Author: Brandon Porter

Joshua church’s weekly ‘Who’s Your One?’ emphasis leads to salvations, baptisms

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Texan profiled how God is moving at Lane Prairie Baptist Church in March 2022.

JOSHUA, Texas (BP)—For the past year and a half, Lane Prairie Baptist Church has taken time each Sunday to celebrate the tremendous work God is doing through their ‘Who’s Your One?’ focused evangelism efforts. So far the members have shared the Gospel hundreds of times and witnessed dozens come to faith in Jesus Christ.

Lane Prairie members have the opportunity each week to report to the church if they have prayed for their “one,” or had a Gospel conversation throughout the week.

These updates, as well as any announcements about decisions for Christ or baptisms, are celebrated and highlighted through a display of different color ping pong balls representing each update.

White ping pong balls represent a person’s “one,” being prayed for, orange balls represent a Gospel conversation, green balls represent a profession of faith and blue balls represent a baptized believer beginning their discipleship process.

The display is seen prominently at the front of the church on the right side.

Ricky Fuchs, lead pastor at Lane Prairie, told Baptist Press the church officially launched the initiative in July of 2021, and they plan to continue the weekly updates as a part of their Sunday morning services from now on.

He said before the ‘Who’s Your One?’ emphasis was church-wide, it started with the burden of one adult bible study.

Each Wednesday night, while children and teenagers would attend Awana and youth group, a group of about 40-50 adults would meet for Bible study and prayer.

Fuchs, who has been the lead pastor for almost two years, said although the church has always valued evangelism over its 150-year history, this Bible study’s members developed a deeper heart for reaching people.

“God just gave us a burden to pray for others outside of our congregation,” Fuchs said. “If we wanted to see God work in saving people, we needed to pray to that end.”

Starting in March of 2021, Fuchs challenged each person in the group to find one lost person to pray for and share the Gospel. The results were incredible.

Over the next few months, members of the Bible study would report 57 professions of faith through their evangelism efforts.

“We saw God really just explode and we saw many of our members being faithful in evangelism and people were getting saved,” Fuchs said.

“Even beyond the personal aspect of ‘Who’s Your One,’ in prioritizing a person you know, our people started to become more obedient in evangelism in their daily lives. We heard amazing accounts of members sharing the Gospel on vacation, at hotels, over the phone and in everyday encounters.”

Fuchs and the church leadership decided to take the initiative church-wide and had a launch Sunday on July 25, 2021.

Since then, the church has seen:

248 “ones,” be prayed for 1,971 Gospel conversations reported 405 professions of faith42 baptisms through the initiative

Fuchs explained the church records numbers for all conversions or baptisms that resulted from the evangelism of church members, even if the conversion or baptism occurred outside of Lane Prairie specifically.

“We want this to not just be about building our church, but about building the Kingdom,” Fuchs said.

Matt Queen is the associate pastor of evangelism at Lane Prairie, and also serves as the Dean of the Roy J. Fish School of Evangelism at Southwestern Seminary.

After coming on staff at the church in 2021, Queen partnered with Fuchs to create the church-wide emphasis and help teach the congregation to value all aspects of the evangelism process.

“I think as Baptists we sometimes have conditioned ourselves to only celebrate when someone gets saved or baptized, but we teach our people that success in evangelism is simply doing it,” Queen said.

He explained Lane Prairie has shown other signs of positive spiritual growth since the initiative began, including an increase in Cooperative Program giving, an increase in their Lottie Moon and Annie Armstrong offerings as well as the continued support of two IMB missionary families.

Several churches have reached out to Queen about wanting to replicate the program in their church. Additionally, as a consultant for the SBTC, Queen is working on an evangelism program for the convention with the partnership of NAMB called “Who’s Your One?”: Advancing the Movement.”

Queen said he desires all churches to value evangelism, regardless of how they choose to celebrate success.

“A church should do whatever it needs to do in order to be intentional and bring awareness of the importance of evangelism, whether that looks like ping pong balls or not,” Queen said. “People will replicate what we celebrate.”

“When God’s people try to get God’s ear to save people for whom Jesus died, the Holy Spirit puts a burden over our heart to share with more than just one.

When asked how churches can get such an initiative started, Fuchs exhorted fellow pastors to set the examples themselves.

“It has to start from the top and the pastor has to be on board,” Fuchs said. “You have to be the champion and lead by example. Not by dictating, but by going out and doing it yourself. What the pastor celebrates, that’s what the church will do.”

Iranian Christians pressed during protests, but never without hope

DURHAM, N.C. (BP)—Nathan Rostampour received yet another patchy correspondence earlier this week from his native Iran, where the internet has been shaky in the wake of protests that have the potential to change a decades-long regime.

“I’m in connection with house church leaders and church networks over there and thanks to God, they are safe. But they are under a lot of pressure,” said Rostampour, Central Asia Church Planting director for The Summit Church.

News of the Iranian protests is only now getting traction with Americans, but for Rostampour and others, it has been more than a month. That’s when Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old from Iran’s Kurdish region, died while being held by the country’s morality police.

“They beat her up and killed her just because she didn’t cover her hair properly,” he said.

That set off a wave of protests, with women publicly burning their hijabs and others doing the same to pictures of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Media reports say at least 185 have been killed, 19 of them minors, with hundreds injured and thousands arrested by police.

The protests started as women supporting other women. But that has changed to become something Rostampour calls “different.”

“It’s not only women, but people who are protesting the Islamic regime. They are saying ‘We don’t want you anymore.’ This isn’t just about economic problems or women’s freedom. It’s really different from previous times,” he said.

Rostampour and his family became Christians when he was a teenager through the witness of his aunt. That led to becoming involved in the house church movement throughout the country, working under threat from authorities. Forced to leave the country in his late 20s, he eventually settled in America where his current role connects him with 20 house churches in Iran.

The threat has been consistent. He visits those pastors in a nearby country where it’s safe a few times a year. Every Sunday he and his wife host a fellowship over Instagram, where VPNs, aliases, and encrypted programs are a must to protect the participants’ safety.

Rostampour, whose story has been in BP and Christianity Today, said the breadth of the protests and their reach into Iranian society reflect a people desperate for freedom.

“Our hearts have been really heavy these days. We are thinking this may be the last chance for the Iranian people to end 43 years of oppression and persecution from these leaders,” he said.

“These protests are happening all over the country. There are oil workers, university professors, teachers, students, and people from old and younger generations. There is a hope that the country can be free from this brutal, evil government.”

Rostampour has seen this up close. In 2009 he was in Tehran among those protesting Iran’s presidential election in what was part of the Persian Spring.

“We were there,” he said. “[Authorities] killed like 1,500 people. Yes, we were on the streets supporting people, praying for them. It was really scary because those people knew that if they lost, there was nowhere to go. So, they fought until the end.”

He has heard that the people are not only turning from the government, but because of Islam’s ruling factor, many have turned away from religion altogether.

However, he can’t help but connect that desire for peace and an intrinsic need for the freedom found only in Christ.

“They all want freedom and peace these days,” he said. “It gives us a great opportunity as the church to pray for Iran, and the people to find the peace and freedom in Jesus.

“Every week during our fellowship [on Instagram] we pray for this peace for Iran. We want them to know Iranian Christians are standing with them and praying for them and giving them hope because we have that hope.”

Americans, he added, can also pray for Iran and the churches there. They can help by being a voice for the Iranian people, as he urged in a recent Twitter video.

“Pray in your church this Sunday. Spread the word. Build awareness, because many don’t know the details of what’s going on,” he said.

As Rostampour checked his phone this morning on America’s east coast it was well into the day in Iran. The words of encouragement flashed among pastors.

“We are praying and continuing to serve.”

“It’s bad here. We’re in a battlefield but continuing to pray.”

“Our hearts are broken, but our hope is in the Lord.”

Those messages arrive every day.

“They are so bold and courageous,” he said. “I’m very proud of them.”

One Bible passage they share is Jeremiah 49:38-39. There, the Lord declares He will set his throne in Elam and “destroy their kings and officials. But in the latter days I will restore the fortunes of Elam.” (ESV)

Elam was a kingdom in modern-day Iran.

“This encourages them that God is at work,” said Rostampour. “They are not hopeless.”

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.

Expressing love to your pastor

October is Pastor Appreciation Month. This is a month set aside to honor and show appreciation to those who serve as pastors and ministers in the local church.

As a child, I fervently remember the adults in our local congregation making sure they honored the pastor daily and not only one month out of the year. Yes, there was a yearly Pastor Appreciation observation, but the congregation of believers who I observed demonstrated respect and honor toward the pastor year-round.

One of the ways that this happened was a “pounding.” Some pastors feel like they take a pounding, however, I am not talking about that kind of pounding. “Pounding” was typically the way that churches in impoverished areas would pay a revivalist or even one’s own pastor by presenting the preacher with a “pound” of their best offerings. This would often be a pound of chicken or steak, a pound of fresh produce or baked goods, but it also could include other items such as clothing, fashion accessories, cologne, and other goods considered valuable.

“Pounding” was a way that hard-working, yet poor, believers could give their very best. More importantly, pounding actually reflects a biblical mandate of priestly tithing indicated in Hebrews 7:5 which states: “And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law, that is from their brethren.” This expression of priestly tithing also takes shape in the form of church members inviting pastors to share in Sunday dinner with their families, which is seen as a means of honoring the pastor and also having the blessing of extending hospitality toward the pastor.

Another expression of this manner of pastoral appreciation has more recently come in the form of the “love offering.” Really, what is a love offering? Typically, when churches have special days, such as pastor anniversaries or occasions when a guest revivalist, speaker, or missionaries visit a church, it is customary to give them a monetary token of appreciation gathered from the congregation in an act that is separate from tithes and general offerings. This type of offering is not to be confused with a form of income, a salary, or a church expense drawn from general offerings or the building fund. Rather, it is a voluntary demonstration by the assembled church membership to show in some financial manner how much the congregation appreciates the work of the particular minister or guest speaker in ways above and beyond their standard wages.

What are some modern-day opportunities that churches can literally express their love by “pounding” their pastor?

Gift cards

Church leaders can easily bless their pastor by asking the membership to bring a gift card for a restaurant, coffee shop, or retail store. I will never forget one church where I served provided my family and me with over $3,000 of gift cards. Every time one of those gift cards was used I offered a prayer of thanksgiving for that congregation.

Experiences

Many pastors have never had the opportunity to attend a college or professional athletic event. Many pastors’ wives have never had an opportunity to attend a theatrical performance, concert, or participate in a professional cooking experience. If you know someone who is a season ticket holder to a college or professional sporting event, you could provide this experience to your pastor. Some years ago, a church member provided an all-expense paid ticket to the Tennessee Volunteers opening season football game. This experience included a VIP parking pass and prime seats in a suite which included access to the VIP buffet. I’ll never forget that experience. There are so many experiences that are unique to the place in which you live and serve.

Acts of kindness

My ministry has been made enjoyable because of the many acts of kindness that have been expressed to my family. When my wife and I came home with our first-born child, members from the church had cleaned the entire home, cooked meals, and provided fresh flowers on our kitchen table. Church members have mowed our lawn, made sure our vehicles were detailed, and simply found creative and caring ways to let us know how much they appreciated us. Children up to senior adults have provided so many acts of kindness toward me over my twenty-five-plus years of ministry.

Ministry of care

Let your pastor know you are praying for him. Pastors and their families constantly need our prayers and support. Ask your pastor when the last time he took some time away was. If he can’t give a good answer, then do everything you can to hold him accountable. If ministry leaders do not pull away they will fall apart. Show up to church early and greet your pastor upon his arrival to the church campus. An act as simple as providing a cup of coffee or bottled water can be encouraging to him. Your presence and care will mean the world to your pastor.

I realize a “pounding” may seem old-fashioned or outdated, but I am convinced that if the local church is going to be healthy and live out the Great Commandment and fulfill the Great Commission, then the church family must prioritize “pounding” their pastors. Let 1 Timothy 5:17 be your guide: “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.”

Join me in making sure that Pastor Appreciation Month is not only one day or one month out of the year, but it is an everyday practice that will pass on from one generation to the next.

Half of pastors say the economy is hurting their church

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Individuals aren’t the only ones facing consequences of inflation and other negative economic factors in the U.S., as many pastors say their churches are being harmed as well.

A Lifeway Research study of U.S. Protestant pastors found 52% say the current economy is having a negative impact on their churches. For 40%, the economic circumstances aren’t having any effect. Fewer than 1 in 10 pastors (7%) say the current economy is a positive factor for their churches.

The economic outlook among pastors has soured more in 2022 than in recent years. Last year, around half of pastors (49%) said the economy was having no impact. Only once in the previous five years, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, were pastors most likely to be pessimistic about the economic impact on their congregations. During this time, pastors had been more likely to say the economy was having no effect. The two years prior to the pandemic were the only two years in the study’s more than 13-year history when pastors were more likely to say the economy was having a positive impact than a negative one.

2022 marks the first time since 2016 that more than half of pastors feel the economy is having a negative impact on their churches and the first time since 2012 that fewer than 10% of pastors see the economy as having a positive effect.

“Outside economic forces are back to being a negative influence for most churches, according to their pastors,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “As temporary assistance from the CARES Act expires and prices and interest rates rise, churches are noticing the impact on their finances.”

Giving remains stable

Despite reporting a negative impact, most pastors say congregational giving is at least staying around the budget and in line with the previous year.

Around 7 in 10 U.S. Protestant pastors say giving at their church so far this year is at or exceeding their budget, including 46% who say giving has been about what was budgeted and 23% who say it’s higher. Close to 3 in 10 (29%) say giving is below their 2022 budget.

Compared to last year, almost 3 in 4 pastors say their offerings so far in 2022 are at or above 2021 levels, with 42% saying it’s the same as last year and 32% say it’s above. For 1 in 4 churches (23%), offerings are below 2021.

“The souring of pastor attitudes towards the economy is more about rising expenses than declining income,” said McConnell. “Declining year-over-year giving is a factor for almost a quarter of churches, but this is a similar rate to what churches have averaged for over a decade.”

When asked to place a percentage on the changes in offering for their congregation, around 3 in 4 say it is the same as 2021 or above. Specifically, 45% say it is the same, 9% say offerings have increased by 1-9%, 15% say it’s up 10-24% and 5% say their offerings in 2022 are up 25% or more compared to 2021. Around 1 in 5 report a decrease in giving, including 4% who say offerings are down 1-9%, 11% who say they have declined 10-24% and 6% who report their offerings being down 25% or more.

Small church struggles

The current economy is not having the same impact on all churches. Some are more likely to report financial struggles. Despite having recovered to pre-pandemic attendance levels more quickly, smaller congregations are among those most likely to say they are facing economic headwinds.

Small church pastors, those with congregations of less than 50 attendees, (61%) are the most likely to say the economy is negatively impacting their churches. These churches are more likely than churches with more than 100 in attendance to say giving is about what they budgeted, but they’re the most likely to say offerings in 2022 are below 2021 levels (31%). Meanwhile, pastors at the largest churches, those with 250 or more, are the most likely to say offerings so far this year are above last year’s levels (63%).

“Churches with attendance of less than 50 have fewer people to cover the expenses of the church,” said McConnell. “When prices rise there are fewer people to spread that cost among.”

Other congregations are also more likely to report economic troubles. Those in the Northeast (62%) are the pastors most likely to say the current economy is having a negative impact on their congregation. As it has been in recent years, African American pastors (36%) are more likely than their white counterparts (22%) to say their offerings this year are below what they were the previous year.

Baptist pastor and wife kidnapped in Ukraine

MARIUPOL, Ukraine (BP)—A Baptist pastor and his wife remain missing after being kidnapped Sept. 21 from their church in Russian-occupied Mariupol, Forum 18 News Service reported Oct. 6.

Armed masked men in Russian military uniforms took Council of Churches Baptists Pastor Leonid Ponomaryov and his wife Tatyana from their home in the Kalmiusky District of northern Mariupol, neighbors told Forum 18. Officials reportedly searched the home for about two and a half hours.

The Russian military also searched and sealed Ponomaryov’s church, identified as Kurchatov Street Baptist Church, and seized religious literature there, Forum 18 said, attributing reports to Mariupol Baptists.

“The neighbors distinctly heard groans and cries” as the Ponomaryovs were taken “in an unknown direction,” Mariupol Baptists told Forum 18. Church members began seeking answers the following day. “But neither then nor on subsequent days could they get any answers,” local Baptists told Forum 18.

Russian officials initially claimed the couple were involved in “extremist activities,” but it is unclear whether they have been charged with any crime. The Ponomaryovs’ children, friends and fellow pastors have been unable to determine the reason for the abduction or the couple’s whereabouts.

The couple’s children issued a statement Oct. 1 thanking the Baptist community for their prayers, as several churches were praying and fasting for the couple’s return.

“For 10 days already we know nothing about them,” Forum 18 quoted the statement. “A group of church members from Mariupol and Rostov went (around) all the agencies and institutions, not only in Mariupol but in the regional center [Donetsk], and were told nothing about our parents anywhere.”

While Russian officials have not responded to Forum 18’s requests for information, reportedly an officer of the Russian Interior Ministry told relatives the couple would be released after the Sept. 27 Russian-controlled referendums to annex Donetsk and three other Russian-occupied regions in Ukraine. The Sept. 27 referendums were illegal under Ukrainian and international law and have not by officially recognized by the U.S. and the international community.

Russia has officially occupied Mariupol since May in the war Russia launched on Ukraine in February. Russia has sealed many churches and confiscated equipment.

But despite the referendum and the forced closure of some Christian churches, other congregations, including at least two Council of Churches Baptist congregations, are still able to hold Sunday worship services.

Forum 18 described the Council of Churches Baptists as unregistered churches in Ukraine that meet in property owned by one or two church members.

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.

SBTC’s Molina wants NHBN to promote unity, stronger connections among Hispanics

NASHVILLE (BP) – Bruno Molina, president of the recently rebranded and revitalized National Hispanic Baptist Network (NHBN), said he wants the group’s new name and logo to promote unity and inclusion among Hispanics in the SBC.

Molina serves as the language and interfaith evangelism associate for the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and an adjunct professor for both Southwestern and Midwestern seminaries.

After being elected president during the group’s meeting at the 2022 SBC Annual Meeting in Anaheim, one of Molina’s first priorities was creating a new name and logo for the group as a step to better connect Hispanic Baptists.

Formed in 2017 as the Hispanic Baptist Leadership Council, the group was designed to help coordinate efforts of Hispanic churches and various Hispanic entities as well as improve communication between Hispanics and the SBC Executive Committee.

Now in the official process of renaming themselves the NHBN, the group will serve a similar purpose of unifying Hispanic Southern Baptists, while also carrying out the task of fulfilling the Great Commission.

“The reason for these changes is due to the need to emphasize the importance of the purposes of the NHBN which are to connect on the mission, to contribute and share resources and to celebrate what God is doing among Hispanic Baptists,” Molina said.

“The Network also recognizes the need and the opportunity to address certain challenges with the Hispanic community such as single mothers, retired Hispanic pastors and health issues. Addressing these challenges will facilitate the flourishing of the Hispanic community.

“There are more than 64 million Hispanics in the United States, and the majority, 48 million, do not know Christ as their Savior. This is an alarming indication that we live in a time of grave urgency regarding the Gospel. The task of reaching Hispanics without Christ is not an ethnic issue but a Kingdom issue encompassing a particular key ethnicity.”

In addition to the name change, the group’s new logo is also designed to promote inclusion among all different types of Hispanics.

The logo’s image resembles three stylized people in three different colors, all locking arms around an open Bible. Each colors represents a different heritage within Hispanic culture.

The color red is for Indian heritage, the color gold is for European heritage and the color black is for African heritage.

Molina explained those three heritages are the ethnic mixture in most Latin American countries which resulted in modern day Latinos or Hispanics.

“My hope for the network is for unity in both vision and action, expressed to the benefit of our own ethnic community and beyond to the whole body of Christ,” Molina said in an interview with Baptist Press.

“We’re going to from good intentions and simply ‘being here,’ to saying how are we going to concretely live out this vision?”

Luis Lopez has been serving as executive director of Hispanic relations and mobilization at the SBC Executive Committee since April 2022.

He praised the network’s officers for their passion to promote unity, even within the name and logo of the group.

“The new name better reflects the connection with all Hispanic churches and is a way to encourage and partner in ministry,” Lopez said. “As more people get involved, the involvement of Hispanic churches in SBC life will be accelerated.

“I am excited to see the enthusiasm and dedication of the leaders of the National Network in taking the work of cooperation, support and fellowship to the highest level in order to fulfill the Great Commission during these times. God is glorified when our churches are unified in proclaiming the Gospel.”

Lopez has helped Molina and the officers steadily connect with other Hispanic pastors, leaders and churches throughout the SBC to get them more involved with the network.

Some of the practical ways the network is hoping to help Hispanics is through resources shared on its website and hosting monthly Zoom meetings.

The network has also designated several “teams” or sub-networks within the group to focus on mentorship, leadership and mobilization. Examples of the teams include women’s ministry, emerging leaders, state leaders, evangelism, church planting and stewardship.

Lopez said the network’s desire for unity among Hispanics in the SBC will also serve to increase unity and cooperation throughout the whole convention.

“We’re a big family, and obviously in a big family you will connect more easily with those who look more like you,” Lopez said. “So you need to feel like you have that connection, but you also on the other hand want to feel like you are a part of a bigger family. Those two things work well together, and we need to make sure that every member feels a part of the greater body.”

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.

Nationwide ‘Bring Your Bible to School Day’ set for Thursday

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BP)—Emerson Collins has seen firsthand the power of Scripture to dispel darkness among youth and teens trying to navigate life in a world that considers truth subjective.

The 20-something Focus on the Family (FOTF) project manager is tasked with promoting FOTF’s national Bring Your Bible to School Day Oct. 6.

“I, having just graduated from college, saw in my high school and my college just so much darkness,” Collins told Baptist Press, “and I’ve lived through it. I’ve walked friends through it.

“There’s a very real presence of darkness in our schools and our campuses, with the difficulty and rigor of our courses. But also just spiritually, truth is being challenged right now in our culture. And so it is more important that students have Jesus Christ and have the Words of Life.

“Without that hope,” he said, “without that light in our lives, it is so easy to become saddened or despair.”

FOTF’s Bring Your Bible to School Day has grown from 8,000 participants in its 2014 inaugural year to more than 590,000 participants enrolled in 50,000 schools in 2021, FOTF said at BringYourBible.com. Collins is tracking even greater participation for this year’s event that encourages students of public, private and home schools to take their Bibles to school and thereby spur interest in the Word.

“We’re on track this year to blow that number out of the water,” Collins said. “We have already surpassed last year’s registrations and sign ups, and so we are expecting well over 600,000 households to participate this year. And I’m hoping personally over 75,000 schools to participate.” Schools are counted after the event.

Tony Evans, founding senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible College in Dallas and founding president of the Urban Alternative; Ray Comfort, founding president of Living Waters evangelistic ministry; Bible teacher Lysa TerKeurst and musical artists Tauren Wells and John Cooper are among well-known promoters.

Psalm 119:105 is this year’s Scripture, encouraging students to “shine God’s light.” Legal guidance, educational and promotional resources for the event are available at BringYourBible.com, with guidance tailored for students, parents and churches.

Collins, enrolled in a pastoral residency program at Calvary Church in Monument, Colo., saw the power of the Word to transform lives when he led a Navigators Bible student while attending Colorado School of Mines.

“I started a movement among my friends and peers through The Navigators called ‘The Open Carry Your Bible,’ and we started carrying our Bibles everywhere we went, openly,” he said. “And sure enough, people started asking us questions. ‘Hey, what’s that book you’ve got there. That’s a really fancy journal.’ And we had the opportunity to share that it’s actually our Bible and invite them to Bible study, or just talk a little bit about why we carry those books around.

“So without knowing it, I had already fostered the heart of Bring Your Bible to School Day in my own life,” he said. “It was a personal program that I began with my disciples in my Bible study. The response was boldness, first in the hearts of my direct group, but also later on in the ministry, where we saw an incredible revival at the School of Mines, a huge growth in the Christian ministry on campus, as well as just a public boldness to read our Bibles in the public study spaces.”

It’s well within the law to openly carry Bibles at school and to discuss and distribute them outside of class time, FOTF said on the event’s webpage.

Students are encouraged to register online at BringYourBible.com and to track participation on Facebook and Instagram. The additional Live It Challenge provides daily resources and encouragement to engage in and apply Scripture in personal lives.

Five winners will be selected for $500 Live Your Faith packages including Bibles and Bible related books, devotionals, apologetics resources, and Adventure in Odyssey resources, FOTF said, with prize entry guidelines here.

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.

Hurricane season serves as reminder of CP’s critical role in funding Disaster Relief ministry

NASHVILLE (BP)—As Southern Baptists across the country prepare and mobilize to provide relief to hurricane victims on the East Coast, the importance of the Cooperative Program is seen in action.

As the unified missions offering of Southern Baptists, the Cooperative Program directly supports SBC ministries like seminary education, church planting, international missions and disaster relief, including recent efforts related to Hurricane Ian.

Coy Webb, crisis response director for Send Relief, said CP is essential to their work.

“The Cooperative Program is part of the lifeblood of disaster relief and our work in crisis response through Send Relief,” Webb said.

“We’re not only able to bring practical help in times of disaster, but the hope of Christ to people who are hurting and devastated after crisis events. We recognize that every person’s greatest need is not even food – it’s their lostness and that they need Jesus Christ.

“As we’re giving that cup of cold water in Jesus’ name, we’re also sharing how they might know the hope of Christ that can change their lives eternally.”

Send Relief is a joint effort of the International Mission Board and the North American Mission Board and is equipped to respond to disasters across the U.S. and around the world because of CP support.

At least one decision for Christ is made for every six or seven contacts made by disaster relief workers, Webb said, adding: “That wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for those people in the pews giving to the Cooperative Program.”

Webb said this DR work that is enabled by the Cooperative Program should not be understood only on the national level, but at the state level and personal level as well.

CP supplies funding for DR programs in every state convention, which then in turn train and send our volunteer teams.

Shawn Ames is a regional strategist for the SBC of Virginia and has been serving as the state’s DR coordinator since 2021.

His role is not only to help mobilize DR volunteers in Virginia, but also to work with other state leaders to synchronize relief.

“The coolest thing that I have learned about Disaster Relief is the coordination between the state leaders,” Ames said. “… I think that’s one of the greatest strengths of Southern Baptist Disaster Relief.”

Ames said Cooperative Program funds help provide volunteers with supplies and equipment they use during deployments. Then those provisions make it possible for ordinary Southern Baptists, such as Bob and Lillian Johansen, to be a part of national DR efforts.

Bob and Lillian, both in their early sixties, received their basic DR training at an in-person training event an SBCV church a couple years ago and were re-certified last year using the state’s online video training resource.

While recertifying, the couple invited more than 10 other people from their church to take the training with them so they could accompany them on trips.

About a month after recertifying in September 2021, the couple embarked on a SBCV DR trip to provide flood relief in Hurley, Va., taking some of their fellow church members who had just been trained.

Bob serves as the missions pastor at Maysville Baptist Church in Buckingham, Va.

Since that first DR trip he took to Hurley, he has been on several more in serval locations in Virginia and Kentucky. He has even taken more advanced training through the SBCV to become a blue hat and be able to lead DR trips.

He said getting more involved with DR work simply made sense for them in their stage of life, but they are not the only members of their family to participate.

Three of the couple’s four adult children have also received DR training and have gone on trips with their parents.

“We got involved because we have the time now to go out and focus on ministry,” Bob Johansen said. “We do a lot of family things together so it was just natural for them to come with us. We asked them and they wanted to go and enjoyed it when they went.”

He encourages fellow Southern Baptists to participate in disaster relief, all made possible by Cooperative Program funds.

“I think we have a commandment in the Great Commission and it’s not an option, so it’s important to follow His commands,” Johansen said.

“It’s not hard to go to these trips, and you get so much out of them. When you see that you’re helping somebody that is so distraught, it is just a blessing.”

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.

Southern Baptists give record-setting $68.9 million to Annie Armstrong Easter Offering in ’22

CHICAGO—Southern Baptists gave a record $68.9 million to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering in 2022, breaking the giving record for a second year in a row. Giving to the offering has exceeded records in five of the last six years.

“This is incredible news for our missionaries,” said NAMB president Kevin Ezell, “and it is an incredible testimony to God’s faithfulness and to the generosity of Southern Baptists.” Ezell made the comments immediately before sharing the offering total with NAMB trustees as they gathered for dinner Monday evening, Oct. 3. NAMB Trustees are holding their regularly scheduled fall meetings Oct. 3-4.

“We have an amazing group of missionaries who are all about taking the gospel to hard-to-reach places in North America,” Ezell said. “I’m grateful for each one of them and the sacrifices they and their families have made to follow God’s calling. These gifts are already making a difference.”

The Annie Offering accounts for half of NAMB’s budget and every dollar of it goes directly to the mission field in the year the money is given. The offering’s total is tallied based on giving during the fiscal year, October 2021 through September 2022.

Southern Baptist giving to the Annie offering set records for three consecutive years in 2017, 2018 and 2019 before pandemic shutdowns occurred in 2020 during the season when churches typically collect the AAEO, which supports NAMB missionaries who plant gospel-proclaiming churches and provide gospel-focused compassion ministry across North America. 2021 saw an enthusiastic comeback with the offering hitting $66.5 million, exceeding the previous top offering by nearly $5 million. Since 2010, giving to the offering has increased 27 percent.

The giving increases have allowed NAMB to expand missionary efforts and increase care for missionaries. In February 2022, NAMB announced that it would provide health care benefits and establish retirement accounts for first-year church planting missionaries through a partnership with Guidestone Financial Services.

“We celebrate this historic milestone knowing it will mean lives are transformed by the gospel to the glory of God,” said Sandy Wisdom-Martin, executive director and treasurer of Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU). WMU staff and volunteers at the national, state and local church level play a key role in promoting Southern Baptist giving to the offering.

“For 134 years, WMU has been passionate about praying for and supporting our North American missionaries. The wonder of God’s plan is that it continues to unfold throughout eternity and He invites us to join Him. As Christian believers, our mission is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our responsibility lies in choosing how we will become involved in His mission.”

The chair of NAMB’s Board of Trustees, Erin Bounds, called the giving milestone humbling.

“I think about the men and women and even the children who have sacrificed to give to this offering,” said Bounds, a member of North Valley Baptist Church in Odenville, Ala. “They are doing without some things in order to give. That is a humbling truth that guides me and all of our trustees as we do our part to ensure that NAMB’s priority is always to reach the lost and help start evangelistic churches.”

For more information about the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering, visit anniearmstrong.com.

This article originally appeared on NAMB’s website.

Pastor retires from Texas church where gunman killed 26 people in 2017

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS (BP)—Frank Pomeroy was hunting in the wet and cold Alaskan bush when the Lord gave him his final sermon as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs.

Considering the grizzlies, black bear, wolves and rain, Pomeroy suspected the message would somehow encompass creation.

“But God kept bringing me back to, this was an opportunity for me to share what’s important for the church to continue on,” Pomeroy told Baptist Press, “and that’s when He … led me to Paul’s letter to Ephesus (Acts 20) and we just went from there.”

The tragedy First Sutherland Springs weathered when a gunman killed 26 worshipers and wounded 22 others on Nov. 5, 2017, is perhaps the memory the church’s name most readily provokes. But First Sutherland Springs has ministered since 1926 in the small community of less than 1,000 people, 20 years under the leadership of Pomeroy.

“What really brings Sutherland Springs together over these 20 years is that there really is a true sense of relationship and family,” he said. “And therefore, we have always been very inclusive of the community, and that the church would be the center of the community, whether it was during a tragedy or in the good times.

“High on the mountain or low in the valley, there’s always been a true sense of family with those in the community. And that’s the thing I think I cherish the most, is that love never fails, as Paul said, and that love will extend to everyone who will come and listen to the Word.

“I think again, if we can be remembered as promoting and making sure everyone knew that that pulpit was never my pulpit, it’s always God’s pulpit,” he said, “and as being God’s pulpit, He’s reaching out to whomsoever that will listen. And the defining thing would be that that church is not the building, it’s the body, and the body should be out including everyone.”

Pomeroy and his wife Sherri have sold their home to their youngest son Korey and daughter-in-law Ashley, downsized their belongings to a camper trailer and are planning a brief road trip before returning to Texas, perhaps for a campground ministry. But he’s not certain of God’s plan.

Their 14-year-old daughter Annabelle was among those killed when Devin Kelley walked in the church and began shooting indiscriminately in what remains the deadliest mass shooting in Texas history. Kelley fled the scene and shot himself to death.

The church survived the tragedy by choosing victory, Pomeroy said.

“We could have been validated by the world to choose hate and ugliness and play the victim card,” he preached, “or we could choose to say we are not victims, we are victors. We choose to put our faith in something greater than ourselves. … I don’t understand, but I know I can’t go back and change what’s already done, but I choose from this day forward to say, ‘Lord, You are in control.’ And God has taken that, has made Sutherland Springs a lighthouse on a hill.

“We still get letters that say, ‘I was an atheist, but because of the way you guys handled this situation. …’ Why is that happening? Because we chose to lift up Jesus.”

Pomeroy encouraged the church to embrace humility, which goes beyond individual pain.

“Because of my knowledge of You (God),” he said, “I will take what You have given us that tastes so bad, but I will still use it to share the Gospel for Your glory. And that is what God has chosen to honor and bless.”

Pomeroy’s goal was to stay at First Sutherland Springs as long as the Lord willed, he told the congregation of 200 during the farewell sermon Sept. 25 from Acts 20:17-35.

“Whether I’m here physically or not does not change the fact that God does not leave,” he told the congregation. “You are the church. Each one of us individually is the church. We assemble together as First Baptist Sutherland Springs. Therefore, as we being the church, as long as we are getting stronger in the Lord as individuals of the church, together in unison … we will always be stronger as Sutherland Springs.”

The church has demolished the building where the shootings occurred and has preserved an open-air memorial to those killed. Since 2019, the congregation has worshiped in a new facility funded by the North American Mission Board with gifts made through the Southern Baptist Convention and other donations.

First Sutherland Springs bought the former Sweet Spirit Baptist Church building in the nearby town of St. Hedwig and in April, opened a north campus about 15 miles north of the main location.

Despite the congregation’s resolve, the Pomeroys find some days more difficult than others.

“There’s still ups and downs, and I don’t think you ever fully handle the loss of a child,” he said. “But as a family in Sutherland Springs, not just my biological family but the church family, we chose to look to something greater than ourselves for understanding.

“Although I might have done things differently, God has brought so many to Christ through this. God’s using her martyrdom and the others to bring others to His saving grace.”

When people ask Pomeroy what the new sanctuary in Sutherland Springs cost, he doesn’t recite a dollar amount.

“I say it cost 26 lives,” he said. “I look at all 26 lives that were lost, including Annabelle, as the blood that was spilled for that church there in Sutherland Springs.

“The blood on this ground is what built this church, and God’s going to honor that.”

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.