LINN — The Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) Christian Life Commission (CLC) took steps toward offering four resolutions at the 2011 MBC annual meeting and firmed up plans for the upcoming workshops to help churches battle pornography. The actions took place at their quarterly meeting July 16 at First Baptist Church here.
The two workshops are aimed at training pastors, church leaders, and congregations to help those trapped in the all-to-easy sin of pornography. “Providing Moral Leadership in a Sexualized Culture” will take place first Aug. 27 at Canaan Baptist Church in St. Louis and the second will be Sept. 17 at Sycamore Hills Baptist Church in Independence. Each workshop runs from 8:30 a.m. through 12:30 p.m., with registration at 7:30 p.m.
“The Internet has been a game changer with pornography,’ said David Krueger, chairman of the Christian Life Commission and pastor of First Baptist Church, Linn. “It’s made it so easy by giving people that anonymity and we’re fooling ourselves if we think it isn’t affecting our churches. The last statistics I saw said 70 percent of men and 30 percent of women regularly view pornography online.”
John Splinter, executive Director of Pure Hope Ministries in St. Louis, is the keynote speaker. Attendees will be able to choose from eight different topics during two break-out sessions including “For Men Only,” “Using the Bible to Break the Ice,” “A Mentoring Approach for Premarital Preparation,” “Dealing with Homosexuality in the Church,” “Reasons for Chastity,” “Setting Boundaries,” “Training Parents in Today’s Highly Sexualized Culture,” “Ministering to Men in Today’s Highly Sexualized Culture” and “Confronting a Sexualized Culture.”
The workshop costs $20 per person, $15 per married couple and $10 per person for church groups of five or more. For information and online registration go to www.mobaptist.org/moral_issues and click on “Christian Life Commission Workshop.”
“I’d love to see at least 200 people at both sites,’ Krueger said.
The six commissioners present also began work on four resolutions to submit to the MBC annual meeting Oct. 31-Nov. 2 in Osage Beach: one commending the Missouri legislature for passing pro-life bills this session, one condemning pornography, one affirming that international or religious law should not codified in Missouri and one thanking the legislature for its defense of religious liberty.
In other business, the commissioners also heard a legislative update from MBC Legislative Liaison, Kerry Messer. The CLC is considering the possilbity of Christian worldview and pro-life conferences in 2012. Two commissioners submitted their resignations: Phil Gloyer and David Daniel.
BY STAFF