Month: March 2025

Finish with joy

The Empower Conference in February was fantastic. The biblical teaching, worship, and fellowship were outstanding. We had people from our church attend, but next year I want to get the word out and invite more to come and be blessed by this annual evangelism conference. What a blessing to be one of the 2,812 churches in the SBTC!

One of my favorite scenes in the book of Acts is when the apostle Paul meets with the Ephesian elders in Miletus while wrapping up his third missionary journey. Luke records Paul’s message to these elders in Acts 20:18-35. The verse I want to highlight for your contemplation is v.24: “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”

Notice that Paul was:

Focused (“None of these things move me”)

He would not be distracted by trials. They would not cause him to lose his focus to preach Christ. Let me encourage you to have this same laser focus that Paul had. Do not let things move you to quit when God is not finished with you.

Humble (“nor do I count my life dear to myself”)

Paul was humble and he had real JOY (Jesus, Others, Yourself). This is convicting to me on many levels. I often count my life way more dearly than I should. It is a valid temptation for all of us to evaluate everything through the lens of how it will affect us instead of saying, “It does not matter what happens to me.” What is most important is fulfilling God’s call on my life to make much of Jesus.

Determined (“finish my race … and ministry”)

Our races or ministries will look different because God calls us to serve in various ways and places. But the goal is the same for each pastor and minister of the gospel—to finish well. I encourage you to develop disciplines and rhythms in your life that will help you finish well, including personal prayer time, reading God’s Word for your soul, rest, balance, and not neglecting your family.

Joyful (“with joy”)

Paul did not want to finish like many do, with a spirit of grouchiness, anger, or bitterness. God wants us to enjoy ministry and not be burdened with sadness, which is not good for you or the people you serve.

Clear (“to testify to the gospel of the grace of God”)

Luke uses the word diamarturomai. It means to testify with earnestness. This is one of Luke’s favorite words. There is no other gospel. I charge you, my brothers and sisters in Christ and fellow laborers in the ministry, to always be faithful in preaching this gospel.

I love this verse. It has so much passion in it, and it is such a motivation for us today to complete our race for Christ no matter what and finish with joy.

Hundreds of thousands in ‘Space Belt’ within reach of the gospel thanks to CP giving

Astronomical impact

The church plant Kade Pierce is leading is in its infancy, but already he knows the value of the collective support behind him—and it’s something Southern Baptists across the generations also have realized.

“Truthfully, the Cooperative Program is helping me make this happen,” Pierce, pastor of Eastside Community Church in Dickinson, said. “The Cooperative Program is allowing me to live out God’s call on my life.”

Pierce was trained at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and God used Matthew 9:37-38 to propel him to 10 years of student ministry leadership at Bay Area Church in League City, which is in Galveston County.

When that church’s lead pastor, Brian Haynes, approached Pierce about planting a church, “It was a long process of me coming around to God warming my heart to that work,” Pierce said.

Again, the Cooperative Program, Southern Baptists’ 100-year-old unified giving plan for national and international missions and ministries, came into play. Through the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and the North American Mission Board’s Send Network, Pierce was assessed and confirmed as a planter.

“The assessment process was actually a pretty integral part of my affirmation to plant,” Pierce said. “That wouldn’t even be available, I would assume, without the Cooperative Program. It’s all been a gift to me.”

“I describe it a lot like astronauts meet Duck Dynasty. That’s kind of the culture.”

—Bryan Haynes Tweet

‘Momentum through CP’

Pierce stepped out as a church planter last fall, and Eastside Community Church receives support from Bay Area Church, the SBTC, and NAMB as it looks to reach a growing area of 600,000 people known as the Space Belt.

“I describe it a lot like astronauts meet Duck Dynasty. That’s kind of the culture,” Haynes said. “NASA is right here, and we have all of that and lots of business owners, educators, police officers, plant workers, and oil and gas people. It’s an interesting conglomerate, but it’s a fruitful field.”

As Pierce seeks to lead a church plant to reach that ripe field, CP has his back.

“It certainly does calm an anxious heart to know a measure of the stress of planting is kind of muted or taken care of because of the partnership of North American Mission Board or SBTC or even another Southern Baptist church in our sending church,” Pierce said. “That generosity has been a big help to us.”

Haynes said Bay Area Church, one of the oldest Southern Baptist works in the region, traditionally has been a strong supporter of the Cooperative Program, consistently forwarding 8% of its undesignated receipts in recent years.

“It certainly does calm an anxious heart to know a measure of the stress of planting is kind of muted or taken care of because of the partnership of North American Mission Board or SBTC.”

—Kade Pierce Tweet

The church values kingdom partnerships, Haynes said, and CP is a tried-and-true way to partner in accomplishing the Great Commission.

“We think the strategy is impactful when you collectively bring money from lots of churches, not just one church,” he said. “You make a solid global difference because you have momentum in cooperation that wouldn’t come by just one church doing one thing.

“… We see a lot of momentum for the kingdom through the Cooperative Program, and that’s why we continue to give.”

Bay Area, with about 1,200 in attendance on Sundays, recognizes the importance of investing in the next generation through CP-supported seminaries, as well as in missions in Texas, North America, and globally, Haynes said. “Church planting is a big deal for us, too.”

Just as the CP-supported assessment process was key to Pierce following God to plant a church, it was something God used to give the sending church confidence.

“I was grateful as a pastor for the assessment process, because it assured us of his and his wife’s fitness for planting,” Haynes said.

Bay Area continues with strong CP support even as God has opened up a significant new opportunity in the form of a counseling ministry. Through more than 20 trained biblical counselors on campus, the church helps restore individuals and families.

The church also partners with another church in a community-facing counseling center that logged 5,000 sessions last year.

“That place where the gospel meets mental and emotional health has been a real mission field for us,” Haynes said. “The overarching theme of the Bible is that Jesus is the one who is bringing shalom to chaos. He’s the one who’s working the restoration of all things.

“I think the uptick in depression and anxiety that we see in our culture is evidence of the chaos that’s caused by sin and the impact of other people’s sin on our lives, and we have the answers for that. We know the Prince of Peace, the one who brokers peace.”

Someone in search of peace may not show up at Bay Area Church, Haynes said, but he may show up at the counseling center.

Said Haynes: “We as churches really need to engage in the area where people are struggling mentally and emotionally.”

Is your heart too cluttered?

Editor’s note: The following is an excerpt from Mark Dance’s book, Start to Finish. Used with permission from the author.

In Luke 8:14, Jesus said, “As for the seed that fell among thorns, these are the ones who, when they have heard, go on their way and are choked with worries, riches, and pleasures of life, and produce no mature fruit.”

When God’s Word competes with our wills, it will expose a cluttered, selfish heart. There are three common culprits of a cluttered heart: worry, wealth, and wants.

Worry

As thorns can choke out healthy plants, so can worries choke out our healthy faith. I’m not talking about losing your faith; rather I’m talking about losing your joy with a slowly eroding faith.

One close friend who is a pastor once lamented to me, “Sometimes I wonder if my walk with God would be easier if I weren’t in the ministry.” Yes, even church work can choke out our spiritual growth. Every pastor I know wants their spiritual growth to outpace their ministry growth, but it doesn’t always work out that way.

The origin of the English word for worry comes from the German word wurgen, which means “to choke.” If worry is suffocating your faith, stop now and prayerfully meditate on this passage. Ask God to guard your heart and mind with His peace.

We must intentionally and consistently check our own spiritual pulse. Additionally, we need to ask a couple of mature believers to help us assess the condition of our heart.

Wealth

I was 13 years old when I heard the news that Elvis died by essentially choking on his wealth. Elvis has sold the most solo albums in history and was nominated 14 times for Grammys. I have seen his fancy cars and his gold-plated grand piano in the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, as well as Graceland in Memphis. All of his awards, toys, records, fame, and money are a sad reminder of “the deceitfulness of riches” that led to his destructive end.

None of us is immune to the false sense of security and worth that comes with wealth. Even pastors get caught in the trap. “If my salary was more …” and “If the church budget was bigger …” are statements that show that our trust is more in riches than in [Jesus]. Someday all our stuff will end up in the dump, in storage, or in our kid’s garage.

Wants

In the book This Is Our Time, Trevin Wax wrote that the biggest myth we surrender to is the pursuit of happiness. A Barna Research project found that 84% of Americans believe “the highest goal for life is to enjoy it as much as possible.” Sadder still was the fact that 66% of churchgoing Christians bought into the same lie!

As you well know, hedonism and materialism are alive and well in today’s culture and are an ominous threat to our churches and pulpits. Sports, school activities, work, and hobbies often have a stranglehold on our lives. Our obsession with achieving and acquiring leaves our hearts barren, exhausted and empty.

As pastors, we are tempted to focus on the measurements of ministry success rather than on Jesus. Our egos sometimes crave bigger crowds and more attention, yet our primary motivation should be the love for Christ that drew us to our ministry call in the first place.

Parents find purpose, ministry opportunity through young son’s health struggles

‘This is your why’

When Grant Falls was born in 2022, his parents, Laura and Seth, had a traumatic start to life with their son. His condition was far worse than they expected when the doctors noticed he had a heart problem in utero.

After he was born, Laura actually couldn’t see him until the day after his birth because of the immediate need to treat his heart defect. Seth took her in a wheelchair to the ICU.

“I was seeing double still,” she remembers, “and I got there, and I was like, ‘OK, so when are we going to a room?’ And they were like, ‘No, this is your room.’ The ICU. That picture was, like, 15 pumps of IVs hooked up to a little baby.”

Things intensified over the next two months as Grant had open-heart surgery, intubation, and was listed for a heart transplant.

“I struggled so much at the beginning wondering why,” she relates, “‘Why us? Why my baby?’ The movies aren’t like this. You just have the perfect birth, go home, and be with your baby and your family. That didn’t happen.”

But Laura also noticed other mothers going through similar situations. Her own experience had made her a bit of a veteran in the ICU.

“I think it was probably not even a month after we had already been there—our room was the very first room in the ICU,” she explained. “So, whoever came in, I would see coming in. I remember seeing the broken moms. At that point, I was a month or two months in. So, I started having a routine of what I was doing every day. I was able to function.

“[The hospital] has everything for kids. They don’t have anything for parents. And if I could bring an ounce of comfort to any of that, that’s what I would like to do.”

—Laura Falls Tweet

“But these people are coming in, and they’re also first-time moms, or are moms whose lives are flipped upside down. So, you’re just a zombie, and you’re learning the new medical language. Nothing makes sense anymore.”

That was the beginning of “Mom Bags,” a collection of toiletries, snacks, and helpful resources intended to make a terrible situation a little more bearable. The first distribution was pretty simple.

“[The hospital] has everything for kids. They don’t have anything for parents. And if I could bring an ounce of comfort to any of that, that’s what I would like to do.”

That first small outreach happened in the midst of Grant’s yearlong ordeal in the hospital. After months of gaining strength, Grant finally had a 12-hour heart transplant surgery. There were struggles in his recovery, including a cardiac arrest as his body adapted to working without a machine helping to pump his blood. The doctors had decided to put him back on a heart machine, called an ECMO, to assist his new heart.

“They hadn’t closed [his heart],” she recalls, “So, [resuscitating him] was extremely fast, not even 10 minutes before the surgeon came and told us the heart looks great. He just needs to rest.”

Seth and Laura—members at Inglewood Baptist Church in Grand Prairie—went home with Grant after a year. Grant was growing stronger, facing a variety of effects from his stay in the hospital but recovering. But early last year, doctors discovered a cancerous mass on Grant’s liver. Over the next nine months, doctors attempted unsuccessfully to remove the mass surgically, and then consulted with clinics around the country to know how to treat the little boy.

“So, he did … three or four rounds of chemo,” Laura remembers, “and then his numbers were coming down, but we still needed to get the mass out because it would still spread to his lungs and then to his brain.

“In September, we went to Houston because they were confident that they could just get it … they literally didn’t even have to open him up” she said. “They stuck a needle into his liver and microwaved it for two minutes and it was gone. We got to go back to the hotel the same day.”

Although Grant continues to see his doctors and faces some relatively minor procedures to clean up the aftereffects of his treatments, he’s a growing and happy little boy. Laura credits God for all the amazing things her family has come through.

“There’s no other way we would have gotten through this without God,” she says. “There’s no way. We have seen so many miracles performed because of God. And He did it multiple times. We would sit there in these crazy situations, whether he was having a cardiac arrest or going for surgery or having a transplant. We just prayed, and then we asked others to come together and pray for him and for us. And honestly … I could feel the stress come off when I know that God is going to help us get through all of it.”

Even though the Falls are spending less time in the hospital these days, Laura’s ministry among mothers has continued—even grown.

“There’s no other way we would have gotten through this without God. There’s no way.”

—Laura Falls Tweet

“Social work messaged me last week and said the [most recent] 15 bags that I brought were already given out,” she said, “and several of the mothers were just moved to tears and so incredibly grateful.

“I got a message from someone’s relative who received one, about how thankful they were that they had this. Because you can’t think of anything. You don’t want to eat, you don’t want to leave the room.

“And I have tons of friends now …. [Sometimes] our old nurse reaches out to say, ‘Hey, can you talk to this mom?’ Or I’m on these groups on Facebook that I’ve met parents through. I’ve been to the parent group they hold on Wednesdays. When we have appointments, sometimes I’ll stop in and I’ll talk to parents that are [in ICU] currently and give them hope.”

Laura is seeing God use their experience with Grant’s first two years in ways she couldn’t have seen in 2022, in her own life and in the lives of others.

“My relationship with God has strengthened so much throughout all of this,” she said. “I was talking with one of [Grant’s] previous nurses yesterday about the Mom Bags. And she was like, ‘Remember when you were inpatient and you kept saying, ‘Why? Why us? Why is this happening?’ She’s like, ‘This is your why.’”

Korean churches prepare to gather, coinciding with SBC Annual Meeting in Dallas

CARROLLTON (BP)—More than 1,000 people say they plan to participate in the 44^th annual gathering of the Korean Council, set for June 9-11 at New Song Church in this northwestern suburb of Dallas. This includes pastors, staff and lay members of the Southern Baptist Convention’s 973 Korean churches.

Known formally as the Council of Korean Southern Baptist Churches in America, the fellowship each year meets in conjunction with the SBC’s Annual Meeting.

“Our future direction aligns with the SBC’s Vision 2025,” Korean Council’s Executive Director James Kang told Baptist Press. “You can’t simply sit back and maintain the status quo. We must look to the future by sending more missionaries, planting more churches, revitalizing existing ones and cultivating ministries for the next generation.”

Among additional initiatives is a partnership with IMB to host 10 regional missions conferences. The first four took place at Semihan Church in Metro Dallas, New Life Church in Metro San Francisco Bay, Tacoma First Baptist in Metro Seattle, and Global Missions Church in Maryland, Metro D.C.

“Thanks to many prayers, these conferences, and God’s activity, we are seeing more missionaries being recruited for the IMB,” Kang said. “We’re also witnessing a revival of missions within the church, especially among the laity.”

A Southern Baptist thrust to Korean immigrants started with the Home Mission Board appointment of Don and Esther Kim to reach international university students in Los Angeles. That led in 1957 to the start of Berendo Street Baptist Church, which today is known as the “mother” of all Korean churches in the SBC.

At least 1,700 people attend Sunday morning worship services at the church, which changed its Korean name in 2022 to Saenuri, or “New Community.”

While perhaps 80% of the SBC’s Korean congregations see fewer than 100 people in Sunday morning worship, Berendo/Saenuri is among a handful with at least 1,500. This includes New Song Baptist and Semihan Church, both in Carrollton. Other similarly large Korean churches: New Vision Church in San Jose, Calif., Good Community Church in Torrance, Calif., Tacoma (Wash.) First Baptist Church and Seoul Baptist Church of Houston.

About 15 Korean Southern Baptist churches draw at least 1,000 people in Sunday morning worship.

“We also have many small churches in rural areas that are decreasing in number and need to be revitalized,” Kang said. “Americans tend to retire in the places where they used to live, while Koreans often retire near the city, and young people also move to urban areas. As a result, we’re seeing a decline in the Korean population in smaller towns.”

About 1.8 million Koreans live in the U.S., according to 2022 estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau. About 70% consider themselves Christian.

“In the early years of the council, the Home Mission Board hired Dr. Daniel Moon to lead the Korean church planting initiative, which resulted in the establishment of many Korean churches,” Kang said.

There is not currently an SBC-wide initiative to plant Korean churches—a need the Korean Council is trying to meet.

“Here in Metro Dallas, where the headquarters for the Korean Council is located, there are 150,000 Koreans and 60 Korean churches. In New York, there are fewer than 10, and in Toronto, fewer than five.”

About 220,000 Koreans live in Metro New York City. More than 100,000 live in Ontario, Canada, most in Toronto.

“We decided to support Korean church planters at $1,000 per month for two years, specifically those planting in strategic cities in the North where there is no Korean church or not enough, much like the SBC does,” Kang said. “Additionally, we are working to help churches grow by offering seminars to help pastors train in evangelism and the revitalization of the church.”

The Korean Council also is working with seasoned pastors to provide coaching and revitalization support to churches requesting it, the executive director added.

At least 30 Korean Southern Baptist churches include English ministries designed to reach all Asians because “our children mingle very well with other Asian peers,” Kang said.

“A lot of churches are asking for help with English ministries,” the executive director continued. “Our young people like to be associated with Koreans but too many churches cannot provide them with what they need in English. We are losing our youngsters in a sense, and when we don’t have the younger generation, we lose the churches and the future.”

The future for the Korean Council started in 1974, when Korean pastors met after the SBC annual meeting in Los Angeles to discuss how they could work together. In 1981, they met again to establish a formal fellowship of Korean pastors “to foster relationships and consolidate the strengths of Korean churches to advance church planting and missions,” according to a recent book by Jongsu Heo titled “The History of the Council of Korean Southern Baptist Churches in Ameria, 1956-2021: Communication, Connection and Cohesion Toward a Holy Calling.”

That pastors’ fellowship, which met for its first meeting in 1982—when there were 203 Korean Southern Baptist churches—evolved into an association of churches in 1993 when there were 600 churches in what today is known as the Korean Council. Members today include 35 churches and 44 pastors in Canada, 16 churches in six South and Central American nations, and more than 900 across the U.S.

“Unifying the Korean churches spread out throughout the United States helps us to know that we are not alone in the mission and call to spread the gospel,” New Song Pastor Peter Hyun told Baptist Press. “Through the different pastor seminars and retreats specified for Koreans in pastoral ministry, pastors are refreshed throughout the year and churches are strengthened by the work of the Holy Spirit. The annual Council of Korean Southern Baptist Churches in America (CKSBCA) is a time that many pastors and families joyfully await throughout the year.”

This article originally appeared in Baptist Press.

Pastoring well when members leave

“It’s not personal.”

When members leaving the church tell us this, it’s hard not to take it personally. Even as they express their gratitude for your friendship, your ministry, and the church, it hurts when people leave.

Our church recently experienced a season of departures (for myriad reasons), and I’ve become far too familiar and weary of battling doubts and temptations of defensiveness, having to tell my young kids about more of their friends leaving the church, and pleading with the Lord to bring friends for my wife for the long haul.

While we can’t decide who, when, or how someone leaves, we can control how we respond. However it plays out, pastors are called to be an example to the flock of God and care for them in a way that reflects our chief shepherd (1 Peter 5:1-5).

Before I share some lessons I’ve learned, I want to make a distinction: Some members leave better than others. I’m not necessarily talking about why they feel called to leave, but rather how they go about leaving. Regardless of why someone might leave, they can still leave in a healthy way.

For instance, if a member has a disagreement with you, a change of conviction that does not align with the church’s, or feels like the Lord may be leading them to serve another church body, they will ideally discuss this with you. Recently, a former pastor at our church expressed that his time with us may be coming to an end. Since he was still discerning this, I was able to encourage, shepherd, and pray for him. He was even willing to share this with our members at a meeting, and after I honored his faithful service to our body and thanked him for loving us well and inviting us to walk through this transitional season with him and his family, we gathered around them, thanked God for them, prayed that He would lead them to a great church home, and encouraged them.

Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Divisive departures can be a lot more hurtful and/or messy. In that case, how do we pastor difficult departures? It is not lost on me that pastoring does not make us immune to the assault of hurtful daggers of accusations or passive aggressive emails thrown as the backdoor slams shut. There’s so many things that run through your head, from wishing they would have talked to you sooner to wanting to defend yourself from off-base, untrue accusations.

While Scripture instructs handling those who intentionally cause division (Romans 16:17-18, Titus 3:10), the hurtful accusations may be contained between you and them. More often than not, these are emotional responses in moments of weakness. In navigating instances like this, here are a few helpful principles I’ve learned:

Clothe yourself with humility (1 Peter 5:5)

As we seek to posture ourselves with humility (Philippians 2:1-11), let us look to Christ, who empowers us to exude the humility He exemplified. Consider the situation at Calvary, where He was 100% right and His executioners were completely in the wrong, yet He did not pray for the record to be made clear. Instead, He humbly interceded for them, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).

Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger (James 1:19)

I constantly remember my mother’s astute anatomical observation in my adolescence: “God gave you two ears but only one mouth.” We must be quick to listen, seeking to understand not only what they are saying, but what is underneath what they are saying. Ray Ortlund offers a helpful question to ask during any conflict: “Can you help me see what you see from your eyes?” When we listen to understand rather than to respond/argue, not only does our defensiveness subside, but we grow in empathy and love.

Confess your sin (James 5:16, 1 John 1:9)

Even if a critique is not full of truth or delivered in the best manner, we must approach every instance of it with eyes to find our own fault in the matter rather than brushing off the entire assessment. Because we are imperfect undershepherds, rarely are we faultless in any matter of conflict. Own your shortcoming, confess your sin or lapse of judgment, repent to the Lord and your member, and ask for forgiveness.

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all (Romans 12:18)

While restoration of church membership may be a ship that has sailed, interpersonal reconciliation should still be sought. Peaceful reconciliation requires both people to extend humility and forgiveness, and we have no control over how the other person responds. However, we must be mindful of what we can control. As alluded to earlier, argumentatively stating your case so that your “rightness” might be seen rarely leads to a unifying, peaceful outcome.

Bless them (Romans 12:14)

As you seek to send them well, express gratitude for the ways they have loved and served you, affirm the work of the Spirit in them, and pray God would lead them to their next chapter. Christ is their chief shepherd, and He will always care for them and give them all that they need.

Brothers, as you seek to pastor with great care, love, humility, and faithfulness, hold fast to Christ’s promise: “When the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory” (1 Peter 5:4).

Iglesia en Port Arthur acoge a los marginados de la comunidad

Para David quizás era usual que la gente se aleje de él, en lugar de acercarse.

Descrito como un hombre cubierto de tatuajes y con un aspecto “aterrador”, David se presentó en la iglesia Port Arthur City el primer día que se inauguró como nueva congregación.

Julian Martínez, el pastor de la iglesia, lo recuerda bien: David apareció con su madre y, después de que terminara el servicio esa mañana, se acercó a Martínez de forma agresiva.

“Parecía estar drogado”, recuerda Martínez.

Sin embargo, David regresó a la iglesia, visitando todas las semanas y, finalmente, entregando su vida a Jesucristo. Sí, ese mismo David, el hombre “aterrador”, vendedor de drogas y adicto a las drogas, había sido transformado y hecho nuevo. Ese mismo David, que apenas había puesto un pie en una iglesia, ahora sirve mano a mano con su pastor apuntando a otros hacia Cristo junto a una iglesia que lo acogió y amó desde el primer día.

“Cuando llegué a esta iglesia, encontré la paz que necesitaba”, dijo David. “[Esta es] una congregación de personas que no me juzgaron, sino que me aceptaron y oraron por mí y mi familia”.

“Ha sido una historia increíble verlo levantar las manos en adoración y ver su pasión por el Señor y cómo Dios ha cambiado literalmente quién es Él en tan sólo un año”, dijo Martínez.

Gente como David es la razón por la que Martínez y su familia respondieron al llamado de Dios para fundar la Iglesia Port Arthur City—para llevar esperanza a los perdidos, a aquellos que se refugian en los rincones oscuros de una cultura en dónde muchos no se atreven a entrar.

Martínez conoce muy bien de esos rincones.

Lo viejo hecho nuevo

Martínez se mezcló con malas compañías a los 12 años. Empezó a consumir drogas y a llevar una vida desenfrenada. A los 15 años, su novia, Melissa, que ahora es su esposa, quedó embarazada. En su búsqueda por proveer a su familia, hizo otra mala elección, convertirse en un “coyote”, una persona que ayuda a introducir ilegalmente a otras personas en el país. A los 17 años, el ahora padre de dos hijos casi fue atrapado, lo que lo llevó a intentar cambiar su vida. Se mudó a San Angelo, pero al poco tiempo, volvió a sumergirse en la cultura de fiestas y el consumo de drogas.

Después de vivir ese estilo de vida durante varios años, Martínez dijo que comenzó a sentir que Dios lo atraía hacia Él. Algo cambió después de que él y Melissa asistieran a la iglesia el Domingo de Resurrección en el 2001. El pecado que una vez dominó su vida ya no lo dejaba satisfecho.

Una tía, durante una visita, comenzó a sentir que el Señor estaba obrando y comenzó a compartir el mensaje de Cristo con Julián y Melissa. Finalmente, ambos le dieron su vida a Cristo y, al poco tiempo, Martínez dijo que comenzó a sentir que Dios lo llamaba a predicar.

Él pasó la próxima etapa de su vida estudiando teología y apologética, y más tarde, el Señor le abrió una puerta para servir primero como pastor de alabanza y luego guiando a parejas jóvenes casadas en una iglesia en Nederland, una ciudad del sureste de Texas ubicada a unas 10 millas al norte de Port Arthur. La iglesia en Nederland le brindó la oportunidad de servir eventualmente como pastor interino y luego como pastor asociado. Él permaneció allí durante ocho años, hasta que el Señor lo llamó para fundar la Iglesia Port Arthur City.

“Un día, mientras comía tacos en un pequeño pueblo cercano al otro lado de las vías llamado Port Arthur, el Señor me llamó a plantar una iglesia”, dijo Martínez.

Aunque está enclavado entre un grupo de pueblos rurales más pequeños, Port Arthur es muy urbano y culturalmente diverso, dijo Martínez. Una vez que Dios llamó a Martínez a plantar, dijo que se dio cuenta de inmediato de la gran necesidad que había allí de escuchar el Evangelio. La ciudad, de casi 60,000 habitantes, sólo tiene un puñado de iglesias bautistas del sur.

“Un día, mientras comía tacos en un pequeño pueblo cercano al otro lado de las vías llamado Port Arthur, el Señor me llamó a plantar una iglesia.”

—Julian Martínez Tweet

‘Gente como yo’

La Iglesia Port Arthur City abrió sus puertas el Domingo de Resurrección en el 2024. Su misión es clara: llegar a la comunidad con el evangelio de Jesucristo y hacer discípulos. La iglesia logra esto a través de esfuerzos intencionales para conectarse con las personas, repartiendo comida o camisetas junto a escuelas y negocios en eventos comunitarios. La iglesia también tiene una fuerte presencia en las redes sociales, que es como David y su familia supieron sobre la iglesia. Martínez dijo que constantemente responde mensajes en las redes sociales de personas que piden oración.

Martínez dijo que no lo ha hecho solo. Él comparte cómo su propio pastor, Daniel Ward, quiso apoyarlo desde el principio en la plantación de una iglesia. Ward es quien puso a Martínez en contacto con Julio Arriola, director de Send Network SBTC, que trabaja con la Junta de Misiones Norteamericanas para plantar iglesias en todo Texas. Una vez conectar con Send Network SBTC, Martínez pasó por un proceso formal de evaluación y capacitación antes de lanzar la iglesia.

Ubicada en una de las calles más transitadas de Port Arthur, City Church recibe alrededor de 75 personas cada domingo, con nuevos visitantes cada semana, dijo Martínez, y señaló: “La gente sabe quiénes somos”. Él recuerda una ocasión en la que un hombre sin hogar se le acercó y le dijo: “He oído hablar de ustedes y nos alegra que estén aquí. Escuché que están tratando de llegar a personas como yo que necesitan esperanza y aliento”.

“Por eso”, le dijo Martínez al hombre, “exactamente es que hemos venido”.

Port Arthur church plant is embracing those on the fringes of the community

Kindness and acceptance were not things David usually experienced in his interactions with other people.

Despite being described as covered in tattoos and looking “scary,” that’s what was shown to him when he attended Port Arthur City Church on the first day it launched as a church plant last year.

Julian Martínez, the church’s pastor, remembers it well: David showed up with his mother, and after the service ended that morning, he approached Martínez in an aggressive manner.

“He seemed to be high,” Martínez recalled.

Nevertheless, David returned to the church, visiting every week and eventually giving his life to Jesus Christ. Yes, that David—the drug-selling, drug-addicted, “scary” man—had been transformed and made new. That David, who had hardly set foot in a church, was now serving hand in hand with his pastor and pointing others to Christ alongside church members who welcomed him and loved him from day one.

“When I arrived at this church, I found the peace I needed,” David said. “[This is] a congregation of people who did not judge me, but who accepted me and prayed for me and my family.”

“It has been an incredible story to see him raise his hands in worship and see his passion for the Lord and how God has literally changed who he is in just one year,” Martínez said.

People like David are why Martínez and his family answered God’s call to plant Port Arthur City Church—to bring hope to the lost ones, those who find comfort in the dark corners of culture where many dare not tread.

Martínez knows those corners all too well.

“It has been an incredible story to see him raise his hands in worship and see his passion for the Lord and how God has literally changed who he is in just one year.”

—Julian Martínez, pastor of Port Arthur City Church, speaking of church member David, pictured above Tweet

The old made new

Martínez got mixed up with a bad crowd by age 12. He began taking drugs and living a reckless life. By age 15, his girlfriend, Melissa—who is now his wife—became pregnant. In his quest to provide for his family, he made yet another bad choice, becoming a “coyote,” a person who helps smuggle other people into the country illegally. At age 17, the father of two nearly got caught, leading him to try to change his life. He moved to San Angelo, but before long, he was once again immersed in the culture of partying and drug use.

After living that lifestyle for several years, Martínez said he began to sense God drawing him toward Him. Something changed after he and Melissa attended church on Easter in 2001. The sin that once dominated his life no longer left him feeling satisfied.

Sensing the Lord at work during a visit, an aunt began sharing the message of Christ with Julian and Melissa. Eventually, both gave their lives to Jesus and, before long, Martínez said he began feeling called by God to preach.

Martínez spent the next season of life studying theology and apologetics, and later, the Lord opened the door for him to serve first as a worship pastor and then leading young married couples at a church in Nederland, a Southeast Texas town located about 10 miles north of Port Arthur. The church in Nederland afforded him the opportunity to eventually serve as a pastoral intern and then as an associate pastor. He remained there for eight years, until the Lord called him to plant Port Arthur City Church.

“It was one day when I was eating tacos in a small town nearby on the other side of the tracks called Port Arthur that the Lord called me to plant a church,” Martínez said.

Though it’s nestled among a cluster of smaller rural towns, Port Arthur is very urban and culturally diverse, Martínez said. Once God called Martínez to plant, he said he was immediately aware of the great need for the gospel there. The city of nearly 60,000 people has only a handful of Southern Baptist churches.

“It was one day when I was eating tacos in a small town nearby on the other side of the tracks called Port Arthur that the Lord called me to plant a church.”

—Julian Martínez Tweet

‘People like me’

Port Arthur City Church opened its doors on Easter Sunday 2024. Its mission is clear: to reach the community with the gospel of Jesus Christ and to make disciples. The church accomplishes this through intentional efforts to connect with people, handing out food or T-shirts alongside schools and businesses at community events. The church also has a strong presence on social media—which is how David and his family found out about the church. Martínez said he is constantly answering messages on social media from people asking for prayer.

Martínez said he has not done it alone. He shares how his own pastor, Daniel Ward, wanted to support him from the beginning in planting a church. Ward put Martínez in touch with Julio Arriola, director of Send Network SBTC, which works with the North American Mission Board to plant churches across Texas. Once connected with Send Network SBTC, Martínez went through a formal process of assessment and training before launching the church.

Located on one of the busiest streets in Port Arthur, City Church welcomes around 75 people every Sunday, with new visitors every week, Martínez said, noting, “People know who we are.” He recalls one occasion when a homeless man came up to him and told him, “I’ve heard about you and we’re glad you are here. I heard that you are trying to reach out to people like me who need hope and encouragement.”

“That,” Martinez told the man, “is exactly why we have come.”

Crisis in Sudan hits close to home for some in Amarillo congregation

‘It’s been forgotten’

South Sudanese attending All Nations Worship Church, a ministry of Paramount Baptist Church in Amarillo, know the pain of those displaced by the war in Sudan, which has created a great humanitarian crisis globally.

Paramount Missions Pastor David Preston, who copastors All Nations with Paramount Missionary in Residence Danial Habte, heard the families’ stories long before he heard of Empower One, a gospel humanitarian outreach aided by Southern Baptist Send Relief to help those fleeing the war.

“Through my ESL (English as a Second Language outreach) I just remember … South Sudan becoming a country on its own (in 2011), just the war and the torture, it has really never ceased.” Preston told Baptist Press. “A lot of them have had family in that area that are from South Sudan or just across the border, some in Sudan. They’re feeling that weight because of family still in the area, or close relatives that have dealt with it directly.”

Preston met Matt Jones, Empower One’s director of biblical education and pastoral care, who told him of a connection with Send Relief that would allow him to provide aid directly to the location he had in mind, impacting those at the center of the Sudanese families’ concern.

“We sent some money to do some food relief. Went through Send Relief, and yet Matt was able to guide that,” Preston said. “I’m so thankful for that connection and I’m thankful for what we’re doing.”

Empower One secured a $100,000 grant from Send Relief in December 2024 in support of a proposed $336,000 project to support households in several South Sudanese refugee camps for six months, Zach Potts, Empower One’s South Sudan liaison, said.

With the $100,000 grant, Empower One will support 1,460 households through February, Potts said, providing sorghum, beans and mosquito nets, hopefully helping the families rebuild their lives.

“It’s been forgotten,” he said of the war in Sudan, “and national and international attention is going to Ukraine and Israel. This is not just another small tribal skirmish in Africa. This has impacted well over 10 million people, predominantly mothers and children.”

Send Relief gave $68,000 to Empower One last year for food distributions, Potts said, citing three church plants, 392 professions of faith, and 173 baptisms among the nearly 20,000 people the money supported with food and nonfood items.

Jason Cox, Send Relief’s vice president of international ministry, said Empower One is among Send Relief partners in four countries serving Sudanese refugees.

“Since the war began, we’ve facilitated 27 relief projects to meet acute physical needs of the most vulnerable, while also giving powerful expression to the gospel in word and deed,” Cox said. “Many of those receiving help are encountering Christ for the first time, and even in the midst of the horrors of war, the church is growing—in this case, among some of the least-reached people in the world.”

— This article originally appeared in Baptist Press.

Panel discusses role of Cooperative Program during Southwestern Founder’s Day chapel

FORT WORTH—Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Cooperative Program and the seminary’s role in its beginning during a Founder’s Day chapel service March 13 on the Fort Worth campus.

Southwestern Seminary President David S. Dockery noted the event usually involves an address about one of the early leaders of the seminary. However, he said, “we’re tying today’s Founder’s Day together with an important event in the life of Southern Baptists as a whole, in that 100 years ago … the Cooperative Program was birthed, and God has used that to advance the gospel, to strengthen the work of Southern Baptists through the years.”

This year’s event featured a panel discussion with Nathan Lorick, executive director of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention; Sandy Wisdom-Martin, executive director of the Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU); Madison Grace, provost and vice president for academic administration at Southwestern Seminary; James Spivey, church historian and pastor of Gambrell Street Baptist Church in Fort Worth; and Andy Pettigrew, director of NextGen Mobilization for the International Mission Board (IMB).

Dockery asked Grace to define the Cooperative Program, noting that he is a co-editor of a forthcoming book, “A Unity of Purpose: 100 Years of the SBC Cooperative Program.” Grace explained that Baptists previously had multiple organizations that would go to churches and ask for donations for missions. They realized they were “spending a lot of money trying to raise money,” he said, and began looking for a better way.

In 1919, Southwestern Seminary’s second president, L. R. Scarborough, led a five-year campaign to raise $75 million to fund Baptist mission and ministry efforts. That effort fell short of its goal, and in 1925, “there was a reassessment of it, and the Cooperative Program was birthed,” he said.

Grace said the Cooperative Program is more than a funding mechanism.

“This is a way to unify us as Southern Baptists in that one sacred effort that we are engaging in for Kingdom advance,” he said.

Grace said that in teaching classes on Baptist heritage, they also talk about what the Cooperative Program is doing today. He said Cooperative Program funding goes to such programs as the IMB, the North American Mission Board, and to Southwestern Seminary, among other entities.

“I think it’s important for us to understand that the No. 1 scholarship at Southwestern Seminary comes from the Cooperative Program,” he said.

Lorick said churches can be thankful for the 100-year history of the Cooperative Program, “but we can’t [give] answers to questions that are no longer being asked.” A previous generation never questioned the need to give, but a different generation today is asking why they should give. He said he speaks to churches on the value of giving, noting that they may be in Fort Worth, but through the Cooperative Program, they’re ministering in Africa, Europe, Israel—anywhere missionaries are sent.

Pettigrew said he personally benefited from the Cooperative Program.

“So many things that I have done throughout my journey … more than 25 years, just being as a result of the Cooperative Program, being able to go to school and so many different things that I’ve done, and obviously being a missionary … for 13 years,” he said, adding he feels indebted to the Cooperative Program.

“I’m grateful to you for giving, and I hope you recognize the role that you play in giving,” he added.