American churches are in crisis. Nearly 4,000 churches close every year in North America. Ed Stetzer estimates that 70 percent to 80 percent of all evangelical churches in the U.S. have either stopped growing or are in decline! We are in a crisis of discipleship. I believe with all my heart, a return to transformational leadership and biblical disciple-making will enact a 21st- century Reformation. If disciple-making is our focus, then it ought to be one of our highest priories in every … [Read more...]
Checking our mind-settings
Is putting my vitamins in baggies and keeping them in my computer bag a healthy use of my devices? I figure if I’m constantly reaching for a phone or a computer and those vitamins are in there, I’ll remember to take them, right? But is there a vitamin I can put in that bag—an essential oil somewhere, maybe?—that will help me remember to actually swallow those vitamins? Or even better, how about a pill to prevent me from searching for my phone while I’m holding it? Not that I ever do that. … [Read more...]
A heritage is like a relay team
As I read the following quote from Eugene Peterson in a Paula Hemphill post, I was captivated by its simple truth: “Without a cultivated memory, we live from hand to mouth on fad and novelty. But Christians don’t sprint out of the starting blocks in each generation in a race for heaven. We are on a relay team. We have a heritage, a richly composted family history.”* She went on to say that the quote resonated deeply in her heart. And her mission is focused on passing on a love for God’s … [Read more...]
Denominational discourse & the future of the SBC
Klemens von Metternich was one of Europe’s greatest statesmen during the 19thCentury. Both as foreign minister, and then for nearly three-decades as chancellor of the Austrian Empire, his statecraft shaped Europe and prevented numerous wars. Most consequentially, Metternich presided over the Congress of Vienna in 1814-15, which determined the post-Napoleonic configuration of Europe. His era came to be known as the “Age of Metternich.” Metternich observed that nation-states are motivated to … [Read more...]
A warning on fake news, setting the record straight
Former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw does not share the same biblical worldview which I espouse. But I agree with the legendary newsman who is worried about the condition of American journalism. Southern Baptists ought to pay attention. “I think the most extraordinarily powerful tool and the most destructive development in modern life is the current media,” said the author and TV Hall of Famer in a recent interview with Artful Living magazine. He criticized the divisive nature of media and … [Read more...]
Why did we buy Windermere?
(See related stories here and here) So you might be wondering…Why would Straightway Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of the Missouri Baptist Foundation, purchase a distressed campground called Windermere Baptist Conference Center? It is a reasonable question, and one in which our staff and trustees wrestled for some time. I would like to take this opportunity to attempt an explanation. In case you have not already heard, the real estate and real property of Windermere Baptist Conference … [Read more...]
Testimony: ‘God always provided!’
Some conversations are never forgotten! A poignant sentence at an impressionable time in my early teen years opened my eyes to the stewardship of my parents and the faithfulness of God. This single sentence challenged me to live responsibly as a steward of my finances. I grew up in a large family. I was the middle child with three older sisters and three younger brothers. My mother came to know the Lord as a young girl when someone in her neighborhood noticed that her family didn’t go to … [Read more...]
‘O come, O come Emmanuel’
This classic carol deserves its own mention, as it is probably one of the most sung in all of Advent and Christmastide. Featured in over 459 hymnals, it is powerful in its word and music: O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel That mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel shall come to you, O Israel. The fascinating aspect of this hymn is that while it has only been in the English language since 1851, it was around for way longer … [Read more...]
Telling the biblical Christmas story
One of the most anticipated seasons of the year is finally upon us. Houses are festively decorated for Christmas, shopping malls are crowded with gift seekers, and children everywhere are expectantly longing for both Christmas break and presents. As Christians enter the Christmas season, many eagerly anticipate not only the excitement of the holidays, but more importantly the significance of Christmas. Desiring to keep Christ in Christmas, Christians seek to tell the story of Christ’s birth … [Read more...]
Christ’s parable of the talents applied
One of my favorite of Jesus’ parables is the Parable of the Talents. I’m sure you know the story well. In this parable a certain Master entrusts his servants with five, two and one talent of money respectively. The servants handle the administration of their Master’s resources differently. The servants entrusted with five talents and two talents each go out and put their Master’s money to work so that when the Master returns they will not only be able to return the principle but earnings … [Read more...]
Christmas list-less-ness
I was readying for a marathon Christmas shopping session when I suddenly felt noticeably…list-less. Not tired or disinterested or anything like that. Not listless. List-less. As in, we were into December and I hadn’t made the Christmas list. Hadn’t checked it once, much less twice. What was I thinking? That list is usually taking over my life by early November, sassing me and hounding me and pitilessly bossing me around. A pushy little monster, that list. Every time I’d sit down to … [Read more...]
Children need to give
“It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35 At Christmas time each year, thoughts turn to what we can give children to make them happy. Actually, one of the best things we can give a child is the understanding of the joy of giving. Children are often only recipients of gifts, but they need to learn that it is more blessed to give than to receive; otherwise, they will grow up thinking only of themselves. I learned the lesson of letting someone give, no matter how meager … [Read more...]
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