2006 Archives
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Christian witnessing requires readiness
Posted: 3/17/06
Christian witnessing requires readiness
By John Hall
Texas Baptist Communications
ARLINGTON—The most important part of sharing one’s faith is being ready to do it, said Javier Elizondo, Baptist University of the Americas vice president of academic affairs.
Javier Elizondo of the Baptist Uni-versity of the Americas preaches at the Hispanic Evangelism Conference. Spreading the gospel takes place in a variety of ways, Elizondo told the Hispanic Evangelism Conference. Some people will knock on doors up and down a street. Other Christians will share their faith with a waiter at a restaurant. Many Texas Baptists will talk about their beliefs with their friends.
03/16/2006 - By John Rutledge
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Church growth does not equal kingdom growth, speaker says
Posted: 3/17/06
Church growth does not equal
kingdom growth, speaker saysBy Ken Camp
Managing Editor
DALLAS—Church growth does not necessarily result in expansion of God’s kingdom, a Canadian pastor told a Texas Baptist conference.
“It is possible to participate in church expansion and unintentionally be an agent for shrinking the kingdom of God,” Jeff Christopherson, pastor of The Sanctuary in Oakville, Ontario, said at Epicenter, a spiritual formation and missions event sponsored by the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
Canadian pastor Jeff Christopherson presents his “kingdom matrix” at Epicenter. 03/16/2006 - By John Rutledge
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Transformed leaders minister out of spiritual overflow
Posted: 3/17/06
Nancy Ortberg, a church consultant from Menlo Park, Calif., talks to Texas Baptists about spiritual formation for leaders. Transformed leaders minister
out of spiritual overflowBy Ken Camp
Managing Editor
DALLAS—Before church leaders can guide other people to be transformed by God, they first must submit to the “rhythm of life with God” that leads to their own ongoing transformation, a former teaching pastor at Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago said.
“How you lead is reflective of your life with God,” said Nancy Ortberg, now a church consultant in Menlo Park, Calif.
03/16/2006 - By John Rutledge
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Spiritual outsourcing not the answer, McNeal says
Posted: 3/17/06
Reggie McNeal Spiritual outsourcing not the answer, McNeal says
By John Hall
Texas Baptist Communications
DALLAS—Christians have outsourced spiritual formation to the church, Reggie McNeal, leadership development director for the South Carolina Baptist Convention, told a Texas Baptist group. But if congregations don’t change their strategy, they may end up out of business, he insisted.
Families have given congregations sole responsibility for developing children spiritually, and churches are doing an inadequate job of handling that responsibility, McNeal said.
03/16/2006 - By John Rutledge
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Around the State
Posted: 3/17/06
Around the State
• Baylor University will remember its founding and early days with the dedication of Baylor Park on Windmill Hill at 2 p.m. March 25 in Indepen-dence. Baylor Park stands at the site of the original Baylor University campus, before its move to Waco. The congregation of Liberty Church in Independence will host a barbecue lunch beginning at 11 a.m. Baylor President John Lilley will speak at the dedication, and will be joined by former presidents Bill Underwood and Herbert Reynolds. For more information, call (254) 710-1268.
• The third annual Yellow Rose luncheon, hosted by the Howard Payne University Woman’s Club, will be held March 27 at 11:30 a.m. Millie Cooper, author of Aerobics for Today’s Woman, will be the featured speaker. Her topic will be “The Joy of Living.” During the event, the Yellow Rose Award will be presented to a woman in the community who exemplifies leadership and service and is a role model for students. The Yellow Rose Scholarship also will be presented to an HPU female student. Tickets are $15 and may be purchased by calling (800) 950-8465. Reserva-tions should be made by March 22.
First Church in El Campo recognized Isabel Rutherford for 68 years as a soprano in the church’s choir. Reading a resolution in her honor was Pastor Rick DuBroc, right. Also present was Music Minister Chris Skinner, left. A lifelong resident of El Campo, she was baptized at First Baptist in 1932. She recalled that in the choir’s early years, women did not wear choir robes but did wear hats. • A seminar on faith and healing will be held at Hendrick Medical Center in Abilene March 31 and April 1. Dale Matthews, author of The Faith Factor: Proof of the Healing Power of Prayer, will be the primary speaker. He will review findings from numerous scientific studies that demonstrate the effects of religious commitment upon health. Topics will include the healing power of prayer, biblical perspectives on faith and medicine, and reconciling physical and spiritual healing. Registra-tion deadline is March 24. For more information, call (325) 670-2256.
03/16/2006 - By John Rutledge
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Baptist Briefs
Posted: 3/17/06
Baptist Briefs
Three students charged with Alabama church fires. Law enforcement officials arrested three men March 8 in connection with a string of nine fires at Baptist churches in rural Alabama. A 10th fire, although ruled arson, has yet to be connected to the initial nine. Benjamin Nathan Moseley and Russell Lee Debusk, both 19-year-old students at Birmingham-Southern College, said they set the fires as a “joke,” authorities said. Moseley and Debusk appeared in federal court March 8 on charges of arson and conspiracy, according to the office of Alabama Gov. Bob Riley. Later that day, officials also arrested 20-year-old Matthew Lee Cloyd, a student at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. If convicted, the students could face a minimum sentence of five years for each church they burned, according to U.S. Attorney Alice Martin.
BJC offers essay contest for teens. The Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty has launched the 2006 Religious Liberty Essay Contest, seeking original compositions on the theme: “Why the separation of church and state is necessary to ensure religious liberty for all.” Open to all Baptist high school students in the classes of 2006 and 2007, the contest offers a grand prize of $1,000 and airfare and lodging for two to Washington, D.C. Second prize is $500, and third prize is $100. Winners will be announced in the summer of 2006 and will be featured in the BJC publication, Report from the Capital. The grand-prize winner also will be recognized Oct. 2 at the BJC board meeting in Washington, D.C. Essays should be 700 to 1,000 words. They will be judged on the depth of content and the skill with which they are written. Students should demonstrate a sound knowledge of the subject matter and support their assertions. For more information or to download a registration form and promotional flier, visit www.bjconline. org/contest/.
03/16/2006 - By John Rutledge
