October 14, 2002
TEXAS BAPTIST FORUM:
Polling churches
___In "Potential for improvement" (Oct 7), Bart Barber has hit on a subject I have felt like proposing for many years. Our conventions--Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist General Convention of Texas and, probably, all state conventions--are adept at claiming that our decisions at the annual conventions express the will of our churches.
___How do we
know this to be true? Have the conventions ever polled the churches to find out how they feel about matters? The closest thing I have seen in this respect are the sessions in various communities by the BGCT to get views from them on some of the issues. However, the ones attending these are probably the same ones who attend the annual conventions.
___How do the rest of the people feel? I wonder if the shortfall in our financial giving could possibly be traced to some displeasure on some of these issues.
___I can't help wondering if we could have avoided our big conventional problems had we actually polled our churches in 1979.
___
Jim Wolfe
___
Lubbock
EGBOK
___When I was pastor of Shepherd of the Hills Church in Los Angeles, we had just finished our beautiful new building up in the hills of Porter Ranch, and the great earthquake of 1994 epicentered right under our home, destroying it and 13,400 other homes.
___That quake inflicted more financial loss than the cost--proportionately--of the Civil War.
___The next Sunday, I stood before a vast sea of down-hearted, discouraged people. I shall never forget my sermon title, "EGBOK."
___What did it mean then? The same thing it means now: "Everything is going to be OK."
___I wish every Baptist would wear a little button that says, "EGBOK." Baptists, if Jesus is in our hearts, then "EGBOK!"
___
Jess Moody
___
Mansfield
'Family' reunion
___During Tropical Storm Fay, the parsonage of First Baptist Church of Boling was completely flooded. Due to the wonderful help of Coastal Plains Baptist Area Executive Director Harold Sellers and his wife, Margaret, and Texas Baptist Men's President Leo Smith and the BGCT's Milfred Minatrea, help was very soon in coming!
___Churches from Colorado Baptist Association and Coastal Plains Baptist Area (which are comprised of both BGCT and Southern Baptists of Texas Convention churches) as well as Mary Hill Davis Offering funds saved our parsonage from losing its sheetrock.
___Texas Baptist Men sent J.D. McCambridge and his wife, Sue, members of Spring Woods Baptist Church in Houston, to help. He did a wonderful job putting down new baseboard for us. Tallowood Baptist Church of Houston, which worked on the original construction of the home, is interested in helping with the new carpet, padding and linoleum.
___In this disaster, the total Baptist family came to our aid, and for that we are profoundly grateful!
___I pray for the day, once again, that it doesn't take a disaster to bring us together!
___
Skip Holman
___
Boling
God & country
___The 9/11 "remember service" at First Baptist Church in Kerens projected something that needed to be told.
___We hear much about separation of church and state, prayer in schools, religion and politics, and which is the right denomination, etc. The memorial service had the answers. The house was full. We are not members there but attended because it was a communitywide service.
___The pastor and those who helped put the program together had the police, fire department, city and county officials, and Kerens Independent School District representatives offer prayers. The emphasis from each prayer was Jesus, the local churches, the schools and the government.
___I had recently read the Mayflower Compact. The agreement that was made before the pilgrims left the boat reads in part, "We have undertaken for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith, and the honor of our king and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern part of Virginia."
___I believe the founding fathers would have said that the service was in keeping in honoring God and country. Our heavenly Father also said, "That's good."
___
George Couch
___
Kerens
Required reading
___I praise the Standard for publication of the essay on "theology of abstinence ..." by Steve Sumerel (Sept. 30).
___He did a masterful job in defining the hazards of addiction while portraying an accurate position of the Bible on the use of alcohol. This type of reporting should be beneficial and welcomed by all factions of our convention.
___Sumerel's article should be required reading for all Southern Baptist seminary professors and students.
___
Andrew A. Litzler
___
Fort Worth
God's purposes
___It is easy to understand Michael W. Smith's position on contemporary Christian music (Aug. 19). It is his lifeline.
___It puzzles me that there is so much talk of the need for change in all worship for the young people. The gospel message and the many great hymns have been effective through the centuries. All of us were young people at one time. (Yes, I am what is considered an old-fogey by some.)
___Smith referred to his style as worship music, as though the great hymns are not. They still have the same message.
___Actually, today's young people are not all that much different than younguns in years past. Maybe the systems of communication make us more aware of their ideas.
___Let's not discard something that has served God's purposes for so long.
___
Dalton Davis
___
Arlington
Salt & light
___One of our deacons came into the office with information of a supposed church website, www.landoverbaptist.org. After going to the site and reading in horror the things proposed by this church, I began to investigate this website a little more.
___I think the website is fabricated to insult and make fun of Bible-believing Baptists.
___While I found the whole thing twisted, but funny, the more I really think about it, there is a great sadness in my heart--to think there are people who view Baptists, a people who love Jesus and try to live according to his word, in this light.
___I know the Bible tells us, "Men will revile us and say all manner of evil against us falsely for God's sake," but maybe we Baptists should think about actions.
___Actions speak louder than words, and they see our actions as hateful and harmful.
___Baptists, let us be salt and light. Let us be the presence of Christ in our world.
___
Daniel Downey
___
Lorena
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