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Archives For November 30, 1999

Why we went to a Super Bowl party

Meredith Flynn —  February 4, 2013

SPE_034HEARTLAND | Nate Adams

Recently our neighbors invited us to a Super Bowl Party at their home. This isn’t the first year they have invited us, but it is the first time we said yes. I have to admit, though, that there were several reasons I wanted to say no.

First, of course it was on a Sunday. The afternoon game time meant I could easily get home from the church where I was speaking. But Sunday afternoon is usually a time when I can relax a little, have some personal time, and maybe even take a nap. I kind of wanted the option of falling asleep in front of the game, rather than socializing through it.

Second, the people that were inviting us aren’t very much like us, and we both knew that. Before offering the invitation, our neighbor asked, “Do you mind being around people who are drinking?” The invitation itself then came with assurances that there would be soft drinks available as well. I guess we’re known as “the Baptists on the block,” and most of our neighbors know I’m in full-time ministry.

Third, I wasn’t sure exactly what kind of position we might find ourselves in at this party. Who else would be there? Would we even find we had much in common to talk about? Would others wonder why we were there, especially after not coming in previous years, and would they be watching us for ways we might not fit in?

Finally, I wondered what kinds of other commitments might be asked of us as a result of this party. Did they need new workers for the neighborhood workday or workday? Would we now be asked to buy more wrapping paper or Girl Scout cookies from their kids?

I know, all those suspicions and phobias don’t sound very trusting, or even mature, do they? And yet as I reflected on all the reasons I wanted to tell our neighbors no once again, I realized that many of those same thoughts probably run through the mind of anyone who is invited to church by his or her neighbor.

When we invite our neighbors to church, we may feel like we are inviting them to a wonderful place where we have the richest worship experiences and deepest friendships of our lives. But in their minds we may be asking them to take a big slice of their most personal time and spend it with people they suspect are not very much like them, and who may press them for changes they’re not ready to make.

So instead of saying no to the Super Bowl party this year, we said yes. It wasn’t just because we empathized with how hard it is to invite someone to something. It was because our neighbor taught us something about the art of a sincere invitation.

First, she has gradually but consistently built a closer and more trusting relationship with us. I now believe she wouldn’t intentionally put us in an awkward or compromising position. She obviously knows we’re different than many of those who will be at the party, but she respects our values and looks for ways to accommodate them. She seems interested in us personally, and not with whether we will conform to others. And she has persistently and warmly invited us, even when we’ve always said no. Her invitation came from her heart.

There was one more thing. In saying yes this time, we also knew there would be at least three couples present for whom we’ve been praying, and looking for opportunities to share Christ. In fact one of those couples is our host. And in an ironic way, God has used the very neighbors for whom we’ve been praying to show us the art, and the heart, of a good invitation.

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When Halloween falls on a church night

Meredith Flynn —  October 25, 2012

COMMENTARY | Craig Webb

Seven in 10 Americans (68.6%) plan to celebrate Halloween, according to a 2011 National Retail Federation study. But this year, Halloween falls on a Wednesday. If your church is like most others, you have midweek programming on Wednesday nights and it is unlikely that you would cancel those activities for Halloween.

So the question is: What do you do when a major cultural event that does not represent your values threatens to hijack your activities?

Let me share how our church has chosen to tackle this. Our Wednesday night programming includes dinner, age-level activities and short-term connect groups for adults. I called an “ad hoc strategic meeting” with key staff members who lead or are involved in Wednesday activities. The only item on our agenda was to deal with our plans for Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2012.

After discussing all the options, we decided not to ignore Halloween, but to plan a few simple enhancements for the night and communicate to our church family in time for them to make their own decisions about participation.

This is what we are planning to do.

1) We will not cancel any of our activities on Oct. 31.

2) We will host a Fall Family Festival the previous Sunday evening (Oct. 28).

3) We are planning a fun “family meal” on Oct. 31.

4) We are planning service-focused activities and games for our children and middle school students. They will be packing Operation Christmas Child boxes.

5) We will hold normal activities for our high school and adult ministries.

While that may not sound revolutionary, we have clarity and agreement about our path, and we can communicate this direction to the larger staff, church leaders and the whole church family. If you have not decided what you will do, here’s my suggestion for your church:

1) Call a strategic meeting with your staff, key church leaders or those involved in leading Wednesday night activities.

2) Discuss ways to capitalize on Halloween for your Wednesday activities.

3) Plan enhancements on Wednesday night that will make people think twice about missing.

4) Communicate these plans to your leaders and your church family.

Two other options to consider for Oct. 31:

1) Host a trunk-or-treat or fall family festival.

2) Host a community movie night (Visit LifeWay Films for help).

Craig Webb is pastor of vision & purpose at Gladeville Baptist Church in Mt. Juliet, Tenn. This article first appeard in the Pastors Today weekly newsletter published by LifeWay Christian Resources. This version is excerpted from Baptist Press.

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Mission Illinois: More than a meeting theme

Meredith Flynn —  October 18, 2012

COMMENTARY | Nate Adams

When hundreds of churches convene next month for the IBSA Annual Meeting in Decatur, we will assemble under the theme “Mission Illinois.” For me, however, it’s more than a meeting theme. In the days ahead, I hope the mantra of Mission Illinois will begin to represent a fresh new vision of why we as churches choose to cooperate, and how we measure our effectiveness as a state association.

For several years now, we as the churches and leaders of IBSA have focused our energies on four key priorities: strengthening churches, starting churches, sending Christians into their Acts 1:8 mission fields, and stimulating stewardship among churches so we can do our part with other Southern Baptists to fund the larger missions efforts of the SBC.

Our goals within those key priorities have been aggressive, and we haven’t always attained them. But for the most part we are training more leaders with fewer staff, starting a steady number of new churches with lower national funding, and directly assisting more churches in their evangelism and missions efforts in spite of higher travel costs and a challenging economy.

But we as an association of churches still long to see increases in indicators such as baptisms, worship and Bible study participation, and the net number of IBSA churches – all of which have remained relatively flat over the past few years. We don’t care about numbers for numbers’ sake, but because they are indicators of missional advance, church health, and Kingdom expansion. We want to see lostness decrease and the accessibility of Bible-believing churches increase.

So I’ve been asking myself, and would invite you to ask with me, what might need to change? How might we adjust our efforts in this mission we call Illinois?

I don’t claim to have it figured out yet, or that I can do it alone. More often than not, I feel like our blind dog Willy that I described in the last issue. In fact, our mission here in Illinois is partly what I had in mind when I wrote, “There are times when it seems that I just can’t see things, or can’t see where things are going, with the clarity or certainty I would like. Things in my family, my work, my church, things in Baptist life, things in our nation, things on the world scene – all seem to be less predictable, less comfortable than in the past.”

That certainly is an environment where faith and dependence on God for vision are desperately needed, as Willy’s situation illustrates. And so I have not been hasty to propose a new mission statement or declare a new direction. I’m praying and thinking, listening and observing, drafting and revising, waiting and praying. And I invite you to join me, and to e-mail, write or call with your thoughts or ideas.

In the next couple of issues, I’m going to share a little more of what I think “Mission Illinois” might mean as a vision for our future as IBSA churches. On one hand, it’s hard for me to imagine that strengthening churches and starting churches and sending Christians on mission, and stimulating faithful stewardship among churches will not still be primary priorities. On the other hand, I can’t help but believe that God wants to do more through our cooperation than we are currently experiencing.

So please join me in prayer and creative thinking as we approach this year’s IBSA Annual Meeting. For us as Illinois Baptists, Mission Illinois must be more than an annual meeting theme. It must become a rallying cry for reinvigorated, purposeful cooperation that actually impacts the lostness of our Illinois mission field.

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Chicago church takes a stand against neighborhood violence

Meredith Flynn —  October 16, 2012

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

Pastor Larry Trotter has done four funerals in recent months for victims of gun violence. In his neighborhood on Chicago’s south side, the streets can be very dangerous, especially after this summer, which saw a dramatic increase in the city’s homicide rate.

That’s why Trotter and his congregation from Sweet Holy Spirit Church took to the streets September 30, marching through their neighborhood chanting, “Stop the violence,” and “Save our children.” Almost 200 people participated in the anti-violence rally and march.

“I know that this won’t stop everything, but I want people to grab the passion,” Trotter said, according to Associated Press reports. “If we all join together, we can make an impact.”

According to Chicago police, almost 400 people have been killed this year, and the homicide rate is up 31 percent over last year. Since the extremely violent 1990s, crime has decreased in Chicago, but the recent rise in violence shows there’s much room for improvement.

“The city has gone wild. It’s no longer just gang killing, it’s random killing,” Trotter said. “We have to try and channel that energy and put it in another direction.”

Or march it in another direction. And hopefully it will benefit the generation currently growing up in an environment that can be very frightening. Brandy Lewis was one of the participants in Sweet Holy Spirit’s march. As a mother and someone who works with youth everyday, Lewis told the Chicago Tribune the community has a responsibility to its youngest members to end the violence.

“We’re out here trying to bring attention to our neighborhood that we have to do something to keep our kids alive.”

And prayer plays a key role, Trotter said according to the Tribune. “The message is ‘Stop the violence,’ but the spiritual message is that we’re praying for the … violence to cease.”

-With information from Associated Press, Christian Post, and Chicago Tribune

Other news from Baptist Press:

Allen elected president of Midwestern Seminary
In a 29-2 vote, Jason K. Allen was elected by Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary trustees as the school’s fifth president. The vote took place October 15 during the trustees’ bi-annual meeting in Kansas City, Mo. Allen, 35, comes to Midwestern from Louisville, Ky., where he served as vice president for institutional advancement at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and as executive director of the Southern Seminary Foundation. He had concurrently served as senior pastor of Carlisle Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville. Read more at BPNews.net.

A win for pro-life pharmacists
An Illinois appeals court has granted a victory to pro-life pharmacists who object to providing drugs that can cause abortions. Pharmacy owners Luke Vander Bleek and Glenn Kosirog challenged a 2005 rule mandating pharmacists fill all prescriptions, including those for Plan B and other “morning-after” pills. In September, the Illinois Fourth District Court upheld a lower court injunction that blocked the state from enforcing the rule.

ERLC pres. search goes online
The SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission has launched a website to aid in identifying a new president for the agency following the October 2013 retirment of Richard Land. At erlc.com/presidentialsearch, potential candidates can view a list of attributes ERLC trustees are seeking, and a prayer guide for the committee’s work. The site also is the only way by which interest in the ERLC presidency can be communicated to the trustee search committee, who will accept curriculum vitae from prospective candidates through Oct. 31. Read more.

Missionary kid shares childhood through children’s book
Valerie Elliot Shephard, the only child of missionaries Jim and Elisabeth Elliot, has written a children’s book about her early life in the Ecuadorian jungle where her mother told a tribe about Jesus after they had killed her father. Shephard was only 10 months old when her father was killed; she and her mother remained in the jungle several years until many in the tribe accepted Christ and abandoned their savage ways. The October release of “Pilipinto’s Happiness: The Jungle Childhood of Valerie Elliot” coincides with the 85th anniversary of Jim Elliot’s birth. Pilipinto, meaning “butterfly,” was the Indians’ nickname for the girl.

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NAMB trustees meet in Chicago for ‘Send’ launch

Meredith Flynn —  October 9, 2012

THE BRIEFING | Posted by Meredith Flynn

Targeting 163 new church plants in Chicagoland over the next five years, the Send North America planting strategy for Illinois’ largest metropolitan area launched Oct. 7-8 with a prayer gathering of local church leaders and a meeting of North American Mission Board trustees.

This visit by NAMB trustees marks the importance of Chicago in the Southern Baptist Convention’s plans to reach the central United States with the Gospel. “With nearly 9 million people in the Chicago metro area, it is our largest, most influential city in the Midwest,” said Steve Davis, NAMB’s vice president for the Midwest region. “The task of penetrating the lostness and conserving the harvest through church planting is enormous.”

Davis joined NAMB President Kevin Ezell, the trustees, leaders from the Illinois Baptist State Association, and a host of missionary planters and local pastors when the Send plans for Chicagoland were presented October 8.

Send North America is NAMB’s strategy to help churches and individuals become active in all regions of North America to lead people to faith in Jesus Christ and start new churches. Chicago is one of 30 highly influential urban centers throughout North America that NAMB is focusing the attention of Southern Baptists on through Send.

With 8.7 million people in the 10 Illinois counties surrounding the city, Chicago is behind only New York City and Los Angeles as the largest Send North America cities.

“Few cities have more impact than Chicago,” said Van Kicklighter, associate executive director for missions and church planting at IBSA. “This is certainly true for Illinois but equally true of Chicago’s impact nationally as well as globally.  Chicago is a wonderful place for Southern Baptists to cover with their intercessory prayer, engage with church partnerships, and spread their missionary wings by sending people who will plant their lives here for the sake of the Gospel.”

For more information on Send North America: Chicago, read the current issue of the Illinois Baptist online, or visit namb.net/Chicago.

Eric Reed is editorial consultant for Illinois Baptist media and reported this story with additional information from Tobin Perry of the North American Mission Board.

In other news:

Six-year-old Texan partners with IBSA for ministry in Haiti
IBSA’s Missions Team recently received a check for $516.20 from an unlikely source: 6-year-old Mackenzie Howell, a Texan who has been burdened for Haiti since she first learned of the devastating earthquake that rocked the country in 2010. “She was deeply touched and wanted to do something for the kids who, in her words, ‘lost their moms, their dads, their schools and their homes,’” wrote Mackenzie’s mom Allison Howell in a letter to IBSA. Mackenzie’s donation will be used to help purchase school supplies or books for children who wouldn’t have them otherwise. And the gift may also help a local Haitian church point people to the Gospel. The full story is on page 8 of the newest edition of the Illinois Baptist. Read it here.

Survey: Pastors reject pulpit endorsements
Nearly 90 percent of pastors believe they should not endorse candidates for public office from the pulpit, according to a survey by LifeWay Research. That marks an increase since 2010, when a similar LifeWay survey found 84% of pastors believed they shouldn’t endorse candidates from the pulpit. The new findings, released Oct. 1, also revealed that 44 percent of pastors personally endorsed candidates, but did so outside of their church role. Read more at Baptist Press.

Cooperative Program ends year 3% above budget; downturn may be reversing
The Cooperative Program ended its fiscal year 3 percent over budget and at 99.41 percent of last year’s contributions. Church giving hopefully has dipped as low as it will from the U.S. economic downturn and may be ready to stabilize or climb, Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee President Frank Page said. “We finished 3 percent ahead of our budgeted goal and only slightly under last year’s CP total. This is hallelujah territory! To God be the glory.” Read the full story at Baptist Press.

Tyndale files suit against abortion mandate
Bible and Christian book publisher Tyndale House has filed suit against the Obama administration’s abortion/contraceptive mandate, asserting it is an unconstitutional violation of religious liberty to force the publisher to pay for drugs that violate its faith tenets. The mandate requires employers – with few exceptions – to carry employee health insurance plans that cover contraceptives and drugs that can cause chemical abortions. At least 30 lawsuits have been filed against the mandate. Go to BPNews.net for more.

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Praying for church revival

Meredith Flynn —  October 8, 2012

HEARTLAND | Meredith Flynn

Editor’s note: Southern Baptists have been called to pray for 40 days or 40 hours prior to this fall’s election through the 40/40 Vigil. Today’s Heartland post is from Day (or Hour) 13. Go to 4040prayer.com to read more prayer prompts and to find out how to join the vigil.

Scripture for reflection and preparation

“In the beginning was the Word; and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created.” John 1:1, 3

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed.” Romans 3:23-25

“But He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on Him, and we are healed by His wounds. We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished Him for the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:5-6

REVIVAL ROOTED IN GOD – Revival begins when God’s people turn back to God.

PREPARATION

  • Praise God for who He is
  • Confess your sinfulness and need for cleansing
  • Allow His Spirit to draw you near
  • Listen as He speaks to you

ASK GOD TO…

  • Choose to send revival at this time
  • Help Christians regain their understanding of His holiness
  • Convict Christians that they are to be completely dependent on Him
  • Restore in Christians an understanding of the destructive power of sin
  • Remind Christians of His great love for them
  • Remind Christians of His great sacrifice on their behalf through Jesus
  • Raise up Spirit-filled leaders to call the church to holiness

THANKSGIVING

  • Thank God for hearing you
  • Trust that God is at work to accomplish His will
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At church’s ‘Great Debate,’ speakers tackle one-issue voting

Meredith Flynn —  October 2, 2012

THE BRIEFING | Posted by Meredith Flynn

It wasn’t a typical Sunday night at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Decatur. While Tabernacle Pastor Wes Feltner did occupy the worship center platform, he was joined by four panelists to whom he served as moderator.

Billed as the “Great Debate: Faith and Politics 2012,” the panelist were there to discuss, “How high the wall? Faith, Politics and the Public Square.”

One-issue voting proved to be a hot topic among the panelists, who came from a variety of perspectives.

“It’s not wrong, but I do have concerns with it,” said Shaun Lewis, who ministers to Illinois lawmakers through the Capitol Commission. “The problem being one issue voting tends to define the church by that one issue and it does a lot of damage to the image of the church. It shifts the identity of the church to elevating one issue more than it should be.”

Chad Brand, a professor of theology at Southern Seminary, added, “There are many issues we ought to be concerned about. We cannot help ourselves from reacting to certain issues. The church is gifted with diverse people. We can’t let ourselves be driven by gay rights and abortion. We must recognize there are other issues.”

James Estep, a dean at Lincoln Christian College and Seminary in Lincoln, Ill., said one solution is to train young thinkers to look critically at the issues. “It is essential to have a strong education system so you have intelligent voters to make informed decisions,” he said. “That one issue, 10, 20 years later might not be an important issue anymore.”

Reported by Lisa Sergent, contributing editor of the Illinois Baptist. Look for the full story in the October 8 issue, or read it online here.

In other news:

Gender-specific events banned by school district
A school district in Cranston, Rhode Island, has banned father-daughter dances and mother-son baseball outings, which are gender-specific and could be interpreted as going against state law. The decision came in response to a complaint from the ACLU on behalf of a single mother whose daughter could not attend a father-daughter dance because she did not have a father in her life. According to the Providence Journal, the Cranston School Committee soon will consider a resolution asking lawmakers to modify state law to preserve the father-daughter dances. Read more at BPNews.net.

Mohler on ‘Jesus’ wife’ claim
Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said a small fragment of papyrus said to mention Jesus’ “wife” is “sensationalism masquerading as scholarship.” After Harvard professor Karen King announced in mid-September the discovery of the tiny (smaller than a business card) document, Mohler blogged about the real meaning of the supposed discovery. “…Do not miss what all this really represents – an effort to replace biblical Christianity with an entirely new faith.” Read Mohler’s full blog post here.

Pakistani Christians victimized
As many as 600 families were forced to evacuate their neighborhood after a 14-year-old girl in Pakistan was accused of blasphemy. Rimsha Masih has since been released on bail and Khalid Chisti, the Muslim cleric who accused her, was arrested when witnesses alleged he framed the girl. Chisti reportedly had earlier called for the massacre of Christians in the neighborhood. The displaced families were assisted by Baptist Global Response partners, who helped by providing meals and praying with them. Read the full story at BPNews.net.

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10 reasons we haven’t reached the unchurched

Meredith Flynn —  September 27, 2012

COMMENTARY | Thom Rainer

Editor’s note: In a column posted on Baptist Press, LifeWay Christian Resources President Thom Rainer listed 10 factors that threaten the church’s effectiveness. See his list below, and add your own in the comments section. And go to BPnews.net to read the full column.

1. Spiritual lethargy.
2. Growing inclusivism.
3. Growing disbelief in hell.
4. Busyness.
5. Fear of rejection.
6. A desire to be tolerant.
7. Losing the habit of witnessing.
8. Lack of accountability.
9. Failure to invite.
10. We go to churches that do not reach the unchurched.

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Making your church a safe haven for children

Meredith Flynn —  August 23, 2012

COMMENTARY | Darlene Leatherwood

No parent wants to consider that their young child’s safety might have been compromised. Yet, that’s just where I found myself in the early 1990’s. Thankfully, after carefully discerning all the facts, it became clear that my own child was safe – perfectly free from harm. But the experience prodded me to consider safety standards at our church, First Baptist O’Fallon, where I served as a part-time staff member responsible for preschoolers and children. I talked with our senior pastor, and he and I began to gather information and research ways we could make our church safe for children.

We presented a plan to our church council, which included members of our deacon body, key ministry leaders, and Sunday school teachers. As you might imagine, the meeting was long with lots of opinion sharing. (Remember, screening workers was a fairly new concept in the early 1990’s.) After several meetings and a few Q&A sessions, our leadership core adopted a clearly defined Child Protection Policy:

  • Anyone volunteering in any ministry within the church would be required to complete a volunteer screening application providing personal history and references.
  • A church staff member would contact the volunteer, gather reference information, and then interview him or her before placing the person in ministry.
  • Volunteer screening forms would be kept in a locked file with minimal access for confidentiality.
  • At least two volunteers would be present at all times, as well as a walk-around supervisor.

Many of our volunteers readily understood the need for such a policy and were quick to comply. However, some long-time volunteers struggled with the need to screen everyone. After all, they had a proven track record! Providing all this information and references seemed invasive.

Our staff agreed that anyone struggling with the policy would receive a home visit and personal explanation. First Baptist O’Fallon has a burning goal – to reach new people for Christ. By reminding these long-term volunteers that we were preparing for new families, new workers, and new ministry opportunities, they became more open to the policy. We asked these volunteers to pave the way for the future volunteers. And, reassuring new parents that First Baptist cared deeply about safety by addressing cultural needs helped FBC be more effective at ministry.

Over the years, we’ve continued to refine our Child Protection Policies. Volunteers now agree to a criminal background check. All references are checked, the criminal check is completed, and training is provided before volunteers are placed with a seasoned volunteer in ministry. Walk-around supervision is firmly in place for all ministries. The building contains windows that provide a clear classroom view, and rooms are equipped with interior deadbolt locks to provide extra protection for children.

Today’s children are subject to greater physical, emotional, and sexual threats than ever before, and most children express some insecurity in these areas. Parents are certainly aware of increased threats.  Make your church a safe haven for families and children! Develop Child Protection Policies that fits your unique setting.

Dr. Darlene Leatherwood directs KidsLife at First Baptist Church, O’Fallon, Ill.

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