Joel Rainey is the Director of Missions at Mid-Maryland Baptist Association, an adjunct professor at Capital Bible Seminary and blogs at Themelios (Twitter - @joelrainey). This post was originally published at his site. On Monday night, my wife and I watched the heartbreaking interview with Rick and Kay Warren in which, for the first time, they shared with the public their experiences surrounding the April suicide of their 27 year old son Matthew. Due to the circumstances surrounding Matthew's death, the interview spanned a number of issues: including parenting, gun control, and the … [Read more...] about Mental Illness and the Church: Where do We Go From Here? (by Joel Rainey)
A List of Resources on Holistic Development and Working With the Poor Around the World (by Alan Cross)
Alan Cross blogs at Downshore Drift, where this was originally posted. Since the 1990's I have had a real interest in working with and ministering to the poor as an expression of worship to God and love for people. Verses like James 1:27 (Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world), Isaiah 1:17 (Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow), Isaiah 58, Matthew 25:31-46, and Luke 4:18-19 (The Spirit of the Lord is on me, … [Read more...] about A List of Resources on Holistic Development and Working With the Poor Around the World (by Alan Cross)
Pastor, Put Down the Multi-level Sales Scheme and Step Away from It! (By William Thornton)
William Thornton is the SBC Plodder. You're a Southern Baptist pastor, that's as high up as you are ever going to get, and you are paid less than the average $60k salary for SBC senior pastors. You look at your future with a clear eye and understand that upward pastoral mobility is limited and substantial salary inreases will probably not be coming. You recognize that the salary difference between a senior SBC pastor with ten years experience and 30+ years is not much, on average. So, understanding that you need to provide for your own retirement, educate your own kids, and have a house … [Read more...] about Pastor, Put Down the Multi-level Sales Scheme and Step Away from It! (By William Thornton)
Yes, Indeed, God Loves “Gays”
"Why doesn't God love gays?" That was the question a teenager asked on a recent Wednesday during our youth ministry time. To be honest, the question was sort of out of the blue since the discussion was on the return of Jesus, but clearly it was on the heart of at least one, if not many, of the teens there that night. I appreciate this teenager's boldness to ask! This question is one this generation has had to wrestle with that previous generations did not. In fact, the speed with which the topic of homosexuality has come to dominate the social and political conversation is staggering, … [Read more...] about Yes, Indeed, God Loves “Gays”
Pulpit Bully (by Dr. David Manner)
Dr. David W. Manner is the Associate Executive Director for the Kansas-Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists. He blogs at http://kncsb.org/blogs/dmanner . You can follow him on Twitter: @dwmanner. The 26th United States President, Theodore Roosevelt coined the term “bully pulpit.” His observation was that his position of influence as president gave him a unique platform from which to persuade, exhort, instruct and inspire. Roosevelt famously used the word bully as an adjective meaning “great, superb, excellent or wonderful.” Pastors have been given a similar position of influence … [Read more...] about Pulpit Bully (by Dr. David Manner)
God Sets the Lonely in Families – A Real-life, Right Now Need (by Joel Rainey)
Joel Rainey, a frequent guest at this site, has shared a need that we would like to make public. If God lays this on your heart as a burden, contact Joel at joelrainey@wecare.org. Please join us in praying about this situation. “Father of the fatherless, a defender of widows is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families….” -Psalm 68:5-6 NIV For more than a decade, my wife and I have maintained a prayerful awareness of the global orphan crisis. We've had several opportunities to contribute to the solution by helping families bring their children home, orphan awareness and … [Read more...] about God Sets the Lonely in Families – A Real-life, Right Now Need (by Joel Rainey)
What is Sexual Immorality?
For this is the will of God, sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; –1 Thessalonians 4:3 This verse is usually met with a follow up question, “What exactly is sexual immorality?” That, of course, is the sanctified way of asking, “Is it still okay if my girlfriend and I _________? Because of this question I’ve found it helpful to use the Scriptures to define sexual immorality. Here is how I typically define sexual immorality: Anything that is intentionally sexually arousing outside the context of marriage. Anything… I’ve never found giving someone a list of prescribed … [Read more...] about What is Sexual Immorality?
Stop Using Facebook To Send A Message to People That You Won’t Confront Directly and Privately! (by Alan Cross)
Alan Cross blogs at Downshore Drift. Christians who use Facebook to complain about people instead of confronting according to Matthew 18:15-35 are in error. Passive-aggresiveness is their forte. I see it all the time. Veiled complaints and accusations against people. General complaints about the church and being hurt and people treating you wrong and sinning against you. Yet, you do not speak directly to the people who hurt you. You just lash out at everyone and throw a blanket of blame, victimhood, and condemnation among everyone who scrolls down their newsfeed. We might pray for you or we … [Read more...] about Stop Using Facebook To Send A Message to People That You Won’t Confront Directly and Privately! (by Alan Cross)
A Simple Faith
I love my brothers in arms. Where I’m at we have a group of associational pastors who try to get together once a month for fellowship, prayer, encouragement, challenge, and food. Let’s not forget the food. Our particular group is a mix—there’s eight of us, and we’re mostly the younger guys. One is a youth pastor in his 20’s, four of us are the four youngest “senior” pastors in our association, all in our 30’s. And then there’s the three old guys (okay, one is in his early 40’s still and he’ll likely beat me up later for calling him old, such are the trials and tribulations of pastoring! :) ). … [Read more...] about A Simple Faith
A Five-Fold Strategy Guaranteed to Kill Your Church (by Joel Rainey)
Joel Rainey is the Director of Missions at Mid-Maryland Baptist Association, an adjunct professor at Capital Bible Seminary and blogs at Themelios (Twitter - @joelrainey). This post was originally published at his site. The following is based in experiences I've had with churches I've consulted with over more than 20 years of service in ministry. Over that time, I have become convinced that we have perfected the pathology by which we can accelerate the decline and eventual demise of a local church. I've seen the following happen in different orders, with different emphases, and I can … [Read more...] about A Five-Fold Strategy Guaranteed to Kill Your Church (by Joel Rainey)