Month: January 2013

Perry backs fetal pain law to stop abortions at 20 weeks

HOUSTON—Gov. Rick Perry announced last month that he would support a bill in the upcoming legislative session banning abortions in Texas beginning in the 20th week of pregnancy—the point at which many scientists believe a baby can feel pain.

The bill, known as the Texas Pre-Born Pain Act, was proposed by Texas Right to Life and is being drafted by state attorneys at the request of legislators. It was initially expected to be filed before Christmas, but that was delayed as legislative sponsors and attorneys worked out details.

Ten other states have already recognized the need to protect unborn children who can feel pain, a press release from the governor’s office said.

“This session, I’m calling on the legislature to strengthen our ban on the procedure [abortion], prohibiting abortion at the point a baby can feel the pain of being killed,” Perry said at a pro-life event in Houston. “We have an obligation to end that kind of cruelty.”

According to Texas Right to Life, the Texas Pre-Born Pain Act would “establish a state interest in pre-born life that can feel pain” and “apply that state interest by prohibiting all abortions on pre-born children who feel pain.”

Elizabeth Graham, director of Texas Right to Life, told the TEXAN in an interview that most scientists agree increasingly that infants can feel pain by the 20th week of pregnancy.

“The consensus is that when surgery is done on a pre-born child in utero … anesthesia is given to babies at 20 weeks,” she said. “Neonatologists and neonatology surgeons are anesthetizing children then to save their lives because they can feel pain. And so we would say that they can also feel pain if they are undergoing excruciating dismemberment.”

Texas Right to Life cites the opinions of numerous scientists and doctors to support its position.

For example, Jean Wright, a Savannah, Ga., anesthesiologist specializing in pediatric critical care medicine, told the U.S. House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on the Constitution in 2005 that by 20 weeks after fertilization, all the physical structures necessary to experience pain have developed. And according to Richard Schmidt, past president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, “It can be clearly demonstrated that fetuses seek to evade certain stimuli in a manner which in an infant or an adult would be interpreted as a reaction to pain.”

Supporters of the Pre-Born Pain Act say that this and other medical data will give credibility to the legislation.

Perry said his ultimate goal is “to make abortion, at any stage, a thing of the past,” though Roe v. Wade “prevents us from taking that step.” But he said the Supreme Court allows states to restrict the procedure if they can show a “compelling state interest” to do so.

“I don’t think there is any issue that better fits the definition of ‘compelling state interest’ than preventing the suffering of our state’s unborn,” Perry said. “We cannot, and we will not, stand idly by while the unborn are going through the agony of having their lives ended.”

Texas already has numerous restrictions on abortion, including a ban in the third trimester except in rare cases when the mother’s life or health is threatened. Yet if passed, the Pre-Born Pain Act would save approximately 1,000 additional lives each year—the number of abortions estimated to take place in the state annually after the 20th week of pregnancy.

Graham said she hopes the bill will encourage other states to follow suit.

“Establishing a state interest in protecting lives could inspire other states to look at where their state interest could fall in protecting lives,” she said.

Legislative sponsors for the bill will be determined after final drafting is complete, Graham said. At press time, legislative council was revising the bill.

“We’re looking at a big pro-life majority in the House and in the Senate, so we ought to expect some big pro-life accomplishments,” state Rep. Bryan Hughes, a leading abortion opponent in the legislature who is campaigning to be leader of the House, told the Austin American-Statesman. “I think the people back home are sending a message by continuing to send strong pro-life majorities to the legislature, and that’s what emboldens us.”

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CP up 1.7% for the year

NASHVILLE—Year-to-date contributions to Southern Baptist national and international missions and ministries received by the SBC Executive Committee are 1.70 percent above the same period last year, according to a news release from SBC Executive Committee President Frank Page. The total includes receipts from state conventions and fellowships, churches and individuals for distribution according to the 2012-13 SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget.

As of Dec. 31, gifts received by the Executive Committee for distribution through the Cooperative Program Allocation Budget totaled $45,019,758.93, or $750,555.16 above the $44,269,203.77 received through December 2011.

“We are so grateful for the faithful contributions of God’s people to support the convention’s missions and ministry enterprises, especially given the economic hardships so many continue to face,” Page said. “After several years of serious financial difficulties, I am guardedly optimistic that the economic prospects of our people have begun to stabilize.”

For the month, a total of $14,433,737.25 was received for distribution through the Cooperative Program Allocation Budget.

Meanwhile, year-to-date designated giving of $11,193,104.15 is 4.34 percent, or $507,238.92, below gifts of $11,700,343.07 received at this point last year. This total includes only those gifts received and distributed by the Executive Committee and does not reflect designated gifts contributed directly to SBC entities.

The CP and designated giving totals represent money received by the Executive Committee by the close of the last business day of each month. Month-to-month swings reflect a number of factors, including the number of Sundays in a given month, the day of the month churches forward their CP contributions to their state conventions and the timing of when state conventions forward the national portion of their CP contributions to the Executive Committee.

For the SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget, the year-to-date total of $45,019,758.93 is 95.79 percent of the $47,000,000 budgeted to support Southern Baptist ministries globally and across North America.

The Cooperative Program is Southern Baptists’ method of supporting missions and ministry efforts of state and regional conventions and the Southern Baptist Convention.

The Cooperative Program total includes receipts from individuals, churches, state conventions and fellowships for distribution according to the 2012-13 SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget.

Designated contributions include the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions, the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions, Southern Baptist World Hunger Fund and other special gifts.

State and regional conventions retain a portion of church contributions to the Southern Baptist Convention Cooperative Program to support work in their respective areas and forward a percentage to Southern Baptist national and international causes. The percentage of distribution is at the discretion of each state or regional convention. The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention leads the state conventions in percentage passed on to SBC ministries, at 55 percent of undesignated receipts.

Churches needed to blanket El Paso with gospel

EL PASO—Over the last three years, churches across Texas have worked during spring break with SBTC missions and evangelism staff in south Texas cities such as Corpus Christi, Laredo and McAllen to bring the gospel to hundreds of thousands of people.

Through the efforts, people have been saved and baptized and churches begun.

The weeks of March 11 and March 18, churches are needed to bring the gospel to people in the El Paso area, working alongside local churches to sow gospel seeds among their neighbors by distributing thousands of door hangers, interpersonal contact, block parties, backyard Bible clubs, and other activities.

The spring break effort will lay groundwork for the week of April 15, as Team Impact, a strength demonstration ministry, plans more than 100 character oriented anti-bullying assemblies in El Paso area schools, said Jack Harris, an SBTC evangelism strategist. Also that week, mass rallies for middle and high school students on Wednesday night and college students on Thursday night will be held. The week will culminate on April 20 with a city-wide evangelistic rally at the El Paso Coliseum.

“We would love to see your church involved in this important effort to saturate the El Paso area with the gospel message,” Harris said. “Today more than ever, people need hope. There is no hope outside of Jesus. But with him, there is amazing hope for today and for eternity. So we need many, many churches to join hands in taking that message to El Paso over spring break.”

For churches in the El Paso area, a planning and information meeting will be held at 11:30 a.m. Feb. 14 at Cielo Vista Church in El Paso, 3585 N. Lee Trevino Dr. 79936.

For more information on the effort, call the SBTC evangelism office toll-free at 877-953-7282 (SBTC) or Chuy Avila, south Texas missionary/church planter, at 817-832-8875.

FBC North Channel serves Rio Grande Valley congregations with upgrades

PREMONT—For 18 adults and youth from Houston’s First Baptist of North Channel, the days after Christmas 2012 involved much more than shopping and football. The group headed south to minister in the Rio Grande Valley near Falfurrias. First Baptist of Premont was among two Baptist churches to benefit from what has become a semi-annual mission trip to the area surrounding Alice.

“This was our fifth time down to the Alice/Falfurrias area,” said Ken Durham, North Channel pastor. “We’ve gone three times after Christmas and twice in the summer.”

The effort began over three years ago when Alice area pastor Lupe Martinez told his future son-in-law, Steven Hammock, then North Channel’s youth minister, about the needs of churches in the Valley. Mike O’Neill, director of missions of the Coastal Bend Baptist Association, later became involved as a point person linking churches in need of assistance with North Channel.

Planning for this year’s trip began last summer, when Durham contacted O’Neill to inquire about area needs.

“It takes a good bit of planning,” Durham said. “We not only supply the labor, we supply all the materials for whatever construction work we do.” Depending upon the job, materials may be purchased in the Houston area or locally in the Valley.

“We have put roofs on two churches in that area and one time we brought all the materials from Houston,” Durham said. “The next time, the roof [project] was so large that we had to have the materials delivered from Robstown to the church in Alice [which received the roof].”

For this year’s North Channel team of seven adults and 11 youth, it would be toilets, not roofs, which would be replaced at First Baptist Premont. The group painted Sunday School classrooms, the fellowship hall and the Pioneer Clubs room. They installed ceiling fans and replaced seven antiquated commodes. They also conducted a winter Bible school for local children on three evenings.

“We are very thankful for their work and to have met them,” said Barbara Rice, wife of the Premont pastor. “They came, worked and left and wouldn’t accept any payment for all the fixtures or the work they accomplished.”     

“They went all out,” added Rick Rice, pastor of First Baptist Premont. “It was absolutely fantastic. We appreciate them so much.”

Rice was initially concerned about expenses and hesitated to let the North Channel group tackle all the work needed at Premont. Durham reassured him that labor and materials would be provided without cost.

“I reminded him [Brother Rice] that we’ve put two roofs on churches down there and what he was wanting to do was a drop in the bucket financially compared to what other churches have needed,” Durham recalled.

“I told them I’d have to see about appropriating funds for the work,” Rice said. “Their pastor said, ‘The way we work is we do the work. We shake hands. That’s it.’”

North Channel member Jim Elliott, who has spent the last 26 years as an automotive teacher at Houston’s North Shore Senior High, is a regular on the North Channel Valley mission trip and typifies the level of expertise of some of the volunteers. “I can do just about anything as far as wood work or metal work. I can weld. I work on cars, I can build a house. I have built several rooms on houses. I’m not rich, so I can help people with my hands. I don’t mind doing just about anything,” said Elliott, who added, “God has blessed me.”

Elliott’s 20-year old granddaughter accompanied the North Channel group this year, an added blessing to the longtime volunteer.

When asked about funding, Durham explained that North Channel participants pay $40 apiece to go on the Valley mission trip. Since at least half of the volunteers are from the youth department, some funding comes from the church’s youth mission budget. Donations from people inside and outside the church make up the rest—helping to provide materials, food and gas.

The painting and facilities upgrade was exactly what the older congregation at Premont needed. So was the winter Bible school held during the evenings of Dec. 26-28.

The entire North Channel group is involved in both the Bible school and construction. “We all do everything,” Durham said, explaining his role in planning, gathering materials and facilitating the work. “The crew does a lot of the work and I am there to make sure they have what they need.”

At Premont’s winter Bible school, the team used curriculum from Go Fish. “Our youth run the recreation, the arts and crafts and the snack part,” Durham said. “My wife traditionally teaches the Bible story.” A little boy who attends Premont’s Pioneer Clubs accepted Christ at winter Bible school.
The team even gives out five “practically new” bicycles as rewards for attendance and participation in the Bible school. A volunteer fireman and member of North Channel makes this generosity possible through his access to a corporate program providing bikes to needy kids.

“One little boy 10 years old won the last bike we had this year,” Durham recalled. The boy already had a bike and didn’t really need another. At first, he considered giving it to his little brother, who was not yet old enough for a bike.

“One of the other participants was actually crying because he wanted to win the bicycle,” Durham said. Before the end of the night, the older boy had given the bike to the child who so badly wanted it.

“Every time we go we are looking forward to being able to bless some folks, but we end up being blessed ourselves,” Durham said, recalling the bike incident.

“My heart goes out to the community. I know they have fallen on hard times,” Elliott said. “The spirits of these people are enormous. They keep on trying to do what they can for the Lord. There is gratification [in helping them].”

North Channel intends to go on helping. Mission trips to the Valley and the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma are on the docket for 2013, as is a mission trip to Guatemala this summer. The purpose of the latter will be to build concrete ovens for mountain dwelling families who only cook over open fires.
“They die at a young age inhaling the smoke all their lives,” said Durham, who explained that the concrete block ovens will be bought and constructed on site and donated to families. The trip to Guatemala will also incorporate medical missions work. Elliott plans to participate.

As for North Channel’s lasting contribution to Premont? “They did an incredible job. We will be forever grateful!” Barbara Rice exclaimed.

Young couple acts on conviction in spite of risk to mother’s health

FORT WORTH—What would you do if you had to choose between your life and your baby’s life?

I never really thought I would have to choose. Since college it was always just a hypothetical question to me. Up to that point in my life, I had even heard most pro-life supporters affirm that abortion is always wrong—with the exception of the mother’s life being in jeopardy. That exception had always troubled me. In college I decided that if I ever had to choose, I’d go with the baby and trust God. I never thought I’d actually have to make that choice.

Fast forward four years and 25 weeks. The dark ultrasound room was quiet. My ultra-normal, 25-week pregnancy was falling to pieces before my eyes. When the doctor finally broke the silence, “Katie, we’re concerned about your baby,” my heart was crushed. My doctor explained that our sweet daughter’s body was badly deformed. Our daughter had no left arm. She had no right leg. Her left leg was badly clubbed and her right arm seemed atrophied. The doctor feared Eve’s brain and organs could not sustain her outside the womb.

Instantly, my heart encountered shock, terror and sorrow like I have never known. They allowed my husband and me to have a moment alone to absorb the news before meeting privately with our doctor to discuss our options.

My heart sunk further as I listened to the doctor’s “medical opinion.” She never said the word “abortion,” but the suggestion had been made perfectly clear. It was posed with such delicate phrases: “My concern is to keep Katie as safe as possible. … We need to think about what a delivery could mean for Katie.” I could hardly listen; I was consumed with begging God to spare my daughter. Was my doctor really telling me my daughter wasn’t worth saving? As soon as I realized her suggestion, I remembered that I had made this choice long ago.

Suddenly, amidst my sorrow, I knew that God had been preparing me for this moment, in this doctor’s office, for years. I suddenly found myself thankful as I unhesitatingly responded: “I want to save my daughter.”

My choice didn’t make the coming days easier. I had limitless questions of every possible “why” and “how.” I wasn’t mad at God, but I was frustrated. I felt like David when he cried out to God, begging him to come in and make sense of the mess. I experienced pain that is too deep for words. I know I am not the first, or unfortunately, the last woman to experience sorrow of this nature. It comes in all different shapes and sizes, but ultimately has the same root issue—the effects of sin had corrupted something that was supposed to be beautiful.

I received a lot of different advice and words of wisdom from many women during those days—some good advice, some not so good. As I went through my own struggles, I couldn’t help but realize that there were certain truths that applied not only to me, but to every woman who has experienced the pain of something beautiful being affected by a fallen world:

—I learned that I needed to allow grief. Too often, when Christian women hear of a crisis in someone’s life they actually ignore that it’s a crisis and essentially discourage grieving. It’s well meaning, but unbiblical (Romans 12:15). Cry out to God, not to undermine or question his Sovereignty, but in order to understand his will. It’s okay to be honest if you don’t understand what he’s doing. My daughter’s tragedy incapacitated me. No one was counseling me just to cry and grieve, but that’s all I could do—cry out to the Lord (Romans 8:26). My intense grief and groanings for my daughter brought me to the deepest connection I’ve ever had with God. This newfound intimacy enabled me to be able to trust him regardless of the storm (Psalm 34:18).

—I learned to accept that while sin may cause evil, nothing my baby did was sinful. Neither the man of John 9 nor his parents had caused his blindness, although he was blind as a consequence of the fall of Adam and Eve. This difference is so crucial! No one grieves the effects of sin for their children more than God the Father. Yet he worked through the fall to transform us into his daughters and heirs of the promise (Romans 8:17). For me, that means I can weep guilt-free with my daughter when she cries because of her differences. It means I can confidently teach her that God is powerful enough to take any effect of the fall and display his glorious work through it (John 9:3).

—I learned the importance of depending entirely on God’s strength. Shortly after I delivered my daughter, I received a sweet note from a wise woman. She told me she would be praying for me as I discovered God’s strength for my journey. I simply couldn’t phrase it any better. Throughout the pregnancy my husband read Psalm 91 out loud to me. I started to visualize myself as a wounded and weak soldier, too tired to go on and ready for death but suddenly finding myself completely covered under God’s impenetrable shelter. Nothing about me had changed; I was still weak and ready to die. The only thing that had changed was that Someone was protecting me from the continual onslaught. I wasn’t being strong at all; I knew that for sure. Instead, I was learning to discover just how powerful God’s strength is. When I realized how limited my strength was, I was able to fully learn what it means to hide in the cleft of the rock.

There’s no way I could have known in college the emotional and spiritual battle that choosing life would entail. But I’m incredibly thankful that God is sovereign and helped strengthen me for the challenge, years before I knew I needed it.

We had a difficult pregnancy that entailed bi-weekly ultrasounds, lots of blood work, prayers and tears. After 37 weeks, our beautiful, healthy daughter was born. She is still missing two limbs, but her arm isn’t atrophied at all. The children’s hospital has been correcting her foot since she was four weeks old, and she just got her first prosthetic leg! She’s also unbelievably cute and smart with eyes as blue as the ocean.

I know we still have trials ahead of us. Eventually she will realize she’s different and will weep because of it. My prayer is that she will persevere because of the same truths I have come to embrace. Our fallen world hurts, but God is more powerful and is a shelter like no other.

—Katie Fruge is pursuing a Ph.D. in systematic theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth. Follow her family’s journey on their blog, babyevecatherine.com.

Pflugerville ISD to keep same-sex benefits

PFLUGERVILLE—Domestic partners of Pflugerville Independent School District employees can benefit from a controversial insurance plan adopted by the administration and approved by the board of trustees in a 5-1 vote last month. The policy is the only one of its kind in the state and, some contend, puts PISD in conflict with the Texas Constitution, setting it up for future legal battles.

PISD Superintendent Charles Dupre adopted the policy in August based on committee recommendations following an annual review of employee insurance plans. The program allows employees to claim domestic partners—homosexual or heterosexual—as dependents on their insurance. But public opposition voiced during the October school board meeting prompted trustee Jimmy Don Havin to call a public hearing on the matter and consider rescinding the policy. More than 200 people filled the Pflugerville High School cafeteria to address the issue. A majority lauded the plan and decried its opponents as hatemongers.

“As a pastor I was overwhelmed with the lostness of our community and the total lack of understanding of the issues,” said Steve Washburn, pastor of the 2,000-member Pflugerville First Baptist Church for 22 years. The community lies amid suburban sprawl about 14 miles north of downtown Austin. Since 1990, the town’s population has grown tenfold, from just over 4,000 people to 46,936, according to 2010 U.S Census estimates.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, “raw emotion, not logic” underscored remarks, Washburn said. Efforts to caricature opponents of the plan as “hatemongers” left the pastor defensive and discouraged. Instead of reading from a prepared statement, Washburn pocketed his notes and spoke directly to his detractors.

“I do not hate,” he told the crowd. “That is not my reputation.”

But his vocal opposition to the policy in recent weeks seemed to put him in conflict with the “hate-free policy” of Pflugerville High School where he made his address, Washburn surmised. Students attending the meeting held on their campus donned pink t-shirts emblazoned with “Stop the Hate.”

Other clergy, including a lesbian pastor of an Austin congregation, called the policy the “right,” “loving,” and the “fair” thing to do. Another pastor took Washburn to task for feeling “bullied,” claiming those deprived of insurance coverage as the real victims.

While accusing the policy opponents of “hatred” and “intolerance,” proponents offered little substantive rationale for keeping the policy, said Jonathan Saenz of Texas Values, the Austin public policy arm of Plano-based Liberty Institute.

Some championed the new policy as a magnet for new highly qualified teachers. But Saenz called such rhetoric “absurd” because is no evidence to prove such a statement, he said.

Five of the district’s 2,500 employees enrolled in the plan, which goes into effect Jan. 1.

Saenz, an attorney and president of Texas Values, said the district’s actions could land it in court. The policy conflicts with the Texas Marriage Amendment passed in 2005 by 76 percent of voters, he said. Texas Values filed a brief with Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office seeking an opinion on the PISD policy and that of a handful of other Texas municipalities and counties with similar insurance plans. To date, those policies have gone unchallenged in court. Saenz wants to force a legal opinion before other governmental entities follow PISD’s lead.

Texas Values is a public policy organization defending Judeo-Christian values in the areas of religious liberty, family, and pro-life issues. 

If Abbott rules against PISD, Saenz said the district would have two options: drop the policy or wage an expensive legal battle. With school districts across the state short on revenue, Saenz said the latter would not be in the district’s best interest.

In the board’s closing arguments before the vote, Saenz said it was clear they did not like having to defend the actions of the superintendent. But their favorable vote—5-1 with one abstention—made the board culpable for any future legal action against the district.

Washburn said representatives from two teacher’s associations told the board the majority of the district’s employees favor the plan. But he said they produced no documentation backing their claims. Teachers from the 2,000-member Pflugerville First Baptist Church opposed the plan but did not want to be seen as “going against their boss” by speaking out, Washburn said.

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Turnip Theology

Earlier this week I heard a story about the “nones”—those who answer “none” when asked about their religious affiliation. This group is heavily under 30 and represents a higher percentage of nones than their parents or even earlier under-30 groups. What is interesting is the high degree of respect and honor our culture currently gives those who claim allegiance to God, or even specifically Christ, while spurning communal expression of their beliefs. They may call themselves “spiritual” without any ability (or interest) to be more specific. After hearing this I read a fine article in Books and Culture from Baylor professor Ralph C. Wood dealing with the contrast between atheist Christopher Hitchens and 20th century Catholic apologist G.K. Chesterton. Hitchens wrote, shortly before his own death, a scathing review of a recent biography of Chesterton. Here’s a Chesterton quote that Professor Wood turned up:

Man may be defined as an animal that makes dogmas…When he drops one doctrine after another in a refined skepticism, when he declines to tie himself into a system, when he says that he has outgrown definitions, when he says that he disbelieves in finality, when, in his own imagination, he sits as God, holding no form of creed but contemplating them all, then he is by that very process sinking slowly backward into the vagueness of the vagrant animals and the unconsciousness of the grass. Trees have no dogmas. Turnips are singularly broad-minded. 

Only someone of Chesterton’s caliber can get away with a sentence that long but I think his point is well taken. Does the fact that we are overrun with “independent” voters and unaligned spiritual people mean that we must tacitly affirm the trend? Is the urge in some evangelical churches to downplay doctrine the proper response to a-theological theists?  

I can understand why Mr. Hitchens would prefer harmless theists to articulate spokesmen like G.K. Chesterton. His agenda was clear and his antipathy for biblical Christianity made him blind. I do not understand why anyone who leads a church or names the name of Christ would prefer or even peddle this vagueness. The rise of the nones fairly shrieks the need for us to teach MORE doctrine, not less. Some will always find the revelatory qualities of light uncomfortable; it’s insane to think that they will more attracted to a dimmer bulb.

Musings on the mysterious murder of Gelareh Bagherzadeh

A year ago Jan. 16, Gelareh Bagherzadeh, 30, was found shot dead in her car just after midnight as she returned to her parents’ townhouse near the Galleria in west Houston. An aspiring molecular geneticist and an Iranian-born human rights activist, she’d been studying at a friend’s house in north Houston until late that night. She was a recent Christian convert, attending the Persian Christian fellowship at Second Baptist Church of Houston.

To date, the authorities have not named a suspect, nor given indication they have any firm leads. That said, the case is far from cold case aisles and has drawn wide interest and multiple theories.

News reports said Bagherzadeh was shot from the passenger side as she drove through the complex where her parents lived. She was found slumped in her father’s Nissan Altima, her purse and an iPhone untouched. The car careened into a townhouse, its front tires still spinning and the engine running when police arrived. Bagherzadeh was a prominent critic of the hardline Iranian government and an outspoken advocate for free elections and women’s rights there.

Early conjecture on blogs and social media was that she was killed either for her public criticism of Iran or for her conversion or a combination of both. In news reports, her family has downplayed the idea her death was politically motivated.

Adding to the intrigue: Last November, the twin brother of Bagherzadeh’s boyfriend, Cory Beavers, was gunned down in a parking lot as he walked his wife to her car. Coty, the twin brother, was shot multiple times and authorities are looking for clues tying the two killings together. Cory, the ex-boyfriend, reportedly has been active in working with authorities to find leads in the case. 

Bagherzadeh helped launch called SabzHouston, a pro-democracy organization that held a protest outside the Al-Hadi mosque in Houston in 2009 following the Iranian elections. A former imam of the mosque had returned to Iran as an aid to the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the group alleged.

At the time of the killing, SabzHouston urged supporters to avoid jumping to conclusions about her death. But whatever the case, robbery didn’t appear to be the motive. A year later, authorities seem to have few leads, judging from news reports. Crime Stoppers Houston has offered a record $200,000 reward.

So to say this case is suspenseful—understatement.

Pray for the authorities as they seek truth and justice for the killer or killers of Bagherzadeh. We will keep you updated on the case (perhaps even develop a story about Bagherzadeh’s involvement at Second Baptist sometime this year if enough reliable contacts can be interviewed). Stay tuned.  

Ignorance, arrogance or wisdom

I am always surprised but shouldn’t be by the relative ignorance of the populace and particularly of younger people (Jay Leno, anyone?) as it relates to their own culture’s history. Example: A Pew Research poll showing that 44 percent of Millennials (roughly those under age 30) didn’t know the 1973 Roe v. Wade case dealt with abortion. (On that topic, please read our TEXAN Digital issue on how the SBC has transformed since Roe was handed down 40 years ago next week.)

It bears repeating that we cannot learn from history if we don’t know our history. Indeed we are prone to repeat the mistakes of the past or to inflate our sense of cultural accomplishments or wisdom by thinking our contemporary way of thinking is new and novel. As Solomon stated, there’s nothing new under the sun, all is vain striving save for fearing God and keeping his commandments.

So if I didn’t know better I’d think there is a devilish conspiracy to keep the masses in one of two camps: as ignorant and dull of mind as possible, or as falsely educated by worldly wisdom as possible in order to foster arrogance and self-sufficiency. So we find ourselves led by the so-called “chattering classes” of elites in Washington, on Wall Street, in ivory towers, and in the boardrooms of Hollywood, arrogant beyond belief with true contempt for the great masses, who are happy to get their day’s wages (be they handouts or paychecks) along with their daily doses of amusement, intoxicating substances, and porn and fast food. Don’t empower these folks, control them, the thinking goes. I guess evolution hasn’t gone well lately. Must be a down cycle. This may be a reduction, but I’m not far off.

Between these two extremes are the traditionalists, those strange folks who actually marry, have children in that marriage, and tend to cling to their religion, and perhaps, even their guns. Some of these people read, and with some discernment. Strange indeed, these people who seem able to critically think and process information, and who are not so easily led. A good many of them worship the God of Scripture. But are there enough of them to make a difference by raising children who are aimed at turning the world upside down for Christ?

It pays to know where we came from in order to navigate forward. I can think of no better Book for both of those pursuits than God’s revelation to man. A little knowledge of Western Civ or American history wouldn’t hurt either. Get wisdom—God’s and man’s—and pass it on.

SBTC churches from Golden Triangle develop ministry to unreached people group in Peru

AYAVIRI, Peru—The Quecha people live high in the Andes Mountains of Peru. They are direct descendants of the Incas who ruled South America 600 years ago and developed a very advanced culture. The Inca chief who built the Temple of the Sun in Cusco and the city of Machu Picchu longed to know God and wrote about knowing a God who would be concerned about his creation more than just placing the sun and stars in the sky.

Today, his descendants still search for that same God, and five Southern Baptists churches from the Golden Triangle Baptist Association have answered the call to share the gospel with this unreached people group.

“We had contacted the IMB about unreached people groups and they suggested the Quecha in Ayaviri, Peru,” said Dion Ainsworth, GTBA missionary. “It was known by the IMB through research that there were a couple of churches in the town but very little evangelical work.”

In addition to meeting the need for the gospel, GTBA was also looking for an area that would be economical to reach. “We were looking for an area that was not too expensive to travel to from the USA for lay persons to be able to afford the trip,” Ainsworth said. “Peru fit that stipulation—less expensive than Asia, Europe, and Africa, and safer than Mexico.”

Members from Maplecrest Baptist of Vidor, Liberty Baptist of Bridge City and First Baptist Church of Stowel went on a fact-finding trip to Ayaviri in 2008 and discovered that less than 2 percent of the population had trusted in Jesus Christ as their Savior, and the evangelical churches in the area were doing very little outreach. It was then that GTBA adopted the region for evangelism and church planting.

“Four of us, along with an IMB missionary and an interpreter, walked the town, talked with people on the streets and prayed for a word from God to start a mission work there,” recalled Bill Collier, pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in Bridge City.

Projects to Peru began soon afterward. In the summer of 2009 three summer missionaries worked in Ayaviri and taught English classes.Two medical/dental trips were held in Ayaviri and Pueblo Libre, a neighboring town with no churches at all.

“We were able to start a weekly Bible study in Pueblo Libre that is led by a local Christian,” Ainsworth said. “The hope is that this will eventually become a church of its own.”

Another focus of the work has been training local pastors. In 2010, Ainsworth led a church planting seminar for pastors within a 100-mile radius of Ayaviri. Approximately 20 evangelical pastors came and spent the week learning about church planting, Bible storying, spiritual warfare, and prayer ministry.

In addition to training pastors and sharing the gospel, several GTBA mission trips have included humanitarian aid. “This region leads Peru in deaths in the winter due to the cold,” Ainsworth said. “One winter they averaged 40 children’s deaths in one month due to the cold.” Homes in the region have no heat and many children sleep on dirt floors on straw. A warm blanket can cost as much as three weeks’ income so people will walk for miles to get a free blanket. “We used that as an opportunity to share the gospel at the same time. Medical mission trips and blanket distributions helped to create trust and an openness among the people,” Ainsworth said.

Collier and four other members of Liberty Baptist returned for a 10-day trip last November.

“We participated in preaching, Bible study, door-to-door evangelism, as well as building relationships with people in the area. We engaged in several cultural experiences so we could understand more about who they are and about their past history,” Collier said.

“Christians saw the love and bond of fellowship that all members of the body of Christ worldwide have in common. Many heard the gospel for the first time and at least seven people gave their hearts to Jesus,” he reported.

Impressed by the hospitality shown to them, the team witnessed the faithful commitment of Christians who walked long distances in the heavy rains on a cold night to attend a Bible study. By encouraging pastors struggling with few resources, the stress of family, job circumstances and the burden of spiritual darkness surrounding them, Collier saw relationships grow even stronger.

“Having established a Bible study and strengthened the ministry of two churches there, we have expanded our area of ministry to other villages in the southern area of Peru,” he added. “Armed with the gospel of Christ and mandated by our Lord in Matthew 28:19-20 to make disciples of all nations we are committed to a missional lifestyle.”

GTBA’s efforts have not only reached individuals with the gospel, but also encouraged local churches in the area to begin outreach to their own people. “Two of the evangelical churches in Ayaviri have renewed their interest in outreach and church planting since we have been making trips to the area,” Ainsworth said.

One church has started an emphasis on evangelism and is working to start two new churches with the help of GTBA. Another church started 10 preaching points in the region. Recently, Ainsworth was able to provide funds from donors to purchase a motorcycle for a local pastor to help him reach those preaching points. Prior to this gift, Pastor Pablo did not have any transportation. Among the donors for the gift was Little Cypress Baptist Church, which provided half the money needed.

Jim Salles, pastor of West End Baptist, has experienced the work in Peru first-hand, going to the region in late 2012. He traveled with Ainsworth to an area known as the Sacred Valley of the Incas. This area is unchurched with almost no one having a personal relationship with Christ.

“I want to go back,” Salles said. “In Maras where there is no evangelical witness, we spent three days walking and talking in the streets. We saw 10 or so express a decision for Christ, but there are many there open to a gospel witness. I made some great friends there and must return to see about them.” For Salles, the trip confirmed the need for and the success of GTBA’s efforts in the region.

After walking the streets of Maras, Salles said he sees no difference in ministry in Peru and ministry in Texas. “They are people, just like everybody else. And they react just like us. They have wants and needs, fears and apprehensions. If there are any difficulties in gospel presentation it is entirely with us—not them. It is no different here than abroad. Jesus met people where they were and for who they were. I can do no less.”

Calvary Baptist Church of Beaumont has also been making several trips to this area yearly and started a new church in a town near Ayaviri.

Ainsworth sees great value in GTBA adopting the work in Peru and ministering there for multiple years.

“We go back to the same area because we are trying to establish an indigenous church to an unreached people group. This depends upon building relationships for evangelism and discipleship. If the area had strong churches, then making a one-time visit to help the local church might be an option,” Ainsworth said.

“But we are going where the number of evangelical Christians is less than 2 percent, and in some cases essentially zero. Repeated visits are necessary to earn trust and build relationships that allow people to be willing to listen to the gospel that challenges their world vision.”