SBC Voices

The Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Board of Trustees meets Monday, October 15. From all of the information available ahead of time, they will be discussing electing Jason Allen as President of the Seminary. We have been discussing his election potential around SBC blogs since his name came to light as the candidate from their search committee. (Or was that a team? I can never keep up.) Admittedly, I'm writing this before the meeting and so have no idea how it will actually turn out. I would say that the smart money is on the Trustees voting to proceed with Dr. Allen in the … [Read more...] about How will you respond (to the MWBTS Trustees)?

Ricky Kirk blogs at Panta ta Ethne. I was listening to Pastor Mark Sparks, youth pastor for Journey Youth Ministries at Tri-State Worship Center last night. He mentioned something that served to be a missing piece of the puzzle I've been working on this last 18 months. In beginning the initial exploration stages of planting a missional community, I have read much about engaging culture, reaching neighbors, and building long-term discipling relationships. Part of that is examining my tendency in relationship building as well as listening to the stories of others. Here's what I have stumbled … [Read more...] about We’ve Been Asking the Wrong Question! (by Ricky Kirk)

When does being a good role model require that we admit our sins? Stephanie and I work hard to present the best possible Christian model for our people group to see and emulate.  We make sure we are gracious as possible, as forgiving as we can be.  We take very seriously our responsibility to be "the only Bible people might ever read."  We strive for holiness and purity.  In short, we are the best Christians we can be both for God and for the sake of those who are observing us. We've always been willing to admit our mistakes to the people here.  If we react badly to something, we … [Read more...] about Shamefully Transparent

Bryant Laird serves as the Family & Student Pastor at Trinity Baptist Church in Cayce, SC.  He previously worked at the North American Mission Board and was in charge of recruiting, hiring and training Summer Staff for the ministries of World Changers and PowerPlant from 2006-2011.  Bryant also served at First Baptist Church Yazoo City, MS as Minister to Students from 2002-2006 and has a history with World Changers that includes time as a participant (1991-1995), Summer Staffer (1996, 1998-2000), Coordinator (2001-2005) and Group Leader (2003, 2005, 2012).  Bryant is married to Olivia, … [Read more...] about Do Hard Things, the Easy Way: Concerns about the Changes at World Changers (by Bryant Laird)

One of the most used (over used) resources in the modern church is often guilt.  As Baptists, we don't have the corner on the market when it comes to guilt, but we definately have more than our fair share of usage. I'll admit I have used it from the pulpit, classroom, article and the occasional blog. We use guilt to promote faith, but should we?  One of the things I see very often is people struggling with guilt and not knowing what to do. Guilt can sometimes be a trap for people, but it doesn't need to be. Guilt had to be understood in it's proper context so people can be free of it's … [Read more...] about Do you Guilt, or Let the Spirit bring Conviction?

Dr. David W. Manner is Director of Worship and Administration at the Kansas-Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists. He blogs at  http://kncsb.org/blogs/dmanner . You can follow him on Twitter:  @dwmanner.  Evangelical churches have rejected the old covenant practice of designating priests as a special class of religious hierarchy.  And even though Anglican and Episcopal congregations have retained the title, their priests function in a pastoral role as ministers rather than interceders.  The belief that someone else must mediate our relationship with God for us or dispense God’s grace to us … [Read more...] about Are Pastors Functioning As Protestant Priests? (by Dr. David W. Manner)

I've never been called a prophet nor do I have a reputation for insightful brilliance, so take this all with a grain of salt. The BCS-ination of the SBC I enjoy college football as much as a good many people, though not as much as some nut-jobs out there.  However, a recent trend has set my teeth on edge: small and mid-sized football conferences are losing their best schools to the major conferences: Big 10, Pac-12, Big 12, Big East, ACC, SEC, etc.  These conferences in turn set most of the rules and dominate the airways.  Smaller groupings lose their best schools, players, and income … [Read more...] about SBC Trends That We Might See Someday…If We Don’t Already

The boy was horribly disfigured by birth defects.  It was difficult to look at his misshapen face.  His mother’s heart had been broken repeatedly by the looks of horror and the unkind words.  The host of the TV show asked her, “When you look at your son, what do you see?”  Tears running down her face, she replied, “I see a beautiful boy.”  She was not blind to his defects, but defiantly chose to look past her son’s deformity.   She chose to see him with eyes of love. In recent days I have heard harsh criticisms of the church.  Many churches are horribly divided, hopelessly impotent and … [Read more...] about Seeing the Beauty in the Body of Christ