Posted: 4/15/05

BGCT governance committee
recommends new convention bylaws

By Ferrell Foster

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS–The committee drafting new bylaws for the Baptist General Convention of Texas has voted unanimously to recommend the document after members from across the state agreed to an altered plan regarding makeup of the BGCT Executive Board.

“There was a real spirit of unity, and all came to agreement,” said Wesley Shotwell, chairperson of the Governance Committee and pastor of Ash Creek Baptist Church in Azle. “Everyone is enthusiastic about the future.”

A problem, however, surfaced after the meeting when an inconsistency was discovered in the math concepts used to draw boundaries for the “sectors” from which future Executive Board members would be elected. A decision on how to deal with the problem had not been made by press time.

Prior to the meeting, a key sticking point had been how to draw those “sector” boundaries. Baptists in West and South Texas had expressed concern that the initial proposal did not give them adequate participation on the board.

The formula approved at the early-April meeting received unanimous committee support, with two West Texans making and seconding the motion–Charles Davenport, pastor of First Baptist Church in Tulia, and Stacy Conner, pastor of First Baptist Church in Muleshoe and second vice president of the BGCT.

Committee members from other parts of the state said they believe the new approach is good and fair for the whole state because “it takes into account the level of financial support for the BGCT and recognizes the importance of smaller churches,” Shotwell said.

The new formula still uses resident membership as the primary criteria in drawing sector boundaries, but it also factors in the number of churches and BGCT Cooperative Program.

Three board members would be elected from each of 30 sectors across the state, and those sectors would follow county lines.

“I think the proposed criteria provide fairest representation for the entire state,” Davenport said after the vote. “It's not just a West Texas issue.”

“The plan that we have affirmed today underscores our commitment to the local church and to support of the convention,” Shotwell added. “We took into account the input we received from people across the state, and their input helped us come to a conclusion that we believe all Texas Baptists can affirm.”

Committee member Willie DuBose, a member of First Baptist Church in Midland, called the criteria decision a “good compromise to a difficult problem.”

The committee also approved new bylaws language that deals with concerns expressed at the previous Executive Board meeting. Initial language established a vague distinction between “affiliated” and “cooperating” churches. The new language erases such distinction.

“We're just thankful for all the churches in Texas that support the purposes and work of the BGCT,” Shotwell said.

The committee's recommendation is to be presented to the Executive Board for consideration during its May 24 meeting. If the board approves the bylaws, they will be voted on by messengers to the BGCT annual meeting Nov. 14-15 in Austin.

Posted: 4/15/05

Vision grows churches,
African-American leaders told

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

WACO–Growing churches have leaders who possess a God-given vision that they cast to the congregation effectively so members can “run with it,” George McCalep, pastor of Greenforest Community Baptist Church in Decatur, Ga., said during the Baptist General Convention of Texas African American Leadership Workshop.

Ministers need to hone their leadership skills, said McCalep, who led a congregation of 25 to become one of the most influential African-American churches in the nation, with more than 4,000 members.

A praise team from New Horizon Baptist Church in Waco sings during the BCGT African American Leadership Workshop.

Once pastors receive a vision from God, they need to share it, McCalep said. They need to tell people about it. It should be posted on the walls. It should be clear to all. That vision will attract others.

“The pastor is the catalyst for church growth,” he said. “If the pastor is not in touch with church growth or the strategies that lead to church growth, it will not happen.”

To develop leadership skills, ministers can find other ministers who exhibit strength in that area, McCalep said.

That can mean re-evaluating the way a leader administers a church, he said.

“Most of us do church the way we did growing up in church. I'm not saying that's wrong. I'm just saying there is another way.”

Ministers may need to grow to incorporate other methods of administration. McCalep said he had to learn several lessons about his leadership. God convicted him of being too focused on creating members, not disciples. God taught him he was ignorant about spiritual gifts, he said.

McCalep followed each teaching point with extended study to edify those areas of his life.

A person will know when he has an effective leadership style, McCalep said. The congregation will be “running” with the vision.

“Efficient leadership is someone who gets the right thing done by the right person at the right time and place,” he said.

“The proof of the pudding is whether there is followship. In other words, if you're a leader, look behind you. If there's no one behind you, you're taking a cool walk in the breeze.”

Posted: 4/15/05

Human failure won't thwart God's purpose

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

WACO–Despite human best efforts, nothing can stop God's will from taking place, Nehemiah Davis, pastor of Mount Pisgah Missionary Baptist Church in Fort Worth, told the Baptist General Convention of Texas African American Leadership Conference.

Though humankind may not always see how God is working, he is, Davis said. He is moving according to his schedule, not the desires of man.

“The ways of God are beyond our understanding,” Davis said.

Teaching from the Old Testament book of Exodus, Davis said God overcomes the best efforts of humans to stop his will. God defeated pharaoh's ventures to keep the Israelites as slaves. Pharaoh tried to kill the children of Israel, but God turned pharaoh's decree against the people of Egypt.

Christians must continue trying to bring God's will into reality, he said. God uses his people in the world.

“The church will always have to move against the forces that are trying to prevent God's will from happening,” he said.

In the end, God's desire always will prevail, Davis concluded. “Nothing can keep God's will from taking place.”

Posted: 4/15/05

Lady Bears bring national title home to Baylor

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

WACO–Baylor University's Lady Bears basketball team won the Texas Baptist school's first NCAA title by a women's squad with a decisive 84-62 victory over the Michigan State Spartans.

The Baylor women finished the season with a 33-3 record, including 20 straight wins. They entered the winner's circle by posting victories over three No. 1 seeds–North Caro-lina, Louisiana State University and Michi-gan State.

The Lady Bears' title win made Coach Kim Mulkey-Robertson the first women's basketball coach to play for a national championship team–1982 at Louisi-ana Tech–and then lead one as head coach. She also was assistant coach at Louisiana Tech in 1988 when the Lady Techsters won the NCAA championship.

Mulkey-Robertson–a former All-American and member of the 1984 Olympic gold medal women's basketball team–took the reins of the Baylor women's team five years ago, when the Lady Bears were last in the Big 12 with a 7-20 record.

At a post-game news conference, Mulkey-Robertson described the impact the Lady Bears' successful run had on Baylor and Waco–particularly in light of a scandal in the men's basketball program that came to light after a former player was accused of killing a teammate.

“Look up at these fans. That's how we changed the Waco community,” she said. “We're positive, and there's a lot of good there. There's great programs, great coaches, and this (title) is one of many more to come.”

Steffanie Blackmon, a senior from Rowlett and star center of the Lady Bears, expressed similar sentiments.

“It is such a blessing to be here and a blessing to win because this is what we worked so hard for,” she said. “I really think we put our eyes on the prize in the beginning, saying this is what we want to do. We set goals, and we reached every single one of them. This means a lot for the community. We've been through a lot. We had a tennis national championship, and now we can say we have a women's basketball national championship.”

A Dallas Morning News editorial sounded the same theme, saying: “Baylor University should rethink whatever it offered Kim Mulkey-Robertson to extend her contract last week. The dollars can't possibly compensate for the headlines she and her Lady Bears basketball team are bringing home to Waco. Baylor has had its share of national spotlight in recent years, for all the wrong reasons.”

The newspaper went on to note: “At least two of their many fresh-faced stars found Baylor as a result of the conservative values for which the school sometimes takes a beating. All-American Sophia Young, an exchange student from the West Indies, became interested in Baylor's religious foundation. Abiola Wabara came to Baylor's attention be-cause her aunt attended the school's Truett Semi-nary.”

President Robert Sloan agreed the Lady Bears players and coaches represented the university well, and the school was “enormously proud” of them.

“It's wonderful to have Baylor University given such positive national recognition,” said Sloan, who will step down as Baylor's president and become university chancellor June 1.

“Our prayer is always whether in athletics or academics that excellence would be seen as an expression of our commitment to the Lord. We see this as an opportunity to bear witness.”

Sloan praised the women's team both for their character both on and off the court, saying, “These girls are wonderful moral representatives of the university.”

Posted: 4/15/05

International network hopes
to draw Southern Baptists

By Greg Warner

Associated Baptist Press

LYNCHBURG, Va. (ABP)– Fundamentalist Baptists in February formed a new international organization they hope will include Southern Baptists, who last year withdrew from the Baptist World Alliance, an international fellowship Southern Baptist leaders accused of being too “liberal.”

But the executive director of the new International Baptist Network said the group does not intend to become an “alternative” or competitor to the Baptist World Alliance, which unites 211 national and regional Baptist unions.

Several prominent Southern Baptists are involved in the new organization, including Paige Pat-terson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and past president of the Southern Baptist Convention.

But Morris Chapman, president of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, said the SBC will proceed with its own plans to form an alternative to the BWA.

The International Baptist Network had its “first public meeting” in February at the Adolphus Hotel in Dallas, drawing “representatives from more than three dozen denominations, theological seminaries, colleges and mission boards, and individual churches,” according to an article in the April 2005 issue of the National Liberty Journal, published by Jerry Falwell's Liberty University.

The article, written by Liberty University co-founder Elmer Towns, said the International Baptist Network was “launched to counter (the) 'leftward drift' of Baptist World Alliance” and praised the SBC's withdrawal from BWA.

Southern Baptist leader Gene Mims, who became executive director of the new group in January, said the network “probably wouldn't work without Southern Baptists.” Mims, former vice president of LifeWay Christian Re-sources, said he was asked to lead the effort because “they needed someone who really knew Southern Baptists pretty well.”

But Mims insisted he does not expect the SBC to join officially. Instead, pastors and individuals likely will participate in the network.

“There are more Southern Baptists than there are any other Baptists,” he said. “This network would be incomplete without Southern Baptists.”

The International Baptist Network will function as a loose fellowship of individuals and churches, providing “relationships, information and opportunities” to “like-minded Baptists” around the world, Mims said. The network already has a confession of faith, membership policy and office in Atlanta.

In addition to Southern Baptists, the organization is targeting four independent Baptist groups–Southwide Baptist Fellowship, World Baptist Fellowship, Independent Baptist Fellowship International and Baptist Bible Fellowship International. The IBN is funded by the John Rawlings Foundation, named for one of the key leaders of the Baptist Bible Fellowship International. Rawlings deferred questions to Mims.

But Baptist denominations are not expected to join the network, Mims said, particularly given the history of independent and fundamentalist Baptist churches. Many of those groups considered Southern Baptists liberal until recent years, and none participated in the Baptist World Alliance.

“The independent Baptists see BWA as one big sort of a liberal playground that they would have no interest in,” Mims said.

“We're not interested in having an alternative to BWA,” Mims continued, noting the International Baptist Network would not have the “capacity” to replace the BWA. He said he met with the SBC's Chapman recently to inform him about the group's intentions. “I did talk to Morris about it, and I think he understands it's not an alternative.”

The February organizational meeting included Mims and Patterson, a former SBC president, Falwell said in a statement on his website. Falwell, a Southern Baptist and pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Va., called the International Baptist Network a “remarkable new venture.”

Patterson and Towns did not respond to requests to discuss the organization.

The Southern Baptist Conven-tion, which helped form BWA in 1905, withdrew its membership and financial support last June, citing a “leftward drift” in the organization.

Denton Lotz, general secretary of BWA, has denied the charges of liberalism and said an alternative organization would be a “slap in the face” of worldwide Baptists and contradict the stated intentions of SBC leaders.

The National Liberty Journal article says the SBC's withdrawal last summer from BWA “set the stage” for organization of the International Baptist Network. But the article does not claim SBC involvement or endorsement.

In voting to leave the Baptist World Alliance last June, the SBC agreed to use some of the funds withdrawn from BWA to form or support an alternative for “like-minded” Baptists.

But the International Baptist Network is not that group, Chapman insisted.

Chapman said he met with Mims and was aware of formation of the network, but Southern Baptists have not joined or pledged support.

He reaffirmed that members of the SBC's Great Commission Council “are participating in an exploratory meeting in Warsaw (Poland) to talk about how best to fellowship with conservative Christians around the world.”

Chapman said the meeting with conservative European Baptists will be the springboard for whatever alternative group the SBC forms. After the July meeting, the council will advise an SBC task force, which will recommend “how best to proceed in building a fellowship of like-minded Christians around the world,” he said.

Mims acknowledged only U.S. Baptists have participated in the International Baptist Network so far but added, “We're already contacting people overseas.”

Mims, 55, resigned Sept. 30 as vice president of church resources for LifeWay, the Southern Baptist curriculum and publishing arm, saying he wanted to return to the pastorate.

Mims said he had several opportunities to return to the pastorate since leaving LifeWay but was intrigued by the possibility of the International Baptist Network.

Posted: 4/15/05

Longview's LifePoint Church
builds relationships with unchurched

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

LONGVIEW–When Brian Shobert surveyed Longview two years ago, he saw something he didn't like–an unexpectedly large number of people with no connection to a church.

Demographic information revealed about 80 percent of area residents do not attend church regularly. The other 20 percent create large, strong congregations, but each seems the same, Shobert observed. They all are made up of the same, typically older, demographic and use similar outreach methods.

Clearly, their techniques are not working to serve the thousands of people who are not coming to church–especially those younger single individuals, Shobert asserted. A congregation would need to look drastically different to reach that 80 percent. And so LifePoint Church was born.

It is a different church to reach a different group of people, he noted. The congregation holds services Saturday night and Sunday morning in converted office space. The only advertising of the space is a small sign and a tarp that serves as a welcome station.

The worship atmosphere is meant to be comfortable. Participants, including leaders, wear jeans or relaxed khakis. Tucked-in shirts are rare. People eat muffins and sip coffee while sitting in theater seats. The pastor's sermons are more like conversations, as he encourages the crowd to talk to each other during parts of his application-oriented teachings.

There is no walking an aisle to make a faith profession. Sometimes leaders stand in the back of the room in case someone wants to talk. Many times, decisions are indicated by marking and turning in a card. Church leaders follow up with new Christians later.

The entire event happens in an area that feels more like a basement or warehouse than a sanctuary. Everything has been painted black except the front of the room, which is white–to help people know where to focus, Shobert said. It also helps present a series of notes and congregation-produced graphics and video clips.

The differences go beyond style. The congregation has no “programs” such as Sunday school. The closest thing it has is small “life groups,” focused on relationship-building and Bible study. Leaders want outreach to come out of relationships, not static avenues. When needs become known, leaders let the church know. Members can choose to meet them.

“We want our church to be based on fellowship where people can feel comfortable with each other,” said David Mauritzen, a church elder. “Everyone's on equal footing. Your past doesn't matter.”

It worked during Christmas. The church helped several families have Christmas presents. During a recent worship service, Shobert stopped the ceremony to pray for a couple who had been committed to the congregation for some time, but now were moving to Phoenix.

The approach may seem unorthodox, especially for East Texas, but unchurched people are coming in droves. Shobert estimated about 2,500 people, many of whom have no connection to a church, have come to worship with the congregation in 18 months. A 40-year-old would be a senior member of the congregation.

Jules Soulé, director of missions for Gregg Baptist Association, praised the church's work, saying Shobert does an excellent job of discipleship through his preaching.

Gregg Baptist Association, Oakland Heights Baptist Church in Longview and the Baptist General Convention of Texas Church Multiplication Center are sponsoring LifePoint.

“For this part of East Texas, they have been highly successful,” Soulé said.

The facilities appear to be limiting the church's growth. The congregation serves nearly 400 people each weekend and began a second Sunday service Easter. People are driving in from other cities in the region, including Marshall and Gilmer.

“People like what's going on,” the pastor said. 'We have a lot of fun. Real relational needs are being met in our worship and small groups.”

Shobert said the congregation is far from perfect. Leaders continue tweaking their techniques and are re-evaluating the purpose of life groups as well as other areas of the church.

The church set out to serve people not connected to a church. God has blessed enormously, but the pastor said there are many more non-Christians out there. The church plans on starting a series of similar congregations in upcoming years.

“Our vision is to reach those unchurched, unsaved, de-churched people in Longview,” he said.

Posted: 4/15/05

Ministry students gain extra tuition assistance

By Ferrell Foster

Texas Baptist Communications

SAN ANTONIO–Ministry students at Baptist General Convention of Texas universities and seminaries will get more tuition help next year, thanks to action by the BGCT Christian Education Coordinating Board.

The board approved a 50 percent increase in assistance for college juniors and seniors pursuing a ministry degree, and 20 percent to 25 percent increases for “endorsed graduate programs.”

These increases will affect more than 2,000 students in nine undergraduate, five graduate and two seminary programs for an estimated additional cost of $550,000, according to the proposal, which came to the coordinating board from the Executive Board's Theological Education Committee.

While the increased assistance would take affect in the 2005-06 school year, it will not impact the BGCT budget until 2007, when the state convention reimburses the schools.

The total ministerial financial assistance budget for 2005 is $2.9 million.

The proposal includes a request to the BGCT Administrative Committee that increased funds be allocated to cover the additional cost, said Keith Bruce, coordinator of institutional ministries. If more funds are not approved, the change will impact other areas of convention funding for its educational institutions.

It has been at least 10 years since undergraduate aid has been increased and six years since the graduate aid level was set, he noted.

Currently, undergraduate ministry students receive $50 per semester hour of credit. Under the proposal, freshmen and sophomores still would receive $50, but juniors and seniors who major or minor in religion would get $75 per hour. These students also must participate in a Ministry Guidance Program on each campus.

Graduate assistance is broken into two categories. Students in one-year or two-year programs in ministry and theology would receive $100 per hour under the proposal instead of the $75 they now are receiving. Students in master of divinity and doctor of ministry programs would receive $150 per hour instead of $125 per hour.

Rising tuition costs provide part of the rationale, but a state government program also has an impact on undergraduate students. The state of Texas provides Tuition Equalization Grants to students at private schools who are not ministerial students. Ministry students do not get that help.

The average state grant per non-ministry student is $2,300, said Royce Rose, director of theological education for the BGCT. If the BGCT adopts the proposed increases, the average ministerial assistance will be about $2,150. This means the gap is smaller between help received by ministry and non-ministry students.

If ministry assistance falls too far behind Tuition Equalization Grant help, then some students may be pulled away from declaring as ministry students and receiving the benefit of participation in the Ministry Guidance Program because of higher costs, Bruce said.

At the graduate level, the financial aid makes BGCT schools more competitive with other graduate programs, Rose said.

Later in the meeting, the board approved a motion from Doug Riggs of Bedford calling for the BGCT to evaluate funding for ministerial financial assistance at least every-other year to offset rising tuition costs.

Riggs' motion dealt with the possibility that the Christian Education Coordinating Board may no longer exist after the Nov. 14-15 annual meeting of the BGCT. If messengers to that meeting give final approval to a new constitution, then the work of the coordinating board will be moved to an Executive Board committee.

Posted: 4/15/05

Armageddon now?

By Cecile Holmes

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)–Tim LaHaye believes it is yet to come. Hank Hanegraaff thinks some of it may have already happened during Christianity's first century.

Their ongoing debate over the proper understanding of the fearsome prophecies in the biblical Book of Revelation is fueling interest in the end times at a moment when wars and disasters already have many people terrified.

And while Armageddon may be bad for life itself, it's proven good for the publishing industry.

Hanegraaff's and LaHaye's takes on Revelation couldn't be more different, but that's not hurting sales for either book. LaHaye's blockbuster Left Behind 12-book fiction series has sold 42 million copies. Hanegraaff's newer novel The Last Disciple is the first of a proposed four-part series and is doing well.

It's about much more than selling books, however, scholars say. The high-stakes publishing battle between the two men comes on the heels of the millennial fervor surrounding the year 2000 and feeds a stream of fear rippling just below the surface of public consciousness. The war in Iraq, the South Asia tsunami and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, are understood by some people to foreshadow the beginning of the end.

“The new millennium and 9/11 have undoubtedly helped to stoke today's wildly popular speculation about the end times,” said Michael Guillen, a scientist, former ABC-TV science editor and author of Can a Smart Person Believe in God? (Nelson Books). “But–irony of ironies–science, too, has played a crucial role,” providing a threatening array of possibilities from global warming to nuclear warfare.

Like impatient children who can't wait to open gifts, Guillen said, adults similarly can't wait to know the future.

“In this respect, Christians are only human. They're just as eager as the average pagan to know what's going to become of us and our oh-so-troubled world,” he said.

A 2003 Pew poll showed 44 percent of Americans believe Israel is literally the promised land given by God to the Jews, and 36 percent believe the modern state of Israel is a “fulfillment of the biblical prophecy about the second coming of Jesus,” he notes.

When it comes to the Bible, whether people interpret it literally or figuratively often depends on the specific prophecy, he said. Either way, prophecy sells in the world of Christian publishing.

Tyndale House released both books. Ron Beers, the company's senior vice president and publisher, stressed that Tyndale encourages “spirited debate” over the opposing viewpoints.

Each book “presents a very different interpretation,” Beers said. “Both of these viewpoints are strongly supported by a large number of evangelical scholars.”

In the Left Behind series, by LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, the end of the world is yet to come. The books follow a generally apocalyptic interpretation of Revelation beginning with the rapture, in which millions of believers are snatched up to heaven, and continuing through the seven-year tribulation marked by the rule of the Antichrist. Jesus Christ returns at the end of that period and triumphs in the battle of Armageddon.

Hanegraaff's book–co-authored with writer Sigmund Brouwer–unfolds in first-century Jerusalem. The city begins to confront chaos prophesied by Christ as the beginning of the last days. Uncertainty grows as an evil adversary tries to find the disciple John's letter (the book of Revelation) and destroy it and those with a copy.

The book contends Revelation may actually describe how early Christians were persecuted under the brutal Nero in the first century. To Hanegraaff, Revelation was written before the destruction of the Jerusalem temple to encourage persecuted Christians. He says the “end-time model presented in Left Behind is hermeneutically false in that it attributes powers to the beast that belong only to God, but it is historically false because it places the beast in the 21st century.”

To LaHaye, The Last Disciple promotes a “flawed theory,” one which he has criticized in media interviews. A pastor and author, he perhaps was best known for his conservative politics before fiction brought him fame. He believes deeply in his view of the Bible.

“Everyone wants to know about the future, and there's a lot of discussion, but only the Bible gives concrete answers,” LaHaye said. “What people don't realize is that 28 percent of the Bible was prophetic at the time it was written. There are over 1,000 prophecies in the Bible, half of which have already been fulfilled.”

Hanegraaff, president of the Christian Research Institute and host of CRI's popular daily radio show “Bible Answer Man,” minces no words describing how his views differ.

“Fiction is a great truth-convening medium,” he says. “As Left Behind has become the vehicle for indoctrinating millions of believers into an end-time theology invented in the 19th century, so we intend The Last Disciple series to bring a biblical balance to the debate over which end-times perspective corresponds to reality.”

Christian prophecy historically emphasized natural disasters and wars as “signs of the times,” or indicators of God's attitude on the road to the millennium, says Michael Barkum, a Syracuse University political science professor who has written extensively about apocalyptic, millennial and end-times fears.

By the late 19th century, the “signs of the times” view weakened as science rendered natural phenomena understandable and sometimes predictable, he says. But the more traditional outlook never totally disappeared.

Millennialists are adaptable and capable of incorporating contemporary events into their religious understanding, Barkum said.

Though LaHaye and Hanegraaff pen fiction, readers understand these particular books to be scripturally based, he says. As a result, such books are seen, in part, as expositions of an inerrant Bible.

Posted: 4/15/05

Around the State

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor performance studies and computer graphics design faculty have produced two original short films with UMHB students and Austin independent film professionals. The films, Once Upon a Fairytail and Map Thieves, will premiere at 2 p.m. April 23 at the Cove Theatre in Copperas Cove.

The John Powell Clayton Collection of religious studies and philosophy books will be dedicated at Hardin-Simmons University April 30 at 2 p.m. Clayton willed nearly 3,000 publications to his alma mater, and the material is a centerpiece of the new Duffy Theological Center in the Richardson Library.

Baylor University alumnus Steven Stucky has won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for music. Stucky, who is a professor of music at Cornell University, is believed to be the first Baylor alumnus awarded a Pulitzer. He won the prize for his Second Concerto for Orchestra, which was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Becky Casey has joined the Hardin-Simmons Univer-sity Academic Advising Center as coordinator for students with disabilities and assistant director of career services.

Howard Payne University has began construction on an eight-unit apartment complex that will accommodate 32 residents. Each unit will be equipped with a full kitchen, washer and dryer. The complex is scheduled to be ready for occupancy in August.

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor yearbook staff has been recognized with an award of excellence for design and content of the Bluebonnet.

Patricia and Jerrell Isbell will be recognized for their work as volunteers at Baptist Memorials Center and Sagecrest Alzheimer's Care Center in San Angelo. The Texas Association of Homes and Services for the Aging will honor them May 23 in Austin at the associaton's annual meeting.

The Tarrant County Bivo-cational/Smaller Church Ministers and Wives Assoc-iation has elected Willard Cook of Park Temple Church in Fort Worth as president. Vice presidents are Kevin Weathers of Grace Bible Fellowship, Charles Levine of Terrace Acres Church and Tom Fatka of Samuels Avenue Church.

Appointments

Jeff and Lori Loomis		Randy and Angela Stoda

Two couples with Texas ties were appointed by the Internation-al Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Jeff and Lori Loomis will plant churches in the Pacific Rim. Both are graduates of Houston Baptist University, where he also worked as an admissions counselor. He also was youth minister at Hull Church in Hull and Bellaire Central Church in Bellaire. He was minister of students and family at First Church in Liberty. She was an administrative assistant at Bayshore Church in La Porte. The Loomises have served in the Pacific Rim since 2002 as International Service Corps volunteers. They have one son, Cade, born in January. Randy and Angela Stoda will start churches in central and eastern Europe. Both worked with Mission Arlington in Arlington, he as a pastor and transportation coordinator and she as Spanish coordinator.

Anniversaries

Jeff Waldo, 15th, as associate pastor for discipleship and family ministries at University Church in Houston, March 1.

Roy Martin, 10th, as minister of music/youth at Broadview Church in Lubbock, March 5.

Cecil Harper, 15th, as pastor of First Church in Breckenridge, April 1.

L.V. Harvey, 20th, as pastor of Ebenezer Church in Bay City, April 4.

Gary Wood, 20th, as pastor of music of North Side Church in Weatherford, April 10.

Steve Wilson, fifth, as minister of youth and activities at First Church in Center, April 15.

Cranes Mill Church on Canyon Lake recently celebrated the completed payment of a $180,000 Baptist Church Loan Corporation loan for remodeling and construction of an addition to the church facility. The church repaid the loan in less than half the 15-year term. Participants in the ceremony included Les Hughes, chairman of the “Possible with God” committee that led the early repayment, and Charlene Perdue, widow of the church's former pastor. Jerry Becknal is pastor.

Luis Estrada, fifth, as pastor of Iglesia Estrella de Belen in Corpus Christi, April 16.

Larry Grayson, 10th, as associate pastor/music and worship at First Church in Lewisville, April 16.

Central Church in Pam-pa, 75th, April 16-17. C.W. Parker Jr. is pastor.

First Church in Clifton, 125th, April 17. Jerry Smith is pastor.

First Church in Kopperl, 130th, May 1. Former pastors and staff will be present. Lunch will follow the morning service. For more information, call (254) 889-3579.

Events

Forestburg Church in Forestburg will hold a seminar titled "Understanding Islam" April 22 at 7 p.m. The free two-hour seminar will cover topics such as the importance of understanding Islam, Islam's work in the United States, differences and similarities between Islam and Christian-ity and how to reach Muslims for Christ. The seminar will be led by Samuel Shahid, president and executive director of Good News for the Crescent World in Arlington and professor of missions at Southwest-ern Theological Seminary. For more information, call (940) 964-2470. Stewart Holloway is pastor.

First Church in Devers will hold a gumbo cookoff and gospel singing event April 23. The gumbo judging will be conducted at 5 p.m., with the meal to begin at 5:30. The concert will begin at 6:30. Musicians to perform are the New Psalms Quartet, Won Way, That Other Trio and Sam Craig. For more information, call (936) 549-7653. Harry McDaniel is pastor.

First Church in Paris will dedicate a state historical marker April 24 at 4:30 p.m. The ceremony also will include the placement of a time capsule behind the church cornerstone. Randall Perry is pastor.

Deaths

Charles Thrasher, 74, March 9 in Carrollton. Ordained to the ministry at Melwood Church in Brownwood in 1956, he was pastor of Pleasant Valley Church in Jonesboro, Em-manuel Church in Comanche, Calvary Church in Hamilton, Calvary Church in Seagoville, Kessler Park Church in Dallas, Hillcrest Park Church in Arlington, First Church in Borger, First Church in Levelland and First Church in O'Donnell, where he retired in 1995. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Martha Joe; daughters, Judy Thrasher and Ruth Sifford; son, Charles; sister Lela Troy; and four granddaughters.

Reginald Bridges, 79, March 28 in Lubbock. Bridges was the first chaplain at the Lubbock State School and served there 22 years. He also was a pastor 20 years and was associate director of Lubbock Association. He was a consultant for the Mission Service Corps for West Texas. At the time of his death, he was pastor of Parkway Drive Church in Lubbock. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Verlyne; son, Lowell; daughters, Renee Fikes, Christy Taylor and Cheryl Shaw; brother, Doye; sister, Neldene Matusevich; eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Ned King, 85, April 1 in Dallas. An insurance executive, King was a deacon at First church in Dallas for many years and taught the King's Men Sunday school class for more than 50 years. He also served on the Southern Baptist Annuity Board, the Baptist Standard board of directors and the Executive Board of the Baptist General Convention of Texas. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Edith; son, David; and sister, Carmen Cook.

Ordained

Taylor Sandlin to the ministry at First Church in Marlin.

Chris Wigley to the ministry at First Church in Littlefield.

Steven Gaither to the ministry at First Church in George West.

Troy Carter to the ministry at Rockett Church in Red Oak.

Jason Diggs to the ministry at Elmwood Church in Abilene.

Matt Parker to the ministry at Sagemont Church in Houston.

Jerry McPeek as a deacon at Meadowbrook Church in Rockdale.

Randall Aaron, Roger Bradshaw, Mike Coursey and Wade Stanford as deacons at First Church in Millsap.

Kirby Warnock, George Karlen, Patricia Flournoy, Pat Harding, Linda Wilkerson, Rob Collins, Linda Bell, Ervin Gunter, Jim Barber, Charles Anderson, Dan Roseveare and Kathy Anderson as deacons at Cliff Temple Church in Dallas.

Revivals

Correction: Lamar Church, Wichita Falls; April 10-13; evangelist, Don Cass; pastor, Terry Bowman.

Union Grove Church, Gladewater; April 24-27; evangelists, the Calvary Singers; pastor, Ken Moore.

First Church, Taft; April 24-27; evangelist, Buckner Fanning; music, Tommy Lyons; pastor, David Vernon.

Calvary Church, Cuero; April 24-27; evangelist, Jon Gillis; music, Marcos and Sue Gohlke; pastor, Bill Gleason.

First Church, Poolville; April 28-May 1; evangelist, Mike Martin; pastor, Chris-topher Keefer.

Posted: 4/15/05

'Blue Like Jazz' author emphasizes
relationships, not packaged programs

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

If Christians are going to reach nonbelievers with the gospel, they are going to have to get involved in non-Christians' “messy lives,” author Donald Miller insists. And believers are going to have to let nonbelievers in their lives, which may not be so tidy either.

Miller, a Texas native and author of Blue Like Jazz–a popular book among innovative ministry leaders–and Searching for God Knows What, said the church will not reach many non-Christians with a simple “five-step” method or program.

The gospel, God and life are not that easy to figure out, he maintains.

“Christian spirituality,” a phrase he prefers to Christianity, is more mysterious than that, he said. Theological tenets such as the Trinity–the belief that the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit are three persons that comprise one God–cannot be understood with formulas. They are mystical and create awe. Not everything can be explained easily.

Jesus did not lay out short processes to solve all of life's troubles, Miller pointed out. Life is too complex to resolve issues so simply. This is one of the reasons people are buying Blue Like Jazz, Miller said. He did not find faith in churches but through the relationships he built outside them.

Each person takes a unique journey to faith where discoveries are made as a result of interaction with God, the world and other people, the writer continued. Epiphanies occur in bursts, sometimes with spiritual droughts between them.

“I think people come to faith relationally,” said Miller, a speaker at a recent Emerging Church Network event. The group is supported by the Baptist General Convention of Texas. “Our job as believers is to be as good a people as we can be.”

The author, a member of Imago Dei Community Church in Portland, Ore., encourages churches to build relationships within their respective communities.

Each culture has characteristics in common with the Christian faith.

If congregation leaders identify those qualities, they can use them as avenues to share their faith.

Social justice, beauty and grace are among the most common characteristics Miller sees Christians and non-Christians sharing.

Taking notice of those topics can create a relationship between churches and neighborhoods.

“I think the church should embrace the culture of the community,” he said.

Relationships do not mean immediate conversions, Miller noted. They mean give-and-take between two people, where each party learns from the other.

This is far different from contemporary Christianity, which he claims has been “hijacked” by self-help books.

“Whoever is buying the book (Blue Like Jazz) does not want to buy a packaged five-step process,” he said, adding the approach he presents is “more like reality.”

Posted: 4/15/05

Book Reviews

The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church by Reggie McNeal (Jossey-Bass)

This former Texas pastor and now director of leadership development for the South Carolina Baptist Convention writes straightforwardly and with great insight about changes the church is facing in these days.

Rarely do you find in one volume such interesting and sometimes-scary assessments about the way our culture is changing and the church's response or lack of it.

McNeil deals with (1) the collapse of the church culture, (2) the shift from church growth to kingdom growth, (3) the new reformation of releasing God's people, (4) the return to spiritual formation, (5) the shift from planning to preparation and (6) the rise of apostolic leadership.

What are you reading that other Texas Baptists would find helpful? Send suggestions and reviews to books@baptiststandard.com.

This is a valuable book. On virtually every page, there is something to mark and ponder.

Bill Blackburn, president

Partners in Ministry

Kerrville

Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris (Modern Library/Random House)

“No man can take part in the torture of a human being without having his own moral nature permanently lowered.” No, the quote didn't come from congressional hearings or military trials regarding abuses at Abu Ghraib. Teddy Roosevelt said it in a 1906 presidential message, and he was talking about the lynching of African-Americans.

Throughout Edmund Morris' insightful biography of Roosevelt, readers can see parallels between the ethical issues dominating the national conversation 100 years ago and recurring themes today. Roosevelt assumed the presidency following an act of terrorism–the assassination of William McKinley. Critics blasted him and supporters praised him for viewing the United States' intervention in international disputes as a moral imperative. Economic justice, environmental protection, race relations, and the use and abuse of power numbered among the moral and ethical causes Roosevelt and his detractors debated.

Morris' captivating look at Roosevelt's two terms as president reminds readers sinful human nature remains the same, whether at the dawn of the 20th century or the 21st.

Ken Camp, managing editor

Baptist Standard

Dallas

The Myth of the Perfect Mother by Carla Barnhill (Baker Books)

This is a great book for churches to read, especially male leadership. This book helps us as a community to realize that we put women into a box in regards to how they are to function within the community of faith. We do not take seriously mothers and other women who have great talents to use for the Lord outside of our traditional roles we place on them.

Barnhill gives us a glimpse into the lives of women who offer much in building up the community of faith but are not taken seriously because they are expected to stay home with their children. She shows us that God calls each person to their place in the church and that we should not place restrictions on who can do what.

This book helps me as a man to be more sensitive to the needs of all people who have talents to utilize for the kingdom of God. Women in nontraditional roles can be just as important in the kingdom as those living out traditional roles. Remember, Jesus moved outside the norm in his recognition of women.

Walter Norris

First Baptist Church

Plano

Lincoln by David Herbert Donald (Touchstone/Simon and Schuster)

What does it take to be a great leader? David Herbert Donald's biography of Abraham Lincoln reminds us the price of leadership is absolute self-sacrifice for the greater good. Lincoln is one of the most-celebrated yet most-misunderstood American leaders. His story reminds us of the terrible price that must be paid in the life of a significant leader if the leader is to be successful.

He certainly had setbacks in his career and grief in his personal life, but his problems were compounded by finding himself in the midst of a struggle that would set the course of human history. He was hated in his day; perhaps more than any other president has been hated. He was hated not only by the Confederates of the South, but his political opposition in the North was strong and forceful. Although he had a wonderful wit, he was tormented by depression. He stood on the brink of disaster but was unwavering in his vision for a unified nation.

Lincoln's story is a great reminder that the perceived glory of leadership often comes at great cost. He died thinking himself a failure. Yet history has shown Lincoln's vision set us on the course of liberty for all.

Wesley Shotwell, pastor

Ash Creek Baptist Church

Azle

Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial, and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives by Richard A. Swenson (Navpress)

Ogden Nash once quipped, “Progress might have been all right once, but it has gone on too long.” If that saying triggers your smile and a faint ring of truth, this book might be for you.

It's a revised edition of Swenson's prescription for coping with the downside of progress–painfully stressed and overextended lives. The medical doctor touched a nerve, and his book has been a best seller.

By “margin” Swenson means elbow room between your load and your limits. He pulls out charts to show how the sharp curve of progress gives us “more and more of everything faster and faster.”

The problem comes when we get suckered into thinking we can keep up.

He reminds us that human beings are made with relatively fixed limits. Forgetting that fact hurts our health, relationships, finances and discipleship.

Much biblical, sane, wise and practical advice pours from these pages. Read it twice.

Rick Willis, pastor

First Baptist Church

Lampasas

Posted: 4/15/05

CBF receives $5 million gift. Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions received a $5 million gift from a donor who chose to remain anonymous. The majority of the funds will go to field personnel salaries, benefits, equipment and training, with additional designated funds for expanding HIV/AIDS initiatives and Partners in Hope, the CBF rural poverty initiative. The remaining $300,000 will go to the Asian response fund for tsunami relief.

Wellness Walk/Run set for SBC. GuideStone Financial Resources–formerly the Southern Baptist Annuity Board–will sponsor the third annual Living at Your Best Wellness Walk/Run June 21 during the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Nashville, Tenn. Warm-up will begin at 6:15 a.m. for the one-mile and 5K courses for both runners and walkers. Start times will begin at 6:30 a.m. and will be staggered for runners and walkers. Interested individuals can register online at www.GuideStone.org or by calling (800) 262-0511.

Judge in Schiavo case leaves his church. George Greer, the Florida judge who ordered Terri Schiavo's feeding tube removed, resigned his membership from Calvary Baptist Church in Clearwater, Fla., after receiving a letter from the church's pastor, Willy Rice. According to the St. Petersburg Times, Rice wrote that, although he was "not asking (Greer) to do this," that resigning his membership nonetheless "would seem the logical and, I would say, biblical course" given Greer's inactive status in the congregation and his publicly stated disagreements with church decisions. The pastor's letter to Greer came after a profile of the judge appeared in the paper. In it, Greer noted that, although he had been very active in the congregation in the past, tensions over the Schiavo issue and others had caused him to stop attending services and contributing financially to the church in the fall of 2003.

Fellowship development coordinator to retire. Tom Newsom of Waco, development coordinator for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, will retire effective July 31. Before coming to the Fellowship four years ago, Newsom worked for Baylor University, Phoenix Baptist Hospital, Grand Canyon University, Arizona Baptist Children's Services and Texas Baptist Children's Home. Newsom and his wife, Jane, are members of Seventh and James Baptist Church in Waco. They have two grown children and one grandchild.

Gilbert named to CBF staff. Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions has named Karen Gilbert as the associate coordinator for volunteers and partnerships, a Dallas-based position left vacant by Tom Ogburn since Dec. 31. She begins May 1. Gilbert served as minister of missions at Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas since May 1996. Her previous experience includes community minister at Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth and case manager for Family Services Inc. She has been on the Fellowship's national Coordinating Council and the CBF Texas Council since 2003. She also has been on the Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board since 2001. Gilbert has a master of religious education degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth and a bachelor's degree in social work from Longwood College in Farmville, Va. Gilbert and her husband, Timothy, have two daughters, Katie and Mary Beth.

WMU leader pressured to decline Missouri invitation. National Woman's Missionary Union executive director Wanda Lee will honor a commitment to speak at the annual meeting of the moderate Baptist General Convention of Missouri–despite an attempt to convince her to decline. David Clippard, executive director of the conservative Missouri Baptist Convention, sent a letter to Missouri Baptist pastors and WMU leaders complaining about Lee's planned speech. Missouri, Texas and Virginia each have two competing Baptist conventions as a result of the controversy in the Southern Baptist Convention. The national Woman's Missionary Union, which raises money for Southern Baptist missions, attempts to relate to women in churches affiliated with all those conventions.