By Trey Graham, Pastor First Baptist Church in Melissa, Texas In 1991, Andrew did what dozens of pastors and scholars only hoped to do. My friend Andrew, with no theological training or philosophical expertise, unwittingly but unmistakably showed me the true meaning of Christmas. After Andrew and I returned to college from our winter break, he asked me what presents I had received for Christmas. I began to tell him about the new clothes, the best-selling books, the popular running shoes and all the other items on the list of precious gifts given me by family and friends. He seemed somewhat impressed, pleased at my apparent holiday windfall. “So, Andrew, what did you get for Christmas?” I asked. Expecting to hear his wonderful list of presents, my roommate instead replied silently, holding up but one small item, an alarm clock that probably cost less than $5 at the thrift shop. “That’s nice”, I answered, thinking that I was sure glad I hadn’t received such a present, seemingly so small and insignificant. Later, as roommates often do during late nights of academic studies interspersed with stories about home, I would tease Andrew by pretending to throw that clock into the air and then catch it right before it hit the ground, … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 09:46 By Joe McKeever, Pastor, Author, Cartoonist I’ve been to Bethlehem. It’s fairly indistinguishable from many other Judean towns, except for the Church of the Nativity built over the traditional site of Jesus’ birth. Bethlehem is located on a ridge some 2500 feet above sea level, and five or six miles southwest of Jerusalem. Why, with all the grand locations in the world to choose from, did God choose for His Son to be born in Bethlehem? I can think of three good reasons. TO FULFILL PROPHECY Seven hundred years earlier the prophet Micah quoted God: “As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah...from you One will go forth from Me to be ruler in Israel, His goings forth are from long ago, from days of eternity.” Now, some Messianic prophecies are cryptic – they are identified and understood only after the event has occurred. Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 must have perplexed readers for hundreds of years as to their meaning. Only after the Savior went to the cross did the followers of Jesus realize how the first seems to be the thoughts of the Lord on the cross, and the second an eyewitness description of that event. God placed such prophecies in the Bible so that when they happened, His … [Read more...]

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By Jimmy Draper, President Emeritus LifeWay Christian Resources Joseph, the husband of Mary, is the forgotten man of Christmas. He never speaks a word in the biblical record. He is Joseph the silent. He ranks only slightly higher than an extra in the cast. Although 15 U.S. cities are named for Joseph, he remains the forgotten man of the Christmas story. But Joseph deserves more than that. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “What you do speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you say.” Of Joseph we might say, “What he did speaks so loudly that there was no need for him to say anything.” Joseph is remarkably simple, but he also is simply remarkable. It would be difficult to imagine a more complicated and devastating situation than the one in which Joseph found himself. He had a bride who was pregnant because of a strange involvement with God. Joseph bore the condemnation and pressure of a community that would not and could not possibly understand. He was a northern Palestinian cabinetmaker who was told by God to go to Bethlehem and then suddenly instructed to flee to Egypt. Joseph’s response can be stated in a single, simple word: obedience. He obeyed God immediately. God spoke and Joseph married Mary. He obeyed God in painful … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 09:55 By Bob Nigh, Managing Editor of the Oklahoma Baptist Convention Baptist Messenger “O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum, wie treu sind deine Blatter! Du grunst nicht nur zur Sommer-zeit, nein auch in Winter, wenn es schenit.” For those of you who don’t speak German, the English equivalent of the lyrics of this familiar Christmas carol basically say, “O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, how steadfast are your branches! Your boughs are green in summer’s clime, and through the snows of wintertime.” One of the most widely recognized symbols of Christmas is the tree – for both the secular and the sacred world. For non-believers, the tree is just something that holds ornate decorations and strings of bright lights, something under which gifts for loved ones and friends are placed. For Christians, however, the tree is more than just a seasonal decoration which serves as a roost for tiny lace angels, plastic drummer boys, felt stockings, balsa wood reindeer and orbs of plastic or shiny blown glass or maybe popcorn on a string. Christmas at the Nigh household is a celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior. My wife, Glenda, delights in her collection of nativities, and we have at … [Read more...]

By Eric Hankins, Pastor of First Baptist Church, Oxford, Miss. For years, I have loved re-reading Dylan Thomas “A Child’s Christmas in Wales” during this time of the year. It opens with a line so evocative of my memories of Christmas: “One Christmas was so much like another in those years around the sea-town corner, now and out of all sound, except the distant speaking of the voices I sometimes hear a moment before sleep, that I can never remember whether it snowed for six days and six nights when I was twelve or whether it snowed for twelve days and twelve nights when I was six.” As adults, we spend a great deal of energy trying to solve the puzzle of our longing for the past, trying to recapture wholly those experiences that return to us only as a fleeting glimpse or a whisper just between our waking and sleeping. For me, these moments of “homesickness” are never more acute than at Christmas.  I believe the reason for this is that these memories are uniquely imbued with the reality of my ultimate home, heaven. Christmas in a Christian home weaves the best of life (faith, hope and love) around the deep reality of the gospel:  God in Christ for us. Thomas closes his poem with these words: “looking through my bedroom window, … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 10:02 Kelly Boggs By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer ALEXANDRIA – The Baptist Message board honored its outgoing editor while looking toward the future at its last board meeting of 2014. Kelly Boggs, who became editor of the Baptist Messagein January 2006, announced during the 2014 Louisiana Baptist Convention Annual Meeting he was retiring from the position to become development director at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. He graduated from the school in 1985. Baptist Message board chairman Tim Hisaw thanked Boggs for his time at the newspaper. “I am grateful for Kelly’s leadership, guidance and dedication to the Baptist Message,” Hisaw said. “Before coming on the board of trustees for the Message, I only knew Kelly from his writing,” Hisaw continued.  “Since serving with Kelly, through my role on the board, we have developed a friendship that has been a blessing and an encouragement. I cannot think of a conversation that Kelly and I have had that did not end with him not saying, “let me pray for you. “Although he is going to be living on the wrong side of the Sabine River, I know I have a friend for life,” said Hisaw. Boggs expressed gratitude to the board, … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 10:04 Started in 2011, the Mobile Pregnancy Care Center travels the state offering free pregnancy tests, free ultrasounds, pro-life literature and a positive Christian witness. So far, the MPCC has served over 2,000 women. Many abortions have been averted, saving the lives of countless babies and preventing the tragic effects of abortion on their mothers. A number of these women have prayed to receive Christ as their Savior and Lord. By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer KENNER – Jennifer Nelson was 19 when she made the choice to abort her child. Ten years later, as she was four months into her pregnancy and married, Nelson began to relive the decision she made as a teenager. Immediately, she fell to her knees, asking God’s forgiveness – and the beginning of healing through Christ. Today, Nelson is a volunteer with the Mobile Pregnancy Care Center (MPCC), a ministry of the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home & Family Ministries. Through this ministry, Nelson is able to use her past experience as a ministry tool to other women facing the same choice she did at one time – with hope that they will not abort their child. “As I have served at the unit, I have talked to … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer PINEVILLE – Sixteen men lined up at the Louisiana Pecan Festival recently, with one goal in mind – earning the title of World’s Fastest Redneck. The path to earn the distinction included barrel and lawnmower racing, deer shooting, turkey bowling, eating a donut that was hanging from a twine and pole cat climbing. At the end of the day, the winner took home a new Browning BPS Medallion 12 gauge pump shotgun by completing the course in the fastest time, 1 minute, 20 seconds. However, though entertaining, the event was more than just fun and games. For those staffing the event from Alpine First Baptist Church, building relationships and winning souls for Christ was their main goal. Every 30 minutes, the church presented the gospel to hundreds in attendance. By the end of the two-day event in which the gospel was presented 12 times, one person accepted Christ and another who attended the event did as well during a revival held later at the church. Evangelism Pastor Kevin Billiot says the effort is just another way Alpine First Baptist Church is trying to use such events to spread the gospel. “We are making sure we make every concerted effort to share the gospel with people,” Billiot … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 10:09 The Louisiana Baptist Collegiate Disaster Relief Team takes a few moments to share a laugh. Every day during the summer, the students were encouraged to spend time in and hold each other accountable for personal Bible study and prayer. By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer Each summer, Louisiana State University student Matt Branch normally works a job to earn money to help with expenses for the upcoming semester but not this year. Branch joined seven other college students for the first-ever all-Louisiana Baptist Collegiate Ministry disaster relief team and in the process of doing so received one of his greatest blessings. “This summer was one of the best summers of my life,” Branch said. “I learned so much, including the direction that I feel called to, and am so excited to take what I learned back to my campus at LSU and also to wherever I go in life. Southern Baptist Disaster Relief is a great organization for college students to be involved in, and I hope that more do get involved in it. I’m gonna do my part to make it happen.” A joint effort between the Louisiana BCM and Southern Baptist Disaster Relief, this was one of three such disaster relief teams made up … [Read more...]