer or at least a washing ‘cause I know one comforting
machine. If you have one available call thing – my God don’t sleep at
Cally or Anita. Our thanks to Anita
night.”
Callison and Cally Ross for the
wonderful services that Love INC
(Love in the Name of Christ) provide
individuals and families of our two
county areas.

WEB SITE PERSONAL REFLECTION, TO SHARE

F or those of you who have e-mail, WITH YOU

S
don’t forget the new UP Team web
everal weeks ago, the Holy
site: www.up-team.org.
Several folks have signed up for the
Spirit showed me a connection
site, and all UP Team member with e- among three Scriptures. It was so
mail will be receiving an invitation encouraging to me that I
from Ken Greening, the Christian developed them into a
Brother who developed the site for us. message that I gave
Ken is also the VP of Businessmen’s at two Senior
Fellowship in Branson and developed Living Centers.
their area web site as well. Thank Hopefully, they will
you, Ken! Ken’s e-mail address is
bless you. 1)
ken@gr8fx.com.
Philippians 4: 4-7:
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will
POEM

R
say it again: Rejoice! Let your
ay Johnson is the long-time
gentleness be evident to all. The
master knife maker at Silver
Lord is near. Do not be anxious
Dollar City. People come literally
about anything, but in everything,
from all over the United States
by prayer and petition, with
(and probably beyond) to
thanksgiving, present your
purchase his collector knives. If
requests to God. And the peace of
you have never watched one of his
God, which transcends all
knife making demonstrations, I
understanding, will guard your
encourage you to do so. I was
hearts and your minds in Christ
visiting with Ray recently, and he
Jesus.” Why rejoice? Why not be
was reflecting on the days he
anxious? Why be thankful? Why
spent in ICU when his dear wife
be at peace? An answer is found
was very ill. She is doing better
in 2) Ephesians 2: 17-22: “He
now. Ray, during one of the long
came and preached peace to you
vigils in the waiting room, wrote a
who were far away and peace to
poem. He gave me a copy of it
those who were near. For through
and I asked his permission to
Him we both have access to the
share it with you:
Father by one Spirit.
“I no longer see the sun, or hear
Consequently, you are no longer
the redbirds’ song;
foreigners and aliens but fellow
the many trials of life seem, oh so
citizens with God’s people and
hard and long.
members of God’s household,
I try to handle my troubles,
built on the foundation of the
sometimes I’m all alone;
apostles and prophets, with Christ
I push to the limit, ‘til I’m weary
Jesus Himself as the chief
to the bone.
cornerstone. In Him the whole
I work and worry all day long, with
building is joined together and
all my many cares;
rises to become a holy temple in
at last I can go no more, and I
the Lord. And in Him you too are
bow my head in prayer.
being built together to become a
dwelling in which God lives by His
Spirit.” We can rejoice, because
we are no longer foreigners/aliens
(strangers/wanderers) but we are
actually citizens of heaven, right
now, in fellowship with the Father,
the Son and the Holy Spirit. We
recognize this only by eyes of
faith, but with those eyes of faith
we see awesome spiritual realities
– so we can rejoice, be thankful,
be full of inner peace. So, then,
how should we live? Paul tells us:
3) Galatians 6: 14, 16-18: “May I
never boast except in the cross of
our Lord Jesus Christ, through
which the world has been crucified
to me, and I to the world…Finally,
let no one cause me trouble, for I
bear on my body the marks of
Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ be with your spirit.”

CLOSING THOUGHT

I n his book, “I Shall Not Want,”

Robert Ketchum tells of a
Sunday School teacher who asked
her group of children if anyone
could quote the entire 23rd Psalm.
A four-and-a-half year old girl
raised her hand. A bit skeptical,
the teacher asked if she could
really quote the entire Psalm. The
little girl came to the front of the
room, faced the class, made a
perky little bow, and said: “The
Lord is my Shepherd; that’s all I
want.” She bowed again and sat
down. As the author stated, that
may well be the greatest
interpretation of
Psalm 23 ever
spoken!
Peace to you and
yours.

Bob Burton