Archive for March 2010
Church positions
PASTOR Keeler Baptist Church, Borger, seeks FT pastor. Send resume, with references, to Pastor Search Committee, attn: Larry Thompson, 627 Gardner Street, Borger, TX 79007. Church website: www.keelerbaptist.com. Williams Road Baptist Church, Fort Worth, seeks bi-vocational pastor to lead congregation. Church runs 35-45 in Sunday School with 50 in worship. No parsonage [...]
Continue Reading
Church positions
PASTOR Midway FBC, Texarkana, seeks bi-vocational pastor. Send resume to Midway FBC, 1415 N FM 2148, Texarkana, TX 75501. Deadline for submission is April 15. Martindale BC seeks FT senior pastor. Send resume to Martindale Baptist Church, PO Box 156, Martindale, TX 78655 or email to info@martindalebaptist.org. Lake Country BC, Queen [...]
Continue ReadingSolitary confinement set inmate on road to Christ, theology
KATY?For six and a half years, Deric Torrent spent 23 hours a day in a cell with nothing but a collection of books, a radio, and a hot pot. He had one hour a day for a shower and recreation before returning to solitary confinement. In this cell, he lost [...]
Continue ReadingSBTC Disaster Relief volunteers work recovery effort on two fronts
Forty-six days after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake pummeled Haiti leaving widespread devastation and carnage in its wake, another quake hit off the coast of Chile. This one registered at magnitude 8.8. Shockwaves rocked the country, tearing cities apart and causing tsunamis to sweep down the coastline. SBTC Disaster Relief teams responded immediately [...]
Continue ReadingIn-Home Care kits get supplies, hope to Africa's AIDS population
Southern Baptists are sending a message of hope to the 22.5 million sufferers of HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa by packing five-gallon buckets of medical supplies called in-home care kits. Partnering with Baptist Global Response (BGR), the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention is joining hands with over 20 other state conventions [...]
Continue ReadingPastor's son, 11, to bring down the 'house' Coach Landry built
TERRELL?As long as there's a market for action flicks, power saws and suped-up cars, it's obvious little boys' love for Tonka trucks and all things masculine grow in size and cost, but never go away. But for an 11-year-old boy from the East Texas town of Terrell, it's far more [...]
Continue ReadingSBTC volunteers fed 1,000 daily in Chile
Less than a month after the devastating 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck the coast of Chile, three STBC Disaster Relief teams had reached the country. On March 10, the second DR team arrived. The team traveled to a small fishing village on the coast south of Conceptin that was devastated by a tsunami [...]
Continue ReadingSometimes the majority knows best
What a bunch of bozos! Did you know that our State Board of Education has a majority of Republicans who jammed through some social studies requirements for public school students that whitewash history and erase the very presence of minorities from the American story? Did you know that these bumbling [...]
Continue ReadingByron Nelson widow speaking at golf retreat
Peggy Nelson, widow of the late golfing legend Byron Nelson, will be the keynote speaker at a banquet during the annual SBTC Pastor & Staff Golf Retreat, May 3-4. The banquet will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday, May 3 at Church at the Cross, 3000 William D. Tate Ave. [...]
Continue ReadingQ&A: Texas education board chairman Gail Lowe
The Texas State Board of Education's (SBOE) preliminary passage of new social studies standards has created a firestorm of criticism, with some media reports repeating claims that they are full of revisionist history motivated by a right-wing agenda that denies historic constitutional boundaries between church and state. Some reports [...]
Continue ReadingNew essay book critiques Calvinism
Calvinists and non-Calvinists agree on the central truths of Christianity and should continue to work cooperatively in the Southern Baptist Convention. Nevertheless, Calvinists are wrong in many of their interpretations of Scripture. That is the claim of "Whosoever Will: A Biblical and Theological Critique of Five-Point Calvinism," a new book published [...]
Continue ReadingAn effective response to Reformed theology
After reading David Roach's fine summary of "Whosoever Will," I wanted to read the book for myself. It's a long book but each chapter also stands alone for those of us who return to a book a little at a time. I'd like to highlight just a few of those [...]
Continue ReadingAuthor offers biblical case for Molinism as middle way between Calvinism, Arminianism
In his chapter for the new book "Whosoever Will," author Kenneth Keathley opens with two questions: "First, is it possible to know absolutely or even confidently that one is saved, and second, is it possible for those who currently believe they are saved to have assurance that they will remain [...]
Continue ReadingTexas school board members dispute news reports
Despite news reports to the contrary, Texas students will be required to learn about Thomas Jefferson and constitutional religious freedom guarantees, say two prominent members of the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE). Additionally, "Nowhere in our social studies curriculum standards is America referred to as a Christian nation," contrary [...]
Continue ReadingAncient Israel meets the 21st century
GRAND PRAIRIE?This spring, the tabernacle is coming to Texas. The life-size replica of the Old Testament Jewish tabernacle will be on display March 18-28 in Grand Prairie and includes a narrated tour through seven interactive stations featuring the altar of burnt offering, laver, lampstand, altar of incense, and the [...]
Continue Reading3 days from vote, pro-life groups mount pressure
WASHINGTON--House Democratic leaders Thursday began a 72-hour countdown to a dramatic Sunday vote on the Senate health care bill, a proposal that is opposed by the nation's leading pro-life groups and which likely will pass or fail by only a handful of votes.Democratic leaders had been awaiting a score [...]
Continue ReadingChurch positions
CHURCH MINISTRY POSITIONS PASTOR New Beginnings Fellowship, Krum, seeks bi-vocational pastor to lead new church. Send resumes to: PO Box 68, Krum,TX 76249. Email: terry@newbeginningskrum.com. Church website: www.newbeginningskrum.com. Hillcrest Baptist Church, Kemp, seeks lead pastor. Preaching Sunday a.m., Sunday p.m., and lead Wednesday p.m. prayer meeting. Position is either bi-vocational or full-time. Some [...]
Continue ReadingTexas board tentatively OKs social studies curricula
AUSTIN, Texas ? The Texas State Board of Education turned back some controversial revisions to social studies standards in meetings March 10-12, retaining requirements that students learn about historical notables such as Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison and adding language about significant political ideas, including the "Laws of Nature and [...]
Continue ReadingThoughts on the GCR Task Force report
The Great Commission Resurgence Task Force released a progress report last month in Nashville. It is my privilege to serve with these godly men and women on the task force. I watched the members struggle with the complexities of bettering our convention's Great Commission ministries while moving forward together. Unity [...]
Continue ReadingBaptists contemplate right mix of proclamation, works
The perceived tension between the call to mercy ministries and the commission to make disciples?James 1 and Matthew 28 respectively?has gained renewed interest among many Southern Baptists and other evangelicals. Caring for widows and orphans has always been a Christian distinctive, but it received fresh emphasis in early 20th century America [...]
Continue ReadingA rich legacy: So. Baptists not new to mercy ministry
While younger evangelical groups are renewing their passion for social activism, leaders within the Southern Baptist Convention are countering criticism from some younger Baptists that the denomination has failed to transform a postmodern culture with what they perceive as a proclamation-only social ethic. In fact, many Southern Baptist leaders contend [...]
Continue ReadingTension between Good News, good works? Baptist authors offer modes of biblical orthopraxy
To help local churches avoid the pendulum swing between mere social help or a proclamation-only approach to missions, three new resources authored by Southern Baptists offer methods for mixing tangible works with the verbal witness. A Living Systems Network Two professors from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary are calling the [...]
Continue ReadingFrom $6 million in debt to a surplus, First Euless turned its dollars outward
EULESS?In 2005, First Baptist Church of Euless shared more in common with its neighbors than many a church member would care to admit. In the Hurst-Euless-Bedford (HEB) school district, many families struggle to pay the bills. Nearly 50 percent of students receive government-subsidized school lunches because their family income is below [...]
Continue ReadingPastor: Gospel plow has two handles, not one
ARLINGTON?"Don't be one-armed preachers" is the challenge Ted Traylor, pastor of Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola, Fla., issued to pastors gathered at the SBTC Empower Evangelism Conference in February. "Don't tie your good works behind your back and just go with the Good News," Traylor said. "But oh, don't [...]
Continue ReadingGood works are the handmaiden of proclamation
Our special report on social ministry emphasizes what should be emphasized. Our articles point out the gospel priority of caring for our neighbors in more than theoretical ways. Some of our experts remind us of the way evangelism works in harmony with good deeds. We hear more than one call [...]
Continue ReadingOverlooked aspect of health care bill could fund abortion
WASHINGTON--As Democrats prepare for what likely will be one final push for a health care bill, pro-life groups are targeting several aspects of the proposal, including billions of dollars in new funding for community health centers that the groups say could go to fund abortions.Funding for the community health [...]
Continue Reading
