Jan/Feb Issue Perilous Times by Pat Harrison First Love by Daniel Meyer Aliens In A Strange Land by Moke Knowlton Mirando Las Cosas Que No Se Ven by Arnoldo Gutierrez International Ministries Update by Carl Conley Home

Aliens In A Strange Land by Mike Knowlton FCF Pastor, Roswell NM   Yes, I pastor a church in Roswell, New Mexico, site of "the" alleged alien spaceship crash in 1947, and various other UFO phenomena. No, I haven't seen any extraterrestrials ­ yet. But I have seen some pretty strange stuff. Strange as in, "And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, we have seen strange things today" (Luke 5:26). What kind of strange things have I seen? Will a church of 28 people getting a $400,000 building (now appraised at $3.5 million) qualify as "strange," contrary to expectation and extraordinary? I think so. It all started three years ago on October 6, 1996. That was the day we held our first service in a banquet room of a motel, and 27 people came. We didn't have a bottle of anointing oil, but we had a vision from God. Since we needed a building, I had spent a lot of time looking at every available building and piece of property in the Roswell area. I hadn't found anything that 28 people could afford. While looking, I heard about a missions building project. Then around the first of November, God challenged me: we would reap a building if we would give into this missions building project. I shared what the Lord had put on my heart with the congregation and challenged them to do their best. We received a $2700 offering, over and above our tithes! From 28 people. We prayed over it and sent it on its way. Then on November 10, the Lord spoke to us, "I've seen your faithfulness. I have seen your sacrifices. I have seen your seed. You have planted. I will bring the increase. Be careful to watch over your harvest. You will have a double harvest. First you will have your facility. Second, you will have a great harvest of souls because you have not only sown into a building but into the end time harvest. And you will be a part of this great harvest." Two weeks after we sent our missions offering, I got a phone call from the man who owned the old YMCA building. He wanted to sell me the building. I thought, "Yea, right. As if 28 people could afford that place." Built in 1960, the YMCA is big: upstairs showers, downstairs showers, 2 racquetball courts, a gymnasium, a pool. At that time everybody in the church would have had his own room at the Y; that's how big the place is. My leadership and I met with the man and walked around the place. Then we went home and prayed. I told my leadership that this was the place God had for us. "If we don't take this step of faith and trust God, we will struggle for the rest of our lives as a church." I contacted the owner. He was willing to sell us the place on one condition: he wanted to add on a shell of a sanctuary for us. My heart sunk. The price of the building ($400,000) was already beyond our ability. Adding a shell would only make the price go higher. I said to him, "I appreciate your meeting with us. Of course, we would love to have something like this. But we really don't see any way possible." He replied, "Don't totally rule it out. This is what we want to offer you: a whole year with no payments, no down payment, no personal guarantees. This will allow you to get established, build your congregation, and get the things you need." I'm sure my mouth dropped open. Truly, this was strange, totally unexpected, and extraordinary. But that's our God. So we moved in. True to his word, he put up the shell, and we didn't make any payments that first year. We met in the gym until we finished the sanctuary. We started renovating the old part around the foyers, hallways, and classrooms. A tile company contacted us and offered us an extraordinary deal: only $5,500 for 6,000 square feet of tile. A tile man in our church laid it for us at no cost, a job estimated at $45,000. Church members have done nearly all the renovation. They're a great bunch of people. In May of 1998, we started on the interior of our sanctuary. On October 10, 1999, we held our dedication service, giving God all the glory for our 36,000 square-foot building and 6 acres. God has been faithful to His Word. Not only have we reaped a building, we are reaping a harvest in this community. Our property is a tool to reach our community. For example, we host "Fifth Quarters" in the gym for young people. After a football or basketball game, we provide pizza and games and a place to hang out. We now have approximately 250 people in our congregation. Our growth isn't transfer growth from other churches; it's people who have been saved in our services. I've been told that you can't build a church on new converts because they don't know how to give or support a church. Well...new converts know how to give if you teach them, and we have taught our people. Our congregation is wonderful. They are hard workers, have spent thousands of hours renovating the building, and have generously given their finances. They are excited about what God is doing in them and through them. We call our church Waymaker Church because God always makes a way. He has done it for me, and He's doing it for our congregation. Our church is blessed because we obeyed Him in giving into that missions project. In November of 1999, a person gave us three acres in the country on which to build our Waymaker Ranch, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. The principles of sowing and reaping work. We've been careful to stand on God's Word and confess it over what's happening in our ministry. We have never focused on what we needed; we have focused on the God Who is able to fulfill the promises of His Word. He said He would supply our needs and give us a harvest of souls. And He's done that. The Bible says that we are "aliens" in a strange land. One day we'll leave this strange land and go to our heavenly home. Until that day, God is faithful to help Waymaker Church victoriously occupy this strange land. And He's faithful to help you do the same. Editor's note: Mr. G. T. Lewis, member of Waymaker Church, took allphotos accompanying this article.