Appalachia…What a Blessing!
REV. PATRICK MALPHRUS Moderator
churches have been serving brothers and sisters in Christ, all the while pro- claiming the good news of Jesus to children and adults alike. What an impact our churches have made on so many in an area of our nation that is often over- looked. As an example of the impact our churches have made, Rev. Bob Elliot, pastor at Edgemoor ARP and also the Director for Appalachia, shared a won- derful story of a conversation with the manager of a local restaurant. With the 4th of July falling during the Appalachia trip, it has become some-
Elliot called to ask me if I would be willing to serve as speaker for the ARP’s Appalachia Mission Trip the following summer. What an honor! I committed to serve and expressed my gratitude for having been asked. Little did any of us know in Septem- ber of 2019 that a thing called CO- VID-19 would be headed our way like a freight train. As a result, Appa- lachia was cancelled for the summer of 2020. Thankfully, I received the in- vitation to serve as speaker yet again in April of 2021 for the next summer, and gladly accepted. As I write this article I have just
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returned from Appalachia and what a blessing it was. If you’re unfamil- iar with the ARP’s Appalachian Mis- sion (referred to most often as “Ap- palachia”), allow me to educate you just a bit. At Appalachia, different ARP churches come for the week to host Vacation Bible Schools at rural churches in the Cumberland Gap area of Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky. The format is simple. During the day our churches are on site, hosting VBS, but in the evening all the ARP church groups gather at Camp Jubilee in Tazewell, TN for dinner, a time of worship, and other group activities. Appalachia is nothing new in the
ARP. This year marked Appalachia’s 40th anniversary. For 40 years our
Luke 9:62 4 The Associate Reformed Presbyterian
remember receiving the phone call like it was yesterday. It was September of 2019 and Rev. Bob
what of a tradition for several of our groups to gather together at the Sonic in Middlesboro, Kentucky in order to watch the local fireworks show. Bob decided to give the manager at Sonic a heads-up, and warn him that a whole bunch of ARPs would be descending on Sonic on the Fourth. As a side note, it’s always good to warn people about ARPs showing up. But back to the story, when Bob began to talk to the manager about our churches gathering at his business, the manager responded “Oh that’s fine, Mr. Bob, I know who you are.” The man- ager proceeded to tell Bob about his own experience with the ARP and how he, as a child, was blessed by attending many of the Vacation Bible Schools hosted by our churches. And this story is just one example of the Holy Spirit working through our churches to bless others. While Appalachia is a blessing to those being served in the rural communi-
ties of the Cumberland Gap area, it is also a blessing to those who do the serv- ing! One of the features of the nightly gatherings at Camp Jubilee is that dif- ferent ARP church groups make presentations about their experiences during the week. Multiple times I heard the presenters say that this was their first year attending Appalachia, but that it DEFINITELY would not be their last. This, in itself, may not seem extraordinary. That is, until you realize who attends Appa- lachia. While our various church groups are diverse in age, the majority of those who attend Appalachia are high school students. That’s right, high schoolers stood up in front of a room full of high schoolers to talk about how much they enjoyed serving, and then they shared prayer requests and talked about the Lord working. Maybe you watch the news and maybe you don’t. Maybe you have social
media, and again, maybe you don’t. But it’s become rather difficult to be a member of our society and NOT hear about what I call “The Degradation of the American Teenager”. Over and over again we read or hear about how far our youth has fallen. How they lack the basic building blocks of responsible citizenry, having no respect or work ethic. But that’s not the type of teenager I saw at Appalachia. Instead, I saw young men and women who love Jesus and who were willing to go to Cumberland Gap instead of the beach for the Fourth. I saw young men and women who were willing to leave their com- fort zone and share the truth of Jesus. And as I spoke each night, I saw young men and women who were focused on God’s Word and their relationship with the Lord. As a result, I was blessed. Know this: The Lord is working in the ARP. Take the time to pray for the children and adults who heard the Gospel as a result of Appalachia. And also take the time to pray for those who served.?
Moderator’s Challenge
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