We are excited about the second semester of classes that started on January 19th. Pastor Elmer Cox preached in the opening chapel service and he brought a fine message to focus the students on serving the Lord. Brother Cox is the founding pastor of Melody Baptist Church in Connersville, IN.
The semester began with a challenge for us to show a faithful Christ to an unfaithful world.
What a privilege it is to serve Him!
He had grown up in a preacher’s home in New England, and later in life he had help settle the area around Marietta, Ohio. Ephraim Cutler, now 40 years old, stood by his wife as she lay dying of tuberculosis. They both knew that she would soon pass, and the question on her mind was: “who would look after her husband and their four children in this wilderness area?” The year was 1807.
Leah Cutler gave her husband this admonition. For the good of the family she insisted that he remain single for only a short time, and then he must remarry. She then recommended whom he should marry, Sally Parker. The strange thing was that neither of them had ever met Sally. Leah Cutler only knew of her from her good reputation.
Leah passed away on November 3, 1807, the worst blow in Ephraim’s life. Through the month of February 1808, Ephraim pondered his wife’s recommendation. Finally, on March 11, 1808 he began a letter to Sally Parker with these words: “It is with great difficulty that I presume to address you.” He laid out his proposal for marriage, but asked only for an interview.
The reply came back four days later. She answered that she felt herself in an “awkward predicament” since she knew him not at all. But she had heard that Ephraim was a gentleman. Sally would be polite and grant that interview.
Less than a month later, on April 8, 1808, they were married.
Sally would not only be a good stepmother and raise Leah’s four children, but she and Ephraim would add five more children to the family in the Old Stone House that he built overlooking the Ohio River.
Ephraim Cutler and Sally Parker became a lasting match that started and continued based on their character.
A recent work on early Marietta, Ohio documents Ephraim’s life of character. Pulitzer Prize winning author, David McCullough, stated that the preacher’s kid held office as a judge, a legislator, and he is singled out as the key man that kept slavery from entering the state of Ohio. (McCullough, David. The Pioneers. New York: Simon & Schuster. 2019. p. 144, 177-182).
On Wednesday, February 23, 2022 we will begin the first of three consecutive, monthly fellowship lunches called Prayer & Preaching.
We plan to gather in the chapel at 11:00 a.m. for a brief session of prayer, one Bible message, and then a special meal.
The preachers for this semester have been scheduled, and our 1st messenger will be Pastor Cody Eaton. Brother Eaton is the pastor of Fairbanks Baptist Church just below Terre Haute, IN.
We invite you to come share your prayer requests, be challenged with a Bible message, enjoy some good food, and spend a few minutes with the brethren. What a wonderful way to be recharged.
The words of Paul in II Timothy 4:7 could well be applied to Dr. Don Green: I have fought a good fight, I have kept the faith. On February 9, 2022, Brother Green finished his course: falling asleep in bed and waking up in heaven!
During his 93 years on this earth, Dr. Green impacted the world for Christ. Beginning with his family, all five of his sons were ordained for the ministry, and his one daughter became a missionary. Being a preacher’s son himself, he was especially proud to see many of his grandsons follow in his Baptist lineage and become ministers.
Dr. Green’s daily prayer life was one of his dearest joys. He would pray for hundreds each day, and to know you were on his prayer list was very special. Dr. Don Green dearly loved the King James Bible, and in his lifetime, he read it well over 175 times. But he did more than read the Book, he started a ministry of printing the Word in various languages around the world.
Dr. Don Green pastored the Parker Memorial Baptist Church for 62 years, until his son took the reins in 2017. He was a great supporter of Christian training, having received his education under the likes of J. Frank Norris and Louis Enztminger in Ft. Worth, Texas.
The training of the next generation held a high priority in Dr. Green’s life. He began a Christian School at his church, and he was a promoter of godly training for Baptist ministers. Dr. Green was a long-time supporter of Heritage Baptist College.
Dr. Don Green and his wife Faye were close friends of my parents. When my Dad passed away in 1998, Dr. Green preached the funeral. I can still remember the title of his message that day: “The Measure of a Man.”
Dr. Green gained more influence in my life through his kindness and testimony. His consistent prayer life, his fasting, and his faithful Bible reading were a great inspiration.
A couple of weeks before he passed away, I talked with Dr. Don Green. As we closed our telephone conversation, in a weak voice he said to me: “You are a good friend…I love you.” I had heard those words before, and I appreciated them once again.
And I’m sure that many a preacher had also been encouraged by those same kind words.
Contact an Admissions Counselor TODAY and plan to visit Heritage. You can reach us at 317-738-3791