A pastor in South Africa who had partnered with North Carolina Baptist volunteers was shot and killed Jan. 22 as he led a Bible study at Masiphumelele Baptist Church in Fish Hoek. From Baptist Press and other sources   SOUTH AFRICA PASTOR MURDERED DURING BIBLE STUDY – NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – A pastor in South Africa who had partnered with North Carolina Baptist volunteers was shot and killed Jan. 22 as he led a Bible study at Masiphumelele Baptist Church in Fish Hoek. Phillip Mokson, founding pastor of the congregation, died and a woman was seriously wounded by a man who was baptized in late 2006 but struggled with depression. The woman apparently had rejected his romantic overtures.   The gunman, known as Vusi, took his own life after the shootings, according to the Biblical Recorder, newsjournal of the Baptist Convention of North Carolina. Masiphumelele township’s 20,000 residents are predominantly young and poor. As many as 25 percent of them are HIV-positive, according to John Thomas, pastor of Fish Hoek Baptist Church, which sponsors the work Mokson led. The gunman reportedly had attempted suicide at least twice, and on one occasion Mokson had rescued him. TURKISH PASTOR THREATENED, BUILDING VANDALIZED – … [Read more...]

Registration opened Feb. 1 for the SBC Youth Ministry Survey, designed to be a comprehensive guide for Southern Baptist churches across the nation to garner crucial, fresh information about teens, their families and youth ministry.     FORT WORTH, Texas (BP) – Registration opened Feb. 1 for the SBC Youth Ministry Survey, designed to be a comprehensive guide for Southern Baptist churches across the nation to garner crucial, fresh information about teens, their families and youth ministry.   The free survey will be open for people to complete online April 1-8. Coordinators are particularly seeking churches to help provide input from youth, parents of youth, youth ministry volunteers and youth ministers.   "Churches and individuals tend to keep doing what they have been doing unless something prompts them to change," said Richard Ross, project coordinator and professor of student ministry at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. "In some churches, if attendance is OK, if parents and teens are reasonably happy with activities, then no one is motivated to think carefully about how ministry should be changed in the future."   The survey consists of 125 queries designed to measure each group’s attitudes on subjects … [Read more...]

The presidents of the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board and International Mission Board simultaneously hit buttons to launch the new North American People Groups website (www.peoplegroups.info) on Feb.7 during a joint ceremony. ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) – The presidents of the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board and International Mission Board simultaneously hit buttons to launch the new North American People Groups website (www.peoplegroups.info) on Feb.7 during a joint ceremony.   With interim NAMB President Roy Fish in Alpharetta, Ga., and IMB President Jerry Rankin in Richmond, Va., to "throw the switch," the new interactive website -– developed and funded jointly by the SBC’s two mission boards -– now offers a wealth of data to Christian users and the public at large.   "The North American Mission Board has a long history of evangelism and church planting among the variety of language and ethnic groups in North America," Fish said during the launch ceremony.   "Out of the 1,725 churches Southern Baptists started in 2005, 59 percent were either African American or ethnic congregations. We are a denomination committed to reaching across racial, ethnic and cultural lines with the … [Read more...]

Music experts charged with the task of setting criteria for which the hymns, worship songs and praise choruses should be part of an upcoming project concluded that a song’s theology is more important than its sound.     NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – Music experts charged with the task of setting criteria for which the hymns, worship songs and praise choruses should be part of an upcoming project concluded that a song’s theology is more important than its sound.   A Hymnal Summit hosted by the LifeWay Worship Music Group in Nashville, Tenn., Jan. 12-13 drew 100 participants selected because of their expertise to provide feedback on potential content for "The Worship Project," which includes a hardback hymnal to be released in 2008 and a 1,000-song digital hymnal repository to be released shortly thereafter.   "We have music professors from all of our Southern Baptist seminaries and 21 Baptist colleges, as well as church musicians and worship leaders and local music industry leaders," Mike Harland, director of the LifeWay Worship Music Group, said. "We also have invited people who worked on the 1991 Baptist Hymnal and our own LifeWay people who are devoted to this project."   Participants attended sessions on educational … [Read more...]

When time came for the mission offering, a young Cuban Christian took the patched shirt off his back, came forward and put it in the box.     ONTARIO, Calif. (BP) – When time came for the mission offering, a young Cuban Christian took the patched shirt off his back, came forward and put it in the box.   It was all he had, but he gave it gladly.   Another believer gave his socks. Several offered their watches and rings. Another contributed a handkerchief with words from the Bible written on it: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."   A Southern Baptist missionary witnessed this scene on a recent visit to Cuba, where he spoke at a mission training conference involving more than 300 mostly young home missionaries from around the island nation.   "I have never seen that kind of sacrificial giving – not in my country or any other country where we’ve served," the missionary told International Mission Board trustees during their Jan. 29-31 meeting in Ontario, Calif. "They gave what they had."   The impromptu mission offering had come after the missionary finished his planned participation in the conference. The Cuban Baptist pastor who organized the annual session unexpectedly announced, "We’re … [Read more...]

Though "cautiously optimistic" about the future of the Cooperative Program, Southern Baptist Convention President Frank Page said legitimate concerns must be addressed if the CP is to remain effective.     JACKSON, Tenn. (BP) – Though "cautiously optimistic" about the future of the Cooperative Program, Southern Baptist Convention President Frank Page said legitimate concerns must be addressed if the CP is to remain effective.   Page, pastor of First Baptist Church in Taylors, S.C., addressed the opening session of Union University’s Feb. 15-17 Baptist Identity Conference exploring the theme "Convention, Cooperation and Controversy."   Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources who also spoke on the conference’s first day, said a renewed emphasis on evangelism must begin with individuals and not with the denomination or church programs.   Among the other eight speakers scheduled for the conference were Timothy George, dean of Beeson Divinity School; Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; and David Dockery, president of Union University, located in Jackson, Tenn.   Page, commenting on the Cooperative Program, said, "If it is our desire that everything we’re doing this … [Read more...]

Comfortable couch. Great bed. Clean kitchen and bath. All the comforts of home!         NORCO – Comfortable couch. Great bed. Clean kitchen and bath. All the comforts of home!   With trappings like this, volunteers are much more apt to return for repeat ministry visits to greater New Orleans, says Rudy French, pastor of First Baptist Norco. The church, with the financial support of a deceased member who left money to the church specifically for improving the building, is near completion of its volunteer ministry center.   "Two Sunday school rooms have been converting into lodging," French explained. "We’ve renovated the kitchen and put in a washer and drying, plus a couple of showers."   The ministry center will be able to accommodate groups of up to 20 people, the pastor said. The renovations also included expanding the seating capacity of the worship center.   "If we’re involved with building the Kingdom of God, He’ll take care of building the church," French said.   A dedication service of the new ministry center is set for 11 a.m. Saturday, March 1. John Faull, pastor of Williams Boulevard Baptist Church, is one of five guest speakers.   First Norco had fallen on hard times when French … [Read more...]

"Don’t let good things distract from the best thing in ministry" Rev. Step Martin shared with some forty young pastors from Louisiana gathered at the Paul Timothy Conference Thursday, February 8. ALEXANDRIA – "Don’t let good things distract from the best thing in ministry" Rev. Step Martin shared with some forty young pastors from Louisiana gathered at the Paul Timothy Conference Thursday, February 8. Martin, an evangelist and retired pastor at Calvary Baptist Church, Shreveport facilitated discussions and encouraged pastors to "always have ministry focuses on the main thing —reaching people for Christ." Step reminded pastors that "Satan attacks at the most vital points in life— most vital part of a pastor’s life is reaching people for Christ." The conference was developed to provide an opportunity for younger pastors to be encouraged and learn from a ‘seasoned pastor’ as he shares from his experiences in ministry, said Alan Miller, who was Louisiana Baptist Convention’s Pastoral Leadership team leader, when the conference was planned. Miller now is pastor of First Baptist Monroe. Many of the struggles young pastors face could be avoided had they had an opportunity to discuss them with an experienced pastor, Miller said. The … [Read more...]

God cares about your home. That is, he cares deeply about the relationships in your family and the environment that exists among its members.         God cares about your home. That is, he cares deeply about the relationships in your family and the environment that exists among its members. He cares about the resources you have to support your family and the values that bind you together. He cares about the dangers in your neighborhood and your treatment of your neighbors. When we use the word "home" we often mean to include these dimensions of our life together.   God also cares about your house. That is, he cares about the physical place that you call "home." He cares about the leaks in the roof, the drafts around the windows, the safety of the wiring, and the potential exposure of children to lead-based paints, among many other things. He cares about how cold you are in the winter and how hot in the summer.   We know that God cares about these things in part because he has given extensive instruction in the Bible concerning family relationships and home environment. In the Ten Commandments he instructs us to honor our parents and to treat our neighbors with honesty and respect. He instructs us to … [Read more...]

Will the "great global conflict" of the 21st century be the struggle between Islam and Christianity?         Will the "great global conflict" of the 21st century be the struggle between Islam and Christianity?   Many people think so, including Anglican Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi of Uganda. He is renowned for his courageous stand for biblical faith in the global Anglican flock. Orombi sees the Muslim-Christian contest playing out in political, economic and social spheres in nations of the "global south," where both faiths compete for new followers.   Another Anglican cleric, Mark Durie of Australia, agrees with Orombi. Durie said the 20th century was one of "humanistic ideologies, some of them quite perverse... I believe the capacity of those ideologies to shape the world is petering out." The next 100 years, he predicted, will be a "century of faith."   Not so fast.   Humanist and secularist ideologies continue to wield great influence –- especially among Europeans and American cultural elites. More than we realize, those ideologies affect the church and its global mission task. The Great Commission continues to come under philosophical attack from people who want to silence the preaching of … [Read more...]