What must be done to reshape the Southern Baptist Convention?

I love the Southern Baptist Convention.  I have been endorsed to serve as a missionary/chaplain to the U.S. Army and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.  I have been blessed by the Cooperative Program in my Southern Baptist education endeavors.  Cooperative Programs funds have helped keep costs down for my graduate and doctoral work at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.  I have been nothing other than a member of a SBC church.  I have pastored SBC churches.

It appears, based upon recently released statistics, the SBC is becoming a less relevant force in America.  My college friend, Dr. Chris Bonts, attributes this to a reshaping of our culture.  It is his belief that "cultural Christianity" is dying in America.  In other words, the culture doesn't expect one to attend church.  Therefore, not only are our churches shrinking, but they are becoming less carnal because those that simply claim Christianity due to the previous cultural landscape are evaporating.  I would never say the gospel is becoming less relevant.  The gospel message will never become less relevant.

What must be done to reshape the Southern Baptist Convention?

My suggestions aren't new, but I think they should be considered in their holistic approach. 

First, we as a denomination must focus on equipping bivo pastors.  When I served in Alabama I was informed through the Alabama Board of Missions that Alabama's SBC churches were about 53% bivo.  This did not take into account the pastors that were able to serve because they were retired, on disability or had a spouse that worked.  I understand that NAMB is making bivo pastors a priority.  I have for years sensed that in the future we will have more bivo pastors.  In fact, I sense we will have a denomination that has large churches at one end of the spectrum and bivo churches at the other end.  I fear there might not be much in the middle.  If this occurs it may be necessary for our seminaries to prepare future pastors to toil in bivo settings.  Our bivo pastors are the backbone of the SBC.  I pray there is a renewed emphasis on recognizing and appreciating the work these men accomplish for the Lord.

Second, we must not stall our church planting efforts.  Planting new churches must be an emphasis.  This is an important and biblical ministry.  It appears that in the future we will lose thousands of SBC churches.  This can be contributed to the migration of the American population to urban areas.  It may be that rural churches may need to merge into a new church that is more effective and efficient at advancing the gospel in their communities.  It seems that many of the churches that are shuttering their doors are in these rural settings.  I think we are consumed with retaining our current number of churches.  I ask you: what would happen if we had fewer churches that were stronger?  Would that be a success?  What would happen if those fewer, but stronger churches, collectively baptized more than in past years?

Third, our convention must make church revitalization a priority.  We have over 45,000 baptist churches.  However, I see more conferences on church planting and issues involving Calvinism than on how to revitalize the local church.  I will note that Alabama recently had a conference on that subject with Johnny Hunt as the speaker.  We have thousands of churches with millions if not billions of dollars worth of land and facilities.  I remember in college I took several classes on church growth.  I have since determined that those books were useless because most were focused upon pragmatic concepts to "grow" a church.  However, it is time to focus on revitalizing what we have to ensure our churches are healthy enough to accomplish the mission.  Additionally, I understand that NAMB is working in this area as well.  I desire that this initiative take root and becomes a priority within our convention.  I pray that our pastors and church members catch a vision about revitalization.  

Fourth...evaluation.  Besides my theological and ministry education I completed a Master of Public Administration degree in nonprofit management.  The key words in public administration are effective and efficient.  One determines if you are accomplishing these words through measuring goals and outcomes.  I fear that far too many churches aren't evaluating themselves and their programs.  Typically we as pastors and churches are hyper-sensitive to evaluation.  Therefore, we usually avoid evaluation at all costs.  It is time to evaluate what we do and how we do it.  A closer look might determine that far too many of our churches are simply bloated "country clubs with crosses" reproducing programs that haven't been effective at "making and maturing" believers in years.  

Fight? Flow? Flee?

My college pastoral ministry professor (Dr. Jerry Windsor) taught us "young preacher boys" that when faced with conflict in church we had three options - we could elect to fight, flow or flee.

I would like to explore these three options in further detail.  First, we can decide to flee.  This means that when faced with conflict or opposition we decide to run, find a new ministry or simply quit.  Before I attempt to stand in judgement of this decision, I must admit that I have chosen this option more than once in my life.  Some of these were on the micro level and other examples of this in my life were on the macro level.  Sometimes people note that fleeing is the easiest option.  I would argue that fleeing isn't the easiest option.  Often fleeing causes disruptions in our families and can destroy reputations.

Second, we can decide that we will simply flow.  When we decide to flow we are saying that the health of the organization isn't that important to us.  Additionally, when we decide to flow we are determining that our ideas can't make the organization better.  We are also deciding that our ideas aren't worth communicating within a larger battlefield of ideas.  An organization should strive to accomplish its mission in hopes of fulfilling its vision.  When important individuals in an organization decide to flow the vision of the organization may be stalled because there is a lack of competing ideas.  Those competing ideas have the potential to make the organization more effective.

Third, we can fight.  Now, when we hear the word "fight" we assume we are talking about either full-scale military operations or a slug-fest in the street.  However, I think determining to fight is something radically different that those impressions.  When we determine to fight it means that we have determined that our ideas are worth considering.  Fighting also means that we believe that a profitable exchange of ideas and advancement for the organization can come from conflict.  Conflict is not always the end.  In fact, conflict can be a means to a more effective and efficient organization. 

There are situations when each of these directions are the right choice.  There are moments when we must elect to flow because the issues simply aren't worth a fight.  In other words, we must decide if every hill is a hill worth dying upon.  Additionally, there times when fleeing is the best and most appropriate option.  There are moments when we decide the casualties of conflict are too great to fight.

Regardless of which option we choose - the most important principle is that we glorify God in the selection and execution of an these options.

The Fallen

Memorial Day - 2013

Memorial Day for many is the inauguration of summer.  It normally assures us that school is finished for the year and summer is beginning.  It is marked by mattress sales, cookouts, and
parades.

But, Memorial Day has such a deeper meaning. Here you will find the history of Memorial Day-

http://www.va.gov/opa/speceven/memday/history.asp

History is about the legacy of heroic men and women that have sacrificed their lives for the freedom of this country.  As a former Army Chaplain I am extremely sensitive to this holiday.  I have performed military funerals, death notifications for those killed in Iraq and met with family members of a friendly fire incident.

This Memorial Day our nation may focus on those that have perished in recent conflicts, but the wounds are still raw for families that have lost loved ones in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.

Our nation is grateful for those that have given all.  However, our gratitude will never fill the void for those family members that lost fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, daughters, and sons.  The country moves on past these deaths, but the families are haunted daily be these absences.

My desire isn't that you sit around in a somber trance this Memorial Day.  My desire is to remind you to never forget the sacrifice that has been paid.  Enjoy the day, spend time with family, but remember the express reason we have a holiday of this nature.

Here is a way you can honor the fallen.

http://iava.org/splash/

I will go silent for:
Peter Marshall
Steven Conover

Pushing Out Into the Deep and God's Provision

³ And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little way from the land. And He sat down and began teaching the people from the boat. ⁴ When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵ Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.” Luke 5:3-5 (NASB)

Luke 5:4 has made a considerable impact in my spiritual life since sitting in Dr. Bill Cook's New Testament Survey class at The Baptist College of Florida.  The call to "put out into the deep" or "push out into the deep" was a call by Jesus to challenge the faith and understanding of his soon to be followers.  These men had been been fishing all night long.  These rugged fishermen would have fished at night, cleaned their nets and then rested during the day.  In other words, they worked the third shift.  Jesus calls them to let down their nets during the day to show them that he was sovereign over all things...even the fish of the sea.  He is preparing to show them they can succeed at fishing - even against their logic - because he is preparing to send them out to catch men, rather than fish.

But, this verse has always pushed me to live by faith in the deep waters.  I once preached a sermon on this passage.  The sermon was entitled, "Deep Water Evangelism."

To be honest with you, I haven't always lived in the deep waters of faith.  In fact, there have been moments of life when I didn't trust God's provision.

This passage should propel us towards living by faith.  God hasn't called us to wade in the shallow end.  God has called us to live by faith and trust his provisions.  Our Father will provide for our needs.  On that day, Jesus brought forth a harvest of fish from the deep waters.  I sense the rewards of spiritual fruit are in the deep waters.  Additionally, sometimes the mission that we are called to for God will involve things that seem illogical - like requesting these men to fish during the day.

I challenge you to live deep...push out from your comfort zone...understand that Christ hasn't called us to sit on the shoreline and serve in the shallow waters.  Go deep and relish the challenge of following God's call.

Love God, Love Your Neighbor, and Go "Push Out Into the Deep."

The Great Commission and NOBTS

Recently I was blessed to participate in graduation at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (NOBTS).  I first graduate from NOBTS in 2001 with a Master of Divinity Degree.  The most impressive thing about NOBTS isn't its president, faculty, local food or fabulous location.  The most impressive thing about NOBTS is that they instill a desire to fulfill the Great Commission into every one of their students.  The Great Commission is about going, teaching Christ's message, and baptizing those who repent and believe.
   
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20


These words from Jesus remind us where following Christ can take us...to the nations.  We must be reminded of this commission.  We must ask if we are incorporating this commission into our lives?  Do our lives revolve around fulfilling this commission?  Or, do we see this statement as something that we can accomplish while we are doing our "own thing?"  My desire isn't to do my "own thing" while trying to fulfill the Great Commission as a sidebar.  Instead my desire is to make the fulfillment of this commission the centerpiece of my life and ministry.

We need a shift in our personal lives, families, and in our churches.  We need to be driven to fulfill the Great Commission in light of the Great Commandment. 

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷ And He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the great and foremost commandment. ³⁹ The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Matthew 22:36-39

 

I am thankful for my theological and ministry education at NOBTS.  I am more thankful my education enhanced my desire to love God, love my neighbor, and to fulfill the Great Commission.  I wonder if you will rearrange and reorganize your life to make this commission statement by Jesus paramount in your life?  

Conflict and Being Stuck on Stupid

I have served as a chaplain in the U. S. Army and in the Federal Prison System.  Regardless of the setting I have heard the same phrase used, "stuck on stupid."  This phrase is often used to describe individuals that just don't know how to help themselves.  In other words, they allow their stupidity or  hardheadedness to get in the way of their own accomplishments or advancement.

I have determined that many conflicts in our lives are a product of being "stuck on stupid."  Conflict occurs when our desires are thwarted because of other individuals or a situation that stalls our desires.  When conflict occurs we often "get in our feelings." When we are confronted with conflict we determine that we will win in conflict regardless of the ramifications.  We determine before there is a chance for resolution, reconciliation, and restoration that we will not lose. When this occurs we are essentially - "stuck on stupid."  In essence, we are determining that our pride and self-perseverance is more important than peace and unity.  In fact, we are determining that saving face is more important than glorifying God.

Conflict happens! Conflict is not always a bad thing. Conflict can help produce positive advancement in our relationships and organizations.  However, for positive outcomes to occur conflict must be handled and managed appropriately. Conflict can produce better understanding, more refined missions, visions and strategic plans.  However, when we determine to be "stuck on stupid" conflict can result in disenfranchisement, disillusionment, and in some cases, dismissal.  

First-step to Avoiding Conflict

The first step towards avoiding conflict is something that sounds simple and easy, but is very difficult to put into practice...

OVERLOOK MINOR OFFENSES

This can be a painful step.  We often feel that we are the most important person in the world.  This is because we are self-centered and selfish due to the sin of pride.  Sometimes offenses that are minor might be made much larger because our pride and ego are offended.  If we are going to avoid conflict this is the first step for a believer.  Before we boldly confront the sinner with our righteous indignation, we should ask if the offense has risen to the level of confrontation.  Our pride and ego being offended might not be enough to enact Matthew 18 and church discipline.  In fact, the first place for us to begin is with the spiritual question – are we mature enough to get over this offense?

Paul said in Colossians 3:13 that we should bear “with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other, as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” 

It should be noted that not every offense is something we should intentionally overlook.  There are sins that are committed between two persons that are not considered minor and cannot be overlooked.  In these instances, it is appropriate and biblical to follow the biblical model provided in Matthew 18.

“Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.” Proverbs 19:11   

There are two keys step to overlooking minor offenses.  First, we must seek resolution in prayer.   Through prayer we must determine if the offense is worthy of bringing before the entire Body of Christ.  If the Matthew 18 process is initiated, that is the potential culmination of the process.  Second, we must forgive.   We must begin with forgiving the person that offended us.  The person that offended us might not even know they have offended us.  If the offense is minor and we forgive, the offense might never occur again.