Outreach
Our current broadcasts are in ...
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
|
Back To Top
Dr. Leroy Ford: Editor-in-Chief / Writer
Dr. Ford serves as Editor-in-Chief for all of the study guides. They are written under his guidance and leadership. He also is a writer for the ministry.
A native of Oklahoma, Dr. Ford became a Christian at the age of 14. He received his B.A. degree from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford. He taught business education in high school and then worked as a training specialist with the United States War Department.
Following a call to Christian ministry in 1947, Dr. Ford attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) in Fort Worth, Texas, receiving the MRE degree. He served as minister of education and music of churches in Oklahoma and Texas and as Minister of Education, First Baptist Church, Norman, Oklahoma. He returned to Southwestern Seminary and earned the EdD degree while teaching at Texas Wesleyan College in Fort Worth.
From the mid-50s to the mid-60s, Dr. Ford served at the Baptist Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. He became an authority in the field of training and learning and played a key role in curriculum development for the Southern Baptist Convention.
Dr. Ford joined the faculty at SWBTS in 1966 as Professor of Programmed Instruction in Religious Education. Later he became Professor of Foundations of Religious Education. He was instrumental in the development of a course description book for the degree programs in the School of Religious Education. He led in the development of the seminary audiovisual learning center, the curriculum lab and the continuing education program.
A prolific writer, Dr. Ford has written over 15 books on learning theory and methods. He developed a cartooned-writing technique for a series of books on instruction methodology. His books are used in churches as well as in colleges and seminaries in the United States and abroad. Several of his books have been translated into many languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Indonesian and Japanese. His book, Design for Teaching and Training, is a classic in the field of interactive learning and instruction. He translated the theological aspects of the works of Netzahualcouyotl, a pre-Hispanic intellectual of Mexico, and compiled Noble Thoughts from the Aztec World.
Dr. Ford has led curriculum design and interactive writing workshops and conferences in many parts of the world, including Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and Indonesia. He served as lecturer at the Universidad Autonoma de Queretaro, Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosi and the Universidad Autonoma de Guanajuato. He has led workshops and conferences in seminaries, Bible schools, churches, and denominational and professional organizations throughout the United States.
In 1998 LifeWay Christian Resources of the SBC designated Dr. Ford “the father of interactive writing for Southern Baptists.” His workshops and leadership resulted in the development of many interactive courses, including curricula like The Survival Kit for New Christians, MasterLife, Experiencing God, The Mind of Christ and the Beth Moore interactive courses.
Dr. Ford has been a major influence on the field of Christian education throughout the world. Campbell Wyckoff, Professor of Christian Education Emeritus, Princeton Theological Seminary, wrote: “No one has done so much as LeRoy Ford to put good learning theory to work in theological education or been so utterly consistent in theory and practice. LeRoy Ford is today’s leading exemplar of rationale lesson planning and curriculum planning.”
Back To Top
Dr. James Charnel Anderson: Writer
Professor of History (Catedrático) Inter American University, Metropolitan Campus
Education:
Ph.D. George Washington University, Latin American History, 1970
M.L.S., University of Puerto Rico, Library Science, 1978
M.A., George Washington University, Government, 1960
B.A., McNeese University, History and English, 1958
Experience
Professor of History, Inter American University, 1968-to present
Assistant Professor of History, McNeese University, 1967-1968
Visiting Professor of History, Faculdade de Filosofia, Crato, Ceara, Brazil, 1967
Peace Corps Volunteer, Ceara, Brazil, 1965-1967
Research Assistant, HUMRRO, George Washington U., 1962-1964
Selection Officer, Peace Corps, Washington, D.C., 1961-1962
Principal Publications
The Spanish American War in the New York Time, Writers Circle Fetschrift , Plaza Mayor, San Juan, 2005
The American Presence in Puerto Rico (Chapter I Historical Background), Publicaciones Puertorriqueñas: San Juan, P.R., 1998
American Ships and Seamen in Puerto Rico During the Age of Sail, The Tropic Times: San Juan, P.R. (various issues), 1991-1992
1830: Analysis of a Year of Trade between San Juan and the United States, SER: Revista de Literatura, Inter American University: San Juan, P.R., no.1, 1984
An Analysis of Americans in Quien es Quien in Puerto Rico 1933-1949, Homines: Revista de Ciencias Sociales, San Juan, P.R., vol.8 no.1, enero-junio, 1984
Was the United States Interested in Puerto Rico Before 1898? An Inquiry Based on the New York Times, Homines: Revista de Ciencias Sociales, San Juan, P.R., vol. 6, no.1, Enero-Junio, 1982
Honors
Scholar in Residence, Hispanic Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Summer 1999
Pilar Barbosa Puerto Rico Congressional Internship, Summer 1999
Outstanding Teacher Award, English Trimester Program, Inter American University, 1998
Distinguished Teacher Award, Golden Key Society, Inter American U. Chapter, 1996
Fellow, National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar, Tulane University, 1976
Recent Conferences
Using Primary Sources to Teach History; Baldwin School, March 2005
Pre-Columbian Civilizations of Puerto Rico; Baldwin School, November 2004
Humor in Brazilian Literatura de Cordel; Association for the Study of Humor in Hispanic Literature, San Juan, April 2003
The Foraker Act; Radio WOSO (series of news casts), April-June 2000
The Spanish American War in the New York Times; IAU Senate, Spring 1999
American Influence in Puerto Rico in the 19th Century; Spanish American War Centennial Celebration, San Juan, February 1998
Americans in Puerto Rico; WOSO Radio, April 1998
Spanish American War Day-by- Day; WOSO Radio (with news announcer Gary Taumenin), April- October 1998
Spanish American War in Puerto Rico; Retired Officers Club, Ft. Buchanan, 1998
Santiago de Cuba on the Eve of the Spanish American War; UPR , 1998
Research in Progress
U.S. – Puerto Rican Relations in the 19th Century
U.S. Consuls in Puerto Rico (1815-1898)
Puerto Rico in World War I
English Language Journalism in Puerto Rico 1898 to present
The American Community in Puerto Rico in the 20th Century.
The Prohibition Era in Puerto Rico.
American Teachers in Puerto Rico, 1898-1920
Recent Committee Participation
AVANCE committee (spring 2005- present).
Distance Learning Committee (2004)
Middle States Self-Study Committee; Missions and Goals Sub-Committee (2003-2004).
Faculty Writers Circle (1990- present)
History Graduate Planning Committee (2000-present)
Centennial Committee for the Celebration of the Spanish-American War (1997-1998).
Back To Top
Ruth Bochte: Artists and Graphic Designer
Ms. Bochte does all of the art work and design for the study guides. Ms. Bochte is a native of North Dakota, the daughter of Rev. J. Richard Jones, a Presbyterian minister. She accepted Christ as her Savior at age eleven. She graduated as salutatorian from Mount Hope High School, Mount Hope, Alabama, and attended John C. Calhoun Community College in Decatur, Alabama. She earned the Associate in Applied Science degree in graphic design at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Ms. Bochte is married to Jim Bochte, and they have one daughter, Tessa, born December 27, 1990. They are members of the St. Andrew Presbyterian Church USA in Decatur, Alabama. Her hobbies include horseback riding, art, and writing.
Ms. Bochte serves on the staff of the Phil Waldrep Ministries, Decatur, Alabama, as graphic artist and designer.
Back To Top
Dr. Lorin Cranford: Bible and Theology Editor / Writer
Dr. Cranford makes sure all of the study guides are biblically correct and theologically sound. He also is a writer for the ministry.
“After pastoring two churches over a ten-year period (one in a ranching community [First Baptist Church, Graford, Texas] and the second one, a multi-staff church in Fort Worth, Texas [Springdale Baptist Church]), I accepted an invitation to join the faculty of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth in 1974. I served as Professor of New Testament and Greek from 1974-1997 in the School of Theology. During that time I also helped develop the Modern Languages Study Program and served as its Director from 1983 to 1994. This responsibility involved directing four semester programs of study in German, French, Latin, Spanish and Arabic as a part of the preparatory work for seminary students entering the PhD program in the School of Theology. I also taught the advanced Theological German courses in that program. Also during this period I served as interim pastor, Bible conference teacher and revival preacher at a large number of churches in the north Texas region.
“During the time spent at Southwestern Seminary I had the opportunity to spend two year-long sabbatic leaves from my seminary responsibilities. The first sabbatical was spent as a guest research professor at the University of Bonn, Germany. During that year I gave some lectures (in German) at the German Baptist Seminary, then located in Hamburg. The second leave was spent at the University of Heidelberg where I served as guest research professor. During that year I received invitations to deliver lectures in German at the universities in Bonn, Gottingen and Heidelberg. Additionally, I preached (in German) in a number of German Baptist churches. During the summer before the beginning of the academic year at Heidelberg in October, I studied French at the Alliance Francaise in Paris, France. During the summer I was invited to preach in several French Baptist congregations.
“As a developing New Testament scholar I felt the need to become conversant in a number of foreign languages, both ancient and modern, in order to explore the interpretation of the Greek text of the New Testament more thoroughly. This involved gaining at least a reading ability in Hebrew, Koine and Classical Greek, some Coptic, Latin, German and French. From 1982 through 1997 I was asked to teach a year-long PhD seminar in New Testament Critical Methodology, and then, beginning in 1992, I began also teaching the year-long New Testament History PhD seminar. These languages, and more, were heavily used in the teaching of these two doctoral seminars.
“In December, 1997 I took retirement from Southwestern Seminary and accepted the invitation to join the Department of Religious Studies and Philosophy at Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, North Carolina, where I continue to teach presently. Most of my teaching at GWU has been different levels of Koine Greek to both undergraduate and divinity school students. Beginning in the fall, I will begin offering seminars in the new GWU Master of Arts in Biblical Studies program.
“During the period from 1974 to the present I have had the opportunity to have a number of books and articles published both in the United States and in Germany. The full listing of these can be found at my web site, Cranford.com:http://cranfordville.com/Cranford/resumelc.htm. Some of these include an article in Billy Graham’s Decision Magazine and a couple of articles in the German Baptist Die Gemeinde magazine. Presently I am working on a commentary on Colossians in the Smyth-Helwys Bible Commentary Series.”
Back To Top
Dr. Art Criscoe: Writer and Editor
Dr. Criscoe serves as a writer of the study guides. A native of Alabama, Dr. Criscoe became a Christian at the age of nine. He received the B.A. degree from Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama, and the MAE degree from Cumberland University, Lebanon, Tennessee. He received the MDiv, MA(RE) and PhD degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth. He has done additional study at several schools, including the Instituto de Lengua Espanola in San Jose, Costa Rica.
Dr. Criscoe has served as pastor of churches in Texas, South Carolina and Tennessee. He served as professor of Bible and Christian Education at Columbia Bible College, Columbia, South Carolina, 1972-76. He was academic dean at the college, 1974-76. He served for 25 years in the area of discipleship at LifeWay Christian Resources (SBC), Nashville, Tennessee. He currently serves as adjunct professor in the graduate program at Cumberland University. He is author of several books and numerous teaching resources and articles.
Dr. Criscoe has conducted workshops and conferences on teaching and interactive writing in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Argentina, the Caribbean, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, India and Myanmar. He has served as guest professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky.
Back To Top
Vona Elkins
Vona serves as a writer for the study guides and the oral Bible studies.
“I was born into the family of Buford and Earline Brackin in Alabama. My father was a Baptist pastor and evangelist so I had many opportunities to “Hear the Word” from the pulpit and often heard the scriptures discussed, and sometimes debated, in my home. From this early training I was grounded in the truth of God’s Word. I trusted Christ as my Lord and Savior as a teenager.
“After graduating from high school, I married Billy Clark Elkins. We have one son (Andy) and two daughters (Beth and Penny), and eight grandchildren. While raising our family we were active in a Presbyterian church where I taught Sunday School at every level, facilitated Women’s Ministry, and helped with the music program.
“God placed a desire in my heart to write when I was a young person. While raising my family, I was editor of the community newsletter and wrote plays and skits for youth programs, including devotionals and several pieces of music.
“After my husband’s early death, I began to pursue my writing in a serious manner. I attended writing classes at Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama and writing workshops and seminars in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and Cleveland, Tennessee. I studied psychology at Shoals College, Tuscumbia, Alabama, and completed computer classes at a technology center. I received special training as a facilitator of grief support groups from Hospice.
“I am now actively involved in Women’s Ministry in a Baptist church where I am also a soloist and choir member. I am a conference speaker for ladies’ groups, and write devotionals and ‘life experience’ articles.
“I am engaged in community activities, including The American Cancer Society, Hospice, and ‘Friends of the Library.’ I work part time for Auburn University Extension. I have been a substitute teacher for gifted education classes, a discharge planner in a Baptist hospital, and served on the county Board of Registrars.
“I enjoy music, reading, hiking, traveling, grandchildren, and Auburn football!
“Recognizing who Christ is, and who I am in Christ, has made me passionate about helping to get the message of salvation out through my writing ministry with Christ to the World.”
Back To Top
Roger Kuykendall
Roger leads our prayer ministry. He felt a calling to start a prayer team to assist Christ to the World Ministries as it continues to grow and reach the world for Christ. At this time, 11 couples serve with Roger and his wife, Debbie. The prayer team prays regularly for each member of the ministry and for the various countries where Christ to the World ministers. Roger considers it a true blessing to pray for everyone who is involved with this ministry.
Roger was reared on a farm in East Texas. He was blessed to have been born into a Christian home. At the age of seven, he came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and has continued to grow in his faith. Roger has served the Lord through his home church, Mobberly Baptist, in Longview, Texas, for the last 40 years: being on many committees, teaching Sunday School, serving as a deacon, and participating in the music ministry. He is a firm believer in the power of prayer and that God has told us that we have not, because we ask not.
Roger anticipates that many prayer teams will be formed to pray for Christ to the World Ministries. He will be glad to share with any person or church wishing to begin prayer teams for the ministry ideas and suggested schedules for a prayer team, along with specific prayer requests on a regular basis.
Back To Top
Dr. Sophia Steibel: Writer
Dr. Steibel serves as a writer of the study guides. Dr. Sophia Regina Gomes Steibel was born in Brazil, in a Christian home. At the age of seven, she accepted Christ as her Savior and Lord, under the influence of her father, David Gomes, the late evangelist and founder of the international radio ministry, the “Bible School of the Air.” She attended Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, where she received the MA(RE) and PhD degrees in Christian Education.
Dr. Steibel and her husband, Dr. Eduardo Steibel, served in Brazil, where he pastored a local church and she directed the Baptist Theological School in Campinas, Sao Paulo. Since 1994, she has taught Christian Education at the Gardner-Webb University undergraduate Religion Department and currently is teaching in the M. Christopher White School of Divinity.
Back To Top
Cal and Joyce Robertson: Drama Writers
Cal and Joyce are the drama writing team for “Christ to the World Ministries.” Each drama is the result of their joint creative talents, and the inspiration they derive from the Master of all creation. They were both raised in Christian homes, and accepted Christ during their early childhood years. God has called them to use their collaborative talents in music, drama and writing to further the cause of Christ across America and around the world as He opens doors of opportunity.
Cal was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, and attended Seattle Pacific College and Northwest College earning a Bachelors Degree of Divinity, with honors. He had a teaching fellowship during his senior year in Northwest.
He started acting and singing in churches and on the secular stage in plays, dramas and musicals from a very early age. He later served as Music Minister in various churches in the Northwest and Southern California, was a recording artist with Sacred Records, and toured throughout the west giving sacred concerts.
He spent nine years in the Hawaiian Islands where he worked as an entertainer on stage, television and radio.
His broad spectrum of experience in the field of music and drama includes many years of writing, directing and performing musical productions, both sacred and secular. From the many performances in which he has been featured, some of his favorites were playing the lead role in:
Man of Lamacha
South Pacific
The Sound of Music
I Do, I Do
The Memphis Passion Play at Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis, TN
The Dallas Christmas Festival at Prestonwood Baptist Church, Plano, TX
He also writes and performs “One Man Dramas” (with musical inserts) in various venues around the country, however, Cal’s interests have not been single-minded. He has also been successful in his secular pursuits as an architectural designer and general contractor, both designing and building custom homes, apartment complexes, and churches. He has also donated this talent to assist in the design and building of orphanages in Brazil.
Joyce was born in Mississippi where her father was a pastor in The Church of the Nazarene. She sang her first solo in church at five years of age, and along with her two younger sisters, started singing three-part harmony when she was still a pre-teen. From childhood through their young adult years, they sang on stage and recorded sacred music. During high school, she was writing dramas for church youth groups to perform, and received encouragement to pursue a writing career from the adults who attended those performances.
She graduated from high school at the age of sixteen, ranking #10 in a class of 200 students, and entered Trevecca Nazarene College in Nashville, TN as the youngest freshman in her class. Because of her youthful dream to become a writer, she majored in her favorite subject, English grammar and composition. Circumstances intervened that prevented her graduating from college, but her spirit of determination refused to allow this misfortune to discontinue her intellectual growth.
Her career in business began at the entry level, but her multiple talents and intellectual capabilities were soon discovered. She was rapidly promoted to office manager, then up through the ranks to the executive branch. Over a span of years and relocations to various parts of the country, she served as Executive Assistant to Vice Presidents, then Presidents of five major corporations. During the last several years of her business life, she was Manager of Human Resources for a large pharmaceutical company from which she retired in 2000. All these years in the business world provided her with continuing education, national and international travel (Hong Kong, London and Scotland), and unending opportunities to use her writing and creative skills. She communicated extensively through the use of the written word in letters and e-mails, wrote business manuals and reports, created and taught employee training classes, etc.
She is a self-taught musician and has continued, from youth, to use this God-given key board talent both professionally and in the work of the Lord. She accompanies her husband in his solo concerts and dramatic performances.
Back To Top
Myrna Curry Sizemore Ed. D.: Writer
A native Texan, Dr. Myrna Sizemore has recently retired after a 32-year career in public education. She served 10 years as an administrator--the last six as a principal. In the two schools where she served as principal, she led campaigns that significantly raised standardized test scores. She is an expert in basic education principles. Both schools she served as principal are English Language Learner Centers where immigrant children learn the language of their new country while studying alongside their American peers. Dr. Sizemore considers the experience of working with this richly diverse population of children from more than 20 nations as one of the most fulfilling opportunities of her professional career.
Having committed her life to Christ during childhood, Dr. Sizemore has always felt called to minister to children and their families in a secular context. By joining the Christ to the World Ministries Team, she now feels led to utilize those gifts to communicate the basic truths of Christianity to the peoples of the world.
Dr. Sizemore earned her doctorate in school administration from Vanderbilt University and her Master’s in reading education from Middle Tennessee State University. She completed her undergraduate work at Texas Tech University. She has traveled in the Holy Land, Turkey, Greece, and Canada. She has published children’s Sunday School curriculum materials with LifeWay Christian Resources. She has served as teacher, chairperson of the Personnel Committee, and member of various other committees at her church.
She and her husband, Lee, have been married 37 years and have two sons and four grandchildren.
Back To Top
E. Lee Sizemore: Writer
A native of Virginia, Lee Sizemore has recently retired from LifeWay Christian Resources after a 35-year career in print and multimedia. During this tenure, Mr. Sizemore:
Served as Assistant Editor of Home Life magazine
Designed and started Mature Living magazine
Designed and started Christian Single magazine
Designed and started Living with Teenagers magazine
Edited over 100 books
Led the promotion and advertising campaign for the 1991 edition of The Baptist Hymnal
In addition, Lee Sizemore served as executive producer of dozens of multi-session Bible study video and audio products with Christian authors including Beth Moore, Henry Blackaby, Chuck Colson, Anne Graham Lotz, Bruce Wilkinson, Gary Smalley, John Trent, Joni Eareckson Tada, and many others.
For these video and audio products, Lee led production crews in Israel, Palestine, Ephesus in Turkey, the Isle of Patmos, Athens and Corinth in Greece, and Canada. The video products have sold hundreds of thousands of copies around the world. He also earned the Career of Excellence Award at LifeWay.
Having submitted his life to Christ at age seven, Lee responded to the call to full-time Christian ministry after graduating from college. He earned the Masters in Religious Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary where he also did some doctoral work. His undergraduate degree in English and Journalism came from the University of South Florida.
He and his wife, Myrna, live in Nashville, Tennessee. They have two sons and four grandchildren.
Back To Top
Heather Smith
Heather Collins Smith is the voice for Rachel in the “Hear the
Heather Collins Smith is the voice for Rachel in the “Hear the Word” series in English, as well as, a writer for Christ to the World Ministries. She is currently working on the Persons Who Met Jesus Series.
I grew up the middle daughter of small business owners in an East Texas town. I was taught be sweet, play nice and make the family proud. Church was a regular part of our family routine. Our family had their own pew, seating grandparents and extended family. Christ drew me to Him at the age of nine. I remember several other friends in my Sunday school class had become Christians and even the mischievous boys had made the long walk down the aisle of the small Baptist Church. (Red brick, white columns, you know the drill.) I was acutely aware I was not a “Christian” and that my soul was in jeopardy. I made that first walk to no longer live with the shame of being a non-Christian in my fourth grade Sunday school class. When you live in the Bible Belt, being a non-Christian out of ignorance is not permitted. I was confused about what being a Christian really meant and fell into the trap of desperately trying to earn my salvation with good works. My church’s emphasis seems to be on obedience out of fear of God. I had heard of Jesus’ love for me but “fire and brimstone” stood out in my mind. I lived a very straight-laced life and would have made a fabulous Pharisee at that time. I used my “good works” to condemn others and make myself feel superior. Students at school called me the “Church Lady” to go along with the Saturday Night Live skit. (My own sister started that one.) I became enamored with the artistry of the Catholic faith and seriously considered being a nun. My Baptist upbringing was a minor detail. I later decided that my call was to be a missionary but I hadn’t the courage to leave Texas. I felt an anointing on my life at a very young age but I had no idea what God wanted from me. I spent hours deciding what God would have me do with my life to the point of severe anxiety. I completely confused my relationship with my Lord. I mistakenly held the reins in my own hands instead of handing them to Him. I forgot that I am the servant and He is the master. This power struggle caused me much grief over the years.
My college years at Stephen F. Austin State University were dominated by indecision. After declaring majors from psychology to visual impairment, even taking a class in Braille, I proved a failure at deciphering God’s plan for my life. To my amazement my parents allowed me to become a Theater major with a History minor late in my junior year. At that time, I thought being a soap opera star would suit me. My mother wanted me to be a broadcaster. I had perhaps over-estimated my beauty and taken a bit of a college sabbatical from my previous dedication to my faith. I was still just good enough to permit myself to judge those around me but very uncomfortable with who I was becoming. I had already changed my major numerous times and my parents allowed this degree plan as long as I graduated with a teaching certificate. I agreed, never believing I would need it. I proved to be mediocre as an actress but worked very hard to lose my dialect. My East Texas accent was not welcome in the production of Antigone. After kissing more that a few toads, I stumbled upon my prince and future husband, Brett Smith. He persistently pursued me. We met at a time that I was deeply depressed about my future. I was no closer to figuring out what God wanted from me. I had made enough mistakes to no longer warrant His presence. Brett was convinced our destinies were intertwined. He planned to be a high school football coach. We soon married and I put my teaching certificate to use without ever attempting to do anything else. We moved around the state of Texas with my husband’s work. I took whatever teaching position I could find in the area. At one point we moved to 8 different homes in 12 years. Over the years, I taught fifth grade through twelfth grade. My assignments were World History, Theater, Speech, Reading and Language Arts. We moved from small town to small town and I found the experience to be a bit of a fish bowl. The lack of privacy brought me discomfort and I felt I had settled by becoming a teacher. Mainly I was tired of being poor. Determined to improve my financial circumstances, I earned my real estate license. Real Estate had been in my blood and it seemed glamorous to me. Being a Realtor proved to be a tireless endeavor that brought me significantly less time with my family. Working for commission made financial planning for the future difficult. I convinced myself that I would be the honest Realtor. I would serve God by helping people through making the biggest purchase of their lives. I loved many aspects of the job but saw God closing the door. My real estate company was sold three times in three years and Brett had been offered another opportunity to advance that would require a move. By now we had our first daughter Reagan and going back to teaching made sense. Our second daughter Meredith was born the following year. I had such high ambitions to do something big for God and spent many years wearing myself out teaching school and Sunday school to youth while singing in the choir. I reasoned that God didn’t care what I did for a living as long as I did it for Him. I also clung to Mother Teresa’s famous quote, “If you want to do something great for the world, go home and love your family.”
Loving my family had always been a bit of a challenge. Many of my precious family members struggled with sins that burdened all of us. For generations a family curse of depression, alcoholism, adultery and drug use haunted us. As a child, I had been taught our family had a legacy of entreprenership and pride but as an adult I was disappointed and even ashamed to realize that these high functioning people had very real demons. I seemed to always take on a counseling role with my family but I understood the depression they suffered. My family’s problems proved to be an idol in my life. The burden consumed and overwhelmed me. All family conversations fixated on past struggles and failure. I desperately wanted something different for my own children. At one point, I realized that my role as counselor may feed my pride as the “good one” in the family but it also kept family members satisfied enough to not go to the “Great Physician.” I studied Jesus’ family and discovered he had some black sheep in His family, also. Jesus did not allow His bloodline to deter Him away from cooperating with God’s plan in His life. He didn’t sit around the campfire “whoa is meing” about His ancestors so neither would I. I struggled with honoring and loving my family without being CO-dependent with them. Jesus’ word clarified His expectations of me in Matthew 10:34-40. Once I broke free from fixating on my family problems and truly placing God on the throne of my life, Jesus answered several lifetime struggles. He revealed to me the medical reasons my family was vulnerable to such tragedy and created an opportunity through Christ to the World ministries that would exceed my wildest dreams. Within a very short period of time, God revealed to me that I had never been the aimless ship I believed myself to be. He had been there guiding me all along. My loving heavenly Father had used a lifetime of struggles to prune me for a fruitful life in Him. Every problem sent me to my knees in prayer and to His word for answers. And each heartache and revelation is now a tremendous gift being used for His glory. Without God, I am a lost soul without a compass. My father continues strengthen and heal me. He clears my sight and uses my failures for His glory. I am grateful for His never-ending mercy.
Back To Top
Velma Darbo Stevens: Writer
Velma writes many of the Bible study guides in The Life of Jesus Christ series. At present, she is finishing an entire series of Bible study guides on Encounters with Jesus, a series dealing with encounters with Jesus by various persons from throughout His ministry. These studies focus on the mighty power of Jesus to save and transform a person’s life.
A master writer with deep biblical knowledge and theological insight, Velma possesses the ability to write in a manner that brings God’s truth to the reader in a way that can be easily understood. She writes from a background of many years as a writer and editor.
A native of Kentucky, Velma’s parents were Carl Darbo, a first-generation immigrant from Oslo, Norway and Abbie Keithley, descendant of a Revolutionary War soldier. She received her AB degree in English from Milligan College, Milligan College, Tennessee and her Master of Religious Education degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. She did additional graduate study in pastoral counseling at Southern Seminary.
For almost 20 years Velma was an editor with the Baptist Sunday School Board (now LifeWay Christian Resources) in Nashville, Tennessee. She worked on many books, periodicals and teaching resources for youth and adults. For a number of years she was editor of Upward, a periodical for youth. She was one of a large group of recognized leaders of her denomination that produced the two-volume Encyclopedia of Southern Baptists.
In 1967 Velma married Dr. H. C. Brown, professor of preaching at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. In the years following Dr. Brown’s death in 1973, she wrote extensively for Sunday School quarterlies and also authored three books. One of these books, After Weeping a Song, is about her widowhood experiences.
In 1980 Velma married Vance L. Stevens, a retired civilian employee of the U.S. Air Force, Department of Defense. She has a stepdaughter, Sherry Baugh and husband Bob, and step grandchildren Chad and Heather Hughes. Following Vance’s death in 1986, Velma continued her writing ministry, publishing two books. One of these, Until Christ Is Formed in You, is a book on Christian growth for women. For many years Velma wrote Bible study notes for teachers at her home church, Broadway Baptist, in Fort Worth.
In addition to her heavy writing responsibilities for Christ to the World Ministries, Velma is currently working on a book regarding living daily in the presence of God. Her present church membership is with Agape Baptist Church, Fort Worth.
Velma receives great fulfillment from her ministry with Christ to the World, knowing that her work is being used in many countries around the world, and that many persons will come to trust Christ as Savior and Lord through reading her Bible study guides.
Pray for Velma and her writing ministry. Pray that God will continue to bless her with good health and that He will direct her thoughts as she writes the Bible study guides. Pray that God will open the minds and hearts of those who read her work.
|
