I will never forget the Tuesday back in late March or early April when my friend, Dr. Janice Galli, called me just after suppertime. I had been sick since I returned from Senegal at the end of February and she finally said it was time to check things out. We ran about 4 million tests (that may be ministerial hyperbole) to figure out the problem. After an ultrasound, an MRI, and something called a HIPA, they realized that I had both a bad gallbladder and a diseased spleen, both of which were removed on May 3. But in the process of poking around the gallbladder in the various tests, they had … [Read more...] about An “SBC Voices Miracle”
Greear to Form Presidential Study Group
SBC President J.D. Greear has announced that he will form a Sexual Abuse Presidential Study Group in partnership with the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. He has not yet announced those who will comprise the group and indicated that that membership may be fluid. Baptist Press has an article on the study group. It is informational and has quotes from several entity leaders. The press release which announced the formation of the study group carried this explanatory paragraph. The group's purpose will be to consider how Southern Baptists at every level can take discernable action … [Read more...] about Greear to Form Presidential Study Group
The Invisible People of Mayberry
During the 80s, I lived in a small country town for four years that reminded me of Mayberry, at least when we first arrived. I discerned one major difference during my time there. Recently, during my slow recuperation from surgery, as I rewatched the first three seasons of the Andy Griffith Show on Netflix, I noticed a second major difference. First, our little Mayberry had no Sheriff Taylor to help people see the light and change their behavior. Andy’s Mayberry was filled with nice folks who were gossips, petty, easily offended, xenophobic, and just plain ornery. But Andy would … [Read more...] about The Invisible People of Mayberry
BREAKING NEWS: Data Breach at the IMB
The Biblical Recorder is reporting on a data breach at the IMB. Few details are available. This is no small matter since many of our missionaries serve in high-security areas and their identities are kept secret. Please read the BRNow.org article. If you aren't subscribing to them, you should be. They are just about the best source for news in the SBC. … [Read more...] about BREAKING NEWS: Data Breach at the IMB
Complementarianism and the Future of the SBC
I resisted the temptation to go for the clickbait title this time. "Should the Women Keep Silent in the SBC?" Complementarianism is a doctrine established in the Baptist Faith and Message and disdained by our culture, even modern Christian culture. After nearly 2000 years of a fairly consistent understanding of the biblical truth about men and women, marriage, and roles in the church, suddenly people are discovering new and inventive hermeneutical approaches to demonstrate that the Bible doesn’t actually say what it seems to say. All those verses about submission and about men holding … [Read more...] about Complementarianism and the Future of the SBC
And the Next President of SWBTS Is…
Sorry for that clickbait title. No, I have no idea who it will be. I do hear a fair bit of scuttlebutt from time to time but the dust is still settling on the Patterson fiasco and it is too early to start naming names. I don't think the search team has even been formed yet. The dedicated Patterson defenders are still laying down heavy fire in their efforts to undo the decision of the trustees, but their efforts will fail. The Executive Committee will be affirmed by the full board as it was by 98% majority at the convention and we will move on. The Patterson era is over and a new day is … [Read more...] about And the Next President of SWBTS Is…
Blessed Messes
I was in the village of Kaliane in the Casamance, southern Senegal, on Saturday, February 24, and I began to feel horrible. It was an amazing day, actually. We had a couple of gatherings planned with kids, arranged by my translator Alioune. We showed up for the morning session and found about 30 children, most much younger than I had expected. I told them a Bible story and then shared the gospel with them. We walked back to Jean Batiste and Isabelle's home and came back in the afternoon. This time there was a slightly older group of nearly 60 children and young teens and I got to tell them … [Read more...] about Blessed Messes
Unity, Division, the Past, and the Future of the SBC
When we seek unity at the SBC, we often come at it from the wrong perspective. We seek to downplay our differences, as if we all walk hand in hand, one in mind and spirit. We seek to suppress the voices of dissent and keep them from speaking their minds. We demand that those of different cultures and preferences conform to our ways. We accuse those who challenge, question, or criticize of being divisive and of threatening unity. This is a gross misunderstanding of biblical unity and actually tends to lead to greater anger and division. People feel bullied, pressured … [Read more...] about Unity, Division, the Past, and the Future of the SBC
If I Were the Baptist Pope
I know, we don't have a pope and I don't want to be one. I'll bet Steve Gaines aged 7 years just trying to run this thing the last couple of years and having papal powers over this bunch would be like trying to herd autonomous cats with soul competency. I have no authority but I do what I can. I "type a lot." (A guy at the convention saw my name tag and said, "Are you the guy who types a lot?" I said I was. He looked at me and said, "I've been praying for you to get saved!") Let me type-type-type out some of my thoughts about SBC 2018. I came into the SBC Annual Meeting with much … [Read more...] about If I Were the Baptist Pope
Bart Barber’s Powerful Statement
Bart Barber had a tough day. Pray for him. He is a man who would have jumped in a fire for Dr. Paige Patterson and not only voted with the Executive Committee to fire him but stood to defend the action. If you had told Bart a year ago that he would do such a thing he would have declared it impossible. His integrity drove him to do what his heart would never have desired or dreamed. Here is Bart's statement: I am Bart Barber, messenger from First Baptist Church of Farmersville, TX. I am also a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of Southwestern Baptist … [Read more...] about Bart Barber’s Powerful Statement