Storylist for week of 8/07/06

Storylist for week of 8/07/06

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Judge orders Missouri Baptist Convention, university to try mediation again

Farmersville church vandalized; members respond by 'tagging' for God

Lebanese Baptist schools sheltering refugees wonder about academic year

BGCT aids El Paso flood victims

Sloan elected as Houston Baptist University president

Sri Lankan violence forces change of venue for volunteers

Faith sustains family through dark days of son's illness

VBS children fill God's Penny Pail

South Texas heat? No sweat for KidsHeart volunteers

KidsHeart project makes missions a family affair

VBS shines light in the darkness this summer

Lebanon Baptists say goodbye to refugees, but ministry continues

Wayland student, family fear persecution if they return to Comoros Islands

Poll: Americans not quite ready for Mormon President



Paynter named Texas CLC director


Paynter named Texas CLC director

Texas WMU moves toward ‘frontline' missions involvement

TBM, Mexico prepare for disaster

Mexico vision trips slated

Criswell era ends at Dallas First Baptist

Love for God, love of the game motivate Texas author

On the Move

Around the State

Texas Tidbits


Baptist Women in Ministry track growth

Churches of Christ, Baptists branch off same family tree

Baptist Briefs


Operation Knit Together warms orphans' feet & hearts


Faith goes to work as business accommodates belief

All God's children have a place in corporate America

Churches' failure to target men causes gender gap

Computers may draw some men to Christianity

Christian graphic novels illustrate timeless truth

Online music store specializes in family-friendly tunes

One American in five attends a house church, research shows

IRS cracks down on church campaigning

Federal funds flow to religious activities

Anti-poverty advocates call for change


Book Reviews


Cartoon

Around the State

On the Move

Classified Ads

Texas Baptist Forum


EDITORIAL: Sooner or later, one day will be final

DOWN HOME: And for an encore, clean the garage

TOGETHER: Texas Baptists not slowed by summer heat

2nd Opinion: ‘Hard to tell Christians from lions'

Texas Baptist Forum

Cybercolumn by Jeanie Miley: Baptist definitions

Cybercolumn by Berry Simpson: Looking back


BaptistWay Bible Series for August 6: Leaving—and learning from—a legacy

Family Bible Series for August 6: Set apart by God for service, righteousness

Explore the Bible Series for August 6: Fear God, but beware legalism

BaptistWay Bible Series for August 6: Leaving—and learning from—a legacy

Family Bible Series for August 13: Maintaining A Heavenly Focus

Explore the Bible Series for August 13: The Teacher focuses on integrity


Previously Posted
Arizona foundation executive convicted

Church's foster care focus enriches Chester family

Mission East Dallas: A gift of healing

Mission Lubbock worker seeks to transform lives

Forney volunteers successfully evacuated from Lebanon

Sloan recommended as Houston Baptist University president

American, European Baptists call for cease-fire

Bivocational ministers gather to sharpen skills, and worship and fellowship

'Permanent fixture' at Grace Temple retiring after 52 years

Missionaries reported safe in Lebanon, as national Baptists take in refugees

House passes bill to protect San Diego cross monument

Ban on same-sex marriage fails in House

'Pledge Protection Bill' passes House

Bush vetoes bill to expand embryonic stem-cell research


• See complete list of articles from our 7/24/ 2006 issue here.




Sloan elected as Houston Baptist University president

Posted: 8/18/06

Sloan elected as Houston
Baptist University president

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

HOUSTON—After 10 years as Baylor University’s president—the last few marked by deep division among the Waco school’s varied constituencies—Robert Sloan never thought he would want to lead another university.

But at an Aug. 8 called meeting, Houston Baptist Univer-sity’s trustees overwhelmingly elected Sloan, 57, as president of their 2,300-student school, effective Sept. 1.

Robert Sloan becomes president of Houston Baptist University Sept. 1. Trustees elected him at a called meeting Aug. 8. Sloan served 10 years as Baylor University’s president.

And Sloan, who has been Baylor’s chancellor since stepping down from the president’s post at the country’s largest Baptist university last year, expressed excitement about the future—both for HBU and personally.

Sloan served as Baylor University’s president from 1995 to 2005—a period marked both by significant expansion on campus and bitter polarization within “the Baylor family.” The Baylor Faculty Senate twice gave him “no confidence” votes, and the regents voted three times on Sloan’s continued employment—once coming within one vote of removing him from office.

Most of the criticism centered on Baylor 2012—the university’s long-range plan to become a top-tier national school—and Sloan’s implementation of it. Supporters praised his ambitious vision that blended a commitment to strong Christian faith and high academic standards. Critics accused Sloan of alienating longtime faculty, incurring significant debt, sacrificing classroom teaching in favor of research and raising tuition beyond the reach of typical Texas Baptist families.

“For the longest time, I didn’t think I ever would want to be a college president again,” he acknowledged.

After he resigned the president’s post at Baylor under pressure, Sloan said he and his wife, Sue, “did a lot of talking and praying” about what he should do next.

“For a while, I really thought I might return to the pastorate,” he said, noting he also considered politics and explored business possibilities. “But I realized the deepest passion of my life is still Christian higher education.”

Once Sloan began conversations with the HBU search committee, he grew increasingly impressed by what the Houston school had accomplished in less than 50 years of its existence and intrigued by what it could become in the future.

Sloan said he was “deeply impressed by the vision of the trustees, the dedication of the faculty and staff, the energy of the students and the remarkable level of commitment on the part of Houston Baptist University alumni.”

One of the biggest factors in his decision, he noted, was the city of Houston itself. “When you look across the country, there are very few Protestant evangelical universities in major urban centers. … The prospect of serving this remarkable, dynamic, young university in the nation’s fourth-largest city is exciting,” he said.

HBU Trustee Chair Ray Cox said it was “amazing to witness God’s hand guiding” the presidential selection process. He characterized Sloan as “a renowned Christian educator, scholar and author” who “possesses the leadership skills and vision for Christian higher education that make him the perfect choice to lead HBU into the future.”

Trustees were “not looking for a cookie-cutter plan that looked a lot like 2012. This is a different type of university in a different type of city,” Cox said. But, he added, they felt HBU was “well-poised for that type of vision.”

HBU has a $76 million endowment, a $35 million annual budget and 2,300 students. In contrast, Baylor has a $700 million endowment, a $350 million budget and 14,000 students.

Mark Denison, a search committee member and pastor of First Baptist Church in Gainesville, noted: “The issues at Baylor are not the issues we’re dealing with at HBU. We’re at different places. The issues that became burdensome in Waco are not issues here.”

But the committee became convinced that through the turmoil at Baylor, Sloan demonstrated he was “a man of high integrity and character” and would be “a better leader because of it,” he noted.

Denison cited five factors that convinced the committee Sloan was the right choice to “lead HBU to the next level”—his academic accomplishments, proven fund-raising ability, track record of leadership, commitment to Baptist heritage and exemplary family.

“We have the right man for the right place at the right time,” Denison said.

Search committee Chair Diane Williams called it “a coup for our university to bring a man with such great credentials” as Sloan’s.

“He and his wife, Sue, will be an asset not only to HBU but to the larger Houston community,” she said. “The search committee has been overwhelmed by the positive response we have received from the HBU administration, faculty, staff, alumni and students, as well as university friends who met with the Sloans. … We look forward with expectancy to the future and to the leadership of Robert Sloan.”

Sloan succeeds Doug Hodo, who served as HBU president from 1987 until his retirement in July 2006. Jack Carlson, former SYSCO executive and member of the HBU board of trustees, began service as interim president Aug. 1 and will continue in the role until Sloan assumes the presidency.

Hodo praised the trustees’ decision.

“Robert Sloan is a man known for his integrity. His experience in Christian higher education will be a tremendous asset for HBU, its students, alumni, faculty and staff. I consider him a colleague and friend,” Hodo said. “Each chapter in the life of a university has special significance, and with Robert’s leadership, the opportunities are unlimited.”

During Hodo’s tenure, HBU loosened its historic ties to the Baptist General Convention of Texas and established a fraternal relationship with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, a fundamentalist group that broke away from the mainstream state convention.

The BGCT continues to elect one-fourth of HBU’s trustees and provides about $550,000 annually to the school. While some SBTC-affiliated churches support HBU financially, the breakaway convention does not.

Sloan expressed hope that he can strengthen ties to the BGCT, but he does not anticipate any change in HBU’s relationship with the SBTC.

“I love the BGCT,” he said. “I love the Baptist family. I am Baptist from the heart and by conviction.”

Asked if his election sent any signal regarding the relationship between HBU and Texas Baptists, he replied: “I hope it affirms that (relationship) and that it deepens and extends it. I long for the day when we can work together with all Texas Baptists. I am committed to cooperating with all those of like faith and commitment.”

Underscoring his desire to reach out to varying constituencies in Baptist life, Sloan said he hopes HBU can focus on its mission and “go beyond labeling and the things that divide us and to be as inclusive as possible.”

During his time at Baylor, one evidence of division was the strained relationship that developed between Sloan and many longtime faculty. But faculty leaders at HBU voiced nothing but optimism about their new president.

Brenda Whaley, associate professor of biology and former president of the HBU faculty assembly, served on the presidential search advisory committee. Faculty members who met with Sloan were encouraged by his openness, she noted.

“We were every impressed with his honesty in talking about some of the things that went on at Baylor,” she said. “We saw a lot of integrity and character. And he was very affirming of the role of faculty. He exhibited so much respect for what the faculty do.”

David Capes, chair of HBU’s Christianity and philosophy department, praised Sloan as “one of the best teachers I ever had.”

Sloan “knows how to learn, how to teach and how to love students,” Capes said. “We need a strong academic as president of HBU to meet the challenges ahead. Dr. Sloan is that kind of leader. He is a man of vision, and he knows how to articulate that vision in such a way that people want to come along. Our best days are ahead.”

Regarding his vision for HBU, Sloan offered few specifics. Instead, he said he wants to spend the next couple of years listening to faculty, staff, students and alumni to learn more about the school.

Before becoming Baylor’s president, Sloan was dean of the university’s Truett Theological Seminary. He served on the Baylor religion faculty from 1983 to 1995, and he taught at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary from 1980 to 1983.

Sloan—who was born in Coleman and grew up in Abilene—holds a bachelor’s degree from Baylor, a master of divinity degree from Princeton Theological Seminary and a doctorate in theology from the University of Basel, Switzerland.

Sloan has served as pastor or interim pastor at more than 20 churches throughout Texas and Oklahoma—including nearly two years as interim at Tallowood Baptist Church in Houston.

Duane Brooks, pastor of Tallowood Baptist Church, voiced “the highest regard” for Sloan as his former teacher and friend.

“His love for the Scriptures still resonates in the hearts of the people at Tallowood,” Brooks said.

“This is good news for Houston Baptist University and good news for the city of Houston. Dr. Sloan will make a difference in the community. … This is a great day for all who love HBU.”



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.




Sri Lankan violence forces change of venue for volunteers

Posted: 8/18/06

A possible ear infection gets medical attention for the CERI foster child in Batticaloa, Sri Lanka. Texas Baptists, through CERI, are providing on-going care for tsunami orphans.

Sri Lankan violence forces
change of venue for volunteers

By Craig Bird

Baptist Child & Family Services

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka—As Sri Lankan military and Tamil Tiger rebels traded mortar fire and accusations of mass slaughter, a team of volunteers from Baptist Child & Family Services treated the sick, comforted the traumatized and dug septic tanks in the tropical heat.

Two staff members from the Texas Baptist family services agency, four members of Cibolo Creek Community Church in San Antonio, two doctors and a nurse from Tyler and two counselors from Wisconsin worked with Children’s Emergency Relief International, the overseas arm of BCFS.

The only concession the group made to the fighting, which reportedly has left more than 800 people dead this year, was to shift the project from Batticaloa, on Sri Lanka’s eastern shore, to a site on the west coast. In Batticaloa, which straddles the disintegrated cease-fire boundary, BCFS and CERI operate a foster care program for tsunami orphans that now numbers 150 children.

A Sri Lankan doctor questions a CERI foster parent about the medical condition of the children she cares for in a recent clinic in Batticaloa, Sri Lanka.

“The team was disappointed when we decided we shouldn’t work in Batticaloa like we originally planned,” said Marla Rushing, CERI director for Southeast Asia and Latin America. “We all were looking forward to working directly with the CERI children and their foster families. But returning to the southwest coast (where a CERI team worked last summer) still puts us in the middle of great needs, as well as letting us develop deeper relationships in that part of the country.”

Less than eight hours after the team arrived in Sri Lanka on a typhoon-delayed flight, they staffed a medical clinic and trauma-counseling center in a Colombo relief camp.

“We were immediately mobbed by a crowd of kids who wanted to play ball,” Rushing said. “We set up the medical clinic that treated 100 people, but counseling just meant letting 50 kids draw pictures on the floor together.”

In the days that followed, the team split up. One group participated in a housing construction project in Welligama, started work on a septic tank and organized English classes. Team members with medical or counseling expertise worked in Hikkaduwa. Both towns were devastated by the tsunami.

Rushing, who was in Hikkaduwa, reported lines of people awaited them—including children dressed in white who greeted them with flowers.

“It is pretty much organized chaos,” she admitted. “There were 40 to 50 kids at any time wanting to color or just play, and those of us working with adults were overwhelmed. As soon as one person would get up from talking with us, another one would immediately sit down. I began to feel like Lucy in Peanuts with her ‘Psychiatrist: 5 cents’ sign.

“There was no privacy, so there were at least five people listening in on every conversation. Some wanted money, but others truly wanted to talk about panic attacks and tsunami experiences. What amazing survivors!”

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.




Faith sustains family through dark days of son’s illness

Posted: 8/18/06

Emily and Scott Hall say their faith sustained them through the ordeal.

Faith sustains family through
dark days of son’s illness

By David Alvey

Special to the Baptist Standard

GARLAND—Scott and Emily Hall had big plans this summer. He intended to teach their 15-year-old son, Ryan, to drive. The whole family had volunteered to work in Vacation Bible School at their church. And they wanted to take a road trip to the Grand Canyon.

Instead, the Halls found themselves weathering the most difficult storm of their lives when a mysterious lung disease claimed Ryan’s life.

Ryan Hall, age 15, died June 20 after the sudden onset of a mysterious illness one month earlier.

“Sometimes God calms the storm. But sometimes God lets the storm rage and calms his child,” Hall said. “It’s a quote I heard about 20 years ago, and it keeps coming back to me.”

Last spring, Ryan was a healthy young man with a zest for life. Ranked in the top 5 percent of his freshman class in the International Baccalaureate Program at Garland High School, he had only missed one day of school all year, and that was to attend a funeral.

On May 17, he arrived home from swim team practice with an odd rash. The itchy pink spots progressed as he developed a high fever, shortness of breath, and quickly deteriorated into a critical condition.

Ryan arrived at Children’s Medical Center’s emergency room May 25 by ambulance and immediately was admitted to the intensive care unit. Doctors initially thought they were dealing with a bad case of viral pneumonia.

For nearly a month, Ryan was kept heavily sedated while doctors tried to treat the aggressive and rapidly progressive lung disease. Some of the best doctors in the country were called in, but they were unable to identify what had attacked Ryan’s lungs.

After weeks on a heart-lung machine and respirator, the stress ultimately proved too much for his body. He died June 20.

“We’ve been Christians for 30 years,” said his father, a deacon at The Heights Baptist Church in Richardson, where he and his wife are involved in children’s ministries and missions programs. “If we can’t put our faith to use now, then what good is it?”

“When we first lost Ryan, I just wanted to go to heaven and be with him as soon as I could,” Mrs. Hall added. “But I realized God still has a purpose for my life. There’s a reason why I am still here. So, I have to go on trying to fulfill God’s purpose for my life.”

Ryan’s 13-year-old sister, Mallory, “has a great attitude,” her father noted. “She says God had a reason for taking Ryan, and he’s enjoying God’s presence in heaven. Ryan wouldn’t want us to mope around.”

The Hall family fulfilled their commitment to help with The Heights’ Vacation Bible School at Hawaiian Falls water park in Garland.

“It was hard,” Mrs. Hall acknowledged. “We had season passes the first several years the park was open. We spent a lot of time together at Hawaiian Falls, so it brought back a lot of memories. But it also was good to take our minds off our own sorrow and serve others.”

Hall still carries a prayer pager that buzzed around the clock while Ryan was in the hospital.

“The church paid for it through September,” he explained. “It doesn’t vibrate as often now, but I know people are still praying for us. We’ve heard from people we didn’t even know—people from all over the world—who are praying over us. Ryan’s story has impacted many lives.”

Until Ryan’s death, his family had lived a “fairytale” life, relatively untouched by sorrow, Hall noted. Now, they know what it means to go through the lowest times imaginable, but they also experienced a depth of love they had never known before.

“God has taught us so much through this ordeal,” Hall said. “We never knew how many good people are around. We’ve been amazed by how much people can love, care and share. Our lives are forever changed.”

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.




VBS children fill God’s Penny Pail

Posted: 8/18/06

VBS children fill God’s Penny Pail

By Elizabeth Staples

Communications Intern

BLANKET—Children learned to be cheerful givers through Vacation Bible School at First Baptist Church in Blanket.

On the first day, the 127 pre-kindergarten through 5th graders from the small community northeast of Brown-wood were challenged to donate loose change and fill up God’s Penny Pail.

“We had the bucket at the front of the sanctuary, and the children would bring pennies in their pockets, hats or plastic bags and pour them in each morning,” said Jim Looby, pastor of First Baptist Church in Blanket.

“Throughout the week, I pulled it around in a little red wagon for the kids to see the progress they were making. The children looked at that pail and didn’t think they could fill it, but they did.”

At the end of the week, the bucket was filled with 68 pounds of mostly coins and some currency, totaling $267.17. The donations benefit the city of Blanket mission fund, helping people in need to pay their bills or buy food, Looby explained.

“It’s not for any specific church, just people in the community. We are very close-knit and enjoy doing things together,” Looby said. “God’s Penny Pail is an encouraging way to teach children an important lesson about giving offerings to the Lord.”

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.




South Texas heat? No sweat for KidsHeart volunteers

Posted: 8/18/06

Girls from Crossing Baptist Church in Mesquite take time out from construction to play a pick-up game of foosball in Progreso. (Photos by Scott Collins)

South Texas heat? No sweat
for KidsHeart volunteers

By Russ Dilday

Buckner Benevolences

RIO GRANDE VALLEY—Richard Buerkle wiped a sweaty forehead with an equally sweaty forearm as he paused from his carpentry work in 100-degree heat and oppressively high humidity.

Buerkle and his team of volunteers from First Baptist Church in Gatesville, were repairing a home in Monte Alto, near the Mexican border, in preparation for repainting the home.

See Related Articles:
Hundreds of volunteers sweat, serve at KidsHeart project in Rio Grande Valley
Families served together at KidsHeart

Others from the church, where Buerkle serves as minister of music, led a Vacation Bible School in a nearby church. Still other volunteers held a medical clinic at a neighborhood community center.

It’s the third time in as many years that the Gatesville church came to Monte Alto to minister as part of KidsHeart, a collaborative missions effort between the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and Buckner Benevolences that matches churches with needs in the Rio Grande Valley.

Despite 103-degree temperatures, participants often found themselves working into the evening roofing homes as part of KidsHeart construction projects.

Each summer for the past three years, hundreds of volunteers have performed light construction on homes, conducted Vacation Bibles Schools, medical and dental clinics and sports camps, and shared the message of Christ.

Most of their work has been in the colonias—unincorporated neighborhoods on both sides of the Mexico-United States border, where the poor seek to live the dream of home ownership.

“We’ve developed a real desire to partner with this church and this community,” Buerkle said. “We’re meeting the needs of a lot of the same people and developing relationships with them. We want them to see we’re interested in more than patching a roof.”

Members of First Baptist Church of Gatesville prepare to do light construction and painting of a house in Monte Alto.

Tommy Speed, executive director for Buckner in the Rio Grande Valley, said a record 480 volunteers participated, making it the best-attended of the KidsHeart summer events. “It is amazing to see what 480 committed Christians can do in the colonias. They are lifting families with no hope and almost nothing in this world, and giving them hope in Christ.”

Rick McClatchy, event organizer and coordinator for Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Texas, said 23 churches answered this year’s call to service.

“This is a great response to CBF’s Rural Poverty Initiative to help the poorest counties in the United States,” he said. “They are churches who want a missions connection.”

While the majority of volunteers represented churches affiliated with CBF Texas, four cooperating churches from CBF Oklahoma made a first-ever trip to the Valley.

Kerry Leeper Brock of Northwest Baptist Church of Ardmore, Okla., worked on a roofing crew in Progreso, sorted clothes “and created our own snow-cone ministry,” she said. Workers had earlier that day taken a snow-cone break that quickly turned into a neighborhood run on the slushy treats, with 100 local children lining up for one.

At the same site, Travis Keath, a member of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas, pounded nails alongside his wife, Pattie, to secure tar paper onto a family’s roof. His son, Matt, 14, was working on a nearby project. Smiling in the rooftop heat of about 120 degrees, he remarked that the trip was his family’s vacation.

“The last five years, Matt and I have done Scout camps. We felt moved to do this to give Matthew a taste for missions,” Keath said. “I’m sunburned and a few pounds lighter, but my family and I will have this shared experience. This will be something we talk about for a long time.”

Homeowner Elida Ramirez, her husband, Jorge, and seven children were grateful for their new roof and brought breakfast to the roofers each morning.

“When we bought this house, it was deteriorated,” Ramirez said through an interpreter. “Lately, we have had a lot of rain, and my kitchen and bed have all gotten wet. They fixed my roof and (insulated) my walls. Now we can have heating and air conditioning. They built my house brand new.

“This is wonderful for my children. I thank Christ, because the mission group has blessed us, and we hope to bless others.”

Ruben Benitez Jr. never will forget his new relationship with members of First Baptist Church of College Station. About a dozen of the congregation’s team members participated in a first for the KidsHeart event: They built a home from scratch in just six days for Benitez, his wife and three small children.

Benitez said when the College Station team completed the flooring on the 12-by-36-foot, two-bedroom, one-bath frame home, “my children and my nephews were dancing on the floor. This is a blessing from Jesus.”

“They’re excited,” said project co-leader Mark Meyer, a software engineer, who supervised the 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. workdays with co-leader Bud Williams, a home contractor. “When the windows went in, the kids ran around the house excitedly.”

Meyer and Williams noted church members paid for the entire project, with an estimated $6,000 cost that included wiring, plumbing and a septic system.

But the site was not just reserved for construction. Under an oak tree in the Benitez yard, church member Roxanne Collins also led two families through a workshop on diabetes prevention.

The construction, children’s programs and other efforts the groups made were part of an attempt to win others to Christ through personal contact, said Stacy Conner, pastor of First Baptist Church of Muleshoe.

“Even in painting houses, we’re building a shared experience with people we would never come in contact with.”

That personal contact resulted in 47 professions of faith in Christ, made not in mass events but one person at a time.

Kristin Scott, 17, a member of The Crossing Baptist Church in Mesquite, came to the Valley to lead Vacation Bible School activities.

“When you teach little kids about Christ, it will spread,” she said.

To her surprise, when she and others from her church were promoting the Bible school in Progreso, she helped lead an adult to Christ.

“We were handing out flyers in the neighborhoods, and we asked a lady, Carmen, if she knew Jesus,” Scott recalled. “She said no, so we asked her if she would like to know him. She said, ‘Yes, if you have the time.’”

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.




KidsHeart project makes missions a family affair

Posted: 8/18/06

Tonya Mathews is among several members of First Baptist Church of Gatesville who is leading 46 children in Vacation Bible School in Monte Alto as part of the KidsHeart missions event in July in the Rio Grande Valley. Among the children are her own, including Jordan, 7 (wearing No. 7).

KidsHeart project makes missions a family affair

By Russ Dilday

Buckner Benevolences

RIO GRANDE VALLEY—During the first full workday of KidsHeart, it became clear families had become a powerful force in the weeklong event—a joint missions effort of the Cooperative Baptist Fellow-ship and Buckner Benevolences that matches churches with needs in the Rio Grande Valley.

See Related Articles:
Hundreds of volunteers sweat, serve at KidsHeart project in Rio Grande Valley
Families served together at KidsHeart

At Monte Alto Baptist Church, Tonya Mathews was one of several members of First Baptist Church of Gatesville who led the first day of Vacation Bible School. Among the children participating were her own—ages 7, 5 and 2.

“We come each year because we can bring the whole family, bring our kids to share Jesus with others,” she said while collecting an art project from her Bible school group.

Trey Vigil, 17 (right) came with his parents Julian and Jill (left), brother and grandmother to find a missions connection as he nailed tar paper on a hot roof in a Progreso colonia. “I came because my Dad loves it and I’m getting quality time with my parents,” said Vigil, a member of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas.

“The great thing about KidsHeart is that we are serving families, and KidsHeart has given us the opportunity to come back to the same kids each year. We started with five kids the whole week that first year. Look how many come now.”

Mathews’ husband, Sean, said that while the family comes to serve, he also hopes his children learn a valuable lesson on service. “I want to instill service and responsibility within my family. Jesus stopped to serve 5,000 in an act of humble service, and I want my children to know service,” he said. It appeared they learned the desired lesson, he added.

“Last night my son, Jordan, told me ‘Yeah, I met all kinds of new friends, and I can tell them about Jesus tomorrow,’” he said.

The Mathewses were just one of many families choosing to brave the 100-degree days and stifling humidity to ensure others have a better—and eternal—life.

Dentist Andy Williams brought his teen children Steven and Shanna to help him at the dental clinic he held in Lasara.

“Bringing my children is special to me, because it’s a chance to get closer to them and show them what I love,” said Williams, a member of First Baptist Church in College Station.

“It’s neat to share this experience with my family,” echoed Shanna, 17. “It’s made me humble, and made me see the need to give more.”

Trey Vigil, also 17, came with his parents, Julian and Jill, brother and grandmother to find a missions connection as he nailed tar paper on a hot roof in Progreso.

“I came because my dad loves it, and I’m getting quality time with my parents,” said Vigil, a member of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas. “It tells these people that other people care about them—and that might show them a doorway to something new.”

Nikki Wright, 12, of First Baptist Church of Covington, noted families—like her mom, Jane, dad, Keith, and older sister Danielle—were going to take back some longstanding visions to their homes after the week was over.

“One family we were helping has five children and one bedroom with no electricity. That’s a different life than I live. I have some kids in my class (in Covington) who have less, and I can be nicer to them.”

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.




VBS shines light in the darkness this summer

Posted: 8/18/06

Grace Temple Baptist Church in Waco is one of a growing number of churches holding Vacation Bible School in the evening. (Photos by Diane Lane/BGCT)

VBS shines light in the darkness this summer

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

Many Vacation Bible Schools in Texas this summer decided to shine light into the darkness.

The majority of Texas churches who reported 2005 Vacation Bible School statistics to Lifeway Christian Resources held their Bible schools at night—a change from the typical weeklong events held in the morning.

Nearly 54 percent of more than 800 churches that reported to the publisher held Vacation Bible School in the evening. Slightly more than 41 percent of congregations held it during the day. About 3 percent split their Vacation Bible School between the morning and the evening. The remaining churches did not indicate when they held the events.

Many churches describe Vacation Bible School as one of their best outreach activities for children.

Diane Lane, Baptist General Convention of Texas preschool /children’s ministry specialist, said many churches are moving Vacation Bible School to the evenings when more members can help with the outreach.

“Children are going to be there,” she said. “So, you need to look at when you’re going to have the most teachers available. If most of your church works during the day, it would be ridiculous to have it during the day. You won’t have the leaders.”

Grace Temple Baptist Church in Waco had more than 60 children at its Vacation Bible School held during the evening. Merle Neuman, who directs the effort, said the event is one of the church’s most effective outreach activities.

At least half of the youth who participate in the church’s Bible school do not regularly attend the congregation’s services, Neuman said. Each year, several young people begin attending Sunday school after Vacation Bible School, and the church has seen one profession of faith each of the past two years.

“We do VBS to reach unchurched children so they will have an opportunity to know who God is,” she said.

Results like these are common in Baptist life. Texas churches reported nearly 6,000 professions of faith as a result of Vacation Bible School. About 120 more people said they felt a call to vocational ministry.

Chad Chaddick, pastor of Fairlanes Baptist Church in Borger, said Vacation Bible School remains effective because it is a designated time where church members concentrate on children. Christians share biblical lessons with children in a way they understand.

“I think it’s just a concentrated effort on loving on the children,” said Chaddick, whose church also held its Vacation Bible School in the evening. “We’re trying to love on them in practical ways. We’re telling them the truths that really matter. Doing that in a concentrated time, it captures the hearts, the imaginations.”

Lane agreed with Chaddick, adding that an effective VBS brings together an entire church. Every staff member helps, and a large number of church members are involved.

“Vacation Bible School can be used really to firm up and really seal that spiritual foundation for children and for them to not only know the Bible studies, but they have interacted so much with the Bible verses that it becomes part of them,” she said.

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Lebanon Baptists say goodbye to refugees, but ministry continues

Posted: 8/18/06

Lebanon Baptists say goodbye
to refugees, but ministry continues

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

BEIRUT, Lebanon (ABP)—Hundreds of Lebanese Muslims who had taken refuge in Lebanese Baptist institutions said good-bye to their hosts Aug. 17. Meanwhile, Lebanese Christian leaders continued to care for refugees still in Beirut.

As a cease-fire took hold in the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, hundreds of refugees who had fled the fighting for the relative safety of Christian parts of Beirut began to leave the Beirut Baptist School.

In an Aug. 17 update with the title “Uneasy Peace,” leaders of the umbrella organization that runs the school and nearby Arab Baptist Theological Seminary said the departure was bittersweet.

“Our more than 750 visitors for the past month or so have left. The farewell between the children, youth, women on the one hand and our team members on the other was at times quite emotional,” the update from the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development said.

It noted that the handful of other refugee families staying at the seminary “who come from the southern villages are still cautious, preferring to remain at ABTS for a few more days.”

In addition, Lebanese and other Baptist personnel in Beirut continued to go to refugee centers near the schools, leading activity programs to occupy displaced women and children.

At the conflict’s height, Lebanese Baptist officials estimated 800 refugees were staying at the two schools, located in the Christian parts of Beirut. Many of the displaced families are Shiite Muslims who came from hard-hit Hezbollah strongholds in southern and eastern Lebanon and Beirut’s Shia-dominated southern suburbs.

International Baptist relief workers, including a medical team from Hungarian Baptist Aid and church groups from the United States, have provided other services to the refugees.

The release also noted that, because of the halt in fighting and departure of the refugees, both institutions would begin their 2006-2007 academic years Sept. 25.

Recent news reports detailed Lebanese returning to villages and cities that had been all but destroyed in the 33-day conflict.

“There are those who go back not knowing what awaits them. Will they find their homes in place or will they struggle to identify through the rubble what was once their home and shelter?” an Aug. 14 Lebanese Baptist update said. “And for those, much uncertainty is in store for them. Where will they go next? And until when?”

Israeli air strikes and ground troops have wreaked havoc on the nation’s infrastructure, which was just beginning to return to the state it was in prior to Lebanon’s 15-year civil war—a conflict that ended in 1990.

But news reports Aug. 16 indicated that the United Nations-brokered cease-fire still was exceedingly fragile. Several Hezbollah leaders said they would not disarm, as required by the UN resolution that brought about the cease-fire.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reported Aug. 16 that Israeli military officials have said they will not retreat from areas of southern Lebanon they have occupied until the promised joint force of Lebanese and international troops arrives to keep the peace.

Gen. Dan Halutz told an Israeli parliamentary committee that his troops will remain in place “until the multinational force arrives, even if that takes months,” according to the Times.

Despite the fragile nature of the cease-fire and the horror of the conflict—in which hundreds of civilians were killed—Lebanese Baptist leaders reported positive news.

The practice of Baptists providing activities for Muslim women and children may not end with the conflict, the leaders wrote.

“Our teams are receiving repeated requests that we hold similar programs in the areas of origin of our displaced friends,” they said. “God willing, these are the beginning of new and fruitful interactive relationships between Christians and Moslems. May God be glorified in the process!”

The update also requested prayer for Baptists who were returning to their homes and churches in Deir Mimas and Marjeyoun, two hard-hit villages near the Israeli border.

An earlier dispatch told of a Lebanese Baptist youth worker, Joseph Azzi, who was speaking to a group of refugees about why Christians help their neighbors, using Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan from Matthew 5.

A Muslim man in the group, according to the report, had lost a 17-year-old son just days earlier in an Israeli air raid that destroyed an apartment block in South Lebanon. Another air raid interrupted the funeral procession, injuring one of his other sons.

“And here, Rev. Joseph recited to them Matthew 5:44-45, ‘But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven,’“ the Lebanese dispatch said.

“At this point the father of the deceased said: ‘We have many Christian friends, but we never knew that you have these teachings.’ Please pray for this and many other hurting families that we are visiting daily.”



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Aggie BSM group conducts missions research in Turkey

Posted: 8/18/06

Aggie BSM group conducts
missions research in Turkey

By Laura Frase

Communications Intern

COLLEGE STATION—When eight students from the Texas A&M University Baptist Student Ministry traveled to Istanbul, Turkey, to conduct missionary research, they discovered their age was as much an asset as their training.

The team performed ethnographic studies—cultural surveys—in which they interviewed individuals under the age of 30, including university students.

Students are the ideal group to send to Turkey because the median age is 30, said BSM Director Joel Bratcher.

“The best people to reach college students are college students,” Associate Director Beverly Parrish added. “There is a universal bond between them.”

The team split into pairs to research Turkey’s culture. One student interviewed each person—asking questions about family, education, religion, politics—while the other transcribed the conversation verbatim.

The transcripts allowed missionaries to see the Turks’ cultural views in their own words, Parrish said.

“At first, the interview process was awkward, and I was definitely stretching out of my comfort zone,” said Ryan Hartsfield, a Texas A&M senior. “But over time, it not only became easier, I really wanted to talk to them. … Most people were proud of their Turkish identity.”

After several interviews, the students found it was easy to relate to the people under 30.

Danielle McGee, a Texas A&M senior, found friendship with a Turkish citizen about her same age. While at a coffee shop the first day, McGee met the manager who later introduced her to his girlfriend, Betul, or as McGee called her, Betty.

“Over and over again, we would meet at Starbucks and talk about the differences in our cultures,” McGee said. “Being the same age, being a peer, was a huge factor in her being authentic. Not only did I share the gospel, but I shared my life with her.”

When asked about his favorite part of the trip, Hartsfield quickly replied: “It wasn’t a part. It was a person.”

Shahin was an Iranian-born university student who was visiting Istanbul for a medical procedure. They had a brief meeting, but Shahin showed interest in Hartsfield’s teachings, so they arranged to meet later that week, he said.

Shahin followed in the Bahai faith, which meant he believed both Jesus and Muhammad were manifestations of God, he explained. During their next meeting, they talked about Jesus and Muhammad.

“We came to the conclusion together that salvation could only come through Jesus Christ, and not Muhammad,” Hartsfield said. “It was very interesting to come to that conclusion together.”

Hartsfield and Shahin remain in contact with each other.

While the team formed relationships with people from another culture, they also aided missionaries through their work.

From the day they arrived in Turkey until they left, the team compiled more than 170 pages about the culture, McGee said.

Parrish believes the students were successful because their age helped them connect with Turkish young people.

“It provides a much quicker bridge. It builds relationships much quicker,” she said. McGee knew the main purpose was to help missionaries understand the culture better, but during the interviews, she realized “part of the purpose was caring for them and seeing what they had to say.”

She explained the older generations of Turkey are more “one-colored in their views,” and the younger generations wouldn’t open up to the older generations.

“They really opened up to people their own age,” she said.

McGee also emphasized the importance of listening to what they had to say because “the future of Turkey is held within the hands of the under-30 crowd.”

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.




Around the State

Posted: 8/18/06

Several former pastors and their wives helped celebrate First Church in Melvin’s 100th anniversary. They are (l-r) Betty Gauer, Pastor Robert Gauer, former Pastor Gerald Hendon, Sandra Hendon, Billie Mosley, former Pastor Maurice Mosley, Ramona Akins and former Pastor Ferris Akins. Former members, family and friends accounted for 128 of the celebrants. Sue Steelhammer and the Keith Jackson Family provided the special music.

Around the State

• Rutledge McClaren, director of institutional planning, assessment and research at East Texas Baptist University, will retire Sept. 1. He has served more than 45 years in higher education—41 of those years at ETBU, serving as either a mathematics professor or an administrator.

• Six Baylor University faculty will step into roles as chairs of academic departments for the new school year. New chairs and the departments they will serve include Jaime Diaz-Granados, psychology; David Garrett, communication sciences and disorders; Danny Leonard, aerospace studies; William Bellinger, religion; Timothy Kayworth, information systems; and Allen Seward, finance, insurance and real estate.

Corinth Church in Cisco presented Pastor Benny Hagan with an etched mirror to commemorate his 22 years as the congregation’s pastor. He has been a Baptist pastor for 52 years and has served several Texas churches. Corinth also was Hagan’s first pastorate in 1954.

• Dallas Baptist University awarded undergraduate and graduate degrees to 230 students Aug. 4. Eighty-three graduate students and 147 undergraduates took part in the ceremonies. Joseph Kim of South Korea was the commencement speaker and the recipient of an honorary doctorate of divinity.

• The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor graduated its 150th class Aug. 5. Seventy-one students received degrees during the ceremony—65 bacalaureate degrees and six master’s degrees. Amy Ivy received the award for the highest overall grade-poijnt average. Adrienne Henderson received the Loyalty Cup, given to the student selected as the most representative of the ideals, traditions and spirit of the university.

• The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship recently endorsed 18 chaplains, including five from Texas. Craig Klempnauer serves Southern Care Hospice in Waco; David Chan at Methodist Hospital in Houston; Judith Grace at Hillcrest Health System in Waco; Stephen Saunders at Scott & White Hospital in Temple; and Lynda Schupp at Lake Forest Good Samaritan Village in Denton.

Anniversaries

• B.B. Willis, 50th, in the ministry, July 8. He is pastor of St. James Church in Wharton.

• Michael Redus, fifth, as pastor of Springdale Church in Paris, Aug. 1.

• Bill Gillum, 10th, as minister of music at Indiana Avenue Church in Lubbock, Aug. 4.

• Ira Pinkston, 10th, as minister of music at First Church in Waxahachie, Aug. 5.

• Connie Cox, 10th, as director of outreach at First Church in Denton, Aug. 5.

• J.K. Weger, 10th, as minister of music and worship at First Church in Paris, Aug. 10.

• Jerry Henry, fifth, as pastor of Sadler Church in Sadler, Aug. 12.

• Danny Durham, fifth, as director of missions for Blanco Association, Aug. 15.

• Pat Travis, fifth, as pastor of Bagwell Church in Bagwell, Aug. 19.

• Keith McGee, 10th, as minister of music and worship at First Church in Denton, Aug. 26. A reception will be held in his honor at 4 p.m., followed by a program commemorating his service.

• First Church in Earth, 80th, Aug. 27. Former pastors Bobby Broyles and David Hartman are expected to attend, as are former music ministers Chris Moore and Karl Vaughan. A fried-chicken dinner will follow the morning service. Open house of the church, parsonage, Mission Earth and the family life center also will be held.

• First Church in Dennis, 75th, Aug. 27. Former pastors Carl Elder, Houston Hook, Jerry PIllow and W. Raurk are expected to attend. The day also will be marked by dedication of the church’s sanctuary. A meal will follow the morning service. After the meal, a second worship service will be held. Danny Shearman is pastor.

• South Oaks Church in Arlington, 25th, Sept. 3. Founding Pastor Bruce Edwards will preach in the morning service. A catered meal will follow. Cost for the meal will be $5 per person or $20 per family. A reservation for the meal is requested by Aug. 27 by calling the church at (817) 478-8284. Dan Curry is pastor.

• Freeway Manor Church in Houston, 50th, Sept. 10. A catered lunch will follow the morning service. In His Love Ministries will present a short concert following the meal. Former staff and members not contacted as yet by the church are asked to call (713) 944-0000. Roger VanHoy is pastor.

• First Church in Weatherford, 150th, Sept. 22-24. Events will kick off on Friday with a reception from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday’s festivities will include fun and games as well as barbecue at the Texas Star Ranch. Sunday’s 11 a.m. worship hour will be held at Weatherford High School’s Durant Auditorium. To make reservations or for more information, call (817) 594-5457. Steve Buckland is pastor.

• Webb Church in Arlington, 100th, Sept. 23. A catered luncheon will be held. To make reservation or for other information, call (817) 419-9227. Karl Fickling is interim pastor.

• First Church in Medina, 125th, Oct. 1. A morning devotional will kick off the festivities at 9:30 a.m., followed by Sunday school and worship. A lunch, song service and treasure hunt will follow, as well as the opening of the church’s time capsule. Photos depicting events in the church’s history, along with a timeline, will be on display. For more information, call (830) 589-2395. Allie Balko is pastor.

Retiring

• Dajuana Neal, as minister of music/senior adults at First Church in Whitesboro. July 16. She served the church 36 years.

Deaths

• Don Jopling, 74, June 24 in Burleson. He was a vocational evangelist. He is survived by his wife, Lynda; sons, Mark, Steve, Frederick and Andrew; a daughter, Ariella Marget; Four grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.

• Howard Linton, 85, Aug. 7 in San Antonio. He was pastor of churches in Maryville, Ohio, and Dayton. He later worked as chaplain at Hermann Hospital in Houston. He began the chaplaincy program at Baptist Memorial Hospital System—the second in Texas— in 1960. He trained hospital chaplains of many denominations throughout the United States. He also was interim pastor of many Baptist churches in San Antonio. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Wanda; son, Jim; daughter, Jeanne Reimers; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

• Ann Miller, 80, Aug. 12 in Waco. A 1949 Baylor University graduate, she began her career as an English professor at Baylor in 1961. She was designated a Master Teacher of literature in 1982, one of the first two Baylor professors to attain the distinction. She was named outstanding professor by Mortar Board 12 times, and by the student body, Student Congress and alumni groups repeatedly. In 2003, Baylor honored her with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert, who served as chairman of Baylor’s political science department. She is survived by her son, Robert Jr.; daughter, Laurie Anne Smith; brother, James Vardaman; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Events

• A celebration commemorating the 50th anniversary of the ordination of Bill Gilmore, as well as the 50th anniversary of his marriage to his wife, Lee Ann, was Aug. 19 at Emerald Bay on Lake Palestine. His years of ministry include pastorates in Clarksville, Sulphur Springs and Hawkins. In 1962, they were appointed by the SBC Foreign Mission Board to serve in Brazil, where they worked eight years in field evangelism and 12 years as director of the Radio/Television Board of the Brazilian Baptist Convention. After their ministry in Brazil, they returned to Texas, where he was associate pastor/business manager of Fielder Road Church in Arlington, founding pastor of Woodland Heights Church in Bedford and then pastor of Immanuel Church in Fort Worth. They reside in Arlington.

• First Church in Van Vleck will honor church secretary Jackie Corenfeld Aug. 27 with a lunch following the worship service. She is retiring after more than 17 years of service. The church will present her with a memory book with contributions from the membership. Anyone wishing to contribute to the book can send their addition to lamplighter@fbc-vanvleck.org. Al Lowe is pastor.

• Sonic Flood will perform at Columbus Avenue Church in Waco Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. The concert is held in conjuction with McClennan Com-munity College and Texas State Technical College Baptist Student Ministries.

• Park Memorial Church in Houston will hold special services to commemorate 74 years of service to the community Sept. 10. A lunch will follow the morning service. Singing and story-telling aealso part of the afternoon’s program. People planning to attend are asked to call the church at (713) 923-2853. Ricky Fletcher is pastor.

Ordained

• James Anaya to the ministry at Travis Church in Corpus Christi.

• Chris Barbee, Heath Bush, Damon Crabtree, David Rice and Phillip Spenrath as deacons at First Church in El Campo.

• Weston Voigt and Gordon Hart as deacons at McMahan Church in McMahan.

• Jeff Madison as a deacon at First Church in Rockdale.

Revival

• First Church, Edna; Aug. 27-30; evangelist, Joe Loughlin; music, Charles and Bonnie Covin; pastor, Danny Reeves.


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.




Book Reviews

Posted: 8/18/06

Book Reviews

The Shark God: Encounters with Ghosts and Ancestors in the South Pacific by Charles Montgomery (HarperCollins)

Charles Montgomery, an award-winning Canadian travel writer, offers in his first book a challenging journey of both body and soul. At 10, he discovers the memoirs of his great-grandfather Henry Montgomery, an Anglican missionary to the islands of Melanesia almost a century earlier. At 30, he decides to recreate the journey through the South Pacific in order to determine the impact of Christianity on the pagan beliefs of the people.

Ultimately, the book is a journey seeking truth. Montgomery is a skeptic, both of religious faith and tribal myth.

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

Yet he desperately desires to believe in something. The book provides relevant insight into the cynical struggle shared by many people. The conclusion he reaches may surprise you.

The writing is a rich description of people, places and events. Montgomery is a gifted writer whose words provide a vivid description that will make readers feel as if they were along on the journey.

Van Christian, pastor

First Baptist Church

Comanche

Pastoral Search: The Alban Guide to Managing the Pastoral Search Process by John Vonhof (Alban Institute)

From the first lines—telling “believe-it-or-not” stories of pastor-search committee miscues—John Vonhof hits the mark with Pastoral Search: The Alban Guide to Managing the Pastoral Search Process. At 100 pages, this is a quick read, but it is packed with sound instructions on how to find a pastor.

The book presents a chronological flow that begins with organizing the pastor-search committee and ends with managing the new pastor’s arrival. Vonhof splices helpful illustrations throughout the chapters, while flow-charts diagram each step along the way. A 20-page appendix of sample letters, surveys, employment papers, etc. is worth the price of the book.

While written for any church, the book is easily adaptable to Baptist life.

Every pastor-search committee chair would do well to seek out special training for their committee, to take advantage of the resources available at www.bgct. org/texasbaptists/Page.aspx?&pid=255& srcid=178, and to have this book at their side during the search process.

Karl Fickling, intentional interim

ministry coordinator

Baptist General Convention of Texas

Dallas


Coffee Cup Bible Studies by Sandra Glahn (AMG Publishers)

Sandra Glahn’s Coffee Cup Bible Studies can transform the way women fit Bible study into our Soccer Mom, Executive-on-the-Go, Wife-Mom-Granny, Volunteer-of-the-Year lifestyles.

Glahn, an assistant professor at Dallas Theological Seminary, helps busy women feel as if they are sitting down with an old friend to study the Bible’s stories and lessons. She draws us into history and expands our view as she weaves Scripture, stories and heroes into her tapestry. She particularly is good at expounding on the Greek and Hebrew words that bring color and cultural relevance to her lessons.

In “Espresso with Esther,” Glahn gives a concise and beautifully clear lesson on how to study Scripture, giving context, history and culture their proper place. Her easy conversational manner teaches us how to discuss and examine Scripture without being intimidated.

In the first lesson, she puts us in Esther’s place: “Like Esther, we are imperfect, full of failures and flaws. Yet God still uses us, not because we’re good, but because he is.”

I couldn’t wait to get started with “Mocha on the Mount.” I’ve been to the place called the Mount of Beatitudes, and I felt as if I were back there again as the Scripture unfolds. Especially moving in “Mocha” is her discussion of “meekness” and wealth. She reviews for us our blessings of freedom and material possessions and transitions to how easy it is to become spiritually impoverished.

Others in the series include “Solomon Latte” and “Java with the Judges.”

Each study is easily portable and fits into briefcase, glove compartment or gym bag. It is exciting to round out the day with these warm, inviting lessons.

Beverly Lucas, director

Dallas Baptist University-Colleyville

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