The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-02/02/2016 DISCLAIMER: Baptist Press should be credited for any reprinted stories that originate with BP. Suggested credit line: Reprinted from Baptist Press (www.baptistpress.com), news service of the Southern Baptist Convention. Please note that Baptist Press periodically carries stories from other sources by permission. Individuals interested in reprinting non-BP stories should contact the entity where the story originated to seek reprint permission. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Former adult store site redeemed by church plant by Nicole Kalil/Florida Baptist Witness Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (BP) -- There was something the landlord didn't disclose before D3 Church launched in a newly rented space on Jan. 10. A fellow pastor "mentioned in passing that it was really cool that God was putting a church in what used to be an adult video store," lead pastor John Thomas said. "I didn't have any idea of the history." Thomas learned of the previous tenant at a meeting of the Tallahassee-area Florida Baptist Association when he was sharing his excitement with a fellow pastor about D3 Church's growth during its six-month start-up time and the new worship space. Thomas did some checking and learned that the video store had been a longtime tenant in the small strip shopping center. What had started out as a normal video store slowly devolved into something seedier. Eventually, the store not only offered adult videos, but private viewing booths as well. Unaware of any of the background, Thomas and D3's core group had visited the location and claimed it for the Kingdom, covering it in prayer and writing verses of Scripture and statements of faith on the floor. Thomas said the video store had been vacant for a little while before they rented it. The space had been gutted, so there was no way that they would have known its disreputable history. But Thomas said it wouldn't have mattered if the landlord had told them about the video store because "we wouldn't have changed our minds anyway." "We've been blown away by the reaction," the church planter said. "Everyone sees it from a redemption viewpoint -- churched and unchurched alike." Sean McMahon, executive director of the Florida Baptist Association, said when other believers hear the story, most respond in upbeat fashion. "What more awesome statement can be made than to take a place that was the home of decadence and debauchery and turn it into a place where the Gospel is preached," McMahon said. If D3's launch service was any indication -- with 70 people in attendance -- the plant shows "great potential," McMahon said. Thomas said he loves the fact that God was "doing a work and we didn't really know about it," but he believes it was part of God's plan. "God will redeem people and, as He does, He will redeem the culture." Thomas said he's been presented with many opportunities. He told the story of one of D3's ministry leaders meeting a pastor of a nondenominational church that had recently lost its meeting space. Thomas and the D3 team invited the mostly African American congregation to utilize the facility when D3 isn't using it. Thomas said the pastor has been impressed by D3's generosity, a bit perplexed why it would help another church in this way. Thomas is using the opportunity to spend time with the pastor and "pour into him" about D3's journey and vision. Pouring into others is part of D3 Church's DNA. The three D's stand for disciples making disciples who make disciples. It looks like D3 will not be the only bright spot in the little strip mall. In what used to be an Internet café known for gambling activity, another church has begun to meet. "It's another indication of God's intention to redeem this city through the churches that preach the Gospel here," Thomas said. Despite D3's unique story, McMahon hopes its time in the renovated video store will be short-lived. "Personally, I hope they're not there long," he said. "I hope they outgrow it." -------------------------------------------------------------------- FIRST-PERSON: Need a mom? You may already have one by Catherine Parks Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday NASHVILLE (BP) -- I haven't had family living nearby during any of my 10-plus years in the Nashville area -- from my early days of marriage into my current stage as a mom of two grade-schoolers. My kids see their grandparents as much as possible, but I lack the pleasure of dropping the kids off for a night out or sitting down over coffee with my mother or mother-in-law to talk about my struggles of the moment. I have my mom on speed dial for emergency cooking questions, but there are days when I wish she could be in my kitchen, demonstrating how to fold egg whites into my waffle batter. While she is not close in physical proximity, I know I am blessed to have a close relationship with my mom. A large number of my peers cannot say the same. Many in my generation find themselves away from home and in need of a motherly mentor, and this inspired one Brooklyn woman to develop a new business model -- Need a Mom. Nina Keneally, a mother of two grown children living in the midst of 20- and 30-somethings, saw this opportunity after younger adults began confiding in her about their personal problems. "There are people who have a mentor in their professional lives; now I am doing that in their personal lives," Keneally told a writer for Slate. For $40 an hour, Keneally will talk you through parenting issues, teach you to sew a button on a shirt or demonstrate cooking techniques. But Keneally makes it clear she is not a mom or grandmother substitute. She is a not a friend. She is a coach, a counselor, a professional. Whether her business takes off or not, the media jumped on the idea, and Keneally's story was featured in newspapers and morning shows around the country. Similar in many ways to a "life coach," the Need a Mom business touches on our innate need for guidance and counsel. But unlike a life coach, this model takes an existing relationship -- that of mother to child -- and capitalizes on what many people lack in their own families. Indicative of our society's obsession with quick fixes, the whole idea of purchasing time with a personal mentor is saddening. To buy into this idea, one must accept a world in which meaningful relationships are rarely developed apart from the exchange of goods and services -- and really, what kind of meaning is that? People and their time become commodities to be bought and sold because there is a demand, and someone is willing supply the desired goods. When I was thinking about this story, I remembered a friend from high school who so admired Elisabeth Elliot that she wrote and asked if she might spend a day with her. Elliot graciously accepted, so my friend rode the train from D.C. to Boston to spend a day learning from the wisdom of this godly woman. I love that my friend had the gumption to do that, and it is telling of Elliot's character that she welcomed my friend into her life. No money was exchanged, and surely Elisabeth Elliot had little to gain from giving a day of her busy life to a 17-year-old. Yet she did. While hiring a mom is not the solution for our lack of mentoring relationships, perhaps neither is reaching out to the well-known Christian writers and speakers of our day. I don't think my friend was wrong for spending the day with Elisabeth Elliot; in fact, I would love to have had that experience. But neither do I think Elliot was the only godly woman to whom she could have reached out. Rather, I believe our churches are full of women who have loads of practical and spiritual wisdom to give, if only we will ask. I was reminded of the surrogate mothers in my own life as I pulled out our Christmas decorations this year. My tree skirt is the product of a loving relationship with one such woman, whom my kids deemed "Grandma Jan," as she has been their local grandmother since they were tiny. In the early days of my marriage, I had few Christmas decorations, so Jan came to my apartment and taught me to sew by making a tree skirt. She has taught me much more in the subsequent years of our friendship, and she is just one of a number of women who have poured into my life. While Titus 2:3-5 is far from the only biblical passage applicable to women, it does have wisdom for those of us on both sides of these potential mentoring relationships. Its existence in Scripture indicates that younger women need the counsel of older women, and that older women need to share that counsel. I love the church for many reasons, not the least of which is that without it I would lack the relationships I have with so many women. I understand the desire to pay for time with a mother figure, because if I had not had these women in my life over the years, I would have missed out on so much. Surely this is an opportunity for the church to meet the needs of the world. Young women are searching for guidance, and all we have to do is strike up a conversation at the gym, the store or the cul-de-sac to begin building those relationships. And we can even do it for free. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Reaching the world from Keystone Heights by Karen L. Willoughby Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday KEYSTONE HEIGHTS, Fla. (BP) -- A sense of safety and security marks Keystone Heights, an idyllic southern town halfway between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. It's nearly equidistant northeast to Jacksonville and southwest to Gainesville but, unlike those two cities, has never felt the devastating impact of a full-force hurricane. A pervading sense of peace and tranquility is enhanced by the area's many lakes and Spanish moss-covered oak trees, a low crime rate and the community-held belief in the importance of family. Though 20 churches in Keystone Heights serve the population of about 1,400 -- up 4 percent in the last five years -- it is Trinity Baptist Church where more than 600 gather for Sunday morning worship. James Peoples is nearing his 22nd anniversary in the only pastorate he has ever held. He was 27 and his wife Jeannie 21 when the church, then 10 years old with about 200 members, called him as pastor. Peoples said he credits the growth of the church to God's blessing and to "being faithful to what the Lord has called us to do here, teaching His Word, teaching people to live it out and share it with others." At the beginning of Peoples' pastorate, Trinity was giving about 4 percent of its undesignated offerings to missions through the Cooperative Program, the way Southern Baptists work together to support the work of state conventions and the Southern Baptist Convention's global mission causes. Over time, Peoples led the church to increase CP giving to 10 percent. "God has called us to make disciples," Peoples said. "We see giving to the Cooperative Program as an integral part of helping us as a local church fulfill the Great Commission. "It's not just giving," the pastor said. "We're going. We're praying. God is calling out pastors and missionaries from our fellowship. We're involved in sending short-term mission teams." One family from the church serves in Poland with the International Mission Board. Peoples recently returned from Romania and Haiti. A team is getting ready to go to Cuba. CP giving, Peoples said, "helps us all to be a part of something so much bigger than what we are and can do by ourselves." "There is so much work to be done in our state -- Florida just surpassed New York as the third most populous state in the nation -- but there is so much more to do throughout the world," he said. Now in his second one-year term as president of the Florida Baptist State Convention, Peoples was on the search committee that recommended J. Thomas Green as the state convention's executive director. Green told them from the beginning he wanted to increase giving to global outreach to 51 percent of receipts from Florida Baptist churches. "There was very little pushback against this shift to sending more Cooperative Program dollars out of the state than we keep in the state," said Peoples, who has traveled across the state with the executive director as Green shared the CP story and explained his reason for the changes. "It has been amazing.... There had been this continual slide in CP giving from the churches over the previous seven years that went beyond the economic downturn, but now our churches are excited and getting more engaged. They're responding to this shift to give more to missions beyond our state borders." Peoples credits the smoothness in the transition in part to Green's longevity in Florida; he had been in the state for 19 years as pastor of First Baptist Church of Brandon when he was called as the state convention's executive director. "Trust builds over time," Peoples said. Longevity has been a factor in Trinity more than doubling its percentage of CP giving. Peoples said the increase flowed out of a shift from being inward-focused to outward-focused. "At first, it was, 'We're a church plant ourselves; we're only 10 years old,'" Peoples said. "Now the church sees great benefit in all that God is doing globally through [the] Cooperative Program and sees CP as a key component of our disciple-making strategy." He credits the change to "consistency and encouraging your people and challenging and motivating your people; keeping opportunities before the people. That helps change the mindset." Trinity has grown steadily, and currently is helping sponsor three church plants in the North American Mission Board's Send cities of New Orleans, Denver and San Francisco. "It is very beneficial to our church to be part of church planting," said Peoples, who serves as NAMB's Florida ambassador. "We see great Kingdom value in that we're part of the financial, strategic, emotional and prayer support for these new church plants. "Church planting in these SEND cities is very difficult work," the pastor said. "Sometimes they feel all alone. Beyond finances, we send them encouragement; we send them teams. It's a win-win for us and for that new church." Peoples said he anticipates Trinity will become a sending church sponsor for an additional church plant in the near future. Local ministries include volunteering and financially supporting Answers Resource facility for women and Lake Area Ministries, the local food bank. Trinity also is active in New River Baptist Association's disaster relief ministry. Ministries through sports and to families with special needs are other ways Trinity is reaching out to make inroads in the community. "Special needs ministry is a growing area where families are looking for some support," Peoples said. He knows the need, he said. His 15-year-old daughter has Down syndrome and autism. "Our goal is to place all people in the best environment available to be taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ at whatever level they can manage," Peoples said, indicating much positive feedback from families assisted in this ministry. "Ministering to those families is critical too, as life is challenging caring for someone with special needs." Peoples praised God for extending the church's reach. "God is doing something special at Trinity," he said. "We have a good mix of families of all ages and who love Jesus and want to help others love and serve Jesus as well. We're sharing the Gospel. Our goal is to see them saved and growing in discipleship so that they become fully on mission in their life as well." -------------------------------------------------------------------- CP 6.07% ahead of projection by BP Staff Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Year-to-date contributions to Southern Baptist Convention national and international missions and ministries received by the SBC Executive Committee are 6.07 percent above the year-to-date budgeted projection and 1.91 percent above contributions received during the same time frame last year, according to a news release from SBC Executive Committee President and Chief Executive Officer Frank S. Page. The total includes receipts from state conventions and fellowships, churches and individuals for distribution according to the 2015-16 SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget. As of Jan. 31, gifts received by the Executive Committee for distribution through the Cooperative Program Allocation Budget totaled $65,938,701.74, or 106.07 percent of the $62,166,666.67 year-to-date budgeted amount to support Southern Baptist Convention ministries globally and across North America. The total is $1,236,665.97 more than the $64,702,035.77 received through the end of January 2015. The convention-adopted budget is distributed 50.41 percent to international missions through IMB; 22.79 percent to North American missions through NAMB; 22.16 percent to theological education; 2.99 percent to the SBC operating budget; and 1.65 percent to the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. According to the budget adopted by the SBC at its June 2015 annual meeting in Baltimore, if the convention exceeds its annual budget goal of $186.5 million, IMB's share will go to 51 percent of any overage in Cooperative Program allocation budget receipts. Other ministry entities of the SBC will receive their adopted percentage amounts and the SBC operating budget's portion will be reduced to 2.4 percent of any overage. Meanwhile, designated giving of $42,250,530.91 for the same year-to-date period is 7.10 percent, or $2,801,641.19 above gifts of $39,448,889.72 received at this point last year. This total includes only those gifts received and distributed by the Executive Committee and does not reflect designated gifts contributed directly to SBC entities. The Cooperative Program is a program of giving through which a local church is able to contribute to the various ministries of its state convention and to the various missions and ministries of the Southern Baptist Convention with a single contribution. January's CP allocation receipts for SBC work totaled $20,176,669.21. Designated gifts received last month, meanwhile, amounted to $31,276,064.73. State and regional Baptist conventions serve as collecting entities for Cooperative Program contributions. They retain a portion of church contributions to the Cooperative Program to support work in their respective areas and forward a percentage to Southern Baptist Convention national and international causes. The percentage of distribution from the states is at the discretion of the messengers of each state convention through the adoption of the state convention's annual budget. The end-of-month total represents money received by the Executive Committee by the close of the last business day of each month. Month-to-month swings reflect a number of factors, including the number of Sundays in a given month, the day of the month churches forward their CP contributions to their state conventions and the timing of when state conventions forward the national portion of their CP contributions to the Executive Committee. CP allocation budget receipts received by the Executive Committee are reported monthly to the executives of the entities of the convention, to the state offices, to the denominational papers and are posted online at cpmissions.net/CPReports. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Abedini praises wife, denies 'much' of abuse claim by Diana Chandler Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated in the eighth paragraph. BOISE, Idaho (BP) -- Saeed Abedini denied "much" of what his wife Naghmeh Abedini has alleged of spousal abuse and a pornography addiction in his first statements about their marriage since his release from an Iranian prison, but he praised his wife for advocating for his freedom. "Much of what I have read in Naghmeh's [Facebook] posts and subsequent media reports is not true," he said in a Jan. 30 statement to his hometown newspaper, the Idaho Statesman. "But I believe we should work on our relationship in private and not on social media or other media. Naghmeh wrote this week, 'We are taking personal time to work on very serious personal issues.' I intend to do this hard work in private." Saeed Abedini released the statement days after his wife filed for legal separation in Ada County, Idaho, writing on Facebook that she wanted to guard against Abedini taking the children, 9-year-old Rebekka and 7-year-old Jacob, from Idaho while the couple works to heal their marriage. "I have taken temporary legal action to make sure our children will stay in Idaho until this situation has been resolved," she wrote on Facebook. "In very difficult situations sometimes you have to establish boundaries while you work toward healing." She filed the case against the 35-year-old pastor as he returned to Boise Jan. 27 from the Billy Graham Conference Center at the Cove in Asheville, N.C., his first stop in the U.S. on Jan. 21 from Iran, where he had been unjustly imprisoned three-and-a-half years because of his Christian faith. In his statement to the Statesman, Abedini said he had no intention of removing the children from their Boise home. "Of course, I had no intention of taking our children away from our home or our state," he wrote. "When I arrived in America I went to the Billy Graham Training Center in North Carolina with my parents and my sister, fully expecting Naghmeh and our children to join me there. She chose instead to remain at home in Idaho, and when I arrived there this week I was met with news that she had filed a domestic relations case, apparently in order to ensure our children could remain in the state." Abedini pleaded guilty on Jan. 25, 2008, to a July 1, 2007 charge of domestic assault, received a 90-day suspended sentence and a one-year probation, and paid a $75.50 fine. The case is listed on the Ada County Magistrate Court online repository under Abedini's full name, Saeed Abedinigalangashi. No other charges of domestic abuse against the pastor were indicated on the Ada County repository. Abedini was unable to respond, he noted, when emails Naghmeh Abedini had written only to close friends were leaked to the media in November 2015, stating that her husband had abused her during their marriage and had been addicted to pornography. Although she expressed regret for having sent the emails, she said in subsequent statements that she regretting keeping news of the alleged abuse from the public. "Three months ago Saeed told me things he demanded I must do to promote him in the eyes of the public that I simply could not do any longer," she revealed in her latest public comments Jan. 27. "He threatened that if I did not the results would be the end of our marriage and the resulting pain this would bring to our children." At least some of Naghmeh Abedini's accusations are untrue, her husband wrote, but stopped short of revealing which of the allegations are untrue. He still loves his wife, he said. "It is not my intention to speak further publicly -- through social media or any other channels -- at least until I believe we have made significant progress in private," he wrote. "Our marriage is under great stress and I am hoping and praying for healing and restoration. I love my wife and want God's will for both of our lives." He praised his wife for advocating for his release during his harsh imprisonment. "Naghmeh has been a hero to me and suffered enormously as a result of being 7,000 miles away from me and being a single parent to our two precious children while traveling and leading a crusade on my behalf. I will always love her for her sacrifice," he wrote. "Throughout my imprisonment my wife Naghmeh drew national attention to my case and encouraged millions of people to pray for my release. God answered those prayers and brought me safely home." Saeed Abedini described himself in his statement to the Statesman as a sinner saved only by grace. He had been imprisoned since Sept. 26, 2012, and was serving an eight-year sentence on charges he threatened national security by planting house churches in Iran years earlier. Prior to his imprisonment, he had been under house arrest since July 2012. "While I am far from perfect-- as a man or as a husband, I am seeking every day to submit to God as He molds me into what He wants me to be," he wrote. "The God I serve today is the same God I served while being interrogated and beaten in some of the harshest prison conditions in the world and He is capable of restoring a marriage that has withstood unbelievable pressure. I ask for prayer for another victory." Abedini has visited with his children since returning to Boise but gave no indication of where he is currently residing. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa caucuses: Southern Baptists 'highly involved' by David Roach Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday DES MOINES, Iowa (BP) -- Iowa pastor Todd Stiles had a specific prayer for caucus season: "Lord, come quickly, and till then, help me stand strongly." Southern Baptists across the Hawkeye State apparently agreed with the sentiment because many, including pastors, stood for biblical principles during caucus season, campaigning for the presidential candidates they believed would best represent their values. Iowa pastors and state convention staff members spoke for candidates at their respective caucus sites -- in keeping with a unique feature of Iowa's caucus process. Some agreed to serve as delegates to Republican county conventions -- another unique feature of Iowa's process. And at least two Southern Baptist churches allowed their buildings to be used as caucus sites -- one Democratic and one Republican. "Iowa Southern Baptists are engaged and involved," said Stiles, pastor of First Family Church in Ankeny, Iowa. "They're part of that evangelical vote that affects the caucuses so much, and I'm glad about that. I'm glad we are plugged in, connected, vocal and at the same time kind and compassionate." National commentators said evangelical support, which included that of Southern Baptists, was a key factor in propelling Texas Sen. Ted Cruz to victory in the Feb. 1 Republican caucuses. In the Democratic Party, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton apparently edged Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in a race where each garnered roughly 50 percent of the available "delegate equivalents" -- Iowa Democrats' method of counting support for each candidate. 'Impact our culture for righteousness' Stiles, a Republican, went to his local caucus "hoping" to support former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee because he believed Huckabee had a viable strategy for overturning the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade abortion decision. But upon sensing Huckabee's lack of momentum at the caucus site, Stiles caucused for Cruz, deciding a vote for the Texas senator was a more practical way to defend unborn life this election cycle. Huckabee announced via Twitter he was suspending his campaign after receiving less than 2 percent support in the caucuses. Stiles didn't tell members of First Family which candidates he was considering because he feared people with different political preferences could feel inhibited from coming to him with spiritual needs. "One of the balancing aspects of pastoring in Iowa during caucus time is helping the flock stay focused on our truest longing -- God's Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven -- while still calling them to 'let their light shine before men' and impact our culture for righteousness," Stiles said. Tim Lubinus, executive director of the Baptist Convention of Iowa, agreed that sharing the Gospel and meeting spiritual needs is believers' top priority. Still, he has been open since October about his support for Cruz, believing silence "is a more awkward response" than stating his preference among Iowa's politically vocal population. Lubinus was a "caucus captain" who spoke for Cruz at his precinct in Ames, Iowa, and later volunteered as a Cruz delegate for the county GOP convention. Leading up to caucus night, he made phone calls for Cruz and campaigned with yard signs and social media posts. Last fall, Lubinus helped schedule Cruz's father, evangelist Rafael Cruz, to speak on Christian civic involvement for 10 minutes at the state convention's annual meeting. "Several pastors" volunteered on the campaigns of specific candidates, Lubinus told Baptist Press, and Iowa Southern Baptists engaged in "friendly discussion" of the caucuses despite their varied candidate preferences. "All acknowledge there are several candidates to choose from and no candidate is perfect." Churches as caucus sites Northbrook Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, hosted a Democratic caucus, though pastor John Janke told BP, "We wouldn't identify ourselves as Republican or Democrat. Our affiliation is to a different Kingdom when it's all said and done." An officer with the Linn County Democratic Central Committee contacted the church and asked if it would be willing to host a caucus, Janke said. Northbrook agreed on the condition that Planned Parenthood and other organizations "promoting things that would be against our values" not be allowed to post signs in the building or make speeches advocating their causes. The Democratic Party officer agreed and said he was "ecstatic" at Northbrook's willingness to help, Janke said. Churches typically don't volunteer as caucus sites, Lubinus explained, but are approached by party officials if their facilities appear to be logical places for community gatherings. Tim Trudeau, pastor of Grace Community Church in Boone, Iowa, said "Christians turned out in droves" at caucuses in his area. "There were 1,500 people at my [Republican] caucus site," Trudeau told BP. "And as I looked around..., you could see Christians all over the crowd." He noted a "heavy gravitation toward the Republican Party" among Iowa evangelicals. Trudeau disclosed the candidate he supported only to a small circle of friends -- a feat possible for Iowa Republicans because they vote by secret ballot in contrast to Democrats, who vote by physically standing with fellow supporters of their candidates. Trudeau volunteered to serve as a delegate for his candidate at the county GOP convention and would like to serve as a delegate for district and state Republican conventions as well. A fellow member of Grace spoke for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio at his caucus site, Trudeau said. Dave Miller, pastor of Southern Hills Baptist Church in Sioux City, Iowa, also supported Rubio. He went to his caucus site prepared to speak for Rubio but wasn't allowed to do so when speeches were limited to official representatives of the candidates due to large turnout. "We began with the Pledge of Allegiance and a prayer by a good Southern Baptist brother (from our sister church)," Miller wrote on his live blog of the caucus. "There are hundreds of people here who were not here last time and many who were registering -- previous independent voters who have decided to join the party for the caucus." 'One vote at a time' Southern Baptists and other evangelicals influence the caucuses because of their commitment more than their raw numbers, Lubinus said, adding Iowa is "a state with a lot more of the mainline denominations than evangelical denominations." Because attending a caucus takes at least an hour, "only the highly committed participate," Lubinus said. "Well, one of the groups that's highly committed and involved in the process is evangelicals. So our participation in the caucus isn't a function of our numbers. It's a function of our commitment to the process." In a Feb. 1 op-ed for Fox News, Southern Baptist Convention President Ronnie Floyd urged evangelicals across the country to exert similar influence on the political process. "The Christian worldview gives us a valuable perspective on important questions related to helping the poor, maximizing individual freedoms, dignifying life, strengthening families, protecting the unborn, and guarding religious freedom," wrote Floyd, pastor of Cross Church in northwest Arkansas. "Without our votes, that voice is absent." He concluded, "Make no mistake, evangelicals have the ability to determine the course of America's future, one vote at a time." -------------------------------------------------------------------- Trump, Clinton stumble, evangelicals divide in Iowa by Tom Strode Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday WASHINGTON (BP) -- Front-runners Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton stumbled out of the gate in Iowa on Monday (Feb. 1) while the evangelical Christian vote among Republicans split primarily three ways in the first stage of the 2016 race for the White House. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas won a plurality of evangelical votes in defeating Trump in the Iowa Republican caucuses despite the outspoken billionaire businessman's lead in the polls. Cruz won nearly 28 percent of the caucus votes, while Trump gained 24 percent, according to The New York Times. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida closed fast to achieve 23 percent of the votes. In the Democratic caucuses, Clinton -- the former first lady and secretary of state -- apparently won by a slim margin over Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Clinton received 49.9 percent to Sanders' 49.6 percent, according to The Times in an afternoon report on Feb. 2. As a result, the delegate count for the GOP nomination was eight for Cruz and seven apiece for Trump and Rubio. Famed surgeon Ben Carson won three delegates with 9.3 percent of the votes, while Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky (4.5 percent) and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (2.8 percent) gained one delegate each. For the Democrats, Clinton was credited with 23 delegates, Sanders with 21, The Times reported. The candidates in each party will next face off in the first primary, which will be Feb. 9 in New Hampshire. Iowa Republicans identifying themselves as "born-again Christians" turned out in even greater numbers than four years ago, increasing their share of the GOP caucus-goers by seven points to 64 percent. Of those self-identified Christians, Cruz won 34 percent of the vote, according to entrance polls, NPR reported. Trump and Rubio won 22 and 21 percent, respectively, of those voters. Ronnie Floyd, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, urged evangelicals in an opinion piece for Fox News to participate in the election process this year. Published on the day of the Iowa caucuses, Floyd's column said, "If every eligible evangelical voter would cast a ballot in each of our local, state and federal elections, will the United States be a better place? I'm convinced that it would." A record 186,000 Republicans participated in the Iowa caucuses, with 45 percent attending for the first time, according to NPR. The road to Iowa was marked by division among evangelicals and their leaders regarding the crowded Republican field. Despite that, the results in the GOP caucuses were, "on the whole, good news for evangelical voters," said Bruce Ashford, provost and professor of theology and culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. The reason for such an assessment, Ashford told Baptist Press in written comments, was because of the strength of support for Cruz and Rubio, "the two major contenders who have demonstrated evangelical conviction on the issues of abortion, gay marriage and religious liberty." Another aspect of the good news for evangelicals was, he said, the results "reveal weaker-than-expected support for Donald Trump, whose credentials are questionable on those very issues." Hunter Baker, associate professor of political science at Union University in Jackson, Tenn., said Cruz's win over Trump "was impressive and undermined Trump's personal narrative of being a winner." Baker, who has endorsed Rubio, particularly noted the popularity of Cruz and Rubio among evangelicals. "They both have supporters among evangelicals," he told BP in a written statement. "They both also have other kinds of supporters. Cruz has the limited government crowd. Marco Rubio is probably getting the Chamber of Commerce." Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, and others have expressed incredulity at evangelical support of Trump, whose multiple marriages, past support of abortion rights and recent anti-religious freedom comments would seem to make him a questionable candidate for backing by conservative Christians. Pro-life leaders also have challenged support among their allies for Trump. A group of female pro-life leaders -- including Marjorie Dannenfelser of the Susan B. Anthony List and Penny Nance of Concerned Women for America -- sent an open letter Jan. 26 that urged Iowa Republicans to vote for anyone but Trump. Yet, well-known evangelicals such as Jerry Falwell Jr., president of Liberty University, and former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin have endorsed Trump, while Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, has spoken for Trump in the media and on the campaign trail. Cruz gained endorsements from Focus on the Family founder James Dobson and Family Research Council President Tony Perkins. "Falwell's embrace of Trump," Baker told BP, "looks a bit like buying high" just before a stock takes a sudden dip. "That low should be short-lived, though, if Trump goes on to win New Hampshire as is currently expected," he said. "The big question for me is whether Marco Rubio comes out of Iowa on a rocket after crushing expectations," Baker said. After the results were announced, Rubio "took the stage and spoke in as authentic a Christian voice as you will hear. I believe his support among evangelicals is only going to grow," Baker said. "The media have focused upon Trump's Falwell endorsement and Cruz's courting of 'Christian America' conservatives, but Marco Rubio is quietly gaining the support of many evangelical leaders with immense personal credibility." Ashford, who did not comment on Trump’s positions, contrasted the stances of Cruz and Rubio with those of Clinton. "She is pro-abortion; Rubio and Cruz are staunchly pro-life," he told BP. "She is a vocal proponent of same-sex marriage; Cruz and Rubio believe marriage is a unique institution, designed by God for the purposes of uniting one man and one woman. She is a tepid supporter of religious liberty; Rubio and Cruz make religious freedom a major plank in their platforms. "A significant and ongoing concern for evangelicals is to nominate a candidate who, on the one hand, is a supporter of life, marriage and religious liberty and who, on the other hand, has enough of a broad appeal to be elected in a head-to-head race with Clinton or Sanders in November," Ashford said. Ronnie Floyd, in his opinion piece for Fox News urging Christians to participate in the political process, wrote, "Think about an America where 60 million Jesus-loving, God-fearing men and women stepped into their voting booths this election season -- not with the intention of electing a 'Christian president' but with the intention of faithfully living out biblical values in the public square." In a column posted with BP the same day, Floyd, pastor of Cross Church in northwest Arkansas, urged Southern Baptists and other Christians not only to take part in the election but to be careful what they say and to keep a biblical perspective. "Our hope and trust is ultimately in the Lord," he wrote. "When we know we have worked in the processes and prayed for the Lord's will to be done, when all is concluded, we have the peace to trust the Lord who is sovereign over all affairs." Winning the Iowa caucuses -- conducted in more than 1,680 meetings across the state -- is important but no guarantee of the nomination. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania won in Iowa in 2008 and 2012, respectively, but neither ended up being the GOP nominee. Huckabee and Santorum were among six Republican candidates who received fewer than 2 percent of the votes Monday night. Afterward, Huckabee announced he was suspending his campaign. On the Democratic side, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley announced the suspension of his effort after receiving less than 1 percent of the vote. -------------------------------------------------------------------- FROM THE STATES: Ala., S.C., Tenn. evangelism/missions news; 'You could hear this dull roar around the room' by Staff Date: February 02, 2016 - Tuesday Today's From the States features items from: The Alabama Baptist The Courier (South Carolina) Baptist & Reflector (Tennessee) ********** Ala. pastor leads association in focused, concerted prayer By Anna Keller RUSSELLVILLE, Ala. (The Alabama Baptist) -- Russellville's Patrick Martin came home from the 2015 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio, excited to implement a prayer event he'd experienced there. "My wife and I attended an event that was about a spiritual great awakening, where we talked about the need for spiritual renewal in our country," said Martin, pastor of First Baptist Church of Russellville, Ala. "There were 7,500 people praying together for two and a half hours. It was one of the most impactful things I've ever been a part of as a Christian. I left there and felt like God was leading us to do something like that." So when Martin returned home he shared the concept with fellow Franklin Baptist Association leaders -- and they were equally as excited about bringing the idea to life in their churches. "We were going to do it regardless, but I saw the vision for getting all 35 churches in our association on board with doing this on the same day -- one association praying for the same thing in all our worship services," Martin said. "Since I was the only one who had attended the annual meeting, I put together a worship service template, changing it so it was an hour-long program instead of two-and-a-half hours." Most of the association's pastors were on board and they all began praying to decide when the right time for the event would be. They landed on early January, thinking that starting the New Year with this kind of unique service would help focus their churches in 2016. Prayer-focused worship On Jan. 10, First Baptist, along with several other churches in Franklin Association, hosted a special prayer-focused worship event, each at their own churches. At press time reports were still being compiled, but Martin estimates that at least 20 of the association's 35 churches participated. Each of the participating churches structured things a bit differently, but at Martin's church they dedicated a full worship service to prayer. "My folks loved it. They embraced it," he said. "We did prayer circles where we had folks gather up all around the congregation. It was fun standing up on the stage and watching and listening when folks were praying out loud. You could hear this dull roar around the room." Longtime First Baptist member Calvin Parmer said the church has never done anything quite like this. "This is the first time we have ever spent the entire morning service in prayer that involved active participation of all in attendance," Parmer said. "Beforehand there was some apprehension among our members, but this soon disappeared as soon as the program began. The prayer topics were areas of importance in our daily walk of life." Martin divided the service into four prayer topics: "What would happen if God really moved?" (Acts 2); "It's time to repent" (1 John 1:9); prayers for leadership (ranging from pastoral staff to President Barack Obama and everywhere in between); and "We want to be filled with God's power" (Acts 1:8). Martin said, "When I came to this church, we decided we wanted to build a Great Commission church in Russellville. The vision of our church is carried out by being a group of people that is excited and empowered by the Great Commission. "Our aim as a church was for this event to give us a springboard for 2016, which we are calling 'A Year to Grow.' We want to grow financially, spiritually, membership-wise, through baptism, and this was a way to galvanize our people around one idea." Larry Dover, Franklin Association's director of missions, said it was important to bring prayer to the forefront in the association. "Our association is like most: we need to pray more," Dover said. "I sensed an urgency in our churches that I have not seen in a long time. Maybe God is up to something." Importance of prayer Though First Baptist dedicated the full service to prayer, other churches in the association used that Sunday to have a traditional service that emphasized the importance of prayer throughout the service. "All of the other pastors preached a sermon on prayer and spiritual awakening," Dover said. "All of them had times of prayer led by various members of the congregation. Some of them had altar calls during or at the conclusion of the service." Martin said he hopes his church and others in the association can experience an event like this again, although he would want to be sure it's not so frequent that it loses its impact. "One of the best things about this was the fact that our association did it together," he said. --30-- This article appeared in The Alabama Baptist (thealabamabaptist.org), newsjournal of the Alabama Baptist Convention. Anna Keller is a correspondent for The Alabama Baptist. ********** S.C. church's reading ministry reaches students By Julia S. Bell MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (The Courier) -- First Baptist Myrtle Beach's reading ministry in a local elementary school is only a few weeks old. What started with an offer to volunteer on-site with students, has quickly become a church-wide ministry supported by the congregation. The idea came about last year, when Minister of Music & Worship Don Hansen attended an Impact Conference break out session, led by Emory Hiott, children's minister at First Baptist Charleston, who shared about her church's reading ministry. Hansen walked away with a changed heart about a ministry God continued to cultivate in him. "A few months later, as I was teaching a children's Bible study, I asked a few to read some verses. They struggled to read, and it was excruciating to watch. I realized we can't make disciples out of people who can't read," Hansen said. "When you think about Kingdom growth, you have to look outside the church walls. Ninety-seven percent of South Carolina's children will pass through a public school, and many of those children have never experienced the love of Christ. What better way to share this joy while also helping them to reach life-long goals," said Charleston's Hiott who is also an education strategist consultant with the South Carolina Baptist Convention (SCBC). In October, Hansen approached the principal of Myrtle Beach Elementary to get started because, as he put it, "I felt convicted that if I didn't do this, I would be disobedient to God's call." At first, Hansen met a few teachers and read to their classes. Then he was paired with two students that he now reads with for an hour on Mondays and tutors in math for an hour on Wednesdays. He also volunteers every Wednesday morning helping teachers with odds and ends and then in a classroom with students who need extra attention. He doesn't allow any moment at the school to be wasted. "Volunteering has enabled me to learn children's names and pray for them while I'm in the classroom. My goal was to be dependable and positive as I prepared the way for what would come next," he said. After establishing a consistent presence in the school, Hansen invited members of First Church Myrtle Beach to join him. "I was the first to jump in the pool and told them 'the water's fine, come join me,'" he said. Interest increased as Hansen excitedly shared his experiences, and by November the church named First Baptist Church Reading Buddies as a formal outreach. Volunteers sought approval through the school district, and 16 went through a school orientation in December. "I have been received with arms wide open at the elementary school. Someone thanked me for being there and said, 'you have already made such a difference in our school.' I thought, 'you ain't seen nothing yet!' I have a whole lot of friends who are preparing to invade this school for God's kingdom," Hansen said. Hiott, from First Baptist Charleston, has been coaching Hansen through the start-up process. When Hansen discussed how to encourage school employees, Hiott connected him with SCBC grant assistance that enabled First Baptist Myrtle Beach to provide all 80 school staff members with gift cards. A church member provided additional restaurant gift cards because he wanted to 'blow (staff) away with God's love.' "Our church is excited about this ministry like nothing I have seen in the last 10 years," Hansen said. Hiott said, "I think what makes First Baptist Myrtle Beach extra special is that Don is the music minister. You don't have to be a 'kids' person to get this going and be a blessing in your community; you just have to understand that God is in our local schools, and we should be, too." Through her own ministry, Hiott learned that the government considers third grade reading and test scores when planning the number of future jails and beds. She sites this benchmark third-grade year as critical to changing the trajectory of a child's life. "We should be changing our city for Christ and spreading His love in tangible ways. So if that means reading with a child once a week, or just eating lunch with them and being a positive role model, then Christians have an opportunity that we cannot pass up." According to Lee Clamp, SCBC evangelism director, churches should look to public schools as strategic places to improve the wellbeing of a community. "Ninety-seven percent of the population of a generation is flowing through the local schools; and if every student and their family is touched there, then you will basically touch nearly every person in your community over the course of a generation. Children learn to read by the third grade, and they read to learn the remainder of their life. If they are below grade level in the third grade, they may never catch up, risk dropping out, and ultimately lower the opportunities for employment in the future. The reputation of the church in a community will dramatically change when those unengaged in church see them taking the posture of a servant, especially with their most precious resource ... their children. As the reputation changes in the positive direction, the doors for spiritual conversations will swing wide open giving the church the opportunity to introduce people to the life that the kingdom brings through Jesus." Hansen said he's already seen how spending weekly time with a child creates stability for them. "That time each week might be the only attention that child gets, so you become important in their world. There are people in Myrtle Beach literally dying for us to get out of this church and impact their lives," he said. For more online information about school ministries, go to www.scbaptist.org/evangelism. --30-- This article appeared in The Courier (baptistcourier.com), newsjournal of the South Carolina Baptist Convention. Julia S. Bell is a contributing writer for the South Carolina Baptist Convention. ********** Tennesseans support ministry in India By Lonnie Wilkey CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (Baptist & Reflector) -- Baptists in Cumberland Baptist Association, headquartered in Clarksville, Tenn., know they can travel to minister in India only on occasion. For ministry to be effective there, it is imperative that Christians with a heart for their lost countrymen are trained to be missionaries to plant churches in the remote villages of India. Thus, Mission Voice Network Ministries in India was formed in the United States to raise prayer and financial support for the suffering missionaries there. The Clarksville-based ministry is comprised of primarily Tennessee Baptists from area churches. The organization sponsored a booth at The Summit held at First Baptist Church in Millington in November to introduce Tennessee Baptists to their ministry and to meet Viiayan Kochupillai (Bro. Vee), a converted Hindu who is dedicated to spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ in India. Bro. Vee founded and currently serves as president of Mission Voice Network in India. Since he developed the organization in 2008, MVN has developed 452 nationally trained missionaries whose primary focus is to plant churches in the remote villages of India. Tony Evans is the United States director of MSN. He learned about the ministry in India on one of Bro. Vee's visits to the United States in 2009 to raise financial and prayer support. Bro. Vee attended a home Bible study group that Evans hosted in his home. Evans noted that Bro. Vee's English was still in the beginning stages and that he was hard to understand. But after Vee returned to Clarksville the following two years, Evans went to India at Bro. Vee's invitation to see for himself the ministry his India friend had begun. "God captured my heart for that ministry, said Evans, a member of First Baptist Church, Clarksville. After returning home from that first trip to India, he started the non-profit organization in the United States and began to enlist other Baptists in the area to join him. "God has called me to be the voice of those precious saints who are suffering for the gospel in India," Evans said. Dwight Dickson, a member of FBC who serves on the MVN board of directors, has been to India twice. "It's hard to comprehend what is taking place over there," he observed. MVN raises financial support for the local missionaries. Evans noted that $50 a month provides income for a missionary family in India. While that doesn't seem like much money, a 20-pound bag of rice will last a family in India for five to six weeks, he said. The work in India is challenging. It normally takes one to five years to establish a self-supported church in one of the villages, he noted. Over the years the ministry has been able to reach more than 1,500 villages. "We are seeing a transformation in these villages," said Bro. Vee. MVN is effective because national missionaries are born and raised in India. They have an advantage over other nationalities in reaching their people for Christ, Evans said. Among them, the national missionaries know the languages, the culture, and the various mind-sets of the people, he observed. "Because of their faithfulness and willingness to sacrifice, national missionaries have been able to share the love of Jesus Christ with literally millions of men, women, and children who had never heard of His name," Evans said. "In India today, believers joyfully worship the Lord in places where no church existed before, but none of those accomplishments occur easily," he added. Evans noted that national missionaries "are paying a high price" to see people reached with Christ's love. "Persecution is a part of life for many missionaries. Beatings, death threats, and imprisonment are a few of the things they encounter on a daily basis," Evans said. Despite the dangers, these missionaries, who do not do anything without prayer and fasting, "press onward as they proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to the unsaved souls of India," he added. Evans and those involved with MVN in the United States provide monthly support for the missionaries, bicycles to the national missionaries for transportation and motorbikes to ministry coordinators in India as they travel to the villages to assist the local missionaries. The organization also provides water wells and food, medicine, and education to local children in addition to many other ministries, Evans said. These types of outreach and programs allow the national missionaries to be more welcomed in the villages, he said. Over the years volunteers have traveled to India and led Vacation Bible Schools for children and helped train leaders. Thousands of children have accepted Christ as a result of VBS, the Clarksvillians estimated. Vee continues to travel to the United States to share with groups, but Clarksville is one of his favorite stops. In November, he was ordained as a minister and officially became a member of First Baptist Church. Rick Stevens, director of missions for Cumberland Baptist Association, has participated in the ministry in India. "The connection with the ministry has impacted some of our churches," he said. Evans welcomes Tennessee Baptists who want more information about what God is doing among the Hindus in India to call him at 931-206-6725. --30-- This article appeared in the Baptist & Reflector (tnbaptist.org/BRNews.asp), newsjournal of the Tennessee Baptist Convention. Lonnie Wilkey is editor of the Baptist & Reflector. ********** EDITOR'S NOTE: From the States, published each Tuesday by Baptist Press, relays news and feature stories from state Baptist papers and other publications on initiatives by Baptist churches, associations and state conventions in evangelism, church planting and Great Commission outreach, including partnership missions. Reports about churches, associations and state conventions responding to the International Mission Board's call to embrace the world's unengaged, unreached people groups also are included in From the States, along with reports about church, associational and state convention initiatives in conjunction with the North American Mission Board's call to Southern Baptist churches to broaden their efforts in starting new churches and satellite campuses. The items appear in Baptist Press as originally published.