Dave Miller

When World Changers pulled out of several Midwestern cities (and other non-Southern areas), it became clear that if we wanted to have this wonderful ministry continue, we would have to do it as an independent partnership. So, we have formed a network of churches in Northwest Iowa to develop a new mission project called LifeChanger Missions.  It provides similar ministry opportunities to those World Changers used to provide, but with lower overhead and significantly lower cost to those who volunteer. Here are some highlights about this new ministry: Vision statement: Changing lives one house … [Read more...] about “LifeChanger Missions” – Reaching Out to the Forgotten Areas of the USA

What are the three greatest evils facing America today? Well, since baseball season is over and the Boston Red Sox have imploded, the answer to that has to be the Nebraska Cornshuckers, the Notre Dame Fighting Evils and the Alabama Crimson Crud. All men and women of goodwill join in denouncing that evil regardless of denominational or political affiliation. We know that in a fallen world, injustice often prevails and evil prospers. I'm used to that, especially in college football. I never believed the church would go through the Tribulation, but I think most scholars would agree that the … [Read more...] about Almost More Evil than I Can Bear….

There are only two reasons to use an apostrophe - a contracted word or a possessive noun. You don't need to use one any other time. Please stop. The "overuse" of "quotation marks" is both "rampant" and "annoying." There is no such word as irregardless. Their, there, and they're are three different words. Learn the difference. Same principle applies with to, too and two. Internet abbreviations (lol, etc) are as onerous as emoticons. The last book of the Bible is the Revelation-singular. One revelation of Jesus Christ, not many little Revelations. The word went should generally not be … [Read more...] about Dear Everyone….

This article is a reflection on "Southern Baptist Identity: An Evangelical Denomination Faces the Future," edited by David S. Dockery. This post is based on the Introduction, "Southern Baptists in the 21st Century," also by David Dockery. The introduction to this series appeared yesterday. How important is your rear-view mirror? It is an important aid in driving, but you cannot make progress through busy streets if all you do is stare behind you! I've known a few Baptists who are trying to steer toward the future by gazing only in their rear-view mirrors! Every problem we face has … [Read more...] about Southern Baptist Identity: Southern Baptists in the 21st Century

I carried on with prayer and Bible study, but the children's ministry took the night off. Some of the leaders stayed home and did some evangelistic stuff in neighborhoods. We had our "Fall Festival" last weekend. I was out of town and haven't heard how things went. Sounds like a lot of churches had Halloween parties (though the word never appears - its all Fall Festival or Harvest Night or whatever cover we use). Those draw big numbers but are they evangelistically effective? Let's talk about it … [Read more...] about How Did Your Church Handle Halloween?

Several years ago, in the "Wild West" days of Baptist blogging, I read a comment made by a prominent blogger, the pastor of a large church, disdaining the viewpoints of several others bloggers who pastored much smaller churches.  Because their churches were smaller than his, their opinions evidently carried less weight than his did. It was strange to see those words on the screen, but they represent a prevalent opinion in the Baptist world - that numbers are an obvious measure of God's blessings. We Baptists tend to be a "bigger is better" bunch. Our denomination is dominated by those who have … [Read more...] about Can We Measure God’s Pleasure? Examining Baptists’ Passion for Numbers

America has now become a “Culture of the Moral Negative.” I am not talking about “negativity,” the bogie man of the new age.   Actually, I am convinced negativity can be honorable.  Of God’s ten laws, eight of them are stated in the negative.  “Thou shalt not.”  That is an 80% negativity rate - from God.  Flawed human beings need limits to inhibit our sinful behavior. But that is another topic. I am talking about the kind of negative we used to get when cameras had something called film inside.   On the photographic negative, everything was reversed; dark colors appear as light and light … [Read more...] about The Culture of the Moral Negative

I was such a young whippersnapper when I went to seminary. I graduated from college at age 20 and from SWBTS (M.Div) at age 23, so I am really not kidding. I was a seminary grad before I could grow any significant facial hair. I had been active in churches and raised as a pastor's son, but I had very little practical knowledge of what it took to pastor a church. I learned a lot about theology, Greek and Hebrew and inductive Bible study (in my days at Dallas Seminary) and I got a lot of "practical" advice, most of which I had no frame of reference to judge. So, being the self-important young … [Read more...] about A Word of Warning about Change in Churches

Besides the Boston Red Sox, who are an evil beyond dispute, what is America's Greatest Evil? A.  The Alabama Crimson Tide 2. Bill Belichick/New England Patriots. Third. The existence of hockey. Talk amongst yourselves. … [Read more...] about A Discussion Forum: America’s Greatest Evil