Baptist & Reflector

Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835

COOPERATIVE PROGRAM: WHEN MISSIONARIES CRY

By Art Toalston
Contributing writer, B&R

Maybe you’ve seen a missionary cry.

Interviewing a missionary in Ecuador some years back, my heart was gripped when he spoke through tears of the persecution experienced by the indigenous people he worked among in the Andean mountains.

It was midday, we were in a cold, dark room. All I could do was sit there and dig for empathy within my soul as he cried.

In a conference more recently, I saw a husband and wife, missionaries to Russia, cry as they described their love for the people they had served. [Read more…]

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HELPING CHILDREN GIVE THE GIFT OF SELF

By Carolyn Tomlin
Contributing Columnist, B&R

For many families, the Christmas season is the busiest time of the year. In addition to the numerous activities, there is the shopping and wrapping of presents. What should be a time to honor the birth of Christ the Savior is turned into a most stressful time. 

This year, help your child make handmade gifts for parents, grandparents, teachers, friends and siblings. You’ll be teaching “it is more blessed to give, than to receive” (Acts 20:35). 

The following ideas are for parents and children to create together. [Read more…]

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HOW TO DEAL WITH CHRISTMAS MOURNING

By Tim Frank
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Carthage

Recently, the staff of one of the local funeral homes in our county hosted their annual “Hope for the Holidays” service and invited me to share a word of hope and practical help to those in attendance who had lost loved ones. 

The holidays can be very difficult for an individual or a family as they grieve during this season which is normally filled with festivities and joy. 

Here are 10 practical suggestions I share with those who have lost loved ones. May these thoughts be of help and comfort during this Christmas season. [Read more…]

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GRIEVING HOPEFULLY DURING THE HOLIDAYS

By Todd E. Brady
Vice President for University Ministries, Union University, Jackson

“Happy Thanksgiving!” “Merry Christmas!” “Happy New Year!” This is the time of year when everyone is encouraging others to be happy. But for those who have lost a loved one, there is a sadness that no amount of encouragement can overcome.  For these folks, holidays seem like something to survive, not enjoy.

For some, all the songs, gatherings and blinking lights of Christmas are eclipsed by an ever-present, suffocating grief. Moments of happiness quickly evaporate when an empty chair serves as an ongoing reminder that a loved one is no longer present. Everywhere we turn, we are reminded that things will never be the same again.  For many, this month is a difficult season of reflecting on past Christmases instead of enjoying the present Christmas.

While many houses are filled with twinkling lights, those who have lost loved ones over the last year find themselves living in a house with depressing hues of blue. Everyone else seems to be chipper and singing in major chords, but those grieving sing slow and sad songs in minor chords. As Elvis Presley used to sing, it’s a “blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, Christmas.” [Read more…]

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CHRISTMAS IS PERFECT TIME TO PROCLAIM JESUS

By Lonnie Wilkey
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

There has been growing evidence over the past two decades that Christians are becoming increasingly reluctant to openly share their faith. Research from The Barna Group, LifeWay Christian Research and others in recent years confirm that more and more Christians are having fewer gospel conversations.

That leads to the question: Why? Why are people who affirm their faith in Jesus so unwilling to share their faith with others. One reason is fear. 

We are afraid of what people will think about us if we talk about Jesus Christ. We are afraid of being ridiculed. We simply need to get over it. Jesus was not afraid to die on the cross for you and me. We shouldn’t be afraid to tell others of His love for them. [Read more…]

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GOD WORKING THROUGH SBC MISSIONARIES

By Paul Chitwood
President, International Mission Board

Paul Chitwood

Looking back on my first full year as your IMB president, the words that come to mind are: “Thank you.”

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for saving souls across the globe daily amid hardship and persecution, and for upholding Your servants as they go forth to share Your gospel.

Thank you, Southern Baptist family, for placing your confidence in me to lead our missionary force. It is an incredible privilege to lead the choice servants of God whom you have sent out.

This year has been marked by many victories but also by massive cyclones in Sub-Saharan Africa, political and humanitarian crises in the Americas, and large-magnitude earthquakes in Southeast Asia. [Read more…]

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STAYING FOCUSED ON OUR PASSIONATE PRIORITY

By Randy C. Davis
TBMB President & Executive Director

Randy C. Davis

There are two distinctives that bind Southern Baptists together. The first is our shared biblical belief system. Unfortunately, the Bible can be mishandled in many ways and our Southern Baptist forefathers recognized that, so in 1925, they took the providential step to clearly define what Southern Baptists believe about the Bible.

That document is known as the Baptist Faith and Message (BF&M) and became our “statement of the historic Baptist conception of the nature and foundation of confessions of faith in our religious and denominational life.” The BF&M was updated in 2000 and reaffirms what we believe theologically and why we believe it.

The second distinctive that binds Southern Baptists together is our Great Commission calling to missions, and specifically our historic commitment to rally around international missions. We have always been, and we must always be, a “going” people. [Read more…]

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CHRISTIAN, ARE YOU READY FOR YOUR CRISIS?

By Chris Turner
Director of communications, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board
cturner@tnbaptist.org

There are two types of organizations in our world: Those who have had a crisis and those whose crisis hasn’t yet hit. 

For years I’ve been leading crisis communications and media relations workshops for all types of organizations and I usually open those training sessions with that statement. The response is usually an uncomfortable laugh, especially since I don’t smile when I say it. I have been a reporter and organizational communicator for about 30 years and I’ve unfortunately seen – and experienced – the truth of that statement from both sides. 

In my role as director of communications for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, I often counsel ministers, mostly pastors, how to communicate during a crisis in which they and their churches find themselves. Unfortunately, the frequency of such sessions has increased in the past 18 months.  [Read more…]

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SUMMIT IS SO MUCH MORE THAN A MEETING

By Randy C. Davis
TBMB President & Executive Director

Randy C. Davis

My No. 1 desire is to see the spiritually lost people of Tennessee won to saving faith in Jesus Christ, and it is weeks like last week that give me hope that together as Tennessee Baptists, we might see that happen.

Summit, our annual gathering of Tennessee Baptists, is so much more than just a meeting. It has become a rich time of worship, challenge, fellowship, focus, business and celebrating what God is doing across Tennessee to bring people to salvation through Tennessee Baptists and their churches.

Personally, I need it. I need the concentrated reminder of God’s faithfulness, and I need to see each of you, together, focused on the work our Savior has given us to do. I draw encouragement and energy from seeing co-laborers I love gathered with focus, excellence and unity, working cooperatively for the advancement of the gospel. [Read more…]

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THE ROMAN ROAD AND A TESTIMONY

By Lonnie Wilkey

Before it Hits the PressAs one might expect, evangelism was a popular topic during this week’s Summit held at First Baptist Concord in Knoxville. The theme for the 145th annual meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention was Win TN By All Means.

Several excellent videos focusing on evangelism were featured throughout the sessions.

During the Tuesday night session on Nov. 19, Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, recognized the top churches in total baptisms and baptisms based on average attendance in 2018. [Read more…]

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