Posted: 10/13/06

Amish isolated but still vulnerable to violence

By Mary Warner

Religion News Service

HARRISBURG, Pa. (RNS)—The Amish teach their children that a gun is for hunting wild game, and any other use is a sin. They do not serve in the military. They reject the use of violence, even in self-defense.

They organize their community around their church and draw sharp boundaries around it—keeping out the violent and sexual images from television and movies.

“We imagine the Amish more immune,” said David Weaver-Zercher, religion professor at Messiah College, hours after a gunman burst into a one-room school in Lancaster County and killed five Amish girls.

“It underscored—as if we needed it underscored—that even the communities that appear to be the most isolated and most immune from violence are nevertheless vulnerable.”

The Amish began migrating to the United States from Europe in the 18th century, largely to avoid religious persecution and compulsory military service. Lancaster County has one of their largest communities—about 25,000 to 30,000 people, supporting themselves with farming and small businesses.

The Amish often own hunting rifles. Peter Siebert, director of the Lancaster Heritage Center, said some Amish businesses close on the first day of deer season. But a gun to the Amish is like a plow, he said: It’s a tool.

There have been rare occasions when “disturbed Amish people did violent things to their families,” said Weaver-Zercher. “But to respond violently is so out of character, so far from the Amish worldview … that it never occurred to me” to wonder if the gunman was Amish. He was not.

The terrible news was no doubt traveling quickly, he said, via the efficient Amish grapevine.

The Amish don’t have phones at home, but sometimes a few families share a phone in a shed between farms. Many Amish businessmen have phones in their shops. And there are non-Amish (“English”) friends with televisions.

Eventually, the Amish might entertain questions about how their schools might be made safer, said Weaver-Zercher. That sounds difficult, given how numerous they are, and “you’re not going to have an Amish bishop with a shotgun out in front,” he said.

Still, he predicted in coming weeks Amish leaders will gather and invite some “English” civic leaders whom they trust for a conversation about safety.

In the meantime, the days following the killings were filled with funerals—at homes or in barns or large shops, because the Amish have no separate houses of worship, said Donald Kraybill, an Elizabethtown College sociologist and expert on the Amish.

“The focus will be on accepting it, and on forgiveness,” he said, adding the Amish “take seriously the words of Jesus to love enemies and not to respond to violence with violence.”

Mary Warner writes for The Patriot-News in Harrisburg, Pa.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Around the State

• Thirteen faculty members began teaching at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor this fall. They include Colin Wilborn, assistant professor of exercise and sport science; Kelda McMullen-Fix, assistant professor of nursing; Cheryl Rowder, associate professor of nursing; Aida Sapp, associate professor of nursing; John McLean, associate professor of music; Randall Brown, assistant professor of business information technology and systems; Doyle Eiler, associate professor of management and marketing; Paul Stock, assistant professor of accounting, economics and finance; David Howard, associate professor in Christian studies; Derek Davis, dean of humanities and interim dean of graduate programs and research; Yolanda Forero-Villegas, associate professor of modern languages; Diane DiClemente, associate professor in psychology; and Stacy Stoll, visiting instructor in chemistry.

• Jeanie Pinkston, registrar at East Texas Baptist University, has retired after 19 years of service.

• James Steen has been named vice president for enrollment management at Houston Baptist University. He will oversee admissions, recruitment, financial aid and scholarships, registration and retention.

• Travis Avenue Church in Fort Worth has raised money to have one of the suites in the new Hall of States hotel at the Glorieta Conference Center named for its pastor, Michael Dean.

• Eleven people were honored by Howard Payne University at its alumni awards banquet. They included H.B. Ramsour, distinguished alumnus; Christy Anderson and Tom Collins, outstanding young graduates; Mickey and Linda Eddins, Randy Johnson, Wayne McAfee and LaNita Richmond, medals of service; Patsy Landry Weeks, coming home queen; and Gary and Leta Berry and grand marshals.

• Lynnette Geary has been named Baylor University’s university carillonneur. As carillonneur, her primary instrument will be the 48-bell McLane Carillon in the tower of Pat Neff Hall. It weighs more than 22 tons.

• Dean Daniel, currently dean of Wayland Baptist University’s campus in Altus, Okla., has been named dean at the Wichita Falls campus, effective Nov. 1.

• New faculty at Dallas Baptist University include Juan Baldor, professor of Spanish; Ron Bowles, assistant professor of communication and music; Todd von Helms, assistant professor of history and Christian studies; and Beverly Powell, assistant professor of English.

• Eleven people with Texas ties have been appointed as missionaries by the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Jason and Kelli Frealy will work in community outreach and devlopment in South America. LifePoint Church in Longview is their home church. He was a police officer in Longview. They have a 1-year-old daughter, Daniela. Daniel and Tiffany Kilcoyne will serve in western Europe as church starters. Travis Avenue Church in Fort Worth is their home church. He previously served as youth minister at First Church in Watauga. Both graduates of Hardin-Simmons University, they have one daughter, Kaylie, 2. Jeremy and Angela Newton will serve in central, eastern and southern Africa, where he will be a strategy coordinator. Immanuel Church in San Angelo is their home church. They have three boys, Jared, 5; Grant, 3; and Zachary, 1. Deron and Beth Peterson will serve as church starters in South America. Their home church is First Church in Dallas, where he has served as pastor for junior high youth and missions associate. They have two boys, Samuel, 9; and Isaiah, 3. Joe Vaughn Jr. will be a university minister in central and eastern Europe. He formerly was youth minister/assistant pastor at Calvary Church in Brenham. Jeff and Amy Williams will work as church starters in central and eastern Europe. Travis Avenue Church in Fort Worth is their home church.

Anniversaries

• David Wilson, 15th, as pastor of Southcrest Church in Lubbock, Sept. 17.

• Mitch Wilson, 10th, as pastor of First Church in Shallowater, Oct. 1.

• Fred Culbertson, fifth, as minister of music at First Church in Taft, Oct. 1.

• Balde Alvarado, fifth, as pastor of Iglesia La Esperanza in George West, Oct. 14.

• Bryan Price, 50th, in the ministry, Oct. 15. To commemorate the occasion, Price and his family conducted a concert at First Church in Pittsburg, where he served almost 20 years. He also was the first audio/visual director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

• Craig Vire, 20th, as pastor of Bethesda Church in Burleson, Oct. 15.

• Congress Avenue Church in Austin, 115th, Oct. 15. George Tuthill is pastor.

• Gary Hall, fifth, as minister of music as Monterey Church in Lubbock, Oct. 24.

• Scott Steggs, fifth, as pastor of Oakwood Deaf Church in Lubbock, Oct. 28.

• Valley View Church in Longview, 65th, Oct. 29. Former Pastor Jimmie Barksdale will preach, and Paul Tapp will lead music during the morning service. A lunch and afternoon program will follow. Kenneth Bowden is pastor.

• Chris Briggs, fifth, as minister of students at Hillcrest Church in Bryan.

• Scott Adams, fifth as minister of education at Hillcrest Church in Bryan.

• First Church in Friends-wood, 50th, Nov. 11-12. A meet-and-greet reception will be held from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. Tables will be available for sharing memorabilia from the church’s past. Sam Broughton will be the primary speaker Sunday morning. Several former staff members also will participate. For more information, call (281) 482-7573. David Belk is pastor.

Deaths

• Ruth Ann Foster, 59, Sept. 28 in Hewitt. She had been battling cancer. Foster was one of two founding faculty members of Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary and was associate professor of Christian Scriptures at the time of her death. Prior to joining the seminary faculty in 1994, she served as minister of education at Manor Church in San Antonio. She is survived by her mother, Alice.

• John Kiwiet, 81, Oct. 2 in Fort Worth. Born in The Netherlands, Kiwiet joined the faculty of Southwestern Semin-ary in 1967. He taught theological French and German, systematic theology and historical theology until his retirement in 1990. He was chairman of the department of theology five years and the author of 17 books. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Margaret; five children, Eva, Talitha, Nicoline, Henry and Pieter; brothers, Joop and Wim; and 10 grandchildren.

• Lee Hemphill, 98, Oct. 7 in Abilene. Hemphill, a graduate and trustee of Hardin-Simmons University, served the school as vice president for development from 1959 to 1968 and as vice president for deferred giving until 1975. He was pastor of Silver Valley Church in Novice, First Church in Dayton and Plainview Church in Colorado City before accepting the call of First Church in Littlefield in 1943, where he remained until he left to aid his alma mater. Hemphill and his first wife, Lunelle Nix Hemphill, also supported the school financially, dedicating the assets from an array of businesses to the school. Nix Hall was built with gifts from her, her husband and other relatives. Following her death in 1987, the family created an endowment to encourage students to serve in mission outreach projects. Following his marriage to his second wife, Koreen Logsdon Hemphill, the couple made a $1 million naming gift to the school for the Hemphill Music Building. He served the Baptist General Convention of Texas as a member of the Executive Board and as second vice president. He also was vice chairman of Texas Baptist Children’s Home in Round Rock and was a trustee of Wayland Baptist University 14 years. He is survived by his son, Hilton; daughter, Rosa Lee Prichard; sister, Ruth Wittenburg; six grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.

• Fred White, 93, Oct. 9 in Dallas. He served numerous churches before being called as pastor of First Church in Duncanville in 1948. In 1955, he was named pastor of First Church in Carrollton. White recruited the inaugural freshman class of Dallas Baptist College in 1965. He was appointed chairman of the religion and philosophy department, a post he held 20 years. While he officially retired from Dallas Baptist University in 1985, he maintained an office on campus and continued to work as an adjunct professor of Christian faith until 2002. He also was a competitive runner until the age of 85. He was inducted into the Texas Senior Games Hall of Fame. He won approximately 500 medals in local, state, national and international competitions; almost 300 of those medals were gold. In 2001, he received the Baptist General Convention of Texas’ Elder Statesman award. DBU gave him an honorary doctorate of divinity degree in 2002. He was preceded in death by his son, Fred Jr., and wife of 67 years, Mary Lou. He is survived by his son, Bill; daughter, Mary Helen Atkins; three grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

• Robert McGinnis, 86, Oct. 9 in Dallas. He was a former executive director of Dallas Baptist Association and a longtime pastor. A Howard Payne University graduate, he was licensed at First Church in Blanket in 1945 and later ordained at Coggin Avenue Church in Brownwood. Prior to his 15 years of service to the association, he was pastor of Casa View and Fernwood churches in Dallas, First Church in Royse City, First Church in Rowlett, and Calvary Church in Mineral Wells. After his retirement from the association in 1985, he was pastor of Prestonwood and Westglen churches in Dallas. He was preceded in death by his wife of 53 years, Joyce. He is survived by his son, Joe Bob; daughter, Brenda Bradford; sister, Jean Murphree; five grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

• Fran Porter, 74, Oct. 10 in Waco. She served as a hospital chaplain, hospice chaplain, director of Sanctuary Home in Waco, and as minister of senior adults and pastoral care at Calvary Church in Waco, where she was ordained in 1995. She was preceded in death by her brother, Albert Booth, and sister, Doris Berglund. She is survived by her husband of 54 years, Nathan; daughters, Becca Hollaway and Leslie Smith; son, Joel; sister, Jean Foor; and five grandchildren.

Events

• A leather-bound history of First Church in Seminole has been published in conjunction with the church’s 100th anniversary. It is available for $20. For more information, call (432) 758-3291.

Revivals

• Shady Shores Church, Shady Shores; Oct. 15-18, evangelist, Don Piper; music, Shout120; pastor, Bob Joyce.

• First Church, Devers; Oct. 22-26; evangelist, Paul Cherry; music, The Cherry Family; pastor, Harry McDaniel.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Book Reviews

The Windshield is Bigger Than the Rearview Mirror by Jeff Wickwire (Chosen)

Jeff Wickwire writes as if he were sitting at your breakfast table, having a cup of coffee with you. His relaxed style flows with insight and optimism. Through great insight into human nature and the understanding that God has a purpose for each Christian’s life, Wickwire reveals how many of them are “robbed of joy, achievement, meaning and God’s best” because they are trapped in the past.

Part 1 of his book focuses on the six “chains” Satan uses to hold Christians captive—inordinate attachments to someone or something, past successes, heartbreak, failure, trauma and bitterness. In each chapter, he presents biblical examples to illustrate and validate these causes of imprisonment.

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

Part 2 centers on how captives can become free (through the power and work of the Lord Jesus) and achieve God’s purpose in our lives—to help others through the testimonies God has given us. By focusing attention through the “windshield,” Christians begin to see opportunities the Father places before us, as well as how others depend upon our response.

A wonderful book filled with optimism, faith and love, The Windshield is Bigger Than the Rearview Mirror should be required reading. It is a wonderful book that can be used by pastors to help deliver their people from the chains of the past to being victorious in their daily walk and service to the Lord. The minister also will gain insight and understanding into the lives to whom he ministers.

A book worth reading, Jeff Wickwire has written a book worth keeping!

Randall Scott, pastor

Immanuel Baptist Church

Paris

A Texas Baptist Power Struggle: The Hayden Controversy by Joe Early (University of North Texas Press)

Religion has an important and interesting role in the development and discussion of Texas history. From very early times, Roman Catholicism has played an important and dramatic part in Texas history and culture, even as the religious beliefs of the ancient inhabitants of the region have contributed to the richness and culture of the state. Through the years, other faiths have come to play significant and substantial roles in how the state is shaped socially and religiously. One group that emerged in the early part of the 19th century was the Baptist faith.

Leon McBeth, along with others, has presented studies of the rich heritage and often-dramatic controversies that have shaped and shaken Texas Baptists. A student and scholar trained and mentored by McBeth at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has contributed a significant and important volume to that history. In A Texas Baptist Power Struggle: The Hayden Controversy, Joe Early has presented the full and insightful story of that important struggle among Texas Baptists late in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Early sets the struggle involving Samuel Augustus Hayden and the powerful leaders of the Baptist General Convention of Texas in the late 1890s and opening years of the 20th century in the context of Baptist growth and rivalry. This was a struggle that involved two important newspapers in Baptist life—the Texas Baptist and Herald and the Baptist Standard. Early explains how this conflict was not unique for Baptists or other religious groups. He describes how the Methodists struggled with holiness and perfectionist theology and how the Churches of Christ and Christian Churches split over mission strategy, musical instruments and biblical interpretation. He carefully establishes the historical and religious setting for the controversy that developed among Baptists in East Texas and in time separated Baptists across Texas.

Early has produced a very readable, accurate, balanced story of an important controversy that helped shape two Baptist movements. He draws from the story some good, practical insights into how controversy can be handled.

This is a book worth reading and certainly valuable for those interested in the religious development of Texas. It provides insight into the nature of religious controversy and how it has shaped the important Baptist movements in Texas.

Jerry Hopkins, professor of history

East Texas Baptist University

Marshall News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Baptist Briefs

American Baptists move collection south. The American Baptist Historical Society, which claims the world’s largest collection of Baptist resources, is moving to Mercer University’s Atlanta campus. While the history-rich collection is a treasure trove for researchers, it has been inconveniently divided between two sites 350 miles apart—Valley Forge, Pa., where American Baptists have their national office, and the Samuel Colgate Library in Rochester, N.Y. “The history of Baptists is the history of religious freedom in America,” Mercer President Bill Underwood said, “and the American Baptist Historical Society is the single most significant depository of that history.” Relocating the historical collection to Mercer’s Atlanta campus serves to “preserve the collection, … foster the examination of this history by future generations of students, scholars and others, and … establish Mercer as the leading center for Baptist scholarship in North America.” Mercer’s McAfee School of Theology and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship's main national offices are on the Atlanta campus as well. The university's main campus is in Macon, Ga.

Coalition urges SBC policy on clergy sexual abuse. Members of the coalition that fought the Roman Catholic Church’s hierarchy over sexual abuse by priests are asking the Southern Baptist Convention to prevent similar clergy abuse in the denomination’s churches. Members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, recently delivered a letter to the SBC Executive Committee at its Nashville headquarters. It asks convention leaders to form an independent review board to receive and investigate charges of clergy abuse in Southern Baptist congregations. Part of the difficulty the SBC faces in taking aggressive action involves the autonomous nature of local churches in Baptist polity. Since individual congregations have full control over their decision-making and governing processes, the SBC can’t dictate rules or punishment to them.

Cooperative Program giving tops $200 million. For the first time, Southern Baptist giving through the Cooperative Program surpassed $200 million for national causes during the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, according to an announcement by SBC Executive Committee President Morris Chapman. Churches gave $200,601,536 in the recently ended fiscal year—a 2.37 percent increase over the previous year.

Embattled NAMB presidential search committee chair resigns. Terry Fox—who resigned as pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Wichita, Kan., following charges of financial impropriety—has resigned as chair of the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board’s presidential search committee. Bill Curtis, chairman of the NAMB board of trustees, named Greg Faulls, pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Owensboro, Ky., as the committee’s new chair. Fox’s resignation as chair—but not as a member of the search committee—came soon after some members of his former church issued a statement linking his departure from Immanuel Baptist to accusations that he had reallocated the church’s Cooperative Program contributions to a radio program without authorization. Fox—co-host of a satellite radio program—has denied the charges and started a new church 10 miles away from Immanuel Baptist.

N.C. Baptists propose bylaws changes. Directors of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina recommended changes to the convention’s bylaws that would give North Carolina Baptist institutions a greater say in choosing their trustees and directors. The board also implemented a motion excluding from the convention churches that “affirm, approve, endorse, promote, support or bless” homosexuality. The board approved specific guidelines for determining if a church is too approving of gays. Both changes are subject to a vote by messengers to the convention’s annual meeting in November.

Tennessee Baptists sue Belmont. The Tennessee Baptist Convention filed a lawsuit aginst Belmont University, citing breach of contract and seeking damages equal to all contributions the convention has made to the school since 1951—more than $58 million, without factoring inflation. The convention’s Executive Board filed the suit, pointing to an official repayment agreement reached by the convention and Belmont in 1951 that said if the school ever passed from Baptist control, it would repay the convention the value of any assets transferred to it. Last November, Belmont filed a request with the state to change the school’s charter without convention approval, establishing a self-perpetuating governing board that could be 40 percent non-Baptists. Executive Board President Clay Austin said he hoped the convention and the school could reach an amicable resolution through mediation. Belmont Board Chairman Marty Dickens said trustees were “astonished” to learn about the lawsuit, which he characterized as “meritless.” News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

2nd Opinion:
Create an alternative caring culture

By Rick McClatchy

My deepest wish is for all Texas Baptist churches to experience significant, sustained growth as they reach people with the gospel of love.

How do we make that happen? Looking at the growth of the early church helps us know what to do.

A remarkable period of church growth took place from the New Testament era through the year 350 A.D. During this time, the church grew about 40 percent each decade. Christianity began as an insignificant group, and by 350 A.D., it included half the Roman Empire’s population.

How do we explain such significant and sustained growth? The best analysis was provided by Rodney Stark in The Rise of Christianity. He learned one of the major reasons the early church grew was because it created an alternative caring culture.

In a Roman culture of power and cruel domination, Christians did the opposite. They served and loved others. Christians were convinced God loved them and they, in turn, were to love others. The church was an alternative community of love and care for others.

The book of Acts describes how the early church members would sell their belongings to care for those in need (Acts 2:45). In times of famine, they sent relief money to their fellow believers. They humanized and loved all people.

After the New Testament era, the early church continued to carry forth this compassionate alternative society mission. Christians cared for the sick in epidemics rather than fleeing from the infirmed. Christians refused to toss their unwanted infants, especially girls, into the streets. Christians refused to enjoy the bloody gladiatorial contests. Marginalized slaves and women were humanized in the church. Christians cared for their widows and poor.

This alternative caring community was guided not by the values of Roman culture, but by the values of Jesus. People joined this new alternative community because they shared a common dream of the kingdom of God—a kingdom in which care, generosity, love, forgiveness, respect and justice would be lived out by its people.

This kingdom vision was utterly incompatible with the self interest and cruelty that guided Rome. Because Christians were out of step, they were frequent objects of ridicule and occasional persecution.

In spite of this, they lived such compassionate lives that even their critics grudgingly admitted none could match their compassion for others. Thousands and eventually millions found that kingdom lifestyle of love so compelling that they joined Christians.

What would happen if all our churches once again dreamed of being an alternative community of love rather than purveyors of spiritual goods to over-indulged spiritual consumers?

Too idealistic, some say. What if that cynical realism would have been the attitude of the early Christians? They dreamed, and the dream came true.

They saw a vision of a new, caring community that grew rapidly for three centuries in the face of significant cultural opposition. Could we not become a caring community again and draw thousands to our cause?

About one-third of the world’s people, mostly women and children, live in extreme poverty. They live on less than $2 a day. Nearly one-fourth of Texas children live below the poverty line.

What if we said in the name of a loving God that we will no longer allow such realities to exist? We could ease much of the world’s suffering, and thousands would be drawn to Christ and a life of service.

Why? It would prove our faith is real. As Daniel Vestal said, “Worship, devotion, piety is worthless if it is not accompanied by care for the poor.” Many are just waiting for a group of spirit-filled people like us to put feet to our dreams and prove we really believe what Jesus taught.

So where do we begin? First, get your church involved in an international ministry to the world’s poor (one like KidsHeart Africa, where the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and Buckner help children orphaned by AIDS). Second, get your church involved in ministry efforts to the poor in this country. Many opportunities exist along the Texas/Mexico border and in our Texas cities. Third, get involved in ministry efforts to the poor in your own community.

What I’m challenging you to consider is this: Can we create an alternative culture of service and sacrifice that challenges a world where everyone is rewarded for looking out for themselves?

If we can, then even our social and religious critics can hurl their barbs but then concede that no one else cares for people like we do. And if this becomes our reputation, then others will come and join us as new Christians joined the early church. May this be our vision and our hope.

Rick McClatchy is coordinator of Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Texas.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

DOWN HOME:
Even better than Texas-OU football

This was a voicemail that, any other year, would have made me sing “The Eyes of Texas are Upon You” from the rooftops.

I’d been running Saturday errands and walked in the back door when Joanna handed me the phone and said: “You’ve got to listen to this. It’s your cousin Max.”

Sure enough, Max (not only a second cousin by marriage, but a true friend) left a message. He and Gene Alice had tickets to the Texas-OU football game, but they couldn’t come to Dallas, and he wanted to know if I could use them.

People may debate the exact location of heaven, but on a year when the Longhorns are better than the Sooners, I’d nominate the Cotton Bowl—at least for one Saturday afternoon in October.

So, with great sadness, I called to say I had other longstanding plans, and that in any other year I’d be thrilled to sit in the stands and watch that game.

My sadness dissipated by gameday. I couldn’t attend the Texas-OU rivalry because six friends and I were floating down the Rio Grande in the Big Bend.

We had been planning and anticipating our Big Bend Weekend for months. Three of us still live in Texas. The other four, in their halcyon days, lived in the Lone Star State. Now, they’re “missionaries” to other states, scattered from Virginia to Florida.

Of course, it took almost all day Thursday to get out there. We stayed in Marathon, “Gateway to the Big Bend.” On Friday, we hiked 12.6 miles around the Chisos Basin, up to the South Rim and back. On Saturday, we floated 2o miles down the Rio Grande, including six miles through Santa Elena Canyon, where the cliffs rise 1,500 feet above the river surface.

As much as I love football—and Texas-OU is the zenith—I can’t imagine a better October Saturday than on the Rio Grande in the Big Bend with fast friends.

And speaking of the unimaginable, I can’t imagine how someone could visit those wondrous, ancient mountains and mesas—scarred and burnished by wind and rain and sand and river—and not believe there is a God, or believe the earth is only 6,010 years old, for that matter.

The only thing that tops the euphoria of hiking those trails and taking in splendid scenery from mountain tops or river bottoms is contemplating it all.

The sides of those mountains reveal layer upon layer of sedimentary rock, pushed skyward by earthquakes of incomprehensible magnitude. Once lifted from seabed to mountain peak, they have been eroded, shaped, broken, cracked, strewn and, in many places, polished.

I can’t take in all that geological beauty without thinking about our Creator God, whose divine imagination formed unspeakable beauty framed by indescribable expanse. And when I observe the strata of rock and consider the eons required to prepare those vistas for our viewing today, I marvel at the patience of our Eternal God, whose love and creativity will endure after mountain peaks erode to dust.

–Marv Knox

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Retired ministers challenged
to keep on serving Christ

By Orville Scott

Special to the Baptist Standard

GLORIETA, N.M.—A record 423 people at the eighth annual Retired Ministers’ Retreat at Glorieta Baptist Conference Center were challenged to keep on serving Christ into eternity.

Speaking to the conference theme of “Carry On…Let’s Go,” Russell Dilday, chancellor of the B.H. Carroll Theological Institute and former president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, said the supernatural power of God is unlimited “to carry you through.”

“The reason for your getting this gift is to become part of passing it on. God will put in your pathway others who need it.”

Russell Dilday, chancellor of the B.H. Carroll Theological Institute and former president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, preached at the Texas Baptist Retiree Ministers Retreat.

Dilday, preacher for the four-day retreat, recalled that Jesus took a little boy’s lunch and multiplied it to feed 5,000. “He will help us to carry on, even into eternity.”

“Where people are separated from God, compassion keeps you carrying on,” said Dilday. “The power supply comes through the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life.”

Noting that every Christian in the New Testament carried out their ministry in the context of the church, Dilday said, “Jesus loved the church and gave himself for it. A good disciple is one who is developing and growing to full potential.

“Who you are is more important than what you do. Be filled with the Spirit. Show the fruit of the Spirit.”

Retired Southwestern Seminary Professor Bill Tolar who led the Bible study at the retreat, also challenged participants to keep on serving Christ into eternity.

Bill Tolar, veteran professor of biblical backgrounds at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, led the morning Bible studies on "Iraq and the Bible."

“If we knew the cure for cancer and did not share it, that would be morally corrupt,” Tolar said. “If we have knowledge of God and do not share it, that is morally corrupt.

“By modern standards of success in ministry, the prophet Jeremiah would be graded F-triple-minus. He was not popular, and he did not have a big following, but real success in ministry is faithfulness, love of the people, integrity and truth.

“My faith is based on the character of God, not on human circumstances. God loved me enough to send his Son to die for me.”

Worship leader at the retreat was composer Dick Baker, former minister of music at Prestonwood Baptist Church, Dallas. Organist was retired dentist Bill Hanson, concert artist/entertainer and former organist at First Baptist Church in Dallas.

The 2007 Retired Ministers Retreat will be at Glorieta Conference Center Sept. 24-28.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Coast shares gospel through
over-the-top object lessons

By Leann Callaway

Special to the Baptist Standard

Keith Coast isn’t a typical evangelist. After all, what other evangelist would crawl into a six-foot balloon, light his tongue on fire or ride a unicycle?

But Coast has a method behind his madness. By using over-the-top object lessons, Coast shares the gospel with children and their families.

“It always amazes me how people just need to laugh sometimes,” he said. “I had a young man share with me that his dad hadn’t really smiled since his mother had passed away, and he thanked me for squeezing myself into a balloon because it made his dad crack a smile for the first time in a long time.

Keith Coast inside of a six-foot balloon.

“I’ve had several grandparents come up to me and thank me for such an enjoyable time. It reminds me that no matter how old we are, we’re all big kids at heart.”

Because of his distinctive blend of humor, illusions and stunts used to teach valuable lessons, Coast has become a popular Christian entertainer for sports award nights, children’s programs, summer camps, fall festivals, retreats, and evangelistic crusades.

“I focus on providing churches with a high-quality experience for large outreach events, camps, retreats, and whatever they can dream up,” he said.

“I bring a message that is simple enough for a child to understand, but enjoyable for the whole family. I’m not just a comic or an illusionist, and I’m not an ordinary preacher. I’m just a guy who believes that Christians should have more fun than anyone else because of the joy we have in Christ.”

Before Coast established this creative evangelistic ministry, he was youth pastor at Central Baptist Church in Baytown. The son of a pastor, Coast said he was influenced greatly by his father using visual illustrations in his sermons.

“I always used object lessons in my teaching because the messages that I remembered the most growing up were the ones that had visual illustrations,” he said. “When I became a youth pastor, my object lessons really took a turn because you get to be a little crazy and fun with this age group.

“One day, I walked into a magic shop and was introduced to the world of illusions. I started using close-up tricks to get to know the kids coming to church, and then used an illusion to illustrate a biblical message. They loved it, and I started to work harder on making the message come alive.

“The Lord also brought me to another place in my walk. Instead of complicating the gospel and trying to impress people with how much I knew about a subject, I tried to make the message as simple as possible. To take a simple principle and illustrate it the best way possible became my goal.”

Then, four years ago, Coast felt God leading him in a new direction.

“I had served in different ministries since I was 15, and I really felt the Lord calling me out of a full-time staff position into evangelism,” he said.

“I had nothing on the calendar or any idea of how we would pay the bills, but I knew God was leading me into this area. My wife and I had a passion to help reach elementary-age kids and give them a foundation to build on. We felt like children’s ministry had been overlooked and pushed into the shadows for way too long.”

Today, he lives in Lawton, Okla., and keeps a busy schedule performing at children’s ministry events around the world—as far away as Iceland. During the summer, he performed at eight camps, including Mount Lebanon Baptist Encampment.

As for his upcoming plans in ministry, Coast said: “I honestly don’t know where this ministry will be in 10 years, five years, or even tomorrow. … I rely on the Lord to open doors and to close them. All I know is that I will be serving the Lord, however he sees fit. This ministry is not about me, but me allowing the Lord to use the gifts he gave me for the purpose he created me for. Until he directs me otherwise, I’ll just keep using creative and unique ways of sharing his message.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Kirk Franklin’s music,
message focus on God’s power

By Mary Colurso

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)—Kirk Franklin’s speaking voice sounds thick and fuzzy, but let’s not get any rumors started about throat problems.

Actually, the gospel triple-threat—performer, songwriter and producer—said he just rolled out of bed and picked up the phone. This is his morning voice—his 9 a.m., “haven’t-brushed-my-teeth-yet” voice.

Franklin, 36, promises that his vocal cords will be pushing out something quite different on his latest tour.

“I’m fine,” he insisted. “My voice is doing great.”

Although Franklin’s latest shows don’t have the multimedia trappings of his previous tours, which resembled Broadway theater, he emphasizes the music and the message remain as powerful as ever.

“It still comes with the same kind of passion, the same kind of ministry,” he said. “It still has the same focus and energy, even if you don’t have 20 dancers on the stage.”

Special effects may come and go, he said, but a church boy’s focus on God? Change that, and everything falls apart.

“It’s a heart issue, not an external issue,” Franklin said.

That’s why he points to the integrity of the old-fashioned, shout-it-out choir, while maintaining that a street ministry may require other tools—the use of hip-hop rhythms, for example, or a more contemporary brand of showmanship.

Franklin has become famous for his innovations in that regard. Evidence of rap, funk, soul and R&B can be heard on CDs such as Hero, The Rebirth of Kirk Franklin and The Nu Nation Project.

“The way I look at it, we’re all connected, one body with many parts,” Franklin said. “I can relate to the choir but also to the corner. A man who’s a missionary to China can be doing the same work as a man on stage at Radio City.”

Ask Franklin if he is 50 percent preacher and 50 percent musician, and he declines to divide the inspirational pie.

“I’ve never sat down and tried to break down the formula,” he insisted. “Self-evaluation is dangerous for me. Everything I do has a spiritual reference point. But I think that every Christian should be able to take his tie off and put his baseball cap on.”

Millions agree and have turned Franklin into a success story with a string of No. 1 albums on the Billboard charts, three Grammy Awards and an entire pew full of Dove and Gospel Music Association awards.

For Franklin, all of this is evidence that “God can be cool; God can fit into our culture.”

He admits to being as human as anyone—tempted by the material possessions money can provide and the hip-hop world’s emphasis on bling.

“The flesh is always wanting to run to those things,” Franklin said. “But God’s No. 1 priority is not platinum or ice. It’s to develop character and for us to be people of integrity. God’s primary motive is for us to be more beautiful inside.”

Franklin has been vocal about his human flaws—too vocal, some say—admitting during a 2005 interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show to a lifelong struggle with an addiction to pornography.

He and wife, Tammy, talked about the issue on television, Franklin said, because they were asked to do so and because he had overcome the addiction and wanted to help others who might be struggling with it.

“I had been open in Christian magazines, talking about it,” he said. “If I’m going to be honest about something, I’m going to be honest across the board. Once God gave me victory over it, I had a burn and a passion to tell people, ‘Here’s what God did for me.’”

Franklin also is directing his energies at trying to heal the residents of hurricane-devastated New Orleans. He has participated in benefit concerts for Katrina relief, saying no committed evangelist could do otherwise.

“I expect to find lots of angry people, lots of skeptics, lots of people who are not ready to hear my message,” Franklin said. “But you serve where God wants you to serve. We should be able to look back in history and see that black folk took the initiative to be connected with black folk. This American tragedy speaks volumes about being our brother’s keeper.”

Mary Colurso writes for The Birmingham News in Birmingham, Ala. News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Texas Baptist Forum

God and war

Our Sunday school director made us aware of a spread in the Baptist Standard regarding Muslims (Sept. 18). One source noted their God is the same as our God. That may be true for him, but it certainly is not for me.

My God is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Letters are welcomed. Send them to marvknox@baptiststandard.com; 250 words maximum.

“When you withhold forgiveness, it’s like swallowing the poison you intended for your worst enemy.” Al Meredith Pastor of Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, describing how members of the church have been able to forgive Larry Gene Ashbrook, who massacred seven people in the church’s sanctuary in 1999 (Dallas Morning News) “We will forgive you.” An unnamed Amish neighbor Embracing the father of Charles Carl Roberts IV, the gunman who killed five Amish schoolchildren and injured five others before taking his own life (Lancaster New Era/Sojourners) “Neither Jesus nor Paul ever intended to blend the person of Christ with the patriotism of a nation. Nor did they intend for the sovereignty of a nation over its borders to be equal with the sovereignty of Jesus over his creation.” Thom Rainer President of LifeWay Christian Resources, discussing God and politics (Facts & Trends) “Faith convictions, moral values and defining religious experiences of life sustain the vitality of the whole society. We never stand alone, disconnected, uprooted—at least not for long.” Donald Wuerl Roman Catholic archbishop of Washington (RNS)

I dare him to go up to a Muslim and suggest this is the true God. He would be lucky if the Muslim didn’t whack his head off even with his shoulders.

Get your heads out of the sand. We are at war, and it’s just stuff like this that is going to help us lose.

This reminds me of the frog in a pot of warm water. Someone sat it on the stove, and the water boiled and killed the frog. Go ahead and sit in the pot of warm water, but when it begins to boil, then it will be too late to get out.

May God protect America and our president.

Hazel Sims

Graham

Different Gods

Thank you for the series of articles on Islam. However, I am disturbed by those who equate Allah with God.

Professor Ron Smith of Hardin-Simmons University is wrong when he says, “We worship the same God. … There is a different understanding of God in Islam but not a different identity. He is the same God. We have different understandings of God.”

It is Jesus Christ who set the two apart. If you don’t get Christ in the picture, then you really don’t understand who God is.

The Koran says: “God forbid that he should have a son!” (Surah 4:171ff)

The Bible says: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:3) and “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30).

Siegfried Enge

El Paso

Peaceful & radical Muslims

So why have all the peaceful Muslims allowed the radicals to have their way with “peaceful” Islam without any serious opposition? It is becoming more obvious that the radicals will be “defeated” or be put “at rest” only when the peaceful Muslims come out of their closets and confront these Islamofascists, as President Bush would call them. Unless the peaceful Muslims do this, the responsibility will fall on countries like the United States, England, Spain, Germany, etc., all who were directly attacked by the radicals, where thousands of innocent people have been slaughtered.

It is obvious the peaceful Muslims fear losing their own heads in their opposition to the radicals. Not all Germans were Nazis, but to oppose the Nazi movement would mean that many Germans would be slaughtered because of their opposition.  Why not let the Americans and the British die in their efforts to defeat the Nazis for Germany?

Can you see peaceful Muslims rising up against the radicals?  I don’t!  So, are we at a stalemate?  I ceased being an idealist years ago; today, I consider myself a realist.

Bill Simpson

San Antonio

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 10/13/06

Relief efforts in North Korea
not affected by political tension

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS—The political uncertainty surrounding North Korea in the wake of an apparent nuclear test should not adversely affect Baptist hunger-relief ministry there.

U.S. intelligence officials believe North Korea performed nuclear testing in recent days, prompting the United Nations Security Council to consider sanctions against the country.

Yoo Yoon, who recently returned from his 11th trip delivering large amounts of food to North Koreans for Texas Baptist Men, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and Korean Sharing Movement of Dallas, said the unfolding political standoff between North Korea and the United Nations should not stop future relief efforts in the country.

The relief effort is driven by a desire to meet the needs of North Koreans and spread the gospel, not by politics, said Yoon, pastor of Glory Korean Church in Dallas.

Many people are starving, because governmental food rations are not adequate, he said. During his recent trip, Yoon delivered $34,000 in flour, milk and cloth to make hospital gowns to Hwe Ryong City in northern North Korea.

“We want to share our love of Christ at the same time,” he said. “We want to share our blessings. We want to share the gospel.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.