SBC Voices

Been a while since I've been to a drive-in theatre and I've never been to one in the daytime but we had drive-in worship this morning. It was novel. Pretty good. I commend my pastor and staff for setting up this addition to live streaming a sermon. The design of our building is such that several rows of parking spaces face the elevated front entrance to the church. We had music and preaching on an FM station. I don't know how this works. The fire marshall was present to be sure no one rolled down their windows. I guess this was a precondition. I may get churched for rolling mine down. I … [Read more...] about My drive-in church this morning

This is a time of uncertainty. COVID-19 has swept through our nation, with the total number of cases in the United States exceeding 100,000 today. Schools have been shut down. Businesses have closed. Many of those who still have a job are working from home. The President just signed a 2.2 trillion dollar economic relief bill to help prop up an economy that has been in a free fall. Things are far from normal. Churches have not been immune to the effects of this Coronavirus pandemic. Churches have had to alter the way they do ministry. Almost no churches are meeting in person right now. Many … [Read more...] about Back to the Basics

I gather that some people are hoarding items. My stash of frozen Mrs. Callendar's Chicken Pot Pies is down to just a couple (my wife says they are inedible anyway, so they are mine! All mine! I like the KFC chicken pie, heavy on bread, fat, and salt but I'm not all that keen on their food handling.). Looks to me like the supply chain is working well where I am. It's all anecdotal but I'm seeing churches and others be incredibly generous in these times. To wit: I've heard of at least one megachurch that has recalibrated their budget so that they can help smaller churches that cannot … [Read more...] about In times like these…folks get generous.

My apologies! I posted this for Mark Terry and forgot to change the author from Dave to Mark! You can color me surprised. Last Sunday, by the order of the governor of Texas, we had to cancel our public worship service. We did have our men’s prayer meeting at 8:00 a.m., assuming we would not have more than ten guys. We had seven, so we did not violate the governor’s ban against meetings of more than ten people. Usually, when we emerge from our prayer meeting, I see our church hallways filled with people who are talking, laughing, shaking hands, hugging necks, and catching up on each other’s … [Read more...] about Color Me Surprised (Mark Terry)

1. Calling off Orlando was 100% the right thing. I love the annual meeting and look forward to it. Calling this one off was the right call. Even if we are blessed and the COVID-19 virus crisis fades quickly, we need to be spending the next couple of months ministering in our communities, not preparing for a trip to Orlando. I hate it, but it was right. 2. The SBC Cooperative Program is in a crisis mode.  I am sure some people will find a way to point fingers of blame on this, but the math is simple. My church gives 10% of our general offerings to missions through the CP. If our … [Read more...] about Some Southern Baptist Realities

My simple opinion: "No." Seems like just last year we were agonizing over the fact that no one wanted to attend the annual meeting any more. Attendance was down. Interest was flagging. God has a sense of humor and the SBC provides plenty of occasions for a good laugh. We've had this covered for 175 years. Everything moves along as needed. Budgets and funding may be approved by other bodies. We still have officers and trustees. The Cooperative Program rocks along as it has. Our system is deliberately designed to preserve the status quo. It's a good and wise system. Absent absolute, … [Read more...] about Does it really matter that the Annual Meeting is put off until 2021?

Our constitutional right to religious liberty stands on two legs. One of them, the "Establishment Clause," is the opening phrase of the First Amendment, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." The other leg, the "Free Exercise Clause," follows with, "or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." Because of the Establishment Clause, you don't have to pay taxes to support someone else's church, synagogue, ward, or mosque. This clause protects you from being forced by the state to adhere to someone else's religious belief. Because of the Free Exercise Clause, the … [Read more...] about Will the Free Exercise Clause Catch the Coronavirus?

Baptist Press has just released a statement informing us that the SBC annual meeting in Orlando has been canceled. The EC voted 77-0 to take this action. This has been expected for a couple of weeks but is now final. Key information: 1. The elected officers will continue for another year. J.D. Greear remains president for another year. There is great rejoicing in some quarters and weeping, wailing, and rending of garments in others. 2. Each entity will operate by its own bylaws in terms of operating its trustees. It seems that the biggest question left will be the rotation of … [Read more...] about The SBC Annual Meeting Has Been Cancelled