Carlos Stowers

The Taylors

On May 8, missionary Carlos Stowers and his son arrived to install the ceiling tile in the basement as well as the slide screen in the ceiling of the auditorium.  During their stay, on Wednesday evening May 10, a couple with Rock of Ages prison ministry “just happened” to come to our services.  He listened intently as Pastor Miller updated us on the work completed thus and what remained, specifically the lighting fixtures in the basement which had to be installed with a box built around each fixture for fire proofing.  After the service, Brother Steve Taylor approached Pastor and asked if he could see the lighting situation.  As they were walking to the basement, Dick asked “Are you just interested in it or do you know something about it?”  “A little of both,” returned brother Taylor.  Then he revealed a background in electronics from his Air Force stint and also as an electrician in South Dakota.  After seeing what was needed, he and his wife promised to pray about coming back through Billings from a short deputation leg and spending a few days with us to help .  They did return on Monday May 17 and began working immediately for the next six days, a total of 88 hours between them, working from early morning until late evening.  They also purchased $126 worth of light bulbs.  Steve brought to our attention a wiring problem to be dealt with.  Brother Taylor stands out for his tenacity in continuing to serve inspire of a neurological disease.  It has not staunched his desire to serve His Lord.  His wife also, helping him, and doing whatever she could to assist the work in the cold, dusty basement.

Ceiling installed by Carlos Stowers and His Son

The labor of the Stowers and the Taylors gave great hope to finishing the remaining projects before the church’s 34^th anniversary on June 13. In an e-mail
written May 28:  “Pray for Dick. He is pushing himself to extremes to get the building finished for the church's anniversary on June 13. I don't want to have a funeral instead.”   And another e-mail
written on June 3: “The Lord brought in another $100 for the building--just when we needed it---and dad (pastor) was able to return close to $380 worth of unneeded materials to Home Depot for credit---just when we needed the extra cash.  Anyway, on the lighter side, your dad was a virtual porta-potty yesterday as he picked up the needed toilets and sinks for the restrooms, not having had an opportunity to unload them.” 

The Great Preachers Hall Fellowship Hall After Crossroads Baptist Church left.

Inspire of  combined efforts, by Friday June 10 we were still looking at an incredibly dirty, cluttered basement which had served as a workshop for the past five years.  That day, a youth pastor from northern Georgia called Pastor Miller from Livingston.  His youth group had planned a year earlier to come to Montana and help two missionary pastors.  Since one had moved back east, they had decided to give their time and energies to us in place of that other pastor.  Cross Roads of Life Baptist Church youth group from Delonega, GA arrived about 10 a.m.  Saturday morning  The group of 25 immediately sent out their adults and teenager to pass out 500 tracts and fliers inviting neighbors to the anniversary.  They returned for lunch and then rolled up their sleeves to help dry vac the basement, then wet vac it.  The women tackled the kitchen which had been vacuumed that morning, but still needed a great deal of elbow grease applied to wash out all the cupboards and mop the counters and floors.   By two o’clock they had finished the cleaning, carried down and set up tables, moved the refrigerators and stove from the kitchen area in the old building and everything else Mrs. Miller and Mary Cummings deemed necessary for the dinner on Sunday.  As usual, we felt such gratitude for this help, but had only our thanks to reward them with.  Surely God will have a special reward for these strangers, perhaps “angels unaware”, who showed the love of Christ through their help. 

A June 13 e-mail records that their work made a great anniversary possible:  “We tried to make it really special and the Lord allowed us to get enough of the finish work in the addition that we could have services in our new auditorium and we had our first potluck dinner in the basement. Everything is not finished, but  Dick got water to one toilet downstairs, one kitchen sink and one dishwasher (YEA!). We had 51 folks attend today. That was a blessing, too.”

Prepared and Printed in Honor of the Members and Friends Who Allowed Themselves to be Used of God To Complete This Work

God's Simple Plan of Salvation

This Was Your Life

Rodeo Cowboy's Prayer