A new study from LifeWay Research indicates that while most pastor’s wives (PWs) love the ministry, loneliness and isolation are also part of their experience. It’s not a surprising finding. My answers to the survey questions would have been in line with most of the answers given by the respondents. And their answers line up with what I’ve heard from many ministry wives over the years. We love our husbands. We love our families. We love our churches. But church conflict, life in the fishbowl, and the pace and pressures of ministry take a toll. When ministry life gets hard, we have few people … [Read more...] about The Importance of Networking for the Pastor’s Wife (Leigh Powers)
Black People Are Not Responsible for White Supremacy (Kyle James Howard)
I will never ever understand why people can’t condemn white supremacy as is, without having to give qualifiers regarding black people. No black person ran over an alt-white racist today. White supremacy kills. It murders, rapes, pillages, destroys, and damns. Yes, black people can be racist. But the image of racist hate over the past 24 hours has not been black, it’s been white. To me, white people should be able to condemn white supremacy outright. Condemning white supremacy shouldn’t have to be wedded to the condemnation of black racism. You know, I’ll say it. It is a miracle in America … [Read more...] about Black People Are Not Responsible for White Supremacy (Kyle James Howard)
Attitudes About Evangelism (by Tony Jones)
Tony Jones is pastor of the First Baptist Church of Rich Hill, MO. This post first appeared on his blog. Thom Rainer at www.evangelismrenewal.com is encouraging its churches to have more gospel conversations this year. They have set a goal of one million gospel conversations this year. There are, as of 2016, 47,272 Southern Baptist Churches in the United States. If every SBC church participated in the one million gospel conversations goal, they would have to average 22 gospel conversations for the year. If we take the parable of the sower in Matthew 13 as an example of effectiveness, that … [Read more...] about Attitudes About Evangelism (by Tony Jones)
On Prayer (by Stephanie Bergman)
Stephanie is the wife of Voices contributor Mike Bergman. These thoughts on prayer were originally posted at her blog. Lately I've been thinking about spiritual growth; the two main things that come to my mind are Bible study and prayer. Reading and studying the Bible is (for me), easy. I love reading and learning new things and somehow even if I've read a passage of scripture twenty times, I've found that I still can learn something new about God each time I re-read it. Prayer, on the other hand, has always seemed a bit mysterious to me. Growing up in church I learned that prayer was … [Read more...] about On Prayer (by Stephanie Bergman)
Saved by the Blood of the Lamb (Ken Hamrick)
Throughout the Old Testament, a spotless animal was permitted to die in place of the sinner. Sin required death—either the death of the sinner or the death of an allowed substitute. No person in the Old Testament was qualified to be a sin sacrifice, as Jesus was, so animals were used as pictures to teach about the future Christ. These animals were, in various ways, pictured as being made one with the sinners in order to point to Christ being made one with believers. The first sacrifice was when God made clothing of animal skin to cover the nakedness of Adam and Eve, whose sin incurred their … [Read more...] about Saved by the Blood of the Lamb (Ken Hamrick)
That Word Above All Earthly Powers ( by James B. Law)
As we gathered in Phoenix for the 2017 Pastor’s Conference, we joined pastors dating back nearly nine decades who have gathered prior to the start of the annual meeting for a time of challenge and encouragement. This year, on the 500th year anniversary of the Reformation, I am reminded of Martin Luther’s hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” In this classic, Luther references Scripture and the power of the Gospel as “That Word Above All Earthly Powers.” With the many challenges we face in ministry, we do so with a conviction that the gospel remains the power of God unto salvation, and that … [Read more...] about That Word Above All Earthly Powers ( by James B. Law)
The Monday Morning Prayer (by Dr. Mark Tolbert)
Monday has been given a bad rap! Perhaps the least favorite day of the week, Monday has a negative reputation. Pastors joke about how many times they have almost resigned, usually on a Monday morning. A popular song from the seventies described it like this: “Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.” But Monday has become one of my favorite and most strategic days of the week, since I began praying “The Monday Morning Prayer.” The Monday Morning Prayer launches me into each new week and serves as a catalyst for stimulating gospel conversations. In five decades of following Jesus, I have … [Read more...] about The Monday Morning Prayer (by Dr. Mark Tolbert)
PC Reflections from a PC Preacher (Spencer Plumlee)
The 2017 Pastors' Conference of the SBC was led by Dave Miller and his team who unapologetically structured this conference around twelve expositional preachers from average-sized churches. I had the privilege of being one of these twelve preachers. It was an incredible experience that I will never forget. To stand and preach where many of my heroes have stood and where much of the theology I believe was contended for was, in my estimation, a once in a lifetime opportunity. A few weeks removed from this experience, here are five reflections. The model for the 2017 Pastors' … [Read more...] about PC Reflections from a PC Preacher (Spencer Plumlee)
We Still Celebrate Independence Day at Church (by Dean Stewart)
Dean is a pastor at LaBelle Haven Baptist Church in Olive Branch, Mississippi. There are a few attitudes and actions that take place in the SBC that kind of make me feel like a dinosaur. I am comfortable with being a dinosaur and do not feel the need to fight to keep things the way I prefer them. I have developed a ministry philosophy and carved out my niche so I put my head down and attempt to remain faithful. One of the attitudes that make me feel outmoded will be on display this week. It has become fashionable to ridicule Independence Day celebrations that take place in churches. One … [Read more...] about We Still Celebrate Independence Day at Church (by Dean Stewart)
My Reflections on #SBC17 (Kyle James Howard)
This article was posted at Kyle Howard's website and is cross posted here with permission. This article is also featured on my Coram Deo Podcast. The audio is available there if you would like to listen to me read it, rather than read it yourself. Context This past week has been very eventful for me. It was the annual Southern Baptist Convention, and I was attending this year, not as a messenger as in the year prior but as a student. I am currently doing graduate studies at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) in Historical Theology. I came to the convention this year as a … [Read more...] about My Reflections on #SBC17 (Kyle James Howard)