Posted: 3/19/04

LifeWay Family Bible Series for March 28

Act boldly when following God's direction

Esther 2:7, 17; 3:5-6; 4:13-17; 7:1-3; 8:11-13, 16

By Rodney McGlothlin

First Baptist Church, College Station

Congratulations. You get to study a whole Old Testament book in one lesson. The book of Esther has 10 chapters, so if you are planning to read the entire text, you will need to start early and stay late.

Or you can do what the Jews have done for centuries. You can celebrate the story. The book of Esther is commemorated in a Jewish festival called Purim (Esther 9:18-32). It is not a solemn festival like Passover. It is a happy and noisy feast. According to the Talmud, it was to be celebrated in the most un-Baptist of ways by drinking until you could no linger distinguish between the phrases “Cursed be Haman” and “Blessed be Mordecai.” It was more of a Mardi Gras celebration than a fast during Lent.

In studying the lesson this week, it may be best to just tell the story. It goes like this: Mordecai and Esther were cousins by birth, but father and daughter by experience. He raised the orphaned girl as his own child after the death of her parents.

She came to the city of Susa to be a member of the royal harem of King Xerxes after the untimely dismissal of Queen Vashti. It seems Vashti was a liberated woman for her time and esteemed her independence rather highly. Xerxes called her to a party already in its 180th day to show off her beauty, along with the other accoutrements of his royalty. She didn't cotton to the idea of being a trophy queen, so she stayed put.

Xerxes asked his advisors what he should do about a queen who refused a simple command from her husband. They assured him it would be bad for the kingdom if all the royal women took to refusing their royal husbands' requests. Vashti vanished. They had a contest of sorts to find a new queen.

Esther, the cousin/daughter of Mordecai was encouraged to try out for the new reality series called, “So You Want to be a Queen!” She was the last to be voted out of the engagement party. She became Xerxes' new favorite wife.

Meanwhile, back in the castle, a seedy sort of fellow named Haman was percolating a plan to destroy his hated enemy, the Jews. He hated them all because of his disdain for Mordecai. Xerxes had tagged Haman as his chief of staff and given him kingly powers. All subjects of the king had to bow down to the king's hit man, Haman. All did but Mordecai the Jew. He stood proud, unbent and unimpressed. If the king could cause Vashti to vanish, surely Haman could hang an unbending old Jew named Mordecai. He built a scaffold 75 feet high, which was at least 68 1/2 feet more than really was necessary.

Mordecai told Esther it was time to let King Xerxes know his favorite wife was a Jew. This situation was complicated by the fact it had been 30 days since Esther had been the favorite wife of the king. She would have to go see the king. It seems the only thing King Xerxes hated more than a wife who would not show up on command was one who showed up on her own. The queen could be executed for pushing her royal luck on his majesty.

With great courage and determination, she told Mordecai she would do it. She asked Mordecai to hold a three-day prayer meeting in preparation for the event. They prayed. Esther went. The king welcomed her into his presence. In gratitude, she invited Xerxes and his right hand man, Haman, to a royal feast the next day.

That night the king couldn't sleep, so he called for the “record of chronicles,” an early, less exciting version of the modern Congressional Record. In the royal history, the king learned of a Jew named Mordecai who had uncovered a plot to kill the king. Mordecai reported it, saved the king and was quickly forgotten … until that wakeful evening now known as “Sleepless in Susa.”

Xerxes called for Haman and asked him what should be done for the most loyal man in the kingdom to the king. Haman thought the king meant him, so he suggested the man be put on a royal steed in a royal robe and have one of the king's servants parade him around the capital shouting: “This is the king's most loyal subject. His favorite of favorites.”

The king told Haman it was a fine idea and he should immediately carry out this command himself. Haman wanted to eat his words when he found out the king's hero was Mordecai the Jew. That is how Haman wound up leading a parade to honor his enemy.

The next day, Xerxes and Haman showed up at Esther's place for the banquet. That girl could cook! Xerxes offered her anything. She told him of Haman's hatred of the Jews and his plot to kill them. She told him she was a Jew, too. Haman tried to crawl through a crack in the floor, but he would not fit. He did, however, fit just fine on the 75-foot gallows he had constructed for Mordecai.

Imagine that story being told hundreds of years later by German Jews in one of Hitler's death camps, or by Russian Jews in Stalin's Gulag or in a modern shopping center in the middle of Jerusalem where a suicide bomber has stolen any hope of peace and security.

Why take a stand for God? Because God still remembers his people and stands up for them. He still turns the tables on his enemies and brings laughter where there have been tears. We share the joy, hope and confidence that come from trusting God against all odds. Happy studying and faithful serving.

Question for discussion

When is it hard to trust God?

Posted: 3/19/04

LifeWay Family Bible Series for April 4

Christ's suffering was born out of his great love

Matthew 27:27-31, 35-37, 50-51; 1 John 4:7-10

By Rodney McGlothlin

First Baptist Church, College Station

Mel Gibson has everyone talking about his movie “The Passion of the Christ.” I have seen the movie. The book was better! Gibson showed us well the “how” of the crucifixion. The church must tell “the rest of the story.” The Bible lesson for today tells the story of the suffering of the Savior in Matthew 27:27-51. It gives us the meaning of his suffering in 1 John 4:7-10.

“This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10).

The word study for this lesson is “propitiation.” It is the King James Version word that the New American Standard text above translates as “atoning sacrifice.”

Have you used the word “propitiation” lately? I didn't think so. The reason you have not used it is because it is a word heavy with Greek baggage from the first century. None of us is a first century Greek. Neither was John. He was a first century Jew who wrote in Greek so he might be understood by his larger culture. He may have gotten the word from the Greek language, but he took its meaning from his Jewish roots in the Old Testament. What does this word mean?

The word does not mean God was mad and had to be satisfied by someone or something so he could love humanity. The ancient Greeks believed their gods were capricious and had to be bought off at times by their human subjects. They were not much different than the folks among whom Abraham first lived in the land of promise–people who often practiced child sacrifice to appease their gods. Abraham would learn that his God would not require the death of Isaac to prove his devotion. God would himself provide a sacrifice. Ultimately, Jesus is the “Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). God loved us before he sent his Son into the world.

Propitiation then originates with God. He makes the first move to bring his straying creation back to himself. He sends Jesus to “show his love among us” (1 John 4:9) and to be the “atoning sacrifice (propitiation) for our sins” (1 John 4:10). This means he not only forgives us, he removes the offense that stands between us and God so we might have a relationship with him. When we focus only on forgiveness as the effect of the cross, we become selfish. God takes away our guilt and gives us eternal life.

But the idea is more than that. He does not just forgive so that we can be debt-free. He forgives so that we can be his. It is relationship he desires. His forgiveness removes the offense that is between us. We are not just forgiven. We are restored. It is not just a privilege, it also is a responsibility to live and act as God's restored people.

In January 1935, Mayor Fiorello La Guardia appeared in a night court that served the poorest ward of New York City. He dismissed the judge for the evening and took the bench himself. An old woman in ragged clothes came before the bench, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She had done so to feed her grandchildren after they had been deserted by their father. Her daughter was too sick to work.

The shopkeeper refused to drop the charges. The prosecutor said: “It's a bad neighborhood, your honor. She's got to be punished to teach other people around here a lesson.” La Guardia agreed. “I've got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions–$10 or 10 days in jail.”

Even while pronouncing the sentence, his honor the mayor was reaching into his own pocket for a $10 bill. He said: “Here is the $10 fine which I now remit; and furthermore, I am going to fine everyone in the courtroom 50 cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that grandchildren can eat. Mr. Bailiff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant.”

The following day, the papers reported that $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered old lady who had stolen a loaf of bread. One dollar had been contributed by the shop keeper and the prosecuting attorney. All in the courtroom gave the mayor/judge a standing ovation. (Adapted from “The Ragamuffin Gospel,” by Brennan Manning.)

“Propitiation” is not a word we use every day. It is not something we can do to get God to notice us or love us. It is what God did out of his love so that we can be his children. His grace forgives us, restores us and empowers us to love others. For John in this epistle, we can love one another because he loved us first (1 John 4:7-8).

We can't explain it. Grace always is beyond explanation. All we can do is bow in his presence and offer our praise and gratitude. It's the ovation he deserves.

Questions for discussion

How would you begin to tell the rest of the story of “The Passion of the Christ”?

The story is told of how Fiorello La Guardia stood up for a poor woman–how has Christ done the same in your life?

Posted: 3/19/04

Gay marriage makes headlines,
but it won't sway elections, poll reveals

By Amanda Mantone

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)–Gay marriage is not a decisive issue for American voters in the 2004 presidential election, despite national debate over gay rights, according to recent polls.

A CBS News poll found that more than half (52 percent) of all voters would support a candidate who doesn't share their views on gay marriage.

Only 4 percent of voters said gay marriage is the main issue they want to hear about in the election.

Sen. John Kerry, the apparent Democratic presidential candidate, has said he does not support legalization of same-sex marriage, but he opposes the constitutional amendment proposed by President Bush banning gay marriage completely.

Voters in a poll sponsored by the Alliance to End Hunger said candidates' positions on issues such as poverty and hunger are more important than positions on gay marriage.

In the survey, a majority of voters–78 percent–said a candidate's plan for fighting poverty would affect their voting decision, while only 15 percent said a candidate's position on gay marriage would matter.

A Pew Research Center study found that a national ban on gay marriage, despite recent debate, is not an issue of importance for voters.

Gay marriage did, however, rank as a more important issue than abortion or gun control.

The Pew poll, which surveyed 1,500 U.S. adults, found that American voters oppose gay marriage by more than two-to-one.

Gay marriage remains a “make-or-break” voting issue for two-thirds of gay marriage opponents but only 6 percent of gay marriage supporters.

Some voters are more strongly opposed than others, according to the Pew report.

Six in 10 Republican voters strongly oppose gay marriage, as dotwo-thirds of evangelical Protestant voters. Of voters 65 and older, 60 percent oppose gay marriage. Catholics and mainline Protestants are less likely to count gay marriage as an important factor in their voting decision.

According to CBS, opposition to gay marriage is growing. Nearly 60 percent of Americans said they favor an amendment limiting marriage to a man and a woman, up from 55 percent last December.

The number of voters who favored allowing homosexual couples to legally marry in a July poll was 40 percent; it has dropped steadily since then to a current low of 30 percent.

Posted: 3/19/04

Missionary narrowly misses Madrid bombing

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

MADRID, Spain–Had it happened another weekday, David Dixon might no longer be dean of a Spanish seminary or pastor of an international church. And his three sons could have been left without a father.

Dixon normally rides the train that followed one of four that exploded March 11 in Madrid. He might have been waiting in the station when the train was bombed.

But that particular morning, Dixon's classes were pushed back to allow a visiting professor to teach. Dixon and his wife, Susie, heard about the explosions on television prior to 8 a.m.

The Dixons, former missionaries with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board who now are partially supported by several Texas Baptist churches, immediately recognized one of the trains. It was one many of their high school-age son's classmates took.

Spanish forensic experts inspect the bodies of victims of an explosion on a train outside Madrid's Atocha station. Texas Baptist missionary David Dixon narrowly missed being in the train station at the time of the tragic blast. (REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach Photo)

They thought about friends. They thought about church members. They thought about family.

The couple hit the phones and the computer. They tried to locate friends and neighbors. And they sent e-mail to overseas friends and family to let them know they were unharmed.

“Our phone rang all day long,” David Dixon said. “We got over 40 calls that day.”

Of more than 200 people who died, one directly affected those around the Dixons. A Filipino church member lost a cousin.

All the missionary children who go to school with their children survived unscathed.

While Susie Dixon continued answering the home phone, her husband went to the seminary. Classes were cancelled; schools around the nation closed to observe three days of mourning.

Seminary students held a prayer service where they asked for comfort and spiritual revival before going to a demonstration of solidarity against the acts, which have been linked to a terrorist group.

The nation began gathering in large groups to take a symbolic stand against the attacks.

One of the assemblies consisted of 2.5 million people. Flags with single black stripes were draped over balconies, displayed in cars and flown outside buildings.

Hotels offered free lodging to victims' families, and taxis provided them free transportation.

“Spain as a country was traumatized as the United States was as it watched Sept. 11,” David Dixon said.

Churches held prayer services where tears flowed. Spanish Baptists gathered March 16 at First Baptist Church in Madrid, near one of the damaged trains. A memorial of “M-11” was held March 20.

“This is a culture and society that shows a lot of solidarity,” Susie Dixon said. “That's shown brightly in this time of crisis.”

These terror events provide a unique chance for the 8,500 Spanish Baptists to share their faith in a nation where one-quarter of residents are spiritually involved, according to the Dixons.

Citizens are searching for hope. Believers can help them find it in Christ, the Dixons stressed.

“I hope people will consider the fleeting nature of life and realize their need for a savior,” Susie Dixon said.

By spreading the hope and love of Christ, Baptists are giving meaning to people's lives and leading them to have a relationship with God, David Dixon said.

Faithful living changes the purpose of lives and turns hatred to love, he said.

“It's the heart where terrorism arises,” he said.

Posted: 3/19/04

Most preachers' kids reject
church, informal survey reveals

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS–The image of the pastor's kid turning wild may not be that far off base.

Although little research has been done about the spirituality of pastors' children, a recent informal survey of a small group of Texas Baptist pastors by Dennis Parrott, director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas Bible Study/Discipleship Center, found 80 percent of pastors' kids no longer are connected to the church.

Many pastors' children are turned off by the way church members treat their parents, Parrott said.

Young people see the anger and conflict that can arise in congregations, he noted. They view the hypocrisy.

“They saw the whole experience as bad,” Parrott said. “They don't see the lifestyle as for them.”

Pastors' children often are under a lot of pressure, said Margaret Myers, a consultant in the BGCT minister/church relations office who works with ministers' children.

They feel they are disgracing the family and church if they are not perfect, she said.

“Trying to live up to everyone's expectations is difficult,” she said.

“Especially in smaller churches, the pastor's family is put on a pedestal, and everyone watches.”

Ministers' children also believe the church is stealing time with their father, said Myers, a pastor's child.

Pastors typically work 50-hour weeks, leaving a child fighting for attention, she noted. Family vacations can be cut short because of events at the church.

Watching a parent being fired can be especially painful for children, Myers indicated.

It is not unusual for children to move as many as five times. They understand finances become tighter. They know stress is heightened. They also face moving and having to make new friends.

“The children are smart enough to know that mom's under stress and dad's under stress, so they don't want to add stress,” she said.

But children have no one to turn to, Myers found. They are afraid to talk to people in the congregation. They do not think their friends understand their situation.

These issues are part of Satan's strategy against the church, according to Myers.

This type of setting and pressure plays to the natural rebelliousness of teenagers, she added.

Ministers and their families are prime targets to attack, she said. If the family is lacking, some may think the faith is as well.

When ministers' children leave the faith, the church loses future leaders, Myers said. They naturally absorb leadership skills from their parents as they mature.

To counter this situation, she encourages pastors to schedule time for their families and children that congregations cannot interrupt.

Even one night a week means a great deal to youth, Myers oberved.

“Kids just want time,” she said. “They want time with dad, especially. They want to hear the words 'I love you' and 'I'm proud of you.' They want to see dad at events that are important to them. This shows that dad sees them as a priority.

“It's also important for the church to give ministers permission to put family first. The church must realize the important role they play in the success of the ministers' family.”

Parrott urges pastors to cushion tough times for their children.

Parents must protect their kids, he said. Give them honest information, but be conscious of the image of the faith that is painted.

“Churches aren't always going to be nice to us,” he said.

“Don't tell your kids about it. Don't vent on them.”

Myers hopes to develop a mentoring system where younger pastors' children share issues with grown pastors' children.

The mentors would work closely with parents as well, encouraging them along the way.

Above all, parents cannot give up on their children, Myers said. Some come back to the faith as they grow older, she added.

Keep being a faithful example, and continue sharing the faith, she urged.

But in the end, adults must let their children choose their path, she acknowledged.

“I really believe the parents are good parents who are doing their best to raise children who love God, love the church and love who they are,” she said.

Posted: 3/19/04

Ethnic minorities to chair all
seven appointed 2004 BGCT committees

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS–The Baptist General Convention of Texas officers named ethnic minorities to chair all seven of the convention's appointed committees for the first time in the organization's history.

Convention officers made a concerted effort to put minorities in leadership roles so they can be more integrally involved in the convention's work, said BGCT President Ken Hall.

The variety of perspectives will strengthen the convention's work, he added.

“Until we create leadership opportunities for our broadest element–our diversity–we are not addressing it,” Hall said.

Chairpersons are: Resolutions Committee, Dan Trevino of Harlandale Baptist Church in San Antonio; Committee on Nominations for Coordinating Boards , Javier Elizondo of Trinity Baptist Church in San Antonio; Credentials Committee, Johnson Omoni of African Evangelical Baptist Church in Grand Prairie; Committee on Order of Business, Felipe Garza of Iglesia Christian Fellowship in Farmers Branch; Memorials Committee, Marvin Delaney of South Park Baptist Church in Houston; Committee on Committees, Carrie Tunson of Bethel Baptist Church in Mansfield; and Convention Arrangements Committee, Isaac Chu of First Chinese Baptist Church in Dallas.

The Committee on Committees names the members of the Committee to Nominate Executive Board Members and Committee on Nominations for Institutional Boards. Those groups suggest executive board and institutional board members.

The Committee on Nominations for Coordinating Boards appoints members of the Human Welfare Coordinating Board and Christian Education Coordinating Board.

Ethnic minorities comprise more than one-third of the seven officer-appointed committee members.

They also make up one-third of the four committees named by the nominating committees.

These numbers are the result of an intentional effort for the convention to reflect the many people in the state, said Dennis Young, BGCT second vice president and pastor of Missouri City Baptist Church.

“We want the committees to be more diversified,” he said.

The move is the latest step in the convention becoming more ethnically diverse, said Lorenzo Peña, coordinator of the BGCT Associational Missions and Administration Section.

This year is the first time the convention has elected two racial minorities as officers.

In addition to Young, an African American, Albert Reyes of San Antonio is first vice president.

It also is the first year for an African American to chair the executive board–John Ogletree, pastor of the predominantly African American First Metropolitan Baptist Church of Houston.

Part of the BGCT vision is to have minority leadership in at least 30 percent of convention positions as well as meeting the needs of all the ethnicities of Texas, Peña noted.

Ethnic leaders must be included in convention processes for the notion of reaching all people for Christ to be taken seriously, Peña said.

The world needs to see the convention being inclusive to believe the BGCT wants to work with everyone, he said.

“It is very difficult to validate that when people don't see we're doing our part to show that,” he said.

“Our words need to reflect our actions. We can't just talk it. We need to walk it.”

The variety of perspectives provided by ethnic minorities in leadership posts will strengthen the state convention's work, BGCT President Ken Hall said.

Posted: 3/19/04

Judge rules Missouri Convention
lacks standing for suit; leaders pledge fight

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (ABP)–Despite a legal setback, Missouri Baptist Convention leaders will continue their lawsuit against five institutions that have removed themselves from the convention's control.

Cole County Circuit Judge Thomas Brown ruled the suit's plaintiffs–primarily the convention Executive Board–lack proper legal standing to assert their claim against the institutions.

“We're going to tell the judge that we'll go through whatever procedural steps we have to go through” to continue the case, including naming convention messengers as plaintiffs in the suit, said Michael Whitehead, the convention's lead attorney in the case.

The chairman of a convention-appointed task force overseeing the suit and the convention's executive director also have issued statements indicating they will continue to pursue legal means to regain control of the five Baptist institutions–the Word & Way newspaper, Missouri Baptist University near St. Louis, Windermere Baptist Conference Center, the Missouri Baptist Foundation and the Baptist Home retirement home system.

“The judge did not rule on the key issue in the case”–whether the agencies may unilaterally alter their charters to remove the power to appoint their trustees from the convention, said task force chairman Gary Taylor.

“The convention has directed that we get a final judicial ruling on that legal issue, and we are continued to honor the convention's mandate, even if it goes to the [Kansas City] Court of Appeals,” Taylor said in a prepared statement.

In 2002, the convention sued the five institutions. In 2000 and 2001, trustees of all five agencies changed their institutions' charters to make the boards self-perpetuating.

The agencies' leaders cited concerns over political infighting between moderates and fundamentalists in the convention as well as legal liability should the convention itself or one of its other agencies be sued for negligence or malpractice.

The MBC lawsuit demanded the agencies' trustee boards be returned to convention control. Because the MBC itself is an unincorporated association, convention leaders decided to name the convention's Executive Board and six sympathetic MBC-affiliated churches as the plaintiffs.

But Judge Brown said the convention's constitution and bylaws made it clear that only individual messengers–and not churches or the Executive Board –counted as “members” of the convention. Thus, the churches and the board lacked the standing to assert a legal claim on behalf of the convention. Brown's decision dismissed the suit against the agencies.

Taylor, a former convention president and pastor of First Baptist Church of O'Fallon, said the legal setback was only “a procedural 'bump in the road,' not a roadblock.”

Posted: 3/19/04

On the Move

Corey and Kelli Agricola to First Church of Spring Branch in Houston as co-pastors.

Dean Banks to Belle Plain Church in Brownwood as pastor.

Greg Bowman to First Church in Duncanville as minister to students from First Church in Lancaster.

Jimmy Breazeale to Fairview Church in Sherman as youth minister.

Brian Brewer to First Church in Maypearl as youth minister.

Steve Carter to Calvary Church in Brownfield as pastor, where he was youth minister.

Larry Caudle has resigned as minister of music at First Church of Urbandale in Dallas.

Mitchell Chandler has resigned as pastor of Water Street Church in Waxahachie.

Colin Colburn to First Church in Joshua as minister of music and adult education.

Emmett Corker to Northridge Church in San Angelo as pastor.

Steve Couch to Lake Fork Church in Alba as minister of education/administration.

Brad Cox to Calvary Chapel in Cleburne as pastor.

Mike Fiddler to First Church in Gainesville as minister of worship.

John Franklin to Lackland Church in San Antonio as pastor.

Terry Gleaton to Highland Church in Denton as youth minister.

David Hardage to Waco Association as executive director from First Church in Sulphur Springs, where he was pastor.

Bret Hoyle to First Church in Claude as minister to youth.

Aaron Kahler to View Church in Abilene as minster of youth

Charles Kemble to Leesville Church in Leesville as pastor.

Tonya Lawson has resigned as preschool and children's minister at First Church in Highland Village.

Gary Lumpkin to Temple Church in New Boston as pastor.

Bradley Maybin to First Church in Amarillo as minister to youth.

Mario Moreno to Primera Iglesia in Odessa as pastor from Primera Iglesia in Rockdale.

Marci Parrott has resigned as preschool minister at First Church in Denton.

David Peacock has resigned as youth minister at First Church in Maypearl.

Fred Pearrow to Memorial Church in Shenandoah, Iowa, as pastor from Reece Prairie Church in Burleson, where he was minister of children.

Mell Plunk has completed an interim pastorate at First Church in Kingsville and is available for supply and interim at (254) 933-1608.

Burton Purvis to First Church in Friendswood as intentional interim pastor.

Lupe Rando to Primera Iglesia in Cameron as pastor.

Herschel Richard to Old Boston Church in New Boston as pastor.

Juan Ruiz to Iglesia Memorial in Waelder as pastor.

Bill Sanders to First Church in Converse as pastor.

Rudy Seals to First Church in Buffalo Gap as youth minister.

Buddy Starnes to Bethel Cass Church in Linden as pastor.

Kyle Steinhauser to Little River Church in Cameron as pastor.

John Sursa to Forreston Church in Forreston as pastor.

Gene Suttle to South Leon Church in Comanche as pastor.

Tim Taylor has resigned as pastor of First Church in Trophy Club.

Posted: 3/19/04

Parents want sex education courses
to emphasize abstinence, survey shows

WASHINGTON (RNS)– Most parents want high school sex education classes to emphasize abstinence, a Zogby International poll commissioned by Focus on the Family has found.

Ninety-six percent of parents of children younger than 18 said they agreed strongly or somewhat that such classes should teach that “abstinence from sexual activity is best for teens.”

A slightly smaller percentage–91 percent–agreed that high schoolers should be taught that it is best for sexual intercourse to be linked to love, commitment and intimacy, qualities that “are most likely to occur in a faithful marriage.”

Forty-seven percent of parents said the best message for sex education programs to send is that young people should not be involved in sexual intercourse until marriage.

Thirty-two percent said they should be taught not have sex until, at least, they have completed high school and are in a relationship with someone they want to marry.

“The poll found more divided opinions over how abstinence and contraception should be taught. About 40 percent said teens should be encouraged to be abstinent and to use contraceptives in the same class while about 35 percent said the topics should be taught in separate classes. A smaller percentage–21.7 percent–said sex education classes should not teach about how to obtain and use condoms.

The poll of 1,004 parents, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points, was taken in December 2003, the month before President Bush announced in his State of the Union address that he would like to see a doubling of funding of sexual abstinence programs.

While abstinence proponents hailed Bush's proposal, his plan was criticized by Planned Parenthood, which believes increased funding of comprehensive sex education programs will reduce sexually transmitted diseases, unintended pregnancies and abortion.

“The only thing that will decrease with more abstinence-only education is the safety of teens,” said Susanne Martinez, vice president for public policy for Planned Parenthood, in a statement released after Bush's address.

Posted: 3/19/04

Church member's prayers for ethnic
inclusiveness answered after 50 years

By George Henson

Staff Writer

SAN ANTONIO–Her new pastor calls her Sister Angel. One thing is for sure: Lois Angel has God's ear.

In 1952, Angel was a Vacation Bible School teacher at South San Antonio Baptist Church. More than 700 children attended that year, and Angel and her teaching partner averaged 140 students in their class for every day of the three-week Bible school. She particularly was glad to see about half were Hispanic children from the neighborhood.

Midway through the Bible school, the regularly scheduled church business meeting was held, and Angel raised a question: “If I can have these Hispanic children in my Vacation Bible School class, why can't I have them in my Sunday school class?”

She recalled being told: “South San Antonio Baptist Church is an Anglo church and it is going to stay that way all of its days.”

But a few weeks after Vacation Bible School ended at South San Antonio, a call went out for volunteers to do a Spanish-language Vacation Bible School at the church's Hispanic mission. Angel was one of five women who volunteered.

None of the teachers spoke Spanish, so each had to have an interpreter. Angel's was an 8-year-old boy.

That summer changed Angel's prayer life forever.

“I've been praying for South San Antonio Baptist Church to go Hispanic since 1952,” she said.

Fifty-two years later, Angel's prayers have been answered.

South San Antonio Baptist Church and Iglesia Bautista Filadelfia have merged to become South San Filadelfia Baptist Church. They began meeting together March 7, but the official recognition will come March 28. The two congregations will walk from opposite sides of the street, meeting in the middle, “symbolizing the coming together of an Anglo and Hispanic church into one,” said Victor Rodriguez, pastor of the united congregation.

The official merger will be a day of celebration, but it will be one born out of struggle by both congregations. The South San Antonio congregation had dwindled to about 25 people each week with a facility built to hold many more.

“We had 30 rooms we weren't using for anything,” Angel said.

After the church's pastor resigned, members asked San Antonio Baptist Association Director of Missions Charles Price for guidance. The pastor of Iglesia Bautista Filadelfia came to visit Price about that same time.

“Victor Rodriguez came by because of the challenges he was facing. In essence, his little church wasn't little anymore. They were running more than 250 each week in a tiny little building, but the even larger problem was that they were overflowing their parking lot,” Price said.

“They were having to park all down the streets in the surrounding neighborhood, which drew complaints. The city was telling them they were going to start writing parking tickets.”

Price knew South San Antonio had facilities it wasn't using and received permission for Filadelfia to use its education building. Rodriguez was excited, but upon seeing the facilities realized they were not configured for worship services.

Price met with the transition team at South San Antonio. He mentioned that they might consider merging with the Hispanic congregation, which “drew a mixed response.”

Price left town for a two-week training event, not knowing what either congregation was going to do.

“When I got back, I was surprised to find they had gotten together on their own and had already agreed to a merger,” he said.

The first Sunday meeting in the new facilities drew 500 people to worship.

“I'm really excited about what God might do there,” Price said. “This is a real opportunity for us to show the culture here what a vibrant Hispanic church can be. … I really think we could see them begin to run 700-1,000 in the not too distant future.”

Rodriguez knows there may be some bumps along the way. Not only are there ethnic and cultural differences, but also differences in worship styles–South San Antonio was very traditional in its worship music, while the Hispanic church is very contemporary.

“The congregation that was already there are staying and worshipping with us,” he said. “They are a part of the church. They are a part of our family, and we're a part of their family–we're becoming one family.

“This is really a marriage, and there's going to be adjustments made on both our parts, but I think it's going to work.”

Angel is sure of it. She had gradually seen the church become more welcoming to Hispanics even before the merger. The 8-year-old Hispanic boy who served as her interpreter in 1952 re-entered her life in 1968 as her son-in-law, and he is a deacon at the church.

Seeing the church filled that first Sunday thrilled her soul, she said.

“I've been burdened for this church all these years; now I can relax. God has answered my prayers,” she said.

“Our candle had almost been snuffed out, but God came and took the basket off.

“Now our bell tower needs a bright light in it to tell all the world that this is a place where God is at work.”

Posted: 3/19/04

Resort missionary takes gospel message to Tahoe ski slopes

By Lee Weeks

North American Mission Board

TAHOE CITY, Calif. (BP)–After more than two decades as a resort missionary in Lake Tahoe, Debbie Wohler remains as passionate as ever about the mission to which she believes God has called her.

“Often in Scripture, it looks like it's the small things–you know, the salt, the light, the yeast, the seed in the soil–that add up to big things,” said Wohler, who serves in the scenic resort area that draws 12 million visitors each year.

Missionary Debbie Wohler talks with a boy participating in the children's ministry at First Baptist Church of Tahoe City, Calif. (Gibbs Frazeur Photo)

“I think a lot of times we want to see the big things without having done the small things.”

Wohler is among nearly 5,200 missionaries in the United States and Canada supported by the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. She is featured during this year's Week of Prayer for North American Missions, which focuses on “The World at Our Doorstep.”

Among those at Wohler's “doorstep” in Lake Tahoe are children. Through First Baptist Church of Tahoe City, she helps with a before- and after-school program and other child-care services.

She also leads a children's day camp during the summer, and from Christmas through Easter, she serves as chaplain for six ski resorts.

“I wonder what God is going to do in these kids' lives, and they're still babies,” she reflected. “They're barely walking, but I begin to dream and hope and pray for these children.

“Jesus said if you want to come into the Kingdom, that you need to come like a child,” she said. “I actually think the best years are ahead because there has been a ton of seed planting.”

Her face lights up as she talks about the children who grew up under her ministry and now are taking the gospel to places such as China, Yemen, Amsterdam, Africa, Mexico, Spain and Moldova.

“I want to raise a generation of people who love God and who serve God,” Wohler said. “I want to teach them how to pray, minister and not be afraid to talk to people about Jesus and what's happened in their heart.”

Wohler, who grew up in Fairfield, Ill., first came to Lake Tahoe in 1975 as a summer missionary while she was in college. After graduating from seminary, she served as a chaplain for two years at the Olympic Training Center in Squaw Valley, Calif., before returning to Lake Tahoe as a career resort missionary.

Tourists visit the area each year to play in the region's 600 inches of snow, to camp, boat or hike and bike around the lake's 72 miles of shoreline, or to gamble in casinos.

Each year, about 700 families participate in at least one of the children's ministries offered through First Baptist, which averages 125 in attendance each Sunday.

“Every church could be doing what we're doing,” Wohler said. “We've taken care of their kids and loved their families. And as a result, we've seen moms and dads and boys and girls come to know Jesus.

“My goal is to strengthen the family so that the family can come to know Christ.”

And God is using children to introduce their families to Christ, Wohler said.

“We're starting to get adults in our class for children about how to become a Christian,” she said.

Despite the allure of this scenic resort town of 2,000 year-around residents, life for many in Tahoe City is far from idyllic, and much of Wohler's ministry is to local residents.

“It's very difficult to survive here financially as a working person,” Wohler said. “Sometimes you have to work two and three jobs.”

Many are transient, staying only two or three years because they can't afford to live in a place where the least-expensive house sells for $300,000 and a gallon of milk costs about $4, Wohler said.

Plenty of opportunities also exist to minister to tourists.

“What I've found is that when we genuinely love people and meet their needs, whether it's child care or skiing, or whatever their need is, they're very open to a relationship with us and then a relationship with Jesus Christ,” Wohler said.

International tourists also give her and her team of volunteers–along with summer and semester missionaries–an opportunity to make a worldwide impact.

“The world comes to Lake Tahoe, and that's why I'm here as a missionary,” she said.

The fruit of her ministry comes through dozens of professions of faith in Christ each year–as well as the lives of volunteers and other ministry workers.

“We've been able to have a lot of influence on people who then leave and go to other places, so we kind of see ourselves as a training station,” she said.

Wohler has learned to be resourceful in sharing the gospel in a place where there is always something entertaining to do indoors or outdoors.

“We try to do fun things with the kids because I really believe that Jesus used attraction rather than promotion,” she said.

“I believe a lot of times the church gets stuck doing really boring things.”

In the summer, Wohler leads the children in her child-care programs on hikes to see God's handiwork in waterfalls or beaches while basking in a beautiful climate that boasts 80-degree days with low humidity.

And in the winter, she takes the gospel to the ski slopes.

“Some of the best opportunities come after our outdoor worship service, when riding chair-lifts and while skiing around before and after the service, helping people who are having a hard time skiing,” she said.

“Once people are exposed to Christians who are vibrant and passionate and loving and kind, they are open to hearing about the gospel.”

Wohler's earlier experience at the Olympic Training Center also led to another continuing ministry–sharing the love of Christ at seven different Olympic Games.

At the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, she sported a snowman costume as an opening to hand out Christian materials and share her faith.

She plans to attend the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, in August. There, she hopes to strike up evangelistic conversations with people by displaying an Olympic torch like the one she carried through Tahoe City as part of the festive cross-country torch relay prior to the 2000 Winter Olympics.

“It requires a lot of energy to put yourself out there, to give yourself away to the high glory of God,” Wohler said.

“The hardest part is that the fields are white unto harvest, but the laborers are few.”

Still, Wohler said, she draws strength and inspiration for her work from the people God has called her to serve and from Southern Baptists who support her by praying and giving sacrificially.

“I have felt supported, and cared for, and encouraged beyond belief,” Wohler said. “And that makes all the difference.”

Posted: 3/19/04

Teens listen to parents' advice about sex, survey indicates

WASHINGTON (BP)–Teens today may be more cautious toward sex than generally believed and may be paying more attention to their parents' warnings, according to survey results released recently by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy.

The study found that 67 percent of sexually experienced teens say they wish they had waited longer before having sexual intercourse. The breakdown by gender indicates 77 percent of girls and 60 percent of boys regret becoming sexually active too early.

Eighty-five percent of teens agreed sex should occur only in a long-term, committed relationship, and only 26 percent said it is embarrassing for teens to admit they are virgins. Teens credit their own morals, values, religious beliefs and concerns about the future for influencing their attitudes about sex more than concerns about pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases.

The opportunity to test those attitudes is significant, considering 42 percent of teens in high school said they had been at a party in the past six months with boys and girls where no adults were present.

Regarding teen pregnancy, 84 percent of teens surveyed said they believe teen pregnancy prevention programs should teach young people to be married before they have a child.

Parental influence is more important in a teen's life than generally believed.

Forty-five percent of teens said their parents most influence their decisions about sex compared to 31 percent who said their friends are most influential. Religious leaders were the most influential among 7 percent, while teachers and sex educators stood at 6 percent and the media at 4 percent.

Eighty-eight percent of teens said it would be easier to postpone sexual activity and avoid teen pregnancy if they were able to have more open, honest conversations about such topics with their parents, and 59 percent said when it comes to healthy, responsible relationships, their parents are their role models.

Meanwhile, only 32 percent of adults surveyed believe parents are most influential in their teens' decisions about sex.

The National Campaign survey questioned 1,000 young people ages 12-19 and 1,008 adults age 20 and older.