Author: Baptist Press

The harmony and humanity in our cooperation

As a tuba player, Berlioz was one of my favorite composers. He composed dissonance in the deepest ranges of the orchestral score and extend that tension until resolution was as anxiously welcomed as it was intricately composed.

An orchestra is not a machine; it is a very human organization—both complemented and challenged by its humanity. I remember very well how the humanity of partnership in performance can make a masterpiece unpredictable and beautiful at the same time. Someone might miss a note, and another might get distracted, lose count, or get frustrated and quit. Still, another will rise to the moment and interpret a line with breathtaking musicality. The humanity of the orchestra makes every performance unpredictable, but it also makes every performance uniquely beautiful.

Beautiful unpredictability is inherent to the most noteworthy of all human agencies.

In the New Testament, likeminded churches cooperated for Great Commission advance. The Philippian church set the standard of financial partnership with Paul’s missionary work in Thessalonica (Philippians 4:15-16). Together with them, likeminded Macedonian churches funded the work in Corinth (Acts 18:1-5, 2 Corinthians 11:8). Later, Paul expected the church in Rome would join in the same pattern of evangelistic, missional cooperation (Romans 15:22-24). The Scriptures present the expediency of Great Commission cooperation and build the theological framework for that cooperation. But they do not dictate a specific organizational plan for cooperation.

Instead, God has chosen to allow for human ingenuity in our cooperation. Baptist churches are autonomous, so cooperation is voluntary. A wonderful gift is ours in voluntary Great Commission cooperation, employing the most imaginative of human means to accomplish the most significant of spiritual ends.

E.Y. Mullins called this “the principle of voluntary co-operation.”It sometimes makes our partnership clunky, but no less magnificent. Voluntary cooperation is more of a developing art than an industrial science. In Mullins’ words, “It is the ideal of the orchestra and not that of the machine.” Cooperation is written into the Southern Baptist score. Our doctrines of local church autonomy (BFM2000 Article VI) and Great Commission responsibility (Article XI) are harmonized in our doctrine of cooperation (Article XIV). The churches are autonomous. Each is tasked with the fulfillment of a commission that none can accomplish alone. So, we voluntarily cooperate as a matter of “spiritual harmony.”

But what happens when cooperation feels more disjunctive than harmonic—more John Cage than Frédéric Chopin? Present talk of “liberal drift,” the hysteria of biased information sourcing, and the divisiveness of economic, social, and political agendas, fill the air in our Southern Baptist rehearsal rooms today. We are deaf if we cannot hear that dissonance coming across in our public performances. How do we recapture the harmony of our cooperation?

Mullins, writing 17 years before Southern Baptists owned a formal confession of faith or a unified giving plan, acknowledged the occasional dissonance inherent to voluntary cooperation. “Let Baptists be not weary in well-doing,” he encouraged his readers …

“Our inability to enlist all our people in all our work at all times is discouraging to a superficial view. If our ecclesiastical machinery could be so adjusted and oiled as to run without a jar it would doubtless save trouble and please the esthetic faculty. But there is a profound reason why such adjustment can only come slowly: we are dealing with persons and not with things—with human wills, not with wood and iron.”

Mullins chose to see the beauty in the humanity of it all and to embrace the dissonance that humanity affected. His solution was to keep cooperating while he kept working for solutions. And, by God’s design, resolution was only a few bars away.

The best orchestral music embraces both dissonance and consonance—tension and resolution. Southern Baptists have been making music together for a long time. Honestly, we got off to a precarious start, and we have made more than our fair share of performance errors through the decades. But there is a strange grace in the humanity of it all. The humanity of our cooperation is what makes the Southern Baptist partnership more of a movement than a machine. Human error is to be expected. Seasons of dissonance, even in the deepest ranges of the score, should animate us to keep playing our parts with excellence and to encourage others to do the same, while we work together toward resolution.

Admittedly, the Southern Baptist movement is, by design, beautifully unpredictable. So, “Let Baptists be not weary in well-doing.” Our organized production is one of human resource, not of wood and iron. We cooperate as people, not as machines. Look around and see the image of God reflected in your partners in the Gospel and appreciate them as co-laborers in Christ, even when disagreement abounds. Don’t pull away. Lean into a future resolution. Who knows? Perhaps our greatest season of harmonious Great Commission cooperation is only a few bars away.

Churches are open but still recovering from pandemic attendance losses

NASHVILLE—Almost every church in the U.S. is holding in-person services again, but some pre-pandemic churchgoers still haven’t returned.

In August 2022, 100% of U.S. Protestant pastors (rounded to the nearest whole number) say their churches met in person, according to a Lifeway Research study. This continues the increases from the past two years of churches holding physical gatherings. In August 2021, 98% of churches gathered in person, after 75% reported the same in July 2020.

“While there are a handful of exceptions, we can definitively say that churches in the U.S. have reopened,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “While masks began to rapidly disappear in many settings in 2022, churchgoers have not reappeared quite as fast.”

Attendance adjustment

Despite churches returning to pre-pandemic levels of holding in-person services, not all churchgoers have followed suit. On average, U.S. Protestant churches report current attendance at 85% of their typical Sunday morning crowds in January 2020, prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Despite falling below a full return, this marks the highest attendance levels in more than two years. In September 2020, the average church reported 63% of their pre-pandemic in-person attendance. Last August, the percentage climbed to 73%, before rising another 12 percentage points this year.

In February 2021, 91% of U.S. Protestant churchgoers told Lifeway Research that once COVID-19 was no longer an active threat, they planned to attend worship services at their church at least as much as they did prior to the pandemic.

Earlier this year, 34% of Christians said they attended a worship service four times a month or more before COVID, according to an additional Lifeway Research study. In April 2022, 26% said they currently attend that often. Slightly more than a third of Christians (36%) said they attended less than once a month before the pandemic. This year, that jumped to 43%.

“While some pre-COVID churchgoers have not returned to church at all, much of the decline in attendance is from people who are attending less often,” said McConnell.

Areas of growth

While most U.S. Protestant churches still haven’t fully recovered pre-pandemic attendance levels, more congregations than before have now reached those numbers or even grown.

In September 2020, almost twice as many congregations reported being below 50% of their January 2020 attendance as said they were at least at 90% (29% vs. 15%). Now, less than 1 in 10 congregations (8%) is still below half of their pre-COVID attendance numbers. Today, more than a third (35%) report at least 90% attendance, including almost 1 in 6 pastors (17%) who say their congregation has grown since January 2020.

Most churches continue to be in the middle range—above 50% of their pre-pandemic attendance but below 90%. A quarter of churches (26%) say their attendance is more than 50% but less than 70%, while 31% report a congregation of 70% to less than 90% what it was prior to COVID-19.

“As has been the case since COVID began, different churches are having different experiences,” said McConnell. “More than a third are at 90% or more of pre-pandemic attendance. More than a third are stuck with less than 70% of their people back on a typical Sunday. And, just under a third are in between 70% and less than 90% attending.”

Older pastors are less likely to report their church growing in attendance since the pandemic began. Around 1 in 6 pastors 65 and older (16%) say their congregations increased attendance since January 2020 compared to 25% of pastors aged 45-55 and 33% of pastors 18-44. Those in the Midwest (26%) and South (25%) are more likely to say they’ve grown compared to those in the Northeast (14%).

Evangelical pastors (29%) are almost twice as likely as mainline pastors (16%) to report pandemic attendance growth. Pentecostal (33%) and Baptist (28%) pastors are more likely to say they’ve grown since January 2020 than those at Presbyterian/Reformed (14%), Lutheran (13%), Restorationist Movement (10%) or Methodist (8%) churches. Non-denominational pastors are among the most likely to report growth (30%) but also the most likely to say their church is still less than 30% of pre-COVID attendance (14%).

Fewer churches climbing above 100

The failure of churches to recapture all their pre-COVID churchgoers means even fewer churches reach 100 in attendance on a typical weekend. Now, 2 in 3 U.S. Protestant churches (68%) have congregations of fewer than 100 people, including 31% who have fewer than 50. A quarter of churches (24%) fall into the 100-249 range, while 8% of congregations host 250 people or more each week.

Almost half of the oldest pastors are leading the smallest congregations. Pastors 65 and older (47%) are most likely to be leading churches with fewer than 50 on a typical weekend. Mainline pastors (38%) are more likely than evangelical pastors (26%) to be leading congregations of fewer than 50. Denominationally, the smallest churches are more likely to be Presbyterian/Reformed (50%) or Methodist (42%) than Pentecostal (27%) or Baptist (22%). The smallest congregations are also most likely to be in the Northeast (45%).

Still, the smallest congregations are among those most likely to have recovered to pre-COVID levels. Those who reported attendance of fewer than 50 in January 2020 (49%) are more likely to currently say they are at 90% or greater of those pre-pandemic levels than those with 50 to 99 (34%) and 100 to 249 (28%) in pre-pandemic attendance.

More state conventions join NAMB in Send Network partnerships

ALPHARETTA, Ga. – The North American Mission Board (NAMB) has, in recent years, developed Send Network agreements with state conventions across North America to enhance partnership and church planting within the SBC.

So far, 23 state conventions and Canada, have signed up to become official Send Network states, opening the door for Send Network’s processes for assessment, training, coaching and care to become a resource for more church planting missionaries.

Most recently, the Nevada Baptist Convention (NBC) announced its agreement and the launch of Send Network Nevada during its annual meeting, Oct. 17-18 at LifeChurch Reno.

“We are thankful for the church planters around the country who are being called to Nevada,” NBC Executive Director Damian Cirincione said during the meeting. “But we also want to create a culture of church planting that results in Nevada church planters being developed in Nevada churches. This will be a natural result of a greater discipleship focus in our churches.”

Many different cultures and ethnicities comprise the state, and the NBC aspires to help churches in big cities and small towns develop an ethic of evangelism and discipleship that will expand the kingdom of God throughout the state, Cirincione added.

“Nevada is the fifth-fastest growing state in the nation, with Las Vegas being one of the fastest-growing, most global cities in the nation,” said Josh Carter, director of Send Network Nevada. “In northern Nevada, Reno is growing tremendously. No church will, on its own, ever be able to multiply quickly enough to move the needle in the right direction. We must have another level of kingdom collaboration happening where churches of all sizes play a part in church planting in some way.”

The NBC’s announcement comes on the heels of the California Southern Baptist Convention (CSBC) announcing during its September board meeting its decision to join NAMB for Send Network California.

A higher percentage of Californians identify as “none,” in terms of their religious affiliation, than evangelical Protestant, according to Pew Research – 20 percent evangelical compared to 27 percent religiously unaffiliated.

“Now, more than ever, we have a clear understanding that we must work together as a Convention,” said CSBC Executive Director Pete Ramirez during the CSBC board meeting. “We are in a post-COVID era, and many of our churches have felt the impact. We have no choice but to rethink both how to plant churches and where to plant churches.”

Baptist state conventions in the southern U.S. have also begun reaping the benefits of Send Network partnerships, with Arkansas Baptists and North Carolina Baptists recently announcing church planting agreements with NAMB.

“The impact of this enhanced partnership will result in many more positive benefits to our church planters, sponsor churches and church planter residency churches,” Arkansas Baptists Executive Director Sonny Tucker told the Arkansas Baptist News. “Several of our sister southern state conventions have entered into a similar partnership, and they give this enhanced partnership the highest reviews with greater church-planter benefits, care and more churches planted.”

N.C. Baptists and Send Network came together to launch SendNC on Sept. 27.

“This partnership will combine the best of our existing church-planting leadership and relationships with NAMB’s planter care development pathway,” said N.C. Baptist Executive Director Todd Unzicker. “It will give numerous opportunities for church planters to gain experienced coaching, expanded planter care, synchronized training, improved benefits and greater funding.”

These and other state conventions, such as Iowa and Montana, have begun this fall with several others expected to develop in the future. The key to these enhanced partnerships has been the continued increase in Southern Baptists giving to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American missions.

“The faithfulness of Southern Baptists is helping to fuel the expansion of God’s kingdom throughout North America,” said Send Network President Vance Pitman. “It’s humbling to see everyone rally together to encourage a movement of churches planting churches, and it’s my prayer that state partnerships like these will bear fruit that makes an eternal impact in cities and nations around the world.”

This article was originally published by the North American Mission Board.

‘In Jesus’ Name’: Southern Baptists prepare to observe global prayer day

Editor’s note: Sunday, Nov. 6, is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

CORDOVA, Tenn. (BP)—She Loves Out Loud Founder Diane Strack recalls asking Cru Founders Bill and Vonette Bright, now deceased, how they dealt with different theological beliefs when praying for the nations.

“I said how do you work through all the different kinds of beliefs people have in doctrines?” Strack, a member of First Baptist Church of Orlando, Fla., told Baptist Press in advance of the Nov. 6 International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

“And he said, ‘What we do is we pray in Jesus’ name, and that’s all we focus on. So no matter what country they’re from, no matter what their doctrine is, we come back to this. Can we pray in Jesus’ name together?’” Strack recalled. “And that’s what we’re doing on this day.”

Women who live amid persecution in southeast Asia worship God at One More Child international ministry event. One More Child photo

Strack will join other women from Southern Baptist churches and ministries and evangelistic missions in engaging women in prayer from 30 countries Nov. 5 in advance of the international observance.

Donna Gaines, women’s ministry leader and wife of pastor Steve Gaines, will host the She Loves Out Loud event at Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova, reaching women onsite, nationally and internationally through a registration-only silmulcast event.

Christi Haag, a speaker and advocate for children through Florida Baptist Children’s Homes’ One More Child initiative; Jackie Green, founder of Women of Legacy at the Museum of the Bible; Norine Brunson, a survivor with her husband Andrew Brunson of Christian persecution in Turkey; and Carole Ward, a missionary in northern Uganda and South Sudan, will join Strack and Gaines as speakers at the event, some of them joining virtually.

Several survivors of Christian persecution will share their testimonies and experiences. Participating churches attending virtually will include times of prayer onsite at their churches during the event, Strack said.

“We’re asking God to call women to missions, to foster and adopt, to just the many opportunities there are to serve,” she said, “whether it’s small or large. What the invitation will be at the end is, ‘God I’m available.’ All of us can say, ‘God I’m available.’”

The She Loves Out Loud simulcast is among numerous events marking the international prayer outreach, an annual observance birthed in 1996 to pray for persecuted Christians globally. The annual observance coincides with the Southern Baptist Convention Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church for the first time this year. Previously, the day of prayer for the persecuted church was held in June of the SBC calendar.

The International Mission Board has released resources to help churches pray for those persecuted for their faith. IMB encourages churches to pray that the Gospel continues to spread despite persecution, that God reunites families separated by persecution, that the persecuted would remain faithful, and that God would hear our pleas and deliver the persecuted.

Voice of the Martyrs spokesman Todd Nettleton appreciates the additional emphasis on prayer for the persecuted.

“It is great to know that even more churches will be following Scripture’s command to ‘Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body’ (Hebrews 13:3),” Nettleton told Baptist Press, “on the International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians.”

Prayer is a key aspect of the VOM’s multifaceted ministry that has served persecuted Christians globally for more than 55 years. Nettleton points to several reasons, including Scripture, why prayer is a VOM hallmark.

“We’re commanded to remember those in prison, and we’re told that when one part of the body of Christ suffers, other parts are supposed to feel that pain. Secondly, prayer is the first thing our persecuted brothers and sisters ask us to do for them,” Nettleton said. “And finally, I think it’s important to remember that our prayers make a difference.

“When we pray, it makes a difference in encouraging those in the midst of persecution. It makes a difference in government leaders’ and courts’ decisions about our brothers and sisters. Prayer for persecuted Christians is a vital activity that every church and every Christian should be a part of.”

VOM offers prayer resources here, including a global prayer guide.

Christian persecution is considered one of the largest humanitarian crises in the world. Globally, someone dies for their faith every two minutes, IMB said.

More than 360 million Christians serve Jesus amid high persecution because of their faith, religious freedom advocate Open Doors said in its 2022 World Watch List. Among countries where Christians face the greatest persecution are Afghanistan, North Korea, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, Eritrea, Nigeria, Pakistan, Iran and India, Open Doors said. She Loves Out Loud registration is still available for home-hosted groups, although individual church registration has closed. Home groups may register here.

Bradford to occupy newly established evangelism chair at SWBTS

FORT WORTH, Texas—Students at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary say Carl Bradford’s “pastor’s heart” and passion for evangelism are evident in the classroom and influences their own zeal to share the gospel.

Bradford has served as assistant professor of evangelism at Southwestern Seminary since 2018. Effective Jan. 1, Bradford will occupy the newly established Malcolm R. and Melba McDow Chair of Evangelism in the Roy J. Fish School of Evangelism and Missions at Southwestern. Through his academic role, he teaches several evangelism-related classes, including Contemporary Evangelism, Theology of Evangelism and Missions, and the Historical Development of the Kerygma and the Gospel, in the Roy J. Fish School of Evangelism and Missions.

“Among those classes, I most enjoy Contemporary Evangelism,” Bradford said, noting one of the core classes for master’s students. The course results in the “greatest transformation of an individual’s passion for evangelism. The students must study evangelism concerning areas such as God’s and man’s role in evangelism, evangelism in the Old and New Testaments, what constitutes the Gospel, and other areas of evangelism study.”

Students enrolled in the class “are challenged to practice sharing their faith a minimum of 12 times throughout the semester,” he added, noting “The class is a favorite of mine because it has the perfect mixture of biblical theology and practice.”

Bradford not only teaches evangelism as an academic discipline, but he lives it out with his students too. He also spearheads the group of Southwestern students each year at Crossover, which precedes the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting each June, and he leads a group of students in Everyday Evangelism, which is a ministry opportunity where Southwestern and TBC students go out into various places each week in the Fort Worth community to share the Gospel.

While Bradford grew up loving the culture and food in his native New Orleans, he came to Fort Worth to evacuate from Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Having earned both his Master of Divinity (2011) and Doctor of Philosophy (2018) degrees from Southwestern, he explained there are three reasons he teaches at the seminary, including his own education at the institution.

“I am a two-time graduate of SWBTS,” Bradford said. “Through a partnership with local churches, I believe in its mission to provide Gospel-centered teaching, strong theological education, and a Great Commission focus.”

He also noted that teaching at Southwestern Seminary “allows me to have a significant influence on students all around the world and those they meet,” and then “the things I lecture on evangelism, theology, discipleship, and other topics have a global reach.”

This article originally appeared on the SWBTS website.

With the Cooperative Program, ‘any church of any size’ can plant

NASHVILLE—When Christ Fellowship in Tampa, Fla., felt led to launch a new campus, they weren’t alone. Send Network Florida walked beside them every step of the way.

A partnership between the Florida Baptist Convention and the North American Mission Board, Send Network Florida helped identify a church planter then assisted with assessing, training and coaching him. Christ Fellowship’s Riverview campus launched this year with campus pastor Jawaan Wilson leading the way.

That success story isn’t an anomaly. Thanks to the Cooperative Program, no Southern Baptist church that decides to plant a new congregation is forced to go it alone. Their Baptist state convention, often in conjunction with NAMB’s Send Network for church planting, provides resources and coaching from the moment they decide to plant until the plant is self-sustaining.

“By being a Southern Baptist church and by us cooperating together using Cooperative Program dollars, significant resources can come back to that sending church to help them love on and support and send out that church plant,” said James Peoples, director of Send Network Florida.

Across the SBC, 817 new congregations were launched in 2021, the highest total since 2015. That total included church plants, replants and new campuses of existing churches. For each of those congregations, there was a sending church that needed assistance customized to its unique setting. CP made that customized help possible. While not every church plant is funded directly by CP, every sending church has access to CP-funded assistance.

“Multiple levels” of help are available to sending churches, said Paul Westbrook, church planting director for the Illinois Baptist State Association (IBSA). “In most cases,” the support isn’t a financial contribution. “The support would come more from encouragement and tools and resources that would be made available to them through either NAMB staff, Send Network or, in our case, IBSA’s church planting staff.”

Church-planting residencies comprise a major portion of the help for sending churches in Illinois. The residencies allow prospective church planters to join a church staff temporarily, where they learn how to start and multiply small groups, develop leaders and improve their preaching – all while being coached by experienced leaders. After six months to a year, the planter is sent out to practice the skills he has acquired.

The IBSA aims to establish at least two church-planting residency programs in each region of the state. A NAMB training in Chicago last month trained 10 churches how to establish residencies. After a church plant launches, IBSA continues to provide in-person and phone consultations for the sending church, helping them work through any problems that arise.

Church planting isn’t just for large churches, Peoples said.

“Because of the generosity of Southern Baptists partnering together in the Cooperative Program, any church of any size anywhere can be a sending church for a new church plant,” he said. “Being a sending church is about relationship, not about finances.”

If a Florida church of just a few members wants to plant, Southern Baptist resources can help them. If the church already has identified a planter to work with, Peoples can walk that planter through Send Network’s assessment process and help him get started. As part of the assessment, representatives from the sending church learn church-planting best practices to assist their planter.

If the church that feels called to plant doesn’t have a specific church planter in mind, Peoples can help them make connections – either to become a sending church or to partner with an existing church plant.

The story is similar in Texas. Assistance is available for sending churches from the moment they start to consider planting.

If a Texas Southern Baptist church “feels called to plant a church or explore the possibility, we provide consulting through our catalysts or myself to help them understand the process that’s ahead of them,” said Jason Crandall, church plant lead for the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC) Send Network. “We want them to get a big picture of what’s available to them as a sending church inside of Send Network SBTC from residency to assessment to training.

“Additionally, as a sending church develops a potential planter, the SBTC offers resources for residents who are heading toward a Send Network assessment within the next 12-18 months. We can also provide residency curriculum through our partnership with the [NAMB] Send Network that is customizable and helps the sending church prepare the planter for the field,” Crandall said.

After launch, the sending church continues to benefit from coaching, consultation and training.

The bottom line for sending churches is that each of the 42 state conventions in the SBC family is committed to walk with them from pre-launch through empowerment of the new congregation as a self-sustaining church.

“For any SBC church that embraces that responsibility [to plant a church],” Peoples said, “because of the Cooperative Program, Send Network can partner with them to provide significant resources to help them plant.”

Equipping your kids to live in a pro-LGTBQ culture

For the last couple of years, the volume has increased over concerns related to parental rights, especially at public schools. What focused for a time as concerns over in-person education and the use of masks during the pandemic has quickly returned to concerns over matters of sexuality and gender.

In the wake of these concerns, Florida and Alabama have passed bills limiting discussions of gender identity and sexuality in classrooms with young children. At the same time, some school districts appear to be attempting to hide possible gender identity transitions from parents.

What are we to do as Christians, and especially Christian parents, as we navigate the world of parental rights in a pro-LGBTQ culture? How do we speak truth into the school systems in our communities and effect change where it is needed?

Let’s begin with a few affirmations:

God created humans male and female. Genesis 1:26-27 functions as God’s opening statement regarding anthropology. While the focus is often (rightly) placed on the fact that humans are made in God’s image, the second statement of that passage is sometimes overlooked. At the end of v. 27 we read, “He created them male and female.” These words in the opening chapter of the Bible are now considered controversial, but they are not unclear. In an age where distinctions between male and female are blurred, we find the clear testimony of Scripture to be that God created male and female as distinct expressions of humanity.

God created males and females as complementary in nature. Complementarity between males and females is a multifaceted concept, but I want to focus on just one aspect here—sexual complementarity. God designed male and female to be a complementary pair sexually. This idea first appears in Scripture in Genesis 1:28 where we read, “God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth. . . .’” With this pronouncement following on the heels of the declaration that God created humans as male and female, we rightly surmise that the process through which mankind would be fruitful and multiply was the sexual relationship that God designed to take place between a man and a woman in the context of marriage (see Genesis 2).

God created the human body as part of his good creation. On five different occasions in Genesis 1, we see that God declared his creation to be good, culminating with the words in verse 31, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good indeed.” As part of the discussion revolving around gender identity, we sometimes hear the discussion turn to demeaning the body and elevating the mind so that the body must be changed. But we cannot forget that the physical body is part of God’s good creation.

With these theological affirmations in place, how do we engage our schools on matters of sexuality and protect parental rights in the process?

How to equip your children and engage with your school

Teach your children the truth of God’s Word on matters of sexuality. Conversations with our children about sexuality can be awkward—let’s just admit it. But we can’t allow the awkwardness of the conversation to prevent us from having them. We have found, especially with our older children, that they are confronted with unbiblical models of gender and sexuality on a regular basis at school. Thus, it is crucial that they have been taught a biblical model and home and church. We need to teach them how to engage in conversations at school so they can speak knowledgeably and are able to communicate with their parents when something different is being taught or promoted at school.

Be an involved parent. We cannot clamor for protecting parental rights in the schools if we are not involved in the life of the school. Volunteer in the classroom. Serve on a committee. Provide support for teachers and staff. Go to school board meetings. By getting involved, we build relationships. Most changes that we want to see come to fruition are best accomplished on the basis of a relationship with a teacher, principal, or school board member. If we are not involved, we will generally not be heard.

Vote in local elections. We tend to get excited about national elections with potentially far-reaching ramifications, but most of the politics that affect our daily lives happen on the local level. High-profile school board elections in districts that have already experienced controversy make the national news, but the controversial policies enacted in those districts most likely came as a result of years of inattention to local politics by the average citizen. We need to get out and vote in these local elections, and some of us may even need to run for office.

Promote biblical convictions for sexuality and gender. The biblical vision for gender and sexuality—gender identity that corresponds to biological sex and sexual expression through the covenant of marriage between one man and one woman—was not controversial just 15-20 years ago. The culture is not so far gone that we cannot restore this vision through faithful teaching and living. Our promotion of biblical convictions begins in our homes and then extends into our communities.

Protecting parental rights in a pro-LGBTQ culture begins by exercising those rights. When the world says our vision for sexuality and gender is out of date or harmful, we demonstrate it through our lives and proclaim it unashamedly.

Cooperative Program helps fuel Send Relief’s international ministry projects

NASHVILLE (BP)—While the damage caused by natural disasters and the devastation of the war in Ukraine continue to make headlines, giving to the Cooperative Program is continuing to fund the compassion ministry of Send Relief around the world.

Send Relief is the Southern Baptist compassion ministry that is a joint effort between the North American Mission Board and International Mission Board focused on providing practical and spiritual aid to those in need.

Focus areas of Send Relief include responding to crises, protecting children and families, caring for refugees, fighting human trafficking and strengthening communities.

Jason Cox, vice president of international ministry for Send Relief, told Baptist Press that none of these avenues of ministry, including those happening overseas, would be possible without the support of Southern Baptists through the Cooperative Program.

“The importance of the Cooperative Program to the international work of Send Relief is best quantified in the people the CP supports and the missionary presence it enables around the world,” Cox said in comments to Baptist Press.

“What excites me most about Send Relief today are reports of lives changed for eternity through our projects. Everything we do is modeled after the life and ministry of Christ and in obedience to His commands,” Cox said.

“Everything we do is Gospel-focused. The works of compassion that we facilitate give expression to the Gospel through word and deed. Hundreds of thousands of people don’t just see the gospel but hear the gospel through Send Relief projects every year,” said Cox.

He says this year more than a thousand people have responded to the Gospel through Send Relief’s efforts related to the war in Ukraine.

Send Relief oversees personnel organizing aid projects are all IMB missionaries, according to Cox.

“IMB missionary presence is critical to Send Relief because the vast majority of the compassion ministry projects we facilitate are through IMB missionaries,” Cox said. “We rely directly on the generous giving of Southern Baptists through the CP to keep our Send Relief team on the field.

According to Cox, Send Relief currently has 354 active compassion ministry projects going on around the world, which support the work of IMB missionaries and their partners.

“Because Send Relief supports the work of IMB missionary teams and their local partners, the relief and development projects we facilitate are designed to enhance and expand those teams’ field strategies to engage in the missionary task. This simply would not be possible without the support provided through the CP.”

He said two of the biggest areas Send Relief has been able to provide aid in the last few years are related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Ironically, the unique challenges of the pandemic resulted in an increase in Send Relief’s work internationally.

“The work of Send Relief is typically most visible when we are responding to crisis, but the COVID-19 pandemic presented us with a crisis unlike we’ve ever experienced in our lifetime,” Cox said.

“In a world of lockdowns and social distancing, and throughout repeated disruptions experienced by our ministry partners on the field, the work of Send Relief actually expanded and accelerated during the pandemic. The number of Send Relief international projects increased by 75 percent from 2019 to 2020.

“Since the pandemic began, Send Relief has facilitated 597 Covid relief projects impacting over 1.7 million people. Most importantly, more than 14,000 people have professed faith in Christ through the ministries and strategies directly supported by these relief projects.”

Regarding the crisis in Ukraine, Send Relief has been “actively engaged,” since it began, providing aid to people in desperate need.

There have been 72 different relief projects related to the war. Many of them have taken place outside of Ukraine.

“These projects are addressing the most critical needs of those affected and displaced by the war: transportation costs for evacuating people; sheltering refugees and internally displaced peoples and providing food, clothing, medicine, and trauma counseling,” Cox said.

“Some projects are addressing other needs like longer-term housing for refugees in surrounding countries, mobile kitchens, summer camps for refugee children, and crisis response training for local pastors and volunteers.

“Most of these projects are ongoing, but we’ve received reports from 27 completed projects. Those 27 projects have impacted over 600,000 people and resulted in over 1,100 people coming to faith in Christ.”

He explained these projects were made possible by the IMB presence that already existed in Eastern Europe, and the generosity of Southern Baptists donating both directly to Send Relief and to the Cooperative Program.

Cox said Send Relief is a wonderful example of Southern Baptists uniting to fulfill the Great Commission.

“I see the phrase ‘better together’ used a lot these days, and Send Relief is proving this as a cooperative ministry between IMB and NAMB,” Cox said.

“We believe that we represent and mobilize Southern Baptists better, and ultimately have a greater impact, by providing one channel for engaging in compassion ministry worldwide.

“The beauty of the Cooperative Program is that every Southern Baptist, regardless of their age or their income, can contribute to the Revelation 7:9 vision of ‘a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.’”

This article originally appeared on Baptist Press.

SBDR volunteers near 500,000 meals prepared, provide relief for hundreds of homeowners

FORT MYERS, Fla. – As Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) nears 500,000 meals prepared in the wake of Hurricane Ian, volunteers have completed approximately 730 recovery jobs for homeowners.

“As Southern Baptist Disaster Relief teams from across the nation have continued serving in Florida, it has been encouraging to see the impact volunteers are having on these local communities,” said Coy Webb, crisis response director for Send Relief. “We at Send Relief are thrilled to continue providing support for these SBDR volunteers as they meet needs and share the hope of Jesus.”

Eleven local Florida Baptist churches across the impacted area have opened their properties for SBDR volunteers to stay and provide a base of operations. Volunteers with SBDR from Florida, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, Missouri, Illinois, Mississippi, Georgia, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Ohio, Michigan, West Virginia, Kansas, Nebraska, Indiana, Virginia and Texas have served in the response so far.

Those trained SBDR volunteers have provided tear out, clean up and mold remediation of flooded homes, removed debris, provided chainsaw work for downed trees and installed temporary roofing.

“I like Florida Baptist DR because it’s a way to serve. You learn quite a lot of stuff. It’s a blessing to be out here, a blessing to be helping people,” Florida SBDR volunteer Liam Rigdon said in a video for Florida Baptists. “Our teams are going out and helping [homeowners] and really letting them know who Jesus Christ is, helping people who can’t take care of themselves when something bad happens, like a storm.”

N.C. Baptists have been assisting hurricane survivors with a task many take for granted—doing laundry. Their SBDR team sent a laundry unit and volunteers who are able to wash and dry more than 100 loads of laundry a day.

“People won’t necessarily remember your name, but they will remember that someone cared enough even in the midst of a disaster,” said N.C. Baptist volunteer Valerie Cook.

Send Relief, the Southern Baptist compassion ministry that is a joint effort between the North American Mission Board and International Mission Board, has supported those SBDR efforts through resources and grants.

So far, Send Relief has sent three semi-truck loads of supplies that include temporary roofing, Shockwave mold prevention, construction materials, roofing materials, protective suits and other safety wear.

“This is the Cooperative Program and the cooperative work of who we are in action as multiple state conventions come together to aid in this response,” said David Coggins, state director for Florida SBDR. “It starts with Coy Webb and the relationship we have with Send Relief and how that relationship has strengthened to be the glue that binds our efforts together.”

So far, SBDR volunteers have seen 45 people profess faith in Christ.

To learn more about the response, visit Send Relief’s Hurricane Ian page. To give to a local state SBDR group, visit this site.