STORE CLOSING! EVERYTHING ON SALE! EVERYTHING MUST GO! I hate the street-walking placard-bearers but they must work because even my LifeWay store uses some. When I first moved back to Georgia in 1997, the closest LifeWay was inside the Atlanta perimeter. If I wanted to visit the store I'd have to have a plan for assaulting the gates of highway and traffic hell to get to the store. I'd just as soon stick a shard of glass in my eye as drive inside Atlanta. Then they opened a new store in the Atlanta exurbs, near the largest mall in the state. It was much easier to get to the store and I … [Read more...] about Alas, my closest LifeWay store is indeed closing
Did you Know the Church in Iran is Exploding?
Did you know the church in Iran is exploding? I know, it came as a shock to me too, but it shouldn't ever come as a shock. The church has always grown when pressured. Desiring God posted an article about the church in Iran here. If you don't have time to read the article, allow me a quick summary. The church in Iran is exploding for several reasons. the number one reason is the failure of the Islamic state to deliver on its promises. When the Mullahs took over in 1979, one year before I was born, they promised opportunity and economic stability. Neither have come to pass. The next … [Read more...] about Did you Know the Church in Iran is Exploding?
BREAKING NEWS: SBC Narrowly Survives Mother’s Day
From our "Tempest in a Teapot" News Division, the SBC narrowly averted disaster today when a minuscule percentage of SBC churches decided to have women address their congregations on Mother's Day. Some Twitter pundits opined that this would cause a chain reaction that would bring an imbalance to the force, align the SBC squarely with egalitarians, cause us to completely abandon any biblical moorings, and embrace women pastors immediately. However, like Y2K and the 12 predictions of Snowmageddon that didn't come to fruition in Sioux City this year, this seems to have been what Uncle Willie … [Read more...] about BREAKING NEWS: SBC Narrowly Survives Mother’s Day
What will attendance be at the SBC Annual Meeting in beautiful, if messy, Birmingham?
It's less than a month to the convention in Birmingham. Southern Baptists will show up by the thousands and mix and mingle with all the construction crews tearing up downtown. One hopes that there is no reverend road rage. These guys are just working stiffs, doing their job. Here's a list of SBC meetings for the past 52 years, courtesy of the Baptist Courier (I added the 2018 figure). This is for registered messengers, not guests, press, or Secret Service personnel. 1967 Miami Beach – 14,794 1968 Houston – 15,071 1969 New Orleans – 16,678 1970 Denver – 13,692 1971 St. Louis – … [Read more...] about What will attendance be at the SBC Annual Meeting in beautiful, if messy, Birmingham?
Ye Olde Waffle House Tent Revival
A small church down the road from me had a tent revival (they called it a "crusade") this week. I intended to go but, well, missed it. The church that hosted it is a very small SBC church. I think the tent evangelist was an independent Baptist. The tent is bright yellow and screams 'Waffle House'. Advertisements said they would have 'concessions' every night which I took to mean that they were selling hot dogs and the like. Waffle House caters. That would have been a better fit, though expensive. The church next door (I didn't put it in the picture) is about as strong a contrast to the … [Read more...] about Ye Olde Waffle House Tent Revival
Recording Secretary and the Executive Committee
There really is no good time for writing an article like this. It always runs the risk of having motives assigned to it that I assure you do not exist. I started writing this article after last year's convention, but I never finished or published it. I pulled it back out and edited it some more several months ago, but I still did not publish it. I am publishing it now because I still agree with what I have written here, and while it's a relatively minor thing, it is something I think should be considered. Please do not interpret this article as a slight against the current recording … [Read more...] about Recording Secretary and the Executive Committee
Prayers for IMB Feature
The leadership here at Voices has asked if I would regularly post two or three prayer requests from our IMB missionaries. Prayers for IMB is not sponsored by the International Mission Board. The explanation of this ministry can be found in this post. Each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I'll include two or three paragraphs of prayer requests from our missionaries, and will link back to Prayers for IMB where I list daily prayer requests that are not on the Twitter feed @PrayerforImb of the Facebook group with the same name. Nyungwe of Mozambique--After heavy rains in both Malawi and … [Read more...] about Prayers for IMB Feature
Above Reproach: A Study of the Ordination Practices of SBC Churches (Jason A. Lowe)
Note: This post provides an overview of the SBC Ordination Practices Report. You can download the full report here. “An overseer must be above reproach…” 1 Timothy 3:2 Southern Baptists, we have a problem. Actually, we have multiple problems brought to light by a recent investigation by The Houston Chronicle, which uncovered a horrific litany of sexual abuse among Southern Baptist churches, with more than 700 victims over the past twenty years and more than 250 offenders since 2008. This has led to some difficult, but necessary conversations among Southern Baptists, … [Read more...] about Above Reproach: A Study of the Ordination Practices of SBC Churches (Jason A. Lowe)
Our new Executive Committee leader and Great Commission Giving
Savvy Southern Baptists, and that includes all who read, comment, or post here at Voices, know about Great Commission Giving, the new metric created by the Great Commission Resurgence group nine years ago. GCG is supposed to be giving by a church "to any Baptist association, state convention, and to the causes of the Southern Baptist Convention." It should include Cooperative Program, Lottie and Annie, all state convention special offerings, whatever the church gives to their association, and anything else given to SBC entities and causes of the SBC. Offering for The Gideons, Samaritan's … [Read more...] about Our new Executive Committee leader and Great Commission Giving
“Yeah, It’s Worth It” – Why I Stick with the SBC
I visited my mom and dad in Florida last week to celebrate the old guy's 90th birthday and as was to be expected, dad and I had some late night chats. We talked about the greatest sports team in the history of sports - the New York Yankees. We talked about family, about grandkids. We talked about old times. More than any other topic, though, we hashed out what is going on in the Southern Baptist Convention. Dad devoted his life to ministry within the SBC. Dad was never a bigwig but his service in the convention made it such that he was widely known by people who were. A graduate of … [Read more...] about “Yeah, It’s Worth It” – Why I Stick with the SBC