Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835
By Randy C. Davis
TBMB President & Executive Director
You may be overrun with Christmas activities and see a busy 2019 blowing in like a thunderstorm racing across a Kansas prairie. Last minute gifts, parties, travel to be with loved ones, and on it goes. We get to this point of the year and it seems we try to squeeze about six months of activity through the funnel of a couple weeks. We seldom slow down or stop long enough to remember. [Read more…]
By Johnnie Godwin
Contributing Columnist, Baptist and Reflector
Paul Tournier wrote The Meaning of Gifts in 1961. Tournier spent all his life as a medical doctor in Geneva, helping heal the body, mind, and soul. Further, his life and writings came to me as a gift to understand the meaning of gifts — especially God’s gifts. You might think a book or an article on the meaning of gifts is unneeded. It’s obvious a gift is something given. But therein lies the secret about the meaning of gifts. So just after Thanksgiving and just before Christmas, let’s look at the meaning of gifts. [Read more…]
By David Dawson
TBMB Communications Specialist
“The Singing Christmas Tree.” Just hearing those words still brings a smile to my face.
When I was a boy, my dad was pastor at Dalewood Baptist Church in Nashville. Each year, the church put on “The Singing Christmas Tree” — and memories of it remain vivid in my mind to this day. [Read more…]
By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org
Terry Robinson, left, and Tom Nelson of Roan Creek Baptist Church prepare to take a load of backpacks to a local school.
FRANKLIN — Children living in the Appalachian area of Tennessee have been beneficiaries of the Christmas Backpack Ministry for several years, most of which have been donated from outside the state itself.
The Christmas Backpack Ministry has evolved over the years since 2001 when some Girls in Action (GAs) in Georgia decided they wanted to do something special for children living in the Appalachian region of the United States. [Read more…]
By Carolyn Tomlin
Contributing Columnist, B&R
“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:8-11, NIV).
The Christmas narrative recorded in Luke continues to be the most widely-read story during the holidays. The Christ child, born in a manger over 2,000 years ago, changed the world for all times. We may fail to realize how that first Christmas was celebrated as we view the commercial approach to the birth of Christ. [Read more…]
By David Green
President, Tennessee Baptist Convention
“And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed (and this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria). And all went to be taxed, everyone into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David” (Luke 2:1-4, NKJV).
What does it mean for you to be home for Christmas? I believe we all know what it meant to Mary and Joseph. They returned to Bethlehem to be home that first Christmas to be counted in a census. [Read more…]
By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
Clutter. We’ve all seen it. We know it when we see it.
In my case, I’m probably the king of clutter. People walk by my office, look at my desk and just shake their head and move on. I like to refer to my “mess” as “organized clutter.”
But no matter what “spin” I give it, I’m still guilty of cluttering my desk/office space with stuff. One dictionary definition defines clutter as a “disorderly heap of assemblage.” Another defines it as “to fill or litter with things in a disorderly matter” while yet another definition calls it “a state or condition of confusion.” [Read more…]
By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector
ddawson@tnbaptist.org
The manger scene depicting the birth of Jesus is performed during “The Life of Christ Christmas Drive-Thru” at Brush Creek Baptist Church.
— Photo by James Wilson
FRANKLIN — Keeping Christ at the center of Christmas is a challenge that seems to get tougher each year.
Fortunately, many churches around the country, including a large number of churches in Tennessee, are doing their part to guard against the secularization of the season.
Whether it’s hosting one of the traditional Christmas productions — such as live nativity scenes, children’s musicals, candlelight services and Christmas cantatas — or perhaps branching out in a new direction, the objective is the same: Ensuring that the birth of Christ remains the focus of the holidays. [Read more…]
By Aaron Earls
Lifeway Research
NASHVILLE — Most Americans want more religious meaning to the Christmas season, and for some that includes the seasonal greetings we say to each other.
A new study from Nashville-based LifeWay Research found two-thirds of Americans (65 percent) say, “Christmas should be more about Jesus.” [Read more…]
By Matt Tullos
Stewardship Development Specialist, TBMB
Holidays can get complicated. If we don’t pay attention our debt grows, our peace shrinks and our stress expands. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Here are six ways you can make Christmas a simpler, more beautiful season:
(1) Heighten your gratitude. Paul reminds us that anxiety and gratitude don’t mix: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6). [Read more…]
