In This Issue
Ark. Galileans (pg. 12)
Doing the Right Things (pg. 3)
From the States (pgs. 5-9)
Senior Saints (pg. 10)
Spotlight on Missions (pg. 11)
In This Issue
Ark. Galileans (pg. 12)
Doing the Right Things (pg. 3)
From the States (pgs. 5-9)
Senior Saints (pg. 10)
Spotlight on Missions (pg. 11)
BMA Missions invites churches to join us for World Missions Day on Sunday Feb. 28, 2021. This year’s theme represents the very essence of our global mandate — Go-Disciple-Plant-Repeat. It is the purpose for which we exist. We pray that each church will use this time not only as a reminder of our purpose but also as an opportunity to give to the Jerry Kidd Missions Offering.
Funds given during World Missions Day are used to support over 500 national ChangeMaker missionaries who are making disciples and planting churches in over 71 countries. Register your church today at www.bmamissions.org/worldmissionsday and receive free promotional materials and a free polo for your pastor!
Peace Is Not an Empty Promise But a Guarantee
By T’Shana Everitt
As the holidays approach I listen to many families who are adjusting or even canceling holiday plans. I also hear news reports about political upheaval, riots and violence. The lack of godly leadership and chaos often leaves us with no sense of peace or hope.
But as I ponder these things, my mind races back to the circumstances surrounding the time of Jesus’ birth. A casual description of that year doesn’t really sound much different from the circumstances of 2020 — political upheaval, corrupt leadership, violence, wars and religious unrest are all descriptions of the year in which Christ was born. Amid all of this chaos, God’s son, Jesus, entered the world as a baby born into a humble carpenter’s family.
In Luke 2:14, Jesus’ birth is announced to humble shepherds by a host of angels who declared: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace toward men of good will.” This declaration was a message of hope and peace to all of us, and yet we look around and wonder, “Where is this peace and where do we find hope right now?”
I believe our questions are answered by Jesus later in Luke 12, where He told several parables that are about enduring while we wait for his return and described what we should be doing while we wait. In response to one of His disciples’ questions Jesus told them that if they thought He came to bring peace on earth, they were wrong.
I know this seems like a harsh truth and contradictory to the declaration of the angels at Jesus’ birth, but when we consider the context of Luke 12, we get a better sense what Jesus was saying. As the Prince of Peace, Jesus brought peace between us and God, but not necessarily peace with mankind.
In fact, because of the sinful nature of mankind, it often puts us at odds with others when we are following God and proclaiming his message.
Without Jesus’ sacrifice we are in sin and are God’s enemies, and the chaos, hate and suffering we experience in a sin-cursed world will continue for eternity. But because Jesus came to earth as a baby and paid the penalty for our sin, we have hope.
One thing I know about human behavior is that when we feel there is no hope or no end to suffering, we are not as resilient. We need hope to endure the troubles of this world until the Prince of Peace takes the throne as the King of kings for all eternity. Anyone who tells you all of your problems will go away because you put your faith in Christ is making empty promises.
But the promise of peace is not empty. Through Jesus, we can be at peace with God; and through the Holy Spirit’s presence we can have peace in our hearts and minds, even when our circumstances are not what we would like them to be.
So, in this time of turmoil and anxiety, I urge you to consider two things:
• Consider your standing with God. If you are still an enemy of God because you haven’t put your trust in Him and accepted His payment for the penalty of your sin, you do not have hope that suffering will end; and therefore, you cannot be at peace. I encourage you to accept this free gift that God offers to you.
• Consider the message of Phil. 4:6-7 (NKJV): “Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds.”
When we are at peace with God, we are united with and partnered with the God who has ultimate power over our hearts, our minds and all of His creation.
It is my hope that as you celebrate the holidays in whatever way you are able this year, you enjoy the peace of God in your hearts and minds, because of the peace with God provided by the birth of his Son Jesus.
Used with permission. Originally published at cutt.ly/lifeword-peace, this article may be reproduced or reprinted with permission from Lifeword. T’Shana Everitt (yourfuturehope.com) is a licensed marriage and family therapist that uses personal experience from 32 years of marriage, 30 years of parenting and 27 years in the area of pastoral counseling to assist families, adults and youth in developing and maintaining a balanced, healthy lifestyle.
God’s Christmas Gift
By Jeff Swart, President • BMAA
There is a word that we hear more often beginning the week of Thanksgiving up until Christmas Day than at any other time of the year — the word “gift.” At this time of the year, we spend a lot of time searching for just the right gift for our friends and family at just the right price.
Have you ever wondered where the tradition of giving gifts at Christmas began? It began with God, Who gave the world of humanity the very best gift ever given on the very first Christmas; and the gift that God gave to mankind was Himself. So the first Christmas gift was actually a person.
Of all the ways God could have chosen to communicate to human beings, He chose to become one of us. In Luke’s Gospel, we read these words: “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). The angel of the Lord stated that God sent us a “Savior.” Why a Savior? The following words answer that question:
“If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But our greatest need was for forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior.”
God did not give us what we wanted on the first Christmas morning, but He did give us what we needed most of all!
I recently read about a man who received a Christmas gift 49 years ago, and still hadn’t opened it yet. I call that dumb! Can you imagine if you gave me a gift for Christmas and I never opened it? Sometime later you might ask me, “How did you like the gift I gave you for Christmas?” I might reply, “I loved it! Unfortunately, I haven’t had time to unwrap it, but I’m really grateful for the gift.” If that were the case, you’d think that I was ungrateful.
Many people are like that. God gave them a gift 2,020 years ago, and they still haven’t unwrapped it. Year after year passes and they just never get around to opening God’s gift.
Let me ask you, “What is the message of Christmas?” Let me try to summarize it to you in a short and succinct statement: “You matter to God.” That’s it! You really do matter to God. In fact, you matter so much to God that He sent Jesus Christ to earth to let you know that you matter to Him (John 3:16; I John 3:16). That’s the message of Christmas in a neat little package. If you haven’t opened God’s Christmas gift, let me encourage you to do it this year.
Crazy Christmas Schedules
By Amber Spencer • Baptist Herald
Do you feel like you are losing (or are just trying to find) the holiday spirit? Do you need some family bonding time? Boy, do I have your solution! Nothing brings out the Christmas spirit like combining the best of both your worlds — faith and family.
Check out my list below to see how you can change the hustle and bustle of this time of year into fun and memorable family traditions. It truly can be the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” when you schedule intentional time with people to focus on the true meaning of Christmas:
• PJS, Pizza and Christmas Lights — Snuggle up in your PJs, get in the car, order carryout pizza and drive around looking at Christmas lights!
• Bake, Bless and Sing — Make baked goods and deliver them to a neighbor or a friend’s house. Singing a carol or two for them upon delivery would make this act even better!
• Christmas Blessing Bags for the Homeless — Create a blessing bag to hand out anytime your family sees someone who is homeless. Since we most often see this while we are in our car, we keep our Blessing Bags in our car, under the seats. Blessing bags could be a gallon size Ziploc bag full of helpful items (socks, snacks, Bible, etc). The best part? Have your kiddos write notes of encouragement or their favorite Bible verses on the notecards and place them inside a small Bible!
• Secret Magi — Secretly leave a gift for someone on their front porch. (If you want to make this more fun, ring the doorbell and run away before they catch the one who left them a gift!
• Family Christmas Movie Night — Plan one night a week for one kiddo to plan the meal, board game and Christmas movie! Want to add more fun — bake something together!
• Adopt a Family — Whether it’s through your church or school, adopt a family to buy gifts for as a family, then wrap them together!
• Christmas Gift for Jesus — Encourage your people to think of one gift they could give Jesus for Christmas. Whether it’s forgiving someone, reading their Bible each day or praying more, it should be a gift of sacrifice. Talk about your gift on Christmas morning.
• The Gift of Words — Challenge your kiddos to give the gift of words to someone this Christmas! Write a letter or a special message inside a Christmas card, then mail it!
• Pay it Forward — Pay for something for a stranger. It could be something as small as a coffee or as much as groceries — you decide!
• The Best Story Ever Told — Read the best Christmas story — the story of Jesus’ birth from Luke 2:1-20. Then spend a few minutes talking about the true meaning of Christmas.
• Celebrate! — On Christmas morning, before opening the gifts, sing “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. (You can even make a birthday cake to celebrate it further!)
—Don Burke, Trumpet Photography Club
MOVING with Ministers and Staff
This is only a news column, and the publishing of a person’s availability should not be considered a recommendation by the Trumpet. To view previous listings from this column, visit our website at www.baptisttrumpet.com.
Peninsula Baptist Church at Hampton, Va. is seeking a pastor. A parsonage is available. Contact Brian Owens at (757) 778-0452 or James McKay at (757) 595-7320.
Jimmy Henry has resigned as pastor at Caney Baptist Church in Pinkton, Tex. after serving for almost 22 years. He is available for pulpit supply and service wherever the Lord leads. He plans to devote more time to writing and caring for his wife. Contact him at (903) 438-0240 or jimmyahenry@gmail.com.
Mike Ferus is the new pastor at Beacon Hill Baptist Church in Waco, Texas.
Chris Webb is the new pastor at New Harmony Baptist Church in Tyler, Texas.
Jordan Tew is serving as interim pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Huntsville, Texas.
Matt Barker of Nixa, Mo. is available for preaching appointments as the Lord leads. Contact him at (501) 408-9500 or mattbarker1988@gmail.com.
Douglas Brand, a member of Fellowship Baptist Church in Potosi, Mo. is available for pulpit supply or as the Lord leads. He also has experience in music ministry. Contact him at (573) 315-0930, (573) 315-0931 or dbrandministries@gmail.com.
Caleb Houston, youth minister at Kewanee at New Madrid, Mo. is available for preaching appointments and youth events. Contact him at (573) 521-7826 or calebhouston@yahoo.com.
Denver Page, a member at Landmark Baptist Church at DeSoto, Mo is available for preaching appointments as the Lord leads. Contact him at (636) 942-3503.
Campground Baptist Church near Gulfport, Miss., is seeking a part-time music director. For more information, call (228) 832-9016 or 669-8969.
Fairview Baptist Church in Laurel, Miss. is seeking a pastor. For more information, call George Ewing at (601) 498-1630.
Greenwood Baptist Church at Fulton, Miss. is seeking a part-time youth minister. Internship could also be an option. For more information, contact Pastor Joseph Bain at josephbain77@gmail.com.
Unity Baptist Church of Guntown, Miss. is seeking a pastor. For more information, contact Tony Holcomb at (662) 891-1325.
Drive Through Bethlehem, Dec. 4-5, 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Unity, Hope.
CBC Homecoming, Jan. 29-30; Central Baptist College.
CBC Scholarship Gala, Feb. 20, 6:00 p.m.; Conway Expo Center. Contact Amy Reed for more info at areed@cbc.edu.
World Missions Day, Feb. 28; Jerry Kidd Offering for BMA World Missions.
Fresh Grounded Faith Women’s Event, Aug. 6-7, 7 p.m. Fri., 12:30 p.m. Sat.; Antioch, Conway.
Ark. Ladies Retreat, Sept. 25, 9:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Jonesboro District WMA, Jan. 9, 10 a.m., Prospect, Jonesboro.
Central Ark. District Brotherhood, Jan. 11, 6:30 p.m., Pleasant Grove, Carlisle.
Southwest District GMA, Jan. 23, First, Taylor.
Mt. Vernon District Brotherhood, Mar. 8, 6:30 p.m., Central, Hughes.
Check Out The
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Bethlehem, Greenbrier welcomed four by letter; Martin Jameson, pastor; Laura McGee, reporter.
Bluff Springs, Rosston gained one by letter; Donnie Dillard, pastor; Marlina Capps, reporter.
Garner, Garner received one by letter; Glen Shults, pastor.
Unity, Hope rejoices over two by baptism; Penny Ehrhardt, reporter.
Zion, Fordyce added one by baptism; Nick Flowers, pastor.
Antioch Baptist Church in Carthage, Texas is seeking a pastor. Resumes may be sent to pulpit committee, Attn: Scott Dyer, at 442 County Road 1081, Carthage, Tex. 75633 or sedyer57@gmail.com (903) 690-4819.
Bradford Baptist Church in Bradford is seeking a full-time pastor. Resumes may be sent to the Pulpit Committee at P.O. Box 16, Bradford, Ark. 72020 or bbcbradfordar@gmail.com. For more information, call (501) 344-2414.
First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Tex. is seeking a pastor. Please send resumes to: Search Committee, 210 Philips St, Jacksonville, Texas 75766 or reception@firstjax.org.
Keltys First Baptist Church in Lufkin, Texas is seeking a full-time lead teaching pastor. Resumes, ministry philosophy and sermon links can be emailed to jobs@keltys.org or mailed to Attn: Pastor Search, P.O. Box 3043, Lufkin, Tex., 75903. Visit keltys.org/pastorsearch for more information and a job description.
Meadowside Baptist Church in Pittsburg, Kan. is seeking a full-time pastor. Contact Greg Hardister at (620) 704-6860.
Walnut Street Baptist Church in Winnsboro, Texas is seeking a senior pastor. Resumes may be sent to P.O. Box 587, Winnsboro, Texas 75494, wsbc75494@gmail.com or via our website at www.walnutstreetbaptistchurch.org.
Central Baptist College
1501 College Ave. • Conway, Arkansas 72034
(501) 329-6872 • (800) 205-6872 • www.cbc.edu
Twitter: @CentBaptCollege and @tkimbrow
Profile
Terry Kimbrow
President
Fall Priority Scholarship Deadline Reminder
December 10 is the deadline for high school seniors and transfer students, who will be attending CBC for the Fall 2021 semester, to apply and receive the best scholarship awards of the year. To be eligible, students must apply for admission at cbc.edu/apply, submit transcript(s) and ACT/SAT/Accuplacer test scores and complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) at studentaid.gov. Students who complete these steps will automatically qualify to be the first Central Baptist College applicants of the academic year to receive a scholarship award package.
Spring Registration
Spring and winter term registration is now open for both our current traditional and nontraditional (PACE) students. The traditional registration ends on Friday Dec. 4 and the PACE registration period ends Dec. 11.
Applications are still being accepted for new students for the spring semester. The final spring semester registration opportunity for all traditional students is Jan. 11-13. PACE students have multiple enrollment opportunities after Dec. 11. Visit cbc.edu/pace for all spring semester enrollment dates.
Prospective students can visit cbc.edu/visit to experience CBC virtually, schedule an in-person Personal Campus Visit Experience, and/or schedule a meeting with our Admissions team.
Spring Stampede Preview Days
Spring 2021 Stampede Preview Days will take place on Friday, Jan. 29 and Wednesday, Feb. 10.
The Jan. 29 event will be a Legacy Weekend to kick off Homecoming activities. All alumni are invited to bring their children, grandchildren, and other family members or close friends to attend this event. This is a brand-new event and more details will be released soon. However, event registration is available at cbc.edu/stampede.
The Feb. 10 event will be our final Stampede Preview Day of the academic year. This is a great event for seniors that have not decided where to attend college and for juniors that are narrowing down their college choices. Register for either event at cbc.edu/stampede.
Save the Date — Youth Group Day 2021
Looking for a free youth group event? Let us help! Saturday, Feb. 27 we will provide a COVID-19 friendly event for youth groups of all ages. You can look forward to fun group games, free food from CBC Dining Services and free Admission to both the Men’s and Women’s Basketball games! Save the date and register now at cbc.edu/stampede.
Sports
News
By Erik Holth
Men’s Basketball
• Conway, Nov. 17 — Playing their first game in 17 days, CBC opened their home schedule with a visit from the Warriors of Bacone College. CBC (1-2) never trailed, cruising to a 115-54 win over Bacone (1-6), the largest margin of victory for a Clint Galyean coached team.
• Springdale, Nov. 20 — Looking to even their record for the season, CBC headed to the Jones Center for a matchup with the Royals of Ecclesia College. CBC (2-2) shot over 55% for the game and cruised to a 92-43 win over EC (1-4).
• Paragould, Nov. 23 — Playing their third game in less than a week, CBC took on the Pioneers of Crowley’s Ridge at the Carter Activities Center. CBC (3-2) used a hot shooting first half to claim a big lead and they never trailed, beating CRC (1-6) 87-62.
• Conway, Nov. 24 — CBC hosted the Royals of Ecclesia College at Reddin Fieldhouse. CBC (4-2) trailed only once and led by as many as 35, cruising to a 101-68 win over EC (1-5).
Women’s Basketball
• Conway, Nov. 17 — Returning home for the first time in 14 days, CBC hosted the Warriors of Bacone College at A.R. Reddin Fieldhouse. CBC (4-0) dominated, leading wire-to-wire, at one point by 36, cruising to a 90-66 win over the Warriors (2-3).
• Conway, Nov. 21 — Holly Allen and Izzy Arnold both set new scoring records as CBC took on the Patriots of Baptist Bible College. CBC (5-0) led the entire way, stretching the lead to 40 at one point in the fourth quarter before cruising to a 98-66 win over BBC (3-4).
• St. Louis, Mo., Nov. 23 — Coming off a historic win on Saturday, Izzy Arnold was named the American Midwest Conference women’s basketball player of the week. Arnold joins Holly Allen, who was the week one selection, as Lady Mustangs to earn player of the week honors this season.
Wrestling
• Mt. Vernon, Ga., Nov. 23 — Returning to the mat for the first time in nine days, CBC competed in a tri-dual against St. Andrew’s and Brewton-Parker hosted by the latter. CBC lost both matches, falling 42-15 to SAU and 53-3 to BPC.
Gearing Up for Christmas
Christmas is only a few weeks away, and it is definitely going to look unusual this year. To accommodate issues surrounding COVID-19, concerts, Christmas parties and other activities of the season will all be done differently or not at all. That is sad, but it is where we find ourselves. So, what do we do?
The Christmas season has always been a time to celebrate God’s great gift to us and to share that message of love with the world around us. As student ministry workers, this is especially difficult in our present reality. We are used to playing crazy Christmas games and really celebrating the joy of the season. It is important that we don’t let our disappointment wreck what can still be a very joyful time with new activities. We may have to be concerned about COVID-19 when planning activities for the season, but that shouldn’t stop us from celebrating and encouraging our students during this time.
Here are three guidelines to follow as you work to provide socially distant, but meaningful experiences for your students:
• Provide opportunities for family discipleship. The pandemic has reminded those of us in ministry that discipleship begins at home. Students have had to learn virtually, off and on, since March. The same can be said about their spiritual development. Many families have still not made that transition back to in-person services due to pandemic concerns.
Encourage family discipleship in the home by providing content on social media that speaks to the entire family. Lead them through a Bible study that they can discuss throughout the week.
Another idea is to provide a Christmas study/fun box for families to work through during the season. It can include any number of things that will benefit conversation and spiritual growth. You can have your students pick these up or enlist volunteers to deliver them to doorsteps.
• Encourage the concept of serving others. Christmas is a fantastic time to show Christ’s love to those inside and outside of the church. One of the sixth graders at our church is currently making stocking hats to sell to support our Blessing Box (a small food pantry located on our campus). She has already embraced helping others, but some of your students may need some encouragement and ideas. They could be small things like sending Christmas cards to shut-ins or organizing a socially distant Christmas caroling event. Knowing your church and context, you will have a better idea of what will work in your community and impact your students.
• Make the focus Christ. It is easy to get caught up in “feel good” things during the holidays. Hallmark Christmas movies, blankets and warm apple cider aren’t bad, but they shouldn’t be the focus of our activities. We want to help our students share Jesus with their world. As we provide activities and meaningful experiences for our students, they should be about Jesus.
If you are working with students, let me just say, “Thank you!” 2020 continues to be a challenge. Just remember, if we continue to point our students to Jesus, we can be a source of joy in their lives. They need that right now.
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Pastor’s Wife Dies
Robbie Lucille Carroll Williams, 81 of Fordyce died Nov. 12. She was the wife of Henry Franklin Williams, pastor of Pine Crest Baptist Church at Fordyce. Bro. Williams previously served as pastor of Bearden Baptist Church at Bearden.
Other survivors include: two daughters, Cathy (Paul) Jackson and Sonya (Jeff) Mogenson; a son, Darryl Williams; two brothers, Joe (Kay) Carroll and David Oliver; 6 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.
Graveside services were held Nov. 14 under the direction of Benton Funeral Home of Fordyce.
Edith Black, 86 of Magnolia, passed away Nov. 29. She was a member of First Baptitst Church.
Effie Marjorie Hathcoat, 84 of Brookland, passed away on Nov. 27. She was a member of Prospect Baptist Church in Jonesboro.
Steven J Carlton, 69 of Bodcaw, passed away on Nov. 27. He was a deacon at Union Baptist Church.
Lula Brents, 87 of Cleveland, passed away Nov. 25. She was a member of Cleveland Baptist Church.
LZ Pepper, 84 of El Dorado, passed away Nov. 25. He was a member of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
Betty L. Clay, 83 of Greenbrier, passed away Nov. 24. She was a member of Needs Creek Baptist Church.
Carl Bennett (Ben) Spangler, 55 of Conway, passed away Nov. 22. He was a member of Central Baptist Church.
Darlis Earl Merritt, 86 of Greenbrier, passed away Nov. 20. He was a member of Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Guy.
Bobby Ray Johnson, 82 of Little Rock, passed away Nov. 18. He was a member of South City Church.
Bobby Ray Britt, 81 of Taylor, passed away Nov. 17. He was a member of First Baptist Church.
Mary Dean Smith, 81 of Poplar Grove, passed away Nov. 12. She was member of Trenton Baptist Church in Marvell.
Patricia Garrison, 70 of Beebe, passed away Nov. 1. She was a member of Trenton Baptist Church in Marvell.
Just Thinking...
By Tom Mitchell
President, BMA of Arkansas
(501) 804-6647 • temitchell1946@gmail.com
A Preacher, Evangelist And Leader
BMA of Arkansas trailblazer James Ray Raines was my friend for over 50 years. I met him when I was just a boy preacher of 18 and he was a seasoned preacher of 27.
Bro. Raines was born in DeWitt in 1937. He was an Arkansan through and through. He answered the call to ministry in 1953 at the age of 16. During his 67-year ministry, James Ray Raines met every criteria for a true trailblazer of the BMA of Arkansas. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Central Baptist College in 1960 while in his sixth year as pastor of Zion Baptist Church in Fordyce. Despite being a young pastor, it was evident that he was greatly blessed by the Lord who had gifted him abundantly.
Early on in his ministry, he was a much-in-demand evangelist/revivalist and that continued into his latter years. It would be difficult to accurately count how many churches invited him to preach revivals — not just once, but again and again. In addition, he was camp evangelist for many consecutive years in Tennessee. The full result of his evangelism will only be known in Heaven by the many souls who were saved under his preaching.
When Bro. Raines was pastor of First Baptist Church in Gurdon, and I was pastor of Brister Baptist Church in Emerson, our friendship began to strengthen. We would often travel to various meeting together — talking about Scripture, church events and the work of the association. At South Ark. Baptist Camp, we would get up early and eat breakfast together. He also honored me with invitations to teach Concentric Circles of Concern and preach a revival when he served as pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Camden. I truly treasure those memories!
Yes, he was a pastor and evangelist, but he was also a great leader in the BMA of Arkansas and BMA of America. He served the state association six times as recording clerk, four times as vice-moderator and twice as moderator. For many years he served the BMA of America as a recording secretary.
In 1984, he returned to his alma mater, not as a student, but as president of Central Baptist College. Under his leadership, Old Main was demolished and the 50,000 sq. ft. Harold E. Cooper Complex was erected.
Bro. Raines resigned as president in 1990 to return to the pastorate, serving the Lynch View Baptist Church, now known as North View, in North Little Rock for 25 years and then as Pastor Emeritus from 2015 until his death this year.
While pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Camden, Bro. Raines suffered a severe heart attack. Although he recovered and continued his multi-faceted ministry, his health was definitely affected.
This man who gave his all to be a minister to thousands battled poor health the past several years. I said earlier that he was my friend and that encouragement he gave me in my younger days never ceased. In his last months, he would call me every two weeks to encourage me, especially in my role as president of the BMA of Arkansas, trying to prepare for the annual session during a pandemic or to compliment me about an article I had in the Baptist Trumpet. But that was James Ray Raines and I treasure the memories of those calls.
The man from DeWitt was used of the Lord in cities and towns across the state — impacting the eternity of thousands through his strong, enthusiastic and persuasive preaching.
James Ray Raines, a BMA of Arkansas trailblazer, received his heavenly promotion while hospitalized on Oct. 22, 2020. Although he is no longer with us, the trail he blazed is easy to see. Young preachers, it would be good to follow it because it was blazed by a preacher who followed Christ.
(Correction Note: In my previous article about Roy Ward, I stated that he was pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Nashville. I experienced a mental lapse with that. He was pastor of Antioch Baptist Church in Nashville.)
Church Health
P.O. Box 878 • Conway, Ark. 72033-0878
(501) 455-4977 • larry@bmaam.com
Larry barker
Director of Operations North America
BMA of America Missions Department
Doing the Right Things
Leaders certainly have a desire to do things right and correctly. It is easy to even become obsessed with an unhealthy pursuit of excellence. Perfection can become a curse that drives us to focus on unrealistic expectations. A great definition of excellence is doing the best you can with what you have. You should always strive to do things well and do them right but more importantly you must also ask yourself if you are doing the right things. What if the things you are doing right are not really the right things you need to be doing?
The scriptures challenge us to seek first the kingdom of God. There is something special about things that are first because of the order in your life. You always remember your first car, your first job, your first child and your first house. You can also recall the first time you met the one who would become your husband or wife. These are firsts because of their chronological order but there are also things you make first because of their importance and the priority you place on them in your life. Are you placing first the things that matter most?
Do you want things to be different? Do you have a desire to improve, develop and grow as a leader? What small changes could you begin making today that would change tomorrow? In a recent Healthy Church Podcast interview Dr Steve Crawley said that the best critique of the bad is the practice of the better. What practices do you need to begin immediately that will make you a godlier leader? Nobody else can vicariously take care of your walk with Christ. Only you can abide in Christ, which produces the abundant life and fruit of the Spirit.
Doing the right things begins with better practices that give you the discipline to remain committed to them. All too often goals remain nothing more than pipe dreams because you never develop a systematic game plan to guarantee they become reality. In Atomic Habits James Clear said, “We don’t rise to the level of our goals; we fall to the level of our systems.” Goals are great things to have but a clear realistic plan to accomplish them is even of greater importance. You may know where you want to arrive but what vehicle will you use to get there?
So, how do you make sure you are doing the right things and not just doing things right?
• Evaluate your personal walk with the Lord. Is it thriving or just surviving? You cannot expect anyone else around you to be spiritually vibrant if you are not. Have a place and time to seek the Lord early and do not waver or stray from that commitment. Get a great devotional book, be sure to journal and S.O.A.P. the scriptures you are reading into that journal. Develop a prayer list of your family, friends, members and lost people to cry out before God on their behalf every day.
• Protect your time with your family. Don’t forget that the family that prays together stays together. Have a family altar time and pray a prayer of thanksgiving over every meal. Discipleship begins at home and it is not as much a class as it is daily answering questions, loving and encouraging each other and leading them well in their walks with Christ. Validate daily that who they are seeing at church is who they are seeing at home. Have fun as a family — figure out ways to laugh and play together. Your family is your first ministry.
• Remain thankful for who the Lord is. Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the person who takes refuge in Him.” There is a direct correlation between how thankful you are and your well-being. Regularly thank those around you for their help and the contribution they are making in your life and in the ministry of the church. Send out some handwritten thank you cards letting them know how much you appreciate their walking this path with you. Everyday think of someone you need to thank and then thank them.
• Remain humble and view leadership more side by side than top to bottom. Biblical servant leadership is far more horizontal than vertical. Dr. Steve Crawley shared this on our podcast by alluding to an “off the chart” level of humility “coupled with an uncommon level of perseverance. A humble leader but one who cannot be dissuaded from accomplishing the mission.” Realize that you do not have to carry the burden alone and God never intended for you to. Paul told the Galatians to “bear one another’s burdens.”
The pressures of leadership right now are intense. There is decision fatigue, opinion fatigue, and the fatigue of uncertainty. During this time the answer has really not changed. Love the Lord and pursue Him daily. Love your family and make sure you are, first, leading them well. Remain humble and thankful for the opportunity to glorify God through your life and ministry. Be a team player by finding others who will help you carry the burden and load. Remain thankful to God and others and let people know how much you appreciated their contribution.
I Corinthians 15:58 (HCSB), “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
These Things Remain
By Stuart Estes, Director • ABS at Univ. of Ark.
It’s true; things do seem a little different around The Hedge. COVID, a new ministry team leader and the sadness of Brad’s impending move from ministry team member to board member have things a little out of sort.
Change does funny things to people. In extreme situations it can cause us to disassociate from the source of the change and, at the very least, it makes us feel uneasy.
While change is inevitable, it is sometimes more helpful to think about what remains constant. Focusing on the constants has a way of grounding us so that change doesn’t impact us as intensely.
So what isn’t changing at The Hedge? Well, to quote the apostle Paul: “So now faith, hope, and love abide…” (I Cor. 13:13 ESV).
ABS is first a place of faith. This ministry is founded on the life-changing and free gift of God’s grace. We affirm that Jesus Christ was and is the Son of God, that He alone has the authority and power to forgive our sinful natures and that His sacrifice on the cross and resurrection from the grave are the payment for our restoration to God the Father.
ABS is also a place of hope. Because we affirm that faith in Christ is the way to salvation, we also have hope that His Holy Spirit will renew our lives as we continue in faith. This hope means that we support one another as a community, trusting that as we abide in Christ, the Spirit will make us more like Him. We need not live in fear, only in the hope that we have been set free from our innate, sinful nature.
ABS is a place of love, too. The purpose of this ministry continues to be sharing the love of Christ with the students of the University of Arkansas. We want nothing more than for those around us to experience the love we have experienced from Jesus. That means we will continue to welcome all who want to join in the things we do at this ministry. All are welcome at the foot of the cross.
There you have it. Everything else can change, but faith, hope and love will always be core components of the ministry at The Hedge. Our foundation is firm; we need not let the fear of change worry us about these things. They will remain.
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Bill Filed to End
Abortion in Arkansas
(Familycouncil.org) On Nov. 18, Senator Jason Rapert (R/Conway) and Rep. Mary Bentley (R/Perryville) filed S.B. 6 to make abortion illegal in Arkansas except when the mother’s life is at stake. If passed, the bill will generally prohibit abortion in Arkansas and give the U.S. Supreme Court an opportunity to overturn Roe v. Wade, Doe v. Bolton, Planned Parenthood v. Casey and other pro-abortion decisions.
Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement saying, “Many people have been saying for almost 50 years that abortion should be illegal. The time has come for us to make it so. S.B. 6 will give the U.S. Supreme Court the opportunity to overturn Roe v. Wade. Family Council fully supports the passage of this good law. This is an opportunity for Arkansas to be a real leader in the effort to end abortion in America.”
Cox pointed out that public opinion polling shows Arkansans oppose abortion. “Arkansans are overwhelmingly pro-life. Recent public opinion polling shows 23% of Arkansans believe abortion ought to be completely illegal, and 59% believe abortion ought to be legal only under certain circumstances.”
Equipping and Resource Ministry
By Jerry Fulton, Editor
Baptist Progress
Since the BMA of Texas Department of Church Ministries was disbanded years ago, we have had a void in our state association of churches. The BMA of America has done an outstanding job in providing first class national conferences, and the BMA of America ministry, ACTIVATE, now stands ready to offer help in various ways to local churches. Still, it is my belief that we need a department or ministry on the state association level to also provide equipping opportunities and other resources in Texas.
During this year’s annual meeting, I shared with messengers my vision to lead Baptist Progress to become the equipping and resource ministry of the BMA of Texas. In return, messengers approved a constitutional amendment to include in our department’s purpose that we offer workshops, training opportunities and other resources to pastors, church staff and churches.
We debuted our ministry efforts with what we called a Ministry Connection Workshop at the BMA of Texas Building in Waxahachie on Dec.1. The initial workshop, “Healthy Church Solutions,” was led by Larry Barker, BMA of America Missions director of church solutions and church planting.
COVID-19 has leveled the playing field for every church and every pastor. Most pastors and churches could use some tools and encouragement to keep pressing on where God has placed them. Since March, BMA of America Missions has identified areas where pastors and churches are struggling. The aim of BMA of America Missions (and Larry) is to come alongside pastors and churches to help resource them in areas that matter right now… The prayer of BMA of America Missions and Baptist Progress is to help you where you need it, when you need it most.
Other Ministry Connection Workshops have also been scheduled for 2021. For a list of all workshops and to pre-register to attend them, visit www.baptistprogress.org and click on the appropriate link under “Ministry Connection Workshops,” on the right side of our home page.
Other Resources
• Every Sunday Bulletin Service — For years, Baptist Progress, has offered the Every Sunday Bulletin Service to BMA of Texas churches. Bulletins can be viewed and ordered through our website. If your church uses weekly bulletins with another provider, please consider switching to our service.
• Insurance for churches — We have entered into an advertising agreement with American Church Group Texas to promote their insurance to our churches and ministries that need affordable insurance. The insurance they offer is through Brotherhood Mutual. You can find out more about what they offer on our website.
• Intentional Interim Pastor Training — We are currently putting together curriculum for intentional interim pastor training and hope to offer such training at some point in 2021.
• Website Design & Hosting and Social Media Marketing for Church and Ministries — As you know, it is important these days that churches have a website and a strong social media presence. Baptist Progress wants to help churches in these areas, and we have entered into a partnership with Matthew Prather to offer website design and hosting and social media marketing to churches. You can find out more about this by visiting our website.
If there are other ministry resources you believe Baptist Progress could perhaps provide to pastors, church staff and churches in the future, please contact us at editor@ baptistprogress. org or (972) 923-0756.
Rejoicing in Salvation
By Jason Curry, President
Texas Baptist Home for Children
I recently began reading Born to Serve. It is the autobiography of L.H. Raney, a previous pastor of Farley Street Baptist Church in Waxahachie. I am looking forward to reading his testimony of life and work because it has many inspiring points. He stated, very pointedly, that it was his desire to live, preach and write so people might follow Jesus. His impact on the lost in Waxahachie is truly heartwarming.
I hope his friendship with C.B. Stanley and the work of TBHC reminds us all of the joy we have in our friendships. It reminds me of the pastors, churches and donors of today, caring for the kids that we serve and praying for their eternal destination.
When was the last time you lifted up our children’s salvation to the Lord? Let me ask you to lift up the 100 plus children in our care today. Four children came to faith in Jesus this last year. Though it is small, I hope you will join me in celebrating that number. Four children know Jesus today because of coming into our care at TBHC.
In his book’s introduction, Bro. Raney said something I hope we can all say about ourselves. This “simple ‘project’ has been done, chapter by chapter, after a prayer that God will lead me in its production, and that it will result in the salvation of souls...”
I know the nature of the work we do makes it seem like we can never do enough to make a difference, but I want to always remind us that the work we all do for God’s glory is worth all our efforts. In Matt. 9:36-38 Jesus spoke His heart for people: “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.’”
The people of this world today seem weary and scattered, having no shepherd to give them direction in life. May we all let God be in the production of our life’s works, joys and tragedies so it will result in the salvation of souls. (jcurry@tbhc.org)
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BMA of Texas Meets
For 120th Annual Session
By Baptist Progress Staff
The BMA of Texas met for their 120th Annual Session at Farley Street Baptist Church in Waxahachie, Texas on Nov. 5. The meeting this year was one day only due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In spite of the pandemic, attendance at the 2020 meeting was higher than it was in 2019. However, there were 19 less churches represented by messengers. There were 133 messengers and 110 visitors, totaling 243 present. Last year’s attendance was 228. The total number of churches represented by messenger was 78 and churches represented by letter only was 35. A highlight of the meeting was that seven new churches petitioned the state association for membership.
Following worship led by Nathan D’Avila, worship pastor of Farley Street and the church’s praise team, BMA of Texas President Leon Ross preached “Stronger Together” from Phil. 1:3-11.
Constitutional changes presented by the BMA of Texas Administrative Committee, the Baptist Missionary Loan Association (BMLA) and Baptist Progress were approved. The Administrative Committee was renamed the Coordinating Committee, to better describe its function. The committee has no administrative authority but instead helps to coordinate the efforts of the departments of the BMA of Texas. The title of business manager of the BMLA was changed to director and other items were updated in the department’s by-laws. The purpose of Baptist Progress was extended to cover the fact that the department, in addition to publishing a newspaper, also will now be responsible to offer workshops, training opportunities and other resources to pastors, church staff and churches.
Department, committee and auxiliary reports were given in the afternoon session of the meeting. Jason Curry, president of TBHC informed messengers that four children received Christ as their personal Savior during the past year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, offerings were low at the end of the year. Curry encouraged churches to be faithful in their giving and to remember the foster care and adoption services offered by TBHC. A total of $560,000 was requested of BMA of Texas churches to help TBHC meet their budget of $3,615,090. Curry will begin a new podcast beginning in January.
Dr. Mike Smith, president of Jacksonville College, said that things are well at the college. Current enrollment is 542, and the college is expecting its largest enrollment ever in the spring. Smith introduced the new vice president of executive affairs, Dr. Joe Lightner, and gave him the opportunity to address messengers. Messengers approved recommendations that churches consider giving the college an “End of the Year” gift, and set May 2, 2021 as Jaguar Across Texas Day for an offering to be received by churches for the college.
The report from the BMLA was given by Wayne Speir. He noted that the department has $16.5 million in assets and urged churches considering building projects or property purchases to get their loan from the BMLA. Speir also spoke of the trustees’ selection of Jerry Fulton as nominee to become the new director of the BMLA. Fulton was elected to the position.
Fulton, who also serves as editor of Baptist Progress, gave that department’s report. He spoke of his vision to lead Baptist Progress to be the equipping and resource ministry of the BMA of Texas.
BMA Texas Missions Director Heith Mitchell informed messengers that there are currently 31 new church plants across Texas. Four new state missionaries were elected at the meeting: Timothy Alba, who will be planting a new church in Seagoville; Robert Lee, who is leading a restart project at Harmony, Normangee; Brad Holcomb who will lead church planting efforts in south Fort Worth and Cesar Leal who is planting a new church in San Antonio.
Elected to the Coordinating Committee (formerly Administrative Committee) with a term ending in 2024 were Richard Smith, James Schoenrock and David Skinner. The Nominating Committee report was approved. Philip Waddell was elected to serve on the committee with his term ending in 2023. Jack Cook was elected to fill an unexpired term ending in 2022.
Johnnie Ross, president of the Texas WMA, shared that the theme for the WMA during the 2020-2021 associational year will be “Shipwrecked.” The Texas WMA committed their support to the Martha Johnson School in Huejutla, Mexico, for the enlargement of their school building during the 2019-2020 associational year, and raised $10,151.78.
In the afternoon session, Ronnie Mills was elected to preach the 2021 annual message and Spencer Simpson was elected as the alternate. President Leon Ross, First Vice President Ryan Burchett and Recording Clerks Eddie Ballard and Wayne McKay were re-elected to serve the association; and Michael Pool was elected to serve as second vice president.
The final session of the meeting included a concert by the Jacksonville College Singers. The annual message, “This Same Jesus,” was delivered by Charles Johnson. Following the meeting, the BMA Texas Missions Commissioning Service was led by Director Heith Mitchell in which new state missionaries were presented.
The 121st Annual Meeting of the BMA of Texas will take place at New Harmony at Tyler Nov. 1-2, 2021.
Jacksonville College Singers perform at BMA of Texas meeting
We Aren’t Alone in the Fight
By Dan McGee, Director • KS & WMO Missions
There’s a story in I Kings 19 where the prophet Elijah was depressed and ready to give up. The Lord spoke to him in a still small voice, and the message was basically that Elijah still had work to do. Then the Lord told Elijah that He had 7,000 men who had not bowed their knee to Baal (a false god). This was God’s way of telling Elijah that he wasn’t alone in the fight.
I think that this is a relevant story for us today. We’re still living in a pandemic, and although some of our churches have opened some of their public services, some are still in lockdown mode. Our association canceled our annual meeting, and the BMA of Kansas & West Missouri has had to postpone the annual missions rally.
It would be easy for us to get depressed. Being cut off from contact with other churches or even from our own church could have a devastating effect on us. But I want to encourage you by reminding you that God was never shut down.
In our moments of inactivity, God is constantly pushing forth His agenda. We may have not seen His work, but don’t assume that it didn’t happen. Just as God told Elijah that there were still 7,000 men ready to carry on the work, He’s telling us that we’re not in this work alone. God has a plan for our association and for our future mission endeavors.
When we come out of our quarantine, we will find that God has continued working His plan. We need to be committed to joining Him in that work. One way we can resume a level of normalcy is to look for future information about our missions rally that is being planned for spring and attend; and also to make plans to attend the BMA associational meeting in the spring of 2021.
Get Involved
Even if you are self-quarantined, you can still be involved in missions. I encourage you to visit www.bmamissions.org, where you can check out our national missions work, read about missionaries stationed across the world, watch videos about our missions, sign up for a free copy of mission:world (a magazine produced by the BMA departments to inform us about their ministries) and even donate to missions through the website.
Most importantly, you can pray! Pray for our association as we search for a new missionary and a new mission field. Pray for the Coordinating Committee. Pray for Refuge Church in Nixa as she petitions to join our association, and pray for our other sister churches.
Friedman Addresses
Post-COVID Ministry
By Paul Gauntt, Pastor • First • Palmer, Texas
During recent BMA of Texas meeting, Mitch Friedman, lead pastor of the Journey Bible Fellowship of Austin, addressed the complexities of reaching the unchurched, especially in the aftermath of COVID-19.
Friedman, who called himself a “cultural observer,” cited the possibility that the church may not return to a pre-COVID type of ministry. The church will need to break from what he called “historical pride” and concentrate on adapting to the new normal in order to win the world to Christ.
Friedman explained that COVID has been like a pressure cooker to the church by causing it to come to terms with other avenues of ministry. “The year 2020 has been an amazing blessing in that it has helped us to understand our historical pride in comparison with our Christian faith,” he said.
He drew a comparison to the yearning of Israel to return to the old ways in Egypt to the attitude of most churches today wishing we could return to pre-COVID days. “We must get a handle on the beautiful opportunities today to minister rather than to return to what we were before,” he said, noting that it is time for the western church to awaken.
He reminded the group of one transforming factor in the church’s outreach in 2020 is live-streaming services, and how the gospel message is becoming more widespread than anyone ever dreamed possible. “Rather than waiting until this (pandemic) is over so we can get back to the way things were, we need to understand that God has ordained every single moment for every single Christian,” he said, citing Paul’s message on Mars Hill where he preached about the “unknown God” as inscribed on one of the altars. (Acts 17:24-26)
Friedman then posed the question as to how the New Testament Church would respond to the present world’s situation. He mentioned the four world views that are common today, and what the church’s response should be to them:
• How did I get here?
• What’s wrong?
• What can be done?
• What is my purpose here?
One issue facing the church today, according to Friedman, is discipleship — the church must be discipled! Then he had a word to pastors: “Not only does the church need a strong program of discipleship but, as pastors, we also need constant discipleship.”
The Package
By Jared Kathcart, Pastor
North Lake • Smithville, Mo.
Fifteen years ago, I made my first ever Amazon purchase — a blue Nalgene bottle and a Back to the Future 1-3 DVD set. I remember the moment as a major step into adulthood. The accessibility of online shopping, the convenience of postal delivery (to my college dorm, no less!) and the power of my debit card — it was magical. I waited over a week for that special delivery, checking my little mailbox for the slip of paper telling me that there was a package for me at the front desk.
These days, I get 5-10 Amazon deliveries a week, and half the time I see the box on my porch and don’t have a memory or clue what Nikki or I ordered. It’s sad, really. With the growth of convenience comes a lack of appreciation. We are spoiled, and our joy and efforts show it.
It’s no wonder we’ve grown tired of a seemingly distant God. When He doesn’t seem to deliver in “two days or less,” there is no prime membership to fix our dissatisfaction. Even though, through His Spirit, He is more accessible than ever, we tend not to care. We want immediate action. We want immediate delivery. We want the “package” at our doorstep in two days or less.
Yet we are fools not to recognize the virtue of patience, not to see the beauty of the refining efforts of an expert blacksmith and not to see how faith and trust can bloom into flowers, even after a storm. We are fools not to know that hope can only exist if we have something to hope for — and we do; we hope for Christ’s delivery and for His return. And in the meantime, we listen to the words of Paul from Rom. 12:12 ESV: “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”
BMA of Miss. Meets
By Editor Don Brown
Midway First Baptist Church near Sumrall hosted the 2020 annual meeting of the BMA of Mississippi on Tuesday, Oct. 20. This year’s meeting was short due to the Coronavirus situation. The 2020 midyear meeting set for this past May was canceled due to the virus, as was the national BMA meeting.
With the virus still prevalent, many churches and other organizations continue to meet under safe protocols. Many in attendance wore masks, seating in the church was separated by markers with those attending mostly abiding by what has become our “new normal.” Due to the shortened meeting time and the distance and time needed to travel for lunch, Midway Church provided a box lunch from a local establishment. All business was completed by 5 p.m.
Reports were presented in person by each department and commission, with the exception of the Commission on Senior Adults. Director Kenneth Flynt had provided his annual report in print form. (See Departmental Highlights in this issue) The State WMA and Brotherhood held their meetings at 9 a.m. before the state meeting began at 9:30.
The Enrollment Committee reported 33 churches represented by messenger with 45 more by letter only. The official number of messengers was 62 with at least 14 visitors. Some national department leaders and workers were also present. By comparison, the 2019 meeting reported 55 churches by messenger with 33 by letter only showing a total of 98 messengers and 30 visitors. Churches from each area of the state were in attendance at this year’s meeting.
Officers for the 2020-21 year are: President Greg Medenwald, First Vice-president Blake McCain, Second Vice-president Justin Cameron, Recording Secretary Justin Rhodes, Asst. Rec. Sec. Ted Quinby and Director of Public Information Don Brown.
Greg Medenwald brought the annual president’s message from I Cor. 2:2 on “Jesus Christ and Him Crucified.” The annual message was brought by host pastor Blake McCain from I Peter on “A Hope That Leads to Holiness.”
Southeastern College presented a constitutional change to enlarge their Trustee body to 12 members from the current 9. This was to bring on board individuals with various areas of expertise to contribute to the growth and operation of the college. The Children’s Home presented a change in wording to better indicate who actually has supervision and responsibility for children received into the home. Both of these changes were adopted by the messenger body.
The Salary Committee, consisting of the chairmen of each department’s trustee board, recommended a salary ceiling of a 3% increase over current salaries. Salaries are set by the individual trustee boards.
The 2021 annual meeting will be held at First Baptist Church of Shady Grove in Laurel, Oct. 19-20. Dennis Knight will be the annual speaker with Greg Cook serving as the alternate. The 2021 midyear meeting will be held at Southeastern College in Laurel with Justin Cameron as the speaker and Chris Yager as the alternate.
What class looks like at ABS!
SBC choir “Cornerstone” at BMA of Mississippi annual session.
Carving pumpkins at Friday Fun Night
Departmental Highlights
Trumpet Editor’s Note: Space will not allow us to list all the important information in each director’s annual report. Therefore, we’ve highlighted a few of them.
Mississippi Baptist
Don Brown, Editor
• At last year’s meeting, we reported an $8,290 deficit in operation. We had not increased our rates in about 15 years and the increase in printing and postage costs over those years led to this situation. This year, you approved an increase in church subscriptions from $1.30 to $1.50 per month.
• The number of subscribers via the Church Family Plan is down. From a high of 5,400 a few years ago, our subscription list is at 3,300. We still have the same approximate number of churches, but with fewer families.
• Corbey Jones, who had been serving as chairman of our Trustee Board, will be serving as assistant editor. A number of programs must be learned and mastered along with postal regulations, printer requirements and financial operations. Bro. Jones is pastor of Good Hope Church in Stringer, as well as an educator.
• We have a website msbaptist.org. Since its inception we have had over 141,600 visits. Due to the cost and maintenance of the current site we are making plans to launch a new and improved site. This will cut our cost by over $500 per year and provide a more accessible and user-friendly site with much more information.
• I pray circumstances never cause this ministry to cease providing the printed page to our readers, although the time may come when we could print a larger publication on a monthly basis. With continued support we should be able to continue to print two issues each month.
Mississippi Baptist Children’s Home
Dwight Lindsey, Director
• We stepped into this ministry with one child to care for in 2019, but the home has quadrupled its long-term placements in the past year. We have also helped multiple children through short term care anywhere from a day to a week.
• The goal we placed before you last year to have our churches point us to children in need in their communities did not provide the opportunities we had hoped. I would not say we are closing the door to this approach, but we do not feel as if it is going to be the most fruitful avenue.
• Lindsay and I were able to be licensed as foster parents through the Director’s Home. This is a loophole that will allow us to keep both placement options available to us. We can still receive children through our Health Department Licensing at the big house and receive children through the state officially at our personal residence. Lindsay and I are bound by some rules we don’t fully agree with, but the home, as an entity, is not.
Missions & Revolving Loan Fund
Larry Geraldson, Director
• So far, we have organized nine new churches and have three missions that are moving toward their organization in the upcoming year. Of the missions that we have organized into churches, all but one has retained the missionary as their pastor, and all but one is fully engaged in our associational work to include supporting our State Missions Department.
• In this past year, we added Scott Brocious, Daniel Allen and Chris Yager to our missionary team. We have the potential of adding three more missionaries in the upcoming year. We began a new church plant in Meridian, and are developing the groundwork for a possible new work in Bayou La Batre, Ala.
• We continue to see the results of having implemented a program of coaching a few years back. Sidney Farmer has served as our only missionary coach, until now, with a focus on discipleship. This year, we will add two new coaches (Jason Howard and Wesley Martin) to help us expand the training offered to our missionaries in the first two years of their mission project.
• We had another good year financially. We operated in the black and kept our efficiency at 96/4 for the fiscal year. But recent decisions by the Missionary Committee should bring us to 100% efficiency, where we hope to remain. That means, 100% of every penny sent to missions will go out the door to our missionaries.
• In November 2019 we added Jail Ministry to the group of Missions Department Ministries, which also includes Church Ministries and Disaster Relief. Dr. Paul Spurlin is doing a great job starting up this ministry with a focus on preaching in the local jails.
• The Revolving Loan Fund is healthy! We closed our books in the black and currently have 628 shareholder accounts totaling $24,257,670. We have 66 loans totaling $13,067,435. Ten of these loans are new this year, totaling $1,667,197. We have a number of prospective loans totaling over $1.3 million. We continue to maintain a 25% cash reserve to meet the demands of withdrawals, and we have plenty of money available to loan. At the time of our audit, we only had one loan that was delinquent, and it is in recovery. Our gross assets stand at just over $27 million.
Southeastern Baptist College
Dr. Scott Carson, President
• We finished the Fall 2019 semester with 63 students and a full men’s and women’s basketball program. Both our men and women’s teams competed well in only their second year, with the Lady Chargers taking the #10 ranking in the National Christian College Athletic Association.
• In the Spring 2020 semester, we had 50 students but in February, COVID-19 began to have its negative effects upon our operation. When we released the students for Spring Break, we were advised to shut down in-classroom courses. The students were asked to consider remaining at home and nearly all the students chose to do that and were able to finish their course work online. We did, however, offer a full Summer Semester and the Lord blessed us with the largest Summer student population in the history the college!
• As we prepared for the Fall Semester, we introduced Women’s Softball and Men’s Baseball to our campus. Our coaches recruited full benches resulting in our student population to nearly double the previous Spring Semester. We currently have the largest number of full-time students in the history of SBC at 90, with a total of 93 students; and, with the most hours attempted by students, also in the history of SBC with 1,355 hours!
• We completed the renovation of the Hilbun Hall dorm just in time for the start of the Fall Semester. After receiving generous donations, we still have had to absorb nearly $14,000 in expenditures on this project. We are currently at full capacity for student living space. The Board of Trustees has assembled a building committee to begin preliminary planning for new housing.
• Back in February, it became evident that we were going to be short on funds by $86,000, but we were able to apply for the COVID-19 Small Business PPP for exactly that amount. Additional funds have been received through the US Dept. of Education to help offset costs.
Youth Department
Kelby Johnson, Director
• Unfortunately, COVID-19 caused us to cancel our camp in 2020, but we are already planning our 2021 camp. More information will be released by the end of the year, and I highly encourage you to consider participating in your BMA of Miss. Summer Camp.
Commission on Senior Adults
Kenneth Flynt, Director
• The South Mississippi Senior Conference at Big Creek Baptist Church didn’t miss a beat. Almost 400 gathered for a great day, and it will be well remembered.
• The North Mississippi Senior Conference scheduled for May at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church had to be canceled due to COVID-19.
• Conferences are once again scheduled to meet in March and May, watch for dates.
The Election and Christian Colleges
By Dr. Scott Carson, President • Southeastern Baptist College
“For the kingdom is the Lord’s: and he is the governor among the nations” (Psa. 22:28).
The national election results are in review and the media has announced the next president of the United States. If this holds true, then a major shift in philosophy toward governmental support of independent Christian colleges and universities is about to take place.
During the Obama administration, Danny Pitts, who was president of SBC at the time, received a letter from the U.S. Department of Education warning Christian colleges that they would have to modify their admission and hiring policies to support the LGBTQ+ agendas or they would lose all federal funding.
Brother Pitts and I knew that if Hillary Clinton was elected president in 2016, the policy would go forward, and we would have to seek legal advice. SBC does, indeed, receive federal funding through participation in the Pell Grant program. Without Pell Grant funds, well over half of our students would have had to drop out of SBC because they could not afford one of most economical colleges in the nation.
As it turned out, Hillary Clinton was not elected, and Christian colleges received a reprieve from the Obama administration threat. Under the Trump administration, religious institutions received equal favor along with secular schools. However, if Joe Biden is our next president, I foresee the threat from the previous Obama administration reinstated in quick order.
There could be tremendous pressure for conservative Christian schools to either compromise their statements of faith or be faced with a significant reduction in revenue. Southeastern Baptist College has been on the verge of closure ever since I came on staff four years ago. I have described our situation as still being in the woods, but near the wood line. We can see the clearing, but we were not in the clear yet. Most recently, we have moved out of the wood line and into the clearing, but right on the edge of the wood line. With any loss of revenue, we will once again become fiscally challenged and, if the Biden administration takes away our Pell Grant funding, we may find ourselves deep in the woods of financial troubles.
Please pray for our country and for Christian schools everywhere as we anticipate a significant financial challenge in the near future. Pray for SBC, that the Lord would intervene and make miraculous things happen on behalf of the future of the college.
We are excited to be partnering with the Timothy Group, a Christian organization that has a tremendous track record of helping Christian colleges find and maintain new avenues of revenue. Both the Board of Trustees and the Community Advisory Committee met with the Timothy Group on Nov. 23 in order to find a way forward for financial stability for SBC. I believe this partnership is at the right time as I project fiscally difficult times for SBC in the years ahead.
Perhaps you have been blessed with monetary resources. I ask you to pray about the needs of SBC’s future and how you may be able to help the school fulfill its mission of equipping young adults as Christian witnesses to our lost world.
“The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens” (Psa. 114:4)
What Topics Are You Avoiding?
By Anders Lee, Pastor
Central • Southaven, Miss.
A long time ago, when I first surrendered to preach, I was asked to do a youth revival at a little church in the middle of nowhere. I agreed and I was excited. It was my first youth revival... youth! So, I prepared four messages for youth, but the first night there were only four teens there — two age 13, one 15 and one 18 — the rest of the church was literally old gray-headed folks.
I preached on David the first night and the famous story of killing Goliath. The second night I had scheduled to preach on Joseph. Now, you know one of the main points of Joseph’s life was sexual temptation (Genesis 39). I had preached the message once at my home church, which at the time had around 25 teens so it made sense to preach on that topic, but this situation was entirely different! So I began arguing with God on the way home that first night about why I wasn’t gonna preach that. Why would I preach on sexual purity when the place was full of old folks and four teenagers?
I poured over a new sermon all through the next day, and it was a good one, too! But halfway to the church that night, the “hound of heaven” (the Holy Spirit) made it clear that I had to preach that message about Joseph. The problem was that I had left that sermon at home, so the argument with God continued.
During the song service, we sang songs about Heaven from the Heavenly Highway hymnal. (No that’s not a dig; I’m just providing the context of this debate!) Well, while we were singing, God pretty much nailed me to the pew, and I had to submit.
Was it awkward? Yes! I mean, goodness, a message about sexual purity with 35 old gray-headed folks looking at you! And to top it off, only three teens had made it that night. You guessed it — the 18-year-old from the night before did not show up... had to work! But I got up and preached about what Joseph went through as if the room was filled with 200 teens.
That night nothing happened; yes, a big whopping nothing! The handshakes at the back door of that little country church when everyone was leaving... yeah, that was awkward, too! They never invited me back after that week. “Oh well,” I kept telling myself, “I did what God told me to do.”
Years later, in fact, almost 10 years later, Bro. Windham (the former youth director here in Mississippi) invited me to take part in planning and preaching at the teen camp in Mississippi, and I was thrilled to be part of it. By that time, I was married and a youth pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Horn Lake.
The camp was about halfway done when a young man in his early 20s came up to me and introduced himself. “Remember me?” he asked? When I confessed that I didn’t, he said, “You preached a youth revival at our church,” and when he said the name of the church, I remembered immediately… it was that same church where I preached on Joseph!
This young man had grown up and moved on from that little church and was a member of another BMA church by then. He was there at camp in Wiggins as a sponsor for his youth group. He said he could not let the week go by without talking to me. “I appreciate what you preached,” he continued. “I don’t remember the other messages you preached that week, but I never forgot that one about Joseph.”
He related to me that he played football for his high school and “all the guys were doing their thing.” He continued, “That night when you preached, I told the Lord I would wait for marriage… and I did!” His pointed across the way to a young lady holding a baby and said, “That’s my wife and our firstborn child.” Wow!
Youth pastor, never avoid the tough topics — never! If God gives you leadership to share a topic with them from the Word, do it! You may never know the impact you make, but you are making one!
You might need to have that Genesis 39 talk like I have had to through the years. It may be that, in today’s day and time, you need to discuss what the Bible says about racism and address the racial issues facing our youth today. Perhaps you need to confront this generation’s mindset toward doctrine and biblical principles that are ignored today. Maybe you need to help them understand that tolerating sin in this immoral society is not what a follower of Christ does. It could be that you need to share with them how a believer impacts America and politics. The list could go on and on, but you get the point!
We learn from the prophets of old that they hit issues head on! It may be awkward, and some may not like it at all, but that’s okay — you obey the Lord, not men! (anders.lee571@gmail.com)
Fall Quarter Group
Different: Like Everything Else!
By Danny Eddy, ABS Director • Louisiana Tech University
The fall quarter is winding down and, like everything else this year, this one has been different. The past month, the Association of Baptist Students (ABS) has gone back to in-person worship services and attendance has been slowly increasing, with 23 at IMPACT this week. We were happy to have Mason and Alexis Campbell in our service, with their new baby, Adelynn. They are from Pleasant Springs Baptist Church in McCaskill, Ark. and Mason is starting his senior year.
One of our special events this month was Hymn Night. The students love to call their favorites from the floor, and we asked Erik Eklund to play one of his classical hymn arrangements. One Friday night, we had some fun activities, including a pumpkin carving contest.
The softball team has continued to play, making it to the semi-finals of the playoffs. Karan and I made an effort to attend (even the 9 p.m. games) in order to get to know the new students better, and it was a fun experience for all.
ABS is beginning to look a little more normal, but we are still wearing masks, social distancing and doing extra cleaning. We have several students who spend time at the center during the week and, at any given time, they could be “in class” or taking a test while sitting in a comfy chair, staring at their laptop.
The number of COVID-19 cases at Tech appears to be very small, thanks to the measures being taken and restrictions on organizations like ABS and others. Tech still plans to start back in December for winter quarter on schedule, but most of the safety measures will remain in place.
Things are looking a lot more encouraging around here than at the beginning of the quarter, but we still covet your prayers, that we would be doing God’s will on this campus and that He would send us more students. We appreciate all your support of this ministry! (www.latechabs.com)
Louisiana Baptist Builder
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BMA of Oklahoma Meets
The Missionary Advisory Committee, as well as the Missionary Committeemen, met to discuss state church planting efforts, followed by an excellent lunch supplied by the host church, Our Oasis of Pryor, Okla. Following lunch, the various trustee committees met for a brief time, to allow for the general session to begin around 3 p.m. This included reports from the State Youth Department, the Oklahoma Baptist trustees, WMA, Men’s Fellowship and others.
Gene Hankins and Carl Barnes gave detailed accounts of missions efforts and financial status of our state association.
Reports were read from Nathan Brewer, Grace Harbor Church. Neither Bro. Nathan, nor Thomas Mobly were allowed to attend due to a Coronavirus exposure. Although Nathan tested positive, both men and their families were doing well. All reports and recommendations discussed will be available for review in our state minute books.
Bro. Meadows did an incredible job of moving all business forward at an efficient pace, and the meeting was completed with more than enough time to allow for a time of worship together, which seems to be the most enjoyed purpose of the meeting. Chris Gonthier, pastor of Our Oasis and our state Moral Action representative, brought the annual message. What a privilege it was to gather with pastors and church representatives from around the state to lift up our Lord together.
All in all, it seemed like the meeting went well. Fellowship among our churches and their pastors is always sweet and appreciated. It is always good to spend time together and encourage one another in ministry.
The normal annual two-day meeting of the BMA of Oklahoma was trimmed to a one day, Saturday meeting. The change was an attempt to make it a little easier for more churches to be represented.
State President Ryan Meadows opened the meeting with basic instructions as to how the day would need to play out. The WMA and the Men’s Fellowship began the day with a better than average attendance, and both meetings were productive. The ladies discussed several topics, including their annual project, before hearing from Valarie Fish. The Men’s Fellowship also was very productive, as they rapidly took care of business to allow time for all the necessary meetings. Dale Fish brought the messages.
Chris Gonthier bringing the annual message.
Where Are The Other Nine?
By Mike Mobly, Editor
Oklahoma Baptist
Jesus asks an important question in Luke 17:12-17 that, unfortunately, the Scriptures don’t answer. Ten lepers were cleansed, but only one of them returned to express his gratitude to the One who healed them. Only one returned to say “thank you.”
What do you believe happened to the other nine? We can only speculate, but as I look around at a world Jesus continues to heal and help, I have some decent guesses. Consider these possibilities with me:
• The Distracted — Maybe they got busy and just forgot. It seems more than likely, in today’s hustle and bustle, microwave popcorn kind of world, that people can just get so caught up in the immediacy of the moment, “thank you” can quickly fall by the wayside.
Let’s face it, we stay way too busy these days. Between obligations to others and trying to set aside some time for ourselves, we wind up racing our way through our lives.
Most of the time, we cry out to God with incredible requests, but never stop to acknowledge when He answers our prayers.
• The Crowd Follower — Then there is the cleansed leper who might have set his eyes on the others who weren’t going back and followed their lead. He didn’t think anyone else was going back, so why should he?
I sometimes allow others to dictate my actions and my responses to life. I search the masses and find my direction in theirs. It never occurs to me to thank God for all He has done because I have learned an improper response from others.
• The Celebrator — Could it be that he got so caught up in the moment that he never considered going back to thank the One who created the moment? Is it possible that we can, at times, discover all we need in the joy of worship, and we forget the One we are worshipping?
Much is made of our corporate praise in our churches today. As a matter of fact, many Christians will choose the church they attend based solely upon the style of worship — “I don’t like those old hymnals” or “I just can’t worship to those new songs. When are they going to play my music?”
Here’s a little tip — it was never supposed to be about you and what you like. If we aren’t careful, we will begin to worship the music in the moment, instead of the Messiah in the music.
• The Self-Made Man — Is it at all possible that one of the lepers might have assumed his healing was based upon his own goodness; that the cure was just because he had earned it?
Could he have thought: “I’m a pretty good guy, and it’s just possible that God smiled down upon me because of my own merit. Effectively, I healed myself!”
We live in a culture where we expect a reward for our good behavior. Do bad and we are punished, do good and we get a cookie. I believe it is possible that some people feel they are owed something by God because they are so wonderful — “God didn’t give me a gift, I earned it.”
• The Pessimist — What if it didn’t really work? I mean, one leper might have dreamed of this moment for years and was waiting to wake up again from this miracle dream. He knew this was an awesome moment full of wonder, and he didn’t want to “jinx” it by assuming it was real.
The pessimist can’t accept his healing because he is afraid he will ruin it. So instead of thanking God for the miracle, he sits waiting for the other shoe to fall, bemoaning his fate of when he will be robbed of it.
• The Postponer — I’m going to, but not right now; there are things to do, people to see, achievements to be accomplished. Like the distracted one, there is just too much going on right now to waste time saying “thank you.”
He has every intention of returning to thank Jesus for the incredible gift he has been given, but it will just have to wait for a more opportune moment — one that likely will never come.
• The Naysayer — He healed my leprosy, but what about all my other problems? What else might God do for me today? When can I expect a little bit more attention?
Oh sure, God has helped me with a major issue, but He has left me with so much more to be concerned with. Life is still bad, problems are still coming our way, and God still needs to do so much more before I will show Him my appreciation.
• The Diminisher — It wasn’t such a big deal. He healed everyone.
Some Christians can never discover the incredible love of God because they never get past the idea that God loves everyone. He’s not giving them anything special; He’s just God, that’s what He is, that’s who He is and that’s what He does.
But never underestimate how special God’s incredible gift of love is for you. He doesn’t love you because He is forced to, He loves you because He chooses to.
• The Presumptive — He figured Jesus already knew. This one is pretty common. Why tell God something He already knows. I mean, doesn’t God know everything?
Conclusion
What will be your reason for not expressing your love, adoration and appreciation to your Savior? How much longer, how many more days will race by, before you find yourself on your knees, telling Him just how wonderful He is?
Will we grieve the year 2020, and all its difficulties so much that we will let this holiday season go by without telling our God “thank you” for all He has done?
Highlights From The
Missouri Annual Meeting
By Don Burke, Recording Clerk
The Missouri State Association met for our 2020 annual meeting at Zion Baptist Church in St. Louis on Oct. 10. Due to COVID-19 concerns, many of our group sported masks that morning and someone commented that, as we congregated in the parking lot waiting for the church to open, we looked like masked banditos waiting to hold up an old west stage or bank!
As was reflected on the figures Bro. Hoffmann shared previously, the attendance was down this year as churches were asked to limit the attendance to just messengers. To further attempt to limit exposure, the meeting was pared down to business and a couple of devotional thoughts — there was no annual sermon and no meal.
The following new committeemen (terms ending) were elected to the various departments: Publications, Don Burke (2023); Camp, Jason Taylor (2025); Alive, Kevin Smith (2024); Special Missions Committee, Mike Hurst (2026), Brian Buckley (2023) and Don Burke (2027); Resolutions Committee, Benjamin Kingston, Matt Bolen and Mike Hurst; and Enrollment Committee, Russell Chitwood, Dan Wisely and Matt Bolen.
Jerry Adams was elected as the 2021 moderator of the association, and Ben Kingston was elected as assistant moderator.
The offering for the Minute Fund (including what has been received since the meeting) currently totals $2,150. This is down $500 from last year and is approximately $1,000 short of meeting anticipated expenses for the coming year. Even with the Minute Funds already in the bank, we are some $400 short for the coming year.
Probably the biggest change for the coming year is the election of the new director for the Missions Department, Ben Kingston. A new position (clerical help) will be filled by Stacey Hatfield, who will assist the director with bookkeeping and other duties. The outgoing director, James Hoffmann, will remain on staff for three months to help with training and transition responsibilities. The association voted to give Bro. Hoffmann a rising vote of appreciation and a gift of $1,200 in appreciation for his six years of service as missions director.
The association will meet next year with New Testament Baptist Church in Sullivan, Mo. on May 14-15 for the Missions Symposium and Semi-Annual Meeting; and the Annual Meeting will be at Faith Baptist Church in St. Charles, Mo. on Oct. 9.
A Page From My Heart
By Ben Kingston, Director • BMA of Missouri Missions
I am thrilled to be your newly-elected State Missions director. During my first month in this position, I was basically getting acclimated to the needs and expectations of this office.
We set up a bank account this week, so please update the address where you send your missions offerings to this one: BMA of MO Missions, c/o 1220 Park Drive St., Clair, Mo. 63077.
If I can help you in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me at (636) 629-2526 or 569 Bethel Church Rd., Lonedell, Mo. 63060.
We had a tremendous meeting with Juan Fernandez last month, and there will be much more information coming about this potential effort when it is available. Please be praying for this opportunity and for the state and local association involvement.
There will be a special called meeting of the Missionary Committee of Meramec Landmark Baptist Association on Thursday, Dec 10 at Friendship Baptist Church in St Clair, Mo. to consider a recommendation to join with the BMA of America and the BMA of Missouri in support of Bro. Fernandez and family in developing a Hispanic ministry in Missouri. Dinner will be at the church at 6 p.m. and the meeting will be at 6:30 p.m.
In the months to follow, I will be using this article to flesh out the dream and desire of carrying out missions through our state association churches. I ask you to pray for me to be led and guided by the Holy Spirit as to how He wants this department to work, and specifically for our churches that we would carry out mission on a local, state, national and global level.
I am praying for our pastors and churches to have a clear understanding of what that should look like. May the Lord richly bless you this month as you strive to carry out the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The $100 Refrigerator Magnet
By Narita Roady
Refrigerator magnets are small things many people enjoy. It might be a special quote, a child’s picture, a 3D image of something or even just a plain Jane square or circle to hold a note.
The world record for the largest collection of fridge magnets held is 35,000 non-duplicated magnets. In general, these do-dads are very inexpensive, but I had the exception — a $100 refrigerator magnet! It was a small ladybug, not even 1/2” in size. I had several like it, but this one was special.
It all started 12 years ago when my mother generously gave us a new side-by-side refrigerator. She had moved in with us and our old one, at the ripe old age of 16 years, was failing again.
In all the years I had been married, this was only my second new one. To say I was ecstatic is putting it mildly! It was a beautiful side-by-side, and the day finally came when it was delivered. Jerry and our son-in-law unboxed it, removed the old one and put it in place.
It was beautiful… but wait, there was a dent on the front, a very small one, but still a dent! I was almost in tears. I needed it to be perfect.
Being the good husband he was, Jerry called the appliance store and explained the problem. They told him we could return it and they would order a new one, but he would have to box it up, load it up and bring it to them — or they would give him $100. With a smile on his face, he shared the news with me, expounding on all the “cons” of returning it. Then his face brightened even more as he said, “But we can get $100, and Mom said we could keep it!”
I knew we had many medical bills the money would help with, but I stood firm. I crossed my arms, put a no-nonsense look on my face and said, “I don’t care, I want it fixed!”
He stared at me a moment, grabbed the little ladybug magnet, put it over the dent (which it covered perfectly), smiled and said, “There it’s fixed!” I moved the magnet and said, “No! It’s still there!” He quickly moved the ladybug back and countered, “If you don’t move the magnet, it isn’t there!”
Of course, he won. He was right to keep it for the extra money and, in that split second, that ladybug became worth $100! I still have the ladybug and, of course, the dent. But I don’t need to cover it anymore. I look upon it fondly and chuckle as it brings back a sweet memory of my precious husband’s ingenuity and sense of humor — even though I didn’t think it was very funny back then!
We all have our own special “magnets” we use to try to cover up our faults, mistakes and sins. Our motive is to hide them from others, from ourselves (this is called denial) and even from the Lord. The latter is especially foolish because nothing can be hidden from Him.
We assuredly pop them on our refrigerator door of life we when need to cover an… um dent. You might check and see if you are using any of these:
• The Whitewash Magnet — This magnet doesn’t even begin to do the job one wants because, much like in life, others see our sin and God definitely does. “He hath said in his heart, God hath forgotten: he hideth his face; he will never see it” (Psa. 10:11).
In the beginning, the guilty party knows the sin is there but attempts to sooth the pricks of the Holy Spirit by accepting it. He might even think, “It isn’t that bad. It’s no big deal.” Then it progresses a step further to “Well it isn’t a sin.”
At this point, they have basically started their own “version” of God’s Word in this area. Their conscience has been seared over by repeated transgressions. I picture an elephant hiding behind a thin palm tree.
“For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known” (Luke 12:2).
• The Hidey Hole Magnet — All these magnets could fit into this category, but this one has a special purpose. The person becomes more concerned with the opinions of others than the Lord’s. Their hearts burn with shame at the thought of other people knowing their failings. “What will my friends, church, family think if they find out? What will happen?”
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe” (Prov. 29:25).
Their fear is of judgment, but it is misplaced. One’s peers have been put in the place of the Almighty. His opinion is the only one that matters.
“And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do” (Luke 12:4).
I know you can probably guess where this one is going just by the name. It is a magnet we started using as children, lying to cover up our wrongs. Aside from the fact that it is sin and straight from the “father of lies” himself, there is more:
“...He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44).
Lying weaves a sticky web and all who employ its tactics will be caught. Once you tell a lie, you find yourself having to tell another one to back it up. Pretty soon, you forget some of the original lies and expose yourself. This magnet is sure to fall off; it won’t work forever.
“For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved” (John 3:20).
• The Blame Magnet — This seems to be a favorite of folks, and it is as old as the beginning of time. Adam blamed God and Eve and Eve blamed the serpent, but none of it covered up their sin.
“And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat” (Gen. 3:11-13).
Sadly, those sticking this magnet on their sin think it is a sufficient cover, but the exact opposite happens. Blame will highlight, underline, make it all uppercase letters and put up a flashing neon sign that says “Guilty! Guilty!”
Just a few favorites are:
“You made me angry!”
“Forgive them? You don’t know what they did to me!”
“If the sermons were better, I would be able to grow spiritually.”
The list goes on; feel free to add your own. Blame didn’t work for Adam and Eve, and it still doesn’t work! Look where that got all of us!
• The Excuse Magnet — This one rarely makes sense to anyone else, nor does it have anything to do with the issue at hand, but it works for the one making the excuse, at least in their own mind. I am sure you can quote people who have said:
“Well that’s just the way I am.”
“I’m only human!”
“We all make mistakes, God understands (??)”
“It’s my life to do with as I please!”
“Nothing’s happened yet, I’m still okay.”
“Other Christians are doing it.”
It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it; but that fact doesn’t seem to deter the one using one of these flimsy excuses.
I am reminded of a story about a man who went to his friend and asked to borrow his ladder. The friend said, “No, I can’t loan it to you. I am making soup tonight.” The other man replied, “What does that have to do with me borrowing your ladder?” His friend replied, “Nothing, but if I don’t want to loan you my ladder, one excuse is as good at another.”
“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20).
Conclusion
If we look closely, we will find that all of us have a drawer full of these magnets. I may not have named yours, but you know it is there in your heart, and what is under it. You know something is wrong when you see no wrong with what God calls sin! Maybe it’s time to take all of those magnets down and put Christ up. He has specific answers and guidance for overcoming the “dents” in our lives:
“If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin” (John 15:22).
Senior Saints — Truly a “Minister’s Resource”
By Dr. Steve Crawley, Exec. Dir. • Ministers Resource Services
Years ago, I recall hearing a student minister remind his congregation that youth are not just the church of tomorrow, but a vital part of the church today. Likewise, a congregation’s senior saints are not the church of yesterday, but a vital part of the church today. Further, they have the potential to be an incredible resource to pastors.
Yet it seems that our Western view of retirement now extends beyond the workplace and into the church house. Consequently, our senior saints sometimes seem to be relegated to a sideline role in the church. The church’s goal should, instead, be for them to thrive in the mission of the church rather than just to survive changes aimed at ministering to younger members.
Senior bus trips to destinations of enjoyment are well deserved by our older members and have their rightful place on our church calendar. Still, a thriving senior adult ministry extends far beyond field trips and fellowships. It creates an atmosphere where aged men and women are used in an intentional way to invest in the lives of younger members of the congregation to help in fulfilling the church’s mission. Consider the following:
• Senior saints have wisdom to counsel and mentor. Their life experiences and trials provide invaluable capabilities that can be shared with younger generations. Perhaps rather than segmenting classes by age, we might consider the intergenerational dynamic made possible by having younger men meeting with older men and younger women meeting with older women.
• Senior saints have margin. Every church member has a responsibility to employ his or her spiritual gift to edify the church body. Yet senior saints often have more margin in both time and finances to serve the church without the burden of raising a family and earning an income.
• Senior saints have talent and ability. Many of our older members often retire from positions that required significant leadership abilities in the workforce that can now be leveraged and used for the kingdom. Many local churches are full of older members with untapped potential.
• Senior saints make great prayer warriors. Some of the greatest prayer warriors I have witnessed were confined to a nursing home. As Adrian Rogers once noted, “Prayer does not prepare us for battle; prayer is the battle.” Our senior saints serve invaluably by praying for their church and pastor, regardless of the physical challenges they may face.
Senior saints are a vital part of the church today and a great resource for pastors. By prioritizing our use of this congregational demographic, church leaders can leverage substantial wisdom, margin, intercessional capability and talent that can help our churches thrive in fulfilling the Great Commission.
Visit cutt.ly/MRS-Retirement to view an interview conducted with Bruce Bruinsma, founder of Envoy Financial and the Retirement Reformation movement. In the webcast, we address “How to Engage Seniors Within Our Churches.”
At Ministers Resource Services, we exist to help pastors, missionaries and church staff members of the BMAA with employee benefits. A major benefit afforded to employees of a BMA church or entity is the BMA America 403(b)(9) plan, which is designed to help establish a Future Funded Ministry. To access available resources, please visit our website at ministersresourceservices.com or call (844) 262-8637.
Mississippi Baptist
Don Brown, Editor
editor@msbaptist.org
(601) 426-3293; msbaptist.org
Mailed: $20; Emailed: $15.
Spotlight On
Missions
Send offerings to BMA Missions
P.O. Box 878 • Conway, AR 72033-0878
501.455.4977 • www.bmamissions.org
Michael & Laura Strong • Minneapolis, Minn.
What a month it has been! Praise the Lord with us for what He has done:
• I am now teaching a weekly Bible Study for men in a post-prison release housing program, and God has been graciously leading in great gospel conversations.
• Two neighborhood boys asked us to start a study each week, and I got to explain the gospel to one.
• The girls in our Foundations Bible study group are growing in daily habits of grace and in sharing with and praying for each other.
• I have been able to meet with a handful of men over the last month to share what God is doing with the work here, and He is beginning to draw people to what we are doing.
• A new video teaching series is going online soon, including some teaching on Luke and a short break to work through a series on covenants in the coming weeks on YouTube and Facebook.
• God opened the door to allow articles I wrote to be featured in the Baptist Trumpet and in a recent issue of Mission:World magazine.
We have been spending time with another BMA church plant that is a bit further along than us, and they have been a blessing to us in several ways:
• One family is letting our three youngest children come to “preschool” three days a week to learn about Jesus and hang out with other children so Laura can teach our older children and I can work on planting.
• The guys who are starting the church are letting me fellowship with them in a book group once a week in the morning.
• We are attending services with them while we focus on Bible studies to build a core launch team, and it gives us a group of Christians with whom we can fellowship worship in the meantime.
I am roughly three weeks away from completing two more classes in my Master’s program in seminary, and both classes have been a great blessing to me.
I have been experiencing a personal prayer and study movement. God does everything in His timing, but something is different about how that impacts me when I say it now. There is still so much to be done before we can say we’ve planted a church, and there are times I wish I could say we were further along. But we are right where God wants us to be today, and I am hopeful about where we are headed.
BMA of Arkansas State Missions
Missionaries
Michael Hight, Hispanic Coordinator, ; (501) 326-0198
Ruben Isturiz, Misión Ebenezer, West Little Rock: (501) 707-5388
Carter Pearce, Grace, Green Forest; (870) 688-7412
Juan Carlos Posadas, Misión Creciendo en Cristo, NLR; (501) 712-8752
Jim Tollison, Mustard Seed, Cain; (870) 370-3938
Chad White, Connection Point, Brookland; (870) 243-4683
Darrin Smith, Life Journey, Fort Smith; (479)-763-8909
Johnny Shew, Faith Chapel, Flippin; (870) 421-1984
Clinton Morris, Northwest Arkansas; (870) 316-1519
Office Location: 10712 Interstate 30 • Little Rock, AR 72209
(501) 565-4601 • E-Mail: bmaofarkfrontdesk@gmail.com
Mailing Address: PO Box 195514, Little Rock, AR 72219
Director’s Email: arstamis@comcast.net
www.bmaofarkansas.com
Facebook.com/ArkansasMissions
Paul White
Executive Director
Living by Faith and Not by Sight
“Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth hath the Lord God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The Lord his God be with him, and let him go up” (II Chron. 36:22-23).
Our God is good and faithful. He loves and cares for us, and He often provides deliverance for us in ways we do not expect. God promised to bring His people out of exile — then He provided Cyrus, the foreign king of Persia, as their deliverer. Not only did Cyrus restore Israel as a nation, he also commissioned the rebuilding of the temple. This was not the deliverance the Israelites expected, but they trusted in God anyway.
It is not over until God says so. Even if it takes a year, or two, or four, will you trust in God’s salvation or will you harden your heart? Will you accept that God alone is in control? “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26).
From Our Missionaries
Connection Point, Brookland: Chad White writes, (11/22) “It was a good week at Connection Point. This past week, we began decorating our building for Christmas. We have the tree up and our nativity on display. We even have some Christmas lights for the stage. A huge thank you to everyone who helped.
“Sunday was a good day. We had several families out — some with illness, some on quarantine and some traveling for the holidays — but God gave us a great morning. We had a decent attendance and enjoyed a great time worshipping together.
“We ask that you continue to pray for us as we work to reach families during this pandemic. Outreach has been difficult, but God is faithful and will always provide a way.
(11/29) “We enjoyed a great holiday week at Connection Point. This past week, the ladies of our church cooked and provided a Thanksgiving dinner for a large, local family to enjoy. The recipients said that their ‘refrigerator was completely empty.’ We are thankful that God allowed us to have a positive impact for these people.
“Sunday was a good day. We had a decent attendance despite having many families sick and out of town. We even had a first-time guest attend with us. We continue to offer our on-line option and are doing our best to keep everyone safe.”
The Mustard Seed, Cain: Jim Tollison writes, “We had a good service Sunday. The spirit of Thanksgiving was alive and well. We were reminded about the importance of remaining thankful even in times of adversity. When the services were concluded we shared some tears of joy as we realized how blessed and thankful we were to have each other.
“Our walkway is near completion. Material delays slowed the progress. God bless you all and thank you for your love, continued support and your prayers”
Misión Creciendo en Cristo (Growing in Christ), North Little Rock: (11/22) Juan Carlos Posadas writes, “On Friday night, we dedicated ourselves to pray for the political situation we are currently experiencing, for the natural disasters in Central America, the worsening of the health crisis due to the pandemic and for each of the families of the church. We know that God is in control of the world, nature and each of our lives and we long for His perfect will.
“On Sunday morning, Bayron and Lixy dedicated their daughter, Valerie to the Lord. It was a good opportunity to reflect on the responsibility that parents have to teach our children the Word of God and train them to live Christianity with a pure conscience — practicing the principles learned. The preaching was based on I Tim. 3:8-13, with the theme “The Duties of Deacons.” Although we have not yet organized as a church, it is always good to know the requirements of those who serve our God. We thank God for His protection, provision and for you and for your prayers.
(11/29) “Since the end of March, a group of Hispanic pastors of different denominations have joined forces to serve the community by distributing food donated by different institutions. One of the pastors who stood out for his strong commitment was Mynor Veliz, who was always accompanied by his wife. He was present almost every time the opportunity to serve was given. This precious child of God went into the presence of the Lord last week after contracting the COVID-19 virus the week before. Pastor Veliz leaves his wife, Eli with two minor children. Let us pray for this family and their support.
“On Saturday night, we installed Christmas decorations in the front patio of the church. Some people who passed in their vehicles stopped to appreciate the illuminated trees and the figures of the manger with their characters — an angel and deer. This was a good opportunity of service and communion for the people who participated.
“On Sunday, we had our thanksgiving meeting, and each family came to the front to share Bible verses, express thanksgiving and deposit a special offering. At the end we joined in a prayer of thanksgiving. We thank you for your prayers for this ministry.”
Life Journey, Fort Smith: Darrin Smith writes, “It was exciting to see five first time visitors and to have a few of our ‘regulars’ back this past Sunday. There were several families out for different reasons.
“We continue to meet each week for worship on Sunday’s at 10:30 am. We have other opportunities throughout the week when we come together: Sunday at 9 a.m. for Coffee House Worship (it’s just Sunday School with Caffeine!); Sunday at 5 p.m. for our Bible Institute; Tuesday at 6 p.m. for Prayer and Worship; and on Wednesday we meet with the youth-college age groups at 6 p.m. A lot is happening around here!
“Along with this, we are developing ‘Disciple Makers.’ I meet with a group of young men for discipleship and they are taking what is being taught and meeting with others and teaching them. They have two groups of people they meet with, and this is exciting to see! These guys are faithful to the Lord and have made a commitment to grow in their walk with the Lord. In the next few weeks, they will begin taking part in our Coffee House Worship and in our Wednesday Night groups. Pray for us as we continue to invest in others.”
Grace, Green Forest: Carter Pearce writes, “Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of the year. My birthday usually falls during Thanksgiving week, so it is very natural to look at the blessings that God has given during the past year. While 2020 has been challenging in so many ways, it has also been a year of great blessing.
“As we move into the Christmas season, we look forward to a busy schedule of community events and special activities to grow as a church family. We get to serve coffee and hot chocolate for the Green Forest Christmas parade, host Christmas parties in our homes and celebrate the birth of Christ with those closest to us. We do all this to celebrate Jesus and to share His love with those in our community.”
Ebenezer, West Little Rock: Ruben Isturiz writes, “These last two weeks changed at Ebenezer. One of our family members in Christ tested positive for COVID-19. He attended the church and we had to close our church attendance for two weeks. My family and I took the COVID test and by the grace of God we all tested negative. The others who attend Ebenezer have also tested negative for COVID. For the last two weeks we have met via Zoom.
“This past Sunday, we thanked God that no one else had been infected and we are happy that we will meet again in the church next Sunday. It has been two Sundays that the plans were changed, including our Thanksgiving time and the plans we had for that day. Keep praying for God’s protection in the midst of this pandemic and for the plans we have for the Christmas season. May God be glorified in Ebenezer.”
Faith Chapel, Flippin: Johnny Shew writes, “We had a wonderful Thanksgiving week — we have so much to be thankful for. Even with the challenges of mission outreach during a pandemic, we are still able to have in-person services, and they have been blessed, spirit-filled, worshipful services. Our messages are still going out over the internet and all indications are that they are being viewed by more than we could reach in person right now. We may never get to see all the fruit from the seeds we plant, but we know that our job is to plant, God gives the increase.
“We got to spend Thanksgiving with my mother, her first without my dad, and we are so thankful for that. We are thankful that God hears our prayers and for His answers. We are thankful to be a part of this association and especially to be able to serve as missionaries in Flippin. We are thankful for the support we receive from you. We are thankful for your prayers and that you are so willing to pray them for us. And we thank God for each of you!”
Better Watch Out for Scam Artists
When shopping online or in-store, scammers can get creative when trying to steal money from consumers. Con artists will take any opportunity to steal money, personal information or even your identity this holiday season.
“It’s important for Arkansans to always be careful when shopping online or in-store this Christmas season,” said AG Rutledge. “Far too often, I’ve seen the lengths that scam artists will go to in an attempt to steal money from hard-working Arkansans.”
AG Rutledge provides the following tips to help keep consumers safe while shopping online:
• Look for the “lock” icon — On the browser’s status bar, and the abbreviation “https” in the web address lets you know your information is secure and helps guard the security of your information as it is transmitted to a website. Be sure your browser has the most up-to-date encryption capabilities by using the latest version available from the manufacturer.
• Check the merchant’s privacy policy. Before providing any personal financial information and determine how the information will be used or shared with others. Some websites’ disclosures are easier to find than others — look at the bottom of the home page, on order forms or in the “About” or “FAQs” sections of a site.
• Read and understand return, refund and shipping policies before you make your purchase.
• Pay by credit card. This is the most secure payment method. Under federal law, charges can be disputed and consumer liability for theft is limited so long as consumers promptly notify the bank or credit card issuer. Additionally, many credit card issuers have “zero liability” policies under which the purchaser pays nothing if his/her credit card is stolen and used to make unauthorized purchases.
• Keep personal information private. Do not disclose personal information — address, telephone number, Social Security number, bank account number or email address — unless you know who is collecting the information, why they are collecting it and how they will use it.
• Be cautious when buying gifts from an online auction. Understand how the auction works and check out the seller’s reputation before bidding. Always ask about delivery and return options. Never wire money for the purchase; use some other form of payment.
• Keep records of online transactions and check for emails from merchants while doing business. Merchants may email important information about purchases.
• Promptly and thoroughly review monthly credit card and bank statements. Look for errors or unauthorized purchases. Notify the credit or debit card issuer immediately if a card or checkbook is lost or stolen or if you suspect someone is using your accounts without your permission.
For more information contact the Arkansas AG’s office at (800) 482-8982 or consumer@ArkansasAG.gov or visit ArkansasAG.gov.
Ark. Galileans to Meet At Camp Beaverfork
By Dan Williams, State Galilean Promoter
The Ark. Galilean Fall Fellowship will meet at Camp Beaverfork (159 Beaverfork Road, Conway) Dec. 4-5. Registration will begin Friday evening at 7 p.m. in the tabernacle. The $25 camp fee per person is payableå upon arrival. Make checks payable to Arkansas State Galileans.
All campers must submit a medical/photo release form at registration. The form can be downloaded from the Galilean website, galileans.com. It must be signed by a parent or guardian for campers under the age of 18. Breakfast will be provided at camp. We should be finished before noon on Dec. 5.
The theme for this year is “I Am,” Exod. 3:14-15. The sub-theme for this meeting is “Resolution” (of Love and Fidelity), Isa. 53:4-5. The speaker is Executive Editor Jeff Herring.
Those attending will need the following items: medical/photo release form, warm clothing for outdoor activities, sleeping bag or bedroll (bunk beds in cabins), pillow, Bible and spending money (for 50¢ snacks and soft drinks).
Face coverings will be required, and temperatures will be taken upon arrival and again on Saturday morning. The officers and I hope to see a group of boys and men from your church on Dec. 4. For further information, please contact me at email dwilltwelve@gmail.com or call or text (501) 336-4586.
SAFETY FIRST
For Churches & Members
Brought to you by
Brotherhood Mutual • brotherhoodmutual.com
James Greene & Associates • 1-800-422-3384
Adaptability in Planning Christmas Celebrations
Church staff throughout the nation are preparing for the Christmas season with both hope and uncertainty as a rising tide of coronavirus infections threatens to affect in-person gatherings in many states and communities.
The number of COVID-19 cases reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) crossed the 11 million mark in mid-November and continues climbing. With community health and safety in mind, several states have tightened restrictions in hopes of slowing COVID-19 positivity rates before the approaching holidays. These include limiting indoor social gatherings, requiring people to wear masks and moving schools to remote instruction. Some cities and counties have enacted stricter mandates.
Measures churches introduced earlier this year for in-person activities to reduce the spread of COVID-19 will continue to serve them through the holidays. These include the number of in-person services, offering online worship services, enhancing sanitation, wearing masks, practicing social distancing and taking other steps to protect people from getting sick.
Preparing for Christmas services and other outreach events may require additional creativity, due to the uncertainty of what COVID-19 may bring. This is true, whether your church is planning for in-person, remote or a hybrid blend of services. It may be useful to develop not only a plan B, but also plans C and D. Consider folding the following into your plans:
• Watch infection rates. Conditions are changing rapidly. It’s a good idea to keep a close eye on your county’s COVID-19 infection rates and hospital ICU bed availability. Watching the trends may place you on notice to limit attendance at future gatherings, move worship services online or offer a blend of both options.
• Check health notices daily. The CDC urges ministries to check their state and local health department notices daily about transmission in the community and adjust operations accordingly. For more guidance, see the CDC’s Considerations for Communities of Faith (cutt.ly/CDC-Faith).
• Communicate with health officials. State and local health officials are your best source for information about efforts to control the spread of coronavirus within the community. Contact your county health department if you have questions about COVID-19 and to discuss ideas your ministry has on how to safely do Christmas services, outreach efforts or other events.
• Expect staffing shortages. Planning for holiday staffing is not a new concept, as some employees or volunteers may travel out of town to be with family. Now, add the possibility that a few may have exposure to someone who has the coronavirus and will need to quarantine. Others may develop COVID-like symptoms and will need to stay at home until they’re tested and determined to be free of the virus. Make a list of how many staff and volunteers will be needed to perform the essential duties during the Christmas season — then, double or triple that number. Have a roster available of staff and volunteers who are willing to be called in to help if others become ill or need to quarantine.
• Evaluate employee vacation requests and travel plans. Communicate with your employees about staffing needs for the holiday season. Employees who travel out of state may be required to quarantine for 14 days before and after their trip, depending on each state’s guidelines. How would a 28-day absence affect your ministry? Could an employee work remotely while in quarantine due to personal travel?
• Practice self-care. Be mindful that ministry leaders and staff aren’t immune to stress. You may feel pressured to perform at a high level, despite adverse conditions. Think about measures your planning team can take to simplify and pare back, and focus on the one key thing you wish to accomplish this season. Consider these tips to keep your heart at peace while planning for Christmas and reach out for help if you feel overwhelmed.
If anything, 2020 has reminded us of the incredible grace and peace that God provides to those who trust in Him. It’s encouraging to reflect on the simplicity of the first Christmas and the joy that accompanied Jesus’ birth, despite adverse conditions.