Month: November 2024

What a blessing!

Life has a unique way of bringing moments of reflection. As we enter December, I can’t help but reflect on the incredible year the Lord has given the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.

When we begin a new year, we are usually looking forward. This is a good thing—we must always look to the possibilities that lie ahead. However, we also never know what to anticipate in the future. January 2024 was no different.

As we began the new year, we started implementing the SBTC’s new mission focus. We jumped in wholeheartedly to our mission of mobilizing churches to multiply disciple-making movements in Texas and around the world.

Though we didn’t know what 2024 would bring, God has once again been so good to us. Allow me to highlight a few things we can celebrate together:

1. Our convention is growing.

Throughout the year, we had quite a few churches affiliate with the SBTC. We love when we can grow and see the gospel advance together. We currently have the largest number of churches in SBTC history.

2. Church planting is growing.

When we created Send Network SBTC in partnership with the North American Mission Board, we didn’t know what to expect. Over the past three years, we have seen over 145 churches planted in Texas through the SBTC. That is an incredible number of churches. In fact, we anticipate planting between 60-65 churches in 2024 alone. I am so grateful for all that God is doing!

3. Reach Texas is growing.

Our Reach Texas State Missions Offering took in a record $1,752,383 to be used for missions and evangelism through SBTC churches. We are praying God will allow us to hit over $2 million next year.

There are so many things to look back on and be thankful for. Yet, as we close out this year, we are looking to the future with great anticipation. We believe God is going to continue to use our network of churches to see disciple-making movements multiplied in Texas and around the world.

As we enter January, there is one thing I want to make you aware of. Our Texan magazine serves as an incredible tool to tell the stories of how God is using SBTC churches. Over the course of this year, we have experienced significant increases in printing costs. Our desire is to be the best stewards of Cooperative Program dollars, so in response to rising costs, we will print eight Texan issues in 2025 instead of 12. However, we are increasing our page count from 32 pages per issue to 48 pages per issue. Therefore, you will have the same number of pages, stories, and content as before, just in fewer issues.

This creates significant savings in the cost of printing and shipping, allowing us to best manage CP dollars. While the frequency will change, we remain committed to devoting the same amount of space to conveying all that God is doing across our state. We look forward to continuing to provide the best communication piece out there.

I pray you have a great Christmas season. I encourage you to reflect on the goodness of God over the past year and enter 2025 full of expectancy of what He will do. I love you and am honored to serve you!

God is growing me and using me to reach the nations

I grew up in a missionary family. We were in Nepal for nine and a half years or so, and coming back, we started a house church in [our city] in some apartment complexes among the Nepalese refugees. I was pretty young at that time, but I remember there were also a lot of Middle Eastern refugees. We met an Iraqi family, and that was my first time being exposed to that culture and I guess to Islam. The culture, the people, and their religion have really caught my interest.

Ever since then, I’ve felt a calling toward those people groups, so I started learning Arabic. I’ve been learning Arabic a couple of ways, including the university where I’m now a senior. I’ve been able to meet a lot of Muslims in my Arabic class, but also there are Muslims everywhere at the school. Most of the Muslims I meet have grown up here, but they are unfamiliar with Christianity.

So, I’ve been able to form a very small ministry. It’s mostly just forming friendships. For example, there are two girls I’ve been able to connect with and we’ve been able to spend time together outside of class, with me just asking them questions about their religion and then telling them my perspective and about Christianity—just asking simple questions. I invited one Muslim girl to church with me on Easter and she was bold enough to go. She wore her hijab, so she was a little nervous about standing out, but she went. Friendships like these are still growing. This semester, the class where the girl and I met is quite a bit shorter, so it’s been harder to have more spiritual conversations. But whenever I have the chance, that’s what I do.

For me, this ministry has grown out of a personal spiritual renewal earlier in my college life. I’ve believed in God my whole life, but I kind of just lived however I wanted in high school and at the beginning of college. I think I was just very self-righteous during this period of my life.

In college, I started getting into things that weren’t good for me and I started to be convicted. I realized that I’m imperfect just like every other person. I am sinful. I began reading the Bible for myself and going through those things that truly made the gospel come alive to me. I remembered the things my parents had taught me all my life. And I started going to church again. Ever since that time I’ve been living for Christ.

"If God wants me here, then I’ll stay here, and if He wants me to go to another country, I’m fine with that, as well."

—Emily Garcia Tweet

I started going to [a church] and I joined the college ministry there. That really helped me grow, and I was discipled through that ministry. This was my first time actually having a group of people my age who were also pursuing a relationship with God, and that was very helpful.

I’ve recently changed churches to a smaller church that is closer to where I live. I’ll soon be leading a young women’s group at my new church. I’m excited at the opportunity to have a leadership role in my church.

I remember when I was attending [the larger church] regularly, listening a sermon series on the book of Revelation. During one message, just hearing that the world is going to end and I had friends around me at the time who didn’t know Christ … I remember crying in my seat thinking, “Oh, I need to tell them. I need to share this with them.” I think that was the beginning of it. A mission trip with [the larger church] back to Nepal gave me an opportunity to share the gospel for the first time, and that changed my mindset and the way I live my life.

I want to do missions when I graduate next spring, wherever that may be. Through my minor, I’m studying Arabic, and I want to continue to study Arabic to be able to form better connections with Arabic-speaking people. I’m interested also in working with refugees, so something along those lines.

My plan is to go and do missions overseas, but I don’t know if that would be long-term. If God wants me here, then I’ll stay here, and if He wants me to go to another country, I’m fine with that, as well.

A big takeaway from the last few years is that my faith grew more as I met these Muslims. Having these conversations has been part of my discipleship, my obedience to Him. God is growing me at the same time He’s reaching them.

Want to share a story of what God is doing in your life or your church?

Share your story here

AM24: ‘On mission together’: Panelists talk about importance of connections

HOUSTON—A capacity crowd of 450 filled Sagemont Church’s Student Building Worship Center on Tuesday, Nov. 12, to hear four pastors speak about the challenges of ministry during the President’s Lunch Panel held each year at the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Annual Meeting.

The panel was moderated by SBTC President Danny Forshee, lead pastor of Great Hills Baptist Church in Austin. It consisted of Gregg Matte, senior pastor of Houston’s First Baptist; Jason Crandall, lead pastor of CityView Church in Pearland; Joe Ogletree, lead pastor of Image Church of Cypress; and Levi Skipper, lead pastor of Sagemont Church. Ogletree and Crandall planted their churches, while Matte just celebrated two decades at Houston’s First. Skipper was called to Sagemont earlier this year.

The need for pastors to connect and encourage one another was discussed at length. Forshee began by reading a social media post by Champion Forest Senior Pastor Jarrett Stephens congratulating Matte on 20 years at Houston’s First.

“It was awesome,” Matte said, noting the love shown by the church and also by fellow pastors like Stephens. When contemplating the next 20 years of ministry, Matte said he couldn’t imagine doing it without the support and friendship of fellow pastors.

“We talk, we hang out. Levi [Skipper] and I are part of a group that meets quarterly,” he said.

Forshee praised Crandall for his “heart for planting churches and reaching people” and asked him about the importance for planters to have strong relationships and receive encouragement from other pastors.

“It is vital,” Crandall said. “We can’t do this alone. We can’t be on mission together [yet] alone. It just doesn’t work. … Planters desperately need relationships. They need to know that they are loved, cared for, prayed for.”

Forshee commended Ogletree on the disciple-making emphasis at Image Church, a plant in the Fairfield neighborhood of northwest Houston. Ogletree, who is bivocational, admitted opportunities to connect with other pastors can be rare.

“At this season, [relationships] are not about the quantity but the quality,” Ogletree said. Even so, he stressed the importance of finding a few people with whom “you can talk about life” and said encouraging texts always seem to come at the right time.

“If you don’t have people in your life, you’ve got to get them,” Skipper said. “Jesus had them. Paul had them. All of us need people in our lives who are strong encouragers.”

Offering a personal illustration of the importance of having people to come alongside, Forshee told of the near loss of his unborn son 32 years ago. “I don’t remember much about that night,” he said, but he vividly recalls the two men who sat with him in the hospital as his son received a risky and, at the time, rare in utero blood transfusion.

“God works when we are vulnerable,” Ogletree added. “The enemy works through shame.” He said he answers honestly when asked how he is. “Be vulnerable,” Ogletree urged.

The audience had questions, too, such as how to encourage yourself in the Lord when there’s nobody to come alongside you?

Crandall said he journals about things for which he is grateful, reflecting on Scripture and keeping a record of how God has acted in the past. Ogletree praised pastors’ wives and said his wife is a constant source of encouragement. Pastors’ wives, he said, “do not get enough credit.”

Panelists also emphasized the importance of rest—physical and emotional.

Regarding spiritual warfare, Ogletree cautioned pastors to maintain awareness of the devil’s schemes, to learn to prioritize, and to avoid distraction.

“I have to get Scripture in my heart first,” Crandall said. Matte described his routine of sermon preparation in which, before Sunday, he places his sermon notes on a prayer bench at home in a symbolic offering to the Lord.

Forshee urged pastors to not forsake personal time with the Lord.

“Suit up. Resist the devil. Put on the full armor of God,” he said.

Nathan Lorick, SBTC’s executive director, closed the meeting in prayer and offered a final word of encouragement.

“We are in this together,” Lorick said, “side by side.”

Don’t just sit there—pray!

Most Americans pray, and many pray every day; but what do we pray about? Not surprisingly, according to Lifeway Research, 74% of Americans pray for their own needs and difficulties. Predictably, most people pray for their own problems since troubles and challenges are common to everyone.

In fact, our problems are not substantially different than those shared by our neighbors. For instance, Pew Research finds that a majority of Americans see inflation, the inability of Democrats and Republicans to work together, the cost of healthcare, drug addiction, the rising federal deficit and illegal immigration as the top problems facing the country in 2024.

In addition to the cost of living and the border crisis, all these national problems have driven nine out of 10 of us to believe America is in the throes of a mental health crisis. The old spiritual says, “Nobody knows the troubles I’ve seen;” but in today’s America maybe the better line would be, “Everybody knows the troubles I’ve seen!”

Of course, over and above the challenges most of us face, each of us has a long list of personal troubles unique to us. Our relationships are fragile, we worry too much, and we struggle with personal temptations. In light of all this trouble, what should we do? In reality, there are only two ways to face troubles: God’s way or your way, and God’s way always involves prayer.

A praying king’s trouble

In Jerusalem about 2,900 years ago, King Jehoshaphat knew two things: He knew he was in trouble, and he knew prayer moves the hand that moves the world. His problem was that he had a small window of time to prepare before he faced an oncoming Transjordan coalition of ferocious soldiers, representing multiple enemy armies and kingdoms.

King Jehoshaphat had never been so strategically unprepared or logistically overwhelmed by military power in his entire life. He had only one real option—he prayed. His prayer was straightforward, “… we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (2 Chronicles 20:12).

No believer has to passively surrender to trouble. In prayer we can fight back!

Desperate prayer fights trouble

Have you ever prayed desperately for God’s intervention? Leonard Ravenhill once said, “God doesn’t answer prayer, He answers desperate prayer.” King Jehoshaphat prayed because he was in an urgently desperate situation. He prayed admitting that he was “powerless” against the rapidly approaching enemy insurgents.

In our competitive, style-over-substance culture where signs of weakness are aggressively avoided, it seems counterintuitive to approach God with a prayer of weakness—yet it’s the only kind of prayer He promises to answer. For example, the half-brother of Jesus had experienced moments of doubt and weakness through which he learned that “… God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). Jim Cymbala has even made the astounding claim, “God is attracted to weakness.”

The question is, therefore, are you desperate enough in prayer? Desperate prayer demands a humility that repudiates our personal confidence, strength, intelligence, denominational advantages, or any other perceived leverage that masquerades as the primary answer to the dilemmas only prayer can address.

Are we willing to allow ourselves to look weak in the eyes of others in order to experience God’s help? Remember, the king humbled himself in the presence of the entire nation. Fortunately, his desperate, humble prayer led to God’s miraculous answer. If our pride won’t allow us to be broken before God and others in the face of overwhelming trouble in order to seek God, we have to ask ourselves this question: Do I really want God’s help, no matter the cost?

Dependent prayer fights trouble

One reason we resist desperate prayer may be because we are secretly relying on other sources of help. Our church governance models, our comfort with the status quo, or even our fear of extremes may temper our passion for a supernatural intervention. Long-time pastor and Georgia Baptist leader Larry Wynn may have accurately assessed our unwillingness to depend upon God when he recently said, “The church in Acts handled in a prayer meeting what we try to handle in a business meeting.”

The King of Judah had no choice but to depend upon God. He prayed, “… We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” He knew his army was ill-prepared, his arsenal was underdeveloped, and he was massively outnumbered by the enemy. So, he prayed, “… our eyes are upon you.”

During terrible circumstances we have all heard someone say, “All we can do now is pray.” That statement is true when we first recognize the problem, not just when we have exhausted all other options. Instead of a last resort, depending upon God in prayer can be our first response.

Our instinct is to depend on strengths, powers, and resources other than God’s provisions, and that is the oldest and most demonic temptation of all. For instance, in the Garden of Eden the serpent convinced Eve she could not enjoy a full life until she relied upon something other than what God provided (Genesis 3:4). Likewise, in the Judean wilderness Satan launched the same attack against Jesus. The devil attempted, unsuccessfully, to convince the Lord to resort to immediate gratification, shortcuts to power, and false worship rather than trust in what God was offering (Matthew 4:1-11).

Depending upon God in prayer is not a small victory. Instead, in dependence we actually resist and overcome our most basic urges toward sin, and we look more like Jesus.

Desperate and dependent prayer obviously appears to many secular Americans like the weakest available response to trouble—but it’s not, because God hears prayer. As Wheaton College President Philip Graham Ryken recently said, “One of the things we should do when we’re in trouble is just pray as well as we can and even when we can’t pray very well, God understands that and will answer our prayers a lot better than we can pray them.”

You’re not helpless in difficulties as long as God is the hearer of prayer. When trouble comes, therefore, don’t just sit there; pray something!

A meeting of the moms

Strong & Courageous single mothers ministry continues to thrive at First Dallas

DALLAS—Shea Lowery experienced single motherhood in the blink of an eye more than three decades ago. Her friend Nicole Pineda found the journey to singleness through separation and divorce when her husband was incarcerated.

The two women became fast friends and, eventually, partners in a ministry that continues to thrive in Dallas and beyond.

“I was a 24-year-old stay-at-home mom with no college education. I had awakened that morning a married woman and I [went] to bed that night a single mom,” Lowery recalled of the day her husband, Jeff, died in a construction accident in Alabama. Her world was upended.

Trauma to triumph

Lowery turned trauma into triumph, eventually founding Entrusted Hope Ministries in 2017.

Strong & Courageous, the single mothers’ ministry under Entrusted Hope’s umbrella, grew when Lowery was asked to teach a Sunday school class for single moms at First Baptist Dallas. The class flourished, with Shea using the Strong & Courageous curriculum she developed.

Recently, Lowery has moved the headquarters of Entrusted Hope to a Christian university in Mississippi, a move she made to be closer to family. There she serves as an adjunct professor, engages in discipleship on campus, and continues her speaking and writing ministry, producing biblically based resources for single moms and families.

The move to Mississippi meant a move from First Baptist Dallas, where Strong & Courageous had become a vital part of the church’s overall women’s ministry.

Enter Pineda. She began attending the S&C Sunday school and other classes almost five years ago at First Dallas and started serving on the churchwide S&C ministry committee three years ago.

“I found Strong & Courageous because of my mom,” Pineda said. “When everything happened with my ex, we left the church we were at and went to First Baptist Dallas. We wanted to go to a large church, blend in, go with the flow, and not be seen.”

At least initially.

Building community

When Pineda found herself ready to “start building community,” her mom, Kathy, told her about Lowery. “I met Shea. She is a single mom and teaches a Sunday school class. She is the sweetest person,” Kathy told her daughter.

Pineda thought she would give it a try. “That is where I am,” she recalled thinking.

Pineda quickly felt at home. “The first time I came, I walked in and was greeted with smiles. Shea hugged me. They had never even seen me before. They welcomed me,” she said.

“We have prayed already for everyone who walks through these doors,” Shea said.

It didn’t take long for Pineda to get involved in the Sunday school class. “I became a prayer partner, care leader, group leader … I loved the community [and] being able to be with women who are in the same season of life, who understand your frustrations and struggles. It was a nice thing to be able to go to each week,” she said.

A natural administrator, Pineda, who works as an electronic data interchange analyst, became the event coordinator for the S&C ministry. “That’s my sweet spot,” she said. “I love organizing.”

“I am excited to help other single moms.”

—Nicole Pineda Tweet

Something for every single one

Today the S&C ministry has grown to include a popular Mother’s Day luncheon, back-to-school events, and 4-5 fellowships throughout the year when the church offers parents’ night out.

“Then the moms just enjoy game night or going out to eat with one another,” Pineda said.

In mid-October, S&C held its first free oil change event as a White Rock Lake area automotive repair company partnered with the First Dallas women’s ministry and Strong & Courageous to provide free oil changes for more than 20 single moms, Pineda said.

In addition to the S&C class, single moms can attend S&C offerings during the fall and spring semesters as part of the church’s Discipleship University.

These include Entrusted Hope’s Equip series, in which guest speakers address such topics as resumé building, interview tips, budgeting ideas, hospitality, and parenting. Groups also go through Lowery’s Bible study My Life as a Single Mom and other curricula from Entrusted Hope.

Pineda is embracing the opportunity to continue Lowery’s work in leading S&C.

“I am excited to help other single moms,” she said, noting that S&C has also benefitted her family by providing opportunities for her children to develop friendships with other kids of single mothers. “I am very thankful for the opportunity to get to serve and to share the ministry and the blessing it’s been for me and my family.”

‘God wants to multiply us’

What does Send Network SBTC want after a banner year of planting churches? More.

A lot of strategy goes into planting a church: demographics studies, assessments, myriad trainings, ongoing pastoral care, financial support, community outreach, and so much more.

While those strategies have proven incredibly effective, Julio Arriola credits something else as the primary reason so many churches have been planted through Send Network SBTC over the past few years—prayer.

“The reason we have seen an increase is that God has been answering our prayers,” said Arriola, director of Send Network SBTC. “We have started each year, two years in a row, with 21 days of prayer and fasting as a team. … The harvest is plenty, the laborers are few, [and] God is answering the prayers of His people.”

In November 2021, the SBTC Executive Board voted unanimously to enter a church planting partnership with the North American Mission Board. Through that partnership, Send Network SBTC was born and a fruitful relationship began.

In 2022, Send Network SBTC’s first full year, 41 planting candidates were assessed and 35 churches were planted. As 2024 winds to a close, 70 candidates—34 of which are Spanish-speaking—have been assessed, and it’s estimated that about 60 churches will have been planted by year’s end.

“The reason we have seen an increase is that God has been answering our prayers.”

—Julio Arriola Tweet

Kyle “Bruiser” Lee, pastor of Corner Post Cowboy Church in Nacogdoches, went through Send Network SBTC’s assessment in October 2023 and was officially endorsed as one of its planters in January. He said the resources provided by Send Network SBTC have been overwhelmingly encouraging and helpful. That includes things such as a year of insurance coverage provided to all new planters, an initial deposit into a retirement account, and even occasional gifts not only for Lee, but also for his family.

The practical ministry benefits, he said, are unmatched. Lee meets with a cohort and has monthly coaching consultations that help him think through topics such as strategic planning, identifying his church’s unique identity, and overcoming barriers. Sometimes those meetings are scheduled to coincide with some of the SBTC’s anchor events, including the Equip Conference and annual meeting.

The interactions with experienced planting leaders, as well as with other planters walking the same road, have given him a venue to share ideas and be encouraged about how God is moving through other plants across Texas.

“Being able to meet with pastors, being able to meet with coaches, the way they try to help us see the bigger picture … it’s just been a Godsend,” Lee said.

Lee said working alongside Send Network SBTC has not only helped him see God move through the ministry at Corner Post, but also his church’s role in advancing the mission of the kingdom.

“Now, we’re actually in talks about planting a church,” Lee said. “That’s what Send Network SBTC has done—given me more confidence in knowing … I’m not alone in doing this. God wants to multiply us, and [through Send Network SBTC], He has provided a resource that we can do that through.”

A desperate call for prayer from Thailand

Fort Worth couple serving with IMB says Buddhist culture is a major obstacle, but God is moving

ISAAN, Thailand—Noei was a housekeeper for an International Mission Board worker in Bangkok, Thailand, for many years when she accepted Christ as her Savior.

She became a trusted assistant in ministry, not just a housekeeper, but when she retired and moved back to her home in rural Isaan, she lost touch with Christianity.

Less than 1% of Isaan is Christian, and Noei and her husband, Seri, prayed for God to send a shepherd to look after them. That was 10 years ago. They forgot about the prayer and became entrenched in Buddhist culture again.

God didn’t forget the prayer, though. He arranged for a Korean-born man to meet a Korean born woman in the U.S. and travel to Isaan as IMB workers in 2021. When Joshua and Sarah Jung found Noei and Seri, they had Buddhist statues in their home and were wearing Buddhist necklaces.

“We told her, ‘God still loves you. God is still waiting for you. He wants you to come back,’” Joshua recounted. Noei wasn’t ready to live for Jesus again, but she was willing to attend Bible study with the young missionaries.

One day, she was in a motorcycle accident but was unharmed. That was enough to convince her God still had plans for her, and soon both Noei and Seri were serving the Lord again, now with a shepherd in Isaan.

The Jungs were sent to serve through the IMB in Thailand by Hanmaum International Baptist Church, a Korean congregation in Fort Worth. The church prays for them at weekly prayer gatherings and individual members provide financial support and encouragement.

Joshua was himself involved in a motorcycle accident in Korea when he was 5 years old, and he was seriously injured. His mother, a nominal Christian at the time, prayed God would spare her son. If He would, she would offer him as a missionary someday. She didn’t share that prayer with Joshua until he was preparing for ministry at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

“She hid that prayer from me for many years,” Joshua said. “Also, she probably forgot about it. After that day, she told God she wanted me to become a rich person who could support missionaries. That was her second prayer. I guess God listened to the first prayer. God called me to the mission field.”

Isaan, where the Jungs serve, covers about one-third of Thailand—about 21 million people. The population is largely uneducated and very poor.

“There is a saying that to be a Thai is to be a Buddhist,” Joshua said.

Missionaries can freely share the gospel there, he said, but hearts are hard toward Jesus.

“They turn their backs and get very harsh with their family who want to become a Christian,” he said. “We teach children English and Bible stories, and some of the kids want to become a Christian. Once they become a Christian, their grandparents stop sending the children. That happened to us many times.”

It’s the grandparents in charge of the children, he said, because the parents often have left for Bangkok, Chiang Mai, or another country in search of work. That makes the population of Isaan very old and very young.

“Isaan is a very, very hard place. When we share the gospel and ask if they’ve heard about Jesus Christ, they’ve never heard the name of Jesus.”

—joshua jung Tweet

One way the IMB team makes inroads in the unreached, unengaged people group there is through a sewing ministry founded many years ago in Bangkok. Now in the rural regions, the missionaries teach women to sew dolls at home to earn a small income. Each person who is taught to sew also is taught the Bible.

Another way of gaining access is through an eyeglasses ministry. The missionaries travel to villages handing out eyeglasses, and each person who receives glasses hears the gospel. “Through that we make connections,” Joshua said.

Because Buddhism is so prevalent in Thailand, holidays are Buddhist holidays, funerals are held at Buddhist temples, and ceremonies are Buddhist ceremonies, he said. Helping people leave that culture and follow Christ is a monumental task, and churches are key in grouping believers together for support.

The Jungs focus on church planting, and on Sundays he preaches in a small group in Isaan. Sarah, who recently underwent radiation therapy in Bangkok for early-stage breast cancer, takes turns with other members of their team leading Bible study with the sewing ministry.

“Isaan is a very, very hard place,” Joshua said. “When we share the gospel and ask if they’ve heard about Jesus Christ, they’ve never heard the name of Jesus. A lot of missionaries who come here have a very hard time. Pray for the Isaan people so whenever they hear the gospel their hearts will be open.

“Pray for our team. It’s a large area, the largest in Thailand, and we only have [a small number of workers]. Pray that God will send workers and raise up local leaders.”

Inaugural recipients announced for Richards Endowment for Kingdom Advance

HOUSTON—The Jim and June Richards Endowment for Kingdom Advance, established by the Southern Baptists of Texas Foundation (SBTF) in 2021, has designated its first allocations to ministries in Texas. The announcement was made during the November board meeting of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC) Executive Board by the convention’s executive director, Nathan Lorick.

The endowment’s purpose is to support “individuals or organizations which promote kingdom causes through religious ministry consistent with the doctrinal statement of The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention” according to the endowment’s establishing documents. The initial funding for the endowment came from SBTF’s reserves.

“SBTF formed the Richards ministry endowment to acknowledge the continuing legacy of Jim and June Richards and to honor their years of service to the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention,” SBTF Executive Director Bart McDonald said. “I am excited to oversee distributions that will continue Dr. Richards’ legacy.”

In addition to allocations to Reach Texas, the SBTC’s state missions offering, the endowment provided funds to the SBTF Jubilee Fund, an effort to preserve the properties of churches in crisis or disbanding. A further gift was made to Austin church planting resident Brock Braxton.

Jim Richards said of Braxton, “I watched Brock grow up and answer a call to ministry, and he has strong connections to the SBTC. June and I are happy to be able to facilitate this investment in the next generation of pastoral leaders.”

Jim is executive director emeritus for the SBTC and is well-known as the convention’s founding executive director. He served in that role from 1998 through 2021. The convention grew from 120 churches to more than 2,600 churches during his tenure. Prior to coming to Texas, he pastored for 21 years in Louisiana and then served as an associational executive director in Northwest Arkansas.

June is a faithful pastor’s wife, mother, and grandmother who assisted Jim through decades of ministry. She has been widely known among SBTC staff members and church leaders as a constant prayer warrior and encourager.

Jim and June have three grown children and six grandchildren. They have retired to East Texas, though Jim still serves as a consultant to the convention while maintaining a busy preaching schedule.

God is just getting started

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is an excerpt from O.S. Hawkins’ new book The Spirit Code: 40 Truths about the Holy Spirit that Every Believer Should Know. Proceeds from the book are donated to Mission:Dignity.

Luke has the great privilege of sharing how God’s work begins through the church. In Acts 1:1 he writes, “Of all that Jesus began both to do and teach.” Did you catch that? The gospels document what Jesus began to do—He is not finished; He is just getting started.

Often referred to as the “Acts of the Apostles,” the book of Acts is more accurately the record of the Holy Spirit’s ongoing work in and through the church. Luke’s gospel recounts the life and teachings of Jesus in His physical body, while Acts tells us what the Holy Spirit continues to do through the spiritual body of Christ, which is the church. It’s incredibly encouraging to realize that Jesus remains active, partnering with us through the Holy Spirit to reveal Himself to the world.

Acts is the unfolding story of how Jesus continues to work in our lives via the Holy Spirit. However, the narrative ends rather abruptly, leaving us hanging. This is intentional—the story continues in us, moving all the way to today.

Anyone who has tried to live the Christian life has discovered that it isn’t just difficult; it is impossible when attempted in our own strength. God isn’t interested in our doing something for Him. The key to victorious Christian living is allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us. As Paul puts it, “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).

When we awaken to the power of the Holy Spirit within us, we enter a new dimension of Christian living. This is the essence of what Jesus meant when He said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father” (John 14:12). This is a profound statement—Jesus is not merely suggesting we can replicate His works; He promises we can exceed them.

Many people interpret this verse as a call to work harder for God. However, this approach often leads to frustration and failure. The true understanding of Jesus’ statement lies in His promise to return to the Father. Just a few verses later, He reassures us: “I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever” (John 14:16). Jesus assured His disciples, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18). He indeed returned, not in physical form, but through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, who empowers us to live out our faith.

After Jesus ascended, the disciples gathered in the upper room to wait for “the Promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4)—the coming of the Holy Spirit. They didn’t gather because they felt worthy; none of us are worthy in our own strength. They waited for the Helper that Jesus promised: “the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you” (John 14:26). True to His word, the Holy Spirit fell upon them at Pentecost, transforming their lives and empowering the church in ways they had never imagined.

The power of Jesus does not end with the gospel records; He had just begun. The Holy Spirit continues to work today, in you, through you, for you, and upon you. A victorious Christian life is about the dynamic partnership between the Holy Spirit and ourselves.

Eureka moments

The word “eureka” has embedded itself into our modern lexicon, representing moments of sudden insight or discovery—those exhilarating instances when clarity replaces confusion. Think of a student who, after struggling with a math problem, suddenly sees the answer: “Eureka! Wow!” Or consider the joy of realizing that the person you’ve been dating is truly the one with whom you want to spend your life: “Eureka!”

Did you know the word “eureka” appears in the New Testament? In John 1:41, Andrew, after following Jesus, excitedly finds his brother, Simon Peter, exclaiming, “We have found [eureka!] the Messiah.” This exclamation followed centuries of prophetic anticipation and waiting for the coming Savior.

These eureka moments, whether small or monumental, remind us of the transformative power of revelation. In our spiritual lives, awakening to the truth of who Jesus is and the role of the Holy Spirit is the ultimate eureka moment. It opens our eyes to a reality that redefines our lives and empowers us to live for Him.

As we reflect on the incredible journey from the gospels to the book of Acts, we recognize that the story of Jesus is far from over. He began a transformative work that continues today through the Holy Spirit and His church. We are not just passive observers; we are active participants in this divine partnership, empowered to carry forth His mission.

The Holy Spirit equips us with strength, wisdom, and guidance, enabling us to live out our faith in ways that exceed our limitations. When we embrace the truth that “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27), we unleash the potential for greater works, not through our own efforts but through His power within us.

Let us be open to those “eureka moments”—the revelations that deepen our understanding of Christ and propel us into action. Together, as the body of Christ, we can reveal His love and grace to the world, proving that the story of Jesus is still being written through our lives today.

AM24: Lorick testifies to Cooperative Program impact during executive director’s report

HOUSTON—A widow in her 80s giving from a fixed income. A church planter in his 40s moving his family to a far-away city for the sake of the gospel. Seminary students with a passionate calling to reach future generations for Christ.

Some give. Others benefit. All impact the kingdom.

They are the ones who come to mind when Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Executive Director Nathan Lorick thinks about the Cooperative Program, the primary giving model that funds mission efforts worldwide through the Southern Baptist Convention.

Addressing messengers Tuesday (Nov. 12) at Sagemont Church during the final day of the SBTC Annual Meeting, Lorick made an impassioned plea for churches to continue to give joyfully and sacrificially as Southern Baptists prepare to mark CP’s 100^th anniversary in 2025—a campaign that will be referred to as CP100.

“If you’re looking for an example of God multiplying the impact of your church, I can’t think of a better return on kingdom investment than the Cooperative Program,” Lorick said. “… I am asking the churches of our convention to prayerfully consider how God might lead your church to give in this anniversary year. Anniversaries are usually accompanied by gifts to honor the occasion. CP100 is an opportunity for record giving and record sending—acknowledging God’s favor for our cooperative work.”

Lorick said the SBTC, as well as Southern Baptists worldwide, will celebrate the milestone in a number of ways next year. The SBTC is challenging its churches to do three things:

Pray for record giving. While thanking churches for giving a record $1,752,383 through the Reach Texas State Missions Offering this past year, Lorick said more than 1,000 of the SBTC’s 2,786 churches had not given through CP this year as of September. “One-thousand churches giving at least $1,000 would invest $1 million more into our cooperative mission to support more international missionaries, Texas church planters, and seminary students,” he said.
Promote the effort by planning a CP Sunday on Oct. 5, 2025. Churches can use that day to emphasize the importance of CP giving, Lorick said.
Post brief videos on social media testifying of the impact CP has had on people’s lives. The SBTC is asking those who post those videos to use the hashtag #cp100story.

“Can I challenge you to pray about leaning in with your Cooperative Program giving?” Lorick asked. “We all face challenges, but nothing allows us to impact Texas and the world like the Cooperative Program.”

European initiative announced

Lorick also used his annual report to announce an initiative with the International Mission Board to connect SBTC churches with opportunities to advance the gospel in Europe.

Pastors and church mission leaders were invited to participate in a vision trip to Europe May 1-9, 2025. The trip, Lorick said, is designed to create strategic pathways to mobilize SBTC churches to partner with and support IMB’s 550 missionaries, projects, and global partners across Europe. Nearly 11% of those missionary units are from SBTC churches, Lorick said.

Vision trip attendees will gather in London for training and then be assigned to one of seven strategic locations: Nantes, France; Copenhagen, Denmark; Leeds, England; Bucharest, Romania; Budapest, Hungary; Ljubljana, Slovenia; and Athens, Greece. More information about the vision trip can be found on the SBTC’s website.

Noting the Christian population of Europe is 1.1% of the continent’s 820 million people, Lorick said, “Europe is not only one of the least engaged continents in the world, but it is also the most strategic, as it continues to be the most influential continent in the world—representing nearly every people group and every language.”

The initiative is similar to other efforts developed by the SBTC over the past couple of years in Nevada, Puerto Rico, and India.