“God used Yukon Church to completely change my life and my entire family,” said Travis White, an attorney for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and a Yukon resident. “Are church plants important? My answer to that question would be an emphatic ‘Yes’.”

White shares his story in a promotional video about this year’s Oklahoma State Missions Offering (SMO). His mindset about church used to be “that’s where ‘good people’ go,” and he believed his world did not have anything to do with that. He thought, as an attorney, he was responsible in keeping bad people away from the good people, and he did not view himself as one of the good people.

Church planter Keith Henson shared how he got involved in planting Yukon Church.

“The Yukon/Mustang area has really exploded over the last many years, and that’s the reason for the church start,” he said. “I believe that, when we got started, there was one Southern Baptist church for every 10,000-12,000 people in the Yukon area.”

Henson said White and his family came to Yukon Church because they were invited by a friend.

“Travis saw people in a different way and church people in a different way,” he said.

White said as he grew up he felt he didn’t belong in church, but it was different when he experienced Yukon Church.

“It was not a place I felt like an outsider,” he said.

He shared in the video about Chris Smith, teaching pastor at Yukon Church, visiting with White and his wife in their home. Smith shared the Gospel with them, and they accepted Christ into their lives.

Henson shared the impact of White making a profession of faith.

“It was amazing to see what the Lord did in their lives and to see the change in Travis’ life and then to see the subsequent change in his family over the years as that godly leadership has matured and continues to mature,” he said.

The video shows scenes of White leading a small group Bible study.

SMO was instrumental in the Yukon Church plant, as Henson explained, “These people who give to the State Missions Offering are planting seeds and are cultivating something that is eternal.”

“There are so many people who have a story just like mine,” said White. “There are so many people who need to be exposed to the truth. The more churches that we can build up, that’s exactly what we are supposed to be doing.”

The Week of Prayer for Oklahoma state missions is Sept. 6-12, and a special prayer guide is available through the website, www.bgco.org/smo. Churches can make an emphasis of the SMO by showing this promotional video or any of the five that can be downloaded through the website, which has other resources that can be printed. The announced state giving goal for the 2015 SMO is $1.135 million.