RGM Update and News

JUNE:

The month is coming to an end and June has been exciting with a lot of activities and events in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Lord is blessing us in many ways.

• We began the month of June with a Gospel in the Park (GiP) meeting on the 1st (7 pm, which will be the same time for all of our GiP meetings) at the band shell of Central Park, Sioux Center, IA – we had about 20 people who were in attendance; there were some standing a ways also listening. Snacks were provided by volunteers for which we are grateful, and of course our Bible, book and literature table was set up to give away without charge to those who desire them (nor do we require for a donation from them to take any of them – that would defeat the purpose of making them free of charge – the Gospel of Jesus Christ is NOT for sale on any level).

. . . but where’s the preacher?

True will never be found outside of Christ – at best the world can only give us a false hope, a temporary hope, whether it political, wealth, or some other material comfort in this world – but as sinners this kind of hope will never satisfy, or give us real joy in this life or in eternity

Call upon the name of Jesus Christ and you will be saved from the condemnation that you rightly deserve – and in doing so you find that true hope is in knowing Him, who secure on your behalf life everlasting to the glory of God, forever. This is true hope in the midst of our troubles, trials and tribulations in this world as we look with great anticipation of being with our Savior in the new heavens and new earth forever.

• On the 8th, we participated in the Summer Celebration Parade, passing out gospel tracts in a snack bag together with a piece of candy in it – We handed out over 1,000 gospel tracts that day in both English and Spanish, praying the Lord will use them to help bring sinners to Himself by His grace through faith in the blood of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, righteousness, salvation and everlasting life to the glory of God.

• The next RGM event was on the 21st and 22nd – we were given permission to set a table with free Bibles, books and literature at the Hope Haven Music Festival. It was a blessing to talk to people about the Lord giving away books and material that would encourage and embolden the believer and to proclaim the gospel to those who do not have a saving knowledge of faith in Jesus Christ. We were also able to line up 2 singing groups to incorporate into the Gospel in the Park meetings; one in July and the other in September – praise the the Lord!

We thank the Lord to serve Him in these ways and ask that you join with us in praying that the Lord will bless these efforts in bringing sinners to Him and encouraging and ministering to His sheep in their own labors in the faith, proclaiming and defending the Faith in meekness and in the fear of the Lord, according to 1 Peter 3:15.

JULY AND BEYOND FOR 2019:

We are excited about the opportunities the Lord has provided in the spreading His gospel message for the rest of 2019. As always, we are ever mindful that though we make our plans the Lord directs our path (Proverbs 16:9); so in submission to His perfect will the following is scheduled:

For July our schedule is not as intense for RGM events, though Rev. Stetler will be preaching every Lord’s day (2 times each Lord’s day) filling the pulpit of a church without a pastor and filling another pulpit, while its pastor is in Ireland preaching at a church without a pastor there – there are 2 events scheduled for July:

• The first event will be on July 13th, we will again be participating in a parade, our 3rd this year. This time it will in Hull, IA, at its Summer Fest Parade. Again, we will be handing out snack bags with gospel tracts and a piece of candy in them: about 1,000 tracts will be distributed, twice that amount when you consider there are 2 tracts in each bag; one in English, the other in Spanish.                                                                                                      (A picture from last year.)

• On the 20th we will hold another Gospel in the Park at the band shell in the Central Park, Sioux Center, IA. A gospel message, “Man’s Goodness,” will be preached by Rev. Stetler – The message will address whether or not there is any “good” in man. From God’s word we will learn of man’s total depravity; that is, man is not good, but rather in need of salvation and a transformed heart by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit through preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, “the power of God to salvation, to all who believe in Him” (Romans 1:16). There will also be a gospel singing group, “The Klassen Family Singers.” They are a family group from Worthington, MN that I discovered at the Hope Haven Music Fest last year, who also performed at the music fest this year. They will sing before and after the message.

Please keep these two events in prayer as we take the message of the cross to the lost and those who sit in darkness.

For August we have another 2 events scheduled:

• On the 17th we will be holding our 3rd Gospel in the Park at the band shell in Central Park, Sioux Center, IA. The message will be determined and no singing group has been lined up at this time. Please keep these matters in prayer as we continue to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ in NW Iowa.
• On the 28th, just as we did last year we will be participating in the Taste of Sioux Center held at Dordt University (formerly, Dordt College). We will have a table with our usual free Bibles, books and literature. We will also, Lord willing, have some books and DVDs to give away to help the students as they begin or continue their studies at Dordt in defending the Faith. There will also be resources available that defend the authority of the Bible and the reliability of its historical record of creation about 6,000 years ago, man’s beginning and his fall into sin, resulting in the pain, suffering and death we see today. We will also offer them the ability to volunteer in helping RGM spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We plan to give away 100’s of Biblically sound resources to these students and staff; so please pray that the Lord will provide the donations needed to do so.                               (A picture from last year.)

• Though not scheduled at this time RGM is contemplating setting up a booth at the Farmer’s Market in Orange City, IA to give away Bibles, books, and literature; and to engage people in one-on-one evangelism. This will be a Saturday morning event for about 4 hours. If it is decided to add this project we will begin in August. At this time the thinking is do this twice for the month, and possibly in September depending on when the Farmer’s Market ends for the year.

For September we have one event scheduled:

• On Saturday, the 14th our last Gospel in the Park is scheduled for the year. Though the message title has not been finalized, be assured it will be a message of hope and comfort that is found only in Jesus Christ, who suffered and died for our sins and rose again for our justification (Romans 4:25), who is our only confidence for the forgiveness of sins, righteousness, salvation and everlasting life. There will also be a gospel singing group performing at this meeting, “Men of Jubilant Praise” of Orange City, IA.  We are excited about this new group. I also heard them at the Hope Haven Music Fest this month and they are a really good group of 4 men singing gospel hymns and songs.

Though there are no events scheduled for October, we will be holding our final event of the year on the 1st and 2nd of November, The Fall Reformation Conference:

• This conference will be conducted over a 2-day period at the Sioux Center United Reformed Church in Sioux Center, IA, beginning on a Friday evening from 6:30 to 8:45; and then the next day in the morning from 8:30 to noon. The topic covered for this conference will be, “The 5 Solas and Evangelism.” Lord willing, there will be 5 speakers covering each of the 5 Solas; Sola Scriptura, Sola Gratia Sola Fide, Solus Christus, and Soli Deo Gloria (Scripture alone, Grace alone, Faith alone, Christ alone, and Glory to God alone). The following is the schedule of speakers:
  • Sola Scriptura (Our authority for for Evangelism – our directive & guide to evangelism) – Speaker: Rev. Wes Brice, Dickinson, ND. He is a minister emeritus of the Reformed Church of the United States (RCUS). He served the Lord for many years as a missionary pastor for several mission works
  • Sola Gratia (Our passion for evangelism – God’s grace reflected in our evangelism) – Speaker: TBA
  • Sola Fide (the means of evangelism (salvation/evangelism through faith alone) – Speaker: TBA (Rev. Richard Stetler will take whichever one is left once confirmation of the final speaker is obtained)
  • Solus Christus (the message of evangelism – the focus our evangelism – His person and work) – Speaker: Rev. Randall Kynsma, Omaha, NE. He is a minister of the Reformed Church in the United States, serving as a missionary pastor to the Omaha Reformed Church, under the oversight of St. John’s Reformed Church, Lincoln, NE
  • Soli Deo Gratia (the goal of evangelism – God’s sovereignty in our evangelism) – Speaker: Rev. Sacha Walicord, Orange City, IA. He is a minister of the Presbyterian Church in America, serving as pastor of Grace Reformed Presbyterian Church, Orange City, IA. He is also a professor of Business Administration at Dordt University and an adjunct professor at a seminary in Germany; oftentimes, he fills pulpits in Europe and Great Britain, including Ireland, preaching God’s word to the saints in those countries.

• We are praying that the Lord will use this conference to motivate hearts, drive passions, and direct evangelism efforts to the glory of God

Your Prayers are Needed – Reformation Gospel Ministries needs your prayers for God’s grace (without which we could do nothing) for boldness, courage, and perseverance as we seek to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost and those who sit in darkness, and encourage and build up the saints in Christ to engage in personal evangelism as they reach out to their communities with message of the cross.

Donations are needed – Reformation Gospel Ministries is a faith based 501(c)3 non-profit organization dependent on the donations of people like you so that we might continue to labor in spreading the gospel message, as we work with local congregations to assist and educate them in Biblical Reformed evangelism. We need both regular donors and those who seek to make one-time donations. Please pray about giving to this important outreach ministry.

Volunteers – if you believe God is leading you to help or participate in the events of Reformation Gospel Ministries, we would love to have you join us. Please contact Rev. Stetler at RefGosMin@gmail.com, or by calling him at (712) 441-5793. Your participation will be welcomed and greatly appreciated.

Reformation Gospel Ministries (RGM) is made up of a six member Board of Directors: 3 ministers and 3 elders, all holding to the biblical Reformed faith and committed to spreading the gospel message to the lost throughout the world. RGM is also under the oversight of Sioux Center United Reformed Church, Sioux Center, IA. Rev. Richard Stetler, chairman and CEO of the RGM, is a retired minister of the RCUS with oversight of his labors from Covenant East Classis of the RCUS.

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