20741-02 bgct 2016 txblife magazine...

S P R I N G 2 0 1 6txb.life

It is an exciting time in Texas Baptist life! Through this new year of rich, theme-driven print and digital content, we’re working harder than ever to spread the word about what God is doing in and through Texas Baptists, and give you, the next generation of TXB, easy opportunities to connect with the ministries closest to your heart.

See how your gifts to Texas Baptists Refugee Relief are transforming the lives of Syrian refugees amidst a frigid Lebanese winter (page 6), and follow tips from Texas Baptists Disaster Recovery to ready your church to care for its community when disaster strikes (page 16).

Get to know your Austin-based Christian Life Commission, diligently working to give voice to the voiceless and help churches meet the needs of the marginalized (page 14), and read about Baptist Temple McAllen’s heartwarming ministry which, in celebration of the sanctity of marriage, saw 17 couples wed in one day (page 8).

Riff with Nick Pitts, friend from the Denison Forum on Truth and Culture, as he ruminates on the real meaning of love (page 4), and don’t forget to access our all-new online exclusive content (page 18) featuring a podcast with Grant Byrd and Rusty Wheelington, authors of “Ready: Responding to God’s Call,” as well as gripping video and photos from our ministry in Lebanon.

And, as always, be sure to plan your schedule around our host of empowering events! It has never been easier, or more important, for the next generation of Great Commandment, Great Commission Baptists to join together, care for their communities, meet needs and transform lives. My prayer for you as you read these pages is simple: let us love one another.

f r o m t h e e d i t o r

2 S P R I N G 2016 txb. life

All the best,

Joshua Seth MinatreaEditor | txb.life | @jsminatrea

Where life and faith are just a click away.

txb.life

2 Letter from the Editor

7 Executive Director’s Thoughts

10 Event Calendar

18 Exclusive Online Content Preview

txb. life S P R I N G 2016 3

txb.life m a g a z i n e s t a f fJoshua Seth Minatrea Associate Director of Communications/Editor

Kalie Lowrie Publications Manager

Leah Reynolds News/PR Manager

c o n t e n t s

culture4 I WANNA KNOW WHAT LOVE IS

news6 THESE GLEAMING LITTLE EYES

profile8 CELEBRATING THE SANCTITY OF MARRIAGE

14 CONNECT WITH THE CHRISTIAN LIFE COMMISSION

great commandment16 WHEN DISASTER STRIKES

f e a t u r e s

p.8p.6 p.16

4 S P R I N G 2016 / S U M M E R 2016 txb. life4 S P R I N G 2016 txb. life

J. Nick PittsSpecial Assistant to the President, Denison Forum on Truth and Culture | @jnickpitts

I WANNA KNOW WHAT LOVE IS


Like the ‘80s rock band Foreigner, “I want to know what love is.” And I am not alone in my inquiry. Legendary singer Tina Turner asks, “what’s love got to do with it?” John Legend speaks of its all encompassing nature, singing it has aff ected “all of me.” So what is it?

Diana Ross and Lionel Richie found that love is “endless.” Beyoncé, Queen Bey, opines love is “crazy.” Huey Lewis says there is a “power of love.” How much power? Well, it made Ste-vie Wonder call just to say “I love you.” Leona Lewis is quite fi guratively “bleeding love.” And Taylor Swift owes her entire career to love, or the lack thereof.

Determining whether they are right or wrong concerning their perception of love is not my objective. However, I do fi nd it quite revealing.

Music is a window into the heartbeat of our culture. Our culture’s infatuation with love is only exceeded by our curiosity for the color of a particular dress (it was blue). So when it comes to love, what does our culture sound like?

Peering through the window of music, it appears as though love is talked about often, but is desired more. Its presence is comfort-ing, but its absence is felt. Could the desire for love, the talk about love, be an indictment on a defi ciency of love in our world? We love the idea of love, but could the outworking today tend to resemble lust more than love?

Whereas love postures itself to give, lust takes. Love seeks to give until it hurts, but lust desires to receive until it is satisfi ed. We are told we live in a dog-eat-dog world, where you have to look after yourself. Does this type of world not foster an atmosphere of lust, taking more than giving? But what do we know about love? We being those who have been loved lavishly and graced generously (2 Corinthians 9:8).

Love is ferociously defended and openly wel-comed (Song of Solomon 6). With open hands we receive it, with clenched fi sts we fi ght to not let go of it (Zephaniah 3:14-17). We do so because love is almost unexplainable (Ephe-sians 3:15-17). It blindsides us (Acts 9). We fall into it and, if necessary, painfully walk away from it (Genesis 29:20). Love leaves us at a loss for words (Psalm 143:12). The human experience yearns for this type of love: to be missed when you are gone and pursued when you are away are hallmarks (Song of Solomon 5).

Love leaves us vulnerably exposed, but I’m OK with this predicament because it allows for a deeper commitment. Italian writer Cesare Pavese wrote, “You will be loved the day when you will be able to show your weakness without the person using it to assert his strength.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The loneliest moment in someone’s life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly.”

Could it be that today, we live and move in a world falling apart and in desperate need of love? Not a Beyoncé love that is crazy or Huey Lewis power love, but a sacrifi cial love like that of Christ. A love that hopes for the best, endures through the worst and never fails through it all. Appearances can be deceiving, but this type of love has a resurrection-like resolve. This is a type of love that inspires poets, emboldens warriors, and can cause bands like Foreigner to want to know more.

We do so because love is almost unexplainable (Ephesians 3:15-17).


Learn more about how you and your church can partner with Texas Baptists’ Refugee Relief Project to impact the Syrian refugees in Lebanon at texasbaptists.org/refugeerelief.

These gleaming little eyesLeah ReynoldsNews/PR Manager | @leahdenise91

Look at these gleaming little eyes. Gripping, aren’t they?

Though a sparkle glistens, these eyes have seen what no eyes should ever see.

These eyes saw a bomb detonate yards away as they fl ed their Syrian home at 4 a.m. over a year ago.

They saw airplanes fl y above, which triggered tears and the verbal response, “They’re coming! They’re coming to bomb us!”

They saw crowded buses and tired feet during the two days of transit to cross the Syria/Lebanon border.

They saw their new home—a wooden frame, covered with a fl imsy nylon tarp—and two “rooms” to house nine pairs of sibling and parent eyes.

These eyes saw a frigid winter, with 60 straight days of snow.

They saw their parents waking at odd hours of the night to knock snow off the tent roof.

But then, these eyes saw hope.

They saw kind strangers from the local church bring mattresses, so they didn’t have to sleep on the cold, hard ground.

They saw these newfound friends bring warm blankets, to cover them at night.

They saw them install a heater and give fuel vouchers to their parents, who were facing serious debt.

These eyes belong to two little girls, victimized by the civil war in Syria. They have seen devastation and terror.

But today, these eyes see trust and security. They see the love of Christ through the church simply being the church.

Now, when these ears hear an airplane, these eyes beg to see it, just as any child’s eyes should.

o n l i n e v i d e o e x c l u s i v eVisit txb.life/spring2016


Hello, Texas Baptists!Sometimes, some of us confuse the words “want” and “need.” I think we know the diff erence, yet we blur the lines a bit and, maybe, a bit too often. For example, I want the athletic teams I follow to do well, but I don’t really need them to.

There are also occasions when our wants and our needs really do coincide. I want to be fed and clothed and, it just so happens, I need these things, as well. As I think about the future of our Texas Baptist family (and I do that a lot!), I have concluded that what I/we want and need are very much in line with one another. And this is particularly true when it comes to engaging the next generation of Texas Baptists.

I very much want the generation coming behind me, and the one behind them, to be aware of what we are doing and the diff erence we are making. At the same time, a need the Convention has is for these same men and women to put this awareness into action. A genuine need we have is for you to act on those matters of which you have become aware.

To put this another way, I want those Texas Baptists who are in their 20s and 30s and 40s to be informed about the missions and ministries of our collective Baptist family. In addition, there is a need for you to be involved in this work. This means we need young, emerging leaders to serve on our Executive Board, as well as be willing and available to serve on other boards, commissions and councils. We need them to become leaders, not down the road, but today.

Therefore, I am asking you to let us know of people who could and would come alongside us in service. Please send me, or Associate Executive Director Steve Vernon, at [email protected], their names and contact information.

This is one of the reasons we have begun our Leadership Texas Baptists cohort. The next cohort begins in September. David Adams, director of special projects, can answer all of your questions about this group. Email him at [email protected] or visit texasbaptists.org/leadershiptxb. Please consider becoming a part. You are wanted and needed.

Blessings,

David HardageExecutive Director | Texas Baptists | @dwhardage

8 S P R I N G 2016 / S U M M E R 2016 txb. life8 S P R I N G 2016 txb. life

Celebrating the

Sanctity of

Marriage

Kalie LowriePublications Manager | @klowrie84


In a sermon series addressing issues of brokenness in the world, Pastor Chris Dupree of Baptist Temple McAllen focused one Sunday on the sanctity, definition and value of marriage.

While society has attempted to define and rede-fine marriage over the years, Dupree encouraged the congregation with this simple truth, “God is the author, definer and creator of marriage.”

Dupree invited Ron Smith, counseling pastor at Baptist Temple, to join him in preaching the sermon. Smith addressed the biblical concept of marriage, drawing from John 8 when Jesus confronts the woman caught in adultery. He then asked why followers of Jesus would live together without being married, listing many common justifications such as fear of bad credit, a history of brokenness in the home, and inability to pay for a wedding.

“Today, studies say the average wedding usually costs around $20,000,” Smith said. “I understand two people not being able to afford it. If that is your situation, let me take that excuse from you.”

With the strong desire to see those in their church respond to the biblical call to live in a God-honoring covenant as man and wife, Dupree and Smith shared with the congregation that any-one wishing to be married could participate in a wedding hosted by the church at no cost to them.

The church offered a free premarital counseling weekend to any interested couples (waiving the usual cost of $75), payment for marriage licenses, and a full wedding at the church a few weeks later. Members of Baptist Temple joined together to offer services such as professional photography,

wedding cakes for each couple, bouquets, and assistance with hair and make-up.

Seventeen couples from the church responded within three weeks with the desire to come for-ward and get married. On Saturday, October 3, the couples were joined together in holy matrimony in a service led by Smith and Dupree. Three of the couples renewed their vows after previous legal marriages performed by the Justice of the Peace.

One couple, Raul and Rachel, had lived together for 17 years. They began attending Baptist Temple in 2011, first entering the church doors when they were in great need of basic necessities such as gas money. Over the past four years, they have become more involved in the church and given their lives to Christ.

“When we heard the sermon about living in sin because we were not married, Rachel and I sat down and talked about it. We both agreed it was time for us to get married,” Raul said.

“I assumed I was married after 17 years of living together, but I realized I was not married in the eyes of God,” he shared. “The main concern and goal for us is to live in obedience with the Lord. I was very proud of my church for doing that and it hit my heart.”

The couple’s 14-year-old son was able to witness the union along with a sanctuary full of family and friends from Baptist Temple.

While following Jesus’ command to commit to a biblical marriage is extremely important, marriage should not define anyone, Dupree said. “The single greatest thing that defines us is whether or not we are found in Jesus.”

To read more church profiles, visit txb.life/profiles.

“I assumed I was married after 17 years of living together, but I realized I was not married in the eyes of God.”

1 0 S P R I N G 2016 txb. life

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Connect with the Christian Life Commission

@TXCLC | texasbaptists.org/clc

Since 1950, the Christian Life Commission has served as the ethics and public policy agency for Texas Baptists. Now located in Austin, the CLC has the assignment of speaking to and with churches and individuals about important ethical issues, as well as providing a voice for those often overlooked by society. The CLC is helping people to better follow the Lord by educating believers on relevant topics, helping them to advocate for biblically sound public policy, and helping them to meet the needs of the marginalized in their communities through initiatives like the Texas Baptist Hunger Off ering.

Gus Reyes, Ph.D.DIRECTOR, CHRISTIAN LIFE [email protected] | 512.473.2288

Marilyn DavisCONGREGATIONAL & COMMISSION [email protected] | 214.828.5194

Ferrell FosterDIRECTOR, ETHICS & [email protected] | 512.473.2288

Kathryn Freeman, J.D.DIRECTOR, PUBLIC [email protected] | 512.473.2288

Ali HearonHUNGER & CARE MINISTRIES SPECIALIST

[email protected] | 512.473.2288

Julie ValentineMINISTRY [email protected] | 512.473.2288

Lester MeriwetherDIRECTOR, LITERACY [email protected] | 817.696.9898

Jesús Romero, Ph.D.DIRECTOR, ISAAC [email protected] | 210.633.6257

March 31 – April 1 Trinity Baptist Church San Antonio

Julie Valentine

Jesús Romero

UT Baseball

The rich culinary off erings

It’s in the middle of the state

Vibrant culture & beautiful scenery

It’s the host city to my alma mater

Cultural diversity

Concerts and food trucks

What do you love about

Gus Reyes

Marilyn Davis

Ferrell Foster

Kathryn Freeman

Ali Hearon

VISIT THE CLC IN AUSTIN!812 San Antonio, Suite 410 . Austin, TX 78701



When disaster strikes

Leah ReynoldsNews/PR Manager | @leahdenise91

What looked to be a typical, rainy spring weekend quickly turned tragic. The rains, heavier than usual, created a 40-foot wall of water that came barreling down the river, wiping houses off their foundations and thrusting cars into trees. The fl ood in San Marcos on Memorial Day weekend 2015 would go down in history as the highest fl ood recorded in Texas.

But when news of the damage shook the community, First Baptist Church in San Marcos was armed and ready to respond.

Two and a half years ago, volunteers from the church assisted with disaster recovery following the West fertilizer plant explosion. When they returned home, they felt a strong conviction that their church needed to be better prepared in case a similar disaster would ever strike their community.

Under the direction of Monica Followell, minister of missions for FBC San Marcos, members interested in being responders during disasters participated in disaster preparedness training.

Little did they know that disaster would strike their community so soon. “It was astounding to see the power of what water can do,” Followell explained, recalling May 23, 2015. “They call it the 100-year fl ood. Never can you fathom a 40-foot wall to come barreling through the river... It’s almost too dramatic to even grasp.”

Thanks to a database of volunteers created the previous year, Followell was able to rally over 60 willing individuals almost immediately.

“There’s nothing more valuable than sharing the love of Christ by being there for someone during a time of crisis.”


Learn more about disaster preparedness and steps your church can begin taking now before a disaster strikes at texasbaptists.org/disasterpreparedness.

The church set up a campaign to raise funds for dumpsters and gift cards. With over $30,000 raised, they provided dinner for families displaced from their homes, purchased building materials, funded storage units, and did whatever else they could with the resources to meet the victims’ needs.

FBC San Marcos also served as a host location for several relief groups, including Texas Baptists’ BOUNCE Student Disaster Recovery, where students completed six diff erent projects over the summer.

“There’s nothing more valuable than sharing the love of Christ by being there for someone during a time of crisis,” Followell said. “With that in mind, it’s opened our church up to a bigger understanding of who we are and who Christ is and how we can be a part of clothing someone and feeding someone.”

History proves Texas is a common location for unexpected disasters—e.g., the 2011 Bastrop wildfi res, the 2013 West fertilizer plant explosion, the 2015 North Texas winter tornadoes, and so on.

Responding to community needs following a disaster is a prime opportunity for churches to truly be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ, which is why it is important that churches are armed and ready when disaster strikes.

“It’s so important to be prepared,” Followell emphasized. “You can never expect some-thing like this to happen to your community, but when it does, you want to be able to say, ‘We were ready,’ not just for the sake of yourself or your church but for the sake of the community.”


LISTEN to a podcast interview with Grant Byrd and Rusty Wheelington, co-authors of the new book “Ready: Recognizing and

Responding to God’s Call.” This is a great new resource to help you (or a young person you know) pursue God’s call and to

guide your search through prayer, Bible study and refl ection.

EXPLORE amazing photos and a video of Syrian refugees in Lebanon who were blessed with materials to survive the cold, harsh winter, thanks to gifts sent to our Baptist partners in the region.

READ about how a small town church made a big impact on the unchurched in their community by providing a free meal and movie for families. Get ideas on how your church might be able to do something similar in your neighborhood.

txb.life/spring2016

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#txblifegoWe are called to GO! Post your pics of places you have gone to share the Gospel, use #txblifego on Twitter and Instagram. Then check out the Summer Issue of txb.life to see featured photos!

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