President's Letter-January 1, 2013

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Whenever you begin a new year it is helpful to remind yourself what you did last year and then make plans for the upcoming year. This is true both on a personal and institutional level. FGA had a very good 2012. Let me reflect on some of the exciting milestones.

First, the FGA national conference in Dallas was a complete success. We had a wonderful array of ministry guests from out of the country, some spectacular speakers, an extremely good time of fellowship together, and we broke even.

Second, as an organization we assessed and reworked the FGA bylaws and made the alliance much more functional in terms of our leadership and organizational vision.

Third, in 2012 we saw a number of books from a Free Grace perspective come on the market. Let me mention a few of them.  Dr. Jody Dillow’s Final Destiny, Marty Cauley’s The Outer Darkness, the third edition of Dr. Gordon Olson’s work, Beyond Calvinism and Arminianism, John Correia’s Refreshing Grace, Mark Spencer’s A Moment in Time, Dr. Keith Krell’s Temporal Judgment and the Church, and Freely By His Grace edited by Dr. J.B. Hixson, Rick Whitmire and Dr. Roy Zuck. Also, Dr. Paul Tanner had an article accepted in the ETS journal on the Salvation of the Soul which will be a helpful resource for those who are not familiar with Free Grace Theology. (All of these works and many more are available at the FGA website book store.)

Fourth, in our effort to train and connect there were a number of pastoral training initiatives that took place in 2012. Charlie Bing, with some volunteers through GraceLife, and Jonathan Logan through his church, trained pastors in multiple sites in Africa. We also made some good connections with pastors and leaders in Finland who came to the conference in Dallas. They were overwhelmed with the generosity of FGA members and their desire to visit and help train pastors in their country. Dr. Ed Clavell continued to lead the training of Hispanic pastors in the Phoenix area. Ed also serves on the board of the Southwest Conservative Baptist Association, providing training and mentoring for many pastors.

Fifth, the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association shared the gospel with thousands of people this year. Dr. Larry Moyer trained thousands this year through Evantell in how to share the gospel. Many of our members trained and participated in child evangelism through local church and para church ministries. Many of you who are part of FGA participated by sharing and training others to share the free gift of eternal life.

Sixth, Grace School of Theology received institutional accreditation. Also, Dr. Ken Wilson M.D. graduated from the University of Oxford, England with a D.Phil. His dissertation is on the theology of St. Augustine. It will be published later this year and provide an excellent resource from a Free Grace perspective. Ken is also teaching this year at Grace School of Theology.

Many of our members continue to teach at Bible colleges and seminaries providing academic training to a future generation of pastors and ministry leaders. 

This is only a handful of the ministries that many who are a part of FGA were involved with during this past year of 2012.

Looking forward to 2013, what is the FGA planning to accomplish under the sovereign will of God?

●FGA Conference ministry:  This year we will have our national conference in Dallas October 14-16. We will also provide regional FGA conferences in Salem, Oregon; Charlotte, North Carolina, and we will co-sponsor the Grace Line spiritual life conference in Phoenix.

 
●FGA Resource Ministry:  We will continue to motivate our members through writing and research projects on a variety of theology and ministry topics that intersect with Free Grace Theology. Our book store will continue to provide resources for our members and those who are interested.  We also will continue to grow our blog and would invite you to contribute for the betterment of all of us in the FGA.

 
●FGA Ministry Networking Nexus: We will continue to connect church and para church ministries with the Free Grace community to participate in missions, evangelism training and pastor training opportunities. We will also continue to function as a conduit and network Free Grace churches with those looking for ministry opportunities.

 
●FGA Theological Trending: FGA will continue to network with leaders in the academic world who hold to Free Grace Theology, as well as dialogue with those who are outside of Free Grace 
circles so as to maintain a healthy dialogue concerning the issues of the day regarding Free Grace Theology.

 
●FGA Student Ministry:  This year we will attempt a pilot program at Arizona Christian University that will train Bible college students in Free Grace Theology and hopefully add members to the organization.

 
As you can see FGA has had in 2012 and will have in 2013 a significant and strategic ministry agenda. Please pray that the Lord will guide you in how you can be involved and that He will guide and bless our desire to glorify His name.


Serving Him with you
Until He comes for us,

Dr. Fred Chay
President, FGA

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