Just how important are key faith practices in modern-day United States?   The church always has emphasized several key faith practices - worshiping God, sharing the gospel, living a Christlike life, meeting needs. Just how important are key faith practices in modern-day United States?   The church always has emphasized several key faith practices - worshiping God, sharing the gospel, living a Christlike life, meeting needs.   But are church members prioritizing those foundational practices in their own lives?   A recent Barna Research Group study suggests there still is plenty of work to do in that area. The study asked persons about the importance of several foundational faith practices.   Overall, worship ranks as the most important faith practice, the survey indicates. Indeed, 75 percent of adults surveyed ranks worship as "very important." That compares to 94 percent of born again Christians and 92 percent of persons who attend Christian church regularly who say the same.   That is the good news. The not-so-good news is that many people fail to have regular positive worship experiences.   Overall, one-third of church attenders say … [Read more...]

Problems such as teen pregnancy and school shootings will be solved only if Christians turn to God and pray for revival in America, Billy Kim warned. Problems such as teen pregnancy and school shootings will be solved only if Christians turn to God and pray for revival in America, Billy Kim warned.   "What America needs today is a generation of God-fearing mothers and fathers willing to kneel by the bedside and pray all night their wandering sons and daughters back to the fold of God," said Kim, president of the Baptist World Alliance and pastor at the 15,000-member Central Baptist Church in Suwon, Korea. "This nation needs revival. ...   "There is no other nation on the face of the earth that has been blessed by God as the people of the United States of America," Kim insisted during a recent address at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. "Whether you like it or not, you’re the world leader militarily, politically and even religiously. Whatever you teach here, sooner or later it will influence our part of the world."   In an address based on Habukkuk 3:1-3, Kim warned that moral decline in America will continue - unless Christians begin to pray … [Read more...]

The U.S. church faces a host of challenges - but none that spiritual awakening cannot solve At the close of a popular film, an actor portraying a fictitious president launches into a soliloquy by pointing out, "America isn’t easy."   The character is speaking of American politics and citizenship - but his assessment could apply to the religious scene in this country as well.   Talk about hard. Consider the American scene.   Interest in spirituality is at an all-time high - while commitment to organized religion is sinking.   Most Americans consider themselves Christians - but fewer than half read the Bible on their own or give any time to pray and devotion.   And less than half of professing Christians also say they are "absolutely committed to the Christian faith."   Welcome to the new millennium.   Welcome to the age of spiritual stagnation.   "While Americans remain interested in faith and consider themselves to be religious people, little has changed in relation to the religious practices of Americans in recent years, ..." explained George Barna, author and founder of the California-based Barna Research Group.   "In … [Read more...]

One could hardly excuse New Orleans Baptists from recalling the 1996 Southern Baptist Convention as their favorite.   And the truth is - their reasoning probably would have nothing at all to do with whatever business or reporting was done during the actual convention. One could hardly excuse New Orleans Baptists from recalling the 1996 Southern Baptist Convention as their favorite.   And the truth is - their reasoning probably would have nothing at all to do with whatever business or reporting was done during the actual convention.   For Baptists in the New Orleans area, the real impact of the 1996 convention came in the days before the annual meeting even opened in the Louisiana Superdome.   For them, the story of the convention can be summed up in a few words - Crossover New Orleans.   And they make it clear - hopes are high for a repeat this summer when the 2001 Southern Baptist Convention visits New Orleans once again.   In 1996, nearly 3,000 individuals made professions of faith during the Crossover New Orleans evangelistic initiative. That helped push the number of baptisms to an all-time high in the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans … [Read more...]

Pardon me if I do not laugh.   Comedians make their living by finding people and situations to which they can put a humorous spin to make America laugh. Nothing wrong with that. Humor is a gift of God to human beings who are created in His image. There is even a healing aspect to humor. Pardon me if I do not laugh.   Comedians make their living by finding people and situations to which they can put a humorous spin to make America laugh. Nothing wrong with that. Humor is a gift of God to human beings who are created in His image. There is even a healing aspect to humor.   But pardon me if I do not laugh at any more jokes about the immorality of two of our nation’s leaders.   The tragedy of the former president of our nation having a sophomoric, stupid, adolescent, improper, immoral sexual relationship with a young woman his daughter’s age is not funny. Obviously, some things about the episode can be laughed at - collective America has been laughing at jokes about the sordid affair for years. But, have we allowed the humor to replace in our thinking the reality of the tragedy?   And now, one of the nation’s more visible African-Americans has been caught in … [Read more...]

Christian women must not become so busy fulfilling God’s plans that they fail to get instructions from him, Janet Hoffman warned recently. In her first address to the Southern Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union executive board since being elected national president, Janet Hoffman cautioned her co-laborers not to become so busy that they fail to listen for God. Christian women must not become so busy fulfilling God’s plans that they fail to get instructions from him, Janet Hoffman warned recently. In her first address to the Southern Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union executive board since being elected national president, Janet Hoffman cautioned her co-laborers not to become so busy that they fail to listen for God. "There is no shortcut to God’s vision," emphasized Hoffman, a member at First Baptist Church of Farmerville. "It requires prayer," she told women. "You and I know that. Many of us have known it all of our lives. We were created for fellowship with God. "But in the busy place of our myriad ministries, in our sincere desire to do as much as we can as quickly as we can, often, the first thing to go is our prayer time," said Hoffman, who was elected to a first term as national Southern Baptist Woman’s … [Read more...]

For the week of February 1, 2001 Potpourri •BATON ROUGE - Grace church to honor Kelly Fitzgerald as pastor emeritus, Feb. 4, 11 a.m.; Scott and Michelle Lesley, music; dinner to follow; Milford Walters, pastor.   •PROVENCAL - First church: Testify in concert; Feb. 3, 7 p.m.; Kevin Taylor, pastor.   •START - Start church: "The Worth of a Woman" second annual women’s conference; Feb. 10, 8:30 a.m. - 2 p.m.; Mamie McCullough, speaker; to register or for information, call the church office at (318) 728-4695; Jeff Smart, pastor.   •WOODWORTH - Tall Timbers Conference Center: Bivocational Evangelism Conference; Feb. 23; registration, 5 p.m.; meal, 7 p.m.; worship, 8 p.m.; Feb. 24, 8:30 a.m. - 12 noon and 6:30 p.m.; Feb. 25; breakfast, 7:30 a.m.; worship, 9 a.m. - 12 noon; David Uth, speaker; Jimmy McCaleb, worship leader; Higher Faith, music; for information, call the evangelism office, LBC, at (318) 448-3402 or 1-800-622-6549; for registration and/or lodging, call the conference center at (318) 445-6797. Anniversaries •WEST MONROE - Mt. Vernon church: Woody Rimes; 5 years as pastor. Ordinations •MORGAN CITY - First church: Gregory Roussel to deacon ministry; Earl Waggoner, … [Read more...]

The Southern Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union has a simple goal for the new century - to be an epic missions organization, Wanda Lee emphasized. The Southern Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union has a simple goal for the new century - to be an epic missions organization, Wanda Lee emphasized.   Webster Dictionary defines epic as "extending beyond the usual or ordinary ... heroic," noted Lee, executive director of the national Woman’s Missionary Union.   Author Leonard Sweet describes an epic church with four adjectives, Lee said in an address to the Woman’s Missionary Union executive board. Those adjectives include:   E- for experiential.   P- for participatory.   I - for image driven.   C- for connected.   "Leonard Sweet’s challenge to those of us in leadership in the church of the 21st century is to ... move from just doing church to being the church in new ways," Lee said.   Lee said WMU has realized the importance of this truth - and has spent a lot of time and energy creating new models for engaging the church in the missions lifestyle.   However, research alone does not have all the answers, Lee pointed out. "To … [Read more...]

As has been tradition, Southern Baptist leaders will continue to ask overseas missionaries to commit to work "in accordance with and not contrary to" the convention’s Baptist Faith and Message. As has been tradition, Southern Baptist leaders will continue to ask overseas missionaries to commit to work "in accordance with and not contrary to" the convention’s Baptist Faith and Message.   Missionaries and Southern Baptist International Mission Board staff members will not be required to sign the document.   Whether they would or not became an issue during last year’s annual Southern Baptist Convention, when a motion was made that denominational employees not be required to do so.   The motion was referred to all convention entities for consideration. Some have responded by continuing their practice of requiring employees to sign the denomination’s confessional statement.   Likewise, International Mission Board trustees voted unanimnously last week to continue their longstanding practice - and to put it in writing. In doing so, trustees also voted to "wholeheartedly" affirm the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message as the "standard for carrying out the programs and ministries" of … [Read more...]

The Lost, The Grace of God, The Cross of Jesus, The Resurrection of Jesus, Hell, Heaven, The Second Coming of Jesus, The Great Commission The lost   Contrary to the belief of many, people definitely are interested in the gospel message, Alvin Reid emphasized at last week’s Louisiana Baptist Evangelism Conference.   "They’re just not interested in the caricature of the gospel we present," said Reid, associate professor of evangelism at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in North Carolina.   In turn, too many Christians seemingly are not interested in reaching the lost with the gospel, Reid continued. "We have lost the sense of lostness. ... The problem today is not that we’re a friend of sinners. The problem is we’re a friend of sin."   Christians must recover a sense of lostness, he explained in a message based on Ephesians 2. "Lost people are in danger. ... They are dead in sin, dead men walking."   However, the Bible reveals the depth of God’s love for the lost - something modern Christians must reflect, Reid added.   Reid said individuals can tell three things about a person in the first five minutes of meeting them - whether the person cares … [Read more...]