Storylist for week of 10/16/06

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• Seminary delays action on transfer of funds from foundation

• Evangelical leaders call on Bush to stop Darfur genocide

• CBF partners with Texas Baptist schools

• Supreme Court refuses to hear Scout appeal

• Author urges Christians to fast from politics

• Strategy for lowering credit card debt

• How to cope with high energy costs

• Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you?

• How to opt in to medicare coverage

• UMHB Student finds a calling in Ethiopia

• Book alleges faith-based initiatives are bogus



• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful


Prosperity gospel or Christian Stewardship?
• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful

• Bankrupt believers may tithe

• Periodic check-ups aid financial health

• Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says

• Good stewardship demands proper estate planning

• Lease-to-own program enables home ownership


• Rodriguez to be nominee for BGCT 2nd vice president

• Relief efforts in North Korea not affected by political tension

• Retired ministers challenged to keep on serving Christ

• Coast shares gospel through over-the-top object lessons

• On the Move

• Around the State

• Texas Tidbits


• Baptist Briefs


• Sri Lanka ministry continues in spite of ethnic violence


• Kirk Franklin's music, message focus on God's power

• Christian sci-fi fans say: ‘The truth is out there'

• Network TV serves strained ‘Veggies'

The Amish cope with a tragedy
• Community sees schoolhouse attack as ‘Amish 9/11'

• How will the Amish cope with school shooting?

• Amish remember gunman as good neighbor, family man

• Amish isolated but still vulnerable to violence


• Book Reviews


• Cartoon

• Classified Ads

• Around the State

• On the Move

• Texas Baptist Forum


• EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

• DOWN HOME: Even better than Texas-OU football

• TOGETHER: Attend Texas Baptists' ‘family reunion'

• 2nd Opinion: Create an alternative caring culture

• RIGHT or WRONG? Church-state separation

• Texas Baptist Forum


• BaptistWay Bible Series for October 15: Living a life that matters a day at a time

• Bible Studies for Life Series for October 15: Take hold of contentment

• Explore the Bible Series for October 15: The promises of God offer hope

• BaptistWay Bible Series for October 22: God's goodness is worthy of praise

• Bible Studies for Life Series for October 22: We are most useful when firmly in his hands

• Explore the Bible Series for October 22: Christ provides our access to the Father


Previously Posted
• Pro-SBC young leaders' group emerges

• Arizona Baptist Foundation executives sentenced

• Defense bill compromise affects chaplain prayers, guidelines

• ‘Blue like Jazz' buzz continues

• Poteet church's high school diploma program helping adults reach goals

• Program gives UMHB students taste of real-life counseling ministry

• Chinese pastor leads international mission

• Pendleton church rebounds from disaster

• Churches celebrate restoration after arson

• Carson-Newman College president gets 'no confidence' vote

• Bill hinders suits over violations of church-state separation

• SBC urged to take measures to prevent clergy sexual abuse

• Church arguments spilling out into blogs and websites



See complete list of articles from our previous 10/02/06 issue

Posted: 10/20/06

BaptistWay Bible Series for October 29

Offer thanks to God for his abundant gifts

• Psalm 116

By David Wilkinson

Broadway Baptist Church, Fort Worth

In her spiritual autobiography Traveling Mercies, author Anne Lamott writes, “Here are the two best prayers I know: ‘Help me, help me, help me,’ and ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you.’” That sentiment captures the spirit of the Psalter’s prayers of thanksgiving.

A cry for help

The simple yet profound formula for the group of psalms often classified as songs of thanksgiving is expressed in a single sentence of Psalm 34: “This poor soul cried, and was heard by the Lord, and was saved from every trouble,” (v. 6). The series of three clauses summarizes the testimony of Psalm 116 and similar psalms: I cried out to the Lord; the Lord heard my plea; and the Lord delivered me from my trouble.

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This public testimony of God’s acts of grace and mercy leads to an expression of thanksgiving or gratitude, often in the form of a presentation of a sacrifice in worship in fulfillment of promises made in the prayer for help.

In this sense, the hymn of thanksgiving serves as the liturgical counterpart to the prayer for help. (See Psalm 13 for a model of the lament of an individual.). In contrast to the prayers for help, which constitute by far the largest category in the Psalter, these songs of thanksgiving are few. That ratio may reflect our experience in prayer and worship: We tend to come to God to ask for help much more than we come in thanksgiving to offer our gratitude to God.

A hymn of thanksgiving

Psalms 116 offers an excellent example of songs of thanksgiving and the ways these hymns were woven into the liturgical practice of the worshipping community. This wonderful psalm gives us a picture of a worshipper who has come to the temple to pay his vow to God and to offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving for the Lord’s deliverance, which may have come in the form of healing from a grave illness. Now, he is fulfilling his promise to offer his sacrifice to God in the presence of others.

The elements of the hymn follow the pattern described earlier:

• The psalmist prayed to the Lord (Yahweh) for help, and the Lord heard and responded (vv. 1, 2, 6, 8, 16).

• Now, the psalmist comes in worship to offer sacrifices (vv. 13-14, 17-19).

• He sings a song of thanksgiving to the Lord (vv. 8, 16).

• He offers public testimony about God’s goodness to God’s people (vv. 5, 6, 9, 15).

The singer begins with the notes of a love song, giving voice to those three words that are crucial to any intimate relationship: “I love you.” In the entire Psalter, only Psalm 18, “I love you, O Lord” (v. 1), begins with such an intimate expression of love for God.

The psalmist lifts his song of petition and praise to a God who hears. The wooden idols the ancient Hebrews encountered in other religions had ears but could not hear. Not so, declare the psalms, with the God of Israel. The psalms of thanksgiving praise a God who hears and cares, a God who not only speaks but listens to his people.

The psalmist offers thanksgiving for God’s deliverance from a crisis that had brought him to death’s door. God has rescued him from the “snares of death” and the “pangs of Sheol” (v. 3). For the Hebrews, Sheol was the shadowy abode of the dead, a place devoid of God’s life-giving presence and steadfast love. God’s deliverance had rescued the psalmist from the clutches of death (v. 8), enabling him to walk again in the “land of the living” (v. 9).

Serious, life-threatening crises tend to remind us of our mortality, forcing us to confess we are not masters of our fate. In those situations, often we find ourselves making a deal with God. These are our “if only” prayers—“O God, if only you will get me out of this mess somehow”—often accompanied by a promise—“then I will … .”

We also must confess, however, that the difference between the psalmist and most of us is the composer of this hymn actually keeps his promise to God.

The story of Hannah provides a striking example of such fidelity to a vow. If God would answer her prayers for a child, Hannah vowed to offer the child for life-long service to God. Her prayers were answered, and, sure enough, Hannah showed up one day at the temple with little Samuel in tow, entrusting him to Eli’s care and guidance in fulfillment of her promise to the Lord (1 Samuel 1:26-28).

A toast to God

This commitment to keeping one’s promises compels the psalmist to present a public offering of praise and thanksgiving to God in worship (vv. 13-14, 17-19). In Hebrew culture, someone delivered from illness or affliction was expected to offer a public expression of thanks. The “cup of salvation” (v. 13) may be a reference to wine offered in a religious ceremony of thanksgiving.

This act of worship found expression in the observance of Passover, where Psalm 116 was among the psalms recited as the fourth and final cup was raised at the meal, and was later adapted and incorporated by the early church into the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. When in our worship we raise the “cup of salvation” heavenward in thanksgiving for our salvation in Christ, we in essence are offering a reverent “toast” to God.

Fittingly, this song of thanksgiving offers an appropriate conclusion to our brief, nine-week journey into the rich territory of the Psalms. The opening notes, “I love the Lord” (v. 1), end with the exultation, “Praise the Lord!” (v. 19).

In our love for God, with thanksgiving for all God has done, and with gratitude for the gift of the Psalter, we joyfully sing, “Praise the Lord!”

Discussion questions

• Note the three attributes of God included in verse 5. In what ways does our trust in God relate to these attributes?

• In the psalmist’s confidence in God, he finds “rest” (v. 7). This may refer to the sense of safety and security he found in worshipping in the temple. It may also be a reference to the inner peace that only God can provide (Psalm 4:8). This kind of inner restfulness characterizes the faith of my mother-in-law. As she lay on the examining table in the doctor’s office, awaiting a biopsy report, she offered a prayer and then quietly fell asleep. That inner peace was unshaken when the doctor returned to awaken her with the news that the biopsy was positive. Have you experienced this kind of confidence and trust in God’s loving care?

• In what ways does your church’s worship reflect the spirit of thanksgiving expressed in Psalm 116?

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: 10/20/06

Bible Studies for Life Series for October 29

Endure difficult times with God’s strength

• 2 Timothy 3:1,10-17; 4:5-8

By Kenneth Lyle

Logsdon School of Theology, Abilene

The final lesson in the theme “Equipped for Real Life” bids us to “Take Hold of Endurance.” The lessons have emphasized our need to be equipped and ready to “… take hold of the life that is truly life” (1 Timothy 6:19). Building on the foundation laid by the previous admonitions to take hold of truth, godliness, contentment and usefulness, Paul now completes the training regime by encouraging Timothy to endure difficult times.

All Christians will acknowledge that following Christ can be hard. The very essence of discipleship entails a willingness to deny self, take up a cross and follow Christ (Mark 8:34). In other places, Paul speaks about how we should expect to share in Jesus’ sufferings (Romans 8:17; Colossians 1:24).

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In the focal passage, the Apostle Paul states plainly “… everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (3:12). However, Christians must distinguish between suffering that comes to all humans because we live in a fallen world and the persecution that comes because we follow Christ. This is not always easy.

For many folks, their “cross to bear” is a sickness or an affliction that would have affected them whether or not they were followers of Christ. Some point to difficulties in their job or married life as trials and tribulations. Surely, the same difficulties visit non-Christians. Christians face the same “hard life” that non-Christians face, and we must learn to distinguish the difficulties of living life from the difficulties of living the Christian life.

This is not to say that we followers of Christ do not have an added measure of comfort when normal difficulties of life visit us. In fact, one wonders how non-Christians survive the difficulties of this world without the presence of Christ walking with them. However, in the focal passage and in other places, Paul focuses on our need to endure difficult times that come our way because we are followers of Christ.

The broad context for the focal passage is Paul’s exhortation to Timothy that began in chapter 2: “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (v. 1). As a whole, 2 Timothy reads like a testament, a final word from Paul to his followers personified in Timothy.

In the immediate context, Paul warns Timothy about “terrible times in the last days” (3:1). We must resist the temptation to assign what follows to a period in the near or distant future prior to the return of Christ. These warnings were for Timothy in his own time, and they are indicative of realities that face Christians of any age.

Paul lays out a scathing description of the kinds of people Timothy is likely to meet (vv. 2-9). Paul has warned of false teachers before, and in these verses, Paul offers Timothy further clues for their detection. Paul draws on a traditional list of vices and an example from Jewish tradition (Jannes and Jambres are the names traditionally given to the magicians who contested with Moses in Pharaoh’s court) to describe these false teachers. Paul encourages Timothy to “have nothing to do with them” (v. 5), and reminds him that “their folly will be clear to everyone” (v. 9).

Paul tells Timothy he must expect difficult times. Paul points to his own experience as he has followed Christ: “You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings … the persecution I endured” (vv. 10-11). Again, the difficulties, the sufferings Paul speaks of are those that come because of his decision to follow Christ.

As Christians, we should expect difficulties, but we must not trivialize the real persecution and suffering many Christians experience around the world by equating the inconveniences, responsibilities and privileges of living in a democratic society with persecution.

Paul encourages Timothy to embrace God’s truth. Paul knows and reminds Timothy of his upbringing and education (vv. 14-15). Here is a gentle, but not so subtle, reminder of the importance of teaching children the Bible. In essence, Paul says to Timothy, “you are what you are because your family took the time to teach you the Scripture.”

Paul reminds Timothy of the usefulness of Scripture for endurance. In verse 16, Paul famously says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteous.” The main point of Paul’s exhortation is that God’s word is useful. Unfortunately, too often reflection on this verse turns to debates about the precise nature and character of “inspiration.”

Each Christian should reflect critically on God’s role in the production of Scripture, but we must not allow debates about Scripture to hold us captive. Rather, like Paul, we need to acknowledge the usefulness of Scripture for the task of enduring.

Interestingly, Paul’s request in 5:13 is for the return of a lost cloak, and some scrolls, presumably Scriptures—Paul understood the usefulness of God’s word for endurance from his own prison experience.

Paul holds out his own life as an example to Timothy. Paul describes himself as a “drink offering” already being poured out (4:6). Paul testifies: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (v. 7).

As Paul nears the end of his human life, he encourages Timothy and all who read 2 Timothy to endure even as he has endured. Paul models mature Christian reflection on a life well spent anticipating Christ’s appearing.

We like Paul are to endure until the end—the end of life, the end of time—it is not for us to say. Rather, we live like Paul—expectantly, waiting and working, serving, enduring until that day when Christ appears.

Discussion questions

• How do we separate the normal difficulties of living life in a fallen and broken world from hardships directly connected to our decision to follow Christ?

• In what ways might we trivialize the persecution of Christians throughout the world by our words and actions?

• How do you stay grounded in Scripture? Do you have a method or plan for daily Bible reading?

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: 10/20/06

Explore the Bible Series for October 29

Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient for all sin

• Hebrews 10:1-18

By Howard Anderson

Diversified Spiritual Associates, San Antonio

The writer of Hebrews concludes his formal argument by reiterating his belief that the single, effective offering of Jesus Christ has ended the vain, repetitious offering of animals and has achieved the goal of the new covenant and the forgiveness of sins. The motive of the Christian faith is to show gratitude for God’s mercies in Jesus Christ.

Need for Christ’s sacrifice (Hebrews 10:1-4)

The Old Testament sacrifices recognized that sin was a constantly recurring affair and new sins needed fresh sacrifices. The law gave only a faint outline of things to come (Colossians 2:14-17). The gospel points to an effective sacrifice—a way opened through the blood of Christ into the very presence of God.

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Humanity is hungering and thirsting for fellowship with God. Sin is the barrier that prevents men and women from drawing closer to God. It was not possible that the law could take away sins, make perfect or purify the heart. Satan has blinded the minds of men and women who insist on going back under the law (2 Timothy 4:1-4). The sin barrier can be lifted only through Jesus Christ.

The Son of God was the perfect sacrifice that achieved the promised covenant relationship by assuring the forgiveness of sins. Sin is a personal matter, and only a personal power can cleanse. Christianity exalts the personal and declares the personal characters are the worthiest symbols of God. God is to be worshipped as person, “in spirit and truth” (John 4:24).

Prophecy for Christ’s sacrifice (Hebrews 10:5-7)

The teaching liturgies described in Leviticus of peace offerings (3:1-17), thank offerings (7:11-34), sin offerings of acts of ignorance (4:1-35), burnt offerings (1:1-17, 6:8:13), and the Day of Atonement (16:1-34), although ordered by God, were not designed to satisfy the massive requirements of carrying away sins. They were strictly preparatory guides toward the real thing.

The necessary sacrifice sufficient for atonement is a body that God has prepared for Christ. The body that walked this earth, the body that shared flesh and blood with the children in perfect identification, the body stainless and sinless because of the person whose body it was—now is ready for the sacrifice.

The prophet Isaiah reveals something of the plan (chapter 53). Someone is going to bear our grief and carry our sorrow. Even though he is not the type we might have chosen, yet he is to be wounded on our behalf and for our transgressions. When judgment should have been upon us, he bore our sins. When punishment should have been meted out, our sin bearer took it. His meekness was deceiving and his silence was disarming. And yet, it was the will of God to bruise him. After he has been made an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring—those born again to new life, accounted righteous before the God of flawless morality. He bore the sins of many.

Results of Christ’s sacrifice (Hebrews 10:8-18)

The old, repetitious sacrificial system was removed to make way for the new, once-for-all sacrifice of Christ, who had obediently done God’s will (Philippians 2:8). God did not will to redeem humankind by animal sacrifices, but by a human sacrifice of infinite merit. To this end, he prepared a body for the eternal logos who came to do the will of God and die for the sins of the world. Jesus Christ died for our sins (Galatians 1:4; 1 Peter 2:24).

When Christ fulfilled the will of God, he provided for the believer a continuing, permanent condition of holiness (Ephesians 4:24). By the will of God in preparing Christ as a sacrifice we are sanctified (made holy, pure) and perfected (1 Thessalonians 4:3-7).

Thousands of priests continually standing, with repeated offerings, and the ineffective sacrifices that only covered sin versus one Priest sitting down with a once-for-all offering with the effective sacrifice that completely removes sin (vv. 10-11).

It is by the body of Jesus Christ offered once and for all people in all time that we that we have been sanctified according to the will of God. This death was no martyrdom—it was the grand fulfillment of an eternal plan. God took the risk at creation of giving his creatures free will. He knew right well what the outcome would be, and he prepared for that from the first acts of creation. God was not surprised by Calvary. The body, the death, the atonement were his plan all along, and we simply played into it.

Christ’s sacrifice was made but once, and it was sufficient. God is good and the redeemed should say so. Praise the Lord!

Discussion question

• How can the sacrifice best be honored? Give specific examples.

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: 10/20/06

CYBER COLUMN:
The living Christ

By Jeanie Miley

The man started talking rather calmly, telling me how he was involved in his church’s effort to convince people that The End is near.

I was listening politely, but very quickly, I began feeling anxious. The longer the man talked, the closer he got to me and the angrier he became. The angrier he got, the more I felt myself trying to back away, and the more I backed away, the louder he got. All I could think about was the lecture I’d heard recently about sick religion and the statistics about what sick religion does to people.

Jeanie Miley

“Does it really matter what you believe as long as you are sincere?” people ask, and I always answer, “Indeed, it matters, and it matters mightily.”

You can be sincerely wrong and sincerely sick!

Take the word “religion” back to its original meaning, and you find that religion is intended to “tie people back together,” to mend instead of wound, to repair instead of fragment, to heal instead of make people sick.

I’m not equipped to determine and diagnose pathologies, but I’ve been around religious systems long enough to know that all of us need, at the very least, to raise our consciousness about the fact some religions systems make people well and some systems make people sick.

I’m not trained to decide who is and who isn’t “sick,” but there are people who are, and we who are part of the religious world must introduce conversations about what it is that makes religious practices healthy and what makes them damaging and wounding. We need to define what it is about religion that does, in fact, “save” people.

Jesus walked right into the middle of peoples’ dysfunctions and illnesses and made them well. He stepped into the middle of the worst illnesses and dared to call things by their real names. Jesus faced peoples’ deepest fears and told them to give them up and be whole and well. He cast out demons, and in today’s world, he still is able, through the mysterious power of the Holy Spirit, to cast out demons such as hate and anger, guilt and shame, inadequacy and fear—all “demons” that make human beings sick.

Salvation, after all, comes from the same word that means “health” and “wholeness.” Salvation is not just about keeping us out of hell and getting us into heaven in the sweet by and by, but it also is about the quality of our lives in the here and now. Salvation begins when we accept Christ into our hearts as Lord and Savior, but just as we are not fully married when we take our vows at the wedding, but become married over time, we enter into a process of becoming saved over time.

I believe the Living Christ can save us from our deepest fears. I believe the Living Christ can heal our deepest wounds, resolve our greatest insecurities and calm our most virulent anger and hate. I believe the Divine Therapist can change the emotional programming of a lifetime and transform the life scripts that keep us bound in self-defeating patterns and death-dealing behaviors.

Hurt people keep on hurting people, and when it is done in the name of religion, there is a particularly damaging edge to the hurt.

Lonely, hurting and confused people need to hear the life-giving gospel that Jesus saves, and he saves us from our present insanities, our current illnesses and our sick religions.

The Living Christ heals, transforms, liberates and empowers us to live an abundant life, starting now.

Jeanie Miley is an author and columnist and a retreat and workshop leader. She is married to Martus Miley, pastor of River Oaks Baptist Church in Houston, and they have three adult daughters. Got feedback? Write her at Writer2530@aol.com.

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: 10/17/06

Supreme Court refuses to hear Scout appeal

By Robert Marus

ABP Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON (ABP)—The Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a California Supreme Court decision against a Scouting group denied free use of a Berkeley municipal facility because the Boy Scouts ban gays and atheists from their ranks.

The court declined, without comment, to consider Evans v. City of Berkeley, which involved the Sea Scouts—a Scouting affiliate that teaches sailing and other skills. The Scouts had sued to regain free use of three berths in a municipal arena for their boats.

They had enjoyed free access to the berths since the 1930s, court papers said. However, city officials determined, after passing a 1997 statute that barred the provision of city benefits to groups that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, the Scouts violated the policy. They were asked to pay for the berths.

The Scouts sued, claiming they were being singled out for their religious and moral beliefs in violation of their First Amendment rights.

The California court disagreed. In a unanimous decision last March, that panel said, “A government that requires aid recipients to conform their actions to its laws does not thereby enforce adherence to the philosophy or values behind those laws.”

In a controversial 2000 decision, the federal Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the Scouts have a right to ban openly gay troop leaders. Since then, a spate of lawsuits have sprung up over whether cities may ban Scout troops from its facilities in objection to that policy or the Scouting policy that requires Scouts and troop leaders to affirm a belief in God.

In a statement following the suit being turned down, the Scouts’ attorney, George Davidson, said the case isn’t over.

“The issue of governments seeking to punish organizations for exercising their First Amendment rights is a recurring one. There will be other opportunities for the Supreme Court to affirm First Amendment protections for organizations dealing with government agencies,” he said.

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

EDITORIAL:
Oh, that we would debate gross or net

Here’s a debate I’d like to hear out of more mouths: Should Christians tithe on the gross or net amount of their salary?

Of course, you might say, “That argument is as stupid and useless as arguing about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.” Somebody else might proclaim: “How legalistic can you get? This is a dumb and pharisaical debate.”

Dumb debate? I’ll take it. If more Baptists—and other Christians, for that matter—were debating whether they should calculate their tithe on their full salary or on their take-home pay, how much more money would flow into our churches and channel into missions and ministry for the glory of God?

Here’s an answer from researchers John and Sylvia Ronsvalle, whose empty tomb research firm studies church giving patterns on a national level: If U.S. Christians would increase their church giving to a tithe, or 10 percent of income (even they didn’t specify gross or net), the following would happen:

• U.S. churches would receive an additional $156 billion per year.

• If 60 percent of this windfall—and remember, this is new money, above what the church already receives—were committed to overseas missions, that would total $94 billion additional missions revenue.

• Out of that $94 billion for foreign missions, $80 billion could impact the world’s worst poverty; $5 billion could save the lives of most of the 11 million children who die each year before their fifth birthday; $7 billion could provide primary education for all children worldwide; $2 billion would be left over for other causes. And remember: The missionaries and aid workers who would be putting that money to the Lord’s work would be telling all those people about the saving, life-changing love of Jesus.

• The Ronsvalles calculate the new contributions would also provide an additional $31.22 billion per year for “domestic outreach.” Can you get your mind around that? If you allocated 1/50th of $31.22 billion to missions and ministry in Texas (and Texas certainly encompasses more than 1/50th of the nation), imagine the amount of missions and ministry that could be accomplished by $624.4 million each year. To give you some sort of perspective, this year’s Mary Hill Davis Offering for Texas Missions is only $5.1 million—just 0.8 percent (1/122nd) of that total.

In this issue, the Standard is taking a look at family finances. No matter how you stack your bills, whether it’s dollar bills or utility, mortgage, auto-loan and credit-card bills, giving to the Lord ought to be a central focus of family finances. So, bring on the debate about whether Christians should tithe on the gross or the net, at least we’d all be talking about tithing.

By now, some of you are downright agitated. Lighten up.

• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful • Bankrupt believers may tithe • Periodic check-ups aid financial health • Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says • Good stewardship demands proper estate planning • Lease-to-own program enables home ownership • Strategy for lowering credit card debt • How to cope with high energy costs • Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you? • How to opt in to medicare coverage • EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

Some Christians debate whether tithing is even biblical, or at least whether it is a New Testament principle. They point to any number of Scriptures to make their case. OK, so what if we concede their point? Where do we go? The principle we get from Genesis is that God created everything and gave it to humanity and made us stewards—not owners—of it. The principle from the Psalms and elsewhere in the Old Testament is that everything belongs to God; God’s resources are infinite, but we get to use them. And the principle we get from the New Testament is that God made the ultimate sacrifice, offering God’s “only begotten Son” as a ransom for our sins. So, if you don’t like the idea of tithing, give God absolutely everything. You don’t really own or deserve it anyway.

Some Christians also try to take the line that “the church is all about money,” as if that were dirty. Well, we don’t live in an agrarian, barter-based economy. If we’re going to get things done in the world for the Lord and for God’s creation, we’ve got to spend money. And to spend it, we’ve got to get it out of our bank accounts. So, you think talking about money seems unseemly? Consecrate it. Engage in holy “money laundering.”

In today’s church, many earnest Christians say they can’t tithe because their financial obligations prevent them from tithing. And many of those same Christians live in nice houses and drive fancy cars and wear expensive clothes. But if your house, car or clothes are keeping you from a right relationship with the Lord (and both the ability and desire to give are decent partial indicators of that relationship), then maybe you need to sell the house, trade the car and wear the same clothes even after they go out of style.

This is hard to write, much less talk about. By comparison to many neighbors, most Texas Baptists probably feel poor. But by the world’s standards, almost all Texas Baptists are wealthy. While we shouldn’t be legalistic about the tithe, we should take seriously the notion that we aren’t owners, but merely stewards, of God’s bounty. And out of grateful hearts, let us be cheerful givers.

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

Bankrupt believers may tithe

By Jason Kane

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)—America’s charitable but bankrupt worshippers once again will be able to tithe if Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, have their way.

“For millions of Americans, charitable giving and tithing is an essential part of their lives,” Obama said. “And in a country where 37 million citizens live in poverty, we should be encouraging charitable giving, not limiting it.”

Last month, a federal judge in New York said bankruptcy reforms passed by Congress last year bar individuals from making charitable contributions if they also are seeking bankruptcy protection.

• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful • Bankrupt believers may tithe • Periodic check-ups aid financial health • Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says • Good stewardship demands proper estate planning • Lease-to-own program enables home ownership • Strategy for lowering credit card debt • How to cope with high energy costs • Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you? • How to opt in to medicare coverage • EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

Obama insisted the bill he and Hatch introduced will clarify that last year’s bankruptcy bill did not change the law “to prioritize creditors over religious institutions and charities.”

He expects the legislation to make its way through the House when Congress reconvenes in November.

In 1998, Congress passed the Religious Liberty and Charitable Donation Protection Act, which allowed individuals in bankruptcy to exempt up to 15 percent of their annual income from creditors for tithing purposes.

That rule largely was undone when Congress passed the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. More than 2 million Americans filed for bankruptcy protection in 2005, and hundreds of thousands are expected to do the same by the end of 2006, according to the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys.

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

Periodic check-ups aid financial health

Many financial ailments can be avoided with periodic check-ups. Sherre Stephens, a certified employee benefits specialist and director of executive and institutional benefit design for GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, prescribes a six-point self-examination:

• Maximize retirement plan deferrals.

“Deferrals to your employer’s retirement plan reduce current federal income tax liability and enhance your retirement savings,” she wrote in a recent column distributed by GuideStone.

Sherre Stephens

“If your employer offers a match, don’t pass up this benefit. The 2006 basic limit is $15,000—$20,000 if you are age 50 or older.”

• Check withholding election.

• Bankrupt believers may tithe • Periodic check-ups aid financial health • Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says • Good stewardship demands proper estate planning • Lease-to-own program enables home ownership • Strategy for lowering credit card debt • How to cope with high energy costs • Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you? • How to opt in to medicare coverage • EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

“You may look forward to a refund in early 2007, but this is tantamount to an interest-free loan to the government. Alternatively, you don’t want to owe taxes when you file for the 2006 tax year. The Internet offers many calculators to help you determine if you are over- or under-withholding,” Stephens said.

• Review investments.

“Are your investments on track? Do you need to rebalance your portfolio? Many employers now provide free investment advice for retirement plan assets,” she wrote.

Stephens suggests that investors consider consolidating investment holdings and checking beneficiary designations.

• Use a cafeteria/flex plan if it is available.

Many employers offer reimbursement for allowable expenses such as medical bills or child-care expenses.

“If possible, invest the reimbursement,” Stephens suggests.

• Consider impact of the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act.

In part, this law extends the alternative minimum tax exemption levels through the end of this year at a rate of $62,550 for joint filers and $42,500 for single taxpayers.

“The act also extends the lower tax rate for qualified dividends and capital gains through 2011, which gives you an additional year for capital gains planning,” Stephens noted.

• Prepare for open enrollment.

“Many employers hold open enrollment in the fall” for benefits programs, she notes. “Begin reviewing your choices, especially if you’ve had family situation change. Research your options now to avoid last-minute choices.”

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

Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says

Numbers unknown by most people may affect their ability to secure a loan, buy an insurance policy or even get a job.

Three credit bureaus track consumers’ credit histories, and that information is used to calculate and report a person’s credit score.

“Many businesses use your credit score as a way to assess your ability to handle your financial responsibilities,” said Don McLeod, a certified financial planner and area director in retirement solutions and services with GuideStone Financial Resources, a Southern Baptist agency.

Don McLeod

“Think of your credit score as your financial GPA,” McLeod wrote in a recent column distributed by GuideStone. “Your score could range from 300 to 850. Of course, the higher, the better.” McLeod offers three suggestions about how a person can keep tabs on his or her credit score:

• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful • Bankrupt believers may tithe • Periodic check-ups aid financial health • Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says • Good stewardship demands proper estate planning • Lease-to-own program enables home ownership • Strategy for lowering credit card debt • How to cope with high energy costs • Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you? • How to opt in to medicare coverage • EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

• Get a free credit report each year.

Congress passed a law that requires the credit bureaus to provide an individual a free credit report each year, available at www.AnnualCreditReport.com. Individuals also can request a free report directly from the three reporting companies Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

However, the actual credit score, available from www.MyFico.com, costs $45.

• Check the report for accuracy.

“Mistakes are common on the credit reports,” McLeod writes. “Check the accuracy of the information, including your previous jobs, your previous addresses, and the accounts listed. Check to make sure that any accounts that you thought you closed are actually closed.

“If there are accounts that should have been closed, contact those companies to close the accounts. For other errors, contact the reporting bureau in writing.”

• Know what affects a credit score.

The two most important factors that make up a person’s credit score are payment history and the amount owed, McLeod notes.

“Always pay all of your bills on time if at all possible, even if it means only paying a minimum amount. Even one late payment can impact you in a negative way,” he notes.

“Set up automatic payments from your checking account so you don’t inadvertently miss a payment. Also, keep your debt to available credit ratio to a minimum. Try not to max out a credit card, and never go above a spending limit. Also, do not open up too many credit accounts. This goes against your score.

“A little knowledge and planning can go a long way toward helping you keep a good financial score.”

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

Good stewardship demands proper estate planning

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

Christians who die without making a will demonstrate poor stewardship, said Bill Arnold, president of the Texas Baptist Missions Foundation.

“If you die without a will, I guarantee your family will not rise up and call you blessed,” said Arnold, a certified financial planner. “The state of Texas has a will for you. But you probably won’t like it.”

• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful • Bankrupt believers may tithe • Periodic check-ups aid financial health • Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says • Good stewardship demands proper estate planning • Lease-to-own program enables home ownership • Strategy for lowering credit card debt • How to cope with high energy costs • Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you? • How to opt in to medicare coverage • EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

Rather than allowing the state to divide assets following a death or leaving family members guessing about a deceased loved one’s wishes, Christians should give priority to estate planning as a matter of stewardship, he said.

Arnold suggests seven steps to effective estate planning:

• Know what’s in the estate.

“Write down everything that’s in your estate,” he suggested.

Even when people make an inventory, many fail to include collections that have appreciated in value or tend to undervalue real estate holdings, he noted.

• Decide on goals.

“Get a clear sense of what you want to accomplish—what kind of legacy you want to leave,” he said.

Arnold challenges Christian to “make God a partner” in their estate planning.

“I can’t quote you chapter and verse, but I believe leaving a tithe or more of an estate to the Lord’s work would bring a smile to God’s face,” he said.

• Decide what transfer techniques to use.

A financial planner can help a Christian decide the best giving technique—a bequest, a charitable trust, an IRA or a pension plan—to meet an individual’s goals, Arnold noted.

• Choose an executor.

Not only should one person be selected to distribute the assets of an estate, but an alternate also should be designated, Arnold suggested.

• Write it down.

“Better yet, get an attorney to do it,” Arnold said. Some people balk at the expense involved in having an attorney draw up a will, but he insisted the expense is comparatively minimal and well worth it.

“Put it in perspective. We’re talking about what it’s taken a person a lifetime to accumulate,” he said. “It’s like striking a match. You only get one chance to do it right. It can’t be fixed after a death without a lot of expense.”

• Keep it safe.

Store the will and other vital documents in a safety deposit box, Arnold recommended. “And make sure someone knows where it is.”

• Review it periodically.

Carefully look at a will and revise it as needed every three to five years or when events warrant a review.

“Events that would trigger a review would include a move to another state, a significant change in the tax laws, the death, marriage or divorce of someone named in the will, the birth of anyone you might want to name in the will or any significant change in assets, such as an inheritance,” Arnold said.

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

Lease-to-own program enables home ownership

By Barbara Bedrick

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS—By Christmas, some Texas families may celebrate the season by making plans to move into a new home, thanks to an innovative lease-to-own program involving the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

The partnership between the BGCT and the Community Empower home ownership counseling network—along with CitiMortgage and Ebby Halliday Realtors—provides an 18-month new-home lease to potential homebuyers.

• Prosperity gospel promises material blessings to faithful • Bankrupt believers may tithe • Periodic check-ups aid financial health • Keep tabs on credit scores, adviser says • Good stewardship demands proper estate planning • Lease-to-own program enables home ownership • Strategy for lowering credit card debt • How to cope with high energy costs • Are 401(k) and 403(b) Roth contributions right for you? • How to opt in to medicare coverage • EDITORIAL: Oh, that we would debate gross or net

“The bottom line here is that we’re not trying to just build new homes; we’re trying to help churches reach more people for Christ,” explained Terry Austin, BGCT stewardship director. “However, we realize you can’t be financially stable until you own your own home.”

The BGCT initially plans to sponsor 12 “Forget the Rent” workshops at Baptist churches in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and San Antonio beginning Oct. 18.

Workshop leaders will provide a comprehensive credit improvement analysis for each participant, and they will explain how to improve credit scores. A month-long series of classes follows. The BGCT is providing teachers to lead classes in credit and money management skills that will be the first step toward home ownership.

“We have set a goal to have least 50 families on their way to a new home by year’s end,” Austin said. “We’re still searching for more teachers, which will expedite this program’s success.”

Some church leaders say they believe this ministry meshes with their goals for community outreach and transformation.

“What a great opportunity for our state convention to partner with local churches to reach their communities,” said Jerry Spivey, minister of education and administration at Cliff Temple Baptist Church in Dallas.

“As soon as the word got out that Cliff Temple was offering this home ownership seminar, in English and Spanish, our phones started ringing.”

Another congregation embracing the home ownership ministry is South Oaks Baptist Church in Arlington because it fits the congregation’s missional strategy to offer tools and programs beneficial to people in their community.

“We had already been working on this strategy, including developing weekday classes on improving parent skills, finance workshops for the home, classes on coping with grief, and more when we were approached by Terry Austin,” said Keith Lowry, minister of outreach and evangelism.

“It was an easy decision to say yes. Anything we can do to invite our neighbors into our building, giving us an opportunity to become better friends and neighbors—we’re for it. We’re in. We can’t wait to meet our new friends.”

The lease-to-own seminars already scheduled are at six North Texas locations. For more information, contact South Oaks Baptist Church in Arlington at www.south oaks.org or (817) 478-8284, Trinity Hills Baptist Church in Benbrook at www.trinity hills.org or (817) 249-0704, Spring Hill Road Baptist Church in Aubrey at www.springhillroadchurch.org or (940) 365-3521, High Pointe Baptist Church in Cedar Hill at www.highpointe.org or (972) 293-0155, Irving Baptist Fellowship Church in Irving at (972) 313-7742 and Cliff Temple Baptist Church in Dallas at www.clifftemple.org or (214) 942-8601.

For information about seminars in San Antonio, contact Northeast Baptist Church at www.nebaptistchurch.org or (210) 824-7235, Redeeming Grace Baptist Church at www.rgbc.org or (210) 661-5024 or South San Filadelfia Baptist Church at (210) 225-7537.

Online registration is available at www.ForgetTheRentTexas.com, or register by calling the BGCT Service Center at (888) 244-9400.

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.