I was privileged to have the opportunity to preach the message at Center Grove Baptist Church in Cord for their 164th Homecoming service on Sunday (June 12). This is such a great group of people along with their pastor, Barry Anderson. As I prepared to go to Center Grove for this milestone celebration, I decided I would go into the Baptist Trumpet archives to see what I might be able to find related to this church. Below is a list of some interesting and noteworthy things I found:
• April 30, 1947, Temple Trumpet — Center Grove is listed by missionary-elect to the Philippines Sidney Cook as supporting the work of taking the gospel overseas.
• Oct. 19, 1949, Temple Trumpet — Deacon Ordination of four men announced by Frank Bullington (a descendant of John Bullingon, the missionary who planted the church in 1858).
• Jan. 16, 1951, Temple Trumpet — Center Grove is listed among those that sent funds to help pay for the new Central College property.
• April 15, 1970, Baptist Trumpet — Center Grove is mentioned by Central Baptist College President Gerald Kellar as a great supporter of the college, and a CBC Student, Roger Cole, was pastor at the time.
• Nov. 24, 1970, Baptist Trumpet — In the “Gleanings from the Churches” column, Center Grove, Newark reported the following: “The church met on a Wednesday night for the purpose of electing a new pastor, not knowing a squirrel had climbed the high line pole and threw the switch on the transformer. We had no lights, but we were so determined to go ahead with the conference. I suggested that we use candles which were left at the church after a wedding. It worked out fine. We called a pastor. He accepted. The Lord is blessing, and we have had three additions.” Bill Hunter, pastor; Ola Bullington, assistant reporter.
• Dec. 1, 1971, Baptist Trumpet — CBC President Wassell Burgess mentions the faithfulness of Center Grove to support the Lord’s work.
• Oct. 2, 1985, Baptist Trumpet — There is a story about how Center Grove was rebuilding after their building was lost in a fire in February 1985. Jimmy Thompson was pastor at the time.
• Sept. 18, 1991, Baptist Trumpet — Charles Bullington’s ordination by Center Grove is reported.
• Sept. 30, 1992, Baptist Trumpet — Center Grove advertised a youth revival to be held at the Independence County Fairgrounds.
• May 21, 2008, Baptist Trumpet — An article celebrating Center Grove Baptist Church in Cord for 150 Years of Service is featured.
• Feb. 20, 2019, Baptist Trumpet — A note about Roger Cole being honored for 50 years of service pastoring churches in Texas and Arkansas, noting that his first pastorate was at Center Grove Baptist Church in 1969.
The faithfulness of Center Grove is evident as they are mentioned by many department leaders as a church that faithfully supports the ministries of the Baptist Missionary Association, especially in Arkansas. There have also been many leaders in our association who have been associated with Center Grove.
If you have not spent some time looking through the Baptist Trumpet archives, why not head over to BaptistTrumpet.com/archive and check it out today. You really never know what you will find! Access to the archives is free for anyone, but you must register. If you are a subscriber, you can use your customer portal credentials for access. If you need help with your log-in information, reach out to us at the office at (501) 565-4601, editor@baptisttrumpet.com or associateeditor@baptisttrumpet.com.
Special Emphasis Update
We are still getting some Special Emphasis offerings in the mail. There may or may not be some shouting happening when we open the mail to see how God continues to use His faithful people to meet the needs of this ministry. As mentioned previously, we will continue to count all special offerings toward our goal through the end of the fiscal year (Aug. 31). Thanks to the additional funds received, we have now raised 63% of our goal ($28,314.03). The remaining 37% (approximately $17,000) is designated to go toward the software improvements that will allow us to reduce our monthly expenses significantly.
Please continue to pray that God will not only give us wisdom as we make important decisions regarding the future of the Baptist Trumpet but that He will also provide for all financial needs according to His will.
For an update on where we are on raising funds, please visit baptisttrumpet.com/se2022.
Thanks to these that have given since our last report:
2022 Special Emphasis • Goal — $45,000
Previous Balance (May 25) $19,904.03
Antioch, Conway $100.00
Calvary, Morrilton $1,000.00
Calvary, Whitehall $1,535.00
Diane Jackson $250.00
Peggy Lee $5,000.00
Unity, Dardenelle $200.00
Pleasant Valley, Greenbrier $300.00
Immanuel, Greenbrier $25.00
Total $28,314.03
