Payton Chumbley, age 4, threw out the ceremonial first pitch at a recent Howard Payne University and University of Mary Hardin-Baylor baseball game.

Howard Payne Head Coach Stephen Lynn said his team wanted to help Payton and his family celebrate the news that his cancer is in remission.

Payton was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma in February 2007 while his parents, Terry and Robin Chumbley were serving as missionaries in Prague, Czech Republic with WorldVenture. When doctors discovered his condition, the Chumbley family moved back to the United States for his chemotherapy treatments.

Lynn read about Payton’s condition in an e-mail several months ago, and he shared the story with the baseball team. Payton’s father, a 1991 graduate of Howard Payne, had been a member of the baseball team. 

The players signed five baseballs, as well as a team picture, for Payton and his four brothers.

WACO—Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas gathered to “Celebrate Jesus” during its annual meeting April 18-19.

Newly elected officers of Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas are (front row) First Vice President Suzy Wall (left) of Frio Baptist Church in Hereford and President Paula Jeser of First Baptist Church in El Paso, (back row, left to right) Recording Secretary Anna Zimmer of Kingwood Baptist Church in Kingwood, Second Vice President Jo Lee of First Baptist Church in San Antonio and Third Vice President Margery Flowers of Fellowship Baptist Church in Marble Falls.

In a meeting that featured seminars encouraging people to share their faith and be involved in mission work, testimonies from missionaries and sessions on prayer, leaders encouraged Texas Baptist women to celebrate Christ’s work around the globe.

Author Jennifer Kennedy Dean reminded annual meeting participants God is working through them. If Christians allow him, God’s presence will influence everything they do. God is wherever they go, she said.

“Jesus lives in you and can so clearly communicate with you, it’s like a direct deposit from his mind to yours,” she said.

When that happens, Dean said, people’s perspectives change. Chance encounters become divine appointments. People are able to see God working in every moment. Events throughout the day become opportunities to share God’s love.

“When we begin to act with faith in the Promiser, the world looks completely different,” she said.

Texas WMU President Nelda Taylor said the missions organization can rejoice in knowing that it has faced challenges head-on and looks forward to a bright future of helping Texas Baptists spread the gospel. Among other challenges, Texas WMU Executive Director-Treasurer Carolyn Porterfield resigned last October.

Cheryl Segura Gochis, former national and state Acteens panelist, uses a cell phone as a teaching tool during the Texas WMU annual meeting.

During one of the plenary sessions, Texas WMU rolled out a team of volunteers who will serve as “mission connectors”—people across the state who will encourage and facilitate mission activity.

While change continues to be the rule in Western culture, God is a constant, Taylor said. He continues to be the answer for humanity’s struggles.

“It is the time for us to reach, preach and teach the nations with the good news of Jesus Christ,” she said.

In addition to the time of celebration, Texas WMU elected a new slate of officers. Conference participants elected Paula Jeser of First Baptist Church in El Paso as president; Suzy Wall of Frio Baptist Church in Hereford as first vice president; Jo Lee of First Baptist Church in San Antonio as second vice president; Margery Flowers of Fellowship Baptist Church in Marble Falls as third vice president; and Anna Zimmer of Kingwood Baptist Church in Kingwood as recording secretary.

• Martin Akins to First Church in Bedford as pastor from First Church in Hobbs, N.M.

• Dan Baker to First Church in Amarillo as minister of music from First Church in Saginaw.

• Patrick Berg to First Church in Breckenridge as youth minister.

• Jamey Burrus has resigned as pastor of West Texas Cowboy Church in Midland.

• Oscar Contreras has resigned as pastor of Iglesia La Hermosa in Skidmore.

• Major Dalton to Living Proof Church in Grandview as pastor.

• Red Frye has resigned as administrator of Big Country Assembly in Lueders.

• Sam Griffin to First Church in Levelland as minister to students.

• Bob Hendricks has resigned as pastor of First Church in Pettus.

• Truman Johnson to Bacon Heights Church in Lubbock as pastor of senior adults from First Church in Baird, where he was pastor.

• Paul Kipgen to Pilgrim’s Way Church in Sanger as pastor.

• Brian Lambert to First Church in Breckenridge as pastor.

• Todd Pebbles to Lebanon Church in Cleburne as pastor.

• Curtis Pierce to Cross Pointe Church in Texarkana as minister of youth.

• Greg Robinson to Bluff Dale Church in Bluff Dale as pastor from Sunnyside Church in Wichita Falls.

• Larry Searcy to Big Country Assembly as administrator.

• Larry Soape has resigned as minister of education and administration at First Church in New Braunfels.

• Tank Tankersley has completed an interim pastorate at College View Church in Abilene and moved to San Antonio.

• Mike Tisdal to Deermeadows Church in Jacksonville, Fla., as minister of education from First Church in El Paso.

• Robert Webb has resigned as pastor of Highland Terrace Church in Greenville.

• Doyle White to Eylau Hills Church in Texarkana as minister of music.

LUBBOCK—When people think of Lubbock, they think of unending cotton fields, hearty dust storms, flat plains and Texas Tech football. Few think of people like Cheryl Tannery.

Tannery, who raised three boys as a single mom, is just one of thousands of people in the Lubbock area who have been stricken by poverty and experienced hunger firsthand. But Mission Lubbock has stepped in to help rebuild the lives of people in need by providing food, clothing and furniture and showing hope that only can come from Christ.

“People just need to understand that there are people going to bed at night without food,” said Judy Cooper, director of Mission Lubbock and multihousing coordinator for the Lubbock Area Baptist Association.

“There are children who are leaving school on Friday and not having another meal until Monday when they get back to school. We are trying to help make a difference in that.”  

When Cooper started Mission Lubbock two years ago, her focus was to provide clothing and other household items. Soon she found there was a greater need—food.

“We realized that so many of the people we were trying to minister to had nothing,” Cooper said. “We had to meet the need that they had before they would ever listen to what we had to share about Jesus and how God has worked in our lives.”

That is exactly how Mission Lubbock helped Tannery, who came to the ministry in October looking for food. Meeting Tannery’s immediate needs provided Cooper and the other volunteers an open door to love, encourage and pray for her.

“I came in, and I asked if they were hiring,” Tannery said. “They said ‘no,’ but they needed volunteers. I said I’ll be back, and I’ve been working with them ever since. They have been real good to me. They are some good people.”

Tannery, who cleans homes for a living, said the volunteers and ministry of Mission Lubbock made such an impact on her life that she now volunteers her time the two days a week the ministry is open.

“They are like my second family,” Tannery said. They are about “helping the people and doing God’s work. It has changed my life a whole lot.”

In the last year, Mission Lubbock distributed 556 food boxes and assisted more than 1,000 families.

“I feel certain that we will surpass that this year with still being open just two days a week,” Cooper said. “We would like to extend our hours, but we have got to find some funding.”  

Cooper said nearly 60 percent of children in the Lubbock Independent School District are considered impoverished and are on the free- or reduced- lunch program.

“Lubbock does have quite a bit of poverty,” Cooper said. “The deal is they are the working poor. They have jobs. They just don’t get paid enough to make ends meet.”

For 2008, Mission Lubbock was chosen to receive funds from the Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger. These funds, as well as donations from individuals and churches, will allow Mission Lubbock to provide food boxes to people in need.

“We just don’t have near enough donations,” said Billie Downing, one of the volunteers who helps run the ministry. “To know we have a fund there—it’s something you can rely on. It’s so nice when people have a need to be able to do more than say, ‘I’ll pray for you.’ And that’s a wonderful thing in God’s economy.”

The Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger supports about 100 ministries around the world by supplying temporary relief for people in need, addressing the causes of hunger and poverty and providing hunger relief and development to children.

For more information, visit www.bgct.org/worldhunger.

LULING—Seventy-five children removed from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints ranch by the Texas Department of Child Protective Services have been placed with Baptist Children’s Home Youth Ranch near Luling.

This will allow for large groups of siblings to remain together at the facility which has been adapted to house FLDS children exclusively, administrators explained.

By court order, 462 children removed from the FLDS compound near Eldorado are being moved to children’s homes all across the state.

Baptist Children’s Home is a division of Baptist Child & Family Services, a BGCT-affiliated agency based in San Antonio.

BCFS Health and Human Services, another division of BCFS that provides emergency management and incident management, has been in charge of the San Angelo unified command of state and local government, as well as other nonprofit responding organizations since April 5. At the peak, more than 1,000 responders were involved in the San Angelo operation.

“The children are being treated with the utmost consideration, care and respect like all people we care for and we will continue to protect their privacy,” BCFS President Kevin Dinnin said. “Special attention is being paid to ensuring their special dietary and religious needs are honored and met. The children’s education needs are also being met.”

The San Angelo shelters kept more than 50 BCFS incident management team members and more than $1 million of BCFS assets in San Angelo three weeks, including two mobile medical units and the mobile feeding unit supported by Texas Baptist Men.

The transfer of children was expected to be completed April 25. More than 1,000 people from numerous state and nonprofit organizations were slated to participate in a critical stress management process as part of the demobilization plan.

“Though there are significant differences, there is a common denominator between what we are doing in this situation and what we did for Hurricane Katrina evacuees and victims of the Sri Lanka tsunami and what we’re doing to help fight the international sex trafficking in Moldova,” Dinnin said. “We didn’t create the situation but are working to meet the needs of those affected.”

BELTON—For several hours on a recent Saturday, a University of Mary Hardin-Baylor gymnasium was transformed into an artists’ paradise.

Vivica Villa, age 7 of Kempner, works on a painting at the Autism in Action art day held at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. (Photos by Sarah-Jane Sanders/UMHB)

From pencils and paint to canvas and cardboard puzzle pieces, children with autism expressed themselves through original artwork during an Autism in Action event, sponsored by the Student Government Association of Texas State Technical College in Waco.

As part of UMHB’s biannual Reaching Out community service program, several students joined in the day’s activities. Kelli Hearn and Allison Hulcy greeted children and distributed oversized puzzle pieces for family and friends to paint as well.

“We enjoy working with kids, loving on them,” Hearn said. “I love seeing them interact with their families. It’s a real sweet ministry.”

One child in 150 children will be diagnosed with autism, said Sarah-Jane Sanders, marketing and communications coordinator at Texas State Technical College.

“Often times, if you have an autistic kid in public, all the public sees is a rowdy kid,” Sanders said. “They operate differently than other people do. They can do so much more than people think they can, and we’d like to show the community that.”

Jeff Sutton, assistant director of campus activities at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor gives Teahla Logan, age 11 of Copperas Cove, cotton candy at the university’s Autism in Action art day.

Broderick Wilson, Student Government Association parliamentarian at the Waco school, said his autistic stepson inspired the idea behind the Autism in Action event.

“We knew that he was really interested in painting,” Wilson said. “He concentrates much more on painting than anything else.”

“Once an autistic child finds their niche, they stick with it,” he said. “It can really boost their self-esteem.”

Fourteen-year-old Ryan Padron found that niche nearly four years ago.

“My only favorite thing to do is draw,” Ryan said. “I feel great by drawing, like I’m a new person or famous.”

Ryan finds his inspirations in a small animation book featuring Naruto figures.

“It gives him the opportunity to show what he’s capable of,” said Mary Padron, Ryan’s mother.

“It just proves that even a child with a disability is capable of everything a normal child can do.

“These programs are great for kids. Every child will find their talent.”

All original artwork will be auctioned in April to help raise money to benefit the local and national autism organizations and to provide scholarships to graduating students transitioning to college.

FORT WORTH—Want to know what an association looks like? Don’t use a still camera, because the image and functions are constantly changing as associations try to be what the churches they serve need them to be, said Tarrant Baptist Association Director of Missions Tom Law. And to fit all the churches into the same window will take a wide-angle lens—a very wide-angle lens.

“I think the association we have been familiar with is going to change drastically over the next few years,” Law said. But change is nothing new for associations, he explained.

“When the first associations formed in the early 1600s, most were started for theological reasons,” Law said. “The associations helped them maintain theological integrity.”

From about 1925 until the late 20th century, the association served primarily as the communications mechanism for state and national conventions, he said. That’s still true to some extent, but fellowship also has become a major part of associations’ reason for being.

“I think we are seeing the churches change how they relate to one another and the conventions, and the associations are likewise going to have to change to remain relevant,” Law said. “That’s one of the things we’re struggling with. What is the association of the 21st century going to look like?”

Resourcer and orchestrator

As Law ponders the question, he starts with what he sees Tarrant Baptist Association as today—a resourcer and orchestrator.

“Really, we’re talking about knowing where the resources—the money, time and talents of people and organizations—are and pointing churches in the right direction,” he exlained.

“We’re trying to help churches know where the best sources are and how to pull those together to accomplish the things they see as their mission as a church.”

All of which has led to a new phenomenon, he noted.

“Associations are becoming galvanized around vision and around direction rather than geography,” Law said.

While most associations still maintain a geographical cohesion, Tarrant is one of several associations that is expanding. In addition to churches in Tarrant County, the association also counts as member churches Iglesia Eliacim in Matamoros, Mexico, International Baptist Church in Sofia, Bulgaria, and International Christian Fellowship in Portimao, Portugal.

Communication advancements have made the world a smaller place, Law said. When a click can send a message around the world instantaneously, geography becomes far less a factor.

Relationships

While there is not a geographic relationship, there is a more traditional kind of relationship that engendered the link with the association.

“All three are built on relationships with the pastor, but they have bought in to where they see us going as an association,” Law said.

While they may be farther away than the other churches that partner with the association, not much else is different in the way they interact.

“Our relationship with these churches is not much different than with the others. It’s built on communication, and that ebbs and flows depending on the leadership at the time,” Law said.

While that communication is largely through e-mail, leaders from the Matamoros church have come to Tarrant County the last three years to participate in Vacation Bible School and other leadership training.

Law regularly communicates with the two European churches about ways they and the Texas churches can partner together.

“They help us to think beyond ourselves, beyond the borders of Tarrant County,” he said. “We are helping our churches to broaden their perspective of what their role in the kingdom is, and having these churches involved helps our local churches to remember their responsibilities extend to the ends of the earth.”

The churches outside the United States also are members in their local associations as well. “We’re not trying to take, we’re trying to add to their relationships and add another layer of connectedism,” Law said.

Whether the church is in Fort Worth, Arlington, Bedford or Sofia, Bulgaria, Law, said the association faces the same task.

“Our purpose is to help our churches as they are fulfilling the Great Commission. Our role is to let them know where the resources are to make that happen, challenge them with opportunities around the world for reaching the lost and encouraging them to be the churches God has called them to be,” he said.

• East Texas Baptist University will hold its annual writers’ conference June 6-7. Twenty-six topics will be covered during the conference. The cost of attending the Saturday conference is $70, with a $20 discount for high school and college students. Attendance at the preconference sessions on Friday costs an additional $25. Friday’s events begin at 3:30 p.m. and Saturday begins at 8:30 a.m. The registration deadline is May 30. A writing contest also will be held, with cash prizes to be awarded for short stories and personal essays. Deadline for entries is May 16. For more information, call (903) 923-2083.

David Sams	Kimi Sams
	Karla Turner

• Three people with Texas ties were among the 92 missionaries appointed by the International Mission Board in an April 9 ceremony at First Church in Sunnyvale. Appointees with Texas ties included David and Kimi Sams who will work in university ministry in South America. They previously served as missionaries in Puerto Rico. At the time of his appointment, Sams was administrative pastor at First Church in El Paso. They have two children—Jessika, 13, and Joshua, 6. Karla Turner will serve as a church planter in South America. A native of Freeport, she is a member of First Church in Houston.

• Sarah Moye and Betty Henry will become the first two women to receive leadership certificates in women’s ministry from the seminary extension department housed at Sabine Neches Baptist Area in a graduation ceremony May 6.

• Lauren Teel, a freshman a Howard Payne University, has been named the Lincoln-Douglas debate national champion in the novice category. She is the school’s first national champion debater. HPU also was named the third-place team overall in its division.

• Wallace Daniel Jr., professor of history at Baylor University, has been presented the Cornelia Marschall Smith Professor of the Year award. Daniel received $20,000, and will present a public lecture on an academic topic of his choosing this fall.

• Sheila Griffith, a teaching fellow at B.H. Carroll Theological Institute, will teach Greek at Kenya Baptist Theological College in Limuru, Kenya, during the May term.

• Contact teams are available to come to churches in preparation for the 20th anniversary season of “The Promise.” The Glen Rose musical advance teams will do as little as make a costumed announcement during services or as much as an entire service. Pastors wanting a team to come to their church should call (214) 364-5010.

Anniversaries

• Fellowship Missionary Church in Sherman, 15th, March 9. Gahlen Warren is pastor.

• Bobby Hawkins, 10th, as pastor of Mount Carmel Church in Tioga, April 26.

• Pilot Grove Church in Whitewright, 150th, May 4. A meal will follow the homecoming service held that morning. The Homegrown and Heaven Bound band also will perform. Don Hollister is pastor.

• First Church in Snyder, 125th, May 4-7. Sunday morning’s guest will be Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Seminary, and a meal will follow. Steve Hardin, executive pastor of The Village Church, will preach that evening. Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, will speak Monday evening. Jim Richards, president of the Southern Baptists of Texas, is the guest speaker for Tuesday. Chris Osborne, pastor of Central Church in Bryan, will preach Wednesday night. Music will be led by Rich Smith, and Luke Garrett also will perform. Russell Johnson is pastor.

• First Church in Tuleta, 60th, May 18. A coffee fellowship will begin at 9:45 a.m., with the service beginning at 10:30 a.m. Lunch will follow. People planning to attend the lunch are asked to call (361) 375-2949. Jack Allen is pastor.

Retiring

• Ray Vickrey, as pastor of Royal Lane Church in Dallas, May 31. He has served his present church 26 years and has been in ministry more than 50. He is a member of the Baylor University Athletic Hall of Fame for his track and field exploits, which include being a member of the 1956 440-yard relay team that equalled the then-world record and two years as Southwest Conference champion in the long jump. He was ordained to ministry by Memorial Church in Temple. In 1962, he began working at Baylor in student ministry, and in 1966, he became assistant director of the Baylor Alumni Association. Three years later, he was named executive director. During that time, he also served churches in McGregor and Troy as interim pastor. In 1978, he became minister of single adults at First Church in Richardson, and in 1981, moved to Royal Lane as pastor. He has served on the Executive Board of the Baptist General Convention of Texas and was vice president for Christian unity and interfaith relations of the Greater Dallas Community of Churches. He is a past-president of the Dallas Pastors’ Association. A retirement dinner is set for May 30, and the service on June 1 also will pay tribute to his contributions to the church. For more information, call (214) 361-2809.

Deaths

• Andrew Seago, 89, Feb. 21 in Tacoma, Wash. A native of Big Sandy and a 1948 graduate of East Texas Baptist College, he was pastor of several churches in East and North Texas before spending the last 45 years as a Southern Baptist pastor in Washington. He and his wife, Doris, were foreign mission volunteers upon graduation from Southwestern Seminary but were rejected because Seago had a serious hearing problem. In response, the Seagos decided to find their own mission field and moved their belongings and five children to the Northwest. He served many churches in Washington and was pastor of North Auburn Church in Auburn, Wash., when he retired. He was preceded in death by his sister, Charlotte Long; and brothers, Alvin and Leslie. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Doris; sons, David, Howie and Billy; daughters, Dawn Seymour and Suzanne Benfield; and nine grandchildren.

• Bob Cullum, 75, Feb. 28 in San Antonio. He was a chaplain at San Antonio State Hospital 33 years. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Christi Johnson. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Shirley; daughters, Pam Condra and Barbara Masters; sisters, Beverly and Sally; and six grandchildren.

FORT WORTH (ABP)—Brett Younger, pastor of Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth, survived a vote to fire him last month but is leaving the church anyway—to become associate professor of preaching at Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology in Atlanta.

Broadway Baptist Church has been embroiled for months in a public controversy over homosexuality and other issues. The congregation approved a compromise Feb. 24 intended to end controversy over whether gay couples in the church should be pictured alongside other families in a new church directory. Some members objected to having those photos included, saying that would move from simply welcoming homosexual individuals— which Broadway has done quietly for years—to affirming their lifestyle.

Although the membership approved the compromise, which eliminated family and individual photos, the controversy ballooned into a dispute over Younger’s overall leadership. A group of disgruntled Broadway members later submitted a petition to force a vote declaring the church’s pulpit vacant.

Survived a vote

Younger asked church leaders to schedule the vote, and members voted 499-237 against firing their pastor of nearly seven years.

The two-thirds favorable vote was not enough to quell the controversy, however, and some members have left the church.

McAfee announced Younger’s appointment April 17, effective July 1. He holds master’s and doctoral degrees from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and has been an instructor or visiting professor at Southern Seminary, Midwestern Baptist Seminary, Manhattan Christian College, and McAfee. He has been a pastor in Texas, Kentucky, Indiana and Kansas.

New ministry

“I am honored by the invitation to join the McAfee School of Theology and I’m delighted to join such an outstanding faculty,” Younger said. “I feel like the Spirit is leading me to this new ministry.

“I’m also sad at leaving Broadway, the church has taught me so much about following Christ, and it is one of my hopes in this new ministry I can teach young people to lead their congregations to be as faithful as Broadway has been.”

DALLAS—A committee has been formed to study the long-range future of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Stephen Hatfield, pastor of First Baptist Church in Lewisville, and Andy Pittman, pastor of First Baptist Church in Lufkin, will jointly chair the committee.

The Future Focus Committee, created as a result of a motion during the BGCT annual meeting, will look at the convention’s resources and relationships in an effort “to sharpen our focus to see what we do well and improve upon it,” Hatfield said.

Pittman added the committee is comprised of people who represent the diversity of Texas Baptist life.

New paradigm 

“What I want to do is cast a vision for a new paradigm for state conventions not only in Texas but all over the nation,” Pittman said. “If we live in a post-denominational age, we can’t continue to base our future on a model that we’ve based our state and national convention on for the past 80 years.”

The committee grew out of a motion introduced at the BGCT annual meeting in Amarillo by Ed Jackson, a layman from First Baptist Church in Garland called on the BGCT president and Executive Board chairman to appoint a committee to consider a “shared vision” for the BGCT for 2020.

His initial motion called on the committee to bring interim reports to the Executive Board at its February, May and September meetings and bring a final report to the 2008 BGCT annual meeting. It also charged the committee to address the relationship between the BGCT and its institutions, set priorities, study changing missions strategies and analyze “the impact of innovation on our ministries and the sustainability of all programs.”

Philip Wise of Lubbock, chair of the committee on convention business, brought a substitute motion that was approved by messengers to the annual meeting.

Final report in 2009

The substitute motion stated: “I move that the officers of the BGCT and the officers of the Executive Board appoint a study committee of no more than 25 member to consider the shared vision of the BGCT. The committee would meet after the new executive director has been selected and make reports to the Executive Board at their regularly scheduled meetings. A final report will be made no later than the 2009 annual meeting.

“The committee will study, analyze and project income for the BGCT and address relationships between the BGCT and its institutions. The purpose of the committee is to determine the best use of resources to win Texas and the world to Jesus Christ and to encourage and support the ministries to which God has called us.”

Jackson was named to the committee. Other members are:

• Paul Armes, president of Wayland Baptist University

• Randy Babin, Soda Lake Baptist Association director of missions

• JoAnna Berry, vice president of South Texas Children’s Home Family Ministry and International Childcare

• Russell Dilday, chancellor of the B.H. Carroll Theological Institute and longtime Texas Baptist leader

• Michael Evans, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Mansfield

• Elizabeth Hanna, chair of the BGCT Executive Board’s finance subcommittee

• Jeff Harris, pastor of GracePoint Church in San Antonio

• Frankie Harvey of Nacogdoches Bible Fellowship in Nacogdoches

• Jeane Law of First Baptist Church in Lubbock

• Peter Leong, pastor of Southwest Chinese Baptist Church in Stafford

• David Lowrie, pastor of First Baptist Church in Canyon

• Tom Lyles of Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler

• Rene Maciel, president of Baptist University of the Americas

• Gary Morgan, pastor of Cowboy Church of Ellis County in Waxahachie

• Joseph Parker, pastor of David Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in Austin

• Fred Roach of The Heights Baptist Church in Richardson

• Taylor Sandlin, pastor of Southland Baptist Church in San Angelo

• Bob Schmeltekopf, retired director of missions

• Noe Trevino, BGCT church starter

• Steve Vernon, pastor of First Baptist Church in Levelland

• Mark Wingfield, associate pastor of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas

With additional reporting by Managing Editor Ken Camp

SAN ANTONIO—Unity and equipping Christians for evangelism and discipleship took the spotlight at a regional Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity gathering in San Antonio.

Baldemar Borrego, president of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas, stressed the importance of promoting unity among Hispanic Baptists.

A mariachi group from South San Filadelphia Baptist Church in San Antonio lead in worship at a regional gathering of the Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity. (Photos by Carrie Joynton)

“We are one brotherhood,” Borrego said. He emphasized depending on God for the individual, inner change necessary to “make a difference in the city.”

Growth in evangelism and discipleship has been a primary focus of the Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity, said Rolando Lopez, associate director of missions for San Antonio Baptist Association.

Lopez urged participants at the San Antonio meeting to be effective missionaries and penetrate their communities with the gospel. He stressed the Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity’s central goal is to enhance the equipping ministry of church leaders.

Leadership

“We want to make men aware that they are leaders in their congregations…and to take leadership in their churches,” Lopez said.

Baldemar Borrego (left), president of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas, and Rolando Lopez, associate director of missions for San Antonio Baptist Association were among the key speakers at a regional meeting of the Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity in San Antonio.

The Hispanic Convocation of the Laity grew out of Hispanic Texas Baptist Men, but the small-group workshops on church leadership and unit offered at a regional meeting in San Antonio included one geared toward women—evidence of a growing women’s ministry movement.

September meeting

The Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity’s statewide meeting in September will focus on helping “pastors and churches help train the laity,” said Noah Rodríguez, local coordinator and church administrator at Primera Iglesia Bautista in San Antonio.

“One of the best things about these convocations is in the area of forming unity and communications,” he said.

A college girl approached two young boys fighting over a soccer ball in the Mexico orphanage she was visiting, asking why they weren’t sharing.

“I don’t want to share because he doesn’t ever give me anything,” one answered.

The other looked down at his hands. “That’s because I don’t have anything.”

University of North Texas students from the Baptist Student Ministry used spring break as an opportunity to go on a mission trip to Reynosa, Mexico. The 27 students and adults worked alongside Borderland Calvary Chapel in San Benito and the orphanage Refugio Internacional de los Ninos. The team led a series of Vacation Bible Schools and distributed rice and beans to impoverished neighborhoods.

Chris Newby said that such a trip was a welcome alternative to the standard college vacation hot spots. “I wanted to do something new with my spring break,” Newby said.

This was the second time for the North Texas BSM to serve in this part of Reynosa with Pastor Eduardo Hernandez of Borderland Calvary Chapel.

“Last year, the trip was so fulfilling and memorable for students,” BSM Director James Quesenberry said. “It was almost natural to go back and do the same thing this year.”

Quesenberry said that the group hopes to continue serving in the same area in order to build relationships with the communities and churches over time.

“The idea behind it is, we want [our students] to be able to see what it’s like to partner with other Christians and other churches,” Quesenberry said. “Hopefully, [we will] be able to see growth and change in areas and build momentum trip after trip.”

For some of the students, like NT sophomore Yandira Tenorio, it was their first encounter on the mission field. “Even though I had no experience, I just knew that He called me and said, ‘You need to be my messenger,’” Tenorio said. “Sure I had fears and doubts of my abilities, but I had to remind myself that it’s not me – God works in and through me.”

Conversely, NT sophomore Brandon Falk, had been on previous mission trips and was left unimpressed – until this opportunity.

“I wasn’t planning on going on another mission trip but when I found out that we were passing out rice and beans and going to an orphanage, I decided to go,” Falk said, “It was actually doing what Jesus said – showing people love – feeding the hungry and visiting orphans. God wants us to provide for His children and we’re God’s hands – the extension of God to this world.”

Monday and Tuesday mornings and afternoons the group was at Refugio Internacional de los Ninos, where students led a VBS and sang songs in Spanish, in an effort to show the children Christ’s love.

Six fluent Spanish-speaking students helped ease the language barrier, however many of the other NT students could speak limited to no Spanish. For this reason, the majority of the communication was outside of translators and communication was shown simply through loving the kids with play, hugs, and smiles.

“Many of them were too young to understand,” Tenorio, one of the fluent translators said. “So we had to show them Christ’s love.” And within those shared interactions, Tenorio was able to see more than simple smiles from a child, but the beauty of the Creator as well.

“In the orphanage, just being with those kids, God put a huge love in my heart for them,” Tenorio said. “By seeing their smiles and their eyes sparkle so beautifully, I could just see Christ’s love and God’s beauty in them.”

According to Falk, the unveiling of beauty has been a typical reaction to service in his experience. “Everything around you becomes more beautiful when you’re doing God’s will,” he said. “You appreciate people more when you’re ministering to them and the people you’re ministering with are more beautiful. They shine, but in a very literal way.”

Upon the group’s arrival at the orphanage, BSM intern Stephanie Gates said she did notice some remnants of their trip last year through the call of recollected names and knowing gazes. “Those kids remembered us and that’s huge,” Gates said. “It’s so important to invest in those kids and let them know that we come back because they are important to us.”

A couple hours each day was reserved to pass out bags of rice and beans in different destitute neighborhoods. Each Spanish-speaker led a small group that went door to door with a slightly different goal than last year’s distribution, said NT senior Liand Cotto – “more quality than quantity.”

“Last year we tried to help more families by giving out more rice and beans,” Cotto said. “This year the rice and beans were more of a gift to give the families after we had really talked and invested in their lives.”

One such investment occurred when NT freshman Brittney Bell was able to share a life-story that related to a Hispanic woman dealing with a difficult situation. “I was able to take something that was so American and make it so Mexican,” Bell said. “I was able to see how Christ is multicultural – He knows no boundaries, no borders, language, love or location.”

Tenorio, as a translator, said she also had an opportunity to see God overcome language barriers when going door to door. “The first day was hard because I usually don’t speak Spanish every day,” Tenorio said. “But I noticed how God reassured me that it was going to be ok. Even though no people were saved right on the spot, I planted a seed and God was glorified through that.”

For encouragement, Tenorio said she held fast to Galatians 6:9. “I would repeat it to myself constantly,” she said. “‘Let us not become weary for at His proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.’ So I never felt like any day was a failure because I wasn’t giving up.”

Gates said a ministry such as passing out rice and beans gave the group an opportunity to be the “hands, feet and mouth” of the undersized neighboring church with which they were serving, Borderland Calvary Chapel in Reynosa.

“With such a small congregation, they were unable to meet the physical needs of the community,” Gates said. “So through us knocking on doors, saying hello, and passing out food we were able to open up opportunities for Pastor Ed to fulfill spiritual needs and strengthen his ministry in Reynosa. That’s a great picture of the body of Christ. Christ met physical needs, emotional needs, and spiritual needs.”

Wednesday and Thursday evenings the team held a VBS at Borderland Calvary for the local children in Reynosa. Through interaction with the children, Newby said he found a new means of communication that did not require any Spanish knowledge – and it came in the form of his newfound nickname ‘caballito’ (little horse).

“The last night of VBS I really wanted to focus on one kid – a little girl named Leslie,” Newby said. “And all she wanted to do was get on my shoulders and ride around.” However, he said that through countless horse-back rides he was able to communicate something a bit more profound.

“Through translation I found out that Leslie really cared that I was there,” Newby said. “She really loved me and appreciated that I helping and focusing on her. I wanted her to realize how much Christ loved her.” After two days with Leslie, Newby said that he was just picking up and leaving without a second thought was not an option.

“At that point I realized that I can’t just stop there, talking to her just in Mexico,” he said, “but also keeping in constant communication through letters and pictures from the week. I want to show her how to pursue something more than what she has there in Mexico.” It’s this kind of personal ministry that Newby said he finds most effective.

“First you get to know them and then get a chance to talk to them about God,” he said. “He’s more like just a storybook character to them than a Savior at that age. But if they realize how much I love Christ, and what he’s done for me, hopefully in some way I’ve planted a seed and they realize how much Christ loves them.”

Instead of the construction of homes, the goal for this trip was instead, the construction of hearts that know the Father – a type of ministry that relies heavily on faith, Gates said. “On many mission trips, you go, build a house, and see the progress. When you’re done you see the finished project,” Gates said. “But this trip was not like that at all.”

While a trip such as this may not have the structure of a building, it has the benefits of dealing with God’s people and investing in lives in a different way than lumber and nails.

“Each conversation is a chance for God to move in someone’s life, but we never get to see the end result,” she said. “The gospel tells us to go out and preach the good news and then to trust that God is in control of that. At the end of the day, without particularly seeing any progress, we are able to glorify God by being faithful to the call He has placed on our lives.”

Now as the group has returned to the University of North Texas, the real question is not only how their ministry this spring break changed the people they came into contact with, but also how it has changed the students themselves.

“I find that spending time with the kids and seeing the devastation with poverty has really changed my life,” Newby said. “Now I realize that as a poor, broke, college student I have it pretty good compared to people I’ve seen in Mexico this week.”

According to Tenorio, the root intention for this mission trip, and all of the life lessons learned there from, can be traced back to those first two boys fighting over the soccer ball at the orphanage.

“It broke my heart but I know that I was put there during that situation so that I could reassure that little boy that he has Christ’s love,” Tenorio said. “He may not have material possessions but he has the greatest gift. None of those material possessions put together could surpass Christ’s love.”