How about a state paper?

Twice in my work as a Baptist editor I’ve met someone who wondered aloud if there could be a tool the state convention would offer to tell people what Baptists are doing in their cooperative work. Think of it—some kind of mailing that explains the Cooperative Program and how it bears fruit around the world. Maybe this tool could also talk about challenges and solutions other churches have discovered in their ministries. And would it be possible that this mailing could come to the homes or offices of our church leaders on a regular basis? You bet. For our convention, that tool is the Southern Baptist TEXAN.

This Cooperative Program ministry utilizes an experienced staff of people with the contacts and resources to know what’s going on now and what might be coming over the horizon. Our news staff looks at much material week by week and selects the most pertinent for publication to our website and/or print edition. We work with partners in the denomination and with other state papers to expand our reach beyond Texas. Each issue of the TEXAN represents the work of scores of people in many places. We try to package it as attractively as possible and then work tediously to convince the United States Post Office to deliver it to your door. By the time you get one issue, another issue is in production. Our deadline is always before us but it’s exciting to see what’s happening and then to plan and produce each issue. We’re readers too—we enjoy learning about interesting people and ministries. It’s fun to be in the know and then to show others what we’ve found out. 

The TEXAN is provided by the convention. We get some money from advertising, and some churches and individuals donate to offset the cost of production, printing and mailing. We appreciate those gifts but do not bill anyone for the paper. You’ve already provided for us by your support through the CP. 

There’s an alternative. Someone, maybe the pastor, could find websites or books or even the phone numbers of Baptists leaders and publish those for a local congregation. A few of these knowledgeable people could come to your church and bring a report from what a seminary or college or mission station is doing. Baptist denominational institutions could send a truckload of brochures and reports to your church for church members to read and digest. Of course, no one would do any such thing. 

The fact that it is nearly impossible for every church or every Baptist to do this work alone means that this information that defines and binds our work together would simply be lost to most Baptists. Why work together? What is there about being a Southern Baptist that is beneficial? Is there any good news? Some church leaders simply do not know the answers to these questions. That fact is very much to the detriment of God’s kingdom. It is significant that the circulation of Baptist papers and the participation of churches in world missions have declined during the same period. Churches have received more money over these decades but also receive a smaller percentage of household income than before. Pertinent news about our work can bind us together. Some people have given up on Southern Baptists, even Southern Baptist churches, because they don’t know the reasons to stay with us.  

As objectively as possible, I say that the TEXAN is a pretty good solution for this need. And it’s easy to obtain. We send the paper to any member of an SBTC church or to the mailing list such a church may submit to us. It’s a good deal for the state convention because thousands of people are learning about the work our churches are doing and empowering as we cooperate. You can email us (lrice@sbtexas.com) your mailing list or just your own information and we’ll add you to the list. 

Here’s one thing I ask: Will you please check to make sure your church staff, deacons, Sunday School teachers, committee members, or even your whole church mailing list receives the TEXAN? It’s simple. Send us a mailing list and we will add them to our circulation list. If some people are already on the list, we’ll know and ensure that we don’t send them another subscription. That’s it. Get us names and addresses and we’ll send them the TEXAN. Our circulation now stands above 40,000. That growth reflects continued growth in our state convention. At the same time, there are many in churches affiliated with us from the earliest days who would appreciate having the state paper—if they knew about it. 

I know that readership of papers and books has dropped off. It’s a problem that affects nearly everything negatively. Thus, we are growing in our dependence on our website (texanonline.net) to keep news timely and appealing to those who prefer to read stories online. At the same time, there are many who don’t read a Baptist paper because they’ve never been offered one. For now, we’ll want to put a print edition in the hands of every Texas Southern Baptist who will read words on paper. We’re also working to make electronic versions of our stories more numerous and attractive. This is not changing what we do so much as adding new ways to deliver it. Either way, our work remains important so long as there are needs, resources, and good news stories coming out of our churches and denominational structures. 
If there is a way we can improve what we do or if you have an idea for a story, we want to hear from you. Contact me at: gledbetter@sbtexas.com. I look forward to hearing from you.