Posted: 4/15/08

BaptistWay Bible Series for April 20

Extending God’s Help to a 'Foreigner'

• 2 Kings 2-5

By Kenneth Jordan

First Baptist Church, Alpine

The story of Naaman covers a lot of ground in small steps.  On first glance, it’s easy to get swept up in the rapid ascent from diseased to healed.  Let’s take small steps through this seemingly innocuous story and make sure we don’t miss anything.

Our first stop is at the house of Naaman, the valiant warrior for the King of Aram.  Naaman had been used by God to bring victory to Aram.  From what we can tell, he is a man who is accustomed to authority and getting his way (at least on the battlefield).  Scripture tells us that God had used him to give victory to Aram.  But his winning on the battlefront is marred by the leprosy that covers his skin.  The Hebrew word used for leprosy can refer to a variety of infectious skin diseases including what we know today as clinical leprosy.  Naaman had been used by God in spite of the fact that he was (1) not part of the covenant community; and (2) would have been considered “unclean”.

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This narrative takes place during a time of relative peace between Aram and the Northern Kingdom.   The continuing skirmishes between these neighboring kingdoms account for a great deal of unrest during Elijah’s day.  During one of the raids, a young Hebrew girl had been carried off and forced into servitude.  Serving Naaman’s wife, she was aware of the disease of the master of the house.  In a seemlingly insignificant comment, the servant girl sets into motion a significant sequence of events.

I want to call your attention to a couple of items in this passage.  First, note the division of the characters.   Those considered to be a part of the upper eschelon include Naaman, the king of Aram (Ben-Hadad), the king of Israel (Jehoram), and the mighty prophet (Elisha).The kings and the commander were accustomed to political games and had almost certainly acquired a taste of the honor and respect that their offices entitled them.  Elisha (as Scripture continually showed) was not one for games and pretenses.  He had taken the attitude of Psalm 27:1 to heart.  The second group of characters fall in the category of servants.  The Hebrew girl that served Naaman’s wife, Gehazi, Elisha’s assistant, and Naaman’s aides.  Each one of them plays a role pointing the “high-class” players toward the power of God (although Gehazi serves as a negative example).

Naaman’s healing, we find, does not come at the hand of the king.  It was logical for one king to go directly to another king rather than address any subordinates.  The problem is obvious to the reader – the power to help and the power to heal do not reside in the king’s palace. They reside in the hand of God – who is getting ready to display His glory to Jews and aliens alike.  We find Naaman’s approach to the important people echoed in his expectation of the prophet.  Naaman is upset when the prophet won’t even meet with him but sends his servant.  His anger and resentment grows when the direction for healing amount to washing in a muddy river. This high-power commander wants a high power assignment from a high-power person – and he is disappointed all the way around.  Yet God uses the servants of Naaman to again point him to the power of God.  I like the way this intervention plays out in The Message:  But his servants caught up with him and said, "Father, if the prophet had asked you to do something hard and heroic, wouldn't you have done it? So why not this simple 'wash and be clean'?"  (2Kings 5:13)  Why not, indeed?

Two final thoughts as we leave Naaman’s quest for healing.  In this passage, we find those considered “important” by the world being pointed to God by those the world had labled “disposable.” Let’s not forget the role that even the so-called “lowly” have in proclaiming the power of God to the world around us.  Also, the sentiments of Naaman continue to be echoed across the generations:  “Give me something important to do!”  Very often, the “important” assignments are simple day to day obedience to the clear instructions of the Lord.

Mark Twain is often quoted as saying, “It ain't those parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.” I agree – let us not look for some profound assignment if we’re not willing to lay hold of the easily understood.

Posted: 4/15/08

Bible Studies for Life Series for April 27

Exploring humility

• Genesis 32:3,6-12; 33:1-5,9-11

By Gary Long

Willow Meadows Baptist Church, Houston

Humility is an ever elusive trait, mainly because as soon as you think you’ve acquired, you just lost it. Humility is that trait of being modest, and we use it to describe a person who does not think of himself as greater or better than another person. It is the trait most idealized in the person and character of Jesus, but it also is evidenced in other figures in the Bible. One such person is Jacob, the subject of this week’s study.

This is the familiar story of the encounter between Jacob and Esau, many years after Jacob stole the blessing of Abraham from Esau. From our perspective, it is possible to miss the tension in Jacob that created the atmosphere for humility to flourish. Let’s take a look at the four phases of this story and how Jacob’s humility shaped the outcome of a situationthat could have been a family feud.

Assess the situation

Jacob had to do a hard look inside when he got the news that Esau was coming toward him. He had every reason to believe Esau would be angry with him—the last word he had on Esau was from his mother Rachel, who said, “Your brother Esau is consoling himself with the thought of killing you. Now then, my son, do what I say: Flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran. Stay with him for a while until your brother's fury subsides” (Genesis 27:43-44).

Jacob also knew from the “scouting reports” that Esau’s men outnumbered him. Clearly, Esau would be the winner of a direct battle. The reality was Jacob was in trouble. He deserved it for tricking his brother, and he knew it. A position of submission and humility was the right posture for Jacob to assume.

When we look honestly at our own lives and recognize we are in dire straits, it is good for us to do what Jacob did—assess the situation, admit where we are wrong and humble ourselves before God.

Humble yourself before God

Jacob was a trickster, this much is true. He had stolen his brother’s blessing, as well as conning him out of his birthright. But Jacob recognized his position and rightly humbled himself before God. There is deep urgency to his prayers to God, and some translations stress this more than others. The point is, Jacob is pleading earnestly with God for deliverance from his brother’s hand.

In our lives it is necessary for us to humble ourselves before God by prayerfully confessing the distance between God’s holiness and our sinfulness. Consider asking your learners to remember a time when they prayed desperately God for deliverance. Identifying with that utter dependence upon God in our everyday lives—not just in times of distress—will help us to keep humble before God, and in turn lead to lives humble before humans as well.

Humble yourself before others

Jacob took a route of humility toward his brother, and it is evident in several areas. First, he sent gifts before him to Esau. He sent them as a sign of his willingness to make peace over the past, as well as an admission of his own wrong doing in their shared history. Those gifts sent to Esau were more than just gifts—they were tokens that expressed apology, remorse and a desire for restoration.

Jacob took a route of humility toward his brother in the language he uses. He refers to himself as “your servant” and he refers to Esau as “my lord.” He is making it clear that not only does he desire to make things right with his brother, but that he sees himself as the subject of his older brother.

This modest view of oneself is rather uncommon in modern American culture. Most of your learners will be more acquainted with tactics used socially to communicate “I am most important” or “I have power and influence.”

Rather than bluffing his way through on an image of power—like so many Americans who spend frivolously to impress others—Jacob simply presented himself as who he was.

Acknowledge God’s role

As they made peace, Esau essentially compliments Jacob for all the wealth he has acquired. Jacob, however, deflects the comment and points to God as the source of his wealth and blessings. This kind of godly humility is an essential element in the spiritual growth of a maturing Christian.

To recognize the graciousness of God in our lives also is essential to a sense of self-worth. Jacob knew he was a trickster, but he also had a strong sense of God’s provision and strength as God blessed him. While he was humble, he also recognized God cared for him and provided great material blessing to him.

Similarly, Christians recognize we are sinful and broken, but we also rejoice in the fact this is not the end of the story. God cared for Jacob even though he was sinful, and God cares for us in the same way.

In recognizing our position as blessed people, it is even more vital we learn from Jacob the notion of sharing our blessing with others. Even though Esau essentially said, “You don’t have to give me these gifts,” Jacob wanted to give them out of a desire to share God’s blessing with Esau.

The bottom line in this lesson is to help your learners see pride easily overcomes humility and that only a daily walk with God—that is patterned after Jesus—can help us bridge the distance between reality and the goal of humility.

Bonus teaching idea

Try to find a painting, photo or portable sculpture that expresses an artist’s view of humility. A quick Google search of images of humility will give you many options to share. Print out a half dozen and ask your learners to choose one they think best depicts humility as they understand it. Do this before your lesson, and then ask them after the lesson if they’d make the same choice.

Posted: 4/15/08

Explore the Bible Series for April 27

When presented with challenging tasks

• Genesis 41:1, 12-13, 15-16, 28-40

By Donald Raney

First Baptist Church, Petersburg

Life is full of challenges. Sometimes they come as we seek to challenge ourselves in some area of our lives. At other times, challenging tasks can be thrust upon us by other people or circumstances. While these are not usually negative in nature, they can create a moment of crisis for us as we gauge our ability of overcome the challenge.

Such a crisis can elicit a variety of responses. Some immediately begin to make excuses about why they cannot meet the challenge. Others seek to suggest or recruit others whom they feel would be better equipped for the task. Still others procrastinate in approaching the task hoping it will pass. Finally, some may begin by rising to the challenge only to quit when it is not quickly accomplished.

Joseph had spent much of his early life in relative ease as the favored son of his father, Jacob. We might speculate that whenever particularly difficult tasks arose at home, Jacob assigned them to one of Joseph’s older brothers. Yet despite this favored status, Joseph had come to realize that God had given him special gifts and abilities he could use whenever challenges arose. Through his life experiences, he came to see challenges as an opportunity to stretch his faith by using those gifts to overcome a series of difficult circumstances.

As we read about Joseph’s experiences in Egypt, we learn several valuable lessons concerning the way we might faithfully respond when presented with challenging tasks.

Trust God’s providence (Genesis 41:1, 12-13)

Two years had passed since Joseph had used his gift to help the baker and cupbearer understand their dreams. When the cup bearer was released, he must have felt his days in that prison were nearly over. Yet after two years, he still was a prisoner. Through his dreams as a child, God had shown him he had great plans for Joseph, but he must have wondered how those would ever be realized in light of his current situation. He was in a situation far beyond his control with little or no foreseeable means of escape.

Many times in life, each person may find him or herself in a seemingly hopeless situation or faced with a seemingly insurmountable challenge. It can be easy to begin to wonder whether God still is watching and how you will ever get back on the path to God’s plans for your life.

Joseph’s story reminds us of the providence of God. Throughout his life God had used events in Joseph’s life to prepare him and position him to accomplish great things.

We often cannot understand the purpose or timing of the events of life, but we can trust God is able to use all those events to bring about his good purposes so that when we face challenging tasks, we can fully rely on God’s providential care.

Depend on God’s guidance (Genesis 41:15-16, 28-32)

The day finally came when the prison guard came and told Joseph pharaoh wanted to see him. While he may at first have wondered why, he must have felt this was his big break. After years of struggle wondering how and when his visions would come to pass, he could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Yet he also knew it all depended on how he handled this meeting with the most powerful man on earth. As a boy, he had flaunted his position and dreams. But now his time in the Egyptian prison had been used to teach Joseph to rely on God rather than his own abilities.

So often when we face difficult circumstances, our immediate response is to seek to overcome it through our own strength and cunning. This especially can be true when the solution seems to fit with our particular talents.

When he arrives at the palace and hears pharaoh is seeking to understand a dream he had, Joseph must have been relieved. He knew he had a gift for interpreting dreams, yet he recognized the gift would be misused if he did not allow God to work through it. Rather than accepting credit, Joseph acknowledged his need for God’s guidance before he began to offer help.

When faced with challenging tasks, we can only see a small piece of the larger picture. In order to navigate the problem most effectively, we must, from the start, depend on God’s guidance.

Propose solutions and accept God-given opportunities (Genesis 41:33-40)

While pharaoh certainly was grateful to have the answer to his question, the answer created a further dilemma. Knowing a famine was coming, what should he do? A famine lasting seven years would cause severe problems for many people, and as king, it was pharaoh’s responsibility to provide for them. Joseph knew the problems this created, and although he was not asked for help and it was not his responsibility, he took the bold step of suggesting a solution to the coming crisis.

Many times when challenging circumstances arise, it can be tempting to think our ideas are insignificant or to excuse our lack of involvement in the solution by saying, “it is not my responsibility to solve it.” Yet throughout history it often has been the suggestions of those who did not bear the responsibility that have led to the solution to significant problems and led those individuals on to do great things.

When we face trying times, we should never be hesitant to offer suggestions concerning a solution. For as Mordecai suggested to Esther, perhaps God has place us in the situation in order to recommend a course of action which may not otherwise be considered (Esther 4:14). If we do, we may find like Joseph, that God will bless our faithfulness in ways we could not imagine.

Posted: 4/15/08

Cost cutting continues at Baptist Building

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

DALLAS—To cut costs, five additional Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board staff positions are being cut, the research and development team is disbanding, counseling will be outsourced and the WorldconneX missions network will move its offices to the Baptist Building.

BGCT Executive Director Randel Everett announced April 15 the elimination of five staff positions, adding he expects these to be “the final staff cuts.” Earlier, six positions were cut from the BGCT Service Center.

The staff cuts “bring some real financial savings” at a time when the BGCT faces a projected $5.3 million shortfall from the approved 2008 budget, Everett noted. But, he added, “the cuts have not come without pain to individuals and the convention.”

The eliminated posts have been occupied by Lynn Eckeberger, director of the research and development team, and his associate, Ed Hale; Don Sewell, executive liaison of missions relationships; counseling and psychological services specialist Rick Owen and marriage and family specialist/pastoral care specialist Kathy Owen.

“Some essential functions” performed by research and development are being moved to other program areas, Everett explained, and the most of the responsibilities carried by Sewell are being transferred to the Texas Partnerships missions office.

“We will reorganize our counseling ministry in order to better connect ministers around the state with competent counselors,” Everett said. “This will require closing of the Dallas counseling office and elimination of two staff positions. One staff person will then serve to help connect more ministers and their families with approved, licensed counselors in their area of the state.”

WorldconneX will be asked to relocate its offices to the Baptist Building.

“WorldconneX currently pays for office space in another Dallas location,” Everett explained. “Such a move would save money and help WorldconneX and the BGCT Missions, Evangelism and Ministries Team work more closely together.”

In an effort to “place our resources in the most critical ministries to impact churches directly,” Everett announced he and his leadership council agreed to fund fully the Missions, Evangelism and Ministries Team and the Collegiate Ministries Team.

“In these tough economic times the Baptist General Convention of Texas is committed to living within its resources,” Everett said. “The BGCT also is committed to using Cooperative Program dollars in the most effective ways to have a direct impact on our churches and our world. These are driving principles for us.”

Posted: 4/15/08

Statement Regarding 2008 BGCT Budget

By Randel Everett

In these tough economic times the Baptist General Convention of Texas is committed to living within its resources. The BGCT also is committed to using Cooperative Program dollars in the most effective ways to have a direct impact on our churches and our world. These are driving principles for us.

As a result of income challenges this year, the Leadership Council and I are making budget cuts to match spending to income, and we are making budget decisions that place our resources in the most critical ministries to impact churches directly. In announcing our revised budget approach for 2008, let me share with you the following:

1) We will maintain full funding for our Missions, Evangelism and Ministry Team. This means that while the BGCT overall will operate at 90 percent of budget, we will continue to implement all of our plans in regard to missions, evangelism, ministry and congregation resources.

2) We will maintain funding for our Collegiate Ministries Team at 100 percent of budget. While fully funding our important Baptist Student Ministry work, we have reallocated some dollars to further bring campus minister salaries to an appropriate level.

3) We will reorganize our counseling ministry in order to better connect ministers around the state with competent counselors. This will require closing of the Dallas counseling office and elimination of two staff positions. One staff person will then serve to help connect more ministers and their families with approved, licensed counselors in their area of the state.

4) We will encourage WorldconneX to move its offices into the Baptist Building in Dallas. WorldconneX currently pays for office space in another Dallas location. Such a move would save money and help WorldconneX and the BGCT MEM Missions Team work more closely together.

5) We will eliminate the Research and Development Team. This will allow for a reduction of two staff positions, while some essential functions performed by this team will be moved to other teams.

6) We will eliminate the position of liaison of missions relationships in the executive director’s office. We will move most of these responsibilities to the MEM Partnership Missions office.

7) We already have announced elimination of the outbound calling function. This resulted in six staff positions being cut from the Service Center.

While these changes bring some real financial savings and make possible some better effectiveness in areas, they have not come without pain to individuals and to the convention. This grieves our Leadership Council and me; but financial realities forced us to make the best decisions we could in a short amount of time. If we lose one job it’s tragic, but thankfully we have only lost several.

Today I am announcing the elimination of five more positions, but we expect this to be the final staff cuts. Those eliminated positions are:

• Director, Research and Development Team, Lynn Eckeberger;

• Associate Director, Research and Development Team, Ed Hale;

• Executive Liaison of Missions Relationships, Don Sewell;

• Counseling and Psychological Services Specialist, Rick Owen; and

• Marriage & Family/Pastoral Care Specialist, Kathy Owen.

Updated: 4/10/08

Texas Baptists minister in wake
of raid on polygamist compound

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

ELDORADO—When state investigators and law officers removed 416 children and 139 women from the rural West Texas compound of a polygamist sect, Texas Baptist churches, agencies and missions organizations responded by offering ministry to the relocated—and sometimes traumatized—former residents of the YFZ Ranch.

Texas Child Protective Services and the law enforcement officials entered the compound April 3-4 with search warrants, investigating allegations of child abuse by followers of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

The main temple in the YFZ Ranch outside Eldorado. Texas Child Protective Services and the law enforcement officials removed 416 children and 139 women from the rural West Texas compound of a polygamist sect.

First Baptist Church in Eldorado made its facilities available to house between 70 and 80 women and children April 4-6.

The church also allowed state agencies to use two 25-seat church buses to transport more than 180 women and children from the 1,619-acre compound to the church building and to another shelter at the town’s civic center.

Tommy Speed, director of Buckner Children and Family Services programs in West Texas, worked as a consultant and first-responder as the investigation began and relocation occurred.

“We had Texas Rangers, a SWAT team, Highway Patrol and volunteers from the community. But they weren’t in need of humanitarian aid, and it was too early to tell whether they’d need us to take some people into Buckner care,” Speed said. “So, I ended up helping with breakfast, transporting people to the civic center and First Baptist Church of Eldorado and running errands.”

Until the women and children were relocated to San Angelo, Community Baptist Church in Eldorado—along with a local Methodist church and a Church of Christ—provided food and volunteers to serve meals at First Baptist Church and the civic center.

Baptist Child & Family Services took the lead role in the massive, multi-site shelter operation in San Angelo.

Officials with the San Antonio-based agency and its incident-management team supervised the shelters in San Angelo at the request of the Governor’s Division of Emergency Management. By April 8, seven shelters were operating on the grounds of Fort Concho—a historic frontier outpost—and another shelter was planned several miles away.

Fifty Baptist Child & Family Services staff members served onsite at the San Angelo shelters, working 12- to 16-hour shifts, and the agency spent about $200,000 on the effort.

Baptist Child & Family Services also provided a mobile food-service unit in San Angelo, staffed by Texas Baptist Men disaster relief volunteers. TBM made available three portable shower and laundry units for the shelters.

“We are in San Angelo purely and simply to take care of women and children,” said Baptist Child & Family Services President Kevin Dinnin, who was named onsite incident commander of the shelters.

“We were not part of the circumstances that brought them here and have no input in what will happen in the future. We’re here to make sure they have safe, clean places to sleep, access to medical care, healthy food and people who care about them.”

Shelter operations are complicated by the group’s religious beliefs, officials with Baptist Child & Family Services noted. Adherents eat only organic, non-processed foods and do not allow their children to play with certain toys. 

Cultural briefings for CPS investigators and caseworkers, quoting individuals who have left the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saints, warned that the color red is offensive to members since it represents evil. Another explanation is that the color is reserved for Jesus, since they believe that will be the color of the cloak he will wear when he returns to usher in the apocalypse.

Albert Reyes, president of Buckner Children and Family Services, said he is unsure how the state will serve the displaced women and children.

“We have made an inventory of available beds in our system, and we are ready to receive them at different locations if needed,” Reyes said. “For Buckner, our core mission is to improve the lives of children and families. So, so as a Baptist institution, this is consistent with our mission and history, and we remain ready to help in any way that we can.”

Baptist Child & Family Services, Children at Heart Ministries and South Texas Children's Home also have made their systems available to receive any individuals placed by the state.

Buckner International President Ken Hall noted Baptists across the state have demonstrated a great willingness to offer their services in support of the displaced women and children of YFZ Ranch.

“This situation is a good example of how Texas Baptist ministries have made themselves available to First Baptist Church of Eldorado to serve the needs of these children,” Hall said. “This is a testimony to how sister groups like Buckner, Baptist Child & Family Services and Texas Baptist Men have been there to serve the needs of the local church, which in this case has served as a fantastic first-responder.”

With additional reporting by Craig Bird and Russ Dilday

Posted: 4/11/08

RIGHT or WRONG?
Buying lottery tickets

I buy one or two lottery tickets a week, just for fun. I don’t expect to win; I just do it for the entertainment value, like playing a video game or something. Is this really gambling? Since it is just a small amount of leisure income, is it wrong?

Allow me to answer the easy part of this very common question first. Yes, this really is gambling. The amount is irrelevant. You are wagering a small amount for the potential of winning a larger amount. You may see it as a form of personal entertainment, but the fact is you are entertaining yourself by gambling.

The next part of the question is harder to answer. Is it wrong to gamble a small amount, especially if it is truly leisure income? Let me address this from three perspectives.

First, gambling a dollar or two of your leisure income may be a completely innocent entertainment indulgence on your part. In today’s society, however, there may not be a better example of the principle discussed in 1 Corinthians 8 about eating meat that had been offered to idols. We are warned not to let the exercise of our freedom become a stumbling block to a weaker believer. You may not have a problem, but thousands do, and we are admonished to deny ourselves an innocent pleasure rather than cause someone else to fall.

Second, you should realize what your dollar supports. The lottery is a dangerous, immoral social evil. I do not use these strong words lightly. The facts on the lottery bear witness to the truth. The lottery is in essence a regressive tax that preys on the people who least can afford it. The lottery is not an entertainment venue for most of its participants, but a gluttonous parasite that drains people of the money they need to survive. As Christians, we must oppose institutions like the lottery that have at their heart the propensity and desire to do such violent damage to individuals, families and society as a whole. At the very least, we must not support them.

The third, and for me the most significant, perspective opposes the lottery because it has encroached upon one of the most significant roles of the church. Most people play the lottery not for entertainment, but because it gives them hope. People have come to believe that money, and a lot of it, is the solution to their problems.

Christians know better than that. We know where to find hope, and it is certainly not in the lottery. Ephesians 4 says there is one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, one hope when we were called, and that hope is not the lottery. Christians must not abdicate the role of providing true hope to a desperate world.

In short, yes, it is wrong, and you need to find something better to do with your $2 each week.

Van Christian, pastor

First Baptist Church

Comanche

Right or Wrong? is sponsored by the T.B. Maston Chair of Christian Ethics at Hardin-Simmons University's Logsdon School of Theology. Send your questions about how to apply your faith to btillman@hsutx.edu.

Posted: 3/31/08

Buckner programs make history in Peru

By Jenny Pope

Buckner International

Buckner International made history in Peru when officials from the Ministry of Women and Social Work and the Texas-based agency placed eight Peruvian children into the country’s first foster families.

It was the first step of many in an ongoing pilot foster care program. Organizers hope to place 60 orphans and at-risk children into families by the end of the year.

“We interviewed 43 families to choose these first seven,” said Buckner Peru Director Claudia León Vergara. “All the families are well adjusted and stable, with a lot of love to give. They are eager to help these great kids.”

León and her staff have faced overwhelming difficulties to bring the term “foster care” to life in their country. The term didn’t exist until they gave it a name: acojimiento familiar, which literally means “to admit into your house as a guest” or “to offer protection.”

“People frequently think that this concept is similar to adoption,” she said. “In that sense, it has been hard work to make them understand and accept foster care as a possibility.

“Ultimately, we hope to develop this program into public policy. We hope to persuade the government to consider foster care as an alternative to placing children into orphanages when they are in a crisis situation.”

In addition to foster care, Buckner Peru also is providing transitional services for 27 young women and mothers who have been raised in the orphanage system.

Junior, 8, hugs his new foster parent Pablo Vargas as his wife Maria Guadalupe looks on. Junior is one of the first eight children to be placed into foster care in Peru. (Photo/ANDINA/Carlos Lezama)

Two homes have been purchased—in Lima and Cusco—where these young women will live and study for their careers, which includes anything from baking to business administration to fashion design. Another home for teenage mothers will be supported at Reina de la Paz orphanage, near Lima.

“All the girls who take part in the transitional programs come from families living in extreme poverty conditions,” León said. “They have been victims of abuse, abandonment and sexual violence. For them, violence was a normal part of life. These homes will allow them to live in a calm environment and focus on their future careers.

“They will also be reinforced on issues like responsibility, Christian values and self sufficiency in order to encourage them to face the real world and its daily challenges.”

For more information about Buckner ministries in Peru, contact Leslie Chace at lchace@buckner.org.

Posted: 4/11/08

Delayed life choices demand
new strategies, scholar insists

By Ted Meyer

Religion News Service

PRINCETON, N.J. (RNS)—As increasing numbers of young people postpone marriage and children, other life choices—like returning to church—are affected as well, according to a leading scholar of American Protestantism.

As a result, Princeton Univer-sity’s Robert Wuth-now said, religious groups need new ways to lasso these strays from the flock.

“Where young adulthood used to mean one’s 20s, it can now last into one’s 40s,” said Wuthnow, author of the new book, After the Baby Boomers: How Twenty- and Thirty-Somethings are Shaping the Future of Religion.

“As result, young adults get married in their 30s and even 40s, have children later and change career paths more often.”

This is significant, Wuthnow said, because single young adults traditionally are less likely to go to church than their married peers.

“There’s always been a gap, where people tend to leave the church after high school and come back to get married,” said Wuthnow. “Where in the past this period lasted maybe five years, it now can easily last 15. If marriage had not been delayed as it has, I estimate that there would be 6 million more religious participants than there are now.”

As a result, Wuthnow observed, people tend to wander, and explore longer—a tendency encouraged by globalization, multiculturalism and the information age.

“It’s less and less common that a particular young person will choose a religion based solely on their parents’ beliefs, or say that ‘this is a creed I read and I believe it and that’s it,’” Wuthnow said.

“People shop around; they talk to their friends, who are now often of diverse religious backgrounds and even foreign-born. They read and look on the Internet. They put resources together.”

According to Wuthnow, today’s young adults tend to be more open, retaining looser relationships with their congregations. Many subscribe to some kind of agnosticism, falling into the category of “spiritual, but not religious.”

Only Catholics, Muslims and Hindus—replenished by large immigrant populations—have maintained, if not grown, their membership in America, Wuthnow noted. Groups with aging populations and fewer children, such as Protestants and Jews, have declined, leading to a marked increase among those unaffiliated with a religion.

Churches, which often place too much focus on the elderly and children, need to adapt and reach out to America’s young adults, he said.

“Religious leaders should focus on providing support for dealing with big life decisions,” Wuthnow said. “People used to make decisions about things like marriage and career paths in high school, whereas now these decisions are put off until after college, sometimes until one’s 30s.”

Posted: 4/11/08

Around the State

• Randel Everett, newly elected executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, will speak at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor April 16 at 11 a.m.

• The Center for Ministry Effectiveness and Educational Leadership at Baylor University will sponsor a symposium on the renewal of congregational song May 8 at 9 a.m. The symposium will include demonstration of various types of congregational song, a panel on theological and pastoral perspectives; and three versions of the practice of congregational singing. A lunch will follow. The symposium is free. For more information, call (254) 710-4677.

• Tickets are on sale for the fifth annual “Singin’ with the Saints” Southern Gospel concert for senior adults sponsored by Howard Payne University. The concert will begin at 1:30 p.m. on May 15 at Coggin Avenue Church in Brownwood. The featured performers are The Dove Brothers Quartet and Gold City. Tickets are $12 and can be ordered by calling (800) 950-8465.

• Hardin-Simmons University has inducted six people into Hall of Leaders. Honorees are Nita Lewallen, one of the university’s first Six White Horse Riders, in 1940; Consuelo Kickbusch, who earned her commission as a second lieutenant through HSU’s Reserve Officer Training Corps and was the first woman commissioned as an ROTC officer in the state of Texas and retired after a 20-year career as a U.S. Army lieutenant colonel; John Clayton, a 1964 HSU graduate, who was the first American ever to be asked by Cambridge University to deliver the prestigious Stanton Lectures in philosophy of religion; Jack Martin, a 1948 HSU graduate who at the time of his retirement was the winningest active basketball coach in Texas and currently is a brigadier general in the Texas Air National Guard; Marion McClure, director of the Cowboy Band from 1934 until his death in 1973, except for his years of military service during World War II; and Moxley Featherston, a 1935 magna cum laude graduate who became a lawyer and federal judge.

• Members of Houston Baptist University’s Alpha Epsilon Delta health pre-professional honors society took three awards at the society’s national convention in Dallas. The HBU students won regional awards for best activities and best attendance, and received a national award for best community service for their contributions to the the Fort Worth Food Bank.

• Chris Wood has been named registrar of East Texas Baptist University.

Anniversaries

• Larry Sullivan, 20th, as pastor of Shenandoah Church in Cedar Park, March 20. A dinner will be served in his honor April 20 following the morning worship service. For more information, call (512) 258-6909.

• Ralph Powers, fifth, as pastor of First Church in Golinda.

• The Heights Church in San Angelo, 100th, April 6. James Miller is pastor.

• First Church in Sinton, 100th, April 6. Mack Caffey is pastor.

• The Country Church in Marion, 10th, April 6. Butch Ikels, who celebrated 30 years in ministry the same day, is pastor.

• Kyle Klemcke, fifth, as pastor of New Faith Church in Nacogdoches, April 13.

• Primera Iglesia in Laredo, 125th, April 26-27. Saturday’s all-day celebration will be held at Lake Casa Blanca State Park. Sunday’s service will be at 10:50 a.m. Dorso Maciel is pastor.

• First Church in Denton, 150th, May 4. The church will begin its celebration April 20 when Gary Loudermilk, executive director of Denton Association and former interim pastor of the church, will preach in the morning service. Former pastor Wayne Blankenship will preach in the morning service April 27. On Saturday evening May 3, Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Church in Dallas, will be the keynote speaker for a communitywide revival service, with six Denton pastors also participating. An anniversary choir will sing an anthem commissioned for the celebration May 4. A reception for former staff will be held that afternoon. Jeff Williams is pastor.

Retiring

• Bill White, as pastor of The Oaks Church in Grand Prairie, Jan. 27. He served the church 15 years and had been in ministry 42 years. Other churches he served as pastor include Priddy Church in Priddy, First Church in Springtown, First Church in Crowley, First Church in Orange and Northside Church in Victoria.

• Norman Diehl, as pastor of North Creek Church in Centerville, April 20. He served the church four years and was in ministry 53 years. Other churches he served include Simmon City Church in Three Rivers, Duffau Church in Hico, First Church in Dickinson, University Heights Church in Huntsville and Calvary Church in Hunts-ville. He and his wife, Sue, will live in Huntsville. He is available for supply and interims at (936) 295-3171.

• Terry Cosby, after 27 years as a Texas Baptist pastor. He is available for supply and interims at (817) 357-7745.

Events

• First Church in Marble Falls held a missions celebration April 4-6. Retired and active missionaries were featured. Steve Peace is pastor.

• Holly Brook Church in Hawkins will hold a missions celebration May 2-4. Joy Fenner, president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, will be the keynote speaker Friday evening. On Saturday, the Lindale Baptist Men Disaster Team will provide basic training and offer certification in five areas of disaster ministry. Also, there will 15 booths from ministries and missions in Texas, as well as the International Mission Board and the North American Mission Board. A mission walk will be held from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. The evening will feature testimonies and preaching from Danny Pickens, director of missions for Smith Association. Sunday morning will include testimonies and preaching from Buddy Woods, retired IMB missionary. Sunday evening will feature Texas WMU, Texas Baptist Men and Jim Goforth, retired NAMB missionary, will preach. Guy McGraw is pastor.

• Gospel singing artist Blake Bolerjack will present a free concert May 18 at 6 p.m. at Southside Church in Perryton.

Deaths

• Bob Cooper, 85, March 17 in Dallas. A Baylor University graduate, he was a deacon more than 50 years. After retirement, he and his wife, Sue, worked at Lifeway Glorieta Conference Center, where he was the host of the dining room the past 30 years. Because of his faithfulness and love for the ministry to people young and old, a life-sized bronze statue of him was installed at the entrance of the Glorieta dining hall in 2002 on his 80th birthday. He is survived by his wife of 60 years; son, Robert; daughter, Claire Black; seven grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

• John Perez, 43, March 19 in San Antonio after a heart attack. After graduating cum laude from the Baptist University of the Americas, he was the founding pastor of Iglesia Nueva La Vida in Gonzales, where he still served. A computer programmer before entering the ministry, he was a substitute teacher in the local school district. He is survived by his wife, Jackie; parents, Rosa and Eduardo Perez; daughters, Laura, Kimberly and Stephanie Perez; son, William Willis; step-sons, Donald and Jackie Stanton; sisters, Theresa Clack, Barbara Perez and Lupia Carmona; brothers, Alejandro Gonzalez and George Perez; and two grandchildren.

• Aileen Culpepper, 89, March 29 in Abilene. She was dormitory director at Hardin-Simmons University 59 years. Although she had no children of her own, she was a mother figure to countless girls and served as counselor, nurse, chaperone, seamstress and and friend to generations of students who lived away from home for the first time. She even helped some deal with tragedy, such as in 1944, just after accepting the position, on three separate occassions she had to tell the same young woman each of her brothers had been killed in combat. Daily throughout her life, she wrote at least 10 letters of encouragement, advice, counsel or congratulations to students, faculty, staff and even people she did not know. In 1986, she received the John J. Keeter Jr. Alumni Service Award. She was the 1993-1994 former staff member of the year, and in 1998, the Aileen Culpepper Endowed Scholarship was established in her honor. She received an honorary doctorate of humanities degree in 2003. She was a member of Pioneer Drive Church in Abilene.

Ordained

• Joey Riggs, Johnny Bowen and Michael Dworaczyk as deacons at First Church in Christine.

• Wendell Bradley as a deacon at First Church in Lometa.

• Karl Vaught, Don Loving, Randy Oliver and Nat Warner as deacons at Bulverde Church in Bulverde.

Revivals

• First Church, George West; April 13-16; evangelist, Robert Barge; pastor, Bruce Irving.

• Tabernacle Church, Pickton; April 13-16; evangelist, Kent Pate; pastor, Patrick Gernenz.

• First Church, Farwell; April 20-23; evangelist, Robert Barge; music, Denbigh Cherry; pastor, Kyle Clayton.

• Reliance Church, Bryan; April 24-27; evangelist, Berry Wellman; music, New Reliance Quartet; pastor, Ray Marshall.

• First Church, Ozona; April 25-27; evangelist, Robert Barge, music, Gregory Smith; pastor, John Collis.

Posted: 4/11/08

MLK’s generation of pastors makes
way for new vision, new generation

By Greg Garrison & Val Walton

Religion News Service

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (RNS)—They were pastors and civil rights leaders who broke the back of unjust segregation laws and set in motion the transformation of America into a more racially tolerant nation.

Forty years after the violent death of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, the generation of pastors whose passion and commitment to civil rights rang from pulpits, stirred marches and rallies, and even filled jail cells, is fading.

In the post-civil rights movement years, activist preachers have set their sights on different kinds of injustices—crime, education and the gap between the rich and poor.

“The generation that’s coming up now is enjoying the fruit of the work of those leaders,” said Janice Franklin, director of the National Center for the Study of Civil Rights and African-American Culture at Alabama State University.

Many old lions of the civil rights movement have died in recent years. They were friends and allies of King and played supporting roles in the civil rights movement that started in the South and soon spread nationwide.

Fred Shuttlesworth, now 86, invited King to Birmingham in 1963 to assist in leading the civil rights struggle. He was pastor of Bethel Baptist Church in Collegeville eight years before moving to Cincinnati in 1961, but he returned to Birming-ham regularly to lead rallies and marches.

“My blood ran through Birmingham streets,” he often said, referring to the times he was beaten by police.

Today, Shuttlesworth is back in Birmingham, undergoing rehabilitation for a stroke he suffered last year. His fiery sermons may be done, but he hasn’t given up on his fight for justice.

“I don’t figure I’ve lost my life,” Shuttlesworth said recently. “I have more to do. It will involve challenging something about the system. Something about it is not quite right.”

Abraham Woods, 79 and a longtime loyal supporter of Shuttlesworth, has been battling cancer several years, and in 2006 he passed on the presidency of the local Southern Christian Leader-ship Conference to his 74-year-old brother, Calvin.

Abraham Woods, pastor of St. Joseph Baptist Church, still summons new energy when he recalls the civil rights movement and talks about the need to continue the fight. But he concedes there may never be a solution to social ills such as racism and crime.

“As long as people are people, we are going to have to grapple with those things,” he said.

Woods doubts America will see another charismatic leader like King. Any change will result from a collective effort of pastors to carry on King’s dream, he said.

“It would have been a great thing if we had another King,” Woods said. “He was a special man for our times. We are going to have to deal with it collectively. We are going to have to have unity.”

Pastors in the civil rights era practiced social activism by leading marches to protest issues such as school segregation, separate but unequal public accommodations and unequal access to courts.

Although the federal government brought changes to remedy some of those injustices, remedies for current challenges are not as clear, ministers said.

“We have been able to accomplish and retain some of the civil rights,” Woods said. “It looks like our silver rights continue to be elusive,” he said, a reference to economic disparities.

Today, social activist pastors focus on economic empowerment, enhancing public education, job training and anti-crime initiatives.

Injustices now often take the shape of problems such as getting loans or job opportunities, younger ministers said. The enemies are not as easily personified as was Birmingham’s notorious public safety commissioner, Eugene “Bull” Connor.

“It’s not as obvious as a billy club,” said Anthony Johnson, grandson of the late N.H. Smith, a hero in the civil rights movement.

Still, there is a need to address some of the problems with old-fashioned tools, such as marches and rallies, Woods said.

“We have to keep that in our arsenal because it raises the level of consciousness,” he said. “I think marches will be in order as long as there is a human family.”

But the complex problems facing black America today may require solutions other than marches, sit-ins and boycotts.

“The reason for marches was to bring attention to the issues, and they were successful,” Franklin said. “There is new leadership with a new agenda that builds on the work of the civil rights era. It’s a continuation of what Dr. King envisioned. The strategies may be different.”

Steve Green, 48-year-old pastor of More Than Conquerors Faith Church, believes younger ministers are part of a new wave of pastoral leaders he described as the “Joshua generation.”

Joshua, the biblical successor to Moses, helped lead the Jewish people to the Promised Land after Moses delivered them from slavery in Egypt.

Green believes a newer generation of religious leaders will help carry on the civil right gains made by King’s generation.

“We have new strategies, but we are not abandoning necessarily all of the old,” Green said. “Any biblical strategy is never obsolete.”

Posted: 4/11/08

Book Reviews

A City Upon a Hill: How Sermons Changed the Course of American History by Larry Witham (HarperOne)

Sometime in 1630, John Winthrop delivered a sermon to the Puritans. He preached, “We shall be as a city upon a hill … .” Journalist Larry Witham borrows the phrase to title his book, A City Upon a Hill: How Sermons Changed the Course of American History.

Witham chronicles both the positive and negative power of the preacher/pastor and traces the impact of sermons on American life using three divisions: The Colonial Period (1607-1800), National Period (1800-1900) and Modern Period (1900-today).

He indicates that sometimes a single sermon changes the course of history, such as the 26-year-old Martin Luther King Jr.’s sermon on Dec. 5, 1955, that led to the Montgomery bus boycott or his later “I Have a Dream” address.

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

However, Witham suggests more often a body of sermons by a particular minister or public official, such as Billy Graham or Abraham Lincoln or a series of sermons by several preachers on a single subject, such as Prohibition, make the difference.

He also outlines the impact of radio and television on the sermon and American life.

Complete with timeline, notes, bibliography and extensive index, A City Upon a Hill offers a thoughtful and well-researched glimpse into the impact of religious words on American heritage.

Kathy Robinson Hillman, former president

Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas

Waco

Empowered Women: Stories and Studies of Women in the Early Church by Janet Burton (Tate Publishing & Enterprises)

Janet Burton has done a masterful job of leading into a deeper understanding of the Book of Acts, offering a unique book focusing upon the work of God in the lives of the men and women of the early church. 

Burton skillfully reveals how God used men and women to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world, writing without a combative attitude regarding women’s rights. 

The book has 14 chapters grouped into five sections. Each section focuses on the work of the church, beginning with “Women in the Pentecost Era” and followed with “Women Help to Move the Gospel Forward,” “Women of the Asia Expansion,” “Women of Macedonia and Greece” and “Women of the Prison Years.” 

Burton begins each chapter with a fictional scenario revealing the work women may have been doing in support and coordination of the work God was doing through the men of the church. (An example is the work done by women in preparing the food alms to be distributed by the deacons to the widows and needy as recorded in Acts 6.)

Following the scenerio, she takes each chapter into a “behind the scenes” study of what was happening at that time in the life of the church. Based on extensive research of culture, customs, geography and biblical history, each chapter contains a wealth of information that provides insight into the challenges and struggles facing the men and women of the early church.

Burton then begins to raise issues faced by Christians and the church today—issues that can make the reader feel uncomfortable.

Yet Burton’s gentle spirit will not allow her to leave the reader there. Instead, she encourages a positive attitude in Christ’s power. By moving forward, Christians will experience the mighty things God wants to accomplish with and through them, as he did with the men and women of the early church.

Empowered Women: Stories and Studies of Women in the Early Church comes with a study guide equipped with lesson plans for the leader and study sheets for the students. For womens’ groups that love book studies, this is one book well worth the investment of time and money.

Burton has done a masterful job of exposing us to the human dimension of the men and women in Acts, and her book should be on a “must read” list. Don’t pass this one by.

Randall Scott, Pastor

Immanuel Baptist Church

Paris