A majority of Southern Baptist Convention pastors believe the media has overstated the threat of global warming and that SBC resolutions have not been “too timid” when they addressed global warming, according to a recent study on global issues by LifeWay Research. NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A majority of Southern Baptist Convention pastors believe the media has overstated the threat of global warming and that SBC resolutions have not been “too timid” when they addressed global warming, according to a recent study on global issues by LifeWay Research.  The study also found that there is a contrast between the opinions of SBC pastors and average Americans on several national issues including global warming, physician-assisted suicide and embryonic stem cell research.  Regarding SBC resolutions on global warming, the study revealed only 17 percent of the denomination’s pastors agree that the convention has been too timid in its stances on climate change. Sixty-five percent of pastors either somewhat disagreed or strongly disagreed that the convention has been too timid in its resolutions on climate change.  “The majority of Southern Baptists are comfortable with the stand of the convention from past resolutions,” said Ed Stetzer, … [Read more...]

Israel leans back against a cast-iron gate on the streets of Mexico City’s Tepito barrio. With arms crossed in front of his chest and head bowed in prayer, he shifts his weight, then wipes a tear from his eye.  MEXICO CITY (BP) – Israel leans back against a cast-iron gate on the streets of Mexico City’s Tepito barrio. With arms crossed in front of his chest and head bowed in prayer, he shifts his weight, then wipes a tear from his eye. Mauricio Rojas knows the feeling. He was once in Israel’s shoes. The drug addictions that enslave Israel once trapped Mauricio. Standing at Israel’s side, Mauricio gives the young man his address and tells him to stop by whenever he wants. “Christ can do anything,” Mauricio says. “He got me out of the trash, and He can do the same for you.” In Mexico City, a city of 28 million, Israel is one of countless young people battling drugs in a barrio with rampant drug trafficking, prostitution and a thriving black market. The presence of evil-spirit worship and animistic cults makes the darkness of barrios such as Tepito seem oppressive. While other missionaries concentrate on areas outside the city proper, William and Orpha Ortega are the only International Mission Board missionaries … [Read more...]

“Knowing God” will be the theme for the annual Pastors’ Wives Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Pastors’ Conference, with several noted pastors’ wives to share ways God has strengthened them in their life experiences. INDIANAPOLIS (BP) – “Knowing God” will be the theme for the annual Pastors’ Wives Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Pastors’ Conference, with several noted pastors’ wives to share ways God has strengthened them in their life experiences. The 8:30 a.m.-noon session on Monday, June 9, in the Indiana Convention Center’s Sagamore Ballrooms 1-3 is free of charge and no registration is necessary. Doors open at 8 a.m. Donna Gaines, wife of Steve Gaines, pastor of the Memphis-area Bellevue Baptist Church, will be the main speaker, with praise and worship to be led by Kim and Suzanne Noblitt of First Baptist Church in Springdale, Ark. The session is designed to support women married to men in ministry, to provide a forum for sharing challenges unique to women in such roles and to allow women with many years of experience to share what they have learned with younger women. Susie Hawkins, wife of O.S. Hawkins, president of GuideStone Financial Resources in Dallas, will lead a discussion on … [Read more...]

The police were standing around a grimy box on a street in Mexico City. MEXICO CITY (BP) – The police were standing around a grimy box on a street in Mexico City. Southern Baptist missionary Pam Wong and a group of church volunteers spotted them while distributing Gospels in the inner-city neighborhood. When they asked a woman standing nearby what was going on, they were told a homeless man had died on the street the night before. “He was in a cardboard box. His body was there -– and nobody cared,” Pam recalls. Of the 9 million people jammed into the centro area of Mexico’s vast capital city, about 80 percent are poor. At least 50,000, according to estimates, live on the streets –- because of drug or alcohol abuse, or joblessness, or both. “Some have checked out on society,” missionary David Wong, Pam’s husband, explains. “Others, though, truly want work. I met one man who had lost his business, home and everything else in the Cancun area because of a hurricane and could not get back on his feet. Economically in Mexico, it’s hard for the working class to get off the low rung.” About 300 street people line up weekly for a free meal at a ministry center for the homeless at a church in Mexico City. Southern Baptist … [Read more...]

The boy stands in Constitution Square with outstretched arms and open palms as a man dressed in native attire circles him, wafting smoke through the boy’s clothing and hair. Like many tourists and locals, the boy dropped a few pesos in a basket to receive this tribal blessing. MEXICO CITY (BP)--The boy stands in Constitution Square with outstretched arms and open palms as a man dressed in native attire circles him, wafting smoke through the boy’s clothing and hair. Like many tourists and locals, the boy dropped a few pesos in a basket to receive this tribal blessing. Less than 100 yards from this scene, worshippers bow before religious icons inside Mexico City’s famed Metropolitan Cathedral. In spite of the city’s reputation as a historical hub of religious activity, it remains less than 2 percent evangelical. International Mission Board missionary K.C. Crino describes Mexico City and most of the urban centers in Mexico as historic “headquarters of pagan worship.” “That’s why people flocked there,” Crino says. “That’s why they’re the cities that they are -– because something spiritual was taking place.” On the periphery of the city in a district called Xochimilco, Crino and his wife, Gail -– former Illinois … [Read more...]

Willis is perhaps best known for creating MasterLife discipleship materials while serving as the president of the Indonesian Baptist Theological Seminary in Semarang, Indonesia, was first commissioned an International Mission Board missionary to Indonesia, along with his wife, Shirley, in 1964. Willis is perhaps best known for creating MasterLife discipleship materials while serving as the president of the Indonesian Baptist Theological Seminary in Semarang, Indonesia, was first commissioned an International Mission Board missionary to Indonesia, along with his wife, Shirley, in 1964. During his service there, the Southeast Asian nation experienced a revival in which 2 million people gave their hearts to Christ. The large number of converts prompted Willis to pioneer innovative strategies for extension education and led the way in developing the prototype for what would become MasterLife. During the next 15 years as head of the adult discipleship department at LifeWay Christian Resources, MasterLife was translated into more than 50 languages and used in more than 100 countries. Willis left LifeWay in 1994 to become the International Mission Board’s senior vice president of overseas operations. All totaled, Willis spent 25 … [Read more...]

Cox has been North Metro’s pastor for more than 27 years. Under his leadership, the church has grown from 700 members to more than 4,600 today, with 3,600-plus individuals added to the church fellowship as baptized believers. A total of 164 persons have surrendered to full-time Christian service under. Cox has been North Metro’s pastor for more than 27 years. Under his leadership, the church has grown from 700 members to more than 4,600 today, with 3,600-plus individuals added to the church fellowship as baptized believers. A total of 164 persons have surrendered to full-time Christian service under. Cox is a former president of the Georgia Baptist Convention and former SBC first vice president. He also served on the SBC Executive Committee for nine years and currently is a member of the SBC Funding Study Committee. He was a member of the Ad Hoc Cooperative Program Committee which formed in 2003 and issued its final report in 2006 with recommendations about how to revitalize the SBC’s primary giving channel. Cox is married to the former Mary Roderick, who serves as the Georgia convention’s ministers’ wives ministry coordinator. The Coxes have two sons and a daughter. Cox’s first wife, Debbie, died of a brain tumor in July … [Read more...]

A native of North Carolina, Hunt has been pastor of the Woodstock church since December 1986. During his tenure, the church has seen average Sunday school attendance grow from 275 to 4,705 and church membership increase from 1,027 to 16,495, according to the 2007 Annual Church Profile. Current average church worship attendance is 6,180. A native of North Carolina, Hunt has been pastor of the Woodstock church since December 1986. During his tenure, the church has seen average Sunday school attendance grow from 275 to 4,705 and church membership increase from 1,027 to 16,495, according to the 2007 Annual Church Profile. Current average church worship attendance is 6,180. Since 1987, the congregation has sent out more than 135 missionaries and started more than 78 churches. Hunt is a graduate of Gardner-Webb College in Boiling Springs, N.C., where he was voted ministerial student of the year in 1979. He earned a master of divinity degree from Southeastern Seminary in 1981. The Chair of Church Growth at Southeastern was named for Hunt in 1997. Hunt is married to the former Janet Allen of Wilmington, N.C. The couple has two daughters and four grandchildren. Information from the 2007 Annual Church Profile for First … [Read more...]

Puryear, a native of North Carolina, has been pastor of Lewisville Baptist Church since 2005. Prior to his call into fulltime vocational ministry in 1996, Puryear served as a telecommunications executive for 25 years. Puryear, a native of North Carolina, has been pastor of Lewisville Baptist Church since 2005. Prior to his call into fulltime vocational ministry in 1996, Puryear served as a telecommunications executive for 25 years. Puryear is a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, and currently is working on a doctorate at Trinity Theological Seminary in Newburgh, Ind. He and his wife, the former Debbie Lewter of Wilmington, N.C., have two sons and two grandchildren. Information from the 2007 Annual Church Profile for Lewisville Baptist Church, lists 11 baptisms and primary worship service attendance of 195. The church received $4,751 for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions and $1,500 for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. According to the ACP, the church gave $20,331, or 5.9 percent, through the Cooperative Program in 2007 from total undesignated receipts of $343,795. Questions and Answers Puryear's answers to the … [Read more...]

A native of Arkansas, Drake has been pastor of the Buena Park congregation since 1987. He is a former second vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention and twice has served as moderator of the Orange County Southern Baptist Association. He is listed as a co-founder of the Presidential Prayer Team and currently serves as vice president of the Congressional Prayer Conference in Washington, D.C., and as chaplain to the Minuteman Project. He is a member of the board of directors of Crusade Radio, on which he hosts “The Wiley Drake Show.” A native of Arkansas, Drake has been pastor of the Buena Park congregation since 1987. He is a former second vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention and twice has served as moderator of the Orange County Southern Baptist Association. He is listed as a co-founder of the Presidential Prayer Team and currently serves as vice president of the Congressional Prayer Conference in Washington, D.C., and as chaplain to the Minuteman Project. He is a member of the board of directors of Crusade Radio, on which he hosts “The Wiley Drake Show.” Drake is a perennial presence at open microphones during general business sessions of annual meetings. He is best known in Southern Baptist circles … [Read more...]