You can’t make this stuff up. I’m not going to link it. We had the Militant Trads, but they self-destructed. We’ve had the Rabid Cals for years, Ascol was a pretty decent spokesman for that segment of SBC life. Now, hopefully, the Rabid Cals have self-immolated. It’s Wagnerian, brethren/sistren: Gotterdammerung. You might have to change […]
Some Questions about Salaries and Our Entity Presidents
I understand why people want to know what entity presidents make. I do, too. If a secret email was circulating the interwebs with the salary packages and someone said I could have the password to open the email for $10, I’d probably be asking if they take PayPal or Cashapp. I am as curious as […]
My first sermon, being overpaid, and a peculiar racial church situation
I came to seminary from a secular job and volunteer positions in my large church with no preaching experience. Soon, I was offered an opportunity to preach in a small town in the Mississippi Delta, the ‘Fust’ Baptist church thereof. With some effort I cobbled together a sermon of a sort on Isaiah 40, I […]
Prayers for IMB Europe: July 19, 2019
Here are a couple of prayer request from our IMB workers in Europe for this Friday morning. Thanks for praying. Belgium–24 volunteers on 3 different volunteer teams from TN and NC will be doing mapping and surveys in the Drongen area of Ghent, Belgium to begin the process of planting a new church. Pray that the Lord […]
SBC entities should voluntarily, annually disclose CEO compensation
Morris Chapman, former SBC president and Executive Committee CEO, made a motion last month in Birmingham: A motion by Morris Chapman of Triune Baptist Church in Arrington, Tenn., to request that the Executive Committee amend the SBC’s Business and Financial Plan where necessary to strengthen the fiscal accountability of the SBC’s entities to the convention. […]
Are you feeling the call to Alaska?
Now that I’m a seminary grad, I’m on the hunt for a lead pastor position. I want to be open to anywhere if God so leads, but absent some clear direction otherwise, I am maintaining my search focus on the midwest. That means there are hundreds of pastoral search committees around the country that won’t […]
Donetsk…9 Years Later
Here are a few paragraphs from a story I posted yesterday. It’s from Joe, missionary to the Ukraine. It’s reprinted here with permission. As a missionary I am used to living in different cities, countries. In early 2010 I found myself in an uncomfortable place. A broken engagement in 2009 left me broken. I wasn’t […]
Racial Blind Spots, the Jerusalem Church, and Southern Baptists
With our 2019 perspective, we find it absolutely unbelievable that the founders of the SBC could preach the gospel while also owning slaves and regarding people for whom Christ died as sub-human. There are discussions ongoing as to whether the founders – blatant and unrepentant racists – were actually saved. We took action at the […]
Prayer Requests from IMB July 15
I love the beginning of the week. I almost always get a missionary newsletter, or an update, Today was no exception. I’ll share with you this morning some of the prayer requests I received in my inbox this morning. There are more over at Beautiful Feet 10:15 These come from some of our missionaries in Africa: […]
A Letter from the President of SBU to Missouri Baptist Pastors
This letter was sent to me by a Missouri Baptist pastor. Since we have published articles about the controversy at Southwest Baptist University, it seems fair to publish this response by the president, Dr. Eric Turner, to the controversy. It appears to be transparent and forthright. Dear Missouri Baptist Pastor, In Matthew 28, […]
People change churches easily and often and I was totally unprepared for this
If Dave Miller can bare his soul by reflecting on his ministry I can at least empty my mind on one aspect of my own: I was totally uprepared for how folks move so easily and often among churches. It was my own fault, or at least a lack of preparation caused by never having been […]
What about Deaconesses?
I’m sure some readers will assume that I’m trying to launch a feminist campaign. I intend nothing of the sort. I fully affirm the Baptist Statement of Faith and Message article that specifies that the office of pastor is for males only. Still, I find the question of deaconesses (female deacons) an interesting exegetical question. […]