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Archives For November 30, 1999

Breakout requires leaders who break down

Meredith Flynn —  July 31, 2014

COMMENTARY | Josh Laxton

Last spring, my wife and I bought a used minivan. Honestly, I’m not a big fan of minivans, nor am I a fan of buying a much-older car. (I didn’t learn auto repair in seminary.) However, I am a big fan of making my wife happy.

Not long after purchasing the van, I was driving with our three small children when, suddenly, after a few mildly intense sputtering episodes, the van died. There I was, with a broken down car, stranded in the middle of the road, with no shoulder to move the vehicle to safety. As I tried to decide what to do, my 4-year-old daughter had her own breakdown. Her piercing cries of, “Daddy, Daddy!” were accompanied by heavy sobbing and huge tears. Ellie broke down because of our van’s condition.

Josh_Laxton_July31For many of us, our churches are like my minivan. Depending on the source, 80-90% of churches are in a state of plateau or decline. They were running fine, but something happened along the way, and now the church is not functioning and operating the way Jesus intended—as a God-glorifying, gospel-centered, mission-oriented, disciple-making, church-planting vehicle. Sure, the flashers, radio, horn, and air still work (worship and programs are still going, committees are still meeting). But there is a breakdown in the primary reason for the church’s existence—it’s literally not moving, not going anywhere.

The question is not whether our churches need a breakout to the next level of growth or ministry. Rather, it’s how we as leaders can get them there. To do so, like Ellie, we need to have a breakdown over the condition of the church.

Nehemiah is an excellent example of a leader who identified the need for breakout, and in doing so, had a breakdown. Although he had never been to Jerusalem, he had great affection and concern for his homeland; therefore, when his brothers came to visit, he asked how his countrymen were faring. The news he received was bad; the people and the city were broken. The Bible says that upon hearing this, Nehemiah “wept and mourned” for days. In addition, he “continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.”

What led to Nehemiah’s breakdown? Two key truths stand out:

First, he knew the truth about God and what God had called His people to be and do (Genesis 12:3; Exodus 19:4-6). When Nehemiah learned that the wall was in ruins and the people lived in great trouble and shame, he recognized that they were not where they were supposed to be. That has implications for our ministry today: Do we know with certainty the honest, transparent conditions of our church in relation to God’s intended reality, rather than our own presuppositions, preferences, or traditions?

Second, not only did Nehemiah know the truth about God’s intended reality for his people, he also knew the heart of God. In other words, he not only knew about God and His plan, but he also knew God. Thus, when he heard about the condition of the city and the people, he went immediately to the Father, weeping, morning, fasting, and praying.

He was broken over their condition because God was broken over their condition. As a result, the Bible tells us, Nehemiah “continued” going to the Father.

Nehemiah led in a way that reflected the heart of God and how He viewed the condition of the people. As leaders, are we leading in a way that reflects the heart of God towards the people in our churches?

Breakout in Jerusalem didn’t happen until Nehemiah broke down. The good news is that God still works in our brokenness to lead his people to breakout.

Josh Laxton is lead pastor of Western Oaks Baptist Church in Springfield. His second column on Nehemiah will appear in the August 18 issue of the Illinois Baptist, online at http://ibonline.IBSA.org.

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Our moral minority

Meredith Flynn —  December 6, 2013

pull quote_ADAMSCOMMENTARY | Nate Adams

On November 5 our Illinois state legislature voted to legalize same-sex marriage, effective next June. Much could be written about how and why that happened, and what its consequences will be for churches, in the culture, and within families. Right now, however, none of those lamentations are as important as the need for individual churches to get prepared for the future under this new law.

To begin with, churches that haven’t already done so need to review their bylaws and written policies to make sure they protect their beliefs and practices as much as possible. At http://www.IBSA.org/ssm, you can find some recommended language, as well as other resources, and further information on the legislation that was just passed.

Churches would also be wise to clearly and intentionally communicate to their members the biblical reasons for their position on same-sex marriage. During last month’s IBSA Annual Meeting, messengers unanimously approved a resolution concerning “The Preservation of Biblical Marriage and Affirmation of Religious Liberty of Illinois Churches and Faith-based Organizations.”

This resolution is also available at http://www.IBSA.org/ssm, and presents a brief, biblically supported rationale for opposition to same-sex marriage that can be used as a teaching tool or handout for church members.

At the same time, churches also need to prepare themselves and their members to minister in a culture where LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) citizens more openly assert themselves. I’ve read several good articles on this recently that challenge churches to stand firmly on biblical conviction, but also to look for opportunities to reach people in this new environment, and to recognize the double standards that may unwittingly exist in the church related to other sinful behaviors.

Like it or not, churches also need to recognize that in surveys, a majority of Americans now appear to have an accepting or at least apathetic attitude toward same-sex marriage and individual sexual expression.

That means that even professing Christians may disagree or have varying opinions on what the church’s posture should be toward the changing culture. Nurturing a balanced, biblical unity in the church will mean equipping and encouraging members to neither condemn people, nor to condone sin.

During this fall’s convocation at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary President Jeff Iorg, referring to the moral decline described in Romans 1:32, said, “Sexual sins are not the final step on this downward spiral. The last step of rejecting biblical morality is when people applaud or celebrate those who legitimize immoral practices. We have reached that point in America.”

Iorg went on to refer to 1 Peter 4:1-11 and stated, “As a result of your unwillingness to affirm their choices, unbelievers will slander you. I predict that today’s slander is a precursor to more serious social, legal and physical opposition coming in the next few years.”

Dr. Iorg concluded his warning, however, with an exhortation to a loving Christian response: “Believers cannot become preoccupied with opposing immoral behavior; instead, they must realize that moral choices come from a person’s spiritual condition. Unbelievers act like unbelievers. While we uphold our moral convictions, expecting unbelievers to model Christian behavior is a misplaced hope.

“Your first and best response to immorality in your community is to preach, teach, share, witness and live the Gospel. The greatest need of every person in the world – lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, adulterer, fornicator or straight-laced puritan is still the Gospel.”

After November 5, we as Bible believing Christians may feel like a moral minority. But so did the early Christians, and most of the Old Testament prophets, and certainly Abraham when he pled for the city of Sodom. Our shifting culture simply makes our own pursuit of holiness as believers more important, and our advancement of the Gospel here in Illinois more urgent.

Nate Adams is executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association.

 

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What churches do together

Meredith Flynn —  September 5, 2013

MIO_blogCOMMENTARY | Nate Adams

Editor’s note: This column is the third in a three-part series, interpreting IBSA’s 2013 state mission offering theme statement: Mission Illinois – Churches Together, Advancing the Gospel. Read Part 1 and Part 2 here.

When Beth and I were first married, she was a third grade teacher and I was director of marketing at a Christian magazine publisher. It was always easy for me to explain to others what my wife did for a living; everyone knows what a teacher does. But when people asked Beth what I did, exactly, at Christianity Today, she usually simplified my role quite a bit by saying “You know those annoying little cards that fall out of magazines when you open them? He makes those.”

Now to me, what I did for a living seemed much more important and complicated than that. But I had to admit that, in 20 words or less, Beth gave the average person a pretty clear picture of my job. It was to get subscribers to our magazines.

In fact, my task of creating those “blow-in cards” was very similar to the challenge Beth faced in quickly telling people what I did. In just a couple of square inches, we had to tell prospective subscribers why they should spend $20 or more on a magazine subscription. By the time you printed a picture of the magazine and gave the subscriber space to write their name and address, you only had a sentence or two to describe what the magazine could do for them. It’s not always easy to deliver an important or powerful message in just a few words.

As we looked for just a few words to describe what “Mission Illinois” is and why we should all support the Mission Illinois Offering, we chose the words “Churches Together, Advancing the Gospel.” In two previous columns I wrote about the significance of the words “churches” and “together.” Some churches tend to mind their own business and do their own thing. But Mission Illinois describes churches that believe the same core, biblical doctrines, and that choose to work together for both the fellowship and the effectiveness that cooperation brings. And the noble cause that our cooperation serves is the advancement of the Gospel, both here in Illinois and around the world.

There are lots of good phrases that could follow “Churches Together…” and that would be true heart cries of Illinois Baptists. With equal enthusiasm we could say, “Believing the Bible” or “Seeking the Kingdom” or “Making Disciples of Jesus” or “Growing Stronger and Multiplying.”

But in the phrase “Advancing the Gospel” we have identified, at least for now, the few words that best summarize why we as churches choose, even in our autonomy, to sacrificially work together. We want to see the good news of the Gospel delivered lovingly and effectively to every person in our home mission field of Illinois. We want to see Bible-believing, disciple-making congregations established in every community of our state. And we want devoted Christians from those churches to go boldly into all their Acts 1:8 mission fields. The “ripple effect” image of our third Mission Illinois icon symbolizes the advance of the Gospel from local churches, throughout Illinois, to the ends of the earth.

When we place “Mission Illinois” in front of that phrase, we declare who we are as an association of churches, and what we intend to do together. It is our five-word “blow-in card” to one another, and to the world. We are not independent churches; we are interdependent churches. We are not doing the Great Commission alone; we are doing it together. And even if we do a lot more than can be quickly communicated in a few words, we will seek to do these few words above all others.

We will advance the Gospel.

Nate Adams is executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association.

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Everything grows together

Meredith Flynn —  August 22, 2013

pull quote_ADAMS_NEWCOMMENTARY | Nate Adams

Editor’s note: This column is the second in a three-part series, interpreting IBSA’s 2013 state mission offering theme statement: Mission Illinois – Churches Together, Advancing the Gospel. Read Nate’s first column here.

Throughout September, and during the September 15-22 week of prayer in particular, churches across our state are joining together to focus on our Illinois mission field, where at least 8.2 million people don’t yet have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. In addition to praying, most churches participate in the “Mission Illinois Offering,” all of which goes to work right here in our state to push back lostness, and to assist missionaries and churches in disciple-making evangelism and church planting.

The theme statement we’ve chosen to describe Mission Illinois is “Churches Together, Advancing the Gospel.”

The second word of that theme – together – speaks of the multiplied strength, impact, and growth that happen when churches embrace cooperative missions. The power of what churches can do together far exceeds the power of what any church can do individually.

Individually, an Illinois church might work for years to help establish one new congregation somewhere else in the state. But last year, Illinois “churches together” started 28 new congregations.

Individually, an Illinois church might be too far away from a college campus to have a meaningful ministry, even to its own students there. But Illinois “churches together” provide Baptist collegiate ministries on dozens of college campuses.

Individually, an Illinois church might be able to equip a handful of its members to go on an annual mission trip or two. But Illinois “churches together” sent more than 27,000 missions volunteers last year, a 34% increase over the previous year.

Individually, an Illinois church might baptize five or ten new believers, or even a hundred if it were one of our larger churches. But Illinois “churches together” welcomed more than 5,000 new believers into the Kingdom of God last year.

Those kinds of results go beyond mere cumulative totals. They are the synergistic result of us believing together, praying together, giving together, and working together as a Baptist family of churches here in Illinois. But let me cite another noteworthy example, or rather examples, of what “together” means.

Individually, an Illinois church might be flooded, or lose its pastor, or be divided in conflict, or be confronted with a lawsuit. That church might simply not know how to respond to a crisis or traumatic event, or it might need help improving its Sunday School, or evaluating its facilities, or hosting its first Vacation Bible School in years.

Illinois “churches together” provide one another with our statewide staff and resources so that each church is only a phone call, e-mail, or visit away from getting whatever kind of assistance each one needs to remain strong, or in some cases, to survive.

One of the many catchy tunes embedded in my memory from childhood days of watching “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” is the song, “Everything Grows Together.”  Mr. Rogers taught us that: “Your toes grow as your feet grow as your legs grow as your fingers grow as your hands grow as your arms grow as your ears grow as your nose grows as the rest of you grows, because you’re all one piece.”

How does everything grow, even in the ministry of our churches? Together. Why?  Because we’re all one piece. We know the joys and benefits of interdependence. As you consider your gift to the Mission Illinois Offering this year, I hope it will be in part because you see the amazing value of what can only be done by churches together.

Nate Adams is executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association. Respond to his column at IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

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Churches step up as soldiers deploy

Meredith Flynn —  July 9, 2013
While Tom Goble is on a six-month deployment with the U.S. Air Force, his wife, Jackie, and sons, Jacob and Evan, are buoyed by the support of Towerview Baptist Church in Shiloh.

While Tom Goble is on a six-month deployment with the U.S. Air Force, his wife, Jackie, and sons, Jacob and Evan, are buoyed by the support of Towerview Baptist Church in Shiloh.

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

Shiloh | By the time Jackie Goble’s husband, Tom, returns from a deployment in Africa, the couple’s one-year-old son will probably be able to string a few words together and have a little conversation with his dad.

Evan had already started walking and saying “Dad” when Tom, a captain in the U.S. Air Force, left in June. That first week, Jackie says Evan would toddle into their bedroom calling for his dad. But it will be almost six months until they’re reunited, and it’s up to Jackie to hold down the fort for Evan and his older brother Jacob until then.

“Dad’s gone and we’re trying to rely on God, and point to God,” she says, recounting how she encourages her boys, and herself. “God’s taking care of us, God’s taking care of Dad. When we’re sad and we miss him, we just need to turn to God and pray and ask for protection for both us and Daddy.”

It’s a heavy load, one shared by many military families in Illinois and around the country. The Gobles have found support, though, at Towerview Baptist Church, a church uniquely located to serve their family and many others going through a deployment or navigating the specific challenges of being a military family. Read more in the newest edition of the Illinois Baptist, online here.

Other news:

Disaster Relief volunteers serve during memorial service for Arizona firefighters
The spring and summer months have been busy for Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers working across the country, from storm cleanup in Illinois, Oklahoma and Texas, to wildfire recovery in Colorado, and now caring for people in Prescott, Arizona, after the deaths of 19 firefighters last week. Disaster Relief chaplains in the state were called out to minister in Prescott last week, and a new message on the Arizona Disaster Relief website asks for trained volunteers to help serve during a memorial service today. Read more Disaster Relief updates at NAMB.net/DR.

 

Believers in Egypt look for opportunities to share hope
Christian workers in Egypt say political unrest in the country is an opportunity to share the hope of Jesus, reports the International Mission Board. “It’s not just riots and chaos, this is opportunity,” says one worker. “For the first time in hundreds of years people are questioning everything. This is the greatest opportunity we have had in a long time in a city that is promised to the Lord.” Read the full story here.

Survey: On Twitter, Christians are happier
A new study from the University of Illinois compares the Tweets of people who follow five religious leaders (Pope Benedict XVI, Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, Dinesh D’Souza and Joyce Meyer), with the messages posted by Twitter users who follow five atheist leaders. The results, CNN reports, indicate Christians use more positive words and express more happiness through the social media tool. Read more on CNN’s Belief blog.

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After Hurricane Sandy, calm is hard to find

Meredith Flynn —  October 31, 2012

THE BRIEFING | Hurricane Sandy pummeled the East Coast early this week, killing 40 people in the region (and more than 60 others in the Caribbean), and desolating some of the nation’s largest cities.

In New York, the storm flooded subway stations and forced a two-day closure of the New York Stock Exchange. As the wind and rain subsided, pastors began the work in checking in with their church members, hoping for good news and looking for ways to help.

Freeman Field, on staff at the Metropolitan New York Baptist Association, reported damage to one New York City church, Graffiti Church on the Lower East Side, and said others are still calling in with reports.

“…We are still hearing from our pastors about needs…. We know of two families specifically who had their apartments flooded out – one in Brooklyn from Park Slope Community Church, the other in Jersey City from Gallery Church,” Field wrote to Baptist Press in an email. Read the full story.

Other Hurricane Sandy news:

Southern Baptist Disaster Relief starts long-term relief effort on East Coast
(Baptist Press)

What Jesus might say about Sandy
(Christianity Today)

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