As your Senior Regional Pastor, it is an honor and joy for me to meet new members of our churches almost every week.  In this regard, last Sunday was indeed very special.  The Korean woman pictured here has been a Christian for less than two weeks, and the second service at First baptist church in Merchantville was her first worship experience as a new Christian!  

Our new sister in the Lord was led to Christ by Rev. Hojin Yu, Pastor of First Korean Merchantville (an ABCNJ new church development ministry) and Associate Pastor of First Baptist, Merchantville.  Rev. Yu recently was also called to serve as ABCNJ Associate Regional Pastor for Asian Ministries.  Also pictured here is Rev. Doug Hargis, who is serving as Interim Senior Pastor at FBC Merchantville.

In between services, it was a pleasure to journey through the Bible in 3 ways as part of an introduction to the Jesus Christ from Cover to Cover study.

Since the Fanning the Flame Conference in April, I have fallen behind in chronicling my travels to our churches in the region. So, let's catch up with some highlights:

I've been a part of many "special" services in my ministry, but on May 4 I preached at a community service in Woodbury in which an ecumenical group of clergy blessed the work and equipment of numerous fire departments in southern New Jersey. During my message, I recounted the experience of Seaview Baptist Church, which experienced a devastating fire while I was pastor.

Special thanks to Rev. Chuck Reed of Central Baptist in Woodbury for recommending me for the event. The yearly service is organized by Fr. Brian Burgess, Christ Church (Episcopal) in Woodbury.

On Pentecost Sunday, I spoke at Memorial Baptist Church in Salem, where Rev. Lois Miltimore is pastor. This has become a tradition, and she has already invited me back for Pentecost 2009! It was a fun challenge to combine Pentecost and Mother's Day themes in one message!

It was a joy to worship at FBC Flemington on May 18 with Lois and Joshua. Rev. Pamela Reed served up a fantastic children's message on the Exodus. Great "manna" Pam!

In the afternoon, Rev. Elmo Familiaran and I visited the Next Gen Ministry in West Windsor, which meets at Fellowship Baptist Church (where Rev. David Spiegel is pastor). Mia Chang leads this exciting new church project which is reaching out to second generation Asians living in the Princeton area.

I always enjoy my yearly visit to Central Baptist Church in Atlantic Highlands (May 25), and last Sunday I shared at First Baptist Church in Bridgeton, where Rev. John Carman (Below right) is serving as Interim Pastor. John's ministry reminded me of the amazing work our region's dedicated interim pastors do all over the state. They are a vital force in our renewal efforts.

And speaking of renewal, I was delighted to receive a copy of the church's search booklet - in full color! It contains 4 pages of reports from the region's Health and Faithfulness process. That's an excellent use of our surveys!

I still have a few open dates in the last months of the year. Call the region office to invite me to your church!

The Fanning the Flame National Pastors Conference begins tonight at the Green Lake Conference Center.  This national ABC-related event is sponsored by 13 ABC regions and supported by national organizations such as Ministers Council, Women in Ministry, International Ministries, Christian Community Credit Union, Judson University and the American Baptist Assembly.

Check in on www.abcnj.net for daily updates from me!

 Our ABCNJ family enjoys a wide variety of musical tastes, ranging from high church and classical to contemporary.  But I wonder how many of us have experienced blue grass music as part of our worship services?

You would have this past Sunday if you had accompanied me to to First Baptist Church in Matawan!  I would like to express my appreciation to Erik Vagen, Mikey Maguire and Wayne Farmer for their renditions of "How Great Thou Art" and "I am a Pilgrim."  It was just great!

I am also the holder of a form of currency that is quite unique - a "Rev. K Buck"!  FBC's Sunday school is giving out these pink dollars to those who successfully answer Bible quiz questions.  The children can then spend them at an Ice Cream Sundae Sunday on April 27!  Upon reflection, however, I plan to keep my buck as a hedge against inflation and the falling of the greenback!