Cornerstone

Luke 16:10-13 (10)

Who is Mr. Church of God (Holiness)? In my opinion that title should be given to Dr. I. C. Holland. He has served the Lord in the Church of God (Holiness) from an early age and he has served well. Even while attending the University of Missouri as a young man he was active in the ministry. The desire to preach the Word and pastor the people of God continued to be a love and a burden to him. And yet this ministry was not exclusive. He became very active at Kansas City College and Bible School. He served as Professor, Academic Dean, Vice President, President and finally as Board Member. He is interested in the mission of the church abroad. He has served on the World Mission Board for many years and has traveled to represent the work on numerous foreign fields. This barely scratches the surface of his official involvement in the Church of God (Holiness). In addition, the people saw his interest in their lives as he demonstrated his outstanding memory. Names of people previously met on one occasion accompanied by remembrances of personal interest caused many to stand in awe. As Chairman of the General Convention he served with dignity, wisdom and poise. The list continues seemingly without end regarding one who took Romans 12:1 literally and gave himself to Jesus Christ in unselfish and tireless labor.

Dr. Gayle Woods

Mk 10:13-(16)

We sat at the kitchen table trying to play a board game with our friends. I was mildly irritated. The annoyance had been gradually building throughout the evening. Their little child was insisting that she be included in the game. We knew that she could not comprehend the rules or the concept of the game. Her parents struggled with the task of excluding her from our fun. They were doing their best to not hurt her feelings while at the same time insisting that she play with toys that were designed for her age group.

In another setting there was annoyance as well. The task oriented disciples wanted to screen the visitors that came to Jesus. Now, parents were insisting that Jesus see their little children, touch them, and bless them. Just as the disciples were about to exert their self-ordained authority as “Jesus Protectors” the Master spoke to say that He WANTED the little children to come to Him. In fact, He went on to say that unless we come to Him in the transparency and weakness of a little child we cannot have a relationship with Him. We strive for sophistication and strength when all along we need to realize our inadequacy and relinquish control of our lives to Him. We need to come to Jesus as “little children.”

Dr. Gayle Woods