Baptist Briefs

Posted: 2/3/06

Baptist Briefs

Challenge grant to benefit Richmond seminary. Harwood and Louise Cochrane of Tabernacle Baptist Church in Richmond, Va., have agreed to match every gift, dollar-for-dollar, contributed to the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond’s “Building our Future … Together” fund-raising campaign through July 31, 2007, up to $3 million. Gifts and pledges already received for the campaign total $8.4 million toward a base goal of $15 million and a challenge goal of $19 million. The Cochranes’ matching gifts will be earmarked for renovating a dormitory building with an eye to creating more of a residential campus community, seminary spokesman Nathan Taylor explained. Other gifts given in response to the challenge will be applied to the fund-raising campaign’s other goals. The seminary’s three other buildings currently are undergoing major renovations. For more information on the campaign, call (804) 355-8135.

GuideStone assets reach record high. GuideStone Financial Resources—formerly known as the Southern Baptist Annuity Board—closed 2005 with an all-time high in total organizational assets of $8.9 billion. In addition, the 13 GuideStone funds available to Southern Baptist participants turned in a positive performance for 2005 as well as positive returns since their inception on Aug. 27, 2001, agency officials reported.

Illinois Baptist executive director elected. The Illinois Baptist State Association board of directors unanimously elected Nate Adams as executive director during a special meeting. Adams, vice president for mission mobilization at the North American Mission Board, begins his new duties March 1. He succeeds Wendell Lang, who left the Illinois state convention last May to become senior pastor of West Jackson Baptist Church in Jackson, Tenn.

Louisiana College plans preview events. Louisiana College has scheduled two “Walk Like a Wildcat” preview events, Feb. 9-10 and March 9-10, to allow high school students to spend the night on campus in a residence hall and attend classes and extracurricular activities with current Louisiana College students. Students interested in participating in one of the events should contact the admissions office at (318) 487-7259 or (800) 487-1906 or register online at www.lacollege.edu/campusvisit.

Waco foundation pledges grant to heritage society. Christian Missions Concerns, a Waco-based foundation, pledged a $15,000 matching grant to the Baptist History & Heritage Society for the October 2006 publication of a series of pamphlets on Baptist origins. The pamphlets will be distributed free of charge to churches to educate Baptists about their origins in England and history in America. For more information, contact Charles Deweese at cdeweese@tnbaptist.org.org, or (800) 966-2278.

Youth Ministry Lab scheduled. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s annual Youth Ministry Lab, April 7-8, will include a conference for volunteer-led youth ministry programs in small churches. Other sessions will focus on youth ministry in large churches, student ministry, student praise bands, student leadership, adult volunteers in youth ministry and training for international missions experiences. Youth Ministry Lab speakers include Doug Fields, student pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., near San Diego; Ken Davis, a motivational speaker and communicator from Nashville, Tenn.; Allen Jackson, professor of student ministry at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary; Mark Matlock, founder of Wisdom Works Ministries; and Emir Caner, a former Muslim who is now dean of The College at Southwestern. The Joel Engle Band will lead the lab’s worship sessions. For more information, call (817) 923-1921 ext. 6239 or visit www.swbts.edu/youthlab or www.sbcstudents.com.

N.C. retirement homes to name own trustees. The Baptist Retirement Homes of North Carolina has adopted bylaw amendments that allow the corporation’s trustees to elect their own successors. Previously, the bylaws called for trustees to be elected by the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, which also had the power to remove trustees. Baptist Retirement Homes, founded in 1951, operates retirement communities in Albemarle, Asheville, Concord, Hamilton and Winston-Salem. A letter mailed to more than 9,000 Baptist leaders, residents and others said the criteria for choosing trustees has not changed—they still must be Baptists, with at least three-fourths holding membership in North Carolina Baptist churches. The changes were approved during a December meeting of the Baptist Retirement Homes trustees.