PASTOR’S CORNER, Rex Petty, Faith Tabernacle Church, Liberal

Several years ago, a friend of mine, Andy Stewart, asked me if I wanted some Bibles he had purchased at an auction. He thought I might use them to give away to people. I accepted his generous offer and a couple of weeks later he gave me some of those Bibles. One in particular was a small black leather-bound Bible with a zipper and a gold cross attached to it. When I unzipped the cover and began to peruse through this Bible, I surprisingly discovered it had a personal message inside the cover from a grandmother. She had written a warm and loving message to her grandson and had given this Bible to him. It was dated November 22, 1959, nearly 67 years ago!

PASTOR’S CORNER, Rex Petty, Faith Tabernacle Church, Liberal

I will be retiring later this month from Faith Tabernacle Church, where I have pastored for more than 40 years, and there is a couple who attends named John and Monica Grant. They live in Adams, Okla. and have been coming to services on Sundays for more than 30 years, traveling 25 miles each way and more than 50 miles round-trip. They set a wonderful example of a household that serves the Lord!

PASTOR’S CORNER, Rex Petty, Faith Tabernacle Church, Liberal

Our town of Liberal received its name from a man named Seymour Rogers who had hand-dug a water well 88 feet deep in 1885.  Instead of charging people money for the water, he would give it away for free and the thirsty people would reply “That’s mighty liberal.”

Unfortunately, the word “liberal” today has become politicized and is used to describe a person’s political views rather than its original meaning.

PASTOR’S CORNER, Rex Petty, Faith Tabernacle Church, Liberal

One day, a little 4-year-old girl began playing like she was in church.  She role-played through the singing, the sermon and then proceeded to act out the Lord’s Supper.

Her mother was just around the corner observing she had done everything nearly perfect, except when she got to the part of the communion cup.  Her mother overheard her say “And Jesus took the cup and gave thanks for it and said “Fill it up with Folgers and wake ‘em up!”

On a sleepy Monday morning – June 19, 1899 – a man named Louis Klopsch had a “Folger’s coffee awakening.”  While writing an article for the Christian Herald magazine, which he owned in Brooklyn, New York, he came upon the words of Jesus in Luke 22:20 – “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood”.