2005 Annual Report
Tuesday, November 29th, 2005The Apologetic Response
Annual Report
2005
The monthly meetings started with just a few friends of the ministry meeting in my home once a month to watch an apologetics related video and share thoughts and ideas and ministry goals. After a few months, our small group of three or four turned into 10 or 12 at which point we saw a need to move this extension of The Apologetic Response out of my home and into the church. This resulted in what we call A.R.M. meetings (A.R.M. is the acronym for Apologetic Response Ministries). We saw a need to equip the body of Christ in our city with quality apologetic resources to use in churches with small groups, youth groups and outreach events. Since interest seemed to be growing and our mailing list also growing, we developed the mission statement for these monthly meetings which is as follows:
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A.R.M.
Apologetic Response Ministries (A.R.M.) seeks to arm God’s people in our
multi-cultural city with materials to help them understand and respond to
the many opposing viewpoints that are leading people away from true freedom
in Christ (Ephesians 6:11).
Since pastors, elders, and others in local church leadership are the first
line of defense for the Body of Christ, we offer an opportunity for ministry
workers from various ethnic and denominational backgrounds to meet for food,
fellowship, and sharing of materials. Each month we present new and
recommended ministry resources focusing on a different topic of concern to
all Christians.
Because meetings are held on Saturdays — admittedly one of the busiest days
for church leaders — we encourage participants to relax and receive; this is
a service “to” them, with nothing asked “of” them. Each gathering begins
with a prayer of thanks and concludes with prayer for our churches and those
He seeks to save.
“Should I not be concerned?” — Jonah 4:11 (NIV)
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I am excited to report that we have equipped folks from from 18 different churches and as many denominations from as far west as Brampton, to the east in Scarborough, and also in central Toronto. We have even had some folks come from out of town just to attend one or more of our gatherings! The best part of this is that every month at least one new person attended!
Before I get into more details about that, I will summarize the past year with the web site.
Web Postings
For those who are interested in numbers I have been able to put a few together to give you an idea of what kind of correspondence goes on. These numbers will not be impressive for those of you who work in internet related fields, but for me they serve as a reminder of just how much can be accomplished with this medium on a part-time ministry basis. So here goes …
- 9 entries (articles) have been posted on the web site since January 2005 bringing the total number to 29 since February of 2004.
- 29 comments have been posted on the site in response to those articles which brings the number of comments posted on site to 125 since February 2004.
- 1723 hits have been counted between February 2005 and November 2005 bringing the total number of hits (visits) to 5000 as of November 19, 2005, averaging 6-10 hits a day.
Email Ministry
- 1046 ministry related emails (not including subscriptions) were received over an 8 month period from April to November 2005. The archives from the months between January and April were lost due to a data loss error. (more on that later)
- 712 ministry related emails were sent over the same time period from April to November.
- Subscription emails received since January number well over 5000. Subscriptions include AR-talk (a mailing list for those in apologetics ministries to share resources), CARM (Christian and Apologetics Research Ministry), IFC (Internet For Christians), Mac-Min (a mailing list for those in ministry who use Macintosh computers), LMI (Literature Ministries International ‘Insight for Leaders’ offering daily quotes of A.W. Tozer), Religion News, CQOD (Christian Quote Of the Day).
Comments
As you can see, most of my correspondence is done by email. I try to encourage private dialogues with readers over email rather than use the web site for ongoing discussions. The web site is intended to be a resource and a spring board for discussion. It has served well in that. The most recent being a comment from a reader in west Africa!
“… Beloved,I am writing this letter with an outflow of joy from heaven.
For some time now, I have been praying that God should lead me through the Holy Spirit to Christian websites that promotes the gospel in its’ fullness,not adding nor subtracting. Thank God,I was able to locate you homepage, and I saw exactly what Iam looking for. … I will be very glad to hearing from you.
God bless you and remain.
Yours For Greater Revival:
Evangelist.Ilona Henry Afamefuna
Ivory Coast
West Africa”
And this one from a confused Jehovah’s Witness:
“I am in dire need of your assistance! I am an unbaptised witness and my friend is in need of a place to live she is a female baptised publisher. we are not dating yet have slight feelings for each other but both agreed to carryout Jehovah’s wishes incl. no premarital sex and the such. I live with my parents and i’m wishing to open my home to her however, she is worried about being defellowshipped we heard that as long as my parents are living there it won’t upset the fellowship and elders. otherwise she’ll be without a home in a month. So we are still uncertain wether or not what we heard is true about living with me and my parents. Still we are hoping it is so she will have a place to live without missing her chance in Jehovah’s paradise. please respond ASAP time is shortening quickly and we both will greatly appreciate your time and effort. thanks.”
Ministry Opportunities
My web site postings and email correspondence are down from last year due to increased interaction with other ministries and other related ministry opportunities. This has been primarily due to the introduction of the A.R.M. gatherings. As stated earlier, we have been able to provide 18 churches this year with high quality videos, books, booklets, tapes and CDs on various topics to equip them to meet the challenges that face Christians from deceptive groups and ideas that seek to lead Christians and others astray. The following is a list of the monthly video showings in which participants were offered free materials as well as materials for purchase:
January - Luther (the latest Hollywood production of the life and ministry of Martin Luther)
February - In The Name of Jehovah (produced by the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention)
March - called to be free (a documentary detailing the story of the transformation of The Worldwide Church of God)
April - DNA vs. The Book of Mormon (a documentary which examines the lack of DNA evidence to support the claims of the Book of Mormon)
May - The Case For Christ (a CCN production with author Lee Strobel)
June - The Witness at Your Door and The Witness Goes Out! (two dramatic presentations depicting how people join the Watchtower and how to help them to leave it)
July - The Da Vinci Code: Separating Fact From Fiction ( a four part series produced by RBC Ministries)
August - holiday, no meeting
September - The Case For A Creator (another CCN production with author Lee Strobel)
October - Seventh-day Adventism: The Spirit Behind The Church (a documentary examining the claims of SDA founder Ellen G. White)
November - Messages From Heaven (a documentary examining the claims of Marian apparitions compared to Scripture)
December - holiday, no meeting
More Ministry Opportunities
As you can imagine, there is a lot of preparation involved in setting up these meetings. Not only are email invitations sent to our mailing list, but the invitation is also posted on two web sites. A lot of correspondence by mail, email and telephone is required to obtain materials, secure copyright permissions for some materials and also prepare original materials exclusive to this ministry. The best part of this past year has really been meeting all the new people in ministry that we have, either in person at the meetings or through correspondence!
Of course promoting other ministries and outreach to the lost and public awareness is a big part of The Apologetic Response as well. It is always a pleasure to inform our mailing list of events in the city of interest to Christians such as ‘The Lanning Seminar’ and the ‘Recapture The Wonder’ evening with Ravi Zacharias and Joe Boot and the many public appearances of my good friend Tony Costa whenever he is engaged in a public debate, offering lectures or appearing on CTS television.
We also had the opportunity of hosting Paul Carden, Executive Director of The Centers For Apologetics Research (CFAR), while he was in town to speak at the Toronto Missions Fest this year. Another great opportunity to raise public awareness of the Watchtower’s ban on blood transfusions came to town with Lawrence Hughes from Calgary Alberta. We were pleased to support his efforts to bring reform to this practice by joining him in a rally outside of the Canadian Watchtower headquarters and at Queen’s Park in downtown Toronto. You can see that story that became the top news story of the day on City TV and CP24 who repeated the story every hour for 24 hours by clicking here. [unfortunately the video is no longer available online. contact apologeticresponse@rogers.com for more information on this video]
Well it’s been a wonderful and exciting second year for The Apologetic Response which could not have been as successful as it was without the Lord’s hand on it and encouragement through some ministry miracles!!
Ministry Miracles
It is said that good things come in 3s just like the Trinity and that is what happened this past year. In June the most amazing thing happened! My computer literally fried! I turned on the power button and the computer snapped, crackled and popped with all the sparks and smoke and smells to go along with it! Thankfully, the hard drive was not affected too badly but there was some data loss (4 months of archived emails!). What could I do? I work in a high school which closes for the summer which means my income also closes for the summer. There was no way that I could afford to buy a new computer to do all the things I had been doing up to that point. So here comes the ministry miracle! A teacher in my school was selling his old computer which also just happened to be much better than the one I lost, for half of what it was worth! Still I had no money for a new computer. I asked him if he was willing to let me have it then since I really needed it and then pay him for it later in the year when I get back to work. Not only was he willing but he also allowed me to pay him in small installments over time as I was able! This new computer has allowed me to expand the ministry of The Apologetic Response in ways that I could not have done with my older computer!
The second ministry miracle happened in September. September is always a difficult month financially since the previous two months off work means lower income. Not only were personal finances tight, but the ministry finances were $300 in the red (obviously a low budget ministry! 
. I was discouraged and thought that the Lord was saying ‘time out’ to this ministry. Just when I had asked some friends to pray for me in my discouragement, the Lord provided exactly what this ministry needed to continue in the black from two very unlikely and unexpected sources! I was reminded by our Lord’s prayer, ‘Give us this day our daily bread..’ That is what He has been providing this ministry with all year. No more and no less than it’s daily bread.
The third ministry miracle also came from an unexpected and unsolicited source. The past few months I have been busy in securing copyright permissions for some audio resources which I thankfully received. I was in need of a high speed cassette duplicator that I could use for this purpose. I had posted one request for it on a local ‘freecycle’ mailing list I am on but got no response. I then began an internet search to shop and compare prices. I had no idea just how expensive these machines were! Just when I started to think of alternatives, I received an email forwarded to me from someone in ministry in Michigan who was looking for a non-profit ministry to pass on a tape duplicator to that he was no longer using!! This person had no way of knowing that I was in need of one! I now have it and will be using it extensively in the new year.
Praise God through Whom all blessings flow!!
More Encouragement
For those readers who have supported this ministry with your prayers and gifts of support and also for the benefit of those who may have only just heard of this ministry, I’d like to share some encouraging words from some folks who have been served and encouraged by The Apologetic Response.
“Dear brother Upton,
I took a look and I am tremendously impressed by your web site. Do you do the writing (except where you quote someone else)? What a wonderful collection.
May the Lord richly bless you in the coming days.”
Robert McAnally Adams, Curator, Christian Quotation of the Day
http://cqod.gospelcom.net/
See the CQOD blog at http://cqod.blogspot.com
and my personal blog at http://readromans.blogspot.com
“To: David Upton, Werner Peters, and Friends of Apologetics Response
Ministry.
I want to commend you on your faithful defense of the faith and equipping of the saints. You are providing a much needed service for the body of Christ.
I have enjoyed your ministry and fellowship and have found the resources you provide helpful. As a student of apologetics at the post-graduate level, I
am in harmony of your effort to contend for the faith, “once for all
entrusted to the saints.” Jude 1:3
Keep up the good work!”
Peter Koropatwa
SIM Missionary
“ARM has given me the opportunity to learn more about God’s Word and the obstacles that people face in coming to know Jesus. It has helped me to see ministry from a different perspective, and has given me some new tools and knowledge that I can use in sharing my faith with my friends. Thank you David for your efforts.”
Robert Hong
Site Administrator for www.ChristianChapel.net
“David Upton is a man that can help you guide what is truth. His ministry has been a blessing to me”
Gerry Falco -President- Grace International Ministries.
“The Apologetic Response provides very good reviews and information about resources available for the area of Christian apologetics, particularly when it comes to dealing with issues of cults.”
Scott Johnson
Producer of ‘DNA vs. The Book of Mormon’ video among others.
Living Hope Ministries, Utah
“In a time of spiritual confusion and amidst the plurality of many voices claiming to have a hold on truth, David Upton’s ministry remains a steady and constant bastion to the truth of God’s Word, a voice of one crying in the wilderness of a godless world, and a light shining in a dark place.”
Pastor Tony Costa, Christian apologist
Toronto, Ontario
“Good morning Dave. I attended the July presentation on “The Da Vinci Code” and found it very helpful. I appreciated the fact that the DVD’s were given as a gift to the attendees. Additionally you provided some written material on Dan Brown’s book. You are to be commended for dealing with this book as it will continue to cause confusion regarding the veracity of the Scriptures and biblical Chrisitanity. Recently my wife, our pastor and I were visiting with new converts and the book came up in discussion. Its tentacles are out there and will become increasingly ubiquitous when the movie is released next year.
While there I purchased the apologetics packets you had put together on the Mormons and the Jehovah Witnesses. They were worthwhile purchases. I loaned the JW DVD to a friend who is also in ministry and like my wife and I, was very impressed with the approach Lorri MacGregor took on it. The DVD on the Book of Mormon. Like the JW DVD it showed the horrendous errors in the two cults but expressed great love for the followers of these false religious systems.
Keep up the good work in helping the sheep be more knowledgeable about the wolves and false prophets.
Blessings,
Neil Bulloch“
“I’ve been blessed to take part in the Lord’s work via David Upton and The Apologetic Response. With an important admonition of Jude 3, it’s a comfort to know that there are like-minded kinsmen in my area who share the true gospel with the deceived and misinformed, in what seems to be mostly a forgotten but truly noble calling of Christ to his followers.”
Tony Poldrugovac
Author of ‘Who Are Latter-day Saints?’
And finally, a reader recently posted this note on the web site,
“I loved reading this and discovering more about the SDA from this site, since it is hard to find out about the fundamental beliefs it holds. Thanks so much Tony Costa and David Upton, your insights are very helpful and may God bless you all as His Word continues to convince us powerfully of sound doctrine. In Christ, Alma“
Financial Report
Again this year, there is not much to report other than to say that our Lord has seen fit to meet the monthly needs of this ministry leaving no surplus or debt. More details will be available to those who have supported this ministry upon request.
Goals
It is hoped that the Lord will help us bring together a strong team of experience Board members who can work together to oversee this ministry and acquire registered charitable status. We are also looking for multi-lingual Christians in the Toronto area who are skilled in translation work to partner with us along with CFAR and IRR to produce multi-lingual materials to be used here at home and abroad.
Please Pray:
- For wisdom, guidance and direction as we offer apologetic responses to the world around us.
- For those who are angry and/or confused, that the Holy Spirit would use this ministry to speak to their hearts and minds to receive the free gift of salvation that He has to offer.
- For protection from the Evil one who would seek to discourage this ministry.
Thanks
First and foremost to our Lord Jesus Christ for sustaining this ministry this year. Thanks also go to my friends and brothers in Christ who have helped so much this past year, Lloyd Marsden, Tony Poldrugovac, Werner Peters, Tony Costa and Renzo Mueller. I’d also like to thank Dave Stubbs, Peter Cavanaugh, Bobby Greer and Donna Leigh Grant for their technical support. Special thanks to all the individuals and ministries who contributed resources to share with churches in Toronto; MacGregor Ministries, Eternal Productions, CCN, Living Hope Ministries, RBC Ministries, NAMB, Grace Upon Grace Ministries, ReformedTheology.ca, BiblePlaces.com, RZIM Canada, Zondervan Corporation, IRR.org, CFAR, Probe Ministries, James Beverley, Ron Enroth, Ruth Tucker, and Dan Dykstra. I also would like to thank all those who have contributed to this ministry with your financial contributions and your prayers. Thank you also to those who have written kind and encouraging comments both on the web site and privately. Encouraging words are as valuable and needed as money and prayers. Last but not least, I thank my wonderful wife Heather whom I affectionately refer to as ‘Holy Heather full of Grace’ simply because she is and my faith filled son Caleb who never ceases to amaze me in so many ways.
May God Richly Bless You All,
David Upton
The Apologetic Response
November 2005
