Year-to-date contributions through the Southern Baptist Convention’s Cooperative Program are 1.83 percent below the same time frame in 2004, according to SBC Executive Committee President and Chief Executive Officer Morris H. Chapman. Year-to-date contributions through the Southern Baptist Convention’s Cooperative Program are 1.83 percent below the same time frame in 2004, according to SBC Executive Committee President and Chief Executive Officer Morris H. Chapman. As of Dec. 31, 2005, the year-to-date total of $45,424,989.76 for Cooperative Program missions is $846,995.90 under the $46,271,985.66 received at the same point in 2004. For the month of December 2005, receipts of $14,622,239.09 were 2.38 percent, or $340,508.45, above the $14,281,730.64 received in December 2004. Designated giving of $10,589,328.46 for the same year-to-date period is 2.05 percent, or $212,872.02, above gifts of $10,376,456.44 received at this point last year. The $3,670,570.04 in designated gifts received last month is $455,314.15 below the $4,125,884.19 received in December 2004, a decrease of 11.04 percent. For the SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget, the year-to-date total of $45,424,989.76 is 95.70 percent of … [Read more...]
Samford trustees elect Westmoreland as school’s 18th president
Samford University’s board of trustees unanimously elected Andrew Westmoreland Samford’s 18th president Jan. 10. Samford University’s board of trustees unanimously elected Andrew Westmoreland Samford’s 18th president Jan. 10. Currently president of Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Ark., which he has led since 1998, Westmoreland will replace Thomas Corts, who retires May 31. Corts has served as president of the school since 1983. Westmoreland, 48, was recommended to the board of trustees by an 18-member presidential search committee after an eight-month national search involving more than 140 applicants. William J. Stevens, chairman of the board of trustees, introduced Westmoreland at a news conference following his election at a special meeting of the board. “The board is very confident that Dr. Westmoreland is just the person to lead Samford at this point in the university’s 164-year history,” said Stevens. “He comes to us highly recommended not just by the search committee and the constituent reference panels (who met with Westmoreland in December), but by everyone who was contacted about his ability to lead a great university like Samford.” Stevens noted that Westmoreland “brings … [Read more...]
Disaster relief co-workers assume roles of organ donor and recipient
Kurtiss Ewell received one Christmas present a few days late this year, and it came from someone he met last fall while volunteering in a Franklin, Tenn., shelter for Hurricane Katrina evacuees. Kurtiss Ewell received one Christmas present a few days late this year, and it came from someone he met last fall while volunteering in a Franklin, Tenn., shelter for Hurricane Katrina evacuees. Ewell, a diabetic who suffered from kidney disease, received the gift of a kidney from Audrey Dean Jan. 3. Dean, who attends Tennessee Valley Community Church in Paris, and Ewell, a member of Northside Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, Tenn., received Tennessee Baptist disaster relief training in September. They met Sept. 30 on their first ministry assignment. The two believe God called them into disaster relief ministry, and they believe their meeting at the shelter did not happen by chance – it was a divine appointment. Dean said they spent part of the day working together on inventory in the trailers. While she knew nothing of Ewell’s medical problems, she did notice that he had to stop periodically to rest. The next day Dean and others asked Northside volunteer Sarah Beth Miller about Ewell when he didn’t return to … [Read more...]
Adrian Rogers biography penned by his wife of 54 years, Joyce
There is no better expert on the late Adrian Rogers than his wife and lifelong sweetheart, Joyce. There is no better expert on the late Adrian Rogers than his wife and lifelong sweetheart, Joyce. Through grade school, high school, college and 54 years of marriage, she experienced the highs and lows of life alongside him and was the sounding board for his deepest thoughts. She has recorded her unique perspective in “Love Worth Finding: The Life of Adrian Rogers and His Philosophy of Preaching,” a biography released by Broadman & Holman Publishers prior to Rogers’ death Nov. 15 after a battle with cancer. Joyce Rogers lovingly recounts her husband’s beginning in the ranks of the ordinary, where in junior high school he was known as “unruly and belligerent.” “He had an overdose of courage and the ability to fight with his fists,” she wrote in the book. “He had gained a reputation of being one of the toughest kids in school. He would challenge others to a fight just for an expression of what must have been an inner turmoil.” The third child of working-class parents, Rogers yielded his life to Jesus at age 14 after some neighbors invited his family to a crusade at a local Baptist church in his … [Read more...]
International Mission Board trustees seek removal of Burleson
Trustees of the International Mission Board have initiated an action to ask the Southern Baptist Convention to remove one of their members. Trustees of the International Mission Board have initiated an action to ask the Southern Baptist Convention to remove one of their members. The board’s chairman, Tom Hatley, issued a three-paragraph statement Jan. 11 following a trustee vote the previous night in executive session, or closed session, to terminate the term of Wade Burleson, senior pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Enid, Okla., who served as president of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma from 2003-05. The full statement reported: “The trustees of the International Mission Board voted to recommend to the Southern Baptist Convention that Wade Burleson of Oklahoma, be removed by the convention as a trustee of the International Mission Board. “This difficult measure was not taken without due deliberation and exploration of other ways to handle an impasse between Wade Burleson and the Board. In taking this action, trustees addressed issues involving broken trust and resistance to accountability, not Burleson’s opposition to policies recently enacted by the board. “The trustees consider this … [Read more...]
IMB trustees focus on theological education, annual statstics
International Mission Board leaders reaffirmed their commitment to theological education overseas during the recent board of trustees meeting, saying that discipleship and leadership training are essential to fulfilling the international missions task. International Mission Board leaders reaffirmed their commitment to theological education overseas during the recent board of trustees meeting, saying that discipleship and leadership training are essential to fulfilling the international missions task. During the meeting, trustees approved an additional 12 missionaries who were appointed Jan. 10 at Staples Mill Road Baptist Church in Glen Allen, Va. Those new missionaries join 383 long-term personnel appointed last year, including 175 appointed in the September and November appointment services in Pensacola, Fla., and Huntsville, Ala., respectively. Statistical Gains Trustees also received the Annual Statistical Report showing substantial growth in international missions causes in 2004. Trustees learned IMB leadership had planned to present the 2005 report during the board meeting last November but needed additional time to verify reports from a church-planting movement in South Asia. Three primary entity … [Read more...]
New puzzle to replace Bibliocipher
Beginning next week, readers of the Baptist Message will find ScriptureCrypto in the place of Bibliocipher, which had been a weekly feature of the newspaper. Beginning next week, readers of the Baptist Message will find ScriptureCrypto in the place of Bibliocipher, which had been a weekly feature of the newspaper. Created by Cheryl Vaughn, circulation manager for the Baptist New Mexican, ScriptureCrypto, like Bibliocipher, offers readers an opportunity to exercise their knowledge of the Bible through the use of cryptography. Bibliocipher was provided free of charge to the Baptist Message, and other state Baptist papers, by Charles Marx of Hattiesburg, Miss., who died Feb. 29, 2004. Since his final illness and death, the newspaper had continued publishing his puzzles in the Baptist Message until two weeks ago, when the supply on hand was exhausted. According to the Baptist New Mexican, Marx provided the inspiration for ScriptureCrypto. That also has been communicated with his widow, Ernestine, who expressed her pleasure that his legacy would continue through a similar puzzle with a different name. Marx, a Mississippi Baptist who held doctorates in both law and political science, served as a college … [Read more...]
‘End of the Spear’: missions buffeted by U.S. culture war
“End of the Spear,” a film that opened in theaters nationwide last week, recounts one of the most extraordinary chapters in the modern missionary movement. “End of the Spear,” a film that opened in theaters nationwide last week, recounts one of the most extraordinary chapters in the modern missionary movement. Yet it has become an unexpected example of the nation’s culture war, with an actor who is a homosexual activist playing its lead character. The film’s release marks the 50th anniversary of the Jan. 8, 1956, killing of Nate Saint, Jim Elliot and three other American missionaries by spear-wielding tribesmen in the Ecuadorian jungle. The story continued when one of the missionaries’ sisters, Rachel Saint, and one of their widows, Elisabeth Elliot, subsequently lived among the tribesmen, helping kindle faith among those who had cast the spears and others in the pervasively violent culture. Elliot chronicled her experiences in “Through Gates of Splendor,” which remains a classic among books on missions. Nate Saint’s son, Steve Saint, who was 5 when his father was killed, has made regular visits to tribesmen over the years – and found an amazing bond with the one who speared his dad, a man named … [Read more...]
Message to emphasize prophetic, objective and gospel truth
While serving as an undercover cop in New York City in the 1960’s, Frank Serpico discovered a police department that was rife with corruption. When Serpico’s findings became public, the NYC mayor appointed a special commission to investigate the problem. By Kelly Boggs LBM Editor While serving as an undercover cop in New York City in the 1960’s, Frank Serpico discovered a police department that was rife with corruption. When Serpico’s findings became public, the NYC mayor appointed a special commission to investigate the problem. When the New York City District Attorney was preparing Serpico for his appearance before the commission, he suggested that the undercover detective shave his beard and cut his hair. He felt that Serpico’s testimony would be more credible if he appeared more conventional. In response to the DA’s suggestion Serpico replied, “That’s what is wrong with the world, all anyone cares about is appearances; no one wants to hear the truth.” Outside of the Bible, Serpico’s quote is one of my favorites. As blood-bought followers of Jesus Christ, we must reject the temptation of merely being content with appearance. Our commitment must be to the truth. As I assume the editorship of … [Read more...]
Georgia Barnette giving sets record while LBC Cooperative Program closes down
Last year proved to be a good year for one Louisiana Baptist Convention offering, but four others did not fare so well. By Brian Blackwell LBM Newswriter Last year proved to be a good year for one Louisiana Baptist Convention offering, but four others did not fare so well. State leaders celebrated the fact that the 2005 Georgia Barnette Offering for State Missions closed the year with a record $1,215,339.47, an increase of $115,097.96 (10 percent) from the previous year. The total marks the tenth consecutive year for receipts to close at more than $1 million and the fourth straight year at more than $1.1 million. In that last five years, Louisiana Baptists have given more than $5.5 million through the offering. And setting another record this year could be crucial since the state offering funds are used exclusively in Louisiana, which was significantly affected by the recent hurricanes this past year. The offering supports a host of missions and ministry efforts throughout the state, especially related to mission churches and mission pastors. “Besides the fact that people like to give to the Georgia Barnette Offering, we did special things to promote it through the (Woman’s Missionary … [Read more...]
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