People of faith must move beyond tribalism and identify with human suffering experienced by those on “the other side,” a Baptist minister involved in promoting multi-faith relationships said.

“Too often, when people look at those on the other side, there’s no respect for their pain, for their suffering and for what has happened in their history,” said Bob Roberts, co-founder of the Multi-Faith Neighbors Network and global pastor at Northwood Church in Keller. “No one wants to acknowledge the other’s point of view.”

Since its beginning, the Multi-Faith Neighbors Network has sought to build trust and respect among people of different faiths by bringing them together to develop authentic relationships based on honest dialogue.

Then Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing more than 1,100 civilians. In response, Israel launched a military assault on Gaza that has claimed more than 34,000 lives.

“The challenge now is that people are seeing the situation through their own tribe’s eyes,” Roberts said.

Jews and Muslims—supporters of Israel and supporters of Palestinians in Gaza—each are hurting, he said.

‘Keep people at the table’

“Our focus has been to keep people at the table. For the most part, it’s worked, but it’s slow, hard work,” Roberts said.

Individuals are more open and honest in small private conversations than in any big public forum, he observed. Individuals don’t want to risk being perceived as disloyal to their own “tribe,” he noted.

“I’ve talked to many Muslims who privately condemn Hamas, the Oct. 7 attacks and other acts of terrorism. But publicly, it’s hard for them to say anything for fear their own tribe will castigate them,” Roberts said.

“I know plenty of rabbis who are horrified by the civilian deaths that have taken place in Gaza. But they don’t speak up for fear of being ostracized by their own tribe.”

The key, he said, to keep talking to each other, even about uncomfortable subjects, such as the relationship between Israel and the Palestinians.

“The issue needs to be addressed. It can’t be put on the back burner,” Roberts said. “The only good thing about the conflict is that it’s making it clear to everyone that something has to be done.”

Look for peacemaking opportunities

The Multi-Faith Neighbors Network has remained focused on “strengthening what remains”—fostering the relationships already developed between ministers, rabbis and imams in communities around the country, as well as overseas.

To date, the network has not launched groups on college campuses, which have become a hotbed of protests and counter-protests.

However, Roberts noted he has been invited to speak at several universities this year, including participating in a panel discussion at an “Othering and Belonging Conference” sponsored by the University of California at Berkeley.

People of faith need to keep the conversation going with people outside their faith and beyond their “tribe,” looking for opportunities to promote peace and understanding, he said.

“And when a hand is extended to us, we need to reach out and grab it,” Roberts said.

DALLAS—Baptists’ emphasis on “the personal” may be the greatest gift they offer in the 21st century, ethicist Russell Moore, editor-in-chief of Christianity Today, told a group at Dallas Baptist University.

Moore—a lifelong Baptist who now worships in a nondenominational church—delivered the April 22 Baptist Distinctives Lecture, sponsored by DBU’s Center for Baptist History and Heritage.

“I am convinced that the Baptist distinctives that endure and that are most resilient are also the ones that are most needed right now,” said Moore, former president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

Various denominations have contributed particular emphases to the broader body of Christ, and Baptists’ greatest contribution may be their commitment to “the nature of the personal,” he said.

Baptists’ emphasis on voluntary faith, believers’ baptism, religious liberty for all people and other distinctives “boil down to the central concern that God does not bring people into the kingdom nation by nation, family by family, village by village or tribe by tribe, but one by one.”

In an individualistic culture, the tendency often is to “over-correct into a kind of collectivism,” Moore observed.

‘My name is Legion’

“In reality, the Baptist emphasis on the personal is a corrective to individualism and is actually necessary for genuine community,” he said.

Moore pointed to Jesus’ encounter with a demoniac among the tombs, as recorded in Mark 5.  Jesus asked, “What is your name?”

The demoniac responded, “My name is Legion, for we are many.”

That reply was “similar to the response of the entire world right now,” Moore observed. While isolated in many respects, people feel crowded and deprived of individual personhood.

He cited a tech specialist who has noted social media drives people into a “hive” mindset all the time. Users constantly are seeking to identify their online “tribe” and attempting to identify what they need to say to remain a part of the tribe.

“Ironically, all that connection all of the time leads to disconnection and loneliness,” Moore said.

He recalled a conversation with pastors who were speculating about why so many left the ministry in 2021 and even those who remained felt “broken” in many ways.

One of the ministers observed many people persevered through 2020, thinking things would return to “normal” after the COVID-19 pandemic ended and the election cycle was over, only to discover the old “normal” was gone.

‘Ripe for authoritarian movements’

In what passes for “normal” now, many people are trapped in a “middle-school” mentality of feeling unsure about their identity while being hyper-sensitive to what others think about them, Moore observed.

“The world is like that right now, and that means we are ripe for disintegration, for authoritarian movements, for personality cults, for every kind of attempt to fill that void,” he said.

To offer deliverance to an unclean and untouchable demoniac, Jesus had to “break with the community,” Moore said.

“Community is an important aspect of what it means to be human, and an important aspect of what it is God has put together in the church,” he said. “Community on its own, though, ultimately breaks down.”

Baptists’ emphasis on the “personal calling by name” as part of the gospel invitation helps create a healthier community, Moore observed. He lamented the loss of public altar calls.

“There was something about the altar call that spoke to every person in the congregation, even if no one responded, that said: ‘Remember you are a sinner. Remember that you—not just we, but you—are redeemed. And remember that all of your neighbors—no matter how hostile you believe them to be, no matter how far gone you believe them to be—could, in an instant, be your brother and sister in Christ. You do not give up on them,’” he said.

“It was a way of merging the individual and the community together.”

Religious liberty respects personhood

Baptists’ historic emphasis on religious liberty for all grows out of a healthy respect for individual personhood and the voluntary response of each person to the gospel, he observed.

“Religious liberty is not simply an ancillary and self-protecting idea for Baptists,” Moore said. “Religious liberty comes out of that emphasis upon the personal—upon the word Jesus has given to us, ‘You must be born again.’”

The gospel depends on an individual response to God’s call, and Christian identity is not dependent on national identity, he noted.

“The gospel cannot be applied to people like a state-issued driver’s license,” Moore said. “The state cannot regenerate a person. The state cannot make a person a Christian. The state can only make a person a pretend Christian.”

He pointed to the threat of Christian nationalism in a variety of contexts, including Vladimir Putin’s use of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as Christian nationalist movements emerging throughout Europe and in the United States.

Christian nationalism is “not Christian orthodoxy taken to an extreme,” he asserted. “It’s instead what Christians at one time would have called ‘modernism.’ It is the idea that one can make a Christian simply by changing external circumstances, rather than having that person approach God through the mediation of the shed blood of Jesus Christ.”

Authoritarian leaders “have realized that the best way to coopt the power of personal authority is to say, ‘If you don’t obey me, you’re disobeying God,’” Moore said.

“Once you have taken a Christian understanding of reality and hollow it out, you end up with something that can be tossed aside altogether.”

‘Community needs the personal’

At their best, Baptists understand the gospel comes “conscience-to-conscience” and demands a response at the personal level, he insisted.

“Community needs the personal. You cannot refuse to see the trees for the forest,” Moore said.

Real community—where every person is viewed as a valuable contributor who is given genuine responsibility—breaks down tribalism, he asserted.

Baptists have an important message “for a 21st century that is plagued by a sense of belonging to everyone and thus belonging to no one,” he said.

“The Baptist movement has a great deal to contribute if we can remember who we are,” Moore said.

Pastor Felix Treviño knew the metric stating a healthy church should have one baptism per year for every 15 people in average worship attendance, but First Baptist Church of Mathis simply was not seeing God move in that way.

Treviño became pastor of First Baptist in Mathis last August. When he arrived, the church was running about 30 in attendance and was not reaching its changing community of about 5,000 effectively.

Despite being a 25-minute drive from his home in Calallen, he took on the challenge of leading the struggling congregation, because he sensed the people there were open to change.

“They wanted to rebuild and give back to the community,” he said. “It was predominantly an Anglo church originally, but they are in a mostly Hispanic area, and they wanted a younger, bivocational pastor with more of a missional mindset. Being a church planter, that transitioned well for me.”

Treviño signed up to attend a Pave church revivalization workshop offered by Texas Baptists’ Center for Church Health. In February, he joined a cohort to work through Pave principles of church revitalization with other pastors in similar situations.

Within a month, the church began to see results.

Highlighting baptism

“When we left the cohort, [director of Church Health and Growth] Jonathan Smith said: ‘Don’t microwave the brisket. You can’t rush this process, but there were things you can do already,’” Treviño recalled. “We had one woman who wanted to be baptized. So, we implemented the plan for baptism that Jonathan had shared with us.”

Smith’s baptism plan included three phases: show a video of the woman answering three questions about her salvation the week before her baptism, baptize her the following week, and then show a celebratory video of her baptism one week later.

Treviño modified the plan to fit his congregation and made sure the woman being baptized was comfortable with it.

“She’s a new member of the church,” Treviño said. “And since then, our church has been really ecstatic about seeing growth happen.”

Treviño said no one in the church could remember when the baptismal waters at the church in Mathis had been stirred. A 2017 Facebook post from the church was the last instance of a baptism they could find, meaning it had been at least 2,429 days since their last baptism.

‘Alive and active again’

The new baptism sparked a flame across their small community.

“Using the baptism allowed us to promote that the church was alive and active again,” said Treviño. “We shared the video on Facebook and with local community groups. The area Baptist association shared as well, and that helped people to get excited about what God was doing.”

The church already is planning the next such celebration. Treviño’s sermon on obedience to God stirred something within a man who had been attending for about a year and was seeking truth.

“One man came up and said he wanted to surrender to Christ and be baptized as well. There’s impact already,” Treviño said. “He had been searching for a while and had grown a lot in the past few months. Seeing that really pushed him to make that commitment.”

While that first baptism was a catalyst, Treviño said, additional growth has occurred as he’s implemented many familiar church planting techniques in addition to the baptism emphasis since his arrival.

He contacted community leaders, including the Mathis Economic Development group, and expressed the church’s interest in getting involved. The congregation participated in a local parade and a Trunk or Treat event that attracted around 2,000 community members. They connected with the local school district to deliver Bibles and met with area business leaders. Already, church attendance has grown to about 60.

“We went big on social media and utilized that free resource to reach the younger generation. We have a basketball court in our parking lot, and we share that with a youth team in our neighborhood. So, we’re starting to connect with the community and meet the physical and spiritual needs of people here,” Treviño said.

Committed to church growth

As a bivocational pastor, Treviño works full-time as a firefighter for the local refinery. He’s also a firearms instructor who regularly holds church security trainings.

He and his wife Sara also operate one of the largest outdoor markets in South Texas, attracting more than 100 vendors and food trucks every other month.

Still, they are committed to seeing the church in Mathis grow, as nearly the entire family serves in some capacity. Son Ryan, a senior who will attend Wayland Baptist University in the fall, leads worship and plays guitar. The Treviños also have a sophomore son, Zach; an eighth-grade daughter, Skylar; and a niece living with them who is a high school senior.

“We’re excited about the process, and we haven’t even started scratching the surface of what we want to do,” Treviño said.

“The most beneficial thing about Pave is the structured process. For someone bivocational like me, I need that structure and the accountability of my cohort group.”

GATESVILLE—Coryell Community Church welcomed around 600 guests to its Gatesville campus for an Eclipse at the Crosses watch party on April 8, to anticipate and experience together the awe of totality. 

Lead Pastor Eric Moffett said most “were from out of town, out of state, and even out of country.” 

Visitors hailed from “New Jersey, California, Washington, Oregon and all points in between” Moffett said, adding he believes the furthest anyone traveled was probably a couple who came from Milan, Italy.

“You do not have a chance very often for the world to come to you, and we did not want to miss that” Moffett said. 

Moffett learned about the large number of totality-seeking visitors anticipated to flock to Texas for this eclipse over a year ago. He immediately recognized the opportunity it would be to have an outreach—“to do something for our community and for our visitors,” he said.

“We’re a community-focused church, and so, we understand our role to be living out the presence of the gospel right here in Gatesville,” he said. “So, we try to share our resources, our campus, everything we have with our community.” 

Moffett explained the church is situated in the perfect location to do something like host a watch party for an eclipse. The campus has a set of three crosses, one 70-foot and two 60-foot, and it overlooks the city of Gatesville.

He knew it would be a prime spot where people would have a great view of the sky and the city. Guests would have plenty of space to spread out around the campus and relax for the day.

An easy sell to share the love of Jesus

“Coryell Community Church is quick to take risks, if it means we’re going to have a chance to share the love of Jesus with somebody,” Moffett said.

So, he brought his idea to church staff and elders, noting: “It wasn’t a hard sell. Everybody was on board immediately.”

The church began planning and putting together the events of the day. And it took pretty much the whole year to pull it all together, Moffett said.

In the end, the church offered access to its playground and gaga ball pit, cornhole, volleyball, horseshoes, crafts and other activities for children and families.

The congregation brought in food trucks from Gatesville and Waco. They also provided live music and entertainment by Christian comedian Adam Bush.

While the church didn’t offer guests overnight parking, they did offer clean restroom facilities to everyone who was registered.

“It went fantastic,” Moffett said.

Once visitors decided to travel to Central Texas to view the eclipse, they looked online for related events in the target area. The church had its event registration up and running on their webpage in January. Moffett said it really started filling up in the past month.

 “A lot of them said they came to us because they were Christian, or they were looking for a family-focused environment,” Moffett said.

Building personal connections

Since people were spread out all through the campus and the aim was for a welcoming low-key environment, the church opted to have volunteers fan out to meet the guests and talk with them versus offering any sort of call to commitment.

Church leaders did offer a time together at the crosses. And right before totality, they shared the gospel from their main stage. Immediately after totality, they held a time of worship and welcomed people to join them, Moffett said.

Each guest received a handout with a map and contact information to reach out if they felt like God was stirring them and they wanted to respond.

The church already has heard from a couple of families who expressed how much they appreciated the event and the spirit they felt while they were there, including most recently, one family from the Bay Area of California, Moffett said.

Coryell Community Church has contact information for those who registered and will reach out to them by email.

Everyone volunteers spoke with was so grateful to the church for offering the event and appreciated the lengths to which the congregation went to welcome them. 

Prayerfully, Coryell Community Church expects the materials and information each family received when they arrived will develop into more contacts and opportunities for spiritual conversations, Moffett said.

And, he added, they trust the Spirit will use that connection in the coming days.

KATY—Bear Creek Baptist Church is seeing growth—the kind of growth many churches dream of. With 60 baptisms since the beginning of 2024, the church is baptizing new believers about every week. 

Is this revival, or is there a secret recipe? Some of both, according to Tim Hill, executive pastor of Bear Creek. 

Bear Creek’s campus is located in an area of high visibility, Hill said. People pass by it regularly—many people. 

In a video on the church website, Lead Pastor David Welch said the neighborhood within five miles of Bear Creek has grown by more than 15,000 households. 

“That’s over 35,000 people in just the last three years. And it is projected to grow by another 15,000 households in the next five-seven years,” he said.

Bear Creek invests in reaching out to those new arrivals, Hill said.

Building a reputation

“Our church is really great about reaching out and inviting people,” Hill explained. “We also really try to have a strong presence in our community. We partner with two local elementary schools through our school district.” 

Weekly worship services include clear presentations of the gospel, Hill said. 

“Our vision statement is that we are a gospel-centered, disciple-making community. … It’s not a light sharing of the gospel,” Hill said, noting the church clearly talks about sin, the need to turn from sin, and the gift of salvation. 

“We share the gospel clearly, and people are responding,” he continued.

Hill credits the congregation’s work in the community, their visibility and their systems in helping to make Bear Creek become a place where seekers go. 

Over time, they’ve developed a reputation for being a church where people feel like they belong, Hill said. Their membership process even is called “Belong.” 

As prospective members move through this process, “they really find a home,” Hill explained. “And I think it’s kind of like momentum. Once you get that rolling and moving and you create that culture in your church, it just occurs organically [that people will come to your church].”

Vacation Bible School always has been a really big thing at Bear Creek, Hill said. They even carry it up through middle school age, which they call VBX. 

Bear Creek is intentional about having invitation strategies. They are intentional about putting resources into the hands of their people to use in inviting.

And their staff is very goal-driven, which creates focus, Hill said. They set fall, spring and summer goals, which may be adjusted as needed. Each set of seasonal goals has three areas of focus. One current goal is focused on attendance.  

 “So then, you look at what drives attendance,” Hill said. “Invitation strategy, creating excellent experiences for people when they come to church—it’s making sure that when they come, we lead people to encounter Christ, grow in their faith and take next steps.”

Hill said they want to connect people to the church, not just see them make one-time decisions. Baptism is an important next step that is emphasized.

So, they set goals. “But then you have all the work to reach the goal. When someone visits our church, they go into a system where they are followed up with in specific ways in week one, week two,” Hill explained.

The system management falls to staff. And it is a part of every staff meeting every week.

Setting smart goals, which they check with a scorecard, they “track where every person is in the system so that to the very best of their ability, they don’t drop anyone through the cracks.”

They utilize the church community builder database in Pushpay, for systems management.

Hill said in order for laypeople to handle systems management, “you would have to have high-capacity volunteers who almost serve your church like it is their job. And there are some of those out there, but they are rare.”

Trusting the Holy Spirit, too

“I think every church leader would recognize, we do all the work we can and we pray, and we seek the Lord and we work really hard. But in the end, we also just have to depend on the work of the Holy Spirit,” Hill said.

For the last two years Bear Creek has been recognized as one of the 100 fastest growing churches in the United States by Lifeway and Outreach magazine. Presently, “attendance is 13 to14 percent over last year’s attendance at this time,” Hill said. 

More than half the 60 baptisms so far this year were of adults, from both the Spanish- and English-speaking services.

Danny Quintanilla, discipleship and missions director for Bear Creek, spoke about one Spanish-speaking man who recently joined Bear Creek and requested to join a life group. 

When Quintanilla asked the man what brought him to Bear Creek, the man reported he regularly passed a large sign—written in Spanish—in front of the church, advertising the Spanish language service. He felt like he needed to come to church, and then decided to try this church. 

Quintanilla and Hill spoke of other recent baptisms. One young woman is from a Muslim background. Her conversion to Christianity led to rejection from her family.

A church member offered her a safe place to stay and other members gave generously to secure a car for her to continue working. 

Her family would allow her to come home if she renounced Jesus. But her commitment to Christ has not been shaken. She remains estranged from them, while praying for God to work in her family situation.

Carl Mayer is another who was recently baptized, at 75 years old. He said his Nigerian caregiver invited him to Bear Creek last year. 

Many others had invited him to other churches through the years, but his past experiences in church and in life were negative. 

He went to a couple of “holy roller” services with his grandparents in Kentucky as a child, he said, but “they scared him to death” and he had to go outside the tent and wait. 

Then he tried a Baptist church where he came from, but the minister wanted more than $300 to baptize him. 

“So, my mom threw that minister out of the house, and that was the end of that.” 

Mayer said he “never thought about church again until recently.”

His caregiver saw what he was dealing with, he said—sadness, anger, hurt from a troubled life and trauma he endured in childhood that has “stayed with him.” So, she invited him to come with her to Bear Creek. This time, when a friend asked, he went. 

It was Easter Sunday last year, and he was “blown away” by the minister. He visited several times, always thanking the preacher for the message that was so touching, but not giving his name. He was too “shy,” he said, due to all the hardships he faced in childhood. 

But he decided he was ready to take the next steps and be baptized. He thought he was going to drown when his legs, which don’t work as well anymore, came up. But, he said, now he “feels entirely different.”

He feels calmer since trusting Jesus. 

“I’m even singing now,” he said, quietly laughing. 

Adam Greenway, who was forced out as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in September 2022, filed a personal injury lawsuit against the seminary and the past chair of its trustee board.

The lawsuit, filed March 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, asserts the seminary administration and Danny Roberts, then chair of the trustee board, “began a defamatory campaign against Dr. Greenway that included both specific false statements, along with publication of a narrative that created a substantially false and defamatory impression.”

“The defamation of Dr. Greenway has been widely publicized, resulting in severe damage to his reputation and rendering him unemployable in the professional capacity for which he is qualified,” the lawsuit states.

Many of the statements alleging financial mismanagement by Greenway concerned expenditures made to repair and restore the president’s home on the seminary campus. The suit maintains Greenway’s predecessor—Paige Patterson—left the president’s home “in a state of disrepair and unfit for habitation or use.”

Last fall, Greenway’s attorney sent a demand letter threatening a $5 million lawsuit, which was not filed at that time. The current suit says the plaintiff is seeking damages “in excess of $75,000,” but that only establishes the baseline.

The suit calls for a judgment awarding compensation for actual damages, exemplary damages, past and future economic loss, attorneys fees, statutory and civil penalties, and “all other proper relief.”

Seminary responds to lawsuit

In response, Southwestern Seminary issued the following statement: “It is regrettable that Adam Greenway is suing the seminary he has previously claimed to love in response to Southwestern’s refusal to agree to his demand of $5 million last fall.

“It is also disappointing that his lawyer turned down multiple invitations to inspect the evidence supporting the public statements previously made by the seminary.

“We categorically deny the allegations contained in the lawsuit, will defend vigorously the institution, and are confident the outcome will demonstrate that these claims are entirely baseless.”

The lawsuit asserts the defendants were negligent and “acted with actual malice and/or a reckless regard for the truth.” It seeks compensation for defamation of character, asserting the defendants “created a false and defamatory impression” that he secretly “spent seminary funds for his own benefit in a manner akin to embezzlement.”

Expenditures related to president’s home

The lawsuit offers specific allegations regarding the condition of the president’s home when the Pattersons left it after removing “the majority of furnishings and décor.”

“Visible mold could be seen growing on interior walls of the facility,” the lawsuit states.

Later inspections “revealed that mold and mildew existed through the HVAC system, including the ductwork,” and a risk manager for the seminary advised that the HVAC system be replaced “for the safety of occupants and guests,” the suit continues.

The lawsuit notes the president’s home is not simply a single-family residence, but also is “designed, equipped and maintained as a multi-purpose institutional facility, equipped to host institutional functions and gatherings, including meetings, fundraising events and receptions.”

The lawsuit includes an explanation for an expenditure publicly singled out in a report released by the seminary as an example of extravagance—an $11,000 espresso machine.

 “The kitchen is equipped with commercial grade appliances, suitable for hosting gatherings beyond those typical in a single-family dwelling,” the suit states. “As part of the renovations relating to hospitality, the president’s home was equipped with a commercial grade coffee bar at a cost of $11,123.49. The cost included an espresso machine, water filtration system, accessories and installation.”

The kitchen was used by seminary staff for receptions and other functions attended by more than 1,000 people, the suit notes.

All expenditures related to the repairs and restoration of the president’s home were made in accordance with seminary financial guidelines and practices, the suit asserts.

Furthermore, the suit states Greenway cut costs by eliminating 14 full-time staff positions related to the president’s home, which Patterson called “Pecan Manor.” The suit also notes four offices with up to 27 active phone lines existed in the president’s home during Patterson’s tenure.

Internal dissent and political controversy

Nevertheless, the suit asserts the trustee chair and seminary administration used those expenditures in a “behind-the-scenes initiative” to remove Greenway from office.

The suit asserts Colby Adams, then vice president for business administration at the seminary, drew on a $1.6 million line of credit without the president’s knowledge.

Greenway subsequently removed Adams from that post—a decision that triggered dissent within elements of the staff and involvement by board leadership. Instead of being dismissed, Adams was reassigned, against Greenway’s wishes.

The lawsuit also alleges Greenway was forced out because he “voiced opinions relating to political issues that were met with disapproval by influential alumni, members of the Executive Committee of the board of trustees, administration and faculty.”

In particular, the suit notes Greenway’s social media post criticizing a conference. He tweeted: “If America really was/is a Christian nation—as my Twitter feed indicates some are claiming today—then where are the cries to repent and believe instead of just calls to register and go vote? Don’t reduce the Bible to a political prop and Jesus to a candidate consultant, please.”

According to the suit, Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, demanded Greenway remove the tweet.

The lawsuit accuses the seminary administration and trustees of breaching the terms of a settlement agreement regarding Greenway’s resignation, including a “promise of mutual non-disparagement.”

The suit asserts trustees received “only selected and incomplete financial records,” which left a false impression regarding Greenway’s handling of finances.

Response from Greenway’s attorney

When the Baptist Standard contacted Greenway to ask specific questions regarding the lawsuit and its timing, he referred all inquiries to his attorney, Andrew Jones, and he provided the lawyer’s email address.

Jones sent the following statement: “Dr. Adam W. Greenway has dedicated his life to studying and spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. What he has been met with at the hands of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary since his departure has not shaken his faith or his resolve.

“To be victimized by one’s own alma mater is a particular form of cruelty, but Dr. Greenway is heartened by the wisdom found in 1 John 3:18—‘Let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.’ We look forward to the litigation process and for the public to finally learn the truth, as described in the lawsuit we filed on Wednesday.”

Debbie Potter, children’s pastor at Trinity Baptist Church in San Antonio, will be nominated for first vice president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Dennis Wiles, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Arlington, said he will nominate Potter at the BGCT annual meeting, Nov. 10-12 in Waco.

She was elected as BGCT second vice president at the Texas Baptist Family Gathering last summer. When Julio Guarneri was elected as executive director and stepped down as president, First Vice President Ronny Marriott moved into the president’s role, and Potter became first vice president.

Potter has “served Texas Baptists this past year with distinction,” and they are “truly blessed” by her leadership, Wiles said.

Wiles characterized her as “a champion for children” who has served at Trinity Baptist Church since 2003, in a ministry to children and families that has spanned the tenure of three senior pastors there.

“Her love and care for children continues to inspire fellow ministers across Texas Baptist life,” he said.

“She knows the value of ministering to children and providing formational experiences for them and their families. In addition to her role as the children’s pastor at Trinity, her ministry is extended through the provision of resources for others who work in children’s ministry.”

Wiles also indirectly alluded to controversy in the Southern Baptist Convention regarding women in ministry, particularly those who serve in any capacity as a pastor.

“At a time when some are questioning the role of women in our churches, Dr. Potter is a role model of a gifted, mature, godly, innovative, strategic minister who is serving in one of our historic churches. She is one of our finest,” he said.

‘Women just want to serve’

Potter views the nomination of a woman who carries the title “pastor” for BGCT first vice president as a “huge” statement.

“I have been blessed to work with men who have supported me and helped me in ministry, but there are so many women who haven’t had that opportunity,” she said.

After attending listening sessions with women in ministry, she noted, many are “heartbroken” by the debate surrounding their role in the church.

“Women just want to serve—to be able to do what God has called and equipped us to do in the church, without all the controversy hindering us,” Potter said.

She particularly hopes to encourage young women who may feel called to Christian service but who do not feel affirmed in their congregations.

“I am afraid young women may leave the church and go where they feel they are valued,” she said.

Having served as a BGCT officer since last summer, Potter said she feels as if she is “barely getting started” in learning about all the ministries and resources Texas Baptists offer.

She affirmed Guarneri’s leadership as executive director, noting they previously served together on the board of Buckner International.

“He is a kind and humble leader who values all human beings,” she said. “Julio is a very inclusive person who believes strongly in the Baptist General Convention of Texas. He is an empowering person who will empower his staff to be creative and innovative.”

Equip churches to help vulnerable children

In the coming year, Potter said, she hopes Texas Baptists will explore ways to equip churches to help vulnerable children in Texas and those who are seeking to care for them.

She serves as a volunteer chaplain with Child Protective Services workers in San Antonio, meeting weekly with them to listen to them and encourage them.

“Many of them are working 80 hours a week. They need our support,” she said.

Potter has served as a minister to children and their families since 1997, working six years at Parkhills Baptist Church in San Antonio before joining the staff at Trinity Baptist Church. She was licensed to the gospel ministry at Parkhills Baptist Church in 1998 and ordained by Trinity Baptist Church in 2005.

She received her undergraduate degree from Southern Nazarene University and a Master of Arts degree from the School of Education at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She earned a Ph.D. in educational leadership from Andrews University in 2015.

Potter has consulted and led training sessions for San Antonio Baptist Association and the BGCT, and she has mentored dozens of young people, including international students from Baptist University of the Américas. She also has served as an adjunct professor at BUA.

Potter has written five children’s books, curriculum, multiple articles and more than 50 children’s sermons and other ministry resources. Currently, she is writing a book about servant leadership.

In addition to serving as a trustee of Buckner International, she has served on the Texas Baptists’ Committee to Nominate Boards of Affiliated Ministries and on the board of Alpha Home, a residential substance abuse treatment center launched by Trinity Baptist Church.

She and her husband Robert have two adult children, Chelsea and Chase.

Ronny Marriott, incumbent president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, will be nominated at Texas Baptists’ annual meeting for a second term.

David Lowrie, pastor of First Baptist Church in Decatur and a past president of the convention, announced his intention to nominate Marriott, the lead pastor of First Baptist Church in Burleson, at the BGCT annual meeting, Nov. 10-12 in Waco.

Lowrie praised Marriott as an experienced Texas Baptist leader with “a heart for who we are and who we need to become.”

“I believe Ronny is the right person in the right place for this time in the life of Texas Baptists,” Lowrie said.

Under Marriott’s leadership, First Baptist in Burleson “sets a good example” for cooperative giving and community engagement, he added.

Noting they served together on the board of trustees at Howard Payne University, Lowrie said, he observed Marriott’s willingness to “listen well” to various viewpoints and to adapt to changing circumstances.

“He is a thoughtful leader who is willing to do hard things when necessary,” Lowrie said.

‘It’s a new day’

Marriott was elected as first vice president of the state convention at Texas Baptists’ Family Gathering last July in McAllen, having previously been second vice president. At the same meeting, Julio Guarneri was reelected as BGCT president. Marriott assumed the presidency when Guarneri was selected as BGCT executive director.

“It was a steep learning curve, but people around me have been patient and gracious,” Marriott said.

He expressed his desire to support Guarneri in his role as executive director and walk alongside him during changing times.

“I’m excited about our future,” he said. “It’s a new day.”

Marriott particularly noted questions surrounding the upcoming vote at the Southern Baptist Convention regarding whether churches with women who serve in pastoral roles can remain in “friendly cooperation” with the SBC.

He affirmed Texas Baptists’ position affirming the autonomy of local congregations, and noted his desire to see the BGCT support and encourage Texas Baptist churches as they make their own decisions about the role of women in ministry.

During his brief time as president so far, Marriott said, he is “having a great time” and is “eager to meet more people” around the state. He pointed to the need to encourage churches in cooperative giving.

Encourage and equip young ministers

Noting his commitment to mentor and encourage young ministers, he commended Texas Baptists’ support for the Pastor’s Common—a space where ministry leaders build community, listen to each other and collaborate.

Marriott led his church to launch a residency program for young ministers, providing them two years of practical experience in a congregational context. He hopes to see Texas Baptists implement a similar residency program, as recommended by the convention’s Gen Z/Millennial Task Force.

He also voiced support for Texas Baptists’ commitment to church health and to encouraging ministers and their families.

“I want to try to be a positive influence,” Marriott said.

Before coming to First Baptist Church in Burleson in 2016, Marriott served as pastor of First Baptist Church in Temple, First Baptist Church in Corpus Christi and Sunset Baptist Church in Dripping Springs.

He also served at Shady Oaks Baptist Church in Hurst—initially as youth minister and later as senior pastor. He also served on staff at Northlake Baptist Church in Dallas as youth pastor.

He earned his undergraduate degree from Howard Payne University. He holds a Master of Divinity degree and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

He has served on Texas Baptists’ Theological Education Council, the BGCT Executive Board and the Christian Life Commission.

He and his wife Robin have three children—Molly, Morgan and Ryan.

UGANDA—Texas Baptist Men: Texans on Mission may have discovered a secret ingredient to community transformation across northern Uganda.

Just add water.

This year, Texans and Ugandans on Mission—the name TBM and its 24 Ugandan personnel use—will drill a minimum of 65 wells in Uganda. They teach sanitation, hygiene and pump maintenance in every village where they drill a water well, as well as introducing local residents to micro-finance.

But the real key is the spiritual transformation that occurs in individual lives. Work in each village begins by starting Bible studies. And if there isn’t another church within 3 or 4 kilometers, often the villagers ask to start their own congregation.

“I expect to see 500 baptisms this year,” said Mitch Chapman, director of Water Impact with TBM: Texans on Mission and the bivocational pastor of Oak Grove Baptist Church in Elmo.

TBM: Texans on Mission envisions expanding its Water Impact ministry into other parts of Africa. Plans already are in place for work in South Sudan within the next two years, with a goal of eventually moving into Kenya, Tanzania and possibly Chad.

Post-retirement calling

When Chapman retired after working 26 years in the oil industry, he didn’t envision becoming involved in water ministry on the other side of the globe.

“I fully intended to spend my time pastoring my church and building racecar chassis,” he said.

Instead, TBM tapped his drilling expertise and put him to work. Since taking the job as Water Impact director two years ago, he is on his second passport, already having filled one with visas. His church grants him the freedom to be away about 18 Sundays each year.

Chapman and TBM leaders wanted to develop a model for water ministry that could make the most significant impact on communities without fostering dependency. As they studied other Christian organizations that used water ministry as a tool for sustainable community development, they became impressed with Fort Worth-based 4Africa and its strategic approach.

TBM leaders learned 4Africa wanted to move away from operating well-drilling rigs in East Africa in order to focus more on the educational components of discipleship and community development.

So, TBM secured the drilling rigs from 4Africa last summer and took on its strategy—moving across northern Uganda district by district from east to west.

“We are in and out of each community in five years or less,” Chapman explained, noting the emphasis is on making disciples and promoting sustainable community development.

Community impact

In each location, Texans and Ugandans on Mission help identify a “person of peace” in the community who starts a Bible study. A typical Bible study involves reading a passage of Scripture three times—an approach geared toward oral learners—and discussing what it means.

Bible studies also include singing, praying and sharing testimonies of how God is at work in the lives of those who are committing themselves to him.

At the same time, villagers learn hygiene and sanitation, begin building latrines and handwashing stations, and create a local organization to govern the care, use and maintenance of the well.

“There’s three to six months of community engagement before we ever drill a water well,” Chapman said.

Each step of the way, community members are expected to contribute to the effort. For example, after the Texans and Ugandans on Mission crew drills a bore hole and installs casing, villagers make bricks and gather stones to use in construction of the hand pump station.

Sam Ojok, the in-country director of Texans and Ugandans on Mission, is excited to witness the dramatic changes that take place when remote rural communities gain access to a clean water source.

“I love to see immediate impact,” he said. “Once people have clean water and practice sanitation, typhoid is no longer a big problem after just one month.”

Ojok witnessed the effects of water-borne diseases—typhoid, dysentery and cholera, among others—early in life.

“I have seen family members suffer,” he said, as his voice trailed off.

The impact not only is immediately apparent, but also long-lasting. In the Yumbe District of northwest Uganda, where 4Africa piloted the approach Texans and Ugandans on Mission adopted, 98 percent of the wells were still working at the five-year mark.

Most significantly, the region saw a 10 percent decrease in infant mortality and an 80 percent drop in deaths among children from birth to age 5.

Rural health

“We focus on the rural areas. Where the government stops, we start,” Ojok said. “We penetrate deep into places without easy access.”

Texans and Ugandans on Mission measures access to clean, safe water both in terms of distance and time. The aim is to provide a water source either within one mile or a 30-minute round-trip walk of each village.

To ensure each community learns how to become self-sufficient, villagers are taught how to create small community credit unions to promote savings and to provide micro-finance loans for income-producing activities.

On a recent visit to the Omoro District, several villagers told how the loans enabled them to develop small businesses—raising goats, harvesting and selling grain and even operating a small community grocery store—to send their children to school.

At the same time, children and teenagers are growing stronger physically and spiritually through Youth Running Clubs sponsored by Texans and Ugandans on Mission. They participate in exercises, games and Bible lessons on Saturdays.

“Some of these children have experienced trauma. Through the Youth Running Clubs, we see their self-esteem grow,” Ojok said. “They improve in physical, spiritual and psychological wellness.”

The spiritual aspect drives Texans and Ugandans on Mission. Since they began working in northern Uganda last summer, 138 people have been baptized, and another 19 are scheduled to be baptized in the coming weeks.

“When we arrive in a community, water is an access point—a starting point for sharing the gospel and training church leaders,” Ojok said.

Currently, 340 Bible study groups meet in rural areas of Uganda’s Omoro District.

“People are meeting somewhere every day—sharing the word of God and learning from each other,” Ojok said.

“I have not seen another program as impactful as Texans and Ugandans on Mission.”

Managing Editor Ken Camp traveled to Uganda with Texas Baptist Men: Texans on Mission to report on the Water Impact ministry there.

Adam Pardue, pastor of Highland Baptist Church in Lubbock, will be nominated for second vice president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Pastor Jason Burden of First Baptist Church in Nederland, a past president of the BGCT, will nominate Pardue at Texas Baptists’ annual meeting Nov. 10-12 in Waco.

Pardue served as associate pastor at First Baptist in Nederland alongside Burden before accepting the pastorate of Highland Baptist in March 2012.

“He has an awesome family. His character is unimpeachable. And he is a person of good cheer and vision who will be of great service to our state convention,” Burden said.

Burden characterized Pardue as “a product of BGCT investment” in higher education.

After completing his undergraduate degree in music from Lamar University, Pardue earned a master’s degree in Christian ministry from Wayland Baptist University and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Hardin-Simmons University’s Logsdon Seminary.

He also earned a Master of Divinity degree from B.H. Carroll Seminary, which is slated to merge with East Texas Baptist University.

Burden also characterized Pardue as “a great contributor to Texas Baptists” through his involvement as a church health coach, helping other congregations work through the Pave church revitalization strategy.

“I want to see church health emphasized,” Pardue said, noting his desire to see Texas Baptists help churches that have plateaued or suffered decline. “I have a heart for it.”

Wants to ‘have a voice’ in the process

Given events at the national level in Baptist life, he sees this as a key time for Texas Baptists to discern their direction moving forward.

“I would like to have a voice in shaping that direction and to be a part of that process,” he said.

Having chaired the BGCT Committee to Nominate Executive Board Members and the Committee on the Annual Meeting, Pardue said, he even enjoys Texas Baptist committee work.

“I love Texas Baptists. Serving on convention committees, you’re dealing with people who have the same love you do and who believe in the work that is going on,” he said.  “I love to be around other Christian brothers and sisters.”

In addition to his BGCT service, Pardue also has served on the board of Lubbock Area Baptist Association.

Ten years before he became senior pastor at Highland Baptist Church in Lubbock, he served four years as youth pastor at that same congregation.

Pardue served in staff roles at other Texas Baptist churches—minister of music and youth at Fellowship Baptist Church in Bridge City and at Proctor Baptist Church in Port Arthur, youth pastor at First Baptist Church in Port Neches and associate pastor at First Baptist in Nederland.

He and his wife Angie have been married 26 years. They have two daughters, Avery Ashford and Abbey Pardue, both Christian ministry majors at Hardin-Simmons University, and a son-in-law, Blake Ashford.

DALLAS—Rather than focusing on the size of obstacles, Texas Baptists should trust in God who is capable of overcoming any obstacle, Executive Director Julio Guarneri told the Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board.

“Stay focused on God’s mission,” Guarneri said in his first report to the board as executive director.

He recounted the story of the 12 Israelites who scouted out the Promised Land, as recorded in Numbers 13 and 14. The majority acknowledged the land was fertile, but they chose to emphasize the giants who inhabited it.

“There will always be some among us who choose to focus on the giants in the land—who will be intimidated by the size of the obstacles,” Guarneri said. “We don’t have to be blind to the challenges that we face. We don’t have to ignore the giants in the land. But neither do we have to let them intimidate us.”

When the people of Israel heard about the giants who occupied the Promised Land, many embraced a distorted memory of past glory days and longed to be back in Egypt—forgetting the bondage they endured there.

“God doesn’t call us to go back to the past. The only reason God’s people should look back at the past is to remember that God is faithful, and he is able to bring us through hard times,” Guarneri said.

Two Israelite scouts brought a positive minority report, choosing to trust in God, who already had demonstrated his faithfulness.

“If the Lord is with us, it doesn’t matter how many giants are in the land,” Guarneri said.

“Our task as Texas Baptists is to occupy the land. What that means is that we are called to saturate our state with the gospel.”

‘Status quo won’t cut it’

Since 2020, the Texas population has grown by 9 million—an average of more than 400,000 new residents each year, he noted.

“How many churches will it take to reach that many people? How many pastors and leaders need to be equipped and prepared to lead those churches?” he asked.

“The bottom line is that the status quo won’t cut it. … Business as usual won’t get the Great Commission accomplished.”

Guarneri noted items on his “wish list” for Texas Baptists:

• Renewed sense of harmony.
• Robust dedication to prayer.
• Rekindled participation in evangelism.
• Reaffirmed commitment to church health.
• Rallying of kingdom partnerships.

Determining the ‘path forward’ for GC2

In his first months as executive director, Guarneri said he is focusing on emphasizing prayer, encouraging pastors, affirming presidents of institutions and organizations related to Texas Baptists, and identifying strategic partnerships to advance God’s kingdom.

He noted 62 churches in 17 states beyond Texas identify as GC2 congregations—an emphasis launched by David Hardage, Guarneri’s predecessor as executive director.

“I believe we are at a point now where we need to define more what GC2 means,” Guarneri said. “We need to talk about how those churches relate to Texas Baptists. How do we start them well? What are the opportunities that GC2 affords us to be able to network together to be on mission—not just in Texas but beyond Texas?”

Guarneri announced his intention to present at the May Executive Board meeting a suggested “path forward” for GC2. He noted some had asked if Texas Baptists—through the GC2 movement—are seeking to become a national convention.

“In some ways, we already are. We already have churches outside of Texas. We have 71 missionaries in 17 countries. We do conferences in Texas, and people come from other states and Canada to attend. So, our footprint is larger than our state,” he said.

However, he added, Texas Baptists are not in competition with the Southern Baptist Convention.

“We just want to take on our role in God’s redemptive plan,” he said.

Moving forward, Guarneri voiced his desire to:

• Engage in “strategic conversations that lead to strategic collaborations.”
• “Assess, refine and relaunch GC2.”
• “Determine a leadership strategy” to ensure a “pipeline” of pastors and leaders for the future.
• “Mobilize churches to be about the Great Commission.”

‘We exist to serve our churches’

Later during the board meeting, Guarneri was asked about the potential impact if the SBC votes to approve a constitutional amendment to exclude any church with a woman on staff who carries the title “pastor.”

Guarneri reiterated the BGCT affirms the autonomy of local churches and does not make whom they call as staff and leaders a test of fellowship.

“We exist to serve our churches. We don’t exist to serve the Southern Baptist Convention,” he said.

Some Texas Baptist churches point to the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message, which limits the office of pastor to men, as their statement of faith. Others affirm the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message, which does not include that limit.

At the 1999 BGCT annual meeting in El Paso, messengers affirmed the unamended 1963 Baptist Faith and Message as the “unifying statement of our common faith and practice.”

The BGCT relates to all Texas Baptist churches that share its mission and broadly affirm Baptist principles, without imposing one version of the Baptist Faith and Message or another on local churches, Guarneri said.

He noted state convention executive directors, who met recently in Scottsdale, Ariz., generally voiced concern about the amendment to be considered at the SBC annual meeting and what impact it will have if adopted.

“We’re not trying to leave,” he emphasized. “But if we’re cut out, we’ll figure out how to move forward.”

Board conducts business

In its business session, the BGCT Executive Board voted to allocate $450,000 from the JK Wadley Endowment Fund earnings, with $150,000 dedicated to Baptist Student Ministries campus missionaries and $150,000 to BSM building maintenance, $50,000 for a cross-cultural mobilizer, $50,000 for western heritage ministries and $25,000 to MinistrySafe child protection.

The Executive Board also filled vacancies on various committees and boards, electing:

• Steve Mullen from First Baptist Church in Burleson to the Baptist University of the Américas board of trustees.
• Jeff Scott from Pioneer Drive Baptist Church in Abilene and Darin Wood from First Baptist Church in Midland to the Committee to Nominate Executive Board Directors.
• Scott Currey from First Baptist Church in Gruver and Shawn Shannon from Tallowood Baptist Church in Houston to the Committee to Nominate Boards of Affiliated Ministries.
• Jeff Warren from Park Cities Baptist Church in Dallas and Raymond Sanchez from First Baptist Church in Weslaco to the BGCT Executive Board.