The first of several conferences nationwide designed to teach pastors the basics of debt-free living – named “It’s A New Day: How Will You Spend It?” – aims at “liberating people from the bondage of debt,” according to one of its organizers.
ORLANDO, Fla.
(BP) – The first of several conferences nationwide designed to teach pastors
the basics of debt-free living – named “It’s A New Day: How Will You Spend It?”
– aims at “liberating people from the bondage of debt,” according to one of its
organizers.
The new focus is
not another capital campaign or a new way to raise Cooperative Program funds to
support Southern Baptist missions and ministries, added Bob Rodgers, the SBC
Executive Committee’s vice president for Cooperative Program and stewardship.
Tackling
financial bondage will help people “choose who to serve, because if they are in
bondage to debt … they are not free to choose to serve God,” Rodgers said in
a panel discussion during the March 22-23 conference in Orlando, Fla.
Last year, messengers
to the SBC annual meeting in Greensboro,
N.C., voted to move the ministry
assignment for stewardship to the SBC’s Executive Committee from LifeWay
Christian Resources. It is a move that Ashley Clayton, the EC’s new associate
vice president for stewardship, predicted will broaden the understanding of
stewardship from merely giving the tithe to the church to something much
bigger.
Basic money
management strategies will produce leaders who can be “catalyst[s] that can
shift the culture,” Clayton said. “Easy money, consumer credit card debt is at
epidemic proportions – not just outside the church, but inside the church. We
are also discovering that pastors are not immune from the pressure of debt as
well.”
The spiritual
impact of that debt burden can be staggering, Clayton said, causing people who
would otherwise be willing to go on a mission trip, teach a Sunday School class
or tithe to hold back.
“They are willing
to do it but they honestly can’t,” Clayton said. “The bondage that they’re
under is absolutely keeping people from fulfilling what God has called them to
do.”
The
“transformational” approach of the It’s A New Day initiative can have a
dramatic impact on Southern Baptist life, Clayton said.
“You can motivate
people on Sunday morning all day long to do all these wonderful things in the
Kingdom, but when Monday morning rolls around their motivation goes out the
window because they’re in debt,” Clayton said.
Stewardship/Integrity
John Sullivan,
executive director-treasurer of the Florida Baptist Convention, spoke briefly
about the importance of stewardship, calling it a “matter of integrity” for
Christians.
“When you come to
the matter of stewardship, you come to the matter of life commitment,” Sullivan
said. “I guarantee you it has more to do than just with money, but it does deal
with money and we understand that because money becomes representative of our
life and energy.
“Stewardship is a
matter of integrity on the part of the believer,” Sullivan continued. “No one
loses their integrity, they give it up. Stewardship is a matter of integrity;
you must not give it up.”
The conference
format featured individuals sharing testimonies, keynote speakers and a
practical segment which took participants through a workbook designed for
immediate application of principles and a colorful “Crown Money Map,” which
takes individuals and families through seven destinations to reach in their
journey to financial freedom.
Conference-goers
received additional books and resources including a four-week church-wide
emphasis, “Road to Financial Freedom” on a CD complete with graphics and
artwork; sermon outlines; and Sunday School lessons.
Morris H.
Chapman, president of the Executive Committee and a conference leader, said he
believes God may be waiting on a revival of stewardship to precede a revival in
the nation.
“I believe God is
up to something in regards to stewardship,” Chapman said in sharing a personal
testimony of growing up in a church and home which did not emphasize
stewardship or tithing.
“It is definitely
a new day when it comes to stewardship in Southern Baptist life,” Chapman said.
Too restrictive?
Whitten, who
previously served on staff with Adrian Rogers at the Memphis-area Bellevue
Baptist Church in Tennessee, shared a personal story of how he struggled with
finances until his late 20s when he and his wife Ginny were “fighting more and
arguing more” than they should have been – and mostly it was over money.
“I was a giver. I
loved to give [but] I couldn’t even spell it – a ‘budget,’” Whitten admitted.
“I was the one who said, ‘This is going to become too restrictive. I will be
put on a leash, that I’ll never get to play golf again.’”
Asking another
couple in the church for help, Whitten said he was able to sort out where the
money for clothes, shoes and diapers was going to come from – and how he could
still buy a gift for his wife without feeling guilty –and possibly keep his
putter.
“You are looking
at a man that’s freed, and there’s no feeling like freedom in that regard,”
Whitten said.
“Jesus said we
are to be good stewards,” Whitten continued, after explaining how he passed on
what he learned about money to his children. “The Bible says that God measures
your spiritual maturity by how you handle your money.”
And it doesn’t
matter how much you make; it’s how you spend it, Whitten said, listing four
principles from Luke 16: accounting, budgeting, saving and giving.
The grace of giving
Hayes Wicker,
president of the 2007 SBC Pastors’ Conference, spoke from 2 Corinthians 8:1-7
in focusing on coaching tips related to stewardship.
“I believe God is
calling us to finish the course and to fight the good fight and to keep the
faith,” Wicker said. “God says to dare not drop the baton on the relay race.
[We are] running the race together to win in the areas of giving and finances.”
Wicker said his
church has raised more than $54 million for their building projects over the
years and operates on a budget that has increased from $700,000 to more than
$10 million.
Citing statistics
which show the average American is more than $35,000 in debt, Wicker issued the
following “coaching” tips: “Runners in the race need help,” “Grace is the
motivation to run the race,” “Grace giving is the track on which to run,” “We
first give ourselves to the coach” and “Go all out — in utterance, in
knowledge, and in love.”
Freeing people
from the “grip of materialism” to where they can discover “the joy of giving”
is important in fostering grace as the motivation for giving, Wicker said.
“I believe it is
the unmerited favor of God that ought to motivate our people,” Wicker said of
the importance of preaching about stewardship in relation to grace. “Most
sermons are just good advice, not Good News.”
Praying and
fasting about giving is normal fare at First Baptist in Naples, Wicker said. And it’s important to
remember that many of the people in the region are from non-church backgrounds.
“They don’t not
only believe in tithing, they don’t believe in Sunday School of all things,”
Wicker said. “[They have to] learn to embrace the things money can’t buy.”
As a result of
the emphasis on “joyful and voluntary” giving, Wicker said people engage in
“hilarious giving” — bringing their “change” offerings and coin collections
when asked.
“In every venture
we have to ask, ‘where’s the faith; where’s the faith,’” Wicker said. “I don’t
think we can bite off more than God can chew. He can chew some pretty big
pieces of steak.”
Leading by example
Tom Mullins, a
former football player and coach, said he learned to lead using his coaching
strengths and has grown his church through several building projects while
continuing to give to missions.
“We have always
given with a generous spirit for the Kingdom
of God,” Mullins said,
citing one church event when more than $40,000 in $100 bills were passed out to
single moms — and a few single dads as well. This type of giving generated
even more giving and the church’s offering “shot out of the roof” after that,
Mullins said.
Speaking from 1
Chronicles 21:18, Mullins urged pastors to lead in genuine worship.
“God desires men
and women who will worship Him in spirit and in truth,” Mullins said. “As our
personal place goes, so goes the place of our congregations and churches.”
Leading by
example — not asking for the “ministerial discount” or seeking to use the good
name of parents or relatives — will be worship that costs.
“As leaders we
come before God and we set the example of giving,” Mullins said, remembering
the days when he and his wife lived on soup and peanut butter and crackers.
Still giving, “it became the fabric of who we are,” he said.
Crediting God
with blessing him “beyond measure,” Mullins said when leaders practice worship
in all areas of their lives “God will be honored,” “others are blessed” and
“you will be blessed.”
Tracy Schmidt, a
member of First Baptist Church of Central Florida in Orlando, shared six principles related to
stewardship, idolatry, faithfulness, planning, giving and trust.
“Giving is
absolutely liberating because it takes the focus off of us,” Schmidt said. “It
reminds us Who we are serving and where it came from.”
A former member
of BellevueBaptist
Church, he was able to
completely retire his parents’ and his wife’s parents’ mortgages as “gift[s]
from God.”
Encouraging
pastors to teach about stewardship, Schmidt said, “You are robbing them if you
don’t teach them how to give. You have to lead by example.”
Money Management resources
Throughout the
conference, Money Map counselors were available to participants. They are part
of a network of more than 1,000 individuals trained to assist individuals who
desire to use Crown Financial Ministry resources which include a “10 Week
Biblical Financial Study Set” for use in small groups, available to Southern
Baptist churches at a 40 percent discounted rate through the fall of 2007 by
calling 1-866-902-6578.
Other resources
include Making Change: A Transformational Guide to Christian Money Management
by Ken Hemphill, available through LifeWay Christian Bookstores or at
www.LifeWay.com.
The next “It’s
A New Day” conference is scheduled for April 12-13 in Atlanta. To register, or for more
information, go online to www.sbc.net or call Terry Doherty at 615-782-8680.