To All of Our Ministers in the United Pentecostal Church International,

Greetings in the only saving Name, Jesus!

The General Board met in their annual Mid-Winter Meeting at the World Evangelism Center on Tuesday, January 12, through Thursday, January 14, 1993. One of the most important questions of discussion involved the resolution passed at the General Conference held in Salt Lake City. This resolution called our ministerial constituency to affirm their conviction on the matter of our doctrinal position on full salvation and our stand on holiness.

The Executive Board had asked for a delay until the General Board could meet to discuss the time of implementation of the resolution. In the meantime the resolution was printed in the new Manual and in the Forward. There was no intention of the Executive Board to delay it until the next General Conference in Louisville.

The disinformation that went out from the last conference had confused many of the ministry who were not privileged to be in attend to hear the discussion on the floor of the conference. Unfortunately, some of the information was erroneous and considerably exaggerated. The result was [that] a confused fear developed in ministers who were not present at the conference. In the spirit of brotherly kindness and Christian graciousness, every member of the General Board was urged to speak their heart on this matter, and many did speak. The result of this lengthy discussion ended with the following motion made by the General Board and clearly approved, with a vote of 47 to 14.

“Inasmuch as this resolution has been passed out at the conference and published in the Forward and there has been adequate time for it to be discussed and understood by our fellowship, and inasmuch as there is a sixty day period given after receiving the resolution and in view of the fact that further delay will only bring more confusion, be it resolved that this General Board instruct the General Secretary to implement this resolution immediately and that the sixty-day period for return of these declarations of faith begin on February 1, 1993; Ammended that the statement of affirmation cannot be used a basis for any kind of complaint or charge or Judicial Procedure action; Ammended that a cover letter be sent with the statement of affirmation. This letter to contain the fact that the resolution does not give any added powers to officials.”

Following this motion, Brother Becton and I were authorized to write this cover letter. The consummate interpretation and explanation is hereby rendered:

The resolution does not give any added powers to officials. If a minister believes our message, all he must do is sign the annual statement. If he does, no official can take any action against him, except under the provisions of our Constitution and Judicial Procedure that already exist. There is no provision for contesting a signed statement.

The resolution does not allow officials to impose private interpretations of holiness standards. The only person who interprets the statement is the minister himself. If he honestly embraces the principles described in the two sections of the Articles of Faith, then he can and should sign the statement. No one can challenge his signature on the basis of personal interpretations and applications.

Some people have argued that the resolution will impose controversial views on subjects such as long sleeves, wedding rings, hair arrangement, church softball games, facial hair, skating rinks, and so on. Neither the resolution nor the statement, nor the Articles of Faith mention these subjects. The Articles of Faith mention matters such as immodest dress, worldly sports, and unwholesome music, but the specific definition and application of these principles have always been left to the individual pastor and saint.

Moreover, the methods by which a pastor seeks to convert and disciple people who attend his church is in his discretion. Nothing in the resolution changes these prerogatives.

This letter is being sent to comply with the sixty-day period beginning February 1. Your fellowship card will be sent from Headquarters when you answer within a sixty-day period.

Again, the intent of this resolution is to stem the tide of the worldly pressure on the ministry. The United Pentecostal Church has become a beacon of hope for a drowning church world which has disintegrated into “situation ethics and other strange behavior.” This is not inquisitory or cultic in any sense. I trust this letter will give you the encouragement to open a willing door to your heart and life for the continuity of doctrines given to us by God-fearing pioneers of our Apostolic movement.

May the Lord bless and keep you strong in the faith, to the Lord Jesus and doctrinally sound.

Sincerely in Christ, Nathaniel A. Urshan General Superintendent

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To each is given a bag of tools,
a shapeless mass and a Book of Rules;
and each must make ‘ere time has flown,
a stumbling block or a stepping stone.

R.L. Sharpe, “A bag of tools,” circa 1809

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I met God in the morning,
when my day was at its best.
And His Presence came like glory,
a sunrise in my breast.

All day long His Presence lingered,
all day long He stayed with me…
And we sailed in perfect calmness,
O’er a very troubled sea.

Other ships were blown and battered;
Other ships were sore distressed.
But the winds that seemed to drive them,
Brought to us such peace and rest.

Then I thought of other mornings,
With a keen remorse of mind.
When I too had loosed the moorings,
with the Savior left behind.

So I think I know the secret,
learned from many a troubled way…
You must seek God in the morning,
if you want Him in the day.

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Because
of trial or pain

Continue
in thanksgiving

Do
not begin to blame

Even
when the times are hard

Fierce
winds are bound to blow

God
is forever able

Hold
on to what you know

Imagine
life without His love

Joy
would cease to be

Keep
thanking Him for all the things

Love
imparts to thee

Move
out of ‘Camp Complaining’

No
weapon that is known

On
earth can yield the power

Praise
can do alone

Quit
looking at the future

Redeem
the time at hand

Start
every day with worship

To
‘thank’ is a command

Until
we see Him coming

Victorious
in the sky

We’ll
run the race with gratitude

Xalting
God most high

Yes,
there’ll be good times and yes some will be bad, but…

Zion
waits in glory…where none are ever sad!

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1. Social Networking — As a cohesive community, religious conservatives are positioned to take advantage of the rise of social networking, in an era when a single tweet or Facebook post can monopolize a political agenda.
2. Political Ecumenism — Religious conservatives, facing a culture that appears indifferent or hostile to their values, are more willing to set their theological differences aside to defend common interests.
3. Rise of Nondenominational Churches — The Baylor Survey on Religion reports that nondenominational congregations represent the fastest-growing segment of Protestant churches in America.
4. Spreading Secularism — The percentage of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled in the past two decades (from 8 to 15%), according to the American Religious Identification Survey.
5. Rise of Mixed-Faith Families — Growing research indicates that families identify increasingly with more than one faith. The Pew Forum found that 44 percent of U.S. adults have left the faith or denomination they grew up in.
6. “Bliss” of U.S. Religious Ignorance — Religious leaders are rethinking their teaching methods following the latest Pew Forum poll, which revealed a startling degree of religious illiteracy.
7. Strong Christian Tea Party Identity — Nearly half of tea party members are also part of the Christian conservative movement, according to a Public Religion Research Institute poll last fall.

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That’s the upshot of a new informal survey of evangelical leaders finding that less than half believe that the Bible requires church members to tithe, the practice of giving at least 10 percent of one’s income to the church.

The survey, conducted by the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) among its 100-member board of directors, found that 42% of evangelical leaders believe the Bible requires tithing, while 58% do not.

“The Old Testament called for multiple tithes, sort of combining government taxes with religious stewardship,” NAE President Leith Anderson said, reacting to the survey.

“Since there is such a strong evangelical tradition of tithing, I was a little surprised that a majority of our evangelical leaders say the tithe system of the Old Testament does not carry over to the New Testament or to us,” Anderson said in a statement.

The National Association of Evangelicals, the nation’s biggest evangelical umbrella organization, would not say how many of its 100 board members responded to the survey, which was conducted in February.

The board includes such influential figures as the heads of the Salvation Army, the Assemblies of God – a major Pentecostal denomination – and the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference.

The injunction to tithe comes from the Old Testament, or what Jews call the Hebrew Bible, which tells of Abraham and others giving ten percent of war spoils, a harvest or other goods as offerings to God or religious leaders.

Dan Olson, a Purdue University sociology professor who has studied tithing, says the new survey doesn’t mean Christian leaders think those in the pews shouldn’t give.

“Most of those leaders would probably say, ‘you really ought to tithe, but the term ‘requires’ gets at a theological point,” he said.

“Most Christians would say the laws of the Old Testament are not what save you – you’re supposed to be giving out of a spirit of freedom, not because you’re bound to laws,” he said.

The National Association of Evangelicals’ survey found that 95% of evangelical leaders say they give at least 10% of their salaries to church.

A recent study by group that tracks church giving, called Empty Tomb, Inc., found that evangelicals on a whole give an average of 4% of their income to their church, though Olson suspects the average is much lower, around 1% or 2%.

From CNN Belief Section

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William Penn (October 14, 1644 – July 30, 1718) was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom and directed the planning and development of the city of Phiadelphia.

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Hiromitsu Shinkawa must have resigned himself to his fate when he was swept away by the retreating tsunami that roared ashore in his home town of Minami Soma in Fukushima prefecture.

As the wave approached, Shinkawa took the fateful decision to return home to collect belongings. Minutes later he was out at sea clinging to a piece of the roof from his own home.

Incredibly, he was spotted by a maritime self-defence force destroyer taking part in the rescue effort as he clung to the wreckage with one hand and waved a self-made red flag with the other. He had been at sea for two days.

Reports said that on being handed a drink aboard the rescue boat, Shinkawa gulped it down and immediately burst into tears. His wife, with whom he had returned home as the tsunami approached, is still missing.

He was quoted as saying: “No helicopters or boats that came nearby noticed me. I thought that day was going to be the last day of my life.”

Officials said Shinkawa was in good condition after being taken to hospital by helicopter.

“I ran away after I heard a tsunami was coming,” he told Jiji Press. “But I turned back to fetch something from home and was swept away. I was rescued while hanging on to the roof of my house.”

The self-defence forces said the good weather and calm waters had allowed Shinkawa to stay alive during his 48-hour drift.

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To the lost sheep, He is the seeking Shepherd;
To the needy sheep, He is the providing Shepherd;
To the hurting sheep, He is the comforting Shepherd;
To the bruised sheep, He is the healing Shepherd;
To the anxious sheep, He is the peaceful Shepherd;
To the wandering sheep, He is the guiding Shepherd;
To the fearful sheep, He is the protecting Shepherd;
To the lame sheep, He is the carrying Shepherd;
To the discontented sheep, He is the fulfilling Shepherd;
To the parched sheep, He is the anointing Shepherd;
To the timid sheep, He is the reassuring Shepherd;
To the fallen sheep, He is the merciful Shepherd;
To the nervous sheep, He is the quieting Shepherd;
To the heavy laden sheep, He is the restful Shepherd;
To the lonely sheep, He is the ever-present Shepherd;
To the weary sheep, He is the restoring Shepherd;
To all His sheep, He is the Good Shepherd.

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