The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-03/18/2014 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. -------------------------------------------------------------------- FIRST-PERSON: Lessons learned in choir rehearsal by Joe McKeever Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- "Come before Him with joyful singing" (Psalm 100:2). During the time I sang with the choir at our church, I loved singing for the worship service, but had to make myself go to rehearsal. Rehearsing songs -- whether for church or school assembly or for the juke joint down the street -- is hard work. Gradually, I began to see some patterns forming. Eventually, those shapes merged to form life-lessons that have remained with me all these years. I do not like new songs. The minister of music would say, "Joyce, pass out the new music," and I would cringe. I did not read music and did not do well trying to negotiate my way around these clotheslines of blackbirds. The piano is picking out the melody of the song and I'm working to get it. This is no fun. It's work. But a funny thing happened. The following week, when the director passed out that music for the second time, I was interested in that piece. It had possibilities. And the third week, I kind of liked it. By the fourth week, I was in love with it and had been humming it all week. But you know what happened, I expect. At rehearsal, the minister handed out some new music once again. And again, I cringed. "I hate learning new music." We sound better together than we do separately. Even the good singers, when called on to do a little solo in rehearsal to help the others, were not all that great. And of course, I was the very definition of mediocre. But a funny thing happened. When we all joined our voices together, the result was something magical. I wonder if that's the reason for church. We work better and worship better and pray better in concert with brothers and sisters than we do alone. I sing better and learn faster when standing near a good singer. Larry Andrews, our minister of music, would place the non-music-reading singers next to solid singers. And we would pick up the notes from them. Later, once we got the hang of the song, we could stand anywhere. Encouragers and examples to those who are new to the faith are worth their weight in gold. Singing can transform your mood. That 100th Psalm calls for us to "enter His gates with thanksgiving." There is the clue as to how to "come before Him with joyful singing." We start by giving thanks to our Lord for His abundant blessings. Do that --"count your many blessings, see what God hath done" -- and the darkness of the blues seems to dissipate. Soon, you're singing and doing so quite well, thank you. Those who bless us on Sundays are the ones who did the hard work of rehearsing during the week. Just this week, a pastor told me about his worship ensemble. "I cannot get them to come to rehearsal. They love to sing on Sunday, but if I announce a rehearsal, only one or two show up." Not good. I suspect they enjoy gathering fruit from crops they did not plant or cultivate, too. That kind of laziness is common. Something inside me feels the same way. Rehearsing is work. But for those who know how transforming an hour of worship with God's people can be, it's an investment of faith. When done right, a rehearsal for worship is also a time of worship. Many a time, I have left the choir rehearsal with my spirit lifted and my heart full. The fellowship with friends was great. Some of us hugged one another, and we laughed a lot. We fell in love with some songs and learned to express our love for our Savior more with them. Singing is as much a faith enterprise as praying or giving. Anytime we do anything by faith -- believing, worshiping, giving, praying, going, serving -- we do so regardless of what we have or do not have, what we know or still question, those nagging doubts and the discouragement from others. The operative word is "regardless." When we pray or drop our offering into the plate, we do so regardless of seeing the results in our lifetime. And with singing to others, in church or assembly or a classroom or nursing home, we must not look for immediate results. Paul and Silas showed us how this is done in Acts 16:25. Beaten and their wounds left untreated, then locked into stocks in the interior of the Philippi jail, they began to pray and sing hymns. "And the prisoners were listening to them." They're always listening to us sing. In the case of Paul and Silas, God did some amazing things that night, all of them instigated by their faith-singing. What will He do with your singing? I have no idea. But count on it, friend, He will use it for His glory. So, go ahead. Join with me now. "I love you, Lord. And I lift my voice, to worship You, O my soul rejoice. Take joy my King, in what you hear. May it be a sweet sweet sound in Your ear." --30-- Joe McKeever, on the Web at www.joemckeever.com, is a Baptist Press cartoonist and columnist, a former longtime pastor and former director of missions for the New Orleans Baptist Association. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Tim Lubinus named Iowa Baptists' exec by Staff Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday DES MOINES, Iowa (BP) -- Church missions leader and former missionary Tim Lubinus has been elected as the Baptist Convention of Iowa's new executive director/treasurer. Lubinus, a native Iowan, was elected by the BCI Executive Board on March 10. He will replace interim executive director/treasurer Tom Law on March 24. Lloyd Eaken, pastor of Fairview Baptist Church in Anamosa and president of the Baptist Convention of Iowa, said Lubinus "will be a great asset to the work of the Lord here in Iowa.… I believe God has led us to this moment and this man. I encourage all Iowa Baptists to support Tim and lift him to the Lord daily." Lubinus, 50, was recommended by the BCI's executive director search committee Feb. 22 after what a convention news release described as a "year-long process of prayerfully sifting through resumes and interviewing applicants." Lubinus has been the regional and global ministry director at Cornerstone Church in Ames the past eight years. His responsibilities have included Cornerstone's church planting strategy, which has started six new BCI churches with nearly 2,000 attendees. He isn't done planting churches, telling members of the search committee he has "more vision and energy for church planting and church health/development across the state." Lubinus also was involved in the sending of Cornerstone short-term mission volunteers, preparing long-term missionaries and creating new ministries to reach the needy in Ames. Lubinus was baptized while attending Iowa State University and became a member of Grand Avenue Baptist Church. He was called to the ministry in 1982, recounting that he and his wife Darlene "went forward after IMB missionaries to the Philippines Bill and Lyn Hyde [for whom the Iowa State Missions Offering is named] spoke at Grand Avenue Baptist Church. We pledged to serve Jesus wherever He would call us." Hyde was among 22 people killed in 2003 when a bomb exploded at the Davao City airport. Lubinus completed his undergraduate degree in public service administration in 1985 at Iowa State. The couple then moved to Fort Worth, Texas, where he earned a master of divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1988. Following graduation, Lubinus became the university student ministry director at Northern Illinois University for the Illinois Baptist State Association. In 1990, the couple and their children became International Mission Board missionaries in Korea where he was a university student ministry director for the Southern Baptist International Mission Board. The family moved to Central Asia in 1996 where Lubinus started, led and expanded a team of more than 100 IMB missionaries in 12 cities while serving as the strategy associate on IMB's Central Asia regional leadership team. In 2005, Tim also became a trainer for ministry supervisors in Central Asia. "While in Central Asia I worked hard to create a quality organization that missionaries joined because they wanted to, not because they had to," Lubinus recounted. "As a result of high growth and low attrition rates, our team became one of the fastest-growing IMB teams at that time in one of the most closed countries in the world. I have a similar vision for the Baptist Convention of Iowa in which pastors are excited about participating and inviting their friends to join for the vision, strategy, structure and excellence provided and because of the benefits they receive from being part of the organization." Search committee chairman Dan Doolin, pastor of Solid Rock Baptist Church in Wappelo, said Lubinus comes to the BCI "with a depth of experience and with a heart to reach not only his community and state where he lives, but also the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is an exciting day for me to think that God has raised up a native Iowan to lead the ministry of the BCI and has given to us a person that not only understands our culture but the cultures of the world." The Lubinus family returned to Iowa in 2006 when he began work with Cornerstone Church in Ames. He recently completed his doctor of ministry degree through Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City with an emphasis in church planting and church revitalization. Lubinus thanked all the people God has used to bring him to the state convention staff, saying, "God used Grand Avenue Baptist Church and [then-pastor] Tom Nesbitt, the Baptist Student Union and Jack Owens, Bill and Lyn Hyde, the International Mission Board, North American Mission Board, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Cornerstone Church to develop my faith. I love the opportunity to give back to Iowa Baptists what I have received from them." Ken Livingston, pastor of First Grace Baptist Church in Sheffield and BCI first vice president, said, "It is wonderful to see how God worked with and through the search committee and the Executive Board to bring Tim and Darlene Lubinus to this place in their lives. I see God in this decision and therefore I am anticipating great things for Iowa. It will be an honor to minister with them and support them as we serve the Lord Jesus together." In addition to Doolin, members of the search committee appointed by the Executive Board were Mike Carlson (vice chair), Eugene Guthrie, Ted Keys, Jerome Risting, Chuck Spindler, Bob Stout and John Faulkner (alternate). Lubinus and his wife Darlene have four grown children: Jacob Lubinus, 20; Nathan Lubinus, 21; Andrew Lubinus, 24 and Linsey Gravlin, 26, who is married to David Gravlin. --30-- Reported by Jon (Ole) Olsen, publication editor for the Iowa Baptist News. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Media attention puts spotlight on guns, Jesus by David Roach Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP) – An evangelism strategy that involves giving away guns to attract unchurched men to wild game dinners has drawn criticism from gun control advocates in an array of national media outlets this month, including TIME, USA Today, MSNBC, Fox News and the Huffington Post. But Kentucky Baptist Convention leaders say God is using KBC’s controversial ministry effort and the flurry of media attention to increase attendance and salvation decisions at the events. Sixty-eight people professed faith in Christ at a wild game dinner last weekend, and nearly 500 attendees have done so in Kentucky churches since Jan. 1. "The recent reports regarding the giving away of guns at wild game dinners have, by and large, missed the essence of the story," KBC Evangelism and Church Planting Team Leader Chuck McAlister told Baptist Press in written comments. "There is a basic misunderstanding of evangelism and what compels us to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others.... The offense that many have regarding the guns themselves also causes the greater story to be ignored." The wild game dinners, which some churches refer to as "Second Amendment Celebrations," feature a free meal and a message from McAlister about the outdoors, hunting and how to know the God who created nature through His Son Jesus. The number of unchurched men in attendance is directly proportional to the number of firearms given away, said McAlister, former host of the Outdoor Channel's "Adventure Bound Outdoors." The Second Amendment Celebrations are part of the KBC's larger "affinity evangelism" strategy, a method of sharing Jesus by bringing people together based on common needs or interests -- including hunting, quilting, archery and dozens of other possibilities. Local businesses and individuals donate guns to be given away during the events as door prizes. Gun winners are photographed with their prizes but can only claim them at local gun dealers after passing background checks. McAlister told the Louisville Courier-Journal that he does not "advocate violence" and that the guns are intended "for hunting and protection only." But that hasn’t silenced critics. "Most churches would be appalled. It is an appalling form of outreach of evangelicalism that is an offense to the Gospel of Jesus," Nancy Jo Kemper, pastor of New Union Christian Church in Lexington, Ky., told MSNBC. She said "Jesus would puke" in response to Kentucky laws that allow clergy and laypeople to carry concealed weapons on church property. Joe Phelps, pastor of Louisville's Highland Baptist Church, which separated from the KBC in 2012 after the congregation ordained an open homosexual, told the Courier-Journal that it is inconsistent to give away guns at an event where people hear a message about Jesus, who said, "Put away the sword." Phelps went on to take issue with all "giveaways for God." "Can you picture Jesus giving away guns, or toasters or raffle tickets?" Phelps said. ".... He gave away bread once, but that was as a sign, not a sales pitch." McAlister has participated in outreach events featuring gun giveaways for more than 20 years, he said, but "only recently have these events been called into question." "This is largely due to the explosion of violence that we are seeing in our nation, particularly on our school campuses," McAlister said. "Many in our culture would point to guns and access to guns as the culprit in this escalating violence. They have chosen to view guns as something evil. Anyone who dares associate with a gun is therefore doing something terribly wrong in their minds. However, the people to whom we target our Gospel message do not share this mindset. They see guns as a part of their everyday life." Giving gifts to draw people to Jesus follows the example of God Himself, who gives creation, conscience and the cross in attempt to woo sinners, McAlister said. "I believe the giving away of guns draws the men to hear [the Gospel] message,” McAlister said. “If giving away toasters would accomplish the same purpose, I would be glad to give them away. It would be much less controversial. The giving way of guns helps us be incarnational with our audience and to present the message that God became incarnate to share with us." KBC executive director Paul Chitwood told Baptist Press that neither giveaways nor guns are new to Kentucky Baptists. "While gun control advocates may bristle at the approach, personally, I find nothing about these events to be sinful," Chitwood said. "To the contrary, at events like these in Kentucky and beyond, Southern Baptists are seeing thousands of people won to Christ each year." Southern Baptists have long practiced "attractional evangelism" said Chitwood, "from the Power Team to 'Judgment Houses' to Upward Basketball and Easter egg hunts." Although the KBC did not attempt to incite the recent blitz of media coverage surrounding Second Amendment Celebrations, the convention welcomes the opportunity for evangelism. "During this brief time in the media spotlight, I have seen Chuck McAlister have opportunities to share the Gospel with more reporters and talk show hosts than we would have ever imagined," Chitwood said. "While we have not sought this attention, we are praying that God will find us good stewards of it." --30-- David Roach is a writer in Shelbyville, Ky. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Link between speaking, spiritual gifts explored by Gary D. Myers Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- An idea that began with a simple joke set Rhonda Harrington Kelley on a journey to explore the connection between verbal communication and spiritual gifts. About 10 years ago, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary President Chuck Kelley introduced his wife Rhonda at an event. He quipped to the crowd that she had three spiritual gifts not listed in the Bible: sleeping, shopping and talking. The joke was well-received by the crowd, and Rhonda Kelley found herself drawn to the relationship between talking and many of the spiritual gifts addressed in Scripture. This interest eventually culminated into a new book, "Talking is a Gift: Communication Skills for Women." The book, co-written by Monica Rose Brennan, serves as a communication tool for women seeking to minister to other women. B&H Academics released the book Feb. 1. After that humorous introduction, Kelly later began reading 1 Peter 4. She focused on the words "If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God." They helped compel her study of the link between verbal communication and many of the spiritual gifts. "So many of the spiritual gifts like teaching, administration, exhortation and mercy must use words to minister to others," Kelley said. "That resonated in my heart and mind. Talking is a gift. It is a gift that God gives us to minister to others." Based on her teaching experience in the women's ministry program at the seminary, Kelley had found that a textbook for women's public speaking courses was needed at seminaries and Christian colleges. For years most of the public speaking textbooks specifically targeting women have been written from a secular perspective. Most of the "speaking" books from a Christian perspective targeted men and focused on preaching, she said. "One of the reasons I felt it was so important to have a public speaking book written by a woman for women is because men and women are different and we communicate differently," Kelley said. When B&H Academic published its first academic book for women's ministry in 2008 -- "Women Leading Women" by Jaye Martin and Terri Stovall -- Kelley wrote a proposal for "Talking is a Gift" and ultimately secured a publishing deal. "Talking is a Gift" is the second women-focused publication by B&H Academic. As Kelley fleshed out the details of the book, she began to think about the advantages a co-author could bring to the project. She immediately thought of Brennan, who teaches women's ministry at Liberty University. Kelley knew that Brennan would bring a unique perspective to the project. Not only is she from a younger generation, she also teaches on the collegiate level. Kelley and Brennan help provide a general foundation for communication and discuss the gender dynamics of communication. B&H Academics supplemented the book with QR codes and links to online bonus material. The web-based material gives readers access to videos of Kelley and Brennan explaining key communication issues related to women. "The book has some technical information, because it is an academic textbook," Kelley said. "But our desire is that it would also be helpful to lay leaders. Many women in the church are having opportunities to teach and speak in different ways." Women's ministry classes at The Baptist College of Florida, the University of Mobile, Ouachita Baptist University and Liberty University have begun using the book this semester. New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary will begin using the book during March workshops. "Talking is a Gift" is available for purchase through LifeWay Christian Stores and Amazon in hardback and electronic form. For more information, visit www.talkingisagift.com or "like" the "Talking is a Gift" page on Facebook. --30-- Gary D. Myers is director of public relations at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Reflecting on 'God-ordained,' difficult days in Haitian jail by Erin Roach Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday TWIN FALLS, Idaho (BP) -- Paul Thompson considers it a beautiful thing to reflect on the days he and nine other Baptists were detained in a filthy Haitian jail, falsely accused of trafficking the orphans they were trying to help. "They were difficult and perplexing and complex days, but God ordained them," Thompson, pastor of Eastside Baptist Church in Twin Falls, Idaho, told Baptist Press four years after the ordeal. "It's easy to see that, especially as I read back through my journal entries from those days." Thompson has compiled a 60-page journal of his time in Haiti, recording times when he wept with his face to the wall and times when he rejoiced over God's provision. The group of volunteers from two Idaho churches traveled to Haiti in January 2010 to rescue orphans from the earthquake-ravaged country and move them to safety in the Dominican Republic. Shockingly, they were charged with child kidnapping instead. Eight of the volunteers, including Thompson, were released after 19 days. Another team member was allowed to leave after 37 days, and the final volunteer was held more than 100 days. Among the good that God brought from those bad days was the establishment of New Horizon, a ministry supported by Eastside Baptist Church that houses, feeds and educates 20 girls in Port-au-Prince. It was during the volunteer group's detention that they met a Haitian named Alex, who now serves as director of the ministry. "That connection with Alex was clearly the providential hand of God," Thompson said. Because of the spiritual need in the community where the ministry houses the girls, Eastside has planted its first international church plant, New Horizon Baptist Church. "Spinning out of our engagement there for the last four years, since the arrest days, they've been days of unfolding for church planting, caring for orphans, being a witness for the Gospel there in Port-au-Prince," Thompson told BP. Crisis management When news broke that the volunteer group had been arrested, Clint Henry, pastor of Central Valley Baptist Church in Meridian, Idaho, the second church with members on the trip, was home preparing his usual 5th Sunday sermon -- a Gospel presentation. "I knew that the world was going to cave in on some of the families," Henry told Baptist Press. "It was tempting to think maybe I should preach a different message." But as he watched the mainstream media begin to surround his church, Henry knew God was telling him to stay the course and preach the message he planned to deliver. He did, and the standing-room-only crowd heard the Gospel loud and clear. One of the positive developments that came from the Haiti ordeal for Central Valley Baptist Church is that now they are prepared with a crisis management team to help mitigate any chaos that might arise if a similar event happens on another mission trip. "I think as more and more churches are doing overseas ministries, the possibility for unexpected things is always there, and I think some churches aren't as prepared as they ought to be," Henry said. Central Valley Baptist has remained strong in their commitment to international missions. The church, with 450 regular attenders, has sent teams to more than 30 countries. What happened in Haiti didn't deter them any more than it deterred Eastside Baptist. Those days when the volunteers were locked in putrid conditions in a Haitian jail were hard for sure, Henry remembers, but God taught him some "amazing spiritual lessons." The first thing Henry had to surrender, he said, was his right to a good reputation. Growing up, a person's name meant something, and Henry was seeing his name, as pastor of a church tied to child trafficking, smeared. Not only that, his church's reputation was maligned. "I was reminded that people didn't think well of Jesus Christ. He didn't have a good reputation either," Henry said, "but that didn't keep Him from continuing to do the Father's work." The church received hate mail because of falsehoods reported in the media, "but we just had to keep laying down our right to have things work out our way or be thought of the way we wanted to be thought of or have this thing end as quickly as we wanted it to end," Henry told BP. Thompson, in his Feb. 6 journal entry, wrote that a group from a television news network had brought in a pizza from Domino's and MREs for them one day. “One of our MREs had a mobile phone in it. They wanted us to use it to call our families,” Thompson wrote in his journal. “As tempting as this was we have chosen not to use it. I am of the opinion that the media wants to listen in to gather information. This may be an innocent gesture of good will but we have decided that there is no media we can trust or want to trust right now." 'God can do what we cannot do' Looking back four years later, maybe the most significant lesson the people of Central Valley Baptist learned from the group's detention was being reminded "that God can do what we cannot do," Henry said. The families of the volunteers wanted to take care of their loved ones by providing meals, water and other necessities, but they could not because they were thousands of miles away. "That became an incredible daily challenge that was really kind of beyond our ability to take care of, but God answered that prayer through a Christian organization that came to our aid and through people that showed up at the jail -- Christians in Haiti that brought water and food and things like that to our people," Henry recounted. "It was constantly a reminder to us that God does meet our basic needs. "Sometimes it was humorous because our team was full of God's love for the people down there so a lot of times when we did get supplies to them, they gave them away to the other people that were incarcerated with them who had no one to take care of them," Henry said. "Sometimes after we got what we thought they needed to them, we immediately had to get more because they had given it away." In his Jan. 30 journal entry, Thompson recorded, "The cell is only concrete. No bunks. No mattresses. The Dominican, Jean, came back offering his sleeping bag. Jim is kind to accept his gift. Not sure when this bag was last washed but from the odor, it has been some time ago. Kindness from God in a dark place." Thompson's recorded prayer that night was, "God, protect us tonight. We are without everything but You. You and you alone do we have. Praise be to God." Though the days inside the jail and at home in Idaho were intense and difficult, "the Lord showed us that He was faithful," Henry said, "and I think that gave a number of people in our church the courage to believe that even though they were going through difficult things in their own lives, God would be there for them too." Henry quoted Proverbs 16:9: "The mind of man plans his ways but the Lord directs his steps." "We had this plan of ministry that we thought we were going to be involved in, but it turned out to be something very different," Henry said. "It often works that way, and we just have to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and be willing to do what He leads us to do." --30-- Erin Roach is assistant editor of Baptist Press. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- SBC DIGEST: Pres. Bush headlines men's event; 2015 Send North America Conf. set; Saddleback slates mental health conf. by Staff Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Former President George W. Bush will be among the speakers at "The Main Event," a conference for men Aug. 1-2 in Nashville sponsored by LifeWay Christian Resources. Bush will take the stage along with Bobby Bowden, the winningest football coach in NCAA history; three-time NASCAR champion Darrell Waltrip; retired U.S. Army Maj. Jeff Struecker, whose battlefield heroics were immortalized in the film "Black Hawk Down"; LifeWay President Thom Rainer; and others. Three-time Grammy winner Michael W. Smith will lead worship. The theme for The Main Event is from Isaiah 53:5 -- "by his stripes we are healed," which LifeWay men's ministry leader Jason Ellerbrook says is "wrapped around honoring the wounded warrior." The conference will honor those who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces "who have sacrificed to give us freedom on earth," Ellerbrook said, but it will ultimately challenge men to "honor Christ as the one who gave us eternal freedom through His victory over sin and death." Having a former U.S. president as a speaker is significant for any conference, but it is especially so for The Main Event, only in its second year of existence. Despite the lack of an extended history, Ellerbrook knew the conference would be something special shortly after they began promoting the inaugural gathering. "Last year we had 5,000 men attend, which sold out the Curb Center at Belmont University two months before the event," he said. This year's conference will be in the much larger Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville and will challenge even more men in their faith and commitments. "Our goal is to see men come to know Christ and more fully experience Him," Ellerbrook said. "Men who attend The Main Event will experience a sense of honor, dignity and respect," he said. "We are all wounded and broken -- that we have in common. However, Jesus can be the ultimate common denominator. Through Him we can experience victory and lead a full life." Ellerbrook said registration will be capped at 10,000 and organizers are expecting the event to sell out well in advance of August. Early registration for the conference, which begins Friday evening, Aug 1, and runs through noon Saturday, is $69. A preconference for ministry leaders will be held Friday afternoon, Aug. 1, with a $39 registration fee. A full list of the speakers, schedules and other information is available at The Main Event. NAMB announces 2015 Send Conference date, location ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) -- The North American Mission Board is developing plans for its 2015 Send North America Conference slated for Aug. 3-4 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. This will be the third time NAMB has hosted the conference to encourage, equip and mobilize lay leaders in local congregations to penetrate lostness in North America.  Nearly 2,000 people attended the Send North America Conference at First Baptist Church Woodstock, Ga., in 2012. The attendance more than doubled in 2013 at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas. "We want to see churches partner together to impact lost communities in North America," said Aaron Coe, NAMB's vice president for mobilization and marketing. "The Send Conference is simply an opportunity for like-minded pastors, leaders and church members to gather in one place and build a vision for reaching people with the Gospel. The 2015 conference is really about engaging and mobilizing the person in the pew to live a life on mission." Leading up to the 2015 Conference, dozens of Southern Baptist churches in about 30 cities throughout North America will host Send North America Experiences. These church-based multimedia experiences are designed to engage churches and leaders who want to celebrate what God is doing in North America and learn how they can participate. Thomas Road Baptist Church hosted the first of these gatherings in conjunction with its Refuel Conference Oct. 9-10 of last year in Lynchburg, Va. A schedule of Send North America Experience dates and locations can be found at Send Conference. The 2015 Send North America Conference will have seating capacity for more than 10,000 attendees in downtown Nashville. Organizers are encouraging pastors and leaders to bring interested members of their congregations. Many of the breakout and workshop sessions will center on God's call for mobilizing lay leaders through the Send North America strategy. Explore coverage of previous Send North America conferences at Send 2013. Mental health ministry launching at Saddleback LAKE FOREST, Calif. (BP) -- Saddleback Church pastor Rick Warren is starting a new mental health ministry following the suicide of his son Matthew, who at age 27 shot himself in April 2013 after years of struggling with severe depression. According to a WORLD News Service report, Warren will team up with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, Calif., and the National Alliance on Mental Illness to raise awareness and remove misunderstandings against mental illnesses within the faith community. On March 28, the three groups will host The Gathering on Mental Health and the Church, a daylong event at Saddleback that will cover a wide range of mental health issues, from bipolar disorder to eating disorders. Warren said he hopes the conference will educate family members of people living with mental illness, encourage those who are struggling, and motivate other churches to create similar mental health ministries. "I'm certainly not going to waste this pain," Warren said. "One of the things I believe is that God never wastes a hurt and that oftentimes your greatest ministry comes out of your deepest pain. I remember writing in my journal that in God's garden of grace, even broken trees bear fruit." As Warren and his wife Kay mourned their son's death, they received more than 10,000 emails and letters from people who poured out their own struggles with mental illnesses. The Warrens said their own grief and others' stories shook them with the realization that many, including those within churches, lack support and understanding amidst their mental battles. "It's amazing to me that any other organ in your body can break down and there's no shame and stigma to it," Warren said in his first sermon after his son's suicide. "But if your brain breaks down, you're supposed to keep it a secret. … If your brain doesn't work right, why should you be ashamed of that?" Saddleback is known for its initiative on HIV and AIDS, an awareness campaign and outreach ministry for people living with the disease. When the Warrens first began the ministry, they thought AIDS was the greatest taboo. But now, "I think mental illness is," Warren said. About 35 million people have HIV and AIDS worldwide, but more than 400 million struggle with mental illness, he noted. "And we want to remove the stigma." Saddleback has long sponsored support groups for family and friends of people with mental illness, but Warren said this new ministry will equal the scale and comprehensiveness of Saddleback's HIV and AIDS program. "Our goal is, as we say, we crack the door open and then churches go, 'OK. If the diocese is doing this, if Saddleback's doing this, we can do this,'" Warren said. "And we'd love to see a movement started where people actually begin to say, 'We need to see this element added to our local ministry.'" In the Southern Baptist Convention, Executive Committee President Frank Page is in the process of naming a volunteer advisory body of professionals in the mental health field to advise him on possible ways to better inform Southern Baptists about available mental health service providers and resources. In its Feb. 17-18 meeting in Nashville, the Executive Committee concurred with the spirit of a motion referred from the 2013 SBC annual meeting regarding mental health ministry. EC members voted to amend an annual ministry report form it solicits from the SBC's entities to include questions asking appropriate entities how they are assisting Southern Baptist churches in equipping and ministering to people with mental health challenges. The EC also voted to "continue to seek ways to work in cooperation with SBC entities and others to address the severe challenges imposed by mental illness." --30-- Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- FROM THE STATES: Ariz., Fla., Ky. evangelism/missions news; TN church reaches out to 'largely lost population' in AZ by Staff Date: March 18, 2014 - Tuesday Today's From the States features items from: Portraits (Arizona) Florida Baptist Convention Western Recorder (Kentucky) A Cross-country partnership with double the blessings By Kay Harms TUCSON, Ariz. (Portraits) -- When church planter Gary Monroe leads Lifework Church's first preview service on Easter morning, he'll know there is a church full of people in Jackson, Tenn., praying for his new congregation in Tucson. In fact, they've done more than pray. Englewood Baptist Church in Jackson has mobilized multiple mission teams to Arizona in the past two years to come alongside existing ministries and to help facilitate church planting efforts. According to the congregation's outreach pastor, David Taylor, the people of Englewood have developed a passion and burden for assisting Christians who are trying to reach the lost in Arizona. The connection between Englewood Church and Arizona Southern Baptists began when David Holmes, an Englewood church member who also coordinates Arizona Southern Baptists' mission partnership in the Caribbean, introduced the idea to Taylor. Previously the missions-minded congregation focused most of its North American outreach efforts and resources on Montana. With their goals in that state accomplished, the church began to pray for God to open another door for ministry in a pioneer state. "We wanted a place where we could reach out to a largely lost population and introduce them to God's kingdom," Taylor says. "We also wanted a place where we could get multiple groups of people in our church involved from different areas and ages." And they have done just that. Thus far, missionaries from Englewood have included groups of adults, teenagers, senior adults and men. Teams of senior adults, college students, ninth and tenth graders, and adults will come to Arizona in 2014 to help Monroe launch Lifework Church in the Star Valley community of Tucson. Brian Hedstrom, a trucking company administrator in Jackson, participated in the church's first mission trip to Arizona in July 2012. Besides helping with a VBS and canvassing neighborhoods for several church plants, Hedstrom and the other missionaries became aware of some of the physical plant needs at Rio Vista Center in Phoenix. The group painted, repaired holes in the walls and did some rewiring, but they realized there was much more to do. So in March 2013, Hedstrom helped lead a construction team of seven men, returning to Rio Vista with the financing and manpower to replace the building's plumbing and to connect it to a sewage system, retiring the insufficient septic tank that had required monthly flushing. Asked why he was willing to use his vacation weeks to labor in the Arizona heat, Hedstrom says he sees it as an opportunity for his family to fulfill the Great Commission, noting that his wife, Lanae, sacrificed by staying home with their children while he served. "We've lived in the upper Midwest and now we live in the Bible Belt," says Hedstrom,"and I know that most of the West is unchurched. It's a different type of sharing your faith than here in the Bible Belt." Hedstrom isn't the only Englewood missionary to receive a blessing from serving in Arizona. Outreach pastor Taylor says members of the church have gained every bit as much as they've given by resourcing, praying for and serving alongside Arizona Southern Baptists. Englewood plans to continue its partnership with Arizona Southern Baptists for at least three more years, potentially five. "Serving in Arizona has been a huge blessing to our people, because believers in Arizona have really impacted our church," insists Taylor. "We see people in Arizona reaching out to a people who are harder to reach, and we admire that. And their passion and hard work inspires us to do the same here in Tennessee." --30-- This article appeared in Portraits, newsmagazine of the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention (http://www.azsobaptist.org/). Kay Harms is a writer in Sierra Vista, Ariz., and a member of First Baptist Church there. ********** Missionary calling leads to new Orlando church By Barbara Denman ORLANDO (Florida Baptist Witness) -- Pastor Andrew Oates believes if the Apostle Paul were to start a church today, Orlando -- one of the world's most visited cities -- would be a destination of his church-planting missionary journeys. "If God calls us to reach the world and the world is here, then God is calling us to plant churches in Orlando," said the pastor of Redeemer Church. With more than 50 million visitors each year and with the second highest population growth in Florida, the region composed of two million people is desperately in need of churches, Oates contends. Following God's call, he moved to the region specifically to plant a church. Located in an affluent Winter Garden suburb, the three-year old church plant is surrounded by more than 60,000 homes. "Redeemer was started in Horizon West, a 23,000 acre special planning area of Orange County," explained Mark Weible, director of church planting for the Greater Orlando Baptist Association. "The population of the area was estimated at just over 4,000 people in 2005 and is expected to grow to as many as 63,000 people by 2030. The area is in need of several new multiplying churches in order to keep up with population growth." "We could plant 20 churches here and it is still not enough," concurred Oates.  The church was planted in 2010 with a mission to have members actively involved "in sharing Christ with our neighbors, our friends, Orlando and the world," he explained. "It is not the church's purpose to make disciples. It's the people's responsibility to make disciples. We are on this journey together." "Andrew thinks like a missionary," said Weible, "He is skilled in community exegesis. As any pastor knows, proper Biblical exegesis is needed to effectively teach the Bible. Likewise, missionaries understand that they need to research their communities to discover how to present the never changing message of the Gospel to an ever changing culture." Redeemer began with a small nucleus of Baptists meeting together in living rooms and praying. Six months later, the group numbered between 50-60 members, had outgrown the homes where they met and began to search for a more permanent meeting space. The gregarious pastor recalled that the church had $6 in the bank, but church members were challenged to give sacrificially.  They eventually began renting a store front facility on Winter Garden-Vineland Road which snakes behind the Disney world resort properties. The facility was originally retrofitted as a church for another denomination. Redeemer remodeled the facility with a warm and inviting charm and large areas for members to gather.    During the first year, the Florida Baptist Convention provided the congregation with $2,000 a month to underwrite the new church start. That amount was expected to decrease to $1,000 the next year, but the church determined they did not need the financial subsidy continued and believed it would better benefit another church plant. In three years, the church grew to 200 in attendance, but a conflict developed within the congregation that resulted in 60 members leaving.  In one Sunday attendance dropped from 200 to 140. The church split was painful, said Oates, but helped the congregation better "define who we are and what we are about." Ultimately, he said, the church became healthier as a result of the parting of ways. Attendance has nearly grown back to the level it was before the split. The church, with its contemporary worship style, conversational style preaching, and warm glow of candles, offers members a Lord's Supper observance each week as a means of recommitting their lives to Christ. "We believe in a huge God who wants to move supernaturally among His people," Oates said. "We are not here to consume but to be consumed." The multicultural and multigenerational congregation includes members from England, India and Puerto Rico, resembling the Orlando community where members live, the pastor said. David and Gerrie Osbourne were looking for a church that would also appeal to their grandson, "teach the Bible as the inspired word of God and that God is the center of our lives. This church is doing this," he said. "Redeemer has given us a church family," David Osbourne observed.  The church, he continued, is reaching people who are "looking for something to hold on to and must decide if they are building their house on rock or sand—broken people who now want to reconstruct their lives on rock." Al Delara said he had a deep emptiness in his life, when he and his family found the Redeemer church while walking in their neighborhood. He now defines that void as the "need of Jesus in our lives. We needed to be filled." He was spiritually saved and baptized at the church. The pastor and staff demonstrated their care and concern for him. "This is an amazing place. Everyone treats you as family." "I am a regular person and I fall at times, but this church catches me," he said. "This place has changed our lives."  Redeemer Church is partnering with the North American Mission Board to provide on-the-job training for future church planters. In this collaboration, Mike Bard who serves as the church's children minister is applying real-life experiences to church planting principles. When it starts the new church, Weible said it will come from a strong lineage of multiplying churches. "We soon see a third generation church plant in the area."   As church members follow the course set by the apostle Paul, the missionary journey in Orlando -- the destination of the world—continues. --30-- This article appeared in the Florida Baptist Witness (gofbw.com), newsjournal of the Florida Baptist Convention. Barbara Denman is director of communications for the Florida Baptist Convention.   ********** Kentucky WMU hopes to fill 5,000 buckets; bring comfort to dying By Robin Cornetet Bass LOUISIVILLE, Ky. (Western Recorder) -- Christopher tried to be polite. He tried to sit on the edge of the bed when visitors entered his small, mud home, but after a few moments his efforts proved too exhausting and he lay back down. Like nearly 23 million other people living in Sub Saharan Africa, Christopher has been infected with HIV -- and he now is showing the advanced stages of AIDS. "He looked weary, just weary," said Joy Bolton, the executive director of Kentucky Woman's Missionary Union. Bolton recently took a 12-member team to South Africa to work with Tabitha Ministries who, along with Baptist Global Response, is reaching out to meet the needs of those infected by HIV/AIDS. Team members from Kentucky had the opportunity to deliver the few remaining hospice kits to bedridden individuals in Sweetwaters Township near Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Each BGR hospice kit consists of a five-gallon bucket packed with items intended to make life a little more comfortable, such as clean linens, towels, gentle soap and new socks. Also included is lip balm for chapped lips -- a common sign of infection -- and bendable straws, so the infirmed can more easily ingest medicines and vitamins with water. For caregivers, each bucket contains a box of latex gloves, fingernail clippers and a cleaning brush. While the items in each bucket are "things that most of us take for granted," Bolton said, "to those in extreme poverty and too weak to work, the items are a treasure." Kentucky WMU has set a goal of collecting 5,000 buckets this year and plans to kick off the effort at their annual meeting April 4-5 at Central Baptist Church in Winchester. Bolton said participants are encouraged to bring completed buckets or items for buckets and help fill two shipping containers with 1,500 completed buckets. Before heading to Houston for shipment, Bolton said there will be a blessing prayed over the buckets at the conclusion of the meeting. 'I was sick and you visited' As Bolton sat on the bucket she and others on the team brought to Christopher, she presented him with the gospel using an EvageCube. Christopher silently watched from his bed as Bolton flipped through the images of Jesus hanging on a cross and His defeat over death. "We have an obligation to minister to people in need," Bolton said. Then paraphrasing Matthew 25:35-40, she added, "'I was sick and you visited me.' That's what happened that day. Jesus was in that room." Lisa Crenshaw, WMU director of Nelson Baptist Association, had a similarly moving experience when she delivered a hospice bucket to Mavis, a 39-year-old mother with two young daughters. Mavis had spent the last three years of her life in bed suffering from the advanced stages of AIDS. A year ago, she had a stroke and lost her ability to speak. As Crenshaw watched Mavis's wounds being cleaned, the Sunday School teacher from Vine Hill Baptist Church in Shepherdsville, began to talk. "God brought me all the way from Shepherdsville—all the way from the United States -- to bring you the good news," said Crenshaw. "If you died today, do you know where you would go?" Mavis gestured down with her thumb. Crenshaw told Mavis that she also has two daughters and somehow, Crenshaw said, that resonated with the dying woman. As Crenshaw shared the gospel, she said, "You could feel God's presence was so strong. She had been witnessed to many times, but this time she got radically saved." When asked where she would go after accepting Christ, Mavis this time pointed up with her thumb and mumbled something Crenshaw said sounded like "hallelujah" as a tear fell down the woman's cheek. "We were so excited about her accepting Christ we almost forgot to give her the bucket," Crenshaw said. "You think you are going to be the blessing (when you are faithful to God's call), but it's you that really receives the blessing." Herb and Wanda Edminster are coordinating the BGR Bucket Project in Kentucky and said the effort is part of a five-year commitment by the Kentucky Baptist Convention to partner with BGR in Sub Sahara Africa. "These buckets will not end the HIV epidemic in Africa, but they will give patients and their families the realization that someone cares enough for their suffering to make this contribution," said Herb Edminster. --30-- This article appeared in the Western Recorder (westernrecorder.org), newsjournal of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. Robin Cornetet Bass is partnership editions director of the Western Recorder. ********** 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 3,800 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.