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The 2009 General Conference was historic. Can you discuss the changes that were made and how they affected the IPHC? carpenter: The 2009 General Conference was historic, and up to this point, it will go down in history as the most visionary, changeoriented conference we have ever experienced. It gave us new wineskins of procedure and structure to pour our new wine in. We were in the 21st century, we were doing ministry, but we were just doing [the same] things we’d been doing. The 2009 General Conference helped make us more efficient at what we were doing and more effective in the process. The IPHC celebrated its centennial in January 2011, under your leadership. How do historic events like this one impact the church? carpenter: I think events such as the Centennial are important, period. I think for the IPHC that event was uniquely important. It helped give us a balance as we go into the 21st century and become more aggressive with our futuristic approach to ministry. We needed that anchor, like Joshua 4 when God told him to place the stones on the bank. That Centennial was our stones on the bank. Now we’ll go and conquer the land as they did in the book of Joshua, but we had our time of rejoicing over what God has done for us, and that builds faith that He can help us do whatever needs to be done in the future. I think there’s a balance between our intense focus of the last 20 years in looking to the future, and then coming to an event like the Centennial that reminds us of where we came from. It reminds us of our DNA as an organization, of our doctrinal heritage, of the sacrifices that others made to help us get where we are, of our need to be grateful when we see the growth and progress that has taken place over the last 100 years because of the favor of God upon the church. What are the greatest challenges the church faces in the 21st century? carpenter: I’ve had many conversations with other denominational leaders, and we all share the same dilemmas and challenges. But the one thing that I think the church must address successfully, or nothing else matters, is the fact that we are living in a pagan society. In America, so many people in the church are still under the perception that society is Christendom, that it is oriented on Judeo- Christian ethics. This is a post-Christian society. Our society is becoming more pagan, and as it does, it not only becomes more godless, but it becomes more antichurch. Our challenge is the same challenge of the first-century church. They met their challenge. The question is, will we meet ours as successfully as they did theirs? We have to learn to build bridges to a pagan society because they’re not going to build bridges to us. The command is to “go into all the world,” not to wait for the world to come [to us]. We have to reorient our thinking in the church and learn how to build bridges to our neighbors who may be Islamic, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, etc. We have to be relative to our society without compromising our doctrine and our position. We have to learn how to connect, and then communicate in a meaningful way the gospel of Jesus to a pagan society. If we don’t learn how to do that, everything else we do is to no avail. What must the IPHC do to become a leader in the 21st century? carpenter: I see a great future for the IPHC. I believe with all of my heart that God has laid his hand on the IPHC to be a leader in the church world—not just the <strong>Pentecostal</strong> world, but the church world of the 21st century. I think in order for that to be accomplished, we have to go back to our three words—relevant, dynamic, and demonstrative. That’s what gets us there. Those were the three words God gave me at General Conference, and I believe those are God-breathed words. It’s God’s formula for being the kind of organization that He wants to be a leader in the church world. Relevant in that we know how to connect and communicate; dynamic in that we are a church that makes an impact in our communities; and demonstrative in that we do all that within our <strong>Pentecostal</strong> heritage. With those things intact, I believe God has a great future for the IPHC. Recently, you made the difficult decision to step down as general superintendent. Why did you choose to step down when you did? carpenter: It was a difficult decision— the most difficult decision I’ve ever made. But it was the right decision, and I’ve become more convinced of that every day. It was right for me, for my family, for my church. I have had a 20-year battle with melanoma four times. My most recent bout involved two different medications. The first I tolerated well. But last November, my doctor put me on the second, more powerful medication. Although it worked well, I began to feel the side effects after two months. I had 10 of the 12 side effects attack me all at once, intensely. It absolutely incapacitated me, and I was unable to work for about five weeks. I did not come here for this denomination to carry me as an invalid. I came here to be a leader and carry the church. And when I felt I could no longer do that, then my integrity would not allow me to retain a position the responsibilities of which I could not carry out. I want to say the church has been gracious and kind in responding to my decision. People have overwhelmed me with phone calls, voice mails, emails, texts, cards … There’s no way I can answer them all. I ask the church to pray for us. My family and I are together in this decision. I have the support of not only my immediate family, but also my wonderful church family. And I appreciate the support so much. You’ve stated that although you are resigning, you are not leaving the ministry. What are your plans for the future? carpenter: I’m not leaving the ministry; I’m just resigning from the office of general superintendent. My wife and I have always viewed our time in Oklahoma as an assignment from God. When the assignment is over, we’re going back home and will continue to do ministry in another way. It’ll give me an opportunity to focus on my health and allow my body to do what I have not allowed it to do for the last three years, which is focus on fighting this disease. I have felt for some time that I had one significant season of ministry left in my life. I didn’t know what it would be. Several conference superintendents have already contacted me about hosting seminars for their pastors. I spent the early part of my life in Christian education at several colleges, and I would very much enjoy teaching—not on a regular basis, but in special settings. There are many kinds of ministry that I can foresee for the future. But I will say this: my primary ministry is going to be 14 August 2012 | iphc.org/experience
to my family. I have two wonderful children and two wonderful in-laws. I have five grandchildren and now a great-grandson. I want to be a factor in their lives. I never wanted to be a picture on the wall that somebody points at and says, “Who’s that?” I want to be there to have input into their lives, speak into their lives, drink coffee with them, and talk to them. I’ve spent 16 years away from my children and grandchildren, and I feel like I owe them a major portion of my time. What do you consider your greatest ministry accomplishments? carpenter: Contrary to what others may expect me to say, I don’t consider my greatest accomplishments to be a position I’ve held. The church is all about people. And I don’t want this to sound corny, but I think my greatest accomplishments revolve around people, not positions. First, I have always tried to make every individual around me feel important. I am a people person. I remember when I left my last church (I was going to be conference superintendent), this one little lady, silverhaired, blue-collar worker, came by crying. She hugged my neck and said, “You know, pastor, you always made everybody feel special.” That was a great compliment to me. Second, I’ve always tried to treat people right, whether I liked them or not. It’s easy in leadership to take advantage of the position, and I’ve seen it done many times just because a leader didn’t like somebody. I can honestly say I’ve always tried to treat people right no matter what they did or said, or how I personally felt about them. If they were my closest friend or my worst enemy, as a leader I’d render the same service to them. And I’ve never lain down a night in my life and worried that I hadn’t treated someone right. Last, I’ve always sought to be an edifier. Depression is contagious. If you stay around depressed people long enough, you’ll be depressed. Edification and encouragement, that’s contagious too. If you stay around people who are encouragers, you’ll be encouraged and you’ll encourage others. Somebody said the simplest course in human relations is a word, a touch, and a smile. I’ve never forgotten that simple message. People laugh at me for hugging necks. I’ve been criticized for slapping people on the back and always shaking folks’ hands. But those are genuine acts; it’s not contrived. It all goes together with making people feel special, treating people right, and making The Carpenter Family: Bishop Ron and Nan, Rev. Ron Jr. and Hope Carpenter, Bill and Jewell (Carpenter) Wilson, and their grandchildren. (Great-grandson not pictured.) people feel better when they leave your presence than they did when they came into your presence. I was able to make people feel special. I was able to edify people and encourage them. And I was able to help folks feel better about themselves and the people around them. That’s what I take the greatest pride in. What advice would you give a young person entering ministry? carpenter: The problem in answering questions of this nature is not what to say, but what to leave out. There’s so much you want to say. So many things a young pastor needs. He needs training; he needs to take advantage of any schooling he can get; he certainly needs to be doctrinally sound. He needs a great personal prayer life, personal life of dedication and devotion; he needs all the training he can get. But the one thing I think many young pastors overlook is that they need to find a godly mentor that they can trust and build a relationship with, spend time with and listen to what they have to say. They don’t have to have a Ph.D. You’re not looking for a seminary. You’re looking for impartation as much as you are information. You’re looking for a person’s heart; you’re looking for their spirit, for the manner in which they conduct their ministry with other people. Two of my greatest mentors—who helped launch me into what has been apparently a very successful ministry— neither one of them graduated from high school. But they cared about me. They were simple, and yet they were profound in their simplicity. I watched them. I watched how they conducted themselves. I watched how they preached, how they visited with people. I went with them to the hospital; I watched how they handled those situations. I just learned by being there. Along with everything else you get— schooling, prayer, and so on—be sure to find a godly mentor who can impart his spirit into your life. And that will put you light years ahead of where you would have been without one. What legacy do you want to leave behind— both as a leader in the IPHC and as a minister of the gospel? carpenter: My personal desire is to leave a legacy of a servant leader. I’ve served in leadership for 33 years, and I’ve given everything I had everywhere I’ve been. Any leader that has had a title also had the position and the authority that went with it. But many folks who had those three things never knew how to mix that with being a servant to the people. I don’t want to be remembered as somebody who just exercised authority as a leader. I want to be remembered as somebody who served the people. I want them to remember that I tried to live out the words of Jesus who said, “But whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all” (Mark 10:43, 44). iphc.org/experience | August 2012 15
Page 1 and 2: HEALED FROM CYBERBULLYING VIJAY BAL
Page 3: Editor in Chief Dr. A. D. Beacham,
Page 6 and 7: God’s Got My Back A devastating e
Page 8 and 9: Bishop Carpenter passes the crosier
Page 10 and 11: Learning from the best: Veteran mis
Page 12 and 13: COVER STORY A Graceful Transition A
Page 16 and 17: COVER STORY A Graceful Transition A
Page 18 and 19: What is your vision for the office
Page 20 and 21: From Physiology to Theology Mission
Page 22 and 23: ook Grow: Maturing Believers Throug
Page 24: ISSN: 1547-4984 LifeSprings Resourc

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