Serving the Body: Biblical Training for Deacons

by Bill Smallman

Overview

DEACONS are the lifeblood of the local church as they serve the pastor, and serve with the pastor in shepherding the flock. The New Testament carefully defines qualifications for deacons, looking more at godly character than at credentials. The functions of deacons are described in terms of ancient (1600s) Baptist tradition of three tables: of the pastor, of the poor, and of the Lord. These 10 lessons can serve to train prospective deacons or to refresh the awareness of present deacons of their resources and responsibilities.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781984914965
Publisher:	CreateSpace Publishing
Publication date:	03/01/2018
Series:	Trustpages
Pages:	82
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.17(d)

About the Author

Rev. Bill Smallman left an engineering career in aerospace design to follow God's call to world missions. After a brief ministry as the founding pastor of a church near Chicago, he and Doris served with Baptist Mid-Missions in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, 1970-1979 for ministries of seminary teaching, church planting and establishing TEE for distance education seminary. He led the seminary through a process of nationalization to come under Brazilian administration.

During two furloughs Bill completed an M.A. in Communications/Cross-Cultural Ministries (Wheaton 1980). He was then invited into the administration of BMM and was Candidate Administrator for 24 years along with teaching modular courses in several Baptist seminaries and colleges. This included teaching and giving training in Cross-Cultural Communications for teams in Israel, Peru, Ecuador, Europe, China and elsewhere. Ongoing studies led to the Doctor of Missiology degree from Trinity International University (1985). As a final mission assignment Bill established an online continuing education program for BMM missionaries. By his retirement in 2009 he had ministered in 27 nations and had also been a vice-president of the mission for some years.

Bill and Doris met at John Brown University where they dated all four years, shared a calling to world missions, and then graduated (1962) and married. Their two children were born while Bill was in seminary, both now actively serving the Lord.

Publications include Able to Teach Others Also (WCL/Mandate 2001) on the nationalizing of global ministry training, after co-editing Missions in a New Millennium with Dr. Ed Glenny (Kregel 2000) and writing two of its chapters, along with numerous periodical articles and book reviews. A Missions Toolkit for Churches came out in 2015 (through Baptist Mid-Missions). The recent TRUST Series of adult Bible studies comes from years of teaching an adult Bible class. Other books on Amazon.Com are from college teaching.