It is true - ministers are some of the most stressed persons in the world, Kelly Barnett notes.   That can lead to personal problems - even family problems, said Barnett, director of Granberry Counseling Centers for the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home. It is true - ministers are some of the most stressed persons in the world, Kelly Barnett notes.   That can lead to personal problems - even family problems, said Barnett, director of Granberry Counseling Centers for the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home.   However, Louisiana Baptist ministers seeking help with family or personal problems now have a new team resource - the children’s home and the state convention’s church-minister relations office.   The two entities have teamed up to offer affordable Christian counseling to ministers and their families through the Granberry Counseling Centers around the state.   One leader involved in the effort described as a "win-win" relationship.   "Ministers live in a fishbowl, ..." Barnett acknowledged. "Our goal is to help their marriage, help with their stresses."   It is a goal shared by Alan Miller, director of the Louisiana Baptist … [Read more...]

For the week of November 13, 2003 Potpourri • DENHAM SPRINGS - First church: Dallas Holm in concert; Nov. 15, 7 p.m.; $5 per ticket; call (225) 664-4102 for ticket information; Danny Henderson, pastor. • RIVER RIDGE - Riverside church: Testify in concert; Nov. 23, 7 p.m.; Joseph Miller, pastor. • FARMERVILLE - Antioch church: The Chordsmen in concert; Nov. 23, 6 p.m.; Paul Carter, pastor. • ALEXANDRIA - Calvary church: Alan Jackson, guest speaker for Youth Parent Forum; Nov. 24, 6 p.m.; David Brooks, pastor. Revivals • SHREVEPORT - North Shreve church: Soul Harvest Day; Nov. 16, 9:45 and 11 a.m./5:30 and 6:30 p.m.; dinner on the grounds at noon; Gene Williams, evangelist; Jericho and the NSBC Youth Praise Band, special music; Steve Miller, music; Roy W. Davis, pastor. Homecomings • JONESVILLE - Utility church: Nov. 16, 10 a.m.; Danny Chaney, guest speaker; James Foster, pastor. • ALEXANDRIA - Twin Bridges church: Nov. 23, 10 a.m. with dinner on the grounds to follow; Courtland "Junior" Stokes, Jr., guest speaker; HIS Southern Gospel Singers, music; Robert Daniel, pastor. Anniversaries • JENA - Calvary Heights church: Kenneth Boyd, ten years as pastor. • VIDALIA - Riverside … [Read more...]

Rick Warren wants to make one thing very clear - a church does not have to change the biblical message in order to become purpose-driven. Rick Warren wants to make one thing very clear - a church does not have to change the biblical message in order to become purpose-driven. Being purpose-driven is about targeting who a church will reach and staying focused on that target while balancing the five biblical purposes - worship, fellowship, discipleship, service and evangelism, Warren said during a recent training conference in Lynchburg, Va. "How do you turn an audience into an army?" he asked. The goal is to move people from the outer circle of community to an inner circle, core group, he said. Warren said a survey by George Gallup once found that only 10 percent of laypeople are involved in ministry, yet another 40 percent are interested in ministry opportunities but never have been asked to serve. Citing his own church in Lake Forest, Calif., Warren said he was astonished to learn what some of his members had been involved in through their careers. "Something I do not like about big churches is how easy it is for talent to hide." In order to get such talented people involved in ministry, Warren … [Read more...]

The Southern Baptist International Mission Board should rid itself of "unbiblical" practices and alliances with Christian mission groups that do not enforce strict theological parameters, a Southern Baptist missions professor has urged. The Southern Baptist International Mission Board should rid itself of "unbiblical" practices and alliances with Christian mission groups that do not enforce strict theological parameters, a Southern Baptist missions professor has urged.   Keith Eitel is professor of Christian missions at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C.. He outlined his concerns in an eight-page paper circulated by Paige Patterson, president at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.   Eitel alleges that because of inadequate training of some missionaries, "evangelism, church planting and discipleship are in the hands of theological novices." He also says women inappropriately are placed in positions of authority over men.   An International Mission Board spokesperson called Eitel’s criticisms "groundless accusations." Nonetheless, he said the matter will be discussed by mission board trustees when they meet this week.   Eitel’s document was … [Read more...]

Can I have a quarter?"   The five-year-old was a cinch to get the quarter he was asking his grandfather for. Apparently, this was a time of bonding with the two grandsons and grandparents. Pizza was the food of choice, and there was no need to wonder whose choice. The boys, although small in stature, ate two slices to one of their grandparents. "Can I have a quarter?"   The five-year-old was a cinch to get the quarter he was asking his grandfather for. Apparently, this was a time of bonding with the two grandsons and grandparents. Pizza was the food of choice, and there was no need to wonder whose choice. The boys, although small in stature, ate two slices to one of their grandparents.   The pizza gone, the grandsons’ attention immediately turned to the video game standing nearby. They examined it carefully, then moved on to examine the pinball machine. The pinball machine must have looked like a relic of the past–no blood, no guns, no decapitations, no excitement - just a large steel ball banging around under a piece of glass, flashing lights and clanging bells.   They went back to the video game.   Actually, the video game is tame. The person who inserts his … [Read more...]

For the week of November 20, 2003 Messenger registration   The convention opened Monday night with 748 messengers registered. By the second session on Tuesday morning, the total had climbed to 1,193. By the end of the convention, 1,235 messengers had registered for the annual meeting. That total is 166 (11.8 percent) less than last year. It also represents the lowest messenger registration since 1998, when 1,228 persons registered for the annual meeting in Baton Rouge. The last time the convention met in Lafayette was 1991, when 2,155 messengers registered, a record high at the time. It also met in Lafayette in 1982, with just 783 messengers registered. The last time registration was this low in a year when there was no sitting president involved in a reelection bid was 1985, when only 868 messengers attended the state convention. The highest convention registration ever came in 1996, when 2,600 messengers registered for the annual meeting. Convention registrations have topped the 2,000 mark five times. It has not fallen below the 1,000 mark since 804 messengers registered in 1986.   Tellers Committee   Thirty-one persons were appointed by Louisiana Baptist Convention … [Read more...]

If you were looking for controversy, the 2003 Louisiana Baptist Convention was not the place to find it. The convention went like clockwork with no If you were looking for controversy, the 2003 Louisiana Baptist Convention was not the place to find it. The convention went like clockwork with no   surprises, little debate and no controversy. For only the second time in this editor’s memory, an "open" election with no sitting president, each officer of the convention was elected by acclamation. Each of the men nominated for a convention office had been endorsed by the Louisiana Inerrancy Fellowship and apparently, the more moderate Louisiana Baptists decided there was no reason to mount a nominee after having failed to win an election in several years.   One of the more significant actions of the messengers was voting to accept the recommendation from the Executive Board and the retirement center board to sell the state convention’s Arcadia retirement center. The action was not unanimous but it was overwhelming. Closing institutions never goes easily for Baptists, but Louisiana Baptists have shown through the years they are open to better, more frugal ways of ministering. Louisiana Baptists gave … [Read more...]

Rod Masteller reminded Louisiana Baptist Convention messengers last week that God has a great work for each of them to do. Rod Masteller reminded Louisiana Baptist Convention messengers last week that God has a great work for each of them to do.   "The question is can you see it?" asked Masteller, pastor of Summer Grove Baptist Church in Shreveport.   The key is to have a vision for the church, Masteller said in delivering the convention sermon at last week’s annual meeting in Lafayette. He reminded convention messengers that without a vision, God has said his people will perish.   Citing Joshua 6, Masteller said that when Joshua arrived at Jericho, the city was all shut up. "No one came in and no one came out," he said.   The first six days, Joshua and others marched around Jericho once each day. On the seventh day, they circled the city seven times, blew the trumpet, shouted and the walls fell down.   God told Joshua he had given him Jericho. And just as God gave Joshua the city, he has given Christian leaders their city and area of service to make a difference, Masteller added.   He referred to Helen Keller, who developed blindness and deafness early … [Read more...]

Louisiana Baptist Convention messengers agreed to sell the Baptist Retirement Center in Arcadia last week, marking a transition in the denomination’s ministry to senior adults. Louisiana Baptist Convention messengers agreed to sell the Baptist Retirement Center in Arcadia last week, marking a transition in the denomination’s ministry to senior adults.   In approving the sale, messengers also named a committee to recommend how funds from the sale are to be used.   The decision to sell the facility passed easily on a show-of-ballots vote. It ended months of struggle by the Louisiana Baptist facility to address pressing financial needs.   The retirement center has been experiencing considerable financial pressures - and trustees announced plans earlier this year to try to return it to solid footing.   However, by August, pressure had increased - and center trustees voted to sell the facility instead. They emphasized the action was taken quickly because of fears that ongoing problems could lead to an exodus of residents from the center and result in a loss of value for the facility.   A tentative sales agreement for $5 million was signed with Danny Prince … [Read more...]

Louisiana Baptist convention messengers approved six resolutions last week, including four on key moral and social issues.   Messengers adopted all six without debate or opposition. Louisiana Baptist convention messengers approved six resolutions last week, including four on key moral and social issues.   Messengers adopted all six without debate or opposition.   In the convention’s opening session, messengers approved their traditional statements of appreciation for convention organizers and for the work of the Louisiana Moral and Civic Foundation. The latter statement again urges churches to support the foundation in their annual budgets with at least $1 per member.   In the convention’s closing session, messengers approved four other statements on a single vote.   While the statements are non-binding on local churches and individual Louisiana Baptists, they do reflect the sentiments of convention messengers and traditionally are seen as statements embraced by a majority of church members.   The four resolutions address key issues:   • Homosexuality and the church   The approved statement cites an increase in media images depicting … [Read more...]