Baptist & Reflector

Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835

SOCIAL DISTANCING: A DAILY REALITY FOR FAMILIES DEALING WITH AUTISM

By DeAnna Gibson
Contributing columnist

As COVID-19 makes its way around our globe, our everyday patterns are in upheaval. The assurances of a few weeks ago have given way to questions of preparedness. Painful dilemmas we now face include school closings and paychecks. Social media is in full flourish with complainers, fear mongers, conspiracy theorists and toilet paper hoarders.

Hearing the term “social distancing” as an autism mom, I laughingly thought, “These are the days in which many are living like autism families.” Within a week, our church was streaming online. Sunday felt incredibly different for me, but for some of my dear friends it felt familiar. For many special needs families it may have felt like a fairly normal Sunday — home alone, behind a screen, looking in from the “socially distant” outside.

And, it made me sad. [Read more…]

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CHURCHES ELIGIBLE FOR GOVERNMENT’S PAYROLL PROTECTION PLAN

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), recently enacted by Congress as part of the $2 trillion CARES Act to relieve economic hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, set aside $349 billion to guarantee loans to businesses employing fewer than 500 employees for expenses like payroll, utilities and rent or mortgage payments. 

Nonprofits, including Tennessee Baptist churches and other religious ministries, are eligible to receive funds covering up to 2.5 times their average monthly payroll, with a cap of $10 million per loan.

The U.S. Small Business Administration released its Interim Final Rule on April 2. The SBA wrote in its report:

“All loans guaranteed by the SBA pursuant to the CARES Act will be made consistent with constitutional, statutory and regulatory protections for religious liberty, including the First Amendment to the Constitution, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, 42  [Read more…]

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CORONAVIRUS: GOD HAS THE WORLD’S ATTENTION

By Bruce Chesser
President, Tennessee Baptist Convention 

Coronavirus.  It took most of us a little while to learn how to say it and a little bit longer to learn how to spell it, but it has quickly become a part of our vocabulary.

I want to encourage you today.  This will pass.  And God is on the throne and none of this caught Him by surprise.  I believe deep in my heart that the prayer that many of us have shared for God to bring a great awakening to our land might very well be tied to this worldwide pandemic.  

God is getting the attention of the entire world.  And we need to be sharing His truth at every opportunity. [Read more…]

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COLLEGE MINISTRY LEADERS WORK TO CONTINUE OUTREACH AMID COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS

By Tess Schoonhoven
Baptist Press

Rachel Owen, a senior at UT Martin, works at her computer.

NASHVILLE — College ministry thrives in community. But the COVID-19 pandemic — and the resulting social distancing policies, including bans on large gatherings and campus-wide shutdowns — has in many ways severed traditional connections.

In an uncertain time, college ministries are finding ways to not only maintain community despite distance, but also working to foster an increasingly encouraging environment for the future.

A Heightened Focus

“Ministry looks like real life,” said Tiffany Hudson, director for Vanderbilt University Baptist Collegiate Ministry in Nashville. “It looks like helping collegians understand their need for community and providing space for them to continue to navigate life together.”

The correct focus of college ministry is leading students to the Word of God, where they can find true soul nourishment, Hudson continued. Even though most students have left campus because of the pandemic and scattered to their various homes, disrupting the traditional avenues for encouraging and equipping, that focus hasn’t changed. [Read more…]

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TBMB TO PROVIDE WEBINAR FOR PLANNING EASTER SERVICES

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — The Tennessee Baptist Mission Board is offering a “Practical Easter Webinar” for medium to smaller attendance Tennessee Baptist churches on Monday, April 6, at 6:30 central time/7:30 eastern time.

“None of us anticipated a day when a worldwide pandemic would prevent our people from gathering on Easter,” observed Bill Choate, director of Baptist Collegiate Ministries for the TBMB. 

The webinar will give participants an opportunity to explore “simple, effective ways that God can be glorified and honored in your church on an unusual Easter Day,” Choate said. [Read more…]

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STAY AT HOME: IMPACT ON TENNESSEE CHURCHES

Baptist and Reflector

NASHVILLE — Tennessee Governor Bill Lee issued an executive order April 2 requiring all Tennesseans to remain at home unless engaging in an essential activity or service as defined by the order.

The executive order addresses what churches can or cannot do under the executive order with religious ceremonies such as weddings and funerals and providing essential ministries such as food delivery.

“I am confident that with each executive order Governor Lee has the highest interest in the health of every Tennessean in the tough decisions he is making,” observed Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. [Read more…]

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COVID-19 … THEN WHAT?

By Larry Robertson
Pastor, Hilldale Baptist Church, Clarksville 

I’m going to say something that I know will be controversial to some, but I need to say it. At least I think I need to say it.

If your church is viewed by your community as part of the COVID-19 problem and not part of the solution because you continue to gather, shake hands, hug necks, you’re killing your influence in the community after this thing’s done.

Government leaders requesting that churches not gather during this time of increasing viral spread is not persecution. It’s not an attack on religious liberty. It’s not a judgment against the content of our beliefs. It’s not part of some global conspiracy to stop the spread of the gospel. [Read more…]

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MOST CHURCHES HAVE STOPPED GATHERING, FEW PLAN TO MEET ON EASTER

By Aaron Earls

LifeWay Christian Resources

NASHVILLE — The coronavirus outbreak has had ripple effects across the country, including in U.S. churches, according to a new study of pastors. 

Nashville-based LifeWay Research asked Protestant pastors how the pandemic has impacted their congregations and what their plans are for the near future.

While nearly all pastors say their church held in-person worship services at the beginning of March, the situation had changed radically by the end of the month.

In the first weekend of March, 99 percent say they gathered, while 95 percent held services the next weekend. By March 15, that number dropped to 64 percent. And by March 22, 11 percent of pastors say their churches gathered in person. On March 29, only 7 percent of pastors say their congregations met in person. [Read more…]

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CHURCHES DEEMED ‘ESSENTIAL SERVICES’ IN TEXAS GOV. ABBOTT PROTOCOLS

By Diana Chandler
Baptist Press

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is including churches and houses of worship in his list of essential services under his latest COVID-19 safety protocols. — Photo from Twitter

AUSTIN, Texas — Church worship and ministry are considered essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic in Texas under the latest protocols issued by Gov. Greg Abbott, but several pastors said Abbott’s directive likely won’t change their church safety protocols.

First Baptist Church of Vidor pastor Terry Wright said he switched to online-only services March 15 after a few church families were concerned that they might have been exposed to COVID-19 at an off-campus event not sponsored by the church. He consulted the Texas Department of State Health Services in response, and according to Wright, the person in question tested negative.

“I think (Abbott) is trying to let the church be the church and facilitate worship through whatever means we can, but also minister to people,” Wright said. “You know there’s a lot of other ministry out there … people who’ve been laid off, who don’t have money and that kind of thing. I know the governor’s responded to that, but from what I can hear and find out, he’s just trying to let us do our ministry and be the church, what we should be to people in the time of need.” [Read more…]

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MISSIONARIES SHOULD NOT BE FORGOTTEN DURING PANDEMIC

By Kim Cruise 

Missions discipleship specialist, Tennessee Woman’s Missionary Union

hand,Bible, world, missions, map, globeWhile COVID-19 spreads sickness and death across many countries, responses vary, but the most common response is fear. Fear of a loved one contracting the virus and suffering alone because no visitors are allowed. Fear of doctors and nurses being spread too thinly to meet the needs. Fear of retirement savings being reduced to a pittance. Fear of not being able to pay this month’s bills or provide food for the family. Virtually no one is untouched by this pandemic.

Missionaries who are serving far from home are in a unique situation. Missionaries, with few exceptions, are helpers and givers. That’s why they have left everything to give the gospel and serve through meeting human needs in a myriad of ways. Being told to stay at home while surrounded by so many dire needs, many struggle with the tough decision: “Do I follow government and WHO advice, or do I take the risk and go help anyways? When I chose to follow Christ, wasn’t there an inherent risk involved?” During our years of service in the Philippines, we were often called upon to be the “ambulance” since most families do not own a vehicle. What does a missionary do when asked to drive a seriously ill person to the hospital but doing so may risk their own family’s lives? This is the same basic issue facing frontline doctors and nurses right now.

Many missionaries serve in countries where the income and standard of living is far, far below that of America. They often use portions of their own support to help the poor around them with medical expenses, food, etc. With many businesses closing down, those who live “hand to mouth” have no savings and will suffer the most. Missionaries often feel overwhelmed with the needs around them and that is going to be multiplied exponentially right now. Ask if they need extra funds right now to help out and take up a special offering to help them help others.   [Read more…]

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