Baptist & Reflector

Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835

VETERANS DAY SIGNIFICANT FOR TULLAHOMA LAYMAN

Carden honors memory of father who served as ‘doughboy’ in WWI

Bill Carden, a member of First Baptist Church, Tullahoma, holds the diary and New Testament that belonged to his father, William Henry Carden Sr., who was serving in France on the day that World War I ended 100 years ago on Nov. 11.

Editor’s Note: Veterans Day will be observed on Nov. 11 as it has been since 1954. Prior to 1954, Veterans Day was known as Armistice Day and celebrated on Nov. 11 to commemorate the end of World War I.

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

TULLAHOMA — William Henry “Bill” Carden Jr. will be among thousands upon thousands of Americans who will observe Veterans Day on Nov. 11.

But for Carden, a member of First Baptist Church, Tullahoma, the day holds even more significance. Nov. 11 also is the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I which was later dubbed “the war to end all wars.”

Carden’s father, William Henry Carden Sr., was a “doughboy,” a member of the 311 Machine Gun Battalion, Company B, when word was received that an armistice agreement had been signed on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.

A doughboy was an informal term used for members of the Army or Marines during World War I.

The elder Carden’s son still has many mementos of his dad’s service in World War I, including his diary, military records and dog tag, and a New Testament he was given on his voyage from New York City to Liverpool, England, in 1918. [Read more…]

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KUDOS TO NAMB

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

Before it Hits the PressI have been critical in the past about what I perceived as an indifference by the North American Mission Board to traditional Southern Baptist Disaster Relief.

In recent years, NAMB introduced Send Relief which includes a disaster relief element. I felt that it was competition to SBDR and not needed. I voiced my opinion, which, I might add, many disaster relief volunteers shared. [Read more…]

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TENNESCENE: NOV. 7-20

LEADERS

Jimmy Burroughs has been called as interim pastor of Pinson Baptist Church, Pinson, in Madison County.

Mike Rhodes

Elected as officers of McMinn-Meigs Baptist Association were Phil Prichard, Wildwood Baptist Church, moderator, and Victor King, Short Creek Baptist Church, associate moderator.

Mike Rhodes, pastor of Puryear Baptist Church, Puryear, will retire at the end of December after 39 years as a preacher and pastor. He will be available, beginning in January, for pulpit supply or transitional interims. Contact him at bro.mikerhodes@gmail.com or 731-426-3273. [Read more…]

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A CLARION CALL AND NOT JUST A THEME

By Randy C. Davis
TBMB President & Executive Director

In 1873, a young Dwight L. Moody stood in the vestry of a Baptist church in Dublin, Ireland, talking with Henry Varley, an influential British revivalist preacher. During the course of that conversation, Varley uttered words that rocketed through Moody’s soul and altered the course of Moody’s future ministry.

“Moody,” he said, “The world has yet to see what God will do with a man fully consecrated to him.”

Moody said he left that meeting with the words written on his soul. He saw them written on the planks of the ship that returned him to America and on the cobblestone streets of Chicago. On a return trip to England, Moody told Varley, “Under the power of those words I have come back to England, and I felt that I must not let more time pass until I let you know how God had used your words to my inmost soul.” [Read more…]

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AMERICANS DIFFER ON HISTORIC CHRISTIAN VIEWS

By Carol Pipes
LifeWay Christian Resources

NASHVILLE — Six in 10 Americans say religious belief is a matter of personal opinion. For 7 in 10 Americans, such religious beliefs include one true God existing in three persons — Father, Son and Holy Spirit. But an increasing majority of Americans deny Jesus has always existed and many say the Holy Spirit is a force rather than a personal being.

Those are among the findings of a new study of American views on Christian theology from Nashville-based LifeWay Research.

“When the majority of Americans believe religious belief is more personal opinion than objective truth, then we expect to see contradictory beliefs as well as beliefs that change over time,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research.

The survey of 3,000 Americans was sponsored by Orlando-based Ligonier Ministries. Titled the “2018 State of Theology Study,” it is the third in a series of surveys examining Americans’ theological beliefs. Previous surveys were conducted in 2016 and 2014. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: SBC

AS IMPORTANT AS EVER

Camp-O-Ree a reminder of the need for RAs

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

Juliana Wilson, communications and childhood missions specialist for Tennessee Woman’s Missionary Union, shares information about the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions with this RA group from Faith Baptist Church, Bartlett.
— Photos by Stephanie Johnson

LINDEN — Though the number of boys in Royal Ambassadors, a Southern Baptist missions education program for boys in grades one-six, has declined in recent decades, it is still as relevant as ever, agree missions leaders in Tennessee.

“Royal Ambassadors is 110 years old this year and the mission today is just as important as it was all those years ago,” said Brian Holt, state Royal Ambassadors and Challengers (missions education program for boys in grades 7-12) coordinator for Tennessee Woman’s Missionary Union.

“We have unreached peoples all over the world. That includes places here in the United States. How will we understand the importance of reaching these groups if we do not start teaching missions at an early age? Would you know that Salt Lake City is an unreached people group?  RAs do,” Holt said.

He added that RAs teach “what it means to be a missionary, what our missionaries do and provides them with the most basic skills they need to be a missionary themselves.”

RAs, however, is not alone in the decline. Missions organizations as a whole have experienced a decline in membership, observed Juliana Wilson, communications and childhood missions specialist for Tennessee WMU. [Read more…]

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SIXTEEN REASONS FOR TITHING TO THE CHURCH

Editor’s Note: Share these 16 reasons to tithe with your congregation on two Sundays this year by requesting two tithing inserts that can be placed in your Sunday worship bulletins. E-mail us at mtullos@tnbaptist.org and let us know how many you need. We will ship them directly to your church for free.

By Matt Tullos
Stewardship Development Specialist, TBMB

So, your pastor preaches on giving? Thank him. A pastor who invites members to tithe is inviting them into a life-changing, soul-transforming experience that affects every area of their life. In truth, it’s unfair to you if he’s not teaching you about this principle that has changed history in ways we’ll never completely know until we get to heaven!

Here’s the short list of reasons you should be giving a tithe (10 percent of your income) to your local church.

(1) It’s worship. Whether you’re in a church with electric guitars or pipe organs, everybody should have an opportunity to give because from Genesis to Revelation, giving is true worship. Think about what you are doing when you illogically say goodbye to a large slice of your income that you could be using somewhere else, doing something else. You are saying, “Lord, above everything, I believe in You. It all belongs to You! This is a symbol of my complete belief, trust, and dependence on You to be my everything.” [Read more…]

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CP GIVING EXCEEDS BUDGET GOAL

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — For the second time in three years, Tennessee Baptist Convention churches have met their adopted Cooperative Program budget.

In October, Tennessee Baptists gave $3,123,108 through the Cooperative Program, closing out the year on a positive note.

For the year-to-date, Tennessee Baptists gave $34,604,572, an increase of $745,213 or 2.2 percent over the previous year. [Read more…]

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NOV. 11: WITH CONTROL

By Scott Brown
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Waverly

Sunday School Lessons explore the bibleFocal Passage: James 3:1-12

On more than one occasion I’ve been ashamed of, and had to apologize for, my words spoken in haste or hurt. This is among the most persistent and problematic struggles I face in my daily walk.

A few years ago I became painfully aware of how I had lost control of my tongue. Traffic is the worst and I was already running late for a meeting when it seemed everyone else on the road was plotting to keep me from getting there. Of course, I started to voice my opinion angrily and boldly (it’s amazing how brave I can become in my car with the windows up). While I was giving full vent to my anger at the standstill traffic I heard the small voice of my daughter from the backseat loudly join in yelling, “get out of the way you jerks!” [Read more…]

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NOV. 11: PRAYING FOR OTHERS

By Michael Koontz
Pastor, Pine Ridge Baptist Church, Harriman

Sunday School Lesson Bible Studies For LifeFocal Passage: Matthew 6:11; John 17:11–23

Praying for others is one of the greatest privileges we have as a Christian.

Recently we spoke about the spiritual discipline of prayer at our church. At the end of the service we gave out prayer Bible bookmarks that had several spots to list prayer requests. This was done to help us remember how important it is that we pray for others.

Let’s look at why we pray for others and what we can pray about for others. [Read more…]

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