Posted: 12/19/03

SBC ethicist joins criticism of 'Rickshaw Rally'

By Bob Allen

EthicsDaily.com

Churches in the Southern Baptist Convention should consider avoiding the Asian-themed “Rickshaw Rally” Vacation Bible School material produced this year by the SBC's publishing house, says a consultant for the SBC's moral concerns agency.

“Southern Baptist churches should seriously consider using other material this year in their Vacation Bible Schools,” Ben Mitchell, a consultant on biomedical and life issues for the SBC Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, wrote in an op-ed piece in the Florida Baptist Witness.

Mitchell also is associate professor of bioethics at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School near Chicago. His commentary represents his own views and not the official position of either organization, the Jacksonville-based newspaper said.

Writing in response to Mitchell, his first public comments on controversy over the VBS theme, LifeWay Christian Resources President Jimmy Draper said he was “deeply offended” by accusations that the material is racist.

“I am deeply offended by this and am saddened by the way our critics have used this inflammatory term to attack us,” Draper wrote. “I challenge anyone to examine our curriculum and produce evidence that we have done anything other than celebrate the diversity of people for whom Christ died.”

Draper countered criticisms that large numbers of Asians are offended by the theme, that LifeWay has been unresponsive to concerns, that it didn't consult Asians in its research and that it didn't pull the material for purely financial reasons.

“Whatever inadvertent shortcomings there may be in 'Racing to the Son,' the ministry impact of removing VBS material would have been profound,” he said.

Draper admitted the curriculum incorporated American elements but denied that it cheapened Asian culture in the process. Symbols like Chinese takeout boxes and fortune cookies “merely provide American kids with a recognizable bridge to a new and wonderful culture,” he said.

But Mitchell said he believes “Rickshaw Rally” contains stereotypes of Asians that give an inaccurate picture of modern Japan and may be “culturally insensitive.”

Since the material is already being distributed, Mitchell said LifeWay “should apologize and avoid using people groups for promoting products.”

“Finally, we should get to know our Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Cambodian neighbors,” Mitchell concluded. “Only by respecting them as persons and understanding their cultures can we reach them with the news that 'red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight.'”

Posted: 12/19/03

Akin nominated to succeed Patterson
as Southeastern Seminary president

WAKE FOREST, N.C. (ABP)–Daniel Akin, academic dean at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., will be recommended as president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C., next month.

A special meeting of Southeastern's trustees has been set for Jan. 15, when the recommendation will be presented, said Timothy Lewis, trustee chairman and chairman of the search committee. If elected, Akin will succeed Paige Patterson, who left to become president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth. All three seminaries are owned by the Southern Baptist Convention.

“Dr. Akin is a man with great vision, keen insight and spiritual understanding,” Lewis said in a news release. “His enthusiasm is contagious and genuine. We do not feel any other man in Southern Baptist life could better follow Dr. Patterson than Dr. Daniel Akin.”

Akin, 46, is vice president for academic administration and dean of the School of Theology at Southern Seminary. He previously worked with Patterson at Southeastern as professor of theology, dean of students and vice president for student services from 1992 to 1996.

From 1986 to 1992, he was professor of New Testament, theology and history at Criswell College in Dallas, where at the time Patterson was president. Akin also served on the staff of First Baptist Church of Dallas, was associate pastor of Audelia Road Baptist Church in Dallas and assistant pastor of Northlake Baptist Church in Dallas.

He earned a bachelor's degree from Criswell College, a master of divinity degree from Southwestern Seminary, and a doctor of philosophy degree from the University of Texas at Arlington.

He was New Testament editor of “The Believers Study Bible” by Thomas Nelson Publishers and wrote the volume on the epistles of John for the New American Commentary series.

In 1996, Christianity Today magazine named Akin one of 50 emerging Christian leaders under the age of 40. He is a member of several professional organizations, including the Southern Baptist Historical Society, the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, and the Evangelical Theological Society.

Akin and his wife, Charlotte, have been married 25 years and have four children–twins Daniel and Jonathan, 22; Paul, 20; and Timothy, 18.

Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, with its main campus in Wake Forest, N.C, was founded in 1951. In 1987, it was the first of the six SBC seminaries to come under the control of fundamentalists, who rose to power in 1979.

Posted: 12/19/03

Counselors urge frank talk on what is sex

Editor's note: This story contains frank dialogue about sexual matters and may not be appropriate for all readers.

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

Young adults appear to be turning to oral sex as a way to remain sexually “pure” yet sexually active during the extending period before marriage, according to sexual health experts.

Dan McGee, director of Baptist General Convention of Texas Counseling and Psychological Services, and Joe McIlhaney, director of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health, report oral sex is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to vaginal sex, especially among teens.

Younger generations are having to fight their sexual desires longer because they are marrying later, McGee noted. While it was the norm for earlier generations to marry during a person's early 20s, young people are now commonly getting married in their late 20s or early 30s.

The social stigma that was associated with oral sex also has lessened. While McGee remembers his generation viewing the act as perverted or primarily practiced by homosexuals, younger generations view it as acceptable behavior.

While empirical data on this phenomenon is not readily available, McGee, McIlhaney and other youth counselors report what seems to them to be a clear trend.

Among the physical evidence, however, is a University of Wisconsin study that found 78 percent of new genital herpes cases could be linked to a virus that causes cold sores.

A recent Northern Kentucky University study revealed 61 percent of young adults who made abstinence pledges broke them. Among the 39 percent who did not engage in vaginal intercourse prior to their promise and said they kept their promise, 55 percent indicated they had engaged in oral sex.

Rather than narrowing the definition of what constitutes sex, young adults need to broaden it greatly, warns McGee, a clinical sexologist. Not only is oral sex sex, but so is any sexual touching with the intention of arousal, he said.

“Just because the president of the United States says it isn't sex doesn't make it so,” he said.

McIlhaney echoed McGee's thoughts, saying sexual education courses should teach that sex is a larger realm than vaginal intercourse: “Young people need to be taught physical contact for the purpose of arousal is sexual intercourse.”

McGee outlines three stages in the human sexual response cycle. The first, desire, triggers the second step, biological sexual arousal. Up to these points, individuals have some power over their sexual actions.

People can control their actions largely by avoiding situations where they will be sexually tempted, McGee noted. But adolescents are particularly susceptible to moving from desire to arousal because their hormones are highly sensitive, and they feel the societal push toward sex.

“You can't help it if you have an interest in sex or a desire for sex,” he said. “We do have control over how much we let ourselves go into arousal.”

Although individuals may fight against acting on their desires, once the orgasmic reflex is triggered, control is no longer an option, McGee continued. That God-given design can be beautiful inside marriage, but it can be destructive outside marriage, the counselors warned.

McIlhaney noted a non-marital relationship that includes oral sex can be damaging to a young adult's self-esteem. The individual may feel used or unloved.

Both experts pointed out the numerous sexually transmitted diseases that can be contracted through oral sex, particularly with multiple partners. And the earlier young adults have their first sexual interaction, the more likely they are to contract diseases.

Young people often make the incorrect and dangerous assumption that they cannot get diseases through oral sex, McGee said. “Every risk you have except pregnancy is still there with oral sex.”

Posted: 12/19/03

As teen abstinence message spreads, effectiveness lessens

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

Signatures on many sexual abstinence commitment cards may not be worth the paper they are written on, according to a recent university study.

However, a Baptist who has led one of the nation's most prominent abstinence crusades contends those results are skewed, justifiably, by the ineffectiveness of programs that are not faith-based.

Researchers at Northern Kentucky University surveyed 527 students, 16 percent of whom made abstinence pledges. The study found 61 percent of those who made abstinence promises broke them before marriage. And even among the 39 percent who did not engage in vaginal intercourse, more than half did engage in oral sex.

On a more positive note, the study found pledge breakers engaged in sex a year later than non-pledging teens. However, the pledge breakers were less likely to use protection such as condoms when first having sex.

While the survey represents findings from a small segment of the population, it is one of the first studies of the effectiveness of virginity pledges. While the information should serve as a warning sign, further information is needed before nationwide conclusions can be drawn, said Angela Lipsitz, a professor who was involved in the study.

“It sends up cautions,” she said. “I would say we need to be skeptical at this point. It is only one study. This is showing some interesting things, but I would like to see them replicated.”

Richard Ross, a spokesman for the Southern Baptist-birthed abstinence effort True Love Waits, said the survey's findings did not surprise him.

After the enormous popularity of True Love Waits, the federal government began funding more than 200 abstinence programs that are used in the majority of school systems across the country. Often these efforts consist of a short lecture about reasons for abstinence and a request for students to sign a piece of paper in a notebook, he said. There is sparse follow up, and the pledge carries little weight.

“Even though I am very supportive of any programs that talk about abstinence, I think many of the pledges signed lack the power to shape long-term decisions,” he said.

True Love Waits work is more effective, he said, because it adds an element secular efforts lack–God. He believes the addition of the supernatural gives the promise more power.

“Promising a notebook means almost nothing,” Ross said. “Promising to God is extremely important to most young people.”

True Love Waits works through local churches and with families, a key element in providing accountability, support and encouragement that differs from secular programs, Ross added.

Additionally, the larger gatherings sponsored by True Love Waits–such as stacking the pledge cards to the roof of the Georgia Dome in Atlanta or the upcoming collection of cards at the 2004 Olympics in Athens–provide celebratory occasions that help teens know they are not alone in their beliefs, Ross said.

These celebrations create a brotherhood among students and encourage them to be proud of their stance, said Ross, who started the movement at Tulip Grove Baptist Church in Nashville in 1993 and now is a professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth.

David Hager, director of the University of Kentucky-affiliated obstetrician and gynecology training program at Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington, Ky., affirmed Ross' belief in the necessity of continuous support for a pledge to be successful.

Supportive friends and family are key to encouraging young adults to stick to their promises, Hager said.

When an individual's support group becomes less supportive of a sexual purity pledge, the chances of keeping that oath drop drastically, he reported. “The teaching of abstinence and abstinence education is not a one-time event. It has to be a continuous thing.”

Joe McIlhaney, director of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health, a non-profit educational group based in Austin, goes even further to say that abstinence pledges should be renewed to keep them fresh on the teen's mind.

“The kids are really asking for help staying sexually abstinent,” he said. “They just aren't receiving the support.”

The effort to create a virginal community through True Love Waits has worked so well that it is cited as a factor behind a statistical national drop in teen sexual activity each year since its inception. Today, slightly more than 50 percent of middle school and high school students are virgins, Ross said, and that's an improvement.

“Behavior is changing,” he said. “It has not changed for every teenager.”

Ironically, too much success may dilute the effectiveness of abstinence pledge programs, according to the government's 2001 National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

As the number of pledges increases in a school, their effectiveness decreases, the study found. Researchers report that students are attracted to the pledges, in part, because they get a sense of community apart from their peers.

Even though secular abstinence programs are less effective than faith-based ones, the government should continue funding secular programs, Ross insisted. Not only are such programs morally right, they also save the government money on social services every time they prevent a teenager from getting pregnant.

Posted: 12/19/03

Baldridge	Busha	Chapman	Sicking	Stanfield	Taylor

Six teens named to Texas Acteen Advisory Panel

By Ken Camp

Texas Baptist Communications

Six 11th and 12th grade Baptist girls have been selected to serve on the Texas Acteens Advisory Panel for this year.

Panelists are Abby Baldridge, a junior from Rocky Point Baptist Church in Stephenville; Laura Busha, a senior from Freeman Heights Baptist Church in Garland; Kaitlin Chapman, a senior from First Baptist Church in Amarillo; Martha Sicking, a junior from First Baptist Church in Bay City; Jessica Elizabeth Stanfield, a senior from University Heights Baptist Church in Huntsville; and Ashlee Taylor, a junior from First Baptist Church of Humble.

“These Acteens were selected to represent Texas Acteens because of their investment in ministry, missions awareness and servant leadership,” said Emily Row, Acteens consultant with Woman's Missionary Union of Texas.

“These special young women will give leadership in a variety of ways throughout their year of service. The panelists will have opportunities in their churches, associations and in the state to share their missions journey.”

Posted: 12/19/03

Young Han	Miwha Han	Helmer Jensen	Shannon Jensen	Mike Shattuck	Vicki Shattuck

Around the State

Appointments

Three Texas couples were among missionaries appointed by the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention last month in Lexington, Ky.:

Young and Miwha Han will serve in the Caribbean Basin, where he will be a church starter. He is a former associate pastor of Korean First Church in Dallas.

Helmer and Shannon Jensen will serve in southern Africa in field-support roles. She is a native of Fort Worth. They have four children, Veronica, Alexandria, Gabrielle and Joslynne.

Mike and Vicki Shattuck will serve in central and eastern Europe, where he will be a strategy coordinator. He is a former director of missions for Haltom Road Church in Fort Worth, while she served the church as preschool director. She also served at North Fort Worth Church in Fort Worth and at First Church in Lewisville. He was Macintosh systems engineer at Prestonwood Church in Plano. They previously served as International Service Corps volunteers in Chile.

Children in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, appreciated the efforts of 44 Texans who traveled more than 1,200 miles in vans to lead Vacation Bible School and pass out tracts along the Malecon boardwalk there. The five VBS sites drew more than 1,000 children. Churches involved in the mission effort were Primera Hispana in Giddings, Fuente Vida in Brenham, Mission Emmanuel in Caldwell, First Church in Lexington and First Church in Caldwell. Independence Church in Brenham and First Church of Dime Box made financial contributions to the trip.

Retiring

Norman Fry, as pastor of First Church in Friendswood, after more than 50 years in the ministry, Feb. 1. He has served his present congregation for more than 36 years. He was licensed to preach at Bell Memorial Church in Decatur and ordained to the ministry at Calvary Church in Bay City. His prior pastorates were at Collegeport Church in Collegeport, Oyster Creek Church in Oyster Creek, First Church in Three Rivers and West End Church in Freeport. The church will honor him Sunday, Jan. 25, with a catered lunch and a time of recognition and appreciation. Lunch reservations need to be made in advance by calling (281) 482-7573.

Anniversaries

Gary Demmitt, 10th, as pastor of Pleasant View Church in Bridgeport.

James Cavanaugh, 25th, as pastor of New Light Church in Lubbock, Dec. 1.

Dwayne McCrary, fifth, as minister to young adults at First Church in Lubbock, Jan. 1.

Jim Gerlt, 10th, as pastor of Indiana Avenue Church in Lubbock, Jan. 16.

Deaths

Charles Cockrell, 94, Nov. 12 in Arlington. Cockrell was the pastor of several congregations, including 28 years as pastor of First Church in Garland. A Baylor University graduate, he also was moderator of Dallas Baptist Association, chairman of the board of trustees of the Southern Baptist Annuity Board, the Baptist Standard and the Southern Baptist Sunday School Board. While pastor of the Garland church, enrollment rose from 300 people to more than 2,000. He also led the church to start seven missions, which are now established churches. He also served on the Baylor board of trustees 16 years, during which four buildings were constructed at the Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas and two on the Waco campus. He attended every Baylor University football game for more than 50 years. The Garland Chamber of Commerce voted him the outstanding religious leader of Garland within the last 50 years. He was preceded in death by his wife of 65 years, Willie Mae. He is survived by his daughters, Carol Jones and Carma McCollum; four grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.

Agnes Cavin, 79, Dec. 5 in Abilene. She was the wife of Berl Cavin, a longtime Texas pastor and director of the missions division of Dallas Association. She also was an administrative assistant for Buckner Children's Home in Dallas six years. She was a member of First Church in Abilene. She was preceded in death by her husband. She is survived by her son, Bob; daughter, Debbie Coltman; brother, Wesley Thompson; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Buddy and Beth Wells have been commissioned as Mission Service Corps volunteers. Pastor Dan Murray of First Church in Stephenville presented them with certificates recognizing them as volunteers working with churches in Erath Association. Buddy Wells served on the church's staff from 1984 until his retirement in 2000.

Paul Leath, 87, Dec. 9 in Houston. A Baylor University graduate, he was pastor of churches in Louisiana, Georgia and California in addition to First Church in Brownwood. He joined the faculty of Houston Baptist University in 1976. He was president of the California Baptist Convention. He had been a member of West University Church in Houston since 1976. He retired from the university to interim ministries in 1987 at age 71. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Ann; brother, Roland; and grandson, Jason. He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Maritia; daughters, Ann Leath, Louise Beard, Brooks Hauschild and Joelle Leath; stepdaughter, Hopie Campbell; stepson, Stan Allcorn; and eight grandchildren.

Joe Morman, 87, Dec. 12 in Longview. A Baylor University graduate who had his studies interrupted by a stint as a paratrooper in World War II, he was pastor of churches in Illinois, New Mexico and Chandler, Harris Creek and Hale Center. He was president of the New Mexico Baptist Convention two years. In 1974, he moved to Longview to become director of missions of Gregg-Soda Lake Baptist Area. He retired in 1981, and had been active at First Church in Longview 29 years. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Anita, and brother, J.O. He is survived by his wife, Lou Ann; daughters, Rebecca Bassett and Susan Wright; step-sons, Tim and Steve Marrow; sister, Bonnie Wilkinson; brother, Jack; three grandchildren; five step-grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Ordained

James Hassell to the ministry at First Church in Bedford.

Events

Brentwood Church in Houston will ring in the new year with a Watch Night service Dec. 31 at 10 p.m. Pastor Joe Ratliff will deliver the message. For more information, call (713) 852-1400.

Bethel Church in Clardy will hold a dedication service Jan. 4 for a newly constructed 4,600-square-foot educational building and fellowship hall. Ron Lyles, pastor of South Main Church in Pasadena will be the guest speaker. Several men from the Pasadena church assisted in the construction. A lunch will follow the service. Carter Lyles is pastor.

Trinity River Association hold a rally at First Church in Liberty Jan. 11 at 6:30 p.m. Paul Fregia of Vidor will preachand the Gospel Express quartet from Brenham will provide the music. For more information, call (936) 336-9232.

Posted: 12/19/03

Bittick marks 25 years with Denton Association

DENTON–In the modern mobile society, long-term employees are rare. Long-term volunteers may be rarer still, but Janie Bittick has served Denton Baptist Assocition as its associational clerk 25 years.

“I really love it,” she said. “Staying after it for 25 years, I've gotten to meet and know a lot of saints–a few sinners, but mostly saints–and they have inspired me greatly on my journey.”

The experience also has given her a bit of historical perspective, as far as the work of the association goes.

“I've been given a sense of history, seeing how the vision for the association has progressed and been realized over the years,” she said. “I've really enjoyed seeing all the new churches that have become a part of the association over the years and watching the ways the older churches have kept at it and continued to minister to their communities.”

Having someone stay in that position for an extended term is a definite boon to the association, said Director of Missions Gary Loudermilk. “Consistency would be the No. 1 benefit, and improved record keeping over the years would be another,” he said.

Bittick, who also has served her church, Southmont Baptist in Denton, as clerk, helps the association by offering instruction for church clerks.

“The most important thing is to be accurate and to remember that you learn by your experience,” she said.

Posted: 12/19/03

Baptist Briefs

Johnson leaving WMU. Trudy Johnson, national director of Christian Women's Job Corps through Woman's Missionary Union, has resigned to take a new position at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham, Ala. Debra Berry, adult ministry consultant with WMU, will give interim leadership to the program while a new director is sought.

Southwestern awards degrees. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary awarded 274 degrees Dec. 12 in winter commencement ceremonies at Travis Avenue Baptist Church in Fort Worth.

CBF offers kids' camps. The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship will partner with Passport to offer camps for children completing third through sixth grade under a new program called PASSPORTkids. The camps will be directed by veteran children's minister Mark McClintock, who recently left the staff of Seventh & James Baptist Church in Waco. For 2004, camps will be held in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama and Missouri. The four-day camps run from mid-June through the end of July. For more information, visit www.passport-kids.org.

Theologian Henry dies. Carl F. H. Henry, famed evangelical theologian and first editor of Christianity Today, died Dec. 7 in Watertown, Wis., following a lengthy illness. He was 90 years old. In 1977, Time magazine called Henry the leading theologian of American evangelicalism. He is credited with helping shape the defense of evangelicalism as intellectually credible. A Southern Baptist, Henry was a member of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C.

Barrows donates hymnals to Southern. Cliff Barrows, longtime music director for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, has donated his collection of 298 hymnals to Boyce Centennial Library at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The collection includes songbooks from Graham crusades, compilations by Barrows, along with solo and duet songbooks used by the Graham ministry. It also includes hymnals purchased by Barrows in every country where Graham held a crusade.

Johnson to lead Criswell. Jerry Johnson has been named president of the Criswell Center for Biblical Studies, which includes Criswell College and Criswell Communications. Johnson, 39, has been dean of Boyce College at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. He succeeds Richard Wells, who resigned to take a pastorate in South Dakota. Johnson gained notoriety in the 1980s when as a young trustee of Southern Seminary, he accused then-President Roy Honeycutt of not believing the Bible. Johnson went on to serve the seminary board as chairman in the early years of President Al Mohler's administration. He later resigned his Colorado pastorate to enter doctoral studies in Christian ethics at Southern, then joined the seminary staff. He is a native of Malakoff and a 1986 graduate of Criswell College.

Frost leaves NAMB for New York. Gary Frost, vice president for strategic partnerships with the North American Mission Board, has been named executive director of the Metropolitan New York Baptist Association. Before taking the administrative post with the Southern Baptist Convention mission board in 2001, he was pastor of an Ohio church and served two terms as the SBC's second vice president.

Alabama Baptists support commandments displays. Messengers to the Alabama Baptist State Convention voiced their support for publicly displaying the Ten Commandments. Meeting at Cottage Hill Baptist Church in Mobile, messengers overwhelmingly adopted a Ten Commandments resolution that encouraged elected officials to "uphold righteousness, acknowledge the biblical foundations of government and contend for the right of religious expression provided for the American people within the Constitution of the United States of America."

Posted: 12/19/03

Richardson church touches world with internships

By Marv Knox

Editor

RICHARDSON–Someday, a parents' night out ministry in Texas may touch families in Britain. And a class for Spanish-speaking immigrants in Richardson may lead Pakistanis to Christ in Birmingham, England.

The link in such a global chain of events is First Baptist Church of Richardson's British internship program.

Each July, a young couple, fresh out of seminary, arrive in North Texas. They spend the next six months serving on the staff and observing the ministries of the Richardson congregation.

Kerrion and Bill Miller, British interns at first Baptist Church of Richardson, talk with Candy Smith, asssociate pastor for ministry, and Pastor Brian Harbour.

And when they go back home to British Baptist churches, they carry more than Texas souvenirs. They return with a supply of ideas for sharing the gospel with people where they live.

That's how it has worked for Bill and Kerrion Miller, the fifth British internship couple, who have watched, learned and ministered at First Baptist in Richardson since the middle of last summer.

The Millers have been creating “video memories” of ministries conducted by the progressive Texas Baptist church, he reported.

They want to learn a variety of ways to share the gospel and meet people's needs in Jesus' name. Later, they'll test many of them in West Bromwich Baptist Church, a multi-national inner-city congregation located in the “urban sprawl” of Birmingham, one of England's largest cities, where he will become pastor Jan. 31.

The Richardson church developed its British internship through a partnership with Blenheim Baptist Church in Leeds, England, explained Brian Harbour, First Baptist's pastor.

The concept fit nicely with the church's desire to be a “teaching church,” a congregation that provides internships for young ministers, Harbour said. By the time the British internship got started, First Baptist already had launched an intern program for students at Baylor University's Truett Theological Seminary, as well as a youth ministry internship.

“This program is now a major player in the overall direction of our church to be an Acts 1:8 model church,” added Candy Smith, the church's associate pastor for ministry. Acts 1:8 in the New Testament records Jesus' command to spread the gospel “to the ends of the earth.”

“Part of our dream is to be able to touch the world,” Smith said. “So, to be able to have a couple or individuals come over and get training, and for our relationship to continue, we get to be a little part of the plan of what God is doing to influence that whole country.”

For First Baptist's part of the plan to work, church members Jerry and Margaret Redmon traveled to Britain and convinced the principals at the Baptist colleges–which provide the equivalent of a U.S. seminary education–to participate in the program and promote it on their campuses.

For Redmon, the internship program was an opportunity to exercise stewardship and build bridges.

“Our staff is a very talented teaching staff. We like to see them have an opportunity to train youngsters,” he said, noting the British Baptist principals liked the idea of sending some of their “best and brightest” students to learn from talented ministers.

Also, the church already had committed to build bridges with Christians in other parts of the world, he added, explaining the opportunity to train young ministers with whom they could maintain relationships was a way to make certain the traffic on those bridges would “go both ways.”

The first intern couple, Andy and Jo Caldwell, had a positive experience. Their advocacy “gave peace of mind to others,” said Harbour, who praised the Caldwells' courage for trying out an untested program.

Since then, counting the Millers, four couples and one single male have participated in the internship. They arrived in July, lived with church members for six months, acclimated themselves to Texas and learned from, as well as ministered to, an active Baptist church.

“We have given them full rein as far as where they want to be involved and where their gifts and interests are,” Smith said. “So, every intern has had a different involvement and impact on our church. Not only do they observe, but they have been very involved in hands-on ministry.”

This year, in addition to other ministries, Bill Miller has been involved in the church's English-as-a-Second-Language program, and Kerrion Miller has focused on preschool ministry.

The Millers put their “permanent” ministry on hold for six months to come to Richardson in order to participate in and learn from a kind of church they probably never will experience again.

“Why not get exposure to a whole range of ministries?” he asked. “We've been getting to know lots of different kinds of programs.”

That contrasts with West Bromwich Baptist Church, which is much smaller, as well as their sense of calling to serve small, inner-city churches for the rest of their lives.

“I'm really looking forward to getting back and getting involved,” he stressed. “But it's easier to do this now–to just get a different view on ministry–than it would be later.”

“Like after we start a family,” she added.

Although First Baptist in Richardson is many times larger than West Bromwich Baptist, and Texas culture is distinctly different from British society, the Millers said they expect to transfer much of what they have learned this year to their new ministry back home.

“There are programs we can see being implemented on a much smaller scale,” she said. “The church we're going to is multi-cultural, with seven or more nationalities, so we might try to do English-as-a-Second-Language.

“Child care is different, but we learned some lessons,” she added, noting First Baptist's parents' night out–which provides childcare so moms and dads can have an evening together without children–would work well at West Bromwich.

A few weeks ago, at a missions banquet, Miller absorbed a new way of promoting a cause that's central to Christian faith.

“I was thinking, we will do it on a shoestring budget in a very different way,” he said. “It probably would start as a bring-and-share meal, but the same principles apply: What a useful thing, to have an annual event that puts global missions on the agenda and keeps it there.”

They've also pondered Sunday School, which in Britain primarily is offered for children. Miller has tried to imagine how he might incorporate some of those training opportunities so adults can learn more about the Bible and grow in their faith.

Through six months of work and learning, the Millers have created images–quite literally–of ministries they may implement someday. They have taken digital photos of practically everything they've done, so the pictures will prompt their memory when they return to Britain.

But beyond studying programs and learning methods, a key to the internship is relationships, he noted.

“I've said to the ministers: 'You might well get an e-mail from me someday. I don't know what the question might be, but you will hear from me.'”

Those relationships have been strong and significant, she added. “We've said over and over again that we've been overwhelmed by the welcome of the Texans.”

In addition to involving them in ministries and church functions, First Baptist friends have fed them meals and taken them to a rodeo, as well as baseball, football, basketball and hockey games. “And don't forget high school football, which in Britain is not such a big deal,” she added.

The Millers particularly appreciate First Baptist members Dave and Becky Harless, who have kept the couple in their home for six months. “They looked after us like their children,” she said.

“Despite the cultural difference, I was really impressed by how friendly a big church can be,” Miller said.

Throughout the internship program, First Baptist in Richardson also has gained many benefits, Harbour affirmed.

“They've been great people,” he said. “I've told Bill and Kerrion that just the opportunity to get to know Christian leaders from another part of the world is a blessings. They've all been unique personalities, very gifted. They have to be 'on the edge' to take this leap. These are exceptional, committed Christians.

“And we've learned from them. Several times along the way, we've told them what we do, and they raised that innocent question: 'Why are you doing that?' And sometimes we didn't have an answer. They've helped us see our habits from a fresh perspective.”

Many of the interns have been ministers who could make strong, ongoing contributions as more-permanent members of the First Baptist staff, Harbour acknowledged. But the church has avoided that “temptation.”

“It would undermine the credibility of this program,” which is geared to teaching and returning interns to their British churches, he explained.

And the program continues.

The Millers finish their assignment Dec. 28 and leave Richardson Dec. 29. The church already has lined up another couple, who will arrive next summer.

Posted: 12/19/03

Canton children make a market for missions lesson

By Orville Scott

Texas Baptist Communications

CANTON–Fifth-grader Preston Hutcherson of First Baptist Church in Canton read about an idea for a prayerwalk in conjunction with the Lottie Moon Offering for international missions.

Members of the fourth-grade Sunday School class shown with teacher Jan Longenecker are Brittany Arnold, Caroline Giles, Kelsey Koym and Dylan Cleere.

“We could do that at our church,” he told his parents. “It would be so cool.”

Hutcherson's parents, Perry and Lisa Hutcherson, who teach fifth graders in Sunday School, shared the idea with other Sunday School teachers for children in grades one through five. They agreed it was worth a try.

Teachers and students created representative mission fields with pictures and replicas in the classrooms and then invited the entire congregation to walk through and pray as they viewed mission challenges in other countries.

“It made a wonderful impression on both adults and children,” said Nan Skidmore, director of the children's classes.

“I think it will help our church reach its Lottie Moon Offering goal of $20,000,” she added. “We decided to leave the prayer-walk scenes up throughout December.”

In the fourth-grade class, five girls dressed in African garb and volunteered to stay in a thatched roof building created to portray life in Africa while adult classes participated in the prayer walk.

One of the five was Caroline Giles, whose grandparents, James and Mary Nell Giles, served 34 years as missionaries to Colombia with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board.

Giles said the prayerwalk and her missions experience during the summer “made me want to take Jesus' love and salvation to the people who don't know him.”

Last summer, Giles and her family, along with the Hutchersons and other volunteers from the Canton church, served with a church in Latvia, helping lead more than 50 orphans to faith in Christ at an encampment.