I've been voting since Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford in 1976 (yeah, I'm old). This is my eleventh presidential cycle and it was to be my tie-breaker. I've voted for the winner 5 times and for the loser 5 times. Though I'm told that I'm the most liberal Southern Baptist since Jimmy Carter, I've been voting GOP every time and was hoping this election, reacting to the unpopularity of Obama, might vault me back above .500 for my lifetime. Then, politics got crazy - just plain weird. Most of the weirdness can be attributed to the entrance into the Republican race of the … [Read more...] about So You’re Telling Me, There’s a Chance!
SBC Issues
I would take hell so that others might have heaven
Say what you want about the Apostle Paul, but one thing is certain: he was not a boring writer. As the Holy Spirit inspired his words, much of Paul’s passion and emotion bled through onto the parchments. Romans 8 ends with a grand, ringing cry: a great reminder that those who belong to Jesus will be victorious over sin, darkness, and persecution, for through the love of Jesus we are more than conquerors and nothing is big enough, powerful enough, or dangerous enough to separate us from Jesus’ love. The sureness of faith’s victory and the eternal security of our salvation is not found in … [Read more...] about I would take hell so that others might have heaven
We Have a Winner (Sort of) in the Voices Bracket Challenge
Though the North Carolina/Syracuse game is still ongoing and all people of goodwill can continue to hope that the Syracuse Orange mount a comeback and get rid of the unspeakable evil known as the Tarheels, the Bracket Challenge is effectively over. No one chose either Villanova or Syracuse and the current leader chose North Carolina. What that means is that there is no way he can lose. Some of the guys that also chose Carolina can move up (you get lots of points for Final Four and Championship game wins) but no one is passing our leader. So, he's got it wrapped up. He actually chose North … [Read more...] about We Have a Winner (Sort of) in the Voices Bracket Challenge
April Fools!
If you haven't seen the clip of the Warriors pranking their backup center or Angels players embarrassing one if their pitchers, then maybe we should have gone ahead with some of the plans we discussed to publish some April Fools Day articles. We batted around some titles but ended up rejecting them all. Here are some of the rejected titles, which we considered too absurd to be believed: 1. Socialist leading Dem race; Bernie gaining ground. 2. Serial adulterer, misogynist, racially provocative Donald Trump leads race for GOP nomination. 3. Wiley Drake running for president..of the USA 3. … [Read more...] about April Fools!
God Told Me to Write This Post* – How God Spoke in Acts
*Okay, I’m joking. I’ve been lead of the Lord to do things in the past, but this came not from some leading, but when I was reading the book of Acts and noticed once again how often God spoke directly to his people to give them directions on their lives – where to go, what to do, what to say. A similar headline got me in trouble a few years ago when the anti-charismatics out west labeled me a “charismatic Baptist” because of the post. It seems to me, though, that those same folks would skewer such people as Paul and Peter if they wrote today what they wrote then. Imagine this scenario. … [Read more...] about God Told Me to Write This Post* – How God Spoke in Acts
An Interview with David Crosby
David Crosby is the pastor of First Baptist Church in New Orleans and will be nominated for president of the SBC by former president Fred Luter. We have asked him the same set of questions we asked JD Greear and Steve Gaines. We thank him for his time in answering our questions. 1. Why do you want to be SBC president? I think the primary reason the convention exists is to help us do world missions together. Our distinctive as Southern Baptists is that we voluntarily join our resources to accomplish greater things for Christ and the gospel. I want to help facilitate the discussion about … [Read more...] about An Interview with David Crosby
“If I were 22 again . . .”
There is a series in LinkedIn titled, "If I were 22 again . . ." My contribution to the discussion is below. I was soon to begin my MDiv studies at SWBTS in 1997 at the age 22. At 41 years old today, my top 10 tips of advice, "If I were 22 again:" Be wise in marriage--Marriage can be such an incredible joy and add much solace to you. Seek a spouse to complement you in life but not have to bear the heavy burden of "completing you." You are not there to make each other "happy." If you cannot make yourself happy, your spouse will never fill your void. Find it in Christ for ultimate … [Read more...] about “If I were 22 again . . .”
Preface to a Resolution
In a few days I'm going to introduce to you a resolution that I have written regarding sexual predators in churches. I hope to introduce this resolution to the Resolutions Committee for this year's Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting. I'm taking the rather unusual step of offering this post as a preface to the post in which I will give you the actual text of the resolution. Why compose a preface to a resolution? Because I'm trying to anticipate the suppositions that readers might indulge about my motivation for authoring this resolution. We tend to interpret people's actions by what we … [Read more...] about Preface to a Resolution
Add a Cooperative Program candidate to make three SBC prez nominees.
I suppose you saw the Maundy Thursday special by Baptist Press: David Crosby to be SBC presidential nominee. Crosby is pastor of a non-megachurch, one that is above the average Cooperative Program giving percentage: First Baptist New Orleans. One could almost sense that someone like him was sure to be offered as an alternative to the two mega-pastors whose churches give below the average CP percentage. Crosby's church is at 7% which is above the SBC average of 5.5%. The BP story doesn't include any Great Commission Giving percentage for the church but says "total mission giving" (mission … [Read more...] about Add a Cooperative Program candidate to make three SBC prez nominees.
How Religious Liberty Dies
For background on the religious liberty implications of the SC Anti-Refugee Bill, S997, I wrote about it here. How Religious Liberty Dies. S997 just effectively passed the SC Senate by a vote of 39-6. Churches and religious organizations will be held civilly liable for any crime committed in the future by refugees that they helped place and support in South Carolina in the present. 6 out of 8 co-sponsors of the bill are Southern Baptists. They know not what they do. Or, they do and don't care. This is unheard of. Churches have a biblical mandate to minister to these people. These are the … [Read more...] about How Religious Liberty Dies