Texas Baptist Forum

Recommendation No. 4

Well, the Southern Baptist Convention’s Great Commission Resurgence Task Force listened to the folks out West (May 10). But when it came down to changing any recommendations related to the North American Mission Board and the cooperative agreements with the states, the GCRTF made no changes and recommended that their recommendations be adopted by the SBC next month in Orlando.

While most of the recommendations are certainly acceptable, recommendation No. 4 (the “redirection” of the North American Mission Board) has got to be defeated.

Perhaps they’re hoping that with the meeting so far from the West, all of their recommendations will easily pass. Seems like a good strategy. It’s going to take a concerted effort by those who will be harmed the most by the adoption of recommendation No. 4 to “get the vote out” and defeat it.

Parliamentary procedure can help. A separate vote on each recommendation will allow the messengers the opportunity to express what they feel is the best and worst of the recommendations.

Support a time of repentance and renewal. Support the recommendation on giving. But above all, defeat the recommendation restructuring the cooperative agreements.

Robert Gillchrest

San Diego, Calif.

Baptism & obedience

I read your coverage of the baptism issue (April 26) with growing disbelief and sadness.

A non-Christian teaching a Sunday school class of young people? “Believer’s baptism” by any mode at any age? “If you feel your baptism—by immersion, sprinkling or pouring—was valid, then that’s acceptable”? Whatever happened to doing what our Savior says, regardless of how we feel?

An old saying is that a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. The first step for a new Christian is baptism by immersion. Jesus makes that clear by his example. The goal of all Christians is to be obedient to God’s word. How can we set out on a journey of obedience to our Lord if we are unwilling to take the first step by being baptized by immersion?

Johnny Bittick

Flower Mound

Losing faith

I respect Laura Bush—the adult she has become—but I am saddened by the neglect of spiritual leaders when she was 17 and in need of spiritual counsel.

Of that time, she wrote, “I lost my faith that November; lost it for many, many years. It was the first time that I had prayed to God for something, begged him for something—not the simple childhood wishing on a star, but humbly begging for another human life. And it was as if no one heard” (May 10).

A person cannot lose one’s faith if they really had it to start with. Faith isn’t a commodity that one obtains by theirself. Faith is the giving of God, a way of understanding the righteousness of Christ to a person who has recognized the hopelessness and helplessness of a sinful life and one’s need of forgiveness from a holy God.

She should have been counseled that a person cannot disobey a traffic law that caused a young man to die and presume that God’s goodness will make everything all right just because she prayed, although God did cause her and her friend to live. This is very sad, and a wrong attitude about faith and prayer.

Jesus promises that true believers are held in the hands of his Father and him (John 10:28-29). You can’t lose a spiritual gift that comes through faith.

Fay Mileur

Sadler

What do you think? Send letters to Editor Marv Knox by mail: P.O. Box 660267, Dallas 75266-0267; or by e-mail: [email protected].