Posted: 10/3/03

What's another 500 miles when
you're already traveling on mission?

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

A prayer request led a team of Mission Service Corps volunteers to take a 500-mile trip to a small-town church en route to their assignment. But getting there was only the beginning of their detour.

The team of four couples was assigned to build a mission house near the Canadian Convention of Southern Baptists in Alberta, but Jean Holliman found a prayer request for a handicapped ramp that drew them 500 miles away to a small church in British Columbia.

"We work so hard to get people to come to church. And here's a place they want to come, and they can't get in." —Jean Holliman

The prayer request from Salmo Baptist Church detailed a need for a ramp to help older and disabled people more easily enter the church. Several older residents said they wanted to come to the church but were unable to make the climb to get in the door.

“It broke my heart,” Holliman said. “We work so hard to get people to come to church. And here's a place they want to come, and they can't get in.”

The volunteers agreed to answer the call and informed the church they were coming. Shortly after committing to the project, Holliman discovered the church lacked the funds to back the work. But that did not stop the team.

Holliman's home church, First Baptist Church in Sanger, and three other churches donated $4,400 in Canadian currency to the effort. An architect in the church redesigned the ramp to save several thousand dollars. Soon, the project had the green light, and the couples were on their way.

When the building team arrived, they noticed more construction was needed than a ramp. The church, consisting of combined mobile homes, had large cracks on the walls. The interior of the church was dark and in need of decorating.

Undaunted, the Mission Service Corps volunteers went to work. The men constructed the ramp and filled in the gaps in the church walls while the women spruced up the sanctuary, foyer and nursery.

“When we got through, it looked so good,” Holliman said. “It was shining from top to bottom. They couldn't believe it.”

Seeing the results of the volunteer labor encouraged the congregation and opened their minds to new ministry possibilities, said Pastor Gerald Hutchman. “I was excited for the people to see that. They had no idea there were people who would do that.”

As the team was packing up and talking about the project, Hutchman asked them to stay a couple more days and speak to the church's youth group. The youth were largely unchurched kids, and a number of them have parents who are practicing witches in the Wiccan religion.

In the weeks before the workers' arrival, the youth were pressing church leaders to prove to them God was real.

“We were in the process of putting together a youth program because kids in this town got nothing,” Hutchman said. “And a lot of them came. They were the roughest kids in town.”

The volunteers prayed about the invitation and soon accepted the challenge. They shared personal experiences of God's work. Several described their salvation experiences.

The youth were attentive throughout the nearly two-hour presentation, the pastor reported, and one of them led a prayer to close the service.

“When that happened, there's no doubt God was in it,” Hutchman said. “It was awesome to see. That was the first time we saw those kids react to anything we've told them.”

The volunteer team left shortly after the service. Since then, however, six youth have made professions of faith in Christ and are growing spiritually, Hutchman said.

The Mission Service Corps workers drove on to the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary, where they are building a mission house. However, the fruits of a 500-mile detour remain fresh in their minds, Holliman emphasized.

“Sometimes God amazes me,” she said. “You go for one reason, and he uses you for another.”

Posted: 10/3/03

Waxahachie woman chooses
non-traditional path to missions

By Toby Druin

Editor Emeritus

In the next few weeks, maybe by the end of September, Gay Lynn McCrady hopes to be in a new hospital, swapping the uniform of Children's Medical Center of Dallas for the garb of Evangel Hospital in Jos, Nigeria.

McCrady won't be changing roles. She is an occupational therapist and will be doing much the same job in Nigeria as she has been doing in Dallas. But she will have a new title to go with the new address–missionary.

Gay Lynn McCrady

And she will go along with an emerging trend among Texas Baptists who become missionaries–bypassing traditional Baptist missionary-sending agencies in favor of appointment by a para-church ministry.

The 34-year-old will go to Nigeria as a missionary of SIM, a 110-year-old missionary-sending agency with about 1,600 missionaries in 50 countries. SIM, formerly Sudan Interior Mission, but now known as Serving in Ministry, is an interdenominational ministry that focuses on churches and works with about 15,000 congregations with 9 million members. SIM has been active in Nigeria since 1902, working with 30 language groups in 3,000 congregations in the Evangelical Church of West Africa.

It was SIM's involvement in Africa and the opportunity to serve there through occupational therapy that attracted McCrady to the organization, she said.

“I selected SIM but also considered two other organizations, Africa Inland Mission and CB International,” she explained. “I thought about the Southern Baptist International Mission Board, but I already had this route in mind, and at the same time I was concerned about the IMB emphasis on the Baptist Faith & Message 2000 and the uproars about it and the instability there. I looked at the others and saw them as stable.

“I like SIM's team approach to missions,” she said. “You gather your own support and constantly keep in contact with your support team and keep them informed about how their money and prayers are being effective.”

Missions involvement has been a part of McCrady's life. Her parents, Charles “Bud” and Linda McCrady, members of First Baptist Church of Waxahachie, involved her in missions projects early. Her father has been involved in many of the missions begun by the church, and her mother is the church's ministries coordinator.

“A common thread in my life has been the leadership and example of my parents and the churches I have been in,” McCrady said. “I've always enjoyed going and experiencing other cultures and people and being a witness for Christ.”

Her lifelong involvement has pointed her toward missions, she said, but a 1998 mission trip to Uganda, the church's women's retreat in 1999 and another trip to Uganda in 2000 convinced her that her future was in missions.

A native of Dallas, McCrady grew up in Red Oak. She entered Texas Woman's University not knowing what she wanted to do, she said, but as a youth developed a love for handicapped people. One of her best friends had cerebral palsy.

She gravitated to TWU's occupational therapy program, got her degree there in 1992 and for six-and-a-half years worked at Scott & White Hospital in Temple. While living in Temple, she attended Temple Bible Church and learned about SIM there.

Unlike missionaries of the Southern Baptist Convention and Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, who are supported by funds given to those agencies, missionaries with SIM have to raise their own support.

“SIM figures up how much you need,” McCrady said. “You meet with the person who handles appointees and who guides you through the process. For me, it is $2,200 monthly for support and ministry, and one-time costs of $4,808 for all that is required to get on the mission field, $4,500 for setting up and equipment, $1,500 for cross-cultural training and $5,000 for a vehicle.”

Getting commitments for her support has involved appeals to friends, family and former churches. “I expected it to be difficult at the beginning, but I was amazed at how many came forward offering help,” she said. “The churches I had been a member of were excited about helping me long-term. Many people said they had just been waiting for me to decide what to do.”

Posted: 10/3/03

WHICH WAY?
Texans take diverse routes to missions

By Toby Druin

Editor Emeritus

Texas Baptist young people–and those not so young–have an almost infinite variety of avenues of service if they want to get involved in overseas missions.

There is the traditional route of the Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board. Texas Baptists sent the first missionaries to Brazil, the William Bagbys, through the SBC, and thousands of additional Texans have served around the world as appointees of the board.

Susan and Jeremy Taliaferro of Irving receive certificates of appointment from International Mission Board President Jerry Rankin during a Sept. 9 appointment service in Austin. The Taliaferros will serve in Western South America. Many Texas Baptists seeking missionary appointment continue to go through traditional agencies such as the Southern Baptist Convention or the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Many others, however, are choosing a variety of paths to the mission field not known to Texas Baptists in the past. (Bill Bangham/IMB Photo)

In the last decade, some Texans also have gone overseas under appointment of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

But a growing number of Texans, particularly those interested in short terms of service, are bypassing these traditional avenues for other missionary-sending agencies or arranging for service in mission projects sponsored by their own or other churches.

As with other aspects of life, the Internet plays a key role in this changing mindset. An array of missionary-sending agencies lie only an e-mail away from anyone interested.

An increasing number of Baptist students are interested in mission service, especially short-term projects, said Joel Bratcher, director of Baptist Student Ministries at Texas A&M University in College Station. “We are seeing more and more groups all the time.”

The IMB and the CBF have reported increased interest in missions service among young adults today. This interest is fueling growth for both organizations.

But students interested in missions today, Bratcher said, have less of a denominational tie.

“That is not a negative toward the SBC International Mission Board,” he said. “These students don't know about or care about denominational politics. They are more interested in the main agenda of serving Christ and are willing to do it any way they can.”

A popular A&M campus Bible study program led by Greg Matte, a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, provides the catalyst for many students, Bratcher said. Begun 15 years ago by Matte and his roommate, Breakaway Ministries now attracts 4,000 to 5,000 students weekly to Reed Arena.

The ministry's main goal is to plug students into local churches and help them reach non-Christian friends, Bratcher said. But it also sponsors a missions fair each November in which about 30 organizations come to the arena, set up booths and talk to students about ministry opportunities. Many of these are missionary-sending groups.

Many of his BSM students have gone to China through such contacts, Bratcher said, and some are going back to teach English.

Brenda Sanders, who directs the student summer missions program for the Baptist General Convention of Texas, works with all the traditional Baptist agencies in placing students in missions assignments–the IMB, CBF, SBC North American Mission Board, the Baptist World Alliance and inside Texas with churches, associations and various ministries.

But students are as close to a missionary-sending agency as they are to the Internet, she noted, and many make their inquiries far and wide. She gets an occasional call from pastors about various agencies in which their young people are interested.

“We have had several student summer missionaries choosing not to go with the traditional agencies,” Sanders said. “And some have gone with International Schools of China, with whom we also are connected with the IMB, and one went with ChinaTESOL.com.”

Her office recruits student missionaries for such programs as the Texas Baptist River Ministry and for other denominational agencies, she noted, but it's not unusual to get calls from students about other groups. A popular book, “Operation World,” features 365 days of devotionals but also carries a list of missionary-sending agencies, she noted. Another resource popular with students is “Missions Handbook,” which is put together to assist with the selection of missions agencies.

The IMB has opened a variety of ways to make initial inquiries about mission service, including a designated telephone number, website, e-mail, traditional mail and visits by IMB staff members to seminary campuses, said IMB official Jim Riddell.

Missionary appointments and the numbers of people contacting the board about potential service have increased significantly over the last three years, but budget limitations have slowed long-term appointments this year, he reported. However, short-term programs such as International Service Corps, Journeyman and Masters, are growing dramatically, he added, and many short-term personnel return to seek long-term appointment.

The CBF also uses multiple avenues of connecting with people interested in missionary service, said missions co-coordinator Gary Baldridge.

Since the mid-1990s, about 90 to 120 people annually have been in CBF's process for long-term missionary appointment, he said.

Both Riddell and Baldridge said they encourage people to look at opportunities of service with their agencies, but if they can't match the person's desires, they said, they encourage them to look at other agencies.

“In many cases, the individuals already have other agencies in mind that they may consider if we are not able to help them out,” Riddell said.

Despite the expanding opportunities, most missions volunteers at Baylor University's Truett Seminary still are interested in service with either the IMB or the CBF, reported Mike Stroope, associate professor of Christian missions.

“But what I am seeing here, too, is that more than anything the students want to go with people rather than an organization,” he said. “They are finding people (in mission service) and connecting with them and who they are related to.”

That differs from his own experience more than two decades ago when he sought appointment with the IMB. “When I went out, I was going with the board, and I identified with our Baptist organization. Today, I don't know that these students are like that. They will ask me where they can go, meaning, 'Who can I go work with whom I can trust or that you trust?'”

Raising their own funds, rather than depending on a steady salary from a mission board, is not a problem with them, Stroope said.

“Money more and more seems not to be a problem; they see it not as raising money as much as support,” he said. “And if God wants them to go, he will provide the money. They see it as an adventure of faith with God providing. More and more are raising their own money or support, and it doesn't seem to be an issue. And more and more churches and individuals want to give to kids they know; they want to see where their money is going.”

Posted: 10/3/03

Missions network nearing staff leader choice

By Ken Camp

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS–The emerging Texas Baptist missions network is “closing in” on finding a staff leader, according to Albert Reyes, chairman of the network's search committee.

The committee received more than 50 resumes from qualified individuals as candidates for the staff leader, and the committee has continued to narrow the field, Reyes reported to the network's board of directors Sept. 23.

“We have moved from good to better to best. Those we are looking at now are among the best, and we are trying to determine which one is the best,” said Reyes, president of Hispanic Baptist Theological School in San Antonio.

While he did not rule out the possibility of presenting a candidate to the board at its next meeting in October, Reyes said the committee was more concerned about finding the right person than meeting a self-imposed deadline.

Prayer Committee Chairperson Nina Pinkston from Travis Avenue Baptist Church of Fort Worth led the board into a 20-minute “season of prayer” for the search committee, asking God to direct the selection process.

The network's formal organizational meeting will be Oct. 23 in Dallas. At that time, the board officially will adopt its governing documents, as well as elect officers and a five-member executive committee.

Posted: 10/3/03

David Crowder and his band stay
true to their first love in Waco

By Leann Callaway

Special to the Standard

WACO–The son of an insurance broker, David Crowder planned to run the family business after graduation from Baylor University.

Instead, he has become one of the most sought-after worship band leaders in the nation and a popular recording artist.

The David Crowder Band's new release, “Illuminate,” currently ranks No. 1 on the SoundScan Christian retail chart, selling 13,935 units in its first week on the market. This release more than doubled a record-breaking debut of the band's freshman project, “Can You Hear Us?”

David Crowder

Even in the unique world of Christian music, it's safe to say there's no one quite like Crowder, who lives in Waco with his wife, Toni. In fact, he's been called “the Pied Piper of Christian music.”

The Texarkana native says his desire to connect people to God and his passion for college ministry began while attending Baylor as a music major. However, becoming a worship leader and recording artist came as a surprise even to him.

While at Baylor, he was troubled by a campus survey that showed 8,000 of Baylor's 14,000 students said they never attended a church service while in college.

He discussed ways to reach those students with his friend Chris Seay.

“We just started talking about our peers and how there was a lack of student involvement in churches. Being in Waco, there's not a lack of churches, so that wasn't the problem. And it wasn't like, 'Oh, here's a great idea–let's start another church.'

“But we knew those people (at Baylor) because they were our friends, and we thought we could provide an environment they would feel comfortable in and wouldn't feel threatened by,” he explained.

Armed with a vision and a desire to impact their campus, Crowder and Seay founded University Baptist Church in 1996. It is an innovative congregation with a modern worship style designed for students to safely explore their questions about faith. Today, the church regularly draws 1,000 students, and Seay has moved on to establish another innovative congregation, Ecclesia Church in Houston.

But Crowder remains at University Baptist Church as worship leader.

“We've seen a great response since the beginning,” Crowder noted. “But there's still a lot of work to be done–1,000 students is still a long way from 8,000.”

When Crowder became the church's music and arts pastor, he started writing praise choruses he thought students could relate to. At the time, he didn't realize his songs, such as “You Alone” and “Our Love is Loud,” would be sung in churches across the nation.

“For me, songwriting happens when I'm not trying to write a song,” he explained. “I spend a lot of time reading and listening to music. If you pay attention to those small moments in life that maybe others aren't noticing, then you have a place to write from whenever the inspirational moment hits you.”

Among those inspired by Crowder's lyrics was Louie Giglio, who founded Passion Conferences in 1995 and Sixsteps Records in 2000.

“I met Louie through writing some songs,” Crowder said. “I had written some songs for our church, and they had gotten outside our church and were being sung by other churches. Somehow, Louie got a hold of those songs, and they were put on a couple of the Passion CDs.”

This led to the David Crowder Band being signed to the Sixsteps label–which partners with Sparrow Records for distribution and marketing–and they began performing at Passion Conferences and worship gatherings across the country.

“Passion is uniquely collegiate, but its platform has grown to include a wide range of people,” said Crowder, who currently is participating in the nationwide Passion Experience Tour, which will be in Lubbock Oct. 8, Austin Oct. 9, Dallas Oct. 10 and Houston Oct. 11.

The David Crowder Band is committed to sharing the message of Christ through music. They also have remained dedicated to leading worship at their home church. “All the guys got connected to UBC at some point while they were going to Baylor,” Crowder explained. “They just started helping lead worship on Sunday mornings. These guys that I'm with seem to connect to something that needed to go beyond our church.”

With Crowder on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, the band consists of electric guitarists Jason Solley and Jack Parker, as well as drummer Jeremy Bush, bass player Mike Dodson, and Mike Hogan on electric violin.

Despite touring across the country and performing 251 concerts in 2002, they only missed 11 Sundays at University Baptist Church.

“It's amazing to me how God has used these songs and to find that they are taking root other places. To be really far from home and hear people singing the words to these songs that are so personal and meaningful to a small group of folks in Waco is just incredible.”

Posted: 10/3/03

DBU trains students for the business of music

DALLAS–Most universities have business schools, and many have music schools. Dallas Baptist University has married the two disciplines into a unique new bachelor's degree in music business.

The degree prepares students for work in the commercial music industry. DBU is the only four-year school in the Metroplex to offer such a degree.

Professor Terry Fansler instructs Justin Brooks and Christine Hand on how to use studio equipment.

“I tell my students, music is the product, and business is the process used to drive that product,” said Terry Fansler, DBU director of studies in music business. “To be successful in the music industry, students must clearly understand both the product and the process. This degree offers both–and in the right proportions. A good portion of the courses are in music, but an even larger percentage are in business.”

Students study administration, accounting, marketing, entrepreneurship and law.

“The degree is designed to accommodate a variety of career paths, because there are many different ways to build a career in the commercial music industry,” Fansler added.

For example, a musical concert requires a promotional team, an agent, a manager and a stage crew before the first note is played. Similarly, a single CD represents the work not only of the artist and supporting musicians but also of studio engineers, producers, technicians, visual and graphic artists, photographers, lawyers, marketing strategists, distributors and retailers.

“Traditional business degrees emphasize management skills. Because the music industry is changing so rapidly and will likely downsize dramatically during the coming years, we are preparing students to work for themselves as entrepreneurs,” Fansler said. “They can create their careers and not be financially dependent on salaried jobs with large companies that will likely contract out more and more of their work in the future.”

DBU's location in the heart of the Metroplex adds an advantage as well, he noted. In addition to television production and recording facilities in Las Colinas, numerous recording studios, booking agents, concert promoters, commercial production houses and major performance venues are located in the area. During their senior year, music business majors apply for internships with local businesses that match their areas of interest.

“The music business is a tough industry to break into, but students going through DBU's program have a distinct advantage that puts them ahead of the competition,” Fansler said. “The students must have the talent, but at DBU, we will prepare them for the business.”

Posted: 10/3/03

On the Move

Mark Ashley has resigned as youth director at First Church in Hubbard.

Chad Barnett to First Church in Paint Rock as pastor from Avenue D Church in Brownwood.

Randy Bartley to Slide Church in Lubbock as pastor from First Church in Ralls.

Jason Bishop to Bacon Heights Church in Lubbock as minister to students.

Gregg Bunn to Northside Church in Atlanta as organist/ministry associate from Wilshire Church in Dallas.

Jim Clayman to First Church in Mineral Wells as minister of music.

Bill Dawson to Loving Church in Loving as pastor from Dry Valley Church in Lodiburg, Ky.

Jason Ingram to Broadview Church in Lubbock as minister of education and evangelism.

Joe King to Wilshire Church in Dallas as interim minister of music.

Chad and Kristen Lehrmann to First Church in Seymour as youth ministers.

Matt Martin to Field Street Church in Cleburne as minister of music.

Leon Maxwell has completed an interim pastorate at Highlands Church in La Marque.

Ralph Smith to Bannockburn Church in Austin as interim pastor.

Milton Tyler has completed an interim pastorate at First Church in Paint Rock.

Posted: 10/3/03

A DOG, A GUN & A DAD:
Patterson's advice on boys

LAVACA, Ark. (BP)–The No. 1 problem in America today is a war against boys and the establishment of laws to prevent men from hunting and owning guns, Paige Patterson told a group of 1,300 men and boys at an Arkansas church.

Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, was keynote speaker at a Sportsman's Safari sponsored by First Baptist Church of Lavaca, Ark.

Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, speaks at a Sportsman's Safari event at First Baptist Church of Lavaca, Ark., where he told 1,300 people the greatest problem in America today is a war against boys and the establishment of laws to prevent men from hunting and owning guns. (Matthew Miller/SWBTS Photo)

The goal of the event was “to get guys to see the things at church that they're normally looking for in the woods on Sunday,” said Pastor Grant Ethridge.

After an exhibition of “monster bucks,” archery equipment and firearms, the group heard from Patterson, an African big-game hunter.

Patterson talked about hunting plains game in Zimbabwe and displayed photos of his African trophies. But he said he actually came to tell the hunters about “America's No. 1 problem and what they can do about it.”

A war against boys, hunting and gun ownership has produced a generation of fathers disconnected from their sons, he said.

“Today, there is a war against boys,” Patterson declared. “You've got to make little girls out of your little boys.”

He charged that boys have been prohibited even from portraying superheroes on school playgrounds because the behavior is said by psychologists to illustrate aggressiveness. “Never mind that Batman and Superman were always on the side of right.”

But Patterson said he believes dads still can give boys what they need, and that when fathers provide for their sons the nation is strengthened.

Little boys, he said, need three things–a dog, a gun and a dad.

“Every little boy needs a dog,” Patterson said, “and not a little yip dog, but a big dog that he can be proud of.”

By learning to care for the dog and providing its food, grooming and veterinary needs, Patterson said, the boy will learn responsibility.

Similarly, the boy will learn responsibility and respect for the safety of others if he has a gun.

“Get him a gun,” Patterson urged. “Not a play gun, but a real gun. Play guns are the most dangerous guns in the world.”

He recalled that when he was teaching his son how to shoot his first rifle, he took him out on a West Texas ranch at dusk. “I put a can up on the fence, and he aimed. When he pulled that trigger, fire flew from the end of that gun and lit up the place, and he thought he'd been kicked by a mule.”

The event reinforced in his son the danger of using guns irresponsibly, he explained.

Patterson also said that every boy needs a father, for without a father there “is no image in the house they can relate to. He needs a daddy who doesn't just bring home the bacon, but who develops a relationship with him.”

A son follows after his father, no matter the kind of person the father may be, Patterson said. “No little boy needs a daddy or granddaddy who will take him to hell. He's going where you're going. … When you go to hell, look back over your shoulder; he'll follow you there.”

Patterson asked the men to prepare for the future. By coming to faith in Christ, he said, God would make each one a “real man” and guarantee him eternal life; then, their sons would follow their example.

The same theme was presented again at a second sportsman's banquet at First Baptist Church of Little Rock the following evening. More than 600 men and boys attended the church's second annual outreach.

The church's pastor is Patterson's son-in-law, Mark Howell.

Twenty-seven men made decisions for Christ at the Lavaca banquet. Another 36 made decisions at the Little Rock banquet.

Reported by Gregory Tomlin, Southwestern Seminary

Posted: 10/3/03

Americans want double standard on display

WASHINGTON (RNS)–The majority of Americans approve of the display of a Ten Commandments monument in a public building but disapprove of a similar display featuring a verse from the Koran, Islam's holy book.

The contradiction was highlighted in a new Gallup poll for USA Today and CNN.

The poll, taken Sept. 19-21 and reported Sept. 30 in USA Today, found 70 percent of U.S. adults approve of the display of a monument to the Ten Commandments in a public school or government building, while 29 percent disapprove and 1 percent had no opinion.

But the percentages were practically reversed concerning display of a monument with a verse from the Koran in a government building or a public school. In that case, 64 percent of those polled disapproved of display of a Koranic verse, while 33 percent approved and 3 percent offered no opinion.

A similar disparity in views was displayed in answers to questions about funding social programs such as those providing day care or drug rehabilitation.

Asked about the use of federal funds for such programs if they are run by “Christian religious organizations,” 64 percent approved, 34 percent disapproved and 2 percent had no opinion.

But responses to a similar question regarding use of federal funds for social programs run by “Islamic religious organizations” showed 56 percent disapproved, 41 percent approved and 3 percent had no opinion.

Views were more mixed about the possibility that government might harm people's rights when it promotes religion. Fifty-four percent of respondents said they lean toward the view that “any time government promotes the teachings of a religion, it can harm the rights of people who do not belong to that religion.” Forty percent said they would more likely agree with the view that “government can promote the teachings of a religion without harming the rights of people who do not belong to that religion.”

Six percent offered no opinion on that question.

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution declares that “Congress shall make no law regarding an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

Courts traditionally have interpreted that to mean if government allows recognition of any religious perspective, it must allow similar recognition of all other religious perspectives. Thus, if the door is opened for a display of the Ten Commandments, equal opportunity must be given for a like display of other religions' documents.

The survey results were based on telephone interviews of 1,003 adults ages 18 and older and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Posted: 10/3/03

SBTC building $3 million headquarters

GRAPEVINE–The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention is building a $3 million headquarters in an office corridor near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

The Dallas Business Journal reported the facility will be two stories with 30,000 square feet of space. It will be located on a 4-acre tract at 4500 State Highway 360.

In April, the convention's Executive Board approved the building plans. Construction will be paid for using $3.3 million in surplus Cooperative Program funds collected through the end of 2002.

Gary Ledbetter, the convention's communications director, told the Dallas Business Journal the organization's 25 full-time staff members will make the move next spring, with plans to increase to 50 employees eventually.

“We're projecting this will handle our needs for at least 10 years into the future,” Ledbetter said.

The SBTC was formed five years ago as an alternative to the Baptist General Convention of Texas by fundamentalists who wanted the state convention to adhere more closely to the rightward turn of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Posted: 10/3/03

Texas Baptist Men respond far & wide

By Ken Camp

Texas Baptist Communications

Texas Baptist Men disaster relief volunteers responded simultaneously to disasters 1,800 miles apart in late September, offering aid in Maryland and the Rio Grande Valley.

A 10-member team from the Wichita-Archer-Clay Baptist Association and from East Texas left Dallas Sept. 25 to provide emergency food service in Middle River, Md. The area continued to suffer from flooding and power outages after Hurricane Isabel. In their first four days, the Texas Baptist volunteers prepared about 16,000 meals.

Jered Sellers of Bellaire Baptist Church in Lubbock accompanied the group to serve as coordinator for the multi-site disaster response and to train Maryland Baptist disaster relief leaders.

The Texas Baptist disaster relief mobile unit–an 18-wheel tractor-trailer rig equipped with a self-contained field kitchen–and a large food trailer was activated Sept. 24 for service in the Norfolk/Virginia Beach area. However, volunteers on board the units were recalled to Dallas after the North American Mission Board reassessed needs.

At the same time, the South Texas regional disaster response unit and a shower trailer from Hill Country Baptist Association were deployed to the San Benito area to respond to floods in the lower Rio Grande Valley. By Sept. 30, the volunteers had prepared about 2,000 meals, and the shower unit was serving about 200 people a day.

Meanwhile, vehicles continue to join the Texas Baptist disaster relief fleet. Austin Baptist Association recently secured the first mobile laundry unit west of the Mississippi and the fourth one in the national Baptist disaster response volunteer network, according to Bill Herring, disaster relief coordinator in Austin.

The custom-made 16-foot tandem-axle trailer includes three washing machines and three dryers, with an on-board generator and propane supply. The unit, valued at about $12,000, was secured through the gifts of churches and individuals in the Austin area.

Texas Baptist Men also now owns a 48-foot box trailer that is being converted into a mobile bunkhouse. The unit will provide on-site lodging for volunteers during disaster relief operations.

Chief Lawson, who served as director of evangelism and Baptist Men with the Indiana and New Mexico Baptist conventions before retiring to Lucas, initially planned to sell the trailer to Texas Baptist Men. But after praying about it, he decided instead to donate it for disaster relief ministries.

Bon Air Service donated an exterior air conditioning unit, and Gunder & Associates donated the interior air conditioning system. Texas Baptist Men Builders will construct bunks, providing free labor. And it appears that lumber for that project–along with mattresses, a washing machine and dryer–also may be donated, said Dick Talley, logistics coordinator for Texas Baptist Men.

Posted: 10/3/03

TOGETHER:
For Texas' sake, fund new churches

Does Texas need more churches? Absolutely. We will have 1.7 million more people in Texas over the next five years. And if we do not meet them with the gospel and give them a place to belong in the body of Christ, we will be found negligent in our response to Christ's command.

CHARLES WADE Executive Director BGCT Executive Board

The BGCT Church Multiplication Center's “Genesis Project” goal is to help start 777 churches in three years. Since the project was launched in 2002, the center has resourced the starting of 372 churches. But our ability to continue helping start churches depends on more mission dollars through the Cooperative Program and the Mary Hill Davis Offering.

Recently, Abe Zabaneh, director of the Church Multiplication Center, spoke to our Texas Baptist Missions Foundation about why we need more churches. He identified five reasons:

New churches are a force for reaching people for Christ. In 2002, our Church Multiplication Center resourced 456 churches–264 churches started that year and 192 other recent starts. Those churches in 2002 had about 40,000 members and baptized about 8,000 people–one person reached and baptized for every five members per year.

Established churches must minister to and care for the members they already have, while new churches have to focus on reaching people. If an established church wants to keep on growing, it has to start new units, get more people involved in leadership and free up the time of some of their ministers to focus on new people. It is easy to be consumed with the task of caring for those who are already in Christ.

New churches provide a focus on the future. Texas is changing. Our population is growing at a rapid pace. But the changes also are reflected in the ethnicity, in the languages spoken (about 120 now) and in the variety of cultures. New churches can be planted that are specifically designed to reach out to this diverse population.

New churches are a forum for innovation. A new Texas Baptist church for Arabs in Houston recently began publishing a newspaper in Arabic. It is the first Arabic newspaper to be published in Texas, and it may be the first Arabic evangelical newspaper in the United States. Many of the new things now experienced in long-established churches in Texas began in the new emerging churches.

New churches are a factory for leadership. A year and a half ago, Cross Trails Baptist Church was started in Fairlie. The church was started by two young men at First Baptist Church of Commerce, where they were challenged to go out and “do ministry.” These cowboys began a Bible study that later became a church. At the one-year anniversary, 467 people attended, cowboy hats, boots and pickup trucks all in great supply.

New churches are a foundation for growth for our Baptist family in Texas. Peter Wagner has observed: “Without exception, the growing denominations have been those that stress church planting.” For our Baptist family to grow in Texas, we must start at least 171 churches a year. We want to do more than simply grow. We want to reach our state and its people for Christ. That is why our goals are more and our need for prayer, people and resources will continue to rise.

We are loved.