The Baptist Temple of Oklahoma City

Thanks for stopping by! I can't tell you how grateful I am that the Lord has called me into the ministry and then to be the pastor of our wonderful church.  I have been the pastor of Baptist Temple for over twelve years and it has been a wonderful journey along the way. I love the Christians at Baptist Temple and I appreciate them more and more as time marches on. In case you are wondering who I am and what I believe in, let me tell you a few things:  

• First, I am a still a pilgrim in my Chrisitan journey.  To me, this means that though I have been walking with the Lord Jesus Christ for over 29 years, I still have much to learn about Him and the life of faith. I have had my own share of victories and defeats, and through it all I have discovered that there is nothing I can ever do that would cause God to love me any more or any less. I can echo the words of the Apostle John who said, "We love Him because He first loved us, and gave His son to be the propitiation for our sins."  As I grow in my relationship to the Lord, I discover more and more how wonderful He is, and that there is everything to gain and nothing to lose in seeking Him, submitting to Him, and serving Him in my life.  This allows me to relate to people in most phases of their lives because I have known the happy heights of good times, and the depressing depths of bad times. 

• Second, I have come to understand the idea that "God is not a respecter of persons."  While all people are loved by God and are precious to Him, the fact is that He is holy and humans are not. God loves all of us equally, but He leaves no wiggle room in diminishing the fact of His perfect holiness, His truth or His laws. God never changes. And one day all of us will bow our knees to Christ and confess with our tongues that He is Lord to the glory of the Father.

• Third, I know that daily time spent in the Bible, with a quite and seeking spirit, and with a pen in hand and a note card on which to write will ensure that the Holy Spirit will most likely impress on my spirit something to ponder, or some important truth on which to meditate.  We can walk with the Lord for many years only to find that on any given day He may take a simple truth and make it more real to us than we ever could have imagined. God still speaks, but we cannot hear from Him as clearly as we should apart from the word. 

If you would ever like to talk to me about ANYTHING, please know that I am easy to approach, a careful listener and I will be the kind of Christian friend and man who will do all he can to help you in your pilgrim journey too.  

May God richly bless you!!

Bro. Joe

The Japanese congregation is blessed to have Rev. Stanley Oshiro is a pastor of the Japanese Language mission.  Stanley is fluent in the Japanese language and he graduated from Kubasaki High School of Okinawa, Japan - a US Department of Defense Dependent School inside a US Marine Corp Base in 1978.  The Japanese congregation is near and dear to the people of Baptist Temple and is the only Japanese language congregation within the State of Oklahoma that we are aware of.  This ministry has been going strong for over 11 years and is attended faithfully by the membership.  Aside from their Sunday ministry, the Japanese congregation has a monthly fellowship that is joyful and well attended by Japanese and English speakers alike. If you are interested in learning more about the Japanese ministry please contact Stanley directly or call the church office for more information.  Stanly holds a Bachelor's Degree in Theology from Bible Missionary Institute of Rock Island, Illinois, with additional college level studies through the University of Central Oklahoma.

Perry Smalts is our wonderful worship leader.  We are so blessed and thankful to have Perry and George leading us in worship on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings.  Perry brings a mixture of good old hymns that are always relevant with a spattering of contemporary music.  If you are seeking a church that has retained a traditional style of worship but is also open to praising Christ with new music as well then please come and check us out on Sunday to hear what Perry has prepared for you!

God gives us abilities so that we can bring honor to him. His gifts strengthen us to live for him, and they remind us that he is in control and is the giver of all things...

God has given me a wonderful family, a husband and our two awesome boys who we are very proud of.  God has also blessed me with a wonderful church family here at Baptist Temple.

You know that you have experienced love and friendship when you step through the doors here at BT, never a more welcoming and loving church has there been than Baptist Temple...

Come and experience the love and friendship with us here...We would consider it a privilege to worship with you! 

In Christ's Love,

Lori

HIS FOOTSTEPS

WHEN SOMEONE DOES A KINDESS, IT ALWAYS SEEMS TO ME

THAT'S THE WAY GOD UP IN HEAVEN WOULD LIKE US ALL TO BE,

FOR WHEN WE BRING SOME PLEASURE TO ANOTHER HUMAN HEART,

WE HAVE FOLLOWED IN HIS FOOTSTEPS AND WE'VE HAD A LITTLE PART

IN SERVING GOD WHO LOVES US--FOR I'M VERY SURE IT'S TRUE

THAT IN SERVING THOSE AROUND US, WE SERVE AND PLEASE GOD TOO.

~HELEN STEINER RICE