JEFFERSON CITY – The MBC this week is mailing packets of promotional materials to churches across the state to help them prepare for the 2017 Rheubin L. South Missouri Missions Offering (MMO). The packets should arrive early in July, giving church leaders ample time to prepare for MMO’s fall promotion and week of prayer, slated for Sept. 17-24. The scriptural theme this year is 1 Cor. 3:9a (KJV): “For we are labourers together with God.” MBC Executive Director John Yeats notes, … [Read more...]
Missouri ranks 7th in attendance at SBC
PHOENIX – The Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting drew 5,018 messengers to Phoenix June 13-14. The unofficial total is 31.6 percent fewer than last year’s 7,321 messengers in St. Louis but 164 more than 2011 when the convention last met in Phoenix. Missouri was the seventh largest delegation, bringing 242 messengers. As expected, Arizona Baptist churches turned out for their host-meeting; their 374-messenger total was the second largest of the state delegations. Texas was the … [Read more...]
Leaving a legacy through church revitalization: 30 St. Louis area churches have sought revitalization
ST. LOUIS (BP) – Two years ago, First Baptist Church of Affton, Mo., knew it was dying. So it sought help from the local St. Louis Metro Baptist Association. In a process facilitated by executive director of missions Jim Breeden, First Baptist decided to replant itself in March 2016 as Church at Affton, led by replanter Jason Helmbacher. During its first year, the replant baptized 15 new believers and has come to average just over 100 worship attendees – about 40 of whom were First … [Read more...]
Legacy Church Plants keep the cooperation flowing
KANSAS CITY – Whether it’s a brand new church plant or an established congregation dating back to the Civil War, cooperative missions is the hall mark of a Missouri Baptist Church. In recent years, cooperation has even taken root in a church’s dying process, even to the point of springing new life and new ministry. Mark Clifton, a long-time Missouri pastor in the Kansas City area, is the North American Mission Board’s go-to guy when it comes to “Legacy Church Planting,” and explained the … [Read more...]
Rural Licking church reaches 180 youth weekly
LICKING – The numbers, humanly speaking, don’t add up. Rock Springs Baptist averages 120 in Sunday services. Yet on Wednesdays, they run about 180 in student ministry. “It’s a God-thing. It has nothing to do with me. I’m just blest to come in at the onset of this,” Pastor John Jordan admitted. Indeed, the student ministry began two years before Jordan arrived. “There was the regular prayer and Bible study, and a few kids came. They decided to put their effort into student ministry, … [Read more...]
Jim Wells, former MBC staff member & DOM, outgoing SBC registration sec., dies at 69
OZARK, Mo. (BP) – Jim Wells, a 15-term Southern Baptist Convention registration secretary known for his humble leadership style, died June 17 following a seven-year battle with cancer. He was 69. First elected registration secretary in 2002, Wells oversaw messenger registration, ballot counting and reporting of vote totals at SBC annual meetings among other duties. He served alongside eight SBC presidents. SBC President Steve Gaines called Wells "a humble servant of Jesus … [Read more...]
‘Bulletproof’: Grace Place to host Men’s Conference
LAMAR – Several guests of international renown are scheduled for the Bulletproof Men’s Conference August 4-5 at the Thiebaud Auditorium. Grace Place pastor Reg Givens said this is the second year for the conference and many of the presenters last year are back this year. These include Victor Marx, a martial arts expert and holder of the world record for fastest gun disarming; Eric Ludy, a Colorado pastor, author, and lead instructor at Ellerslie Discipleship training; Ryan Noble and … [Read more...]
Historic Baptists, liberty and the Trinity case
KANSAS CITY – What would John Leland say about scrap tires? Missourians, including churches that own vehicles, pay a fee to keep used tires out of streams and landfills. The fee underwrites a rebate for rubber playground surfaces. It’s open to all nonprofit groups, to keep kids safer and the environment cleaner. Trinity Lutheran Church, in Columbia, applied for a rebate. It was rejected, but not because the money ran out. It was rejected because it is a church. Missouri’s Constitution … [Read more...]
Strawberry Festival draws support for MBCH
Editor's Note: As reported in the June 13 edition of The Pathway, the Strawberry Festival hosted at First Baptist Church here each year draws valuable support for the Missouri Baptist Children’s Home (MBCH). But, as noted more recently by officials from the MBCH, the Strawberry Festival does not fully fund the ministry. The event provides less than one percent of the MBCH’s annual operating budget and works alongside other means of funding—such as the Cooperative Program and the direct … [Read more...]
On the eve of a major religious liberty ruling: The nation’s eyes on Trinity Lutheran case
EDITOR’S NOTE: Michael Whitehead has practiced law in Missouri for more than 40 years. He practices with his son, Jonathan, in suburban Kansas City, and he serves as MBC general counsel and represents numerous individuals and ministry organizations. Both Mike and Jonathan are on the legal team defending Trinity Lutheran Church in Columbia, in a religious liberty case that was heard at the U.S. Supreme Court this spring. A ruling on the case is expected by the end of the month, before the … [Read more...]
South Creek rejects ‘Sunday morning segregation’
SPRINGFIELD – Despite official positions and best intentions to the contrary, the racial makeup of many Missouri Baptist churches does not accurately reflect the communities they serve. In its appointment of new discipleship pastor and elder, Brandon Taylor, South Creek Church in Springfield is taking one small step toward flipping the script, beginning with its leadership. Taylor, an African American, is the first new elder of the mostly white congregation since it was planted 14 years … [Read more...]
Hillcrest Baptist Church, Lebanon, sees divine appointments in Africa
WEST AFRICA – During the past six years, the members of Hillcrest Baptist Church, Lebanon, have seen God move among the people of West Africa along the arid fringes of the Sahara Desert. Pastor David Brown said he has been amazed by the “divine appointments” that God has placed in the path of mission teams from the church as they’ve engaged a people group here. “God puts people before you, and maybe they’ll tell you that God has spoken to them in a dream,” Brown said, “and they’ve … [Read more...]
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