Our Life Together Vol. 5 Nr.1, January 7, 1977

The issue begins with another beautiful cover fashioned by Abbacraft. All the Promises of God find their Yes in Him -- 2 Corinthians 1:20

 Larry Clark's article about Jimmy Carter describes the way most Christians thought about him at the time. Even though one may have not voted for him, they applauded his faith. I was convinced and left my Republican Party affiliation to vote for him. But, how times have changed. The Evangelical Church can't stand him. I personally thought that he was a flawed president. He also says many things that I disagree with, but I am convinced that he is one of my brothers in the Lord. I respect him for living the gospel as he sees it.

Sonshine Household did receive the Conditional Use Permit. As their Head -- Clay Ford -- likes to say, "They were the only legal household." Certainly true at the time, but I like to remind him that the decision of the California court system, retroactively said that we were all legal.

Clay Ford writes the article on Evangelism. It is as powerful today as it was in 77. Filled with the Spirit, we go forth to share the Gospel. But, we aren't alone. We are part of a powerful community living the life of Jesus. Our community and the desire to live a life fully for the Lord was a powerful tool in evangelism. Many gave their lives to Christ because they experienced authentic Christianity.

 Joyce Clark was the Pastor's Secretary and also the wife of Larry Clark who wrote the piece on Jimmy Carter. She writes about how the love we have for one another can help us enter into the love that God has for us.

No matter what kind of community or church you have, rooms need to be cleaned and equipped. This is just the reality of living in this world.

Larry finishes his article on Jimmy Carter on a balanced note -- still true.

Ken has an insightful little article about how we are privileged to receive the promises of God. But with the privilege is a responsibility to share this with others so that they can also enter into this life.

 I personally love the column, In the Family. For those who weren't there, you can see some of the things happening in the community. For those who were there, it can evoke great memories.

 I have a vague memory of Gary. I am so glad that we had all of these little, personal stories in OLT. We were just people.

The conclusion of In the family is also on this page.

As we come to the last page, Clay concludes his article on Evangelism

Our Life Together Vol. 4 Nr. 50 December 23, 1976

I can hardly believe that it has been over a year since I have published one of these blogs. I am very disappointed in myself and will try to do a little better. I might also add that, if you are unfamiliar with this blog, it is a commentary on the publication Our Life Together. This magazine was a chronicle of the Ministering Community of the First Baptist Church of Chula Vista from 1973-1982. It also functioned as a communication vehicle for the Holy Spirit Renewal Ministries (which was known as the American Baptist Charismatic Fellowship in those days.)

One of our major ministries in the 70s and 80s was the ministry of Abbagraphics. The cover of this issue is an example of their work. I might add that we were blessed with an abundance of creative people in art, music, dance, drama and writing. Really amazing!

The primary article in this issue is The Proof of Love by Ken Pagaard (written before he changed his name to his ancestral spelling.) On this page, as he begins the article, he states that all of our possessions are spiritual -- including money. Secondly, we are only stewards of our possessions -- all we have belongs to God.

On this second page of the article, Ken discusses how we should give. There are three truths, we should give primarily -- it is the first item on the budget. We should give regularly and we should give cheerfully. It is a privilege to give, not a burden.

Mary Macagno, one of the young married women in the church provides the first article. She was the wife of Jim Macagno and was related to the Magnan clan (?) She describes her healing from epilepsy. This is a profound healing. The only controversy is her statement that most cases of epilepsy are caused by the demonic. I don't know the answer to that claim but even though some is caused by the demonic, I am not sure that all are. I also believe that we should be careful about giving away medications too soon. Nevertheless, it is a great testimony to God's healing.

The next article is an excerpt from a letter by Wes and Cheryl Brown. They have been servants many years. Wes has served as a pastor as well as President of the American Baptist Seminary of the West. He and Cheryl were active in the Holy Spirit Renewal Ministry for many years.

Larry Clark wrote a nice little article about the need for diversity in the church. One of my favorite Bible Scholars, Gordon Fee actually said the churches built on the homogeneous principle are not really Biblical churches.

Shirley McColloch was one of the leaders in the church for many years. Many others also wrote nice poems which were printed on OLT.

Ray Philips later married, and the last I knew of him was that he was flying for one of the mission agencies. He was a sober young man, deeply committed to the Lord. The basic circumstances may have changed, but the article is still timely today.

The article begun by Wes and Cheryl Brown also concludes on this page.

Then, we begin the column In the Family.

In this article, Clay discusses the need for restoration of the church. His prayer for the church is still needed. Where has the moral authority of the church gone to? We have sold our birthright for negligible political power. Where is the real power of the Holy Spirit?

Ken continues his article with the Measure of Christian Giving followed by the Motive for Christian Giving.

Ken's conclusion starts with the quote from 2 Corinthians 8 that we must first give ourselves to the Lord. He follows up his article by citing some of our needs as the year ends.

Welda Koenig ends this issue with a little story about the difference between what Jesus gives and what Santa gives. Welda and her husband Bill still live in Chula Vista.