The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-06/19/2012 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: 'What a Glad Reunion' by Joe McKeever Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Lois Jane Kilgore started life on this earth just on the next ridge from where she ended it. She came and went in the very same bed (when Granny Kilgore died in 1963, mom got the ancient high-poster bed, dresser, etc.). This was Route 3, Nauvoo, Ala. (There are no more "routes," due to the 911 emergency system needing every street and road to have a name.) Mom was born July 14, 1916. She died June 2, 2012. Almost 96 years. Of her siblings, she was the last to go. For most of her life, Mom mistakenly celebrated July 21 as her birthday. I'm not sure why, but no doubt it had to do with their being very rural, her being the sixth child in a family of nine children, and the way doctors kept records back then (meaning: haphazardly). When she received a copy of her birth certificate from Montgomery and discovered her birthday to be July 14, my dad feigned shock. "That's grounds for divorce," Pop teased. "She was an older woman than I knew." Her being only 17 and he 21 when they wed -- March 3, 1934 -- she could actually have used a little aging before taking on all she did. She was the farmer's daughter. She married a coal miner. Theirs was a hard life together for many years due to a number of factors: He was no churchgoer, he was a hard worker but also undisciplined in his personal habits, and poverty was a constant companion. But Mom made the most of the life she had chosen. She was a champion. They had seven children, all in a nine-year span. That's hard on the mother. The photos of her in her late 20s, after birthing all these offspring, show her looking thin and weak. Mom was raised right. Her parents, John Wesley "Virge" and Sarah Noles Kilgore, were faithful Christians who made the trek to church each Sunday in the mule-drawn wagon. Or they walked. Mom used to say how much they all enjoyed the three-mile walk. A large cluster of teenage siblings walking the road to church in the later 1920s, early 1930s would tend to draw other teenagers. They laughed and talked, they sang, and they enjoyed life. She was a singer. As a teenager, she knew hundreds of songs by heart. One Saturday night in 1930, a group of the youth were having their own "singing" at church -- New Oak Grove Free Will Baptist Church, also familiarly known as Possum Trot, for some reason. As Lois and one of her sisters -- Ruby, I think -- were in front doing a duet, Carl and Gip McKeever, ages 18 and 16, walked in and took a seat. No churchgoers, these guys, they were looking for girls when someone had sent them to church. As they settled in, Carl told Gip (his actual name was Marion), "I'll take the one on the left." He did. They were working on their 74th year of marriage in November 2007 when Pop went to heaven. I often think that in my half-century of gospel ministry (my ordination was December 1962), the people whom I have touched are indirectly the result of Lois McKeever's faithfulness as a mother. She took us to church from the first and kept us in church. And she started me drawing. I was 5 years old, we lived in a mining community outside Nauvoo, Ala., called "Number Two" because that was the number of the particular mine nearby, and I was in her way. The older siblings -- Ronnie, Glenn, and Patricia -- were in school. Carolyn was 3 and baby Charlie was 1. Mom did have her hands full. But she was always working -- cleaning, cooking, laundering, etc. She produced a tablet and pencils and sat Carolyn and me down at the kitchen table and said, "Draw!" That's how I discovered that I love to draw. I never quit. The next year, first-graders at Nauvoo Elementary would gather around and watch my efforts. (To this day, I can out-draw any first-graders you will ever meet.) Mom got her children ready for church on Saturday nights. From Number Two to the church house was a walk of two miles by the road. But we walked through woods and fields, cutting the distance in half. One of the fields we crossed later became the church cemetery. Mom's body is now laid there beside Pop. When we moved to the coal fields of West Virginia in 1947 -- I was 7 years old -- there was one church, the tiny Methodist church at the foot of the mountain by the railroad tracks. That first Sunday morning, even though she did not know a soul in the church, Lois McKeever had her brood in church. She told me later we were the only children there that day. By the time we left West Virginia (this was near Beckley) four years later, that little church was swarming with children. I remember it as being so lively and fun, with the loving Brother Kennedy and his wife as our shepherd. I loved them dearly. Mom told me that it was her children who got the other children into church. My brother Ron has been preaching and pastoring almost 50 years also, in the Birmingham area. With two sons out of four logging a century of ministry, I hope Mom felt amply rewarded for all those difficult years in which she taught us to live for the Lord. Where was Pop during this time? Working hard -- sometimes double shifts (think of it, 16 hours a day inside a coal mine) and resting on weekends, if he was not out drinking with his buddies. When he drank, Pop was bad news. He carried scars from drunken fights to his grave. I'm happy to report that Dad gave up drinking after many years. I wish I could report he became a faithful churchgoer, but that was a failing of his. I never understood it, how he could sit by the radio and listen to hour after hour of preaching. He read his Bible and often sent money to our church. He just rarely attended. (As with every other family on the planet, some things we just have to leave with the Lord.) Dad always took care of his family, always worked at teaching and leading us in many ways. When the coal fields of West Virginia shut down, we moved to the Nauvoo farm with our Granny Kilgore (Grandpa had died two years earlier), and Pop became a farmer for a while. And he taught us to farm. I went from being a lazy 11-year-old with no chores at home to a farmboy tending to calves and, in time, plowing with a mule. The best memories of those years, my siblings would probably tell you, were the endless days working in the fields alongside each other. Pop would outwork everyone, but he loved to talk and reminisce. We laughed and teased and made the work fun. After lunch on the hottest days of summer, Pop would not send us back into the fields but would let us go swimming in the "strip pits," those leftover holes in the ground from strip-mining operations which were filled with water from underground streams. Mom never went swimming, and rarely went anywhere. She was the consummate homebody. She was happiest at home, taking care of her family. Mom loved to cook. Ask anyone who knew her about her fried apple pies. She loved to sing and had the sweetest alto voice. She loved to laugh and is the only member of our clan who ever made money selling jokes to newspapers. She didn't make up any -- I would do that -- but still, she would send them in to The Grit, that national weekly which made life so much more interesting for rural folks in those years, and they would repay her with a dollar or two. Once, in 1951, mom was paid by The Grit for this oddity: "This August, Glenn will be 15 on the 15th, and Ronnie will be 16 on the 16th." She used to say that's the only money she ever made off any of us. In her well-marked Bible, Mom wrote of the day in 2006 when Charlie, her baby, went to heaven, "The worst day of my life." I noticed another place where she noted that the November 3, 2007, day when Pop joined Charlie with Jesus was "the second worst day of my life." After Pop left us, Mom missed him every day. Sometimes, out of the blue, apropos to nothing, she would simply say, "I miss Pop." We would hug her and say through teary eyes, "We all miss him, Mom." Over the years, as her birthday would approach, I would invite friends far and wide to send birthday greetings to Mom. She lived for the running of the mail every day, and I knew she would love getting hundreds of cards, which she did. So many who wrote were longtime friends of ours from churches I had pastored. They would tell Mom, "I know you are proud of your son." She would read that and say, "Why do they say that? I have four sons. And two daughters. And I'm proud of all of them." She loved us all equally. And that was with everything inside her. To the last, as long as she was able, Mom was in church. As long as she was able to enjoy it, I phoned her every day. Often on Sunday mornings, she would tell me, "I just don't feel like going to church today." But she would. The church people would come up and hug her and tell her how beautiful she was, and she ate it up. She wouldn't have missed that for anything. When we were children in West Virginia, I recall a schoolteacher saying to someone, "Do you mean to tell me that that beautiful young woman is the mother of all this brood of kids?" Yep. That's what we mean to tell you. She was a winner, this Lois McKeever. Carl did know how to pick them. "Beauty is deceitful and popularity is vain. But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates" (Proverbs 31:30-31). And now, she's with the Lord, with her mama and papa and siblings she has not seen in so many years. And with Pop. One of her favorite gospel songs was "What a Glad Reunion." That's what they're having in heaven right now. I'm sorry to be missing it. Save me a place, Mom and Pop. I'm coming. --30-- Joe McKeever is a longtime cartoonist whose work appears in Baptist Press and numerous other publications. His columns, meanwhile, are at www.joemckeever.com. McKeever is the retired director of missions for the New Orleans Baptist Association and former pastor in Columbus, Miss.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Kenner, La. For another column by McKeever drawing from the death of his mother, "Funeral Lessons: Things You Learn or Relearn When a Close Loved One Dies," go to http://www.joemckeever.com/mt/archives/001832.html. -------------------------------------------------------------------- TUESDAY'S SBC ANNUAL MEETING BLOG by Staff Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Baptist Press is live blogging the SBC annual meeting in New Orleans. Up-to-the-minute updates can be read here, at our Twitter account (Twitter.com/BaptistPress), or Facebook account (Facebook.com/BaptistPress). Want more updates? Follow our SBC annual meeting feed at Twitter.com/SBCMeeting. A schedule of the Tuesday meeting can be found at http://bit.ly/Mc5Oxq. Watch the SBC annual meeting live at http://ow.ly/bFXdu. All times CST 6:20 p.m. -- The Tuesday session ended without the vote result on the "Great Commission Baptists" descriptor known. Wright told Baptist Press the result will be announced Wednesday morning. 5:45 p.m. -- The IMB presented its report to close today's session. IMB President Tom Elliff gave messengers an update on worldwide missions, saying that last year, through IMB missionaries and their partners, 333,823 accepted Christ and were baptized. Additionally, there were 28,873 church starts, Elliff said. Elliff also said that 633,262 Christians around the world are involved in on-going Bible studies through IMB missionaries and their partners. A total of 1,281 SBC churches, and entities, have indicated an interest in reaching an unreached, unengaged people group (UUPG), Elliff said. There were 3,800 UUPG in June 2011, and today there are 3,328, he added. Jay Wolfe, pastor of First Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., told messengers how his church had adopted such a people group and how it has seen 35 accept Christ. His message: If First Baptist can do it, "you can do it, too." 5 p.m. -- The International Mission Board is presenting its report. 4:46 p.m. -- Messengers had the opportunity to make more motions minutes ago. Among the ones that were made: -- A motion that a committee be commissioned to study the theological positions of Southern Baptists' founders from 1845, and that the committee report back to the SBC. -- A motion that the salary packages of entity heads be capped at $150,000, and that current salary packages be made public. 4:33 p.m. -- During his seminary's report, Southwestern Seminary President Paige Patterson invited messengers and Southern Baptists to Fort Worth for the seminary's Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit. The scrolls, he said, are the "oldest copies of God's Word available anywhere." 4:27 p.m. -- Nathan Lino elected SBC first vice president. He was unopposed. 4:20 p.m. -- After at least 25 minutes of debate, a vote on the Great Commission Baptists descriptor has gone to a ballot vote. A show of hands was close, although the descriptor appeared to have majority support. 3:25 p.m. -- ERLC President Richard Land addressed what he called "another elephant in the room" -- his reprimand by the executive board of the ERLC. Land said he's under the authority of trustees and is appreciative of the process, which he said was conducted in a Christian manner. Land said it has been his goal for the SBC to elect an African American president. During Land's report, the ERLC awarded its distinguished service award to Luter. Trustees voted in September to present Luter the award. During the ERLC report, the Task Force of Ministry to Homosexuals delivered its final report to messengers, who were given a brochure with challenges to messengers. The brochure's challengers also were printed in the Book of Reports. Land said 41 percent of children in America are born out of wedlock. The past several decades in America have shown that fathers are not optional in child-rearing, he said. Gay marriage, Land said, argues that both mothers and fathers are optional. 2:52 p.m. -- Luter elected president. Read our coverage: http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38081 and http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38080 2:20 p.m. -- Executive Committee President Frank Page delivered the EC's second report. Page addressed the issue of Calvinism, saying, "Calvinism is an issue amongst us." He added, "I'm not a Calvinist ... but a lot of our people are." Page said he is concerned that there are some non-Calvinists who are more concerned about rooting out Calvinists than they are about winning lost to Christ. On the flip side, Page said he is concerned about Calvinists who view those who disagree with them as unintelligent. He referenced the panel that will "chart a way" forward for both sides, but Page did not announce any members of the panel. The two sides of the issue have walked arm in arm for the Great Commission for years, Page said, and should continue to do so. On other issues, he said the Southern Baptist Convention has made progress in reaching other ethnic groups but that more needs to be done. He wants the SBC to mirror "what heaven will be like." Progress, he said, is partially reflected in the new African American Advisory & Hispanic Advisory Councils. 1:55 p.m. -- The Committee on Order of Business referred several motions to the Executive Committee or to LifeWay moments ago. Among them: To LifeWay -- motion that LifeWay Christian Resources trustees re-examine its decision to continue selling the 2011 NIV, and that the trustees allow Paige Patterson and Louis Markos to address trustees on the matter. The motion said Patterson and Markos have agreed to speak. To the Executive Committee: motion that future meetings not be held during Father's Day week; motion that SBC switch from an annual meeting to a bi-annual meeting; motion that presidents and trustees of the seminaries consider lowering their Cooperative Program funding and forward it to the IMB. 1:33 p.m. -- The afternoon session of the SBC Annual Meeting is under way. Among the session's highlights: the historical vote on president, 2:50 p.m., the vote on the "Great Commission Baptists" descriptor, 3:50 p.m. 1:30 p.m. -- As of 1:24 p.m., there were 7,682 messengers registered. 12:28 p.m. -- The annual meeting is on its lunch break until 1:30. 12:27 p.m. -- SBC President Bryant Wright finished his address moments ago, preaching from Luke 24:44-49 and addressing the controversy over Calvinism within the Southern Baptist Convention. Following are some highlights: "My concern is that we can have Christ-centered, Bible believing Christians so engaged in trying to correct one another's view when it comes to election, that the next thing you know the devil is standing over to the side, because we have taken our focus off of what Christ tells us our clear mission is, and that is the Great Commission. And [the devil] is going to be laughing and he is going to be mocking and he is going to be rejoicing that we're no longer interested in rescuing the captives that God calls us to rescue with the Gospel of Jesus Christ." "Let us understand that these two views on election and salvation can co-exist as long as we stay Christ-centered and biblically based in our theology." Wright delivered "a word" to each group. "To our Calvinist friends: A bit of humility would be most welcome. Any time there is pride, whether it is spiritual pride or intellectual pride or theological pride, it is always a sin. And we need to recognize that an attitude of superiority with those who may disagree over the finer aspects of theological belief is never going to build up the church of Jesus Christ." After several centuries of debate, the issue is not going to be resolved in the first few years of the 21st century, Wright said. "To those who call themselves traditional Southern Baptists: The time for judgmentalism is over, because judgmentalism quickly moves into slander. And to lump all those who have a strong, solid, biblically based theology that is a more Calvinist theology" with hyper-Calvinists "is not only misguided but it winds up causing you to break the Ninth Commandment on false witness. "It is time to show some respect for those of differing views when it comes to election and when it comes to salvation." Wright referenced the 2006 dialogue between R. Albert Mohler Jr. and Paige Patterson on the subject of Calvinism. "That is the spirit that we need today." "If we pride ourselves more on being a traditional Southern Baptist or more on being a Calvinist or a Reformed theologian, more than we are thankful that we are Christ-centered and biblically based ... then it is time to repent of theological idolatry. Our calling is to be centered on Christ and grounded in the Word while agreeing to disagree on the finer points of theological issues, may we all agree that Christ ... has given us a very clear message and mission for the church." 11:29 a.m. -- SBC President Bryant Wright has begun his presidential address. He is preaching from Luke 24:44-49 and is addressing the controversy over Calvinism. The two views can "co-exist," he said. 11:15 a.m. -- SBC Annual Meeting registration count as of 11:15 a.m. CST: 7,537. 11:03 a.m. -- Messengers got a preview of LifeWay's new Gospel Project curriculum, which LifeWay's Ed Stetzer said will go deeper but always be Christ- and missions-focused. People are "ready to learn," he said. The curriculum, he said, will cover multiple sides of a controversial issue and leave it up to the reader to decide. "It is important not to shy away" from certain questions, Stetzer said. The BF&M will be the guide. LifeWay's Trevin Wax said 12,000 people have signed up to preview the Gospel Project. 10:44 a.m. -- During the LifeWay Christians Recourses report, Lifeway President Thom S. Rainer was asked by a messenger to explain how LifeWay chooses which products to sell. The messenger said he grows tired of the yearly debates. "It's not easy," Rainer said. "... It is a difficult process." He added, "We have to make calls" on products that some may object to. Rainer told the messengers, "We take our work seriously. He requested of messengers, "Trust the trustees." The trustees are pastors, directors of mission, educators, homemakers, Rainer said. 10:28 a.m. -- LifeWay Christian Resources is giving its report. 10:19 a.m. -- The EC report has concluded. During it, Southern Baptists heard from Brazil missionaries Eric and Ramona Reese, whose story of commitment to the inner city has inspired many. The report included several videos, including one with D.C. pastor Mark Dever and IMB president Tom Elliff talking about the Cooperative Program. "Southern Baptist missions would not exist without the Cooperative Program," Elliff said 9:50 a.m. -- During the Executive Committee report, Florida pastor Ted Traylor expressed concern over an EC plan that would gradually, over the next three years, eliminate the subsidizing of the SBC Pastors Conference. (Read more about that recommendation at http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=37233. EC Chairman Roger Spradlin addressed Traylor, saying that although the EC has always subsidized the Pastors' Conference, revenue from venders -- who pay the Pastors Conference to set up booths within the hall -- led the EC to re-examine the issue. Spradlin said that since there was a new stream of revenue for the Pastors' Conference, and since the EC is committed to moving more money to the International Mission Board, "we thought we'd be able" to reduce subsidization. However, Spradlin said, the EC has learned of challenges to the venders' revenue stream and will re-examine the issue during its September meeting. Traylor, a former Pastors Conference' president, thanked Spradlin and said, "We would hate to see the Pastors' Conference go away." 9:18 a.m. -- EC President Frank Page is giving his report. 9:11 a.m. -- More than 1,100 made decisions for Christ during Crossover, messengers were told. Also, as of 9:11, 7,000 messengers have registered. 8:46 a.m. -- Messengers made motions moments ago. Among the motions made: -- Motion that messengers go on record agreeing with the trustee executive committee of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, which reprimanded Richard Land for comments he made on his radio program. -- Motion that LifeWay Christian Resources trustees re-examine its decision to continue selling the 2011 NIV, and that the trustees allow Paige Patterson and Louis Markos to address trustees on the matter. The motion said Patterson and Markos have agreed to speak. -- Motion that presidents and trustees of the seminaries consider lowering their Cooperative Program funding and forward it to the IMB. A specific percentage was mentioned in the messenger's motion. -- Motion that SBC switch from an annual meeting to a bi-annual meeting. -- Motion that future meetings not be held during Father's Day week. -- Motion that the 2015 convention be moved from Columbus, Ohio to Memphis to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the adoption of the Cooperative Program. 8:30 a.m. -- Chuck Kelley, president of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, noted the significance of the day moments ago, saying, "You can show the world we are re-doing our future." Kelley was referencing the expected election of Fred Luter, who would become the SBC's first black president. 8:13 a.m. -- President Bryant Wright gavels the meeting to order. Wright used a gavel that has been used at SBC meetings every year since 1872. The gavel head is made from olive wood from the Mount of Olives in Israel. 8 a.m. -- Congregational music has begun. --30-- Blogging by Michael Foust, associate editor of Baptist Press -------------------------------------------------------------------- Fred Luter's trailblazing life rich with trials, blessings by Diana Chandler Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- The new blue and silver Honda 360 motorcycle was mangled junk. A young Fred Luter Jr. lay in a hospital bed, his left leg broken in several places, a hole in his head.
Louis Beloney, then-senior deacon at Greater Mt. Carmel Baptist Church, gave the 21-year-old Luter sage advice: "Obedience is better than sacrifice." That is, Luter would have done better to obey his mother Viola, who told him just a month earlier not to buy the bike, rather than nearly sacrifice his life in the May 1977 accident when he struck a car on Paris Avenue in New Orleans. "And he said, 'You better get your life right with God.' It challenged me and started making me really consider my relationship with God, to the point that I started reading my Bible every day, on a daily basis, morning and evening," Luter recalls 35 years later. "I called the accident my Damascus Road experience." Leaving the hospital three months later in a full-leg cast he would wear until the next year, his head mostly healed, he soon walked on crutches down the aisle of Greater Mt. Carmel and committed himself to the Lord. "I immediately started a street ministry because ... I was so shocked by my relationship with Christ, I wanted everybody in my neighborhood, all my partners ... to know the God that I knew," Luter said. "So every Saturday at 12 noon I'd be preaching on different streets of the Lower Ninth Ward and sharing Christ. And that's how, as they say, that's how it all began." The first African American president of the Southern Baptist Convention is amazed at how God has blessed his ministry, opening doors previously closed to those from Luter's side of town. "I've been with Southern Baptists for 25 years as pastor," he said, "and I have a really, really good relationship with a lot of pastors across the convention, a lot of the directors of missions across the country, a lot of state execs, evangelism directors. I've preached for most of them, if not all of them." Luter was unopposed for the SBC presidency. A trailblazer in the SBC, the pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church was the first African American to preach the convention sermon at the annual meeting in 2001, also held in New Orleans, and in 2011 was the first black elected as SBC first vice president. Luter got the SBC's attention in the early 1990s when the church led the Louisiana Baptist Convention in baptisms. Wayne Jenkins, LBC director of evangelism and church growth, contacted Luter while attending a New Orleans meeting, when Luter graciously invited Jenkins to preach, having just met him. "The place was completely packed. I'm talking about beyond fire-marshal packed," Jenkins said. Once the pews were full, ushers would place seats in the aisles. When those filled, they would seat worshippers on the platform, repeating the same during each of three Sunday morning services. "People were all around us. In fact, one guy when I was preaching was reaching up and patting me on the back. That's how close everything was," Jenkins said, speaking of a sanctuary that seated 250 before the 1997 construction of the current 2,000-seat worship area. "Most years Fred will baptize between 250 and 350. It will be somewhere in there." Jenkins describes Luter as authentic, a close friend and a good preacher who has maintained a strong personal witness. "What you see of Fred on the platform and what you see of Fred off the platform is the same man. A good family man, strong morals. That was part of the success, I think, the blessing of God on his church," Jenkins said. "He made a strong stand and said, 'I will not have anybody serving in this church that does not hold to those strong views,' and he had to discipline some people during that period of time." Jenkins introduced Luter to evangelism leaders across the SBC and the invitations started pouring in, including the 1996 SBC Pastors' Conference. "James Merritt was the president of the Pastors' Conference, and you know, everybody, a lot of pastors from across the country come to the Pastors' Conference," Luter said. "When I preached that sermon there, it literally put me on the map. I started getting calls from everybody. "Before you know it I was preaching in places like First Baptist Church Jacksonville for their pastors' conference with Jerry Vines. I started preaching [at] Bellevue in Memphis, Tenn. I preached [at] Tony Evans' church Oak Cliff [Bible Fellowship], David Jeremiah [of Shadow Mountain Community Church in California]," Luter recounted. "It's just amazing the places that God has opened up for me to preach." Luter's many friends across the SBC encouraged him to seek the presidency. "They say ... this will say a lot to the kingdom of heaven that here's a convention that was started as a result of slavery and the past that we have, now an African American pastor is leading them," Luter said. "I just feel that with my personality and my commitment to the Word of God, that I can really bring the different groups across our convention together, so that we can help fulfill the mission that God has given us." Luter grew up in the Lower Ninth Ward, known to many SBC ministries because of rebuilding efforts that continue there seven years after Hurricane Katrina. The middle of five children, his parents divorced when he was 6, with his mother working as a seamstress and surgical scrub assistant to make ends meet. While his father was faithful to care for the family, not having a father in the home shaped Luter's focus on family in ministry. "Particularly when I had my son I said to God that I really want to be the dad in my son's life that I never had growing up in the home," Luter said. "So definitely it did have an effect on me wanting to do better and be better, because you know it's real awkward when you go to situations and people, their parents are together and yours are not." As churches struggle to appeal to men, Franklin Avenue enjoys a membership encompassing both genders about evenly, a testimony to Luter's emphasis on developing godly men who are active members of the church. "I just had a conviction if you save the man, the man will save his family," the new SBC president said. "I felt we needed to make reaching men a priority." Luter married his high school sweetheart Elizabeth on Oct. 11, 1980 -- he succinctly states the date with pride. Their 27-year-old son Fred III is Franklin Avenue's youth pastor; their 30-year-old daughter Kimberly teaches school in Birmingham, Ala. The family stayed with Kimberly when Katrina's floodwaters damaged their New Orleans home and the church that Luter had diligently grown from a membership of 50 in 1986 to 7,000 less than 20 years later. His love for Franklin Avenue stirred him to turn down post-Katrina offers to pastor elsewhere, instead he met with church members scattered in at least three states until they were reunited in the renovated facility. Franklin Avenue met for two and a half years at First Baptist Church in New Orleans, where Luter and the church family developed a close bond with the majority white congregation and its pastor, David Crosby, who nominated Luter for the presidency. "David and I because of Hurricane Katrina have developed a relationship that is just special," Luter said. "David and First Baptist opened up their arms to us and the relationship that was developed as a result of a hurricane -- a tragic situation as far as we're concerned -- has developed into such a great relationship to not only him and I as pastors and brothers, but through ladies of our churches who still do Bible studies together and our men and their men still do prayer breakfasts every month." Since Katrina, Franklin Avenue's membership has rebounded to 5,000. With both morning services overflowing and most worshippers parking their vehicles on neighborhood streets, the congregation is in the midst of a capital campaign to build a $26 million building about five miles east of the current facility. The congregation will use both buildings, unwilling to leave cherished neighbors. "The church has been there for years," Luter said. "We've done so much in that community that we'll always be part of that community." Luter's life is replete with godly relationships he says he's been gifted to develop. From his youth, he said, friends looked to him to serve in such posts as captain of the football and basketball teams or on the student council. Shortly after Luter turned to Christ, he began working as a gospel disc jockey, spinning LPs at weddings. The sideline to his fulltime job as a commodities clerk at a brokerage firm began after a friend, noticing his love of gospel music, asked him to serve at her wedding. "This will probably blow people away," he said, "... and I thought I was pretty good at it too." He gave up that sideline when he was ordained as a preacher and installed as pastor of Franklin Avenue, serving bivocationally while advancing to the brokerage firm's vice presidency. "I was bivocational and so as a result of that I would go to work in the daytime and come here at Franklin Avenue like at 5:30, 6 o'clock every evening, until about 9, 9:30 at night," he said. Luter enrolled at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary at night and often would interrupt his workday for funerals and other church concerns, as the congregation grew. "Some of my leaders said, Pastor, you need to stop doing that, the church is growing. We need you to come full time," he recounted. "The church just started exploding with growth. We started adding additional services and things like that and, as they say, the rest is history." Through it all, Luter has remained humble. "I am always nervous when I preach. It doesn't matter if it's seminary professors or at Angola state prison, I'm always nervous. That's why I talk a lot at the very beginning. If you hear the sermons that I do, I do a lot of talking at the very beginning as far as my introductory remarks, just to kind of get that nervousness out of the way. Once I get started ... God has just given me a gift where it doesn't bother me anymore. "I just do what God has called me to do. I'm amazed at the opportunities that have been given to me through the years." --30-- Diana Chandler is Baptist Press' staff writer. Karen Willoughby of the Louisiana Baptist Message contributed to this report. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Historic: Fred Luter elected SBC president by Karen L. Willoughby Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday UPDATED, 4:15 p.m. June 19 Read a feature and watch a video on Luter at http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38080 NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Native New Orleanian Fred Luter was elected by acclamation Tuesday, June 19, as president of the Southern Baptist Convention. He was nominated by David Crosby, pastor of First Baptist Church in New Orleans, whose three-minute nomination speech was interrupted four times by enthusiastic applause. "[Luter] would likely be a candidate for sainthood one day if he were a Catholic," Crosby said in describing Luter as "the fire-breathing, miracle-working pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church."
Luter grew Franklin Avenue from a remnant 65 people in a white-flight neighborhood to a congregation of more than 8,000 "when Hurricane Katrina plowed through this part of the world, destroying their facilities and scattering their people all across America," Crosby said. "Franklin Avenue is now [once again] approaching 5,000 worshippers each Sunday despite the depressed population of our city," Crosby said, "and last year they baptized more than 200. Fred is the only mega-church pastor I know of who has had to do it twice, and he did it against the trends and against the odds." First Baptist New Orleans took in the Franklin Avenue congregation after Katrina left the newly renovated worship center in 13 feet of water for three weeks amid flooding across New Orleans and the surrounding region in late summer 2005. The two pastors, Crosby and Luter, both with a heart for the city, began to work together in ministry. Out of that relationship, Luter asked Crosby to nominate him when -- in January, after prayer and a word from the Lord pointed out to him by his wife Elizabeth -- the Franklin Avenue pastor stepped forward to be a candidate for the SBC presidency. "He is qualified in every way to hold this office," Crosby said of Luter. "He fully supports world missions through the Cooperative Program. … He is a man of integrity with a loving family and an unblemished, untarnished reputation in this community where he has lived all his life." Southern Baptists "are already a convention with great diversity in our membership ranks and our churches. If we are faithful in our work this diversity will continue to grow," Crosby said. "We need Pastor Fred at the head of the table, helping us understand our mission field and our mission. It is time to tap the great resource of his experience, wisdom and passion for this wider purpose. … "Messengers, we have the opportunity to make history, to show a watching world the truth about our savior and ourselves and to affirm again the mission that undergirds everything we do. Let's give our ballots a voice and shout out to the world: Jesus is Lord! This is our president! We are Southern Baptists!" Luter, on stage already, could be seen wiping tears from his eyes at the extended applause that followed the conclusion of Crosby's nomination speech. It's customary, current SBC President Bryant Wright said, when there is only one candidate for elective office, for the SBC recording secretary to cast one vote for everyone. "However, this chair on this occasion believes this historic moment should fully belong to the messengers of the Southern Baptist Convention," Wright said. He instructed the messengers to stand if it was "their pleasure" that Luter be elected president. It was. As Luter came to the podium, he wiped his eyes, pointed toward heaven, and wiped his eyes again. "To God be the glory for the things He has done," Luter simply said. "God bless you. I love you." Wright wrapped his arm around Luter's shoulders as he prayed for the man elected to lead the Southern Baptist Convention as of Wednesday evening, June 20. "Father God, we thank You for this mighty good man and we thank You that You have allowed us the privilege of being here on this historic occasion," Wright prayed. "Father as we think about our beginnings, as we think about how far we have come, as we think about how You have divinely called Fred Luter for this key moment in history, we just thank You for the privilege of being a part of this day and we thank You for how You are going to use Fred Luter in the days to come. Lord may your Holy Spirit fill Fred powerfully in a fresh way today to carry the mantle of office beginning Wednesday night as the president of the Southern Baptist Convention. We thank You for him. In Jesus name. Amen." In 2011 Luter became the SBC's first African American first vice president and in 2001 was the first African American to preach the convention sermon. He also served on the committee that proposed a revision of the Baptist Faith and Message in 2000. He is a popular preacher at revivals, state conventions, evangelism conferences and other Southern Baptist gatherings. Some observers felt it was appropriate that Luter's election took place on the day many celebrate "Juneteenth" and the anniversary of slavery's end in the United States. --30-- Karen Willoughby is managing editor of the Baptist Message, newsjournal fo the Louisiana Baptist Convention. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Executive Committee approves bylaw changes by Erin Roach Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- The SBC Executive Committee amended its bylaws and elected new officers during its June 18 meeting in New Orleans prior to the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention. According to D. August Boto, executive vice president and general counsel of the Executive Committee, the amended bylaws document: -- brings the Executive Committee up to date regarding the Southern Baptist Convention's sole membership status. -- explicitly stakes out the Executive Committee's First Amendment right to self-governance. -- causes all six Executive Committee officers to be nominated and elected. -- effectively makes the Executive Committee officers the "executive committee of the Executive Committee" for a limited, defined set of purposes. -- more explicitly sets out the authority of the Executive Committee officers to review and adjust the president's salary and requires a report to the full board about any percentage change in salary, if any, or in benefits. -- improves the awkward and potentially problematic process of vice presidential hiring and termination by delegating approval of both actions to the officers of the board. -- changes the term "subcommittee" to "committee" (or "standing committee") to harmonize references in Robert's Rules of Order and Tennessee statutes. -- eliminates redundant provisions regarding notice, waiver, quorum and voting that were included for each subcommittee and workgroup. -- allows action without a meeting with unanimous consent. -- explicitly states the mode of employment to be "at will." -- includes modern communication modes such as email. The new bylaws took effect immediately after the vote. Executive Committee members elected the following officers by acclamation for the coming year: Ernest Easley, pastor of Roswell Street Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga., chairman; Mike Routt, pastor of Circle Drive Baptist Church in Colorado Springs, Colo., vice chairman; and Stephen Wilson, a member of Lone Oak First Baptist Church in Paducah, Ky., secretary. Guided by the new bylaws, the Executive Committee elected John Yeats, the convention's recording secretary, as chairman of the administrative committee; Chris Osborne of Texas as chairman of the business and finance committee; and Rodney Autry of Virginia as chairman of the Cooperative Program committee. In other business, the Executive Committee: -- approved a request from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary to borrow up to $20 million to finance phase one of the seminary's master plan. -- approved amendments to the personnel policies of the Executive Committee regarding post-employment benefits for long-term employees whose employment ends honorably. -- received a Cooperative Program budget report from March 31 which shows $97,764,590 has been received through the second quarter of the fiscal year and represents a 0.75 percent decrease when compared to the same period last year. --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). -------------------------------------------------------------------- GuideStone to overview child abuse prevention by Roy Hayhurst Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- The headlines hit far too often: Another church is the subject of an abuse allegation. Ministries are forced to deal with the fallout. And an innocent child is victimized in one of the places he or she should feel most secure. Child abuse allegations affect ministries nationwide. Sadly, abuse has no regard for church size, denomination or location, says Kathleen Turpin, a vice president with Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company, which partners with GuideStone Financial Resources to provide property and casualty insurance. GuideStone is offering a presentation at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday (June 20) in New Orleans to detail what can be done to lessen the risks of abuse within churches. SBC messengers must pre-register for the free session, to be held in Room 252 in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. To register, visit www.GuideStone.org/SBC2012 or by stop by the GuideStone booth in the SBC exhibit hall. Among tips Turpin addresses in the GuideStone seminar: The most effective response is prevention. Simply, develop a child protection policy, then follow through. A successful program should have basic and easy-to-follow procedures tailored to the specific ministry, Turpin says, and all ministry leadership should invest in the program and make sure that mandatory reporting is part of the policy. "You want to make sure you have screened all employees and volunteers," Turpin says. Membership requirements and a volunteer waiting period also are cornerstones of a successful program. While many churches have a screening procedure, Turpin recommends even smaller churches have a robust screening procedure that includes screening everybody at the start -- not just new employees or volunteers -- requesting at least two references and actually checking those references. One thing to keep in mind, Turpin says, is to know the state mandatory reporting requirements. Failure to report allegations of child abuse in a timely way may make a ministry and its workers subject to civil and criminal liability. Staff and volunteers should be retrained on reporting procedures on a regular basis. During the GuideStone course, Turpin also addresses dealing with whether churches should allow sex offenders in the church and the risks and consequences of allowing offenders in the church. GuideStone and Brotherhood Mutual have teamed to make resources available to help churches protect themselves from a host of church insurance-related issues; go to www.GuideStonePropertyCasualty.org and select the Safety Toolkit link. --30-- Roy Hayhurst is editorial services manager at GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. -------------------------------------------------------------------- WMU hears ways that 'The Story Lives On' by Barbara Denman Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Stories of faith from behind prison bars, in lives of at-risk youth, through the work of missionaries and church planters nationally and internationally, as well as the dedication of missions-minded women across the nation, affirmed during the WMU Missions Celebration and Annual Meeting that "The Story Lives On." The theme -- focused on Jesus and His transforming touch, drawing from Acts 4:20, "As for us we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard" -- was celebrated during the second day of the Woman's Missionary Union meeting, June 17-18 in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. In a video filmed behind the prison fences of the McPherson Women's Unit in Newport, Ark., three women shared how they had found hope and a life of purpose despite their circumstances through faith in Jesus Christ. Introducing herself to the audience, NAMB chaplain Stacey Smith told of her 60-year prison sentence after an early life of drugs and crime. While sitting in a jail cell reading Scripture she asked Jesus to come into her life. Released after 16 years for good behavior, Smith has returned to prison for the past five years to organize Bible studies and reach new believers. She urged others to find a place of ministry behind the prison walls. "Prison is a mission field with a captive audience," she said. "They hunger for the Word of God." Chuck Kelley, president of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, told how The Story Lives On in the Louisiana State Correctional Institute in Angola. Known for its violence, Angola is the largest maximum security prison in the nation, with 5,000 inmates, "many who will spend the rest of their days in prison and never walk out of there." The seminary began ministering there after the warden, Burl Cain, a Southern Baptist layman, became concerned about the spiritual condition of the men on death row. After starting Experiencing God studies for the men, he called the seminary for help. Kelley and professors came to the prison with academic courses "to teach them how to be ministers and leaders." The prisoners have enrolled in classes and graduated from the program. Among their class assignments was to lead Bible studies and start churches within their cell blocks. Individual and cultural victories have resulted, Kelley said. The moral climate has changed, with incidents of violence decreasing by 40 percent. Laurie Register, executive director of South Carolina WMU, told how the WMU's Project: Help is transforming lives of at-risk and incarcerated youth within the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice system. For three decades an Acteens ministry flourished on the campus of the Willow Lane Program for Girls located in Columbia, she said. Now that effort has evolved into multiple ministries as local churches and World Changers have led Vacation Bible Schools, constructed and furnished a transitional house and chapel-activity center and prayerwalked throughout the campus. WMU national president Debby Akerman told of career missionaries and mission volunteers "empowered to tell the story" despite language and cultural barriers. "I love to tell the story of unseen things above," said Kathy Shafto as she quoted words from the beloved hymn and traced her journey as an IMB missionary to Burkina Faso. That journey began when a neighbor "allowed" Shafto to come to church and a mission leader invested time to "set my life on a course." Her love for missions was honed through time in WMU camps and as counselor. Now she and her husband Jay, in turn, invest their lives reaching new believers in the West African nation, planting new churches and empowering them to share the story of the Gospel. The story lives on through church planting, said Damien Emetuche, who traced his spiritual journey from seeds planted by Southern Baptist missionaries to Ethiopia. Serving as church planting professor at New Orleans Seminary, Emetuche challenged the group to plant new churches to reach the multitudes of immigrants entering the U.S. who bring their own world religions to convert others. The Dellana O'Brien award, named in honor of the past WMU executive-director, was given to Mycie Vue, president of the Minnesota-Wisconsin WMU. Vue is a Hmong immigrant whose family walked for six weeks to escape persecution in Laos. Re-elected to serve another one-year term were Debby Akerman, national WMU president, and Rosalie Hunt, recording secretary. The next WMU annual meeting is set for June 9-10 in Houston, Texas. --30-- Barbara Denman is director of communications for the Florida Baptist Convention. -------------------------------------------------------------------- SBC's Committee on Nominations named by Staff Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Seventy Southern Baptists from 35 state Baptist conventions have been named to serve on the 2012-13 SBC Committee on Nominations. The Committee on Nominations will nominate people to serve on the SBC's boards, commissions and committees. They will present their report to the 2013 SBC annual meeting in Houston. The committee, announced during the June 19-20 SBC annual meeting in New Orleans, is made up of two people from each state convention, with at least one layperson. An asterisk denotes the committee member is a layperson. All others are church vocation workers. ALABAMA -- *Carol Dees Gilbreath, First Baptist, Montgomery; Travis Coleman Jr., First Baptist Church, Prattville. ALASKA -- *Marilyn Feller-King, First Baptist, Wasilla; *Gary Elmore, Frontier Southern Baptist, Kodiak. ARIZONA -- *Mona McDonald, First Southern Baptist, Scottsdale; Charles Lord, Royal Palms Baptist, Phoenix. ARKANSAS -- *Russell Harrington, Immanuel Baptist, Little Rock; Don Pucik, chairman, OneChurch, Conway. CALIFORNIA -- *Suzanne Kaech, Crossroad Church, Tustin; John C. Powell, Calvary Church, West Hills. COLORADO -- *Richard A. Long Jr., Bookcliff Baptist, Grand Junction; James Vaughn, First Baptist, Bayfield. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA -- *Donald Davis, Fort Foote Baptist, Fort Washington, Md.; *Izeola Grant, Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist; Washington, D.C. FLORIDA -- *David M. Sullivan, First Baptist, Plant City; Mark Coleman, New Life, Davie. GEORGIA -- *James B. Alexander, First Baptist, Covington; Tim Millwood, Second Baptist, Warner Robins. HAWAII -- *James L. Miller, First Southern Baptist, Pearl Harbor, Honolulu; Christopher B. Martin; Lahaina Baptist, Lahaina. ILLINOIS -- *Vernon Crawley, Hillcrest Baptist, Country Club Hills; Adam Cruse, First Baptist, Mt. Carmel. INDIANA -- *Gail Layman, Kingston Avenue Baptist, Anderson; *Donald Lauer, Calvary Baptist, Greenwood. KANSAS/NEBRASKA -- *Dennis Pettigrew, Immanuel Baptist, Wichita, Kan.; Ken Bowden, First Southern Baptist, Kiowa, Kan. KENTUCKY -- *Brad Nelson, Lone Oak First Baptist, Paducah; Allen Bonnell, Immanuel Baptist, Corbin. LOUISIANA -- *Dorothy Young, First Baptist, Wisner; Stewart Holloway, First Baptist, Pineville. MARYLAND/DELAWARE -- *Cecil B. Cunigan, Colonial Baptist, Randallstown, Md.; *Nelson Miles, Friendship Baptist, Marriottsville, Md. MICHIGAN -- *Sue A. Carpenter, Cedar Street, Holt; Jeffrey S. Buchholz, Merriman Road Baptist, Garden City. MISSISSIPPI -- *Kenneth David Robey, Harrisburg Baptist, Tupelo; Greg Spencer, First Baptist; Indianola. MISSOURI -- *Kenneth Howe, First Baptist, Lebanon; Randy Messer, First Baptist, Oak Grove. NEVADA -- Michelle Cason, Fellowship Baptist Mission, Battle Mountain; Gregory L. Fields, Nellis Baptist, Las Vegas. NEW ENGLAND -- *Roy Hughes, Nashua Baptist, Nashua, N.H.; Harv Coberley, Precision Valley Baptist, North Springfield, Vt. NEW MEXICO -- *Darwin Thompson, First Baptist, Artesia; Garland Peek, Sandia Baptist, Albuquerque. NEW YORK -- *Owen Field, East Seventh Baptist, New York; Freddy Noble, Primera Iglesia Bautista, Hispana Manhattan, New York. NORTH CAROLINA -- *Sara Tucker Knott, Christ Baptist, Raleigh; Ricky Dale Speas, Old Town Baptist, Winston-Salem. NORTHWEST -- *Brian Smith, Calvary Baptist, Burlington, Wash.; Randy Brown, First Baptist, Montesano, Wash. OHIO -- *Greg Burch, Lakota Hills Baptist, West Chester; William J. Perry, First Baptist, Waynesville. OKLAHOMA -- *Roley D. McIntosh, Big Arbor Baptist, Eufala; R. Douglas McClure, First Baptist, Hugo. PENNSYLVANIA/SOUTH JERSEY -- *Madeline Harris, Ezekiel Baptist, Philadelphia; Larry Snyder, Living Legacy, Hershey, Pa. SOUTH CAROLINA -- *Robert J. Menges, Northwood Baptist, North Charleston; Tom Tucker, Sisk Memorial Baptist, Fort Mill. TENNESSEE -- *Mel Leatherman, Highland Park Baptist, Chattanooga; Jeffrey Lynn Davis, First Baptist, Waynesboro. TEXAS -- *Julio A. Meza, Primera Iglesia Bautista, Grand Prairie; Gregg Simmons, Church at the Cross, Grapevine. UTAH/IDAHO -- *James Clark, First Southern Baptist, Mountain Home, Idaho; Mickey Porter, Mountainview Baptist, Layton, Utah. VIRGINIA -- *Francis Wayne Sink, Preston Oaks Baptist, Roanoke; Gary E. Vaughan, Nansemond River Baptist, Suffolk. WEST VIRGINIA -- *Gilbert Shade, Westview Baptist, Martinsburg; Kenny Stidham, Good Shepherd Southern Baptist, Scott Depot. WYOMING -- *Michael J. Dennison, Sunrise Baptist, Casper; Wes White, Snowy Range Baptist, Laramie. --30-- -------------------------------------------------------------------- Hope heralded at SBC Pastors' Conference by Staff Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Pastors can find hope, protection, encouragement, truth and strength in Jesus Christ and in the Word of God, Pastors' Conference speakers said on the second day of the June 17-18 sessions preceding the SBC annual meeting in New Orleans. Speakers addressed the theme, "Changing Lives, Communities and the World," during the sessions in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The conference also elected officers for its 2013 meeting in Houston. JOHNNY HUNT Johnny Hunt, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., opened the Tuesday morning session with a message of hope to pastors who feel like "a wineskin in smoke." Referring to the term from Psalm 119:83, Hunt described the time after his diagnosis, treatment and recovery from prostate cancer when, from a ministry perspective, something inside of him died. "I can remember going weeks and just wondering, Will there ever be another hopeful day in my life?" Eventually, Hunt recalled, he slowly began feeling like his old self. "God really did restore the joy, the strength and the passion," he said. For those experiencing similar situations, Hunt said Psalm 119:81-88 is about a new beginning. "If you're going through a difficult time, I'm confident God has a word of encouragement for our hearts," he said. Noting the Psalmist was distressed and had a troubled soul, Hunt said he wasn't without hope. "When God seems absent and the darkness stalks us, we have the light of His promises to us," he said. Hunt described how in the Old Testament wine and water containers were made from animal skins. As they hung in homes and dried over fires, they became cracked and useless. "Have you ever felt useless? Have you ever felt forgotten?" he asked. Challenging the audience to do likewise, Hunt said when he checked his own condition, he told himself to keep hoping, searching, remembering, and asking -- and to be faithful. Hunt said some might think, "Even though I really do want to be obedient to You [God], I don't have the strength to do it." "That person should cry out, 'I need You to revive me. I need a fresh touch of God's grace to strengthen me. I need a new beginning.'" WAYNE ROBERTSON Wayne Robertson, pastor of Morningside Baptist Church in Valdosta, Ga., said pastors can experience God's protection when they are persecuted -- even though persecution of American ministers is vastly different than persecution of first-century believers. "Because of our laws, we're not as prone to hear of people dying for their faith in this country," he said. "In our sophistication, we are far more prone to destroy a person's reputation, and there is more than one way of persecuting someone." Preaching from John 16, Robertson said remaining faithful to God is the first key to experiencing protection amid attacks. In moments of mistreatment, remembering God's call to ministry will help pastors press on, he said. "One of the things you need to review is, why are you in the work?" he said, adding, "There are some uncertain days that you stay in the work because God called you, and you have never forgotten the call God put on your life." Jesus told His followers that persecution was inevitable, but He also said it had a purpose -- and enduring it brings pastors an eternal award, Robertson said. "When you stand before [God] one day with everything that's been said against you, with every wrong you have had to face, with every time your eyes have cried tears, every time your heart has hurt, every time you've had brokenness -- those things are counting for something," Robertson said. God will not only help persecuted pastors on the judgment day, he said, but the Holy Spirit comforts them in this life as well. "When we have spoken to one another all we can speak, oh, get on your face," Robertson declared. "God will do something in your spirit that nobody else can do." "[God] is not separated from your trial. He knows where you are. He knows what you're going through," Roberts said. PHIL HOSKINS Phil Hoskins, senior pastor of Higher Ground Baptist Church in Kingsport, Tenn., challenged Southern Baptists to be empowered by the Holy Spirit. Speaking from Acts 2, Hoskins observed that in many congregations it appears the Holy Spirit is either overlooked or absent. Hoskins said he is convinced many Christians have never fully understood what it is to be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. Hoskins observed that the "greatest need of the hour is for the Holy Spirit to breathe a fresh breath of heaven across our lives, our churches and, ultimately, our nation." "I believe that when real revival comes and the spirit of God is allowed to move among His people like that mighty rushing wind of Pentecost, gone with the wind will be the sins that hold back revival and the power of God in our lives," Hoskins said. DAVID JEREMIAH Just as Jesus endured the cross for greater glory, Christian leaders should keep the end in mind amid discouragement –- "lest you be weary and faint in your minds," said David Jeremiah, quoting the end of Hebrews 12:3 in his message to the Pastors' Conference. Jeremiah, pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, Calif., used Hebrews 12:1-3, a familiar passage about believers -- being surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses -- to finish the race of ministry. Jeremiah told of Jeff Ray, a longtime professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Texas who lost his wife early in marriage, endured a son's death and overcame discouragement and depression. Ray eventually rebounded, propelled by a poem titled "I Won't Let Go," Jeremiah said. Like Ray, "the great temptation of God's people today is to be discouraged and give up," Jeremiah observed. The Hebrews author was writing to those who had converted to Christianity who were discouraged and tempted to quit. The persecution was so intense some thought of going back to their old lives, Jeremiah said. The incentive for their continued journey, Jeremiah said, was the cloud of witnesses in the passage -- witnesses of the past -- who testified the race could be finished honorably. Believers are to offer the same witness as they live, Jeremiah said. The journey must include laying aside every weight, to run with endurance and to look exclusively to Jesus, he added. "When we consider Him, we realize our challenges pale in comparison to His," Jeremiah said. "He is our inspiration for the journey." DENNIS SWANBERG Preacher-comedian Dennis "The Swan" Swanberg unveiled his humor and his staple impersonations before moving into a brief message from John 11 and 12 about Jesus and His friends Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Swanberg, billed as "America's Minister of Encouragement," said Jesus especially loved "real people" such as the three siblings in the biblical account. In fact, Swanberg said, Lazarus might have been Jesus' best friend, even though the Bible doesn't record a word from him "because he couldn't get a word in edgewise," Swanberg joked. The examples of Martha, Mary and Lazarus give an important reminder, Swanberg said: "Love your siblings. I know some of them are pitiful. Probably take them 20 years and two months to change. Well, they probably won't change, but just love them." When Jesus arrived at Bethany in John 11, Lazarus had been in the tomb four days, Swanberg reminded. Mary and Martha knew Jesus' power "but they loved their brother." Martha, consequently, appears to scold the Lord with "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." "I'm glad we have a God who understands when we get upset," Swanberg observed. He reminded the audience that as teenagers they probably said things that made their parents swallow hard yet not lash out. Likewise, "He's a big, gracious, loving God," Swanberg said. And then just six days before the Passover, Jesus went to Bethany. "Of all the places He could go, He goes to Bethany. Why? I think He wanted to be with His best friends. Pastors, you need some best friends," Swanberg said, adding that pastors especially need laymen -- real people -- as close friends. "Jesus needed His best friends, and you do too. I don't believe we'll make it in ministry and be the change agents we need to be unless we're real and we open ourselves up to have best friends," Swanberg said. DAVID PLATT David Platt, pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Ala., pointed to the "pandemic problem" of spiritual deception taking place in churches and urged Southern Baptists to beware of a "false, superficial faith" as opposed to a "true, salvific faith." "Are we calling people to biblical faith in a day of rampant easy believism?" he asked. "We must be very clear lest we lead people down a damning path of spiritual deception." Preaching from John 2 and 3, Platt noted how many in the Scripture believed in and accepted Jesus but were not accepted by Jesus. "Clearly from the beginning, the Gospel of John revolves around the centrality of belief in God. He makes clear there is a kind of faith that does not save," Platt said. "Jesus says [to Nicodemus], 'Your belief, your trust is insufficient for salvation. You must be born again.' This is shocking. "Here is a devout, respected man who has devoted his entire life to entering the kingdom of heaven. Yet Jesus looks at him and tells him he has no spiritual life in him whatsoever. He believed in Jesus, but he is dead in sin and headed toward condemnation. "Is this possible? For people to say they sincerely believe in Jesus, have accepted Jesus, have received Jesus but are not saved and will not enter the kingdom of heaven?" Platt asked. "Absolutely it is possible. Not only is it possible, it is probable. "Many assume they are saved simply because of a prayer they prayed," he said. "It's not that praying a prayer in and of itself is bad -- but the question in John 2 and 3 is what kind of faith are we calling people to? "We need supernatural regeneration," Platt said. Platt also urged Southern Baptists to "behold the mystery of biblical conversion" and "be gripped by the urgency of global mission." "Let us humbly discuss the things we do not know and boldly declare truth that we do know. Everyone who repents and believes in the Lord Jesus will be saved," Platt said. "We can all amen that, and everyone who is saved is saved by the grace of God. We are together on this. "We can debate all day, but the Scripture is fundamentally clear: God loves the whole world and everyone who trusts in Him will be saved," he said. "We do not have time to waste debating the Good News when we have been commissioned to share the Good News.? HERB REAVIS JR. Herb Reavis Jr., senior pastor of North Jacksonville (Fla.) Baptist Church, delivered a message exhorting pastors back to the fundamentals of Scripture. Reavis, drawing from 2 Timothy 3:14-17 and 4:1-8, said he came up with the title of his sermon when asked after a speaking engagement whether he had a book or CD to share. Reavis said when he told the man he had never written a book or made a CD, the man responded, "Oh, you're just a pastor." In his sermon, "Just a Pastor," Reavis said a pastor is a believer, learner, preacher, soul-winner, warrior and victor. "Faith is a matter of the heart," Reavis said. "Salvation is not about religion, but a matter of relationship." Study of the Word of God is essential, Reavis said. The Bible should be every pastor's textbook. "There is no substitute for the Word of God," he said. And pastors should be preachers, not talkers or lecturers, he said. "God did not call me to lead in group therapy. God didn't call me to get people in touch with their inner child. God did not call me to be a motivational speaker," Reavis said. "God called me to stand up and preach the Word of God." JACK GRAHAM Jack Graham, senior pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, said pastors must be stripped of their own self-reliance and learn to surrender to God if He is to use them and rejuvenate them in trying times. Graham used the account of Moses and the burning bush in Exodus 3 to encourage pastors who are struggling in the ministry. "Whatever you're going through, God is in control," Graham said. "What He originates, He orchestrates. Just as God was preparing and positioning Moses for the best years of his life and ministry, I believe that God is positioning you for the very best years of your life and ministry." While pastors may regularly go through times of despair and depression, Graham said they need to remember the call of God on their lives. He reminded pastors that God has uniquely designed each of them to fulfill His purposes. "There is nothing that God cannot do through you when He is in you," Graham said. JAMES MACDONALD James MacDonald, founding pastor of Harvest Bible Church in Chicago, drew from the John 2:1-11 account of Jesus' turning water into wine, preaching a sermon on "When I need a miracle." MacDonald initially said the text did not hold allegorical meaning, did not make Jesus a magician, and did not prove that miracles were for another time in history. "Miracles flow from what we have," said MacDonald, noting there were empty jars and water readily available. "Every miracle in the Bible involves something" that was already at hand, he said. "Miracles flow from active faith," he said, adding that the servants did what Jesus said. "They had to do something, and God met them at the point of their faith." MacDonald cited several points of action while waiting for one's miracle: -- "Have you done everything you know to do and are capable of doing?" -- "Have you done everything you've been counseled to do?" -- "Have you removed all impediments to prayer?" -- "Are you praying in faith and expectancy?" -- "Are you praying for God's glory as your motive?" "Miracles flow to the glory of Jesus," MacDonald said, reading the passage's same assertion. "The miracle wasn't to keep the guests hydrated or keep the party going. It was for God's glory. "Miracles flow for a deeper faith," MacDonald added, saying the "disciples believed in him. The result was a great faith foundation for the disciples, who not too far down the road are going to rock the world." FRED LUTER JR. Fred Luter Jr., senior pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans, preaching the closing message of the Pastors' Conference, spoke about the transforming power of the Gospel using Romans 1:16-17 as his text. Luter referred to several visual depictions of the cultural decline before asking: "What is it going to take to change our society? Let me ask you, Southern Baptist: What did it take to change you? Your life was transformed by the Gospel. "If God's Word can change you, God's Word can change them," Luter preached as he made the first of several points: The Word of God is personal, powerful, practical and persistent. The Gospel met every need in the apostle Paul's life, because it's personal and relevant no matter what's going on in one's life, Luter preached. "The Word of God is the only thing I know that can penetrate years of sin and save a lost soul. How do I know? I wasn't always a preacher. I was going to hell and enjoying the ride," he said. Luter noted the Gospel is practical because it can be accepted by anyone, and it's persistent because "when everything in life fails, the Word of God will still be standing." Luter said he was ashamed about a lot of things he sees in America today, including abortion, racism and a lack of unity among Christians. "Maybe if the world saw us getting along, maybe we can be an example," Luter said. NEW OFFICER ELECTIONS Officers elected for the SBC Pastors' Conference in Houston, June 11-12, 2013, are president, Greg Mott, pastor of First Baptist Church, Houston (nominated by John Bisagno, retired pastor, First Baptist Church, Houston); vice president, Paul Jimenez, pastor of Taylors First Baptist Church in Taylors, S.C. (nominated by David Horner, pastor of Providence Baptist Church, in Raleigh, N.C.); and treasurer, John Morgan, senior pastor of Sagemont Baptist Church (nominated by Tommy Winders, pastor of Carrollton Baptist Church in Carrollton, Ala.). --30-- Compiled by T. Patrick Hudson, with reporting by Jerry Pierce, Jennifer Davis Rash, Karen Willoughby, Tim Ellsworth, Lonnike Wilkey, Joni B. Hannigan and David Roach. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Pam Tebow describes 'fishbowl' experience by Tammi Reed Ledbetter Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- Well-versed in living a "fishbowl" experience, Pam Tebow, mother of NFL quarterback Tim Tebow and a former missionary to the Philippines, joined Jeannie Elliff, wife of the International Mission Board's president, for the Pastors' Wives Conference June 18 prior to the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in New Orleans. Tebow challenged the ministers' wives to appreciate the interest others have in their lives and use it as an opportunity for influence. "That's not a bad thing," Tebow said of a fishbowl experience. "There are such advantages and great accountability. Use your influence intentionally because that's why God created you -- to glorify Him." Tebow urged the audience to get to know the Master, learn from His manual, discover the power of prayer, develop a biblical mindset that focuses on eternity, care about their mission and remain passionate about God and the opportunities He has given them to influence their children. "When we invest in our kids, husbands and ministries of our churches, those are things that last forever," Tebow said. Her testimony provided highlights of her ministry with her husband in the Philippines and as the mother of five children. Aware that many of those investments do not yield immediate appreciation, Tebow said, "We're not patted on the back and we don't get a lot of accolades when we do things on behalf of children, husbands and churches, but God notices and He rewards you eternally for what you do for the cause of Christ." Elliff, a former pastor's wife and missionary, traced the hand of God in her life as she recounted the touchstones that point to the promises of God's deliverance found in Psalm 34:15-19. Growing up in a non-ministry family, she married a preacher, Tom Elliff, who pastored nearly 20 years before God called them to the mission field of Zimbabwe. Their departure was bittersweet, leaving within a year after Tom's father walked away from a 43-year marriage. "We were like two little kids holding on to each other," she said, recalling the night her husband learned of his father's lapse in moral character. Still in their mid-30s at the time, Elliff said they were crushed and scared. "After that, things began to happen in our lives that really proved our faith." There was the act of sabotage that wrecked the car she was driving in Zimbabwe, throwing three of the four children out of the car and leaving their 14-year-old daughter on the highway pinned under the vehicle and eventually requiring a return to the States for medical care. Then, a 20-year pastorate began with recovery from the monumental debt the church had incurred in previous years. Later, their 16-year-old son was hit by a car in which the driver was killed. In one year both of her parents died leaving her with the responsibility of selling their house and belongings. Then there was the fire that destroyed their home in Oklahoma, followed soon after by an F5 tornado that exploded the condominium to which they had moved. A knee injury forced her husband to preach from a wheelchair during his three-month recovery, and her two battles with breast cancer taught her that he was a better nurse to her than she was to him. At one time 11 of their grandchildren lived overseas. "Tom and I cannot grieve over the sacrifice we make in being away from our children," she said, calling the nearly 5,000 Southern Baptist missionaries and their 4,000 children "the world's unknown heroes." "When God broke my heart for missions as a pastor's wife and helped me get out of myself and the issues I was struggling with, I realized it's not just about me," she said. After developing an interest in the IMB, she realized it is only in eternity that the sacrifices of missionaries will be fully known. "Join me," she said, "in getting to know who they are." Parenting preachers' kids was the focus of a roundtable discussion led by Susie Hawkins, author of "From One Ministry Wife to Another," joined by Elliff, as well as Carmen Howell of Daytona Beach, Fla., Elicia Horton of Kansas City, Mo., and Cindy King of Philadelphia. Begun in 2005 as a pre-convention session of the annual meeting, the event is operated on a shoestring budget with LifeWay Christian Resources and the North American Mission Board underwriting much of the funding necessary to rent space and cover travel expenses of outside speakers. The session was opened in prayer by one of the most experienced women's ministry leaders in the country, Barbara O'Chester of Wake Forest, N.C., with Kathy Litton, national director of the North American Mission Board's ministry to pastors' wives, closing the session with a guided prayer applying the principles taught on behalf of preacher's kids. Litton encouraged wives of ministers to check out NAMB's online resource at www.flourish.me as well as www.contagiousjoy4him.com for pastors' wives and other women serving in ministry. --30-- Tammi Reed Ledbetter is news editor of the Southern Baptist Texan. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 'Great Commission' descriptor approved by messengers by Erin Roach Date: June 19, 2012 - Tuesday Updated June 20 at 8:35 a.m. Central time. EDITOR'S NOTE: An expanded story will appear in Baptist Press later today. NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- The descriptor "Great Commission Baptists" was approved by messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention by a vote of 53 percent to 46 percent after nearly a half-hour debate June 19 at the SBC annual meeting in New Orleans. According to results announced Wednesday morning, 4,824 ballots were cast, 2,546 were in favor of the descriptor and 2,232 were not in favor of the descriptor. Forty-six ballots were disallowed. At the time of the vote, 7,831 messengers were registered. The measure survived some parliamentary maneuvering as a messenger called for tabling the discussion indefinitely and another asked that the convention not consider the issue at all. Messengers approved the recommendation from the SBC Executive Committee that "those churches, entities and organizations in friendly cooperation with the Southern Baptist Convention" which desire to use a descriptor other than "Southern Baptists" to indicate their involvement in the convention consider using Great Commission Baptists. The phrase, messengers agreed, is commended "as one fully in keeping with our Southern Baptist Convention identity." The legal name of the convention will remain "Southern Baptist Convention." In February, the Executive Committee approved the recommendation brought by SBC President Bryant Wright who had appointed a task force to advise him on the possibility of changing the name of the Southern Baptist Convention. Based on their advice, Wright brought a recommendation to the EC that the convention keep its name but adopt an informal, non-legal Great Commission Baptists descriptor, to be used by any church that wishes to use it. Jimmy Draper, chairman of the task force, said the goal from the beginning of the study "was to consider the removal of any barrier to the effective proclamation of the Gospel and reaching people for Christ." --30-- Erin Roach is Baptist Press' assistant editor. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp).