PLAINVIEW—Paul Armes, who has led Wayland Baptist University as president 15 years, told trustees he will retire effective June 30, 2016.

Trustees appointed a search committee to find a successor to Armes, 65, who became Wayland’s 12th president in February 2001. 

Paul ArmesWayland makes the third Baptist General Convention of Texas-related university experiencing transition in top administration. In February, Dallas Baptist University trustees elected Gary Cook chancellor and announced plans to appoint a search committee to seek his successor as president. East Texas Baptist University’s trustees elected Blair Blackburn, executive vice president at DBU since 2002, as the Marshall school’s president, effective in June.

Under Armes’ leadership, Wayland’s annual budget grew from $28 million to $68 million, its endowment grew from $31 million to $76 million, and the school added multiple graduate-level academic programs. Wayland reached a record enrollment—6,834—in 2012.

The university launched the Wayland Mission Center in 2008 and celebrated its centennial the same year. The $8 million, 50,000-square-foot Pete and Nelda Laney Student Activities Center also opened in 2008. 

The $15 million Jimmy Dean Residence Hall for men opened in 2012, and the Jimmy Dean Museum is scheduled for construction. Wayland renovated several residence halls, the University Center cafeteria and a student lounge during Armes’ tenure as president.

Armes was born in Waco and grew up in Fort Worth and El Paso. He earned his undergraduate degree in religion from Baylor University and master of divinity and doctor of philosophy degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He completed post-graduate studies in educational administration at Southwest Texas State University.

Before arriving at Wayland, Armes served about five years as president of San Marcos Baptist Academy. 

He was pastor of First Baptist Church in Corpus Christi from 1987 to 1996 and moderator of Corpus Christi Baptist Association from 1988 to 1990. He was pastor of Oakwood Baptist Church in Lubbock from 1983 to 1987 and moderator of Lubbock Baptist Association from 1986 to 1987. He served previously at Oakwood Baptist Church in Kansas City, Mo., Big Springs Baptist Church in Garland and Agee Baptist Church in Hamilton.

Denominational service includes membership on the Baptist General Convention of Texas Future Focus Committee, the Theological Education Study Committee and the Strategy Planning Council. 

He and his wife, Duanea Jean Ramsey, have two grown daughters, Sarah Emily and Ashley Rebecca; three grandsons and two granddaughters.

WACO—Baylor University’s board of regents voted to name the School of Social Work in honor of its inaugural dean, Diana R. Garland, who has announced she will step down from her administrative position June 1 for health reasons.

Students, alumni, faculty, staff and guests learned about the vote during School of Social Work annual “family dinner,” April 24, when they gathered to celebrate the school’s 10-year anniversary and honor Garland’s service.

“Diana Garland has a passion for social work delivered in the context of a caring, Christian community,” said Richard Willis, chair of the Baylor board of regents. “Because of her dedication to faith-infused social work, we see Baylor students and alumni making significant, meaningful and lasting contributions in communities around the state of Texas, throughout the nation and across the globe. 

“The board’s decision to name the School of Social Work in Dr. Garland’s honor is a way to extend our profound thanks and appreciation for her years of service. But it’s also a way we can show future generations of Baylor social work students that they have a place to come and learn and make a difference because Dr. Garland chose to devote her life’s work to their continued success.”

Baylor President Ken Starr called the naming of the school in Garland’s honor “a fitting tribute to her many years of devotion” to it.

“Dr. Garland has led the School of Social Work with distinction and honor,” Starr said. “Under her inspired servant leadership, the school has grown from a fledgling department to an independent, nationally recognized institution increasingly known for its research excellence and unwavering Christian commitment. 

“Dean Garland’s nearly 20 years of dedicated service to Baylor students, faculty and staff, as well as to the broader Waco community, has changed lives, healed families, strengthened congregations and expanded the frontiers of knowledge. We are deeply thankful for Dr. Garland’s good and faithful work.”

Garland has served at Baylor since 1997. In 1998, she was named director of the university’s then-new Center for Family and Community Ministries. She became chair of the social work department in 2001. In 2005, Baylor named her inaugural dean of the School of Social Work. During the following decade, she championed the school’s rise to national and international recognition, while maintaining its steadfast mission to prepare social workers in a Christian context for worldwide service and leadership.

“I remain speechless in gratitude and awe that my name would be attached to the community of staff, faculty, students, alumni and supporters, past and present, called the Baylor School of Social Work,” Garland said. 

“All this school has accomplished has been because God has bound us together, magnifying our strengths and shining through our weaknesses. We have achieved far more than any group of people could have humanly done alone, and most certainly not due to any one person’s leadership. I hope that everyone who associates my name with this school will laugh, as I do, that God has once again chosen a flawed but willing character through whom to work.”

Garland will take a research sabbatical in the fall and plans to return to the faculty for the spring 2016 semester. The university has named Jon Singletary interim dean.

The School of Social Work began in 1969 as an academic program within the department of sociology, anthropology, archeology, gerontology and social work. With a grant from the Lilly Endowment, the Baylor Center for Family and Community Ministries was established in 1998 with Garland as director. 

The master of social work program was launched that same year, and in 1999, the School of Social Work was created as a separate department in the College of Arts and Sciences. Garland became the chair of the department in 2001. In 2005, it became the School of Social Work.

During Garland’s tenure as dean, the school’s faculty has grown from five full-time professors and lecturers to a full-time faculty of 20. Graduate student enrollment in the program has increased to 120, and undergraduate enrollment has grown to 120 students.

Garland earned her undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Louisville. She joined the Baylor faculty after serving as professor of Christian family ministry and social work at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville 17 years. She also served as dean of the Carver School of Church Social Work and director of the Center for Family Ministries. Prior to teaching, she was administrative director of a pastoral counseling center.

She is author, co-author or editor of 21 books and more than 100 academic articles. She has been the editor of the Journal of Family and Community Ministries since 1993.

Garland served as a board member of the National Association of Deans and Directors of Social Work from 2009 to 2014 and councilor for the Council on Social Work Education from 2003 to 2013. She served multiple terms as president of the North American Association of Christians in Social Work.

During her time at Baylor, Garland has raised more than $7.4 million in research and program grants, from organizations such as the Lilly Endowment, Pew Charitable Trusts, Annie E. Casey Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation and Ford Foundation. During her tenure, the School of Social Work has established an endowment of $14.5 million.

GALVESTON—Texas Baptists’ Disaster Recovery ministry will sponsor a family-oriented mission trip to Galveston July 26-31. 

Volunteers will spend mornings on the worksite and afternoons on vacation, organizers said.

“While all ages and types of people are invited, we wanted to focus on families on mission,” said Marla Bearden, disaster response specialist for Texas Baptists. “Spending time as a family, serving others in Jesus’ name, is a wonderful way for any family to spend a few days together, and why not in Galveston?”

Some volunteers on the trip will work with Galveston Urban Ministries, a group devoted to Christian community development in areas like children and youth programs and job training. (Photo: Galveston Urban Ministries)During the mission trip, families—as well as church groups and individuals—can help Galveston residents in their continued effort to recover from Hurricane Ike, which hit the island in 2008.

Texas Baptists’ Disaster Recovery has partnered with First Baptist Church in Galveston and Galveston Urban Ministries to help provide housing, assess community needs and assign mission projects. 

Nathan Mahand, minister of outreach and education at First Baptist, said his church members are excited and honored to host the disaster recovery teams. 

“It’s a way for us to give back to Texas Baptists after they gave so much after Hurricane Ike,” he said. “Now, we’re able to house people here who can help the community rebuild.”

Disaster recovery work for Texas Baptists began with Hurricane Ike through the Church2Church Partnerships program, Bearden said, in which Texas Baptist churches partnered with more than 75 disaster-affected churches to help them rebuild. 

This summer in Galveston, volunteers will be assigned projects such as Vacation Bible School activities, home construction and repair jobs, lawn mowing and community beautification.

Teams will work from 9 a.m. to noon daily and have afternoons free for time at the beach or at local attractions, such as the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier, Moody Gardens or the Lone Star Flight Museum.

At $120 per person, families will receive meals and housing at First Baptist Church in Galveston for the entire week. Texas Baptist Men will provide shower trailers.

For $75 per person, families will receive meals and may book rooms at one of two hotels listed on the website or find housing on their own, but Texas Baptists’ Disaster Recovery personnel recommend early booking since hotels fill up quickly.

For more information, visit the Texas Baptists’ Disaster Recovery web page  or contact Marla Bearden at marla.bearden@texasbaptists.org or Gerald Davis at gerald.davis@texasbaptists.org.

AUSTIN—Texas needs to remove barriers that make it difficult for ex-offenders to re-enter the “free world” and become productive members of society, a public policy expert with the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission insists.

Kathryn FreemanKathryn Freeman, CLC public policy director, testified before the House Committee on Human Services in support of HB 1267, introduced by Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston. The bill would modify the law to make some felony drug offenders eligible for federal food assistance funds two years after release from prison if they meet certain requirements, and it would enable broader participation of ex-offenders in work programs.

SNAP—the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps—enables qualified recipients to buy food while they participate in job-search and training programs. The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996 made people convicted of felony drug offenses ineligible for SNAP benefits unless the state passes legislation extending benefits to them. Forty-one states developed policies to allow ex-offenders to regain SNAP eligibility, but Texas remains among the nine states that have retained the ban.

“We believe denying SNAP benefits to these individuals makes it very hard for them to transition back into society as they attempt to reintegrate into their communities,” Freeman said.

Contradicts Christian understanding of redemption

A lifetime ban on benefits contradicts Christians’ understanding of redemption, forgiveness and transformed lives, she continued.

“We believe that people who have served their time should—in some way, shape or form—earn back the privilege of receiving SNAP,” she said.

Access to resources that help ex-offenders re-enter society reduces recidivism—repeat offenses after release, according to the CLC. The Bureau of Justice Statistics’ recidivism study of 30 states revealed that from 2005 to 2010, about two-thirds of released prisoners were arrested for a new crime within three years, and three-quarters were arrested within five years.

Texas Baptists support multiple restorative justice ministries to help strengthen inmates’ relationships to their families and God, ease their re-entry into society and reduce recidivism, Freeman noted.

Two ministries honored

The Governor’s Criminal Justice Volunteer Service Award program recently honored two ministries launched by Texas Baptists—the Huntsville Hospitality House and the Restorative Justice Ministry Network Network. The Huntsville Hospitality House received the community service award, and Bill Kleiber accepted the restorative justice award on behalf of the network founded by longtime Texas Baptist prison chaplain Emmett Solomon and the Welcome Back/First Contact Family Ministry. 

Of the 70,000 people released from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in 2014, about 29,000 did not qualify for TDCJ Re-entry and Integration Division programs. 

“Many of these individuals are in desperate need of housing assistance, employment opportunities and contact information for organizations that will provide medical and mental health care,” a CLC-produced document on prisoner re-entry states. “Research suggests that the most critical period for someone leaving prison is the period immediately following release.”

Many Texas organizations have compiled resource lists specific to particular areas that could be made available to prisoners awaiting release. 

“Access to these resources would greatly help incarcerated individuals formulate re-entry plans based on available community providers, and it would increase the chances that these individuals will successfully re-integrate into their community and become productive, law-abiding citizens,” the CLC document states. “However, many prisoners do not know about these resources.” 

Three bills introduced

Three bills related to resources for ex-offender re-entry have been introduced during the current legislative session:

• SB 578, introduced by Sen. Chuy Hinojosa, D-McAllen, and Sen. Jose Rodriguez, D-El Paso, requires TDCJ to identify organizations that provide re-entry and re-integration resource guides and to collaborate with those organizations to make the resource guides available to all inmates. The bill passed the Senate April 9.

• Rep. Alma Allen, D-Houston, introduced the House version of the Hinojosa/Rodriguez bill, HB 569, April 7, and it was sent to the Local and Consent Calendars Committee.

• SB 99, introduced by Hinojosa, requires the TDCJ to make arrangements for an inmate’s supervised re-entry into free society one year before release or when the inmate has served 90 percent of his or her sentence.

The re-entry program must provide the inmate with skills necessary to ensure successful re-entry into the community, including providing appropriate substance-abuse treatment, counseling and social service programs. The supervised re-entry program must be coordinated with any re-entry or re-integration services the inmate will receive. SB 99 was referred to the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.

One bill related to nondisclosure orders for ex-offenders already has passed the Senate.  SB 130, introduced by Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, creates eligibility for the records of an offense and conviction that have been set aside by a judge to be sealed through a nondisclosure order. It prohibits eligibility for certain alcohol-related offenses and sexual assault-related offenses, kidnapping and murder, as well as crimes of family violence or injury to a child, the elderly or disabled. 

“Nondisclosure orders are important, because they can help released prisoners’ effort to gain employment,” the CLC document states. “Employment is a key factor for released prisoners’ successful re-entry into the community. Even so, more serious offenses are not eligible for nondisclosure orders.”

Two additional bills submitted

Lawmakers are considering two additional bills related to nondisclosure:

• SB 1902, introduced by Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, creates eligibility for the records of certain deferred adjudication community supervision offenses and certain nonviolent misdemeanors that have been discharged and dismissed by a judge to be sealed through a nondisclosure order. If the records were sealed, the person would not be required to acknowledge the crime on any job or licensing application. The Senate Criminal Justice Committee held a public hearing on April 21 and voted the bill out of committee favorably.

• HB 3936, introduced by Rep. Abel Herrero, D-Corpus Christi, joined by Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, Rep. Jim Murphy, R-Houston, and Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas, mirrors SB 1902. The bill is pending in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee.

“It is incredibly hard for ex-offenders to be re-integrated into society,” Freeman said. “They face difficulty in finding jobs and housing, and they and their families are often outcasts in their communities. They are treated as society outcasts without the benefits of full citizenship.

“People with nonviolent criminal backgrounds, even after completing their sentences, have limited opportunities post-release. Individuals should have the opportunity to redeem themselves through meaningful opportunities to contribute spiritually, economically and civically in community life.

“We, as believers in Christ, know what it means to be forgiven and redeemed. Therefore, we should extend that same forgiveness and redemption to ex-offenders who have served their time and are looking for a second chance to get it right.”

This article is based in part on research by Leah Holder, a public policy research intern with the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission and the Baptist Standard, made possible by a grant from the Christ is Our Salvation Foundation of Waco. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and is a student in the University of Texas School of Law.

DALLAS—When it comes to reaching young adults with the gospel, things are not as bleak as some suggest, a young minister told Dallas Baptist Association pastors.

All Millennials want is to change the world, and the church is the perfect partner for that endeavor, said Grant Skeldon, founder and director of Initiative, a ministry by Millennials to reach Millennials.

Grant SkeldonAt age 25, Skeldon speaks about Millennials—young people born between the early 1980s and the early 2000s—from personal experience. However, he emphasized, “It’s hard to put every young adult in the same box.”

Churches successful in drawing young adults strongly emphasize discipleship and missions, he noted. 

“Discipleship is often the missing link that would bring the young-adult generation into the church, but also to be the church, because they are not concerned with just coming to the church. They also want to go out and be the church,” he said. 

Since Millenials crave meaningful relationships, the greatest asset traditional churches have in reaching young adults is the wisdom of older members, Skeldon stressed.

He cited First Baptist Church in Irving as a good example of a congregation in which Millennials love and learn from older members. 

“But some churches don’t have the possibility of that because they don’t have many people more than 35 or 40 years old,” Skeldon said.

Focus on discipleship

“When I talk to some young adult ministries, I think they want us to help them make their events better,” he said. “But my thing is, I’d rather not do the event and do something more focused on discipleship. But here’s their problem: They don’t have people who could disciple their young adults, because all they have is young adults.”

He disputed the often-repeated assertion that young adults are leaving the church.

“I keep hearing that all the time. I would say young adults are leaving the over-glorification of an event,” Skeldon said.

Traditional churches primarily focuse on bringing people to an event—Sunday morning worship, he explained. Young adults are more concerned with going out and being the church outside the walls. 

Gathering vs. scattering

Traditional churches are focused on gathering, while young adults are focused on scattering, he said.

Skeldon noted two recent studies. One said seven of 10 young adults leave the church. The other said the only demographic that was increasing in evangelism was young adults, and every other age group was either static or declining. 

“So, 70 percent of them are leaving the church, but as soon as they get out the door, they are sharing the gospel with all their friends. How does that make sense that they want to leave the church, but they want to share the gospel?” he asked.

It is not that Christ no longer is relevant to young adults, but that they don’t perceive the church as active enough in living out its teachings, Skeldon said.

Edwin Robinson, young adult pastor at Concord Baptist Church in Dallas, works closely with Initiative and offered his own insight.

“If we want young adults and Millennials active in our church, then we have to already have decided we don’t know what it is going to look like and be OK with that,” Robinson said. 

“If  you haven’t made that decision, you don’t want young adults and Millennials serving at your church. You want change that looks like yesterday. And that will never work, because we’ll leave and go create our own organization.”

Many young adults leave the church because they are not trusted with responsibility. Skeldon pointed out if they join the armed forces, they can be sent around the world to a foreign country with a weapon and are seen as an authority. If they join a nonprofit, they can have a lead role in running an orphanage or feeding center. Often, when they say want to serve in the church, they are sent to the nursery, the parking lot or are made a greeter to hand out bulletins.

‘They want to change the world’

“Remember, they want to change the world,” he said. “Young adults are thinking, ‘I don’t know if I’m going to hand out enough bulletins to change the world or park enough cars to change the world.’

“They see Jesus, read the red letters (in the Gospels) and see what he and his disciples did, and then they see the opportunities given by the church. They are given bigger responsibilities in the world than they are given in the church. That’s a problem.

“The church is the right place but with the wrong message toward young adults, and the world is the wrong place with the right message: ‘Do it now; go now.’ That urgency was definitely preached by Jesus. That message is not preached by the church so much toward young adults. The message from the church often is, ‘Wait, be patient.’”

Jesus didn’t wait until his disciples were mature before allowing them to be his followers, Skeldon said.

“He didn’t say, ‘Once you’re there, I’ll let you follow me and go do these things.’ He let them do them knowing they were going to fail. He believed in them when they were at their worst,” Skeldon pointed out. 

Churches that will disciple young adults will see their ministry to Millennials grow, he said. But discipleship is not a weekly meeting, a Bible study or a small group, or a class for new believers, he cautioned.

Skeldon defined discipleship as involving someone else in your mission, empowering them in their calling and ultimately equipping them to disciple someone else.

He offered four stages of discipleship:

• I do. You watch. 

• I do. You help. 

• You do. I watch. 

• You do. Someone else watches.

“If what we produce are disciples, shouldn’t we know how many disciples we are making?” he asked. “What you count and what you celebrate are what create your culture.”

WASHINGTON—More than 4.65 million Texans last year—including nearly 1.9 million children—had limited or uncertain access to enough food for a healthy lifestyle, a study by Feeding America revealed. 

Texas ranks No. 2 nationally—behind California—in total number of food-insecure individuals and No. 7 in child food-insecurity rates, according to the annual Map the Meal Gap study. 

“While we are pleased to see the steady decline in the amount of food insecurity in Texas, we know that one person experiencing hunger is too many—much less over 4.6 million being food-insecure,” said Jeremy Everett, director of the Texas Hunger Initiative.Map the Meal Gap analyzes statistics collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Howard G. Buffett Foundation, ConAgra Foods Foundation and Nielsen provided support for the research. Findings, including an interactive map, are posted here. 

A food-insecure family lacks consistent access to enough food for all household members to enjoy an active and healthy life. In food-insecure homes, families often cut back on groceries to pay for lodging, utilities or medicine.

Nationally, about 49 million people—one in six Americans—experience food insecurity. That number includes 16 million children.

Texas has an overall food-insecurity rate of 17.6 percent, compared to the national average, 15.8 percent.

The latest data show some gradual improvement. Feeding America reported 4.77 million food-insecure Texans last year and 4.81 million the previous year.

“While we are pleased to see the steady decline in the amount of food insecurity in Texas, we know that one person experiencing hunger is too many—much less over 4.6 million being food-insecure,” said Jeremy Everett, director of the Texas Hunger Initiative, a project within the Baylor University School of Social Work, launched in partnership with Texas Baptists’ Christian Life Commission.

Everett attributes the slow but steady decline in food insecurity to two causes.

Click the image to see food insecurity rates in the U.S.“First, due to economic growth, more people are finding their way back into the workforce. Second, collaboration between anti-hunger/anti-poverty organizations is at an all-time high, strengthening our collective response to the problem.”

Three Texas counties—Harris, Dallas and Tarrant—rank among the top 10 nationally in terms of the greatest number of food-insecure individuals. Harris County—the Houston area—ranks No. 4, with 753,640 people, an 18 percent food-insecurity rate. Dallas County ranked No. 6, with 472,170, a 19.6 percent food-insecurity rate. Tarrant County—the Fort Worth/Arlington area—ranked No. 10, with 341,210, an 18.5 percent food-insecurity rate.

While the total number of food-insecure individuals has declined somewhat, the number of children in food-insecure households remains relatively steady at 1,899,310, compared to 1,909,470 last year.

“This study demonstrates that low-income Texans are still fighting to benefit from our economic miracle,” said Celia Cole, chief executive officer at Feeding Texas, formerly the Texas Food Bank Network. “Hunger continues to strike hard-working families in every county in Texas. We are all affected, and therefore, we all bear the responsibility to solve this problem.”

One-fourth of the counties in the United States with 100,000 or more food-insecure children are in Texas. Four Texas counties have 100,000 or more children who live in food-insecure homes—305,480 children in Harris County, 179,020 children in Dallas County, 130,880 in Tarrant County and 120,470 children in Bexar County, the San Antonio area.

Texas has a 27.4 percent overall child food-insecurity rate, compared to the 21.4 percent national child food-insecurity rate. The child food-insecurity rate exceeds the national average in all but six Texas counties. More than 50 Texas counties have a child food-insecurity rate of 30 percent or greater.

In 13 Texas counties, one-third or more of the children live in food-insecure households. They are Brooks, 34.9 percent; Cameron, 34.1 percent; Coleman, 34.9 percent; Hidalgo, 33.9 percent; Hudspeth, 34.9 percent; Kenedy, 35.9 percent; Kinney, 33.4 percent; Maverick. 33.3 percent; Sabine. 37.7 percent; San Augustine, 35 percent; Starr, 37.9 percent; Willacy, 36 percent; and Zavala, 36.9 percent.

“More of our Texas neighbors are struggling today than we expect. These numbers represent the actual human struggle suffered by many,” said Ferrell Foster, director of ethics and justice with the Christian Life Commission. 

“I’m thankful Texas Baptists are working to meet these needs in their local communities and are planning to give for the statewide effort through their Mother’s Day Hunger Offering. We can make a difference.”

WACO—For her birthday last year, missionary Staci Powers’ most treasured gift was having her husband, Jeff, hold her hands without letting go. The fact he had forgotten it was her birthday did not matter at that moment.

Cecille Dagahoy leads worship morning for the Texas WMU annual meeting and missions celebration. (PHOTO/Leah Allen/BGCT)Four days later, July 10, 2014, she held his hands for the last time as cancer took his life.

Powers choked back tears as she told her story to the Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas annual meeting and missions celebration at First Baptist Church of Woodway in Waco. As a Southern Baptist missionary to Zambia, she knew Texas WMU prayed for her on her birthday, and she wanted to let the women know how much it meant.

“You didn’t know what was going on with us, but you prayed,” she said. “It was because of the nearness of the Lord that I can stand here today, as he’s worked through your prayers.”

Powers joined other speakers in assuring members of Texas WMU their prayers and offerings are helping missionaries across the globe share the gospel and persevere through difficult circumstances.

Featured guests at the Texas WMU annual meeting included Liertes Soares Jr., church starter and pastor of a multicultural congregation in the Boston area; Zoricelis Davila, a counselor; Louis Rosenthal, whose association helped begin the Pray4EveryHome initiative; Kelli and Jason Frealy, Southern Baptist missionaries in Argentina; and a missionary couple serving in South Asia, whose identities are withheld to protect their safety.

Shirley McDonald, president of Texas WMU, presents a charge to the annual meeting, encouraging the women to continue being a shining light so all the world can praise God. (PHOTO/Leah Allen/BGCT)In breakout sessions, participants learned about new ways of doing ministry in their churches, communities and around the world.

In a “Jeans on Mission” session, Paulette Kirkpatrick, who serves on the Texas WMU board of directors, taught how to make purses out of old pairs of blue jeans. Volunteers with the ministry, which began in Wharton, make purses, diaper bags, wallets and quilts out of used jeans to send to other parts of the state, as well as around the country and the world.

In another session, Emma French and Zach Zernial, students at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, talked about evangelism, discipleship and servanthood. They told how, as college students, they longed for a mentor and encouraged the crowd to search for younger people to disciple.

In business sessions, Texas WMU elected President Shirley McDonald from Greens Creek Baptist Church in Dublin, Vice President Charlotte Watson from First Baptist Church in Georgetown and Secretary DeRema Dunn from Mimosa Lane Baptist Church in Mesquite.

“WMU has been and always will be a light on the hill,” McDonald said in her presidential charge to Texas WMU. “We are not being the light … so that people can see our good deeds, but that all the world can praise our Father in heaven.”

Multiple speakers cited Luke 24:32, the conference theme Bible verse, and emphasized the importance of being obedient to God’s calling and sensitive to the fire from the Holy Spirit.

Texas WMU annual meeting participants take part in hands-on ministry, such as Jeans On Mission, which creates purses, diaper bags and wallets out of old blue jeans. (PHOTO/Leah Allen/BGCT)“If we spend time with people who are passionate about the Lord, the fires in our hearts grow stronger,” said Sandy Wisdom-Martin, executive director of Texas WMU. “We need to focus our fire in a way that it makes the greatest impact and has the most influence. As WMU of Texas, our desire is to fan the flames.”

For some, obedience involves making purses out of jeans. For others, it may include reaching out to younger generations and discipling them through their spiritual journeys. 

For missionary Staci Powers, being obedient means going back to the mission field.

“I stand here today, as a 47-year-old widow, compelled to return,” she said. “When there are people who have never heard the name of Jesus, how can I stay? … Like I learned as a GA (Girls in Action, the WMU program for preteen girls), having the desire to be obedient is a gift from the Lord. I’m grateful that you pray for me, and I’m grateful to be a sent one.”

AUSTIN—The degree to which clergy and congregations might need protection from being compelled to participate in same-sex marriage ceremonies dominated discussion as the Texas House State Affairs Committee heard several hours of testimony on a bill proponents label the “pastor protection bill” and opponents dub the “religious refusal bill” or “license to discriminate bill.”

HB 3567, Rep. Scott Sanfordintroduced by Rep. Scott Sanford, R-McKinney, relates to the rights of religious organizations and their employees with regard to involvement in a marriage ceremony that violates their beliefs.

In addition to serving as a state legislator, Sanford also is executive pastor of Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church in Allen, formerly First Baptist Church in Fairview, a congregation dually aligned with the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.

As filed, the bill says: “A religious organization, an organization supervised or controlled by or in connection with a religious organization, an individual employed by a religious organization while acting in the scope of that employment, or a clergy or minister may not be required to solemnize any marriage, provide services, accommodations, facilities, goods or privileges for a purpose related to the solemnization, formation or celebration of any marriage, or treat any marriage as valid for any purpose if the action could cause the organization or individual to violate a sincerely held religious belief.”

Protect from civil or criminal penalties

The bill also includes provisions to protect religious organizations and their employees from civil or criminal penalties—as well as loss of tax-exempt status or government contracts, grants or licenses—if they refuse to provide services or use of facilities.

Gus ReyesGus Reyes, director of Texas Baptists’ Christian Life Commission, testified in support of HB 3567, emphasizing Baptists’ historic support for religious liberty for all people and belief in the soul competency of each individual.

“We believe in freedom of conscience—that all people are competent to determine what they believe about ultimate reality,” Reyes said. “In other words, God gives people the ability to make choices about what they believe.”

Christians freely proclaim what they believe to be truth as revealed in Scripture, he noted.

“We function within the laws of our land, but we also hold certain beliefs that the majority may not like,” Reyes said. 

“True religious freedom is not needed much by those who hold views supported by the majority of people. Religious freedom is needed most by those who hold views that are in the minority.”

Benefits of freedom of religion

Speaking in support of the bill, Kris Segrest, pastor of First Baptist Church in Wylie, emphasized the benefits to society when freedom of religion flourishes, drawing a clear distinction between limited religious toleration and robust religious liberty.

“We find ourselves in a day and time in our country when religious liberty is being infringed,” he said.

Kyle Henderson, pastor of First Baptist Church in Athens, agreed, citing increased fear among people of faith in the United States their religious liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights “seem to be up for grabs.”

“Our society seems to be wavering on the value of freedom of religion. … We need the legislature of the state of Texas to take a strong stand for this most basic of human rights—the freedom of religion,” Henderson said.

In an email “action alert” sent April 21, the advocacy arm of Texas Values—a nonprofit organization that describes itself as “dedicated to standing for faith, family and freedom in Texas”—urged clergy around the state to gather at the Texas Capitol for a rally prior to the committee hearing. Many ministers from around the state testified during the committee hearing.

“Pastors and churches should not have to live in fear that the government will force them to perform marriages that violate their religious beliefs,” the Texas Values email said. “With the Supreme Court set to take up marriage later this year, many faith leaders are now concerned about the threat of continuing government intrusion and infringement on these issues. HB 3567 makes it clear that Texas should be a place where government respects the rights of pastors and churches to hold the biblical view of marriage.”

A ‘solution in search of a problem?’

In contrast, Texans Equal Under Law—an initiative launched by the Texas Freedom Network and the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas—called HB 3567 “a solution in search of a problem.”

“This is yet another example of an ill-conceived bill that pretends to protect religious freedom but, in truth, opens the door to real harm,” said Kathy Miller, president of the Texas Freedom Network. “And it invites to Texas the same uproar and condemnation we’ve seen with similar bills in Indiana and other states.”

Her organization and the ACLU of Texas insist the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act afford ministers and religious organizations the right to decide which marriages they will solemnize, depending on their beliefs. Texans Equal Under Law asserts HB 3567 goes further than current law.

“It would allow any religiously affiliated entity to pick and choose which lawful marriages it will recognize for any purpose,” said Rebecca Robertson, legal and policy director for the ACLU of Texas. “That would open the door to discrimination even in secular contexts, not just against same-sex couples, but also against interfaith couples, couples that include a previously divorced spouse and even interracial couples.”

GARLAND (BP)—Pastor Nguyen Xuan Ha relayed the message to the children and workers of the Cam Ranh City Orphanage: The South Vietnamese army could not stop the communist juggernaut.

Cam Ranh orphans fleeing in the back of a truck. (Photo courtesy of Cam Ranh Orphans)The last Americans had evacuated Saigon, North Vietnamese tanks crashed the gates of the presidential palace, and the Iron Curtain descended over Vietnam. It was April 30, 1975.

It was time to set sail. A once-sunken boat Ha and some of the older orphan boys had patched up hardly seemed seaworthy, but it would have to do.

They had been on the run since April 2. They fled south from Cam Ranh Bay to Phan Thiet, dodging firefights along the way. From Phan Thiet, they made their way to Saigon, and from Saigon to Rach Gia on the southern coast. 

Like ‘The 10 Commandments’

“When I look back on my journey, it reminds me of the movie The 10 Commandments, when Moses led the people of Israel out of Egypt,” said Thomas Ho, who was one of the oldest children in the orphanage, built in 1967 by American servicemen, Vietnamese Christians and Southern Baptist missionaries.

“In the modern world, God is still in control. He still performs miracles around us every day,” Ho said. “In 1975, pastor Nguyen Xuan Ha led 69 orphans and more out of Vietnam to the U.S., the land of opportunity, safely. I believe God took great care of us.” 

Also on the 35-foot-long boat, which had been refashioned with three decks, were 13 workers from the orphanage and 13 of their children.

Ho, now an air-conditioning repairman and member of the Vietnamese Baptist Church of Garland, can close his eyes and smell the sea, hear the sound of children singing on the boat, and remember the prayers he and others prayed for deliverance.

Ho’s journey to America began with his arrival at the Cam Ranh City Orphanage after the death of his parents. His mother died when he was two months old. His father, who fought in the South Vietnamese army, was killed in 1967. Ho’s aunt also was killed when their town was shelled in the middle of the night. 

He still remembers the sight.

When an artillery shell landed near their shelter, Ho’s aunt told him to go to the bunker next door while his uncle treated a cousin’s leg wound. His aunt pledged to follow but was cut down by an explosion. 

“I looked back and saw my aunt with her right hand holding her stomach. Every organ was exposed, but she still called out to me asking if I was safe. She died a few hours later,” Ho recalled.

Ho made his way to Cam Ranh city, where he saw a bus full of orphan children handing out toys for other children. He knew an orphanage would offer him clothes, food and an education, so he asked to be placed under the care of the new facility.

Southern Baptist missionaries

At the orphanage, Ho met Southern Baptist missionaries Walter Routh Jr. and Jim and Margaret Gayle. Routh and the Gayles were career missionaries and already had seen the horrors of the war. They did what they could to make life bearable for the children.

“The earliest memory that I have of the orphanage is that the place was full of life, happiness, and everyone cared for each other,” Ho said. “I also couldn’t wait until Wednesdays and Saturdays, because we would receive gifts, toys, go on picnics and play with the Marines” at a nearby base.

Routh left Vietnam, but the Gayles stayed until they were furloughed in 1974. They planned to return to Vietnam, but the collapse of the South Vietnamese government removed that possibility. It also left the Gayles wondering what happened to the orphans for whom they cared so much.

Two days into the escape in 1975, the orphans’ boat ran out of fuel, leaving them adrift far off the coast of South Vietnam with no food and little water. And then, God provided an answer to their prayers. 

A Taiwanese freighter appeared on the horizon. Pastor Ha pleaded for help, but the ship refused to tow the orphans’ boat. Everyone on board prayed again for deliverance. 

Towed to Singapore

Ho, then a teenager, said the freighter slowly turned around. The ship’s sailors secured a towline, and the orphans were towed toward Singapore.

Southern Baptist missionaries in Singapore worked with the U.S. State Department to transfer the orphans to America. When their plane landed at Fort Chaffee in Arkansas a month later, missionary Jim Gayle was the first person to walk into the plane to greet them.

“We were so happy. I thought I would never see him again after he left Vietnam,” Ho said. “But seeing him again, all my worry left. … I felt like I was witnessing a miracle.”

The Cam Ranh orphans eventually were taken in by what is now known as Buckner International in Dallas. After being assessed for their educational needs, the children were placed in adoptive homes. Today, they are doctors and businessmen, fathers and mothers—and American citizens.

But Vietnam still tugs at their hearts, Ho said.

“I miss Vietnam. It’s the country of my birth and where I was raised. I do pray for both the people of Vietnam and the government,” he said. “In Vietnam today, the poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer. There is no freedom of speech or religion.” 

Many of the Cam Ranh orphans returned to Vietnam in 2010 for the first time with Jim and Margaret Gayle. The group plans to return again this year, but this time without Jim Gayle. After suffering through a long battle with cancer, he died in 2014.

AUSTIN—Bills pending in the Texas House Investments and Financial Services Committee could crack down on abuses by payday and auto-title lenders and help protect vulnerable Texans from becoming trapped in a cycle of debt, proponents of the bills insist.

Republican lawmakers introduced all five bills, underscoring “the fact that protecting the poor is a bipartisan issue,” said Kathryn Freeman, CLC public policy director.

Kathryn Freeman“I am hopeful that this is the session we put some meaningful parameters around this industry,” Freeman said. “We believe they can make a good profit without exploiting the poor.”

If borrowers cannot pay off the entire amount of a payday or auto-title loan in two to four weeks, they must pay high fees to roll over the loan, and more than half—57 percent—cannot repay the loan in two weeks, the CLC reports. High fees accompany each rollover, and payments do not reduce the principal. Installment loans keep borrowers in debt at effective annual rates of 500 percent or higher.

One key bill pending in committee, HB 2808 by Rep. James White, R-Woodville, is modeled on ordinances 22 Texas cities passed to regulate payday and auto-title lending. 

Payday, auto-title lending bill

HB 2808 caps the sum of all fees, principal, interest and other amounts due for a payday loan at 20 percent of the consumer’s gross monthly income. For an auto-title loan, it sets the limit at the lesser of 3 percent of the consumer’s gross annual income or 70 percent of the vehicle’s retail value.

Under the bill, a single-payment payday loan cannot be refinanced more than three times, and a multiple-payment loan cannot be rolled over or renewed more than four times. In either case, the amount of each payment must be used to repay at least 25 percent of the principal of the original debt.

The bill also requires credit service organizations to disclose in writing—in both English and Spanish—fee schedules and refinancing charges.

If a city already has in place ordinances regulating payday and auto-title lenders and their provisions conflict with HB 2808, the more stringent regulation applies.

Cities began adopting ordinances after the Texas Legislature in 2011 failed to pass a bill that would have placed limits on loans based on family income, restricted rollovers or renewals and allowed borrowers to make partial payments toward the principal loan amount.

“HB 2808 takes the city ordinances statewide, essentially extending to all Texans the same protections currently enjoyed by 7.6 million Texans,” Freeman said.

Loan database

Another bill, HB 3047 by Rep. Tom Craddick, R-Midland, former speaker of the House, would establish a loan database so regulators can ensure lenders are not refinancing loans more times than the law permits. It also increases the criminal penalty for violations.

In a March 15 editorial the Dallas Morning News praised HB 2808 and HB 3047 as evidence of “positive momentum” on an important issue.

“More than 20 Texas cities have rules modeled on the Dallas ordinances; now the need for tougher laws is grabbing the attention of Republican lawmakers,” the editorial states. 

“Thanks to a coalition of churches, nonprofits and major Texas cities, legislators have heard countless stories of lending abuses involving their constituents. Austin needs to listen to these voices and take them as a mandate for tougher rules that support those already passed by the cities.”

Three other bills related to payday and auto-title lending remain in the Texas House Investments and Financial Services Committee:

• HB 2166 by Rep. Dan Flynn, R-Canton, chair of the committee, sets 35 percent of a consumer’s gross monthly income as the limit for a single-payment payday loan and 25 percent as the limit for a multiple-payment payday loan, and it says a loan cannot be refinanced more than four times.

For an auto-title loan, it sets the limit at the lesser of 7 percent of the consumer’s gross monthly income for a single-payment loan, 30 percent for a multiple-payment loan or 70 percent of the vehicle’s retail value.

“HB 2166 is a step in the right direction, and we look forward to working with Rep. Flynn to ensure that the poor are adequately protected from the debt trap,” Freeman said.

Short-term consumer loans

• HB 3824 by Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Keller, provides additional regulation of short-term consumer loans, including the requirement for an occupational license, and add provisions subject to a criminal penalty. The bill regulates interest computation methods and interest charges on secured loans. 

• HB 3873, also by Capriglione, expands the duties and responsibilities of the consumer credit commissioner.

Freeman expressed concern about one bill, SB 1673, introduced by Sen. Don Huffines, R-Dallas, that could reverse municipal ordinances regulating payday and auto-title lenders.

In part, the bill states, “A local government shall not adopt or enforce a local ordinance, rule or regulation that conflicts with, is more stringent than, or is inconsistent with a state law, rule, regulation, permit or license.”

“We are concerned about any bills that would preempt the city ordinances, especially if the legislature is not going to act on a statewide basis to protect the poor and vulnerable,” Freeman said.

This article is based in part on research by Leah Holder, a public policy research intern with the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission and the Baptist Standard, made possible by a grant from the Christ is Our Salvation Foundation of Waco. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and is a student in the University of Texas School of Law.

The Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission issued the folllowing Advocacy Alert at noon on April 20:

Please make calls to the following offices:
Rep. Sarah Davis  (512-463-0389)
Rep. Lyle Larson (512-463-0646)
Rep. Todd Hunter (512-463-0672)

The CLC is requesting these members help with two bills related to payday lending:

1. Set HB 411 for the House Calendar.

HB 411 would limit the telemarketing abilities of payday lenders. We need to protect consumers from unsolicited calls from payday lenders attempting to trap them in unaffordable loans.

These legislators are members of the House Calendars Committee. This bill has been held in the Calendars committee for several weeks. We need to know which member is holding this bill and we ask that they remove their hold and set HB 411 for the House Calendar.

2. Vote HB 2273 out of the General Investigating and Ethics Committee

HB 2273 prohibits state agencies from contracting with payday lending locations. The North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) contracts with Ace Cash Express as an acceptable location to pay toll fees. We are concerned that folks unable to pay their toll fees will then be encouraged to take out a payday loan. The state agencies should not contract with payday lenders.

These legislators are members of the House General Investigating and Ethics Committee. We ask that these members vote HB 2273 out of committee.

TOLUQUILLA, Mexico—While walking through the streets of Toluquilla, Mexico, one day several years ago, medical missionary Lee Baggett noticed two types of children.

Most were lethargic, with thin hair falling out, potbellies, swollen legs, blotchy faces and blank stares, he said. Others were ruddy-faced, alert and active. Their hair was thick and strong, and they had no swollen bellies or legs. 

One essential dietary component made the latter group of children more healthy-looking, he recognized—a daily tablespoon of alfalfa concentrate. The children’s parents likely had it processed at the local community center before feeding the leftover alfalfa grass to their animals. 

Alfalfa concentrate can be used in recipes and as a juice. It provides a high level of protein, vitamin A, calcium and magnesium, and therefore becomes a cheap and sustainable dietary supplement. 

Now serving as executive director of Hands in Service, Baggett helps raise awareness and resources, such as equipment to make alfalfa concentrate, in order to help families have healthier and longer lives. Hands in Service receives funding from the Texas Baptist Hunger Offering through a partnership with Amarillo Baptist Association.

Baggett’s ministry also seeks to fight malnutrition and hunger-related illnesses through education. Hands in Service teaches people to build outhouses, decontaminate water, budget their expenses, select nutritious food options for their diet, grow gardens to produce vegetables and fruits, and raise small animals for meat. 

Through Hands in Service, Baggett has seen an improvement in people’s overall well-being due to their healthier lifestyle choices. 

“They are not as sickly as before,” he said. “They are able the think more clearly. They develop a community spirit as they work together to improve the health of their own communities.” 

Many doors have even been opened for local Christians to share the gospel, he noted.

“The brothers who direct the program earn their confidence by working with the community on the project, which gives them an open door to share the Good News with many families,” Baggett said. 

WACO—Diana Garland, inaugural dean of Baylor University’s School of Social Work, will step down from her administrative post due to health reasons effective June 1.

Provost David Garland has named Jon Singletary interim dean. Baylor plans to initiate a national search in the fall for a new dean.

Jon Singletary, named interim dean.“Diana Garland has done an amazing job leading the School of Social Work,” said Singletary, who holds the Diana R. Garland Endowed Chair of Child and Family Studies and currently serves as associate dean of graduate studies in the School of Social Work. 

“She is beloved by our students and alumni and has earned the trust and respect of the faculty and administration. While I am most certainly honored and humbled at this interim opportunity, I know that no one can adequately step in to fill the shoes of Diana Garland.

“My focus will be on continuing the good work she has done leading the School of Social Work and keeping us moving forward as effectively and energetically as I can during this period of transition.”

Garland will take a research sabbatical in the fall before returning to the faculty for the spring 2016 semester.

‘Baylor became my community’

“I came here as a stranger, neither a Texan nor a Baylor alumna, and I found glad welcome,” she said. “Baylor University became my community of colleagues and friends who have encouraged me to explore with them what a school of social work in a Christian university could contribute to scholarship and in preparation of leaders for the church and for the world.

“I leave the role of dean with great joy, because I believe that what we have done together, we have been able to do only because God was at work in our midst, and that work will continue.”

Baylor President Ken Starr praised Garland for her long service to the university and its School of Social Work. 

“Under her leadership, social work at Baylor has grown from a strong department to an independent school whose impact is evident not just on campus or in our community, but in the study, discipline and practice of Christian social work nationally,” Starr said.

Baylor began its social work program in 1969 within the department of sociology, anthropology, archeology, gerontology and social work. 

With a grant from the Lilly Endowment, the Baylor Center for Family and Community Ministries was established in 1998 with Garland as director. Baylor launched its master of social work degree program that same year. 

In 1999, the social work department was created in the College of Arts and Sciences. Garland became chair of the department in 2001. 

In 2005, it became the School of Social Work with Garland as its inaugural dean.

School grew from five professors to 20

During Garland’s tenure as dean, the Baylor School of Social Work has grown from five full-time professors and lecturers to a full-time faculty of 20. Graduate student enrollment in the program has increased to 120 and undergraduate enrollment has grown to 120 students.

Garland earned her undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degrees all from the University of Louisville. She joined the Baylor faculty in 1997, after serving as professor of Christian family ministry and social work at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville 17 years. She also served as dean of the Carver School of Church Social Work and director of the Center for Family Ministries. Prior to teaching, she was administrative director of a pastoral counseling center.

She is author, co-author or editor of 21 books and more than 106 academic articles. She has been the editor of the Journal of Family and Community Ministries since 1993.

Garland served as a board member of the National Association of Deans and Directors of Social Work from 2009 to 2014 and councilor for the Council on Social Work Education from 2003 to 2013. She served multiple terms as president of the North American Association of Christians in Social Work.

Since coming to Baylor in 1997, Garland has raised more than $7.4 million in research and program grants, and the School of Social Work has established an endowment of $14.5 million.

In December 2010, the Baylor School of Social Work tripled its teaching and lab space when it moved into renovated space in downtown Waco.

Garland will be honored at a “Family Dinner” event April 24 at the Baylor Club, located in McLane Stadium. The School of Social Work will also celebrate its 10th anniversary.

Based on reporting by Tonya Lewis of Baylor University