• Uniting Church and Family Around the World
• Film in Production
• Regional Conference in Houston, Texas
• Controversies Addressed
• Personal Assistance for Your Local Church
• Locate a Family-Integrated Church

The Great Work of Our Day: Reformation of Church and Family

The purpose of God for the Christian family is continuity, growth, development, and dominion. Each family that stands in covenant with Christ through the representative headship of the husband/father is part of that growing kingdom. If a man wants to change the world for generations to come, let him look well to his duties in the family, and be the means of continuing or beginning, as the case may be a dynasty of God-honoring, Christ-serving, kingdom-advancing children, grandchildren, great grandchildren.... The potential impact for the glory of God and the advance of His kingdom is exponential for the Christian family. The future belongs to families that exhibit multi-generational faithfulness and fruitfulness! (Bill Einwechter, A Biblical Vision for Multi-Generational Faithfulness)

The above words, spoken at Vision Forum Ministries’ national conference for unity between church and family, reflect the tremendous antithesis between, on the one hand, the tragedy of the modern family-segregating, parent-neutering church, and on the other, the groundswell of Christ-focused, family revival which is blossoming throughout the land as mothers, fathers, and church leaders from diverse denominational backgrounds are turning their hearts to home.

It is the work of Vision Forum Ministries’ National Center for Family-Integrated Churches (NCFIC) which seeks to equip churches and parents with both a vision of victory for the twenty-first century, and the tools to achieve victory by God’s grace.

Four Hundred Seminary Students, Church Leaders, and Families Attend Uniting Church and Family Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina

It is not the responsibility of the church to usurp the role of teaching children. People in the age-segregated movements say to me, “We are not trying to usurp the parent’s role.” Then I ask them a simple question, “What is the mission statement of your youth ministry.” I ask that question because you can go to any orthodox church in the country, and the mission statement always says something like this, “Our mission is to win and disciple young people.” In other words, the mission of the youth group is to do what God has called parents to do. Whenever your mission is to do something that God has called someone else to do, you have a problem. We are working against God in many of our structures. (Dr. Voddie Baucham)

During one of his powerful messages, Dr. Voddie Baucham (right) commented on the biblical command for fathers to teach their children which stands in sharp contrast to the age-segregated pattern that dominates most churches today.

Arnold Pent III, author of Ten P’s in a Pod, gave a riveting seven-point description of his Bible-saturated, Gospel-preaching, entrepreneurial father who is a great role model for all fathers.

More than four hundred seminary students, church leaders, and mothers and fathers attended the NCFIC regional conference in Raleigh, North Carolina for Unity Between Church and Family. The conference, which featured Dr. Voddie Baucham, Dr. Ted Seago, Dr. David Black, Scott Brown, and Ten P’s in a Pod author, Arnold Pent, focused on identifying the nature of the family crisis within the church, refuting unscriptural humanistic practices which have infiltrated the church and threaten the stability of both church and family, and offering hope through clear biblical solutions. Four specific themes of interest are noted below:

• The Sufficiency of Scripture: We are not at liberty to introduce into our church life-practices and patterns built on pagan assumptions and inconsistent with Holy Scripture.
• Fathers Must Lead the Discipleship of Their Children: Whoever gives hope to the next generation will have the heart of the generation. Fathers are the God-ordained hope-communicators who are personally responsible for overseeing a relationship-driven, Word-based training program of their own children. It is the duty of the local church to prepare and train fathers for this role, not to take it away from them.
• Existing Churches are Being Reformed; New Churches Are Ready to be Planted: The message of unity between local church and family is transcending denominational boundaries. Church leaders from a diversity of orthodox denominational and independent backgrounds are already about the business of reforming pre-existing local churches and planting new assemblies with a founding commitment to follow God’s program for church and home. NCFIC emphasizes that Christians must work honorably with deference and respect for reformation in pre-existing churches.
• A Network of Resources is Being Developed: Numerous tools (books, CDs, and videos) have been developed, or are in production, to equip saints for the job of family and church reformation.

(Make a donation of any amount to support Vision Forum Ministries before the end of this month and we will send you a copy of Dr. Voddie Baucham’s address, “Getting Our Houses in Order,” on compact disc.)

We Thank God for the Hundreds of Churches Which Have
Embraced the Message of Family Restoration for the Glory of God

Feedback from those who attended the Raleigh conference:

Thank you. I am a pastor of a traditional church. So wonderful and convicting to hear and encounter other hearts turned and tuned to this clear convicting external declaration and call of God. Please pray for me that I would be faithful, true, and obedient to Him. Humbled and encouraged. (Mark P.)

Absolutely amazing! It was so good to be under the convicting power of the Word of God. (Brian M.)

What a great conference. I was encouraged as a church planter! The speakers were excellent and their content was right on. (Paul R.)

The wisdom and the knowledge that was shared at this conference has been such a blessing to me. There is probably no way that I can personally thank everyone who shared, for being so obedient to God’s call on their lives. This conference made me realize how important my part of spiritual leader of my household is. (Brian Hunt)

I have been encouraged personally by this and encouraged as a church elder to implement these ideas in our PCA church. (Rick O.)

I so appreciate the humility of the presenters on all issues of Scripture that they didn’t have the only way. You pointed us to God through His Word. Thank you! (John S.)

“Every word spoken at this conference has uplifted, encouraged, and inspired me, but the obvious love for the Lord and His church in the quiet spirit of Scott Brown has most impressed and convicted me. That is the foundation that will not fail and will carry us all through our raising of families and deliver us into His presence. (Cindy L.)

Houston Regional Conference: September 16-17

Vision Forum Ministries and the National Center for Family-Integrated Churches is pleased to announce the Houston Regional 2005 NCFIC Uniting Church & Family Conference, to be held at the Wyndham Greenspoint Hotel, located in Houston, Texas. Join Bible teacher Dr. Voddie Baucham, NCFIC director Scott Brown, PACES director Dr. Ted Seago, and Don Hart, Esq. for a conference dedicated to encouraging father-directed, family-affirming local assemblies that will build Christ-centered local churches which affirm the sufficiency of Scripture as the guide for their methodologies, and reject the psychologically-driven, evolution-influenced, individualistic, peer-grouping, and age-segregating mentality of modern evangelicalism. Click here for more information.

Find a Like-Minded Local Church

Looking for a like-minded church that respects the Christian family? Vision Forum Ministries and the National Center for Family-Integrated Churches are pleased to make available to you a national database for Christians who share the belief that God’s Word requires unity between church and home (see our Mission Statement). This database has been established for the specific purpose of equipping the thousands of families, pastors, and local church leaders who have contacted our offices and expressed a desire to network with like-minded individuals and assemblies, to work for godly change within pre-existing local churches, or to plant family-integrated local churches in their area. This church directory allows you to register your church in the database or to search for a family-integrated church near you. This church directory is not a denomination, an association, or a confederation, but a network and resource for family-integrated churches and families seeking them. We hold in common the essential tenets of the Christian faith as described in the Nicene Creed and share a common vision for family and church as explained in the NCFIC Confession. Click here to learn more.

God is Providing for the Work of Family Reformation

We want to thank the Lord for His gracious provision and kindness to the ministry of Vision Forum. The Lord continues to provide much-needed resources for the diverse culture-challenging, family-affirming, Gospel-proclaiming projects which are the heart and soul of our work. In this report, I would like to mention two specific acts of God’s provision for which we are grateful: First, Vision Forum Ministries has recently received a matching-gift offer for $150,000, the goal of which is to raise funds for our projects, especially the Uniting Church and Family work, church resources, and film project. The goal of our anonymous donor is to seek the Lord for $300,000 in resources (his donation, plus matching gifts). Second, we have been especially blessed as more than three dozen families have given $1,000 or more for our Faith of Our Fathers film project, in honor of veterans who will receive special mention in the film credits. To learn how you can support the mission of family restoration, click here.

Crucial Resources Bring Hope and Practical
Tools to Families and Local Churches

“Jurisdiction” refers to the right to declare and administer the law. It establishes the legal right by which judges and rulers exercise their biblical authority, and also defines the sphere and extent of that authority. In addressing the many problems and issues facing Christian families and churches today, we should apply the understanding that it is not enough to know what should be done, but also to know who should do it. Therefore, as we consider the problems, we need to first identify the solution — the biblical laws and principles that should be obeyed and applied — and, second, we must determine who is responsible to implement the solution. Both are necessary for properly carrying out the will of God and meeting the challenges of the hour. (Bill Einwechter, A Covenantal Perspective on the Jurisdiction of the Family and the Local Church)

Vision Forum Ministries has recently released a helpful set of ten conference CDs which are designed to encourage families, to be used as a training tool for church discussion groups, and as a resource for seminary students, pastors, and church planters. The series addresses controversies surrounding unity between church and home, while also providing practical helps for building strong families and churches. Issues include:

• Where does the jurisdiction of the church begin and end with respect to the family? And vice versa?
• How do we cultivate a multigenerational vision?
• What does the Bible say about holiness versus legalism? What’s the difference?
• How does the local church train men for leadership at home and in the church?
• What does it mean to live a simple, separate, and deliberate life?
• What should you expect when building a family-integrated church?

Uniting Church and Family Film in Production

One of the missions of the NCFIC is to provide helpful and practical resources to local churches to equip them to restore a biblical vision of unity for family and church. After dozens of interview hours, the filming of a new church and family unity video project is complete and is now in production. The film will provide a practical overview and introduction to Christ-centered, family-affirming local church life. We are endeavoring to release the film by January 2006.

The Pacific Tour: Building Strong Families, Strong Local Churches

The Justin Thain family opened their home and hearts to us while we were on the island of Kauai. Here, Miss Kelly Brown (left) joins Mrs. Thain (right) and her two daughters as they prepare a meal for our team.

Doug Phillips speaking to a crowd gathered on Kauai, Hawaii, during the Uniting Church and Family conference hosted by the Thain family in March 2005.

We thank God that the Lord is turning the hearts of pastors and parents, fathers and faithful congregations in diverse locations around the globe. The devastating impact of humanistic thinking in the church has taken a horrific toll on Christian families. Thankfully, the tide is turning among dedicated minorities from Japan to Arizona, from Texas to Guam. During the first quarter of 2005, the NCFIC had the honor of sharing the vision of the sufficiency of Scripture and its implications for integrating church and home as we traveled more than twenty thousand miles holding mini-Uniting Church and Family conferences on the Pacific islands of Guam, Oahu, and Kauai.

Counsel for Local Churches

NCFIC director Scott Brown is available on a limited basis to travel for one- and two-day private counseling sessions and boot-camps for local churches and church plants. For more information, e-mail conferences@visionforum.org.

	The Biblical Family Now and Forever,
	Doug Phillips President, The Vision Forum, Inc.