2010 Summer fellowship!

Ge ne ra Pa Cove l Ass ge ra em s 2 ge bl 0-2 y 3

fellowship!

CBF

Summer 2010

Cooperative baptist fellowship | www.thefellowship.info

Serving Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission

Called to heal In Kenya, Tim Myrick, a doctor, provides medical care to Somali refugees and immigrants at a local clinic.

Myrick, along with his wife, Lori, a nurse, serve as CBF field personnel. They are two of the many Fellowship Baptists who are using their professional medical training to follow their callings to care for the sick.

CBF photo

Learn more about the work of medical professionals on pages 10-16.

Inside: Affect now included free in each issue

And so we are: A community, an institution, God’s servants working together Editor’s note: Below is a portion of the remarks made by CBF Executive Coordinator Daniel Vestal at the CBF General Assembly. To view a video of Vestal’s complete message, go to www.thefellowship.info/charlotte.

“For we are God’s servants, working together,” Corinthians 3:9.

This verse has provided something of a foundation for me as to why we as Baptists, who cherish individual priesthood and local church autonomy, cooperate and collaborate in ministry. We do it because we are God’s servants, working together.

The word “Fellowship” not only defines our identity, but the way we engage in mission. We do it together. We do it in partnership with God and with one another.

This biblical idea is a radical one. It is much easier to use the rhetoric of partnership than to practice partnership. When we are God’s servants working together, no one is controlled by the other. There is a mutuality and care for the well being of the other. There is humility and generosity.

Why? Because of who we are in Christ, because we are children of God. If we live out of this identity we can move beyond self interest and self preservation. We’re not destined to act out of fears or work in isolation from each other and competition with each other.

What will it mean for the Fellowship to live out this identity? It means we will practice shared planning, shared decision making and shared funding. It means we will pray for one another and respect one another when we have differences. It means we will esteem others better than ourselves. It means we will humble ourselves, take the form of a servant and be willing to sacrifice for the greater good.

I believe that the enormity of human need and the complexity of our global challenge requires us to “work together?”

Or even more important, do we believe that the very nature of Christian discipleship and the character of God’s present and coming kingdom compels us to “work together?”

I can’t answer that question, but this I do believe: There will come a day when who we are and what we are in Christ will be the way we serve him. The kingdom way of service, inaugurated but not completed, is humility and generosity. This is not a program, or a system, but a way of life, a way of being and working together — organic, interwoven, interdependent.

The church of Jesus Christ is not like any other community or institution in the world. It’s more like a family than anything else. Scripture says it’s like a body with each part caring for the other part of the body. And then, that body ministers to the world as a body. Scripture then says that this body is inhabited and animated by the Holy Spirit. We are the living, breathing, mystical body of Christ on earth.

This is who we are. And when we live and minister out of who we are, our working Vol. 20, No. 3 together is natural and supernatural, redemptive and renewing, personal and social, executive Coordinator • Daniel Vestal temporal and eternal.

Coordinator, Fellowship The book of Revelation says of a coming day, a day when the present kingdom is fully Advancement • Ben McDade present, “The throne of God and the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve Editor • Lance Wallace him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.” managing Editor • Patricia Heys There will come a day when we as sons and daughters of God will live in the full light Associate Editor • Carla Wynn Davis of his presence and as servants of God will serve him together in perfect unity and felPhone • (770) 220-1600 lowship. What we shall be in that day has not yet been revealed, but now, now we are Fax • (770) 220-1685 God’s children and we, God’s servants working together. So we are.

E-Mail • fellowship@thefellowship.info Web Site • www.thefellowship.info

fellowship! is published 4 times a year in January, April, July and October by The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, Inc., 2930 Flowers Road South, Ste 133, Atlanta, GA 30341. Periodicals postage paid at Atlanta, GA, and additional mailing offices.

USPS #015-625

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Daniel Vestal, CBF Executive Coordinator

Contents

9 10-17 20-21 22-23

Five Tips for supporting CBF’s new church starts

Medical professionals General Assembly New field personnel

FROM THE EDITOR

Being the healing presence of Christ Story after story in the gospels tell of Jesus healing people — a man with leprosy, a blind man, a paralyzed servant, a woman with a fever, a dying son, a dying daughter. In Matthew, the crowds heard about Jesus’ ministry and flocked to him. “When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.” (Matt. 14:14).

Fellowship Baptists around the world — in Southeast Asia, North Carolina, Kenya, India, Haiti, Peru — are following Jesus’ example. Trained medical professionals are using their knowledge and skills to care for the dying, the hurting and the sick.

This issue of the fellowship! magazine highlights the ministry of a few of these medical professionals — CBF field personnel Lori and Tim Myrick in Kenya, CBF field personnel Nancy and Steve James in Haiti and dozens of church members providing dental care in Asheville, N.C. These doctors, nurses, dentists and medical assistants are following their callings, providing tangible examples of Christ’s love and inspiring other Fellowship Baptists to give and serve as well.

In this issue, you’ll also find ideas for learning more about these medical missions stories in small groups, reading groups, worship and other settings. These ideas are part of Affect, CBF’s missions education resource for adults, and can be found on page 17 under Opportunities to Affect. You can also find additional ideas online at www.thefellowship.info/affectonline.

Affect will now be included in every issue of the fellowship! magazine for free, and beginning in the fall, as the magazine moves to a bi-monthly schedule, you’ll find each issue will contain twice as many missions stories and two Opportunities to Affect.

As CBF seeks to live out its mission of “serving Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their Godgiven mission,” we hope these changes to the magazine will be a valuable part of your journey.

Patricia Heys, Managing editor pheys@thefellowship.info fellowship!

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Serve

Current to host Service in September, encourage community

Y

Patricia Heys photo

oung Baptist ministers, side CBF field personnel and other CBF Speight hopes that spreading the event leaders and students are ministries, as well as other mission-focused over a month will encourage more people piloting a national moveprojects in your own communities. Though to become involved. ment to serve others in Service in September will continue to re“Last year, my church in Louisville, a CBF network-wide flect a response to the tragic events of 9/11, Broadway Baptist Church, participated service event in September. The leadership it will take on a wider focus of spreading by serving at the Americana Center for team of the Current network — CBF’s netGod’s love to communities nationwide.

Immigrants and Refugees,” he said. “It was work of young leaders — is directing the “Our hope is that each group will an intergenerational effort, elementary age event in an effort to encourage CBF compinpoint and respond to their own through senior adults. As a parent, it was munities to focus on missions in their own community’s needs, to make the biggest an important teaching moment for my backyards. difference possible on the local level,” daughter — that all ages of people can serve Formerly known as Eleven-on-11, the said Speight. “At the same time, the others — and I hope that all of the young event was born as a response to the tragedy groups can feel connected to one another people in our churches can experience the of 9/11. This year, instead of focusing on by participating in this as a nationwide same thing during Service in September one particular day of service, the team is missions effort.” this year.” coordinating missions projects throughout the month.

“We want to support groups from all over the country no matter what day works best for them or what missions effort they decide to focus on,” said Josh Speight, chair of the Current missions team.

“What’s important is that the CBF community come together to fulfill our calling to serve others.”

The Current network encourages congregations During the CBF General Assembly in Charlotte, Current members encouraged Fellowship Baptists to register for Service in September. to serve along-

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To register for this event, go online to www.thefellowship.info/current. The registration deadline for receiving T-shirts and a planning packet is Aug. 1. Contact Josh Speight at (502) 426-1931 to learn more.

WhyI give...

“I believe the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is the best expression of Baptist life available today.

I grew up in a Baptist family and a Baptist church. I am a product of a Baptist Sunday School, Training Union, programs of the WMU and the Baptist Student Union at Florida State University. I believe the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is the best

Melissa Chapman photo

continuation of what Baptists have believed and tried

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to do at home and abroad all through the years.

Lucy Gray First Baptist Church, Pensacola, Fla.

L

ucy Gray’s Baptist roots go at least as far back as her great-great-grandfather, a Baptist preacher in Georgia.

She has been in church since birth, starting in the nursery and moving from Sunbeams through all the age-level missions programs. With strong beliefs in the priesthood of the believer and other traditional Baptist principles, she and her late husband, Paul, started going to Fellowship meetings very early in the life of CBF. Now, Gray is chair of a global missions prayer group at her church that prays for and contributes to missions regularly. “We are a group of little old ladies and each one of them is as passionate about CBF as I am,” she said.

give

“CBF works through projects, programs and partnerships of agricultural missions, educational missions and medical missions,” she said. “We have projects to meet the needs of hunger, shelter and clothing of people.”

Her global missions prayer group has sent money to Touching Miami with Love, a CBF partner ministry, to help meet needs in South Florida and to a CBF river project in Southeast Asia. Gray is also a part of a Sunday School class that raised enough money to support the digging of a water well in Africa, where CBF field personnel are helping bring clean water to villages.

“The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship accomplishes its work through local churches, cooperating groups of churches,

partnerships with independent groups and a program of global missions,” Gray said.

“This work is cooperative, inclusive and without walls while at the same time telling the story of our Lord and Savior. It is true to John 8:32 and Galatians 3:28.”

Gray said she and her mission group would like to contribute to an American Indian project in Arkansas and to the work of CBF field personnel working with Persians in California — if they had the financial resources.

“My mission group and I wish we had millions of dollars because there are lots of projects to which we would like to contribute,” Gray said. “But sometimes the most we can do is pray.”

To give to the Fellowship’s missions and ministries, go to www.thefellowship.info/give or use the envelope provided in this magazine.

Thank you for giving. fellowship!

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Pray Prayer of Examen

Each day and hour — every moment — is a sacred conduit of insight and revelation from God. Perhaps the Psalmist had this in mind when proclaiming, “This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it!”

A way of praying consistent with these ideas is the prayer of examen, also known as the daily examen.

One way of practicing this form of prayer is to find a quiet space near the end of day, consider lighting a candle as a symbol of God’s presence, and spend several minutes in silence. Next, spend several minutes quietly reviewing the day either in mind or on paper.

In your review of the day, simply live with what was; ignore distractions of what might have been and do not

Prayer Calendar (CH) = Chaplain (FP) = Field Personnel (PC) = Pastoral Counselor (FPC) = Child of Field Personnel (PLT) = Church Planter (GMP) = Global Missions Partner

July 1 Christopher Rose, Peru (FP) 1 Debra Walters, Lawrenceville, GA (CH) 2 Steven Smith, Palm Harbor, FL (CH) 3 Nathanael Ballew, 1994, China (FPC) 3 Ken Cook, Pinson, AL (CH) 3 Elizabeth Ellis, Crestwood, KY (PC) 3 Brenda Lee, Williamsburg, VA (CH) 3 Michael Maness, Woodville, TX (CH) 3 Ascanio Peguero, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 4 Rachel Coggins, Glendale, AZ (CH) 5 Coy Callicott, Spartanburg, SC (CH) 5 Jeff Fryer, Murfreesboro, TN (CH) 5 Julie Maas, Belize (FP) 5 Bob Potts, Emeritus (FP) 6 Shelah Acker, Uganda (FP) 6 Sam Harrell, East Africa (FP) 6 Debbie Kubo, Arlington, TX (CH) 6 William Womack, Columbia, MO (CH) 7 Barbara Dail, Greenville, NC (CH) 7 Steven Flowers, Waynesboro, VA (PC) 7 Paulo Orea, 2005, China (FPC) 7 Julie Rowan, Spring Lake, NC (CH) 8 Renato Santos, Miami, FL (CH) 8 Steve Sexton, Knoxville, TN (CH) 9 Miriam Dakin, Marion, VA (CH) 9 Robert Williams, Needham, MA (CH) 10 Tiffne Whitley, Spain (FP) 11 Allie McNary, 1995, Slovakia (FPC) 11 Steven Shaw, Jacksonville, NC (CH) 12 ________, M. East/N. Africa (FP) 12 Elizabeth Houser, 1990, Southern Africa (FPC) 12 Christopher Morris, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 12 Mark Podgaisky, 1999, Ukraine (FPC) 14 John Deal, Emeritus (FP) 15 James Tippins, Fernandina, FL (CH) 16 Michelle Greer, Converse, TX (CH) 16 Mark Hart, Fair Oaks Ranch, TX (CH) 17 Caleb, 1996, Asia (FPC) 17 Wayne Boyd, Washington, DC (CH) 17 Cindy Meadows, Roanoke, VA (CH) 17 Leanna Pearse, St. Louis, MO (CH) 17 Carolyn Sears, Shelby, NC (CH) 17 Kimberly Sheehan, Nashville, TN (CH) 18 Timothy Hunter, Gatesville, TX (CH) 18 Tom O’Neal, Charlotte, NC (PC) 19 Lyde Andrews, Fort Bragg, NC (CH) 19 Steven Hill, Knoxville, TN (CH) 19 Jason Pittman, Miami, FL (FP) 19 Joshua Rose, 2007, Peru (FPC) 20 ________, son, North Africa (FPC) 20 Errol Simmons, Hattiesburg, MS (CH) 21 ________, daughter, Middle East (FPC) 21 Peter Arges, Durham, NC (CH) 21 Susan Lanford, Wichita Falls, TX (CH)

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try to fix anything for the time being.

After several moments, consider two questions.

First, “When did I most clearly sense God’s presence today?” As you reflect on this question, note where you were, who you were with, and what you were doing and feeling at the time. Consider recording these reflections in a prayer journal. Then, consider the question, “When did I sense God’s absence today?” Again, note the circumstances relevant to the moment(s) you recall.

Following your time of reflection (perhaps through journaling), entrust this day — its circumstances, memories and transformation — to God. Because God gives good gifts (those moments of consolation)

21 Twyla Nelson, Toccoa, GA (CH) 21 Matthew Pogue, Atlanta, GA (CH) 21 Keith Tekell, Beaumont, TX (CH) 22 Steve Abbe, Waco, TX (PLT) 22 Dorothy Potts, Emeritus (FP) 22 Bonnie Reedy, Lumberton, NC (CH) 23 Butch Green, Rock Hill, SC (FP) 24 Glynn Ford, Reston, VA (PC) 24 Laurel Link, Winston-Salem, NC (PC) 24 Ronald Oliver, Goshen, KY (CH) 26 Scott Jensen, Saint Joseph, MO (CH) 26 Richard Min, Dallas, TX (CH) 26 Rick Sample, San Francisco, CA (FP) 27 Lindsay, Southeast Asia (FP) 27 Diana Bridges, Starkville, MS (FP) 27 Peter Ott, Oak Harbor, WA (CH) 28 Emily, 2000, Asia (FPC) 28 Jay Collins, Greenwood, SC (CH) 28 Barry Kendrick, Birmingham, AL (CH) 29 Christina Houser, 1997, Southern Africa (FPC) 29 Wayne Morris, Lawton, OK (CH) 29 Karen Morrow, Aledo, TX (FP) 29 Martha Crocker Strong, Olive Branch, MS (PLT) 30 Paul Byrd, Birmingham, AL (CH) 30 James Francovich, Emeritus (FP) 30 Garnett White, Midlothian, VA (PC) 31 James Tille, Lakewood, WA (PC) 31 Cynthia Thorpe, Greenwood, SC (CH)

August 1 Steven Safreed, Fayetteville, GA (CH) 1 Stephen Saunders, San Antonio, TX (CH) 2 Mike Beach, Oliver Springs, TN (CH) 3 Mina Podgaiskaya, Ukraine (FP) 3 Mary Ellen Yates, Louisville, KY (PC) 4 Hannah, 1999, Asia (FPC) 4 Martha Hayes, Ft. Shafter, HI (CH) 4 Ruford Hodges, Birmingham, AL (CH) 4 Michial Lewis, Hoover, AL (PLT) 4 Mark Pruitt, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 4 Diane Stamey, Candler, NC (PC) 4 Stanley Vaughan, Columbus, GA (CH) 4 Matthew Wysocki, Cibolo, TX (CH) 5 Mary, Asia (FP) 5 Susan Allen, Midway, KY (CH) 5 Ronald Howard, Tuscaloosa, AL (CH) 5 Donald Lederer, Indian Trail, NC (CH) 5 John Oliver, Durham, NC (CH) 6 Steve Chisolm, Red Oak, TX (CH) 7 Merrie Harding, Orlando, FL (FP) 7 Vernon Westenbroek, Columbia, MO (CH) 8 Janée Angel, Belgium (FP) 8 Ellen Holmes, 1992, Europe (FPC) 8 Donald Robinson, Spring, TX (CH) 8 Jon Wyatt, 1995, Canada (FPC) 9 Beth Sample, 1998, San Francisco, CA (FPC) 10 Hyong Kim, son, Central Asia (GMP) 10 Elliot Sample, 2004, San Francisco, CA (FPC) 11 Robbie Byrd, Fayetteville, NC (PC) 11 Justin Murphy, Afghanistan (CH) 11 John Norman, Four Oaks, NC (FP) 11 Karen Rector, Kaneohe, HI (CH) 11 Robert Townsend, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 13 Rodney Bolejack, Denton, TX (CH)

and redeems the “stuff” of our lives (those moments of desolation), take a moment to offer a prayer of thanksgiving to God for both the good and the bad.

Though the daily practice of the examen can yield immediate insights, the most significant benefits of the examen are realized long term. In paying attention to the days and hours in this prayerful way we encounter the difference that the way of Jesus makes in our daily life and the path toward faithfulness becomes a bit clearer. For more information on examen, visit www.thefellowship.info/Pray/Prayer-Practices/Examen.

By Rick Bennett, CBF’s director of congregational formation

5 David D’Amico, Emeritus (FP) 5 Alexandria Geovanni, Orange Park, FL (CH) 6 Zachary, 1992, Asia (FPC) 6 Carla Cherry, Martinez, GA (CH) 7 Martha Harper, Madison, MS (CH) 7 Lee Hendricks, Greenville, NC (CH) 7 Lita Sample, San Francisco, CA (FP) 8 Daniel Hall, Pineville, KY (CH) 9 Yong Myong Chung, Asia (GMP) 10 Timothy Brown, Dublin, GA (CH) 10 Nancy Campbell, Hickory, NC (CH) 10 Keegan Glenn, 2009, Los Angeles, CA (FPC) 12 Bryan Lake, Cumming, GA (CH) 13 Andrew Gee, Marietta, GA (PC) 13 Richard Morris, Lebanon, PA (CH) 13 Alan Redditt, Georgetown, KY (CH) 14 Bart Grooms, Birmingham, AL (PC) 14 Priscilla Howick, Jacksonville, FL (CH) 14 Stephanie Moore, Maryville, TN (CH) 15 Rebecca Holmes, 1992, Europe (FPC) 15 Brandy Mullins, Houston, TX (CH) 16 Dick Allison, Hattiesburg, MS (CH) 16 Christopher Harrell, 1993, East Africa (FPC) 16 Karen Heistand, Charlottesville, VA (CH) 16 Byron Johnson, Arlington, TX (CH) 16 Charles Leggett, Lawton, OK (CH) 17 Angela Clark, Matthews, NC (CH) 17 Jean Craddock, Lexington, KY (PC) 17 George Rossi, Columbia, SC (CH) 18 Susan Barnett, Green Valley, AZ (CH) 19 ________, daughter, North Africa (FPC) 19 Emily, 2002, Asia (FPC) 19 Wanda Ashworth, Homestead, FL (FP) 19 Larry Baker, Commerce City, CO (CH) 19 Josiah Maas, 2007, Belize (FPC) 20 David Bluford, Lenoir City, TN (CH) 20 Barbara Marshall, Fayetteville, NC (CH) 20 Robert Randolph, Swannanoa, NC (CH) 20 Kenneth Walker, Frankfort, KY (PC) 21 Laura Bridges, 1992, Starkville, MS (FPC) 21 Mark Flores, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 21 Phil Owens, Marietta, GA (CH) 22 John Robbins, Maiden, NC (CH) 22 Becky Shoaf, Atlanta, GA (CH) 23 Byong K. Kim, Asia (GMP) 24 William Stewart, Yukosuka Naval Base, Japan (CH) September 25 Gabe Orea Flores, China (FP) 1 Terry Eddinger, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 25 Angel Pittman, Miami, FL (FP) 1 Milton Snyder, Milledgeville, GA (CH) 26 Randy Brookshire, Greenville, SC (CH) 1 Daniel Stallard, Virginia Beach, VA (CH) 26 Sunny Mitchell, Williamsburg, VA (CH) 1 Ralph Stocks, Hungary (FP) 26 Keith Parker, Brevard, NC (PC) 2 Bob Coons, Owensboro, KY (PLT) 26 Elizabeth Sexton, Harrodsburg, KY (CH) 2 Ruth Cuellar, Newnan, GA (PLT) 26 Lynwood Walters, Gainesville, FL (CH) 2 Dennis McDuffie, Atoka, TN (CH) 26 Gloria White, Lawrenceville, GA (PC) 2 Sara Moran, Greer, SC (CH) 27 Cathy Anderson, Kennesaw, GA (CH) 3 Jennifer Jenkins, Haiti (FP) 27 Currian Cole, 2002, Spain (FPC) 3 Ann Owen, Viera, FL (CH) 27 Peggy Johnson, Hurst, TX (CH) 4 Monique Criddell, Waco, TX (CH) 27 Rachelle Kadow, Gillette, WY (CH) 4 Vicki Lumpkin, Bassett, VA (CH) 28 Renate Kruklis, Braselton, GA (CH) 4 Shirley Massey, Chapel Hill, NC (CH) 29 John Harris, Pelham, AL (PC) 5 Eddie Aldape, India (FP) 30 Paul Douglas, Ft. Belvoir, VA (CH) 5 Roger Benimoff, Grand Prairie, TX (CH) 30 Rebecca Wyatt, 1992, Canada (FPC) 5 Becky Brannon, Gainesville, GA (CH) 5 David Brown, France (FP) 13 Wayne Maberry, Alturas, FL (CH) 13 Johnny Taylor, Plano, TX (CH) 14 Maurice Graham, Richmond, VA (PC) 14 Stephanie Miller, Goodlettsville, TN (CH) 14 Roy Moritz, Elizabeth City, NC (CH) 14 Ryan Tucker, Billings, MT (PLT) 15 Daniel Shadix, Prattville, AL (CH) 16 ________, son, Middle East (FPC) 16 Don McNeely, Emeritus (FP) 17 Joe Moffitt, Canon City, CO (CH) 17 Anna Sample, 2001, San Francisco, CA (FPC) 18 Ben Craver, Kirtland AFB, NM (CH) 18 Thomas Riley, Wilson, NC (CH) 18 Fran Stevenson, Fremont, CA (FP) 19 Kaela, 1998, Asia (FPC) 20 Joyce Cleary, Emeritus (FP) 20 Reid Doster, Madisonville, LA (PLT) 20 Jim Ivey, New Albany, IN (CH) 22 Doug Brown, Franklin, IN (CH) 22 Ana Podgaiskaya, 2001, Ukraine (FPC) 23 Mike Bumgarner, Norman, OK (CH) 23 Keith Little, New Bern, NC (CH) 23 Allen Williams, Asia (FP) 23 Richard Woodall, Memphis, TN (CH) 23 Marc Wyatt, Canada (FP) 24 Craig Klempnauer, Hewitt, TX (CH) 25 Arville Earl, Macedonia (FP) 25 Robert McMillan, Oklahoma City, OK (CH) 26 Cindy, Asia (FP) 26 Corwin Harrell, 1991, East Africa (FPC) 26 Mi H. Shon, Russia (GMP) 27 Verr Dean Williams, Asia (FP) 27 Jim Kirkendall, Oklahoma City, OK (CH) 28 Hattie Jackson-Harris, Montevallo, AL (PLT) 28 Jin J. Lee, Russia (GMP) 28 Inez Register, Lexington, SC (CH) 28 Randall Walton, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 29 Pam Foster, Haslet, TX (CH) 30 ________, son, North Africa (FPC) 30 Christiana Liem, Houston, TX (CH) 30 Karen Sherin, Columbia, MO (FP) 31 Karr La Dickens, Garland, TX (FP) 31 Carl Hart, Stone Mountain, GA (CH) 31 Michael Pimpo, Grayslake, IL (PLT) 31 Cecelia Walker, Montgomery, AL (CH)

Learn

For CBF-endorsed chaplain, calendar is more than a list of names

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learn

CBF-endorsed chaplain Tricia Baldwin serves as chaplain at Trinity Terrace, a continuing care retirement community in Fort Worth, Texas.

Beth Fulton photo

hundred eyes peered up at a teenage Tricia Baldwin as she approached the podium.

Step by step, she thought of the countless times she had practiced reading each name. It was all for this very moment — her first public speaking opportunity — and she was trembling.

“When I reached the podium, the paper slipped out of my hand and fell to the ground,” Baldwin said. “Trying to cover for myself, I said into the microphone ‘Oops, there goes the pralendar of care!’” That awkward moment was forever stamped into Baldwin’s memory.

At the time, Baldwin, now a CBFendorsed chaplain, had been named one of the youngest members of the associational Acteen council. Her job was to read the names of those missionaries who were listed in the prayer calendar during the program. What she didn’t know was the profound effect that the calendar would have on her future life in ministry.

Baldwin remembers receiving a calendar of prayer during her college years and searching for the names of her aunt and uncle, who had been sent to Alaska as missionaries.

“I remember being impressed, thinking that they were heroes out in the world doing God’s work,” Baldwin said. “The calendar came alive for me in a new way because it was no longer just a list — I knew these people.”

After college, Baldwin lost her connection to the calendar of prayer. As she wrestled with her potential role as a female Baptist

minister, she gravitated toward chaplaincy in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

Baldwin currently serves as a chaplain for Trinity Terrace, a continuing care retirement community in Fort Worth, Texas. During the 2008 General Assembly in Memphis, Baldwin was given a CBF prayer calendar — the first she had ever seen. She was shocked to see her own name listed in her birth month of April.

“It was a humbling and holy moment to think that a young girl somewhere may be praying for me during the year,” Baldwin said. “Tears came to my eyes as I shared it with my parents, and I kept a copy on my desk and prayed for others through the year.”

At the following General Assembly in Houston, Baldwin was again surprised — her own ministry was featured in the

updated CBF prayer calendar.

“I was again reminded of God’s faithfulness throughout my own journey in life and in ministry,” she said. “Ministry can be a lonely place. The prayer calendar is a tangible reminder that I’m not alone, because people are praying for me — I feel strengthened and sustained.”

The CBF prayer calendar — Prayers of the People — includes names of chaplains, field personnel, pastoral counselors, children of field personnel, church planters and global missions partners.

“Not only does the calendar remind me to pray daily, but it offers creative ideas and features a diverse mix of ministries,” she said.

“Prayer connects us with God and with one another, and reminds me that when God calls, God provides.”

Prayers of the People is a 12-month journey of prayer that begins in September 2010 and ends August 2011. Each month introduces contemplative prayer experiences around the prayer of remembrance and includes four weekly prayer requests, Scripture and imagery that invite users to pray for CBF missions and ministries. It also features a birthday calendar listing field personnel and their children, chaplains, pastoral counselors, church planters and global missions personnel. New this year are formats for personal prayer times, group prayer experiences, prayer within church meetings and family worship. To order visit www.cbfstore.info or call (888) 801-4223. fellowship!

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fellowship People

Tiffany Murray

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fter graduating in May from Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology, a CBF partner, Tiffany Murray moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., to start her summer internship with CBF’s Student.Go program.

For the second straight summer, Murray is serving in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn. Working with Greater Restoration Baptist Church, a CBF partner, she directs a free summer camp for children at Albany Homes, a government funded housing complex that is home to 2,000 people.

“I am blessed to join God in this community again,” said Murray,

a member of Peachtree Baptist Church in Atlanta, Ga. “I came back to Brooklyn because the work I did with the children of Crown Heights last year gave me a chance to experience Jesus every day. The community has such diversity that you feel like you are traveling the globe as you walk through the neighborhood.”

Murray, who graduated from McAfee with a concentration in urban missions, will begin a year-long training program in hospital chaplaincy this fall.

Tiffany Murray

Timothy McGregor

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imothy McGregor joined a Christian motorcycle association even though he has never owned a bike because he liked the group’s passion for community service and its desire to minister to those who are often considered outcast. He is a part of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship for similar reasons.

“CBF is bringing the social gospel to people, has a theology that is in line with what I believe and is cooperative,” said McGregor, a chaplain at the University of Mississippi Medical Center Hospital in Jackson, Miss., and founding pastor of Proclaim the Word Ministries, an inner-city church in Jackson.

McGregor started Proclaim the Word Ministries in the apartment complex where he lived and has relocated it several times as growth and membership demands required. He recently led his church through the Fellowship’s It’s Time study, and then with funds from an It’s Time Missional Ministry Grant, the church co-hosted a community health education event, which drew 300 people.

“It’s Time taught us how to be hands on, and helped Timothy McGregor the church members realize that we wanted to be a church that was of service to our entire community,” he said.

Pam Durso

“I

have the best job in the world!” That’s how Pam Durso describes her current position as executive director of Baptist Women in Ministry, a Fellowship partner. The organization recently published a new book — This Is What a Preacher Looks Like: Sermons by Baptist Women in Ministry, a collection of 38 sermons by Baptist women preachers.

“I counsel women who are exploring their call to ministry, encourage women seminarians who are looking for ministry positions and celebrate or sometimes commiserate with women who are serving,” said Durso. “Hearing their stories and having opportunities to be part of their journey has given me a sense of great hope for our future as Baptists, for the future of our churches.”

A resident of Atlanta, Ga., Durso has been involved with the Fellowship Baptist movement and its partners for many years. She served on faculty at Campbell University Divinity School in Buies Creek, N.C., and as an adjunct faculty member at McAfee School of Theology in Atlanta, both CBF partners. Durso is also currently chair of the board of directors for the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, a CBF partner.

Pam Durso “All my experiences in and around CBF life have given me great appreciation for the ‘cooperative’ aspect of this moderate Baptist movement,” she said.

Red Kennedy

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ed Kennedy describes himself as “an old hippie preaching Jesus.”

He’s pastor of Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Bogalusa, La., a CBF partner church that recently merged with a nearby African American congregation.

“I knew that God was calling me to preach when I was 16,” he said.

“And I swore I would never do it. I became one of the last of the hippies, turned into a drug addict and worked in a number of careers.”

At one time, he was the captain of a towboat on the Mississippi River, but for the past 11 years Kennedy has been serving as a pastor. Kennedy first connected with the Fellowship around the ordination of women to ministry. Later, when his church began a homeless ministry, CBF of Louisiana

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provided its four-unit disaster response shower trailer.

“I very firmly believe a church is to be involved in more than what happens in the sanctuary,” he said.

That’s one reason Pleasant Hill is merging with White Hall Baptist Church.

“This town has a long history of racial violence and racial tension,” Kennedy said. “[White Hall pastor] Coleman Moses and I came together working in Red Kennedy homeless ministry. We felt God wanted us to do this merger for a number of reasons but first and foremost to set example to the community around us.”

By David King CBF Assistant for New Church Starts

Church starting is a significant part of the future of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

The Fellowship provides resources for individuals and churches interested in spreading the Good News through a new church start in the United States (or around the world). Whether you are an individual considering planting a church, a core group interested in establishing a CBF presence in your community or an established congregation exploring or supporting a new start, CBF has resources to help. Here are five tips for continuing to discover your passion for new church starts and learning how you

“Churches serious about participating in missional ministry will be starting new congregations.”

— Bo Prosser, CBF coordinator for congregational formation

can engage.

1

Discern whether you are called to start a church

We cannot start churches without pastors. If you have considered planting a church, we would love to be in conversation with you. As a first step in the process, those discerning a call to church starting or those discerning a partnership with CBF’s church starting network might consider taking part in an online 10-week discernment process. Church starting is hard work. This is not a decision to be made lightly. Pray, study and listen to what God may be doing in your life.

2

Connect with others interested in church starting

Church starting can be a lonely vocation. Connecting with others is vital for support, fresh ideas and accountability.

CBF has several ways church starters are staying connected, and we are always looking for more. Join CBF’s new church starts fan page on Facebook or www.ning.com and engage in online discussion. Or come to our next gathering of church starters at the Church Start

CBF photo

for supporting CBF’s new church starts

During the Florida CBF meeting at the General Assembly in Charlotte, attendees offered a prayer of blessing for church starter Susan Rogers, center, and her family. CBF and Florida CBF are partnering with Rogers, a graduate of the McAfee School of Theology, a CBF partner, to plant a church in Jacksonville, Fla. The organizations and Rogers signed a covenant of partnership at the Assembly.

Academy Aug. 19-21, in Clemmons, N.C. Sharing community is energizing and helps keep focus.

3

Pray for church starters

Church starters constantly remind us that they rely on our prayers. Church starters are missionaries working in difficult contexts, and we should make a point of using the power of prayer on their behalf. The annual CBF prayer guide Prayers of the People highlights many of our church starters. You might use the prayer guide to pray for them specifically on their birthdays or highlight them as you hear their stories through missions education or the

tangible resources such as hymnals, Bible study materials, cell phones and computers. A new church start is a great tangible activity to engage your community of faith in missions as well.

5

Engage in a short-term assignment with a new church start

Sponsor a new church start

Is a mission team from your church looking for an opportunity to serve next year? Do you have a couple in your church looking for a short-term opportunity? Many church starts have opportunities for churches to assist in their ministries. You might help staff a backyard Bible club in Denver or tutor students after school in Atlanta. You might assist in much needed renovation to a worship space in Texas or do community outreach in Virginia. Let us know of your availability, and we’ll get you connected.

Most often it is the local church that can serve as the best support of a church start. Has your local church considered sponsoring a church start? The specific resources of support from your church may be exactly what a new start needs. New starts need money, but they also need people and other

There is nothing more exciting or rewarding than beginning a new church. The energy and the interactions are uplifting. Think about what your church might do. Think about how God might be calling you. Help us share in God’s mission in our neighborhoods.

fellowship! magazine.

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To learn more about new church starts, contact David King at dking@thefellowship.info or Bo Prosser at bprosser@thefellowship.info.

You can also learn more online at www.thefellowship.info/churchstarts.

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CBF photos

Medical m

Most of the streets in Eastleigh, a downtown neighborhood of Nairobi, are in need of repair.

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CBF field personnel tune hearts to needs of Somalis in Kenya

I

n the bustling downtown district of Nairobi, Kenya, called Eastleigh, thousands of Somali immigrants and refugees live illegally, having fled there to escape nearly two decades of endless war in Somalia. They arrive in Kenya with stories of rape, torture, mutilation and murder.

According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, Somalia remains one of the countries generating the highest number of displaced people and refugees in the world. There are more than 1.4 million internally displaced people in Somalia, while more than 560,000 Somalis live as refugees in neighboring and nearby countries, such as Kenya.

The needs of Somali immigrants in Kenya are complex. Without legal standing in the country, they cannot work legally, do not have legal rights to education or health care and could be deported at any time. It is in Eastleigh that Cooperative Baptist Fellowship field personnel and medical professionals Lori and Tim Myrick see patients once a week in a Muslim clinic owned by a local Somali midwife.

Continue on page 12 About the Myricks Tim, from Virginia, and Lori, from Maine, have been engaged in medical ministry for nearly 20 years. Prior to working with the Somalis in Kenya, Tim served as a missionary physician on the Comoros Islands, while Lori assisted with home and family ministries through Africa Inland Mission. Immediately prior to their current assignment through CBF, the Myricks were stationed at the Mafraq TB Sanatorium in Jordan, where they ministered to the Bedouin people.

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Tim, a doctor, and Lori, a nurse, drive with a team from Kijabe Hospital one and half hours each Friday over treacherous roads to get from their home in Kijabe, Kenya, to Eastleigh.

At the Salama Clinic, the Myricks pray when they arrive. On a typical Friday, they treat patients with tuberculosis, cancer, HIV/AIDS and other illnesses. They also serve patients with general aches and pains, insomnia, headache and heartburn. Treatment at the clinic is inexpensive — around $4 — and more affordable than the government health center and private doctors. “[Our patients at the clinic] have little other opportunity to be exposed to the gospel,” Tim said. “We emulate Christ’s healing ministry, [and] we pray for patients and for the people of Eastleigh in general. We

demonstrate the spirit of Christ in care and affection for the patients.”

The changing face of global medical missions In the past few decades, many of the traditional missions hospitals run by churches and Christian organizations have disappeared. Today, more Christian caregivers, such as the Myricks, are working in teaching hospitals, universities, local government hospitals and large non-governmental organizations around the globe — being the hands and feet of Christ in areas that would never allow traditional missionaries to work.

“In a sense, the history of medical ministry has drawn a circle from a few lone adventurers who went out to areas unknown to Westerners and did whatever they could to treat ill people — to organized mission

hospitals and institutions — and back to the individual who goes to an area where proselytism is not welcome and makes friends there, contributing to the local medical care and becoming a trusted person in the community,” Tim said.

The support that the Myricks receive from CBF churches allows and equips them to minister to Somalis in Kenya, both financially and through encouragement in the form of letters and prayers.

When Tim is not working at the Eastleigh clinic, he works full-time at the Africa Inland Church’s non-profit Kijabe Hospital, whose motto is “Health care to God’s glory.” There, he helps care for the hospital’s 300-500 outpatients a day, 20 percent who are Somalis.

Tim often refers patients from Eastleigh and follows them during their stay in the Tim Myrrick travels with other doctors to small villages to provide medical care.

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Are you passionate about medical ministries? Are you called to heal? The Fel one of CBF’s eight mission communities. Engage your passion and learn mor

CBF photos

At the clinic in Eastleigh, the Myricks share God’s love with children such as Issa and Bilal, above, two Somali boys who have been abandoned by their families and live at the clinic.

hospital. Other patients come directly from Mogadishu, Somalia, to Kijabe for care. Most of these are seeking expert surgical care for advanced or neglected gunshot wounds, fractures, burns or cancers.

“The hospital has a unique ministry to Somalis,” said Tim. “Here, many Somalis have their first and possibly only clear Somali-language exposure to the gospel. We have four Somali-speaking chaplains, and several doctors who speak Somali.”

One of Kijabe Hospital’s core goals is to provide the best medical and preventive care within the limits of the local situation, emulating Christ’s compassion as described in Matthew 14:14. The hospital also has a commitment to train those in medical professions and to meet the spiritual needs of patients, staff and students.

‘Jesus is her only hope’ Among Somali patients, depression and hopelessness are common, especially with women and children abandoned by family members. The Myricks’ encounters with their patients are a way they can be the presence of Christ to those seeking not only medical cures, but also acceptance, love and hope.

A 33-year-old woman who was a patient of Tim’s complained of pain all over her abdomen. She seemed depressed, so Tim asked her if she had any children. She did not. Was she married? No. Did she live with her parents?

No, she lived alone. How did she earn a living?

She worked for tips, carrying tea from a restaurant to the doors of shops along the street.

The clinic in Eastleigh provides affordable — approximately $4 per visit — medical care for refugees and immigrants from neighboring Somalia.

“Maybe in the West it seems normal for a 30-year-old single woman to be living alone and working a subsistence job, but this is a hopeless situation for her,” Tim said. “Islam has nothing to offer a divorced, childless, unattached woman with no supportive family.

“I see lots of women in similar situations.

Jesus is her only hope. Jesus offers her hope of being loved, being significant and being part of the family of believers.”

Lori has an ongoing ministry to two abandoned Somali children, Issa and Bilal, who live at the clinic in Eastleigh. The boys anxiously wait for Lori’s arrival each week. When she appears with candy, they run to her and hang on to her. They know she will bring the Old Testament storybook and read to them stories in English about Abraham, Moses and David.

“They need someone to talk to them, play with them, love them, and exemplify Christ to them,” said Tim. “We do these things in a small way.”

‘Our calling is to work with Muslims’ The Myricks have worked with Muslims since they began their appointment with the

Fellowship in 1996.

“Our calling is to work with Muslims,” they said. “At first, it was because we felt called to serve in some place where traditional missionaries could not work. With time, we began to feel that we understood Muslims. We studied Islam; we shared our faith with Muslims in English, French and Arabic; we saw [people] come to Christ, and we saw lives changed.”

In Kenya, the Myricks openly share the gospel. At the Salama Clinic they pray with patients and share a simple message of hope in Jesus. Tim often initiates prayer with a patient or family by saying, “I want to pray for you before we go.” Then he holds out his hands as a Muslim would do and begins to pray.

“Working with Muslims, you don’t have a situation where someone suddenly comes to knowledge of the Lord,” said Tim. “It takes time and many experiences. One of those experiences may be the experience of being cared for by a Christian caregiver. [It] may open a door to understanding [the gospel].”

By contributing writer Laurie Entrekin

llowship invites you to connect with other people who share your passion in the Medical Ministries Mission Community, re at www.thefellowship.info/missions. fellowship!

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Stories of

survival CBF field personnel respond to medical needs in Haiti

A

Photos courtesy of the Jameses

s the relief effort moves beyond first response to full recovery in Haiti following January’s devastating earthquake, victims are still being discovered. Months later, Steve and Nancy James, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship medical field personnel, still treat and minister to victims as part of their on-going ministry.

Widjine, who was feverish and swollen, and her grandmother traveled several hours by motor bike taxi to reach the Ebenezer Clinic where Nancy James, left, serves.

CBF Haiti Earthquake Response Since the January earthquake, more than $1.18 million has been given to relief efforts, and more than 100 individuals have served in Haiti through CBF, ABC-USA and Conscience International.

While CBF field personnel Steve and Nancy James continue to provide medical care in the northern part of the country, a base camp for Fellowship relief efforts has been established in the community of Grand Goave, southwest of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince.

Tim Brendle, a retired Virginia pastor and former missionary to Haiti, has been coordinating the

Kwensykaira is a miracle baby whose mother was killed in the collapse of a building during the earthquake. Kwensykaira laid next to her mother in the rubble for two days before she was rescued.

“Her cries were heard amidst the rubble and rescuers finally reached her,” Nancy said. “Imagine the joy they must have felt when the baby was finally rescued and the sorrow of finding the body of her mother.

Amazingly, the baby was unharmed except for a crushed right arm.”

Initial first aid had been administered in Port-au-Prince, but later Kwensykaira’s two aunts brought her to the Jameses for further treatment for her arm.

“Her tiny hand was clenched and she cried when we tried to open it,” Nancy said.

The Jameses knew of a team of surgeons working in the northern Haitian town of Milot, and with two nurses and Kwensykaira’s two aunts, they all made the dangerous trek

Fellowship’s relief efforts there. CBF field personnel Tori Wentz and Jenny Jenkins, both medical professionals, have been part of the response efforts in Grand Goave.

In addition to ongoing medical care, response efforts include: • Meeting needs for food and temporary shelter, including distributing food and tarps through CBF partner Conscience International • Rebuilding orphanages • Developing low-cost ways to harvest and treat water, making it safe to drink and use in agriculture

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over damaged roads. While Kwensykaira was too small to have surgery on her damaged arm, the doctors encouraged her aunts to gently stretch her arm to keep it from contracting and promised to return in the fall and check on her progress.

Despite new stories of survival and injury, such as Kwensykaira, the Jameses have embarked on an effort to refocus the work in Haiti to long-term recovery.

“I went to the earthquake area with the Haitian medical evangelistic team to impart a new vision,” Steve said. “In May, we started trying to move communities from relief mode to a risk management mode. We are trying to get them to think about, as a community, how do they decrease risk from hurricanes, flooding and earthquakes. There are proactive things we can do during the rebuilding process to minimize risk moving forward.”

Based in the northern part of the island country, about 10 miles southeast of Cap Haitien (Cape Haitien), the Jameses weren’t near the center of the destruction. Yet they remain busy distributing aid and counseling

• Micro-enterprise efforts, including savings and credit associations, vocational training for women and business development • Building earthquake-resistant housing through Fellowship partners such as Conscience International and the Fuller Center for Housing, which can construct a single family home for $3,000 • Making available low-cost prosthetics through partner Mercer University to Haitians who lost limbs • Training Haitians to provide post-traumatic stress counseling to earthquake victims through partner Mercer University

To go to Haiti to be part of the long-term recovery, fill out the online volunteer application at

teaching. As Nancy describes it, “Encouragement is a very big part of our work.”

Medical professionals from the United States continue to make an impact as well, especially after the earthquake.

In May, doctors from Mercer University in Macon, Ga., went to Haiti and helped victims who had lost limbs to be fitted for prosthetics. Also, ABCUSA and CBF have teamed up with volunteers to rebuild In May, CBF executive coordinator Daniel Vestal, left, traveled to a school in Grand Goave, Haiti to meet with Steve James, right, and others involved in relief allowing the site to serve as a work to access CBF’s long-term response to the January earthquake. base of operations for future volunteer medical and construction teams.

Him for specifics, how it might all come Steve encourages those feeling God’s call about,” he said. “If you have a sense of call, to help out in Haiti to answer the call by first there’s no way to replace putting your feet praying and asking God to show you what on Haitian soil.” he wants you to do.

“If you feel a sense of connection, ask By contributing writer Bob Perkins CBF photos

health care workers. Once some basic needs were met, Steve said they began working on longer-term goals.

“We work to achieve a balance between physical health and spiritual health,” Steve said. “We try to teach the local medical personnel to be the hands of Christ for those sick and suffering in the area. The earthquake hasn’t fundamentally changed the work on the surface; it has added a greater dimension to the need to strike a balance.”

Steve himself has “seen it all” since his first deployment to Haiti as a medical student in 1976. He was commissioned as an American Baptist medical missionary and served from 1983-1999. Haiti is also where he met Nancy, who was a nursing student when she first arrived.

In 2005, the Jameses were re-commissioned by CBF and American Baptist Churches USA to work with a small faithbased group in community health centers located in northern Haiti, mentoring and

www.thefellowship.info/serve. Stay up to date with CBF’s disaster response efforts on www.thefellowship.info/blog. fellowship!

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‘Share

God’s

love’

S

Dental professionals serve Slavic community in North Carolina help them. They also fed us quite well and wanted to be sure we didn’t go away hungry.

I plan to help again next year.”

The approximately 35 dental professionals who serve each year are able to see 150-170 patients during the week. Some volunteers like Josh Paynich, who operates a children’s dental clinic in Asheville, will see special cases, especially children, at other times during the year. “[In the years to come], we will continue to educate the Slavic churches about how the dental clinics can be used to reach those who are not church goers,” Fran said. “We want the clinics to be a way to meet physical needs and a way to share God’s love and be the presence of Christ for these immigrants among us.”

By contributing writer Sue H. Poss

Carla Wynn Davis photo

eeing the smiles on the faces of Slavic people live in the area and approxithose who have just gotten a painful mately 1,100 attend Slavic churches. dental problem corrected is reward “Our goal is to help the Slavic churches enough for Bill Arledge, a member build community here in Asheville,” Fran of First Baptist Church in Asheville, N.C., who said. “We want to teach them about hygiene coordinates an annual spring dental clinic for and educate them about what is available the Slavic population in the Asheville area. in America that they did not have available “Many are living on less than $200 a where they came from. We want them to month and don’t have money to spend on more easily integrate into our society, and their teeth,” Arledge said. “They come out of we want to empower them to succeed.” the clinic smiling and are so appreciative of Each year’s dental clinic depends on what we are able to do for them.” dental professionals to volunteer their time, The dental clinic is a part of the Western usually in three-hour blocks. Emily Hill, a North Carolina Slavic Ministries that Fellowdental hygienist from Hendersonville, N.C., ship field personnel Fran and Mike Graham volunteered for the first time this year. developed for immigrants relocating from 15 “I feel like it is a really good cause,” she republics of the former Soviet Union. said. “I found that the Slavic people seemed “They are coming from a culture where genuinely appreciative of what we did to dental care was not stressed, and many have never seen a dentist,” Fran Graham said. “For them, learning to care for and clean their teeth is a new idea.”

Fran worked with First Baptist Church of Asheville and the North Carolina Baptist Men’s dental van to stage the first clinic six years ago.

The ministry has evolved to the point where, this year, the 11 area Slavic churches scheduled all appointments, enlisted many of the medical professionals, scheduled interpreters and provided meals each day for the volunteers.

The clinic, which runs from Monday through mid-day on Saturday, is set up at the Slavic Revival FellowDuring the dental clinic in Asheville, ship Church in Asheville, the first N.C., approximately 35 dental Slavic church begun in the area in professionals serve 150-170 patients.

1991. Approximately 8,000-10,000

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To learn more about the work of the Grahams and other CBF field personnel, go to www.thefellowship.info/fieldpersonnel.

Opportunities to How to use this page

The suggestions below will be helpful for using this issue of fellowship! in the life of your church. Small Group interaction, Study Group or Reading Group options are given, as well as suggestions for other congregational or family settings. Be sure to go online to www.thefellowship.info/affectonline for more suggestions!

In Small Groups: The following is an outline perfect for adult mission groups, Bible study classes or other small groups.

Share copies of fellowship! with group members prior to the meeting and have some extra copies available. These suggestions are for a 45-minute time-frame.

1. Read the stories in fellowship! and identify one that moves you.

Be prepared to tell it in your own words.

2. Think of a time when you have volunteered your time and energy in a ministry situation.

3. Locate on the CBF blog the story about “Charlie” or search CBF YouTube “volunteerism” for an appropriate video to inspire.

4. Visit the CBF Web site to select Scripture for listening during the session.

6. Pull Pictures 1, 2 and 3 from the 2010-11 Picture Pak and video from the 2010-11 Media Disc. These resources can be purchased at www.cbfstore.info.

6. For the expanded version of this session plan, go to www.thefellowship.info/affectonline.

During the Session 1. Opening the Session (1 minute) • Play inspirational background music as members gather.

Light a candle to represent the “light of Christ.” Share or play the Scripture you’ve chosen to center the group.

2. Focusing the Session (9 minutes) • Discuss the word “volunteerism” and the implications for being a “volunteer” in your church. Share your

In Worship: A Children’s Sermon 1. As the children come forward for their “sermon,” ask them each to bring a SMILE with them. As children are walking, remind them to put their smile on and bring with them. As children settle in, ask them to smile at you.

2. Ask for a child to share what makes him or her smile.

3. Say: Did you know that there are children in a place called Haiti who don’t smile so much right now? Many of them lost their homes during an earthquake.

4. Ask the children how they would feel if they lost their homes.

Ask: “Would you be able to smile?”

5. Tell about Nancy and Steve James and their work. If time allows, show the video about Charlie located on the CBF

“volunteering” story. Is there a more CBF fellowship! appropriate word than “volunteer”?

Called to heal 3. The Center of the Session (25 minutes) • Share the story from fellowship! that moved you. In groups of two or three, look at the other mission stories. Participants should share a quote or a part of the story that got their attention.

• Ask: What might the field personnel be going through physically, spiritually and emotionally? What might the people who receive ministry be experiencing? What are YOU feeling/thinking as you discuss these stories?

4. The Prayers of the People (9 minutes) • Pray for each of the field personnel and short-term “servants” named in these articles. Ask God to respond to their physical, spiritual and emotional needs.

• Show the video of Charlie or the one you chose from You Tube.

5. After the Session (1 minute) • Encourage participants to pray: “Lord, what would you have me to do? Lord, help me do what you have for me. Lord help me to see needs and respond.”

Ge ne ra Pa Cove l Ass ge ra em s 2 ge bly 0-2 3

Before the Session

Cooperative baptiSt fellowShip | www.thefellowShip.info

Serving Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission

Learn more about the work of medical professionals on pages 10-16.

Inside: Affect now included free in each issue

blog. Say: Nancy and Steve are helping Haitian children smile again. Charlie is too. And, so can you!

6. As children return to their pews, have them “put their smiles on” and share with the congregation as they go back down the aisles.

In Reading Groups In Come Walk With Me, Melvin Cheatham, a neurosurgeon from Ventura, Calif., describes his experiences as a volunteer medical missionary at Tenwick Hospital in western Kenya. On his first trip to serve at the hospital, Cheatham encountered a young Kipsigis tribesman named Stanley Cheborge, who forever changed the way the doctor viewed his career and the people of Kenya.

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CBFcalendar 2010-11 Make plans to attend these events and retreats in the coming year … n

Aug. 9, 2010

n

Application deadline For individuals and couples who are already participating in the Global Missions cohort process, all candidate materials must be submitted by the Aug. 9 deadline in order to participate in the October exploratory conference n

Coronado Springs Convention Center and Hotel at the Walt Disney World Resort The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is one of the sponsoring organizations for this ecumenical gathering that brings together youth ministry leaders from across the country for a week of professional development and spiritual renewal.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

Aug. 2- Oct. 10, 2010

Global Missions Cohort Baptists interested in serving as CBF field personnel are required to participate in a 10-week online cohort, the first of a three-part application process. The deadline to register for the August-October cohort is July 23.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/Missions/Serve/Career n

n

Richmond, Va. This event for ministers and laity explores the formation of the master and considers how he is calling us to be formed. What events, traditions, circumstances, Scriptures and relationships led Jesus to an awareness of God’s call on his life? How is God calling you to be the presence of Christ?

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

Church Start Academy Village Inn Conference Center in Clemmons, N.C.

n

n

Atlanta, Ga. Formerly the Current Retreat and True Survivor Conference, this new event is designed for Christian educators of any age and young leaders. Whether you serve in a traditional church setting or create aspects of church in non-traditional settings, come for a time of networking, renewal, fellowship and learning.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

Narrative Leadership Retreat Little Rock, Ark.

n

n

n

Big Bend National Park, Texas This event for ministers and lay leaders will be led by CBF’s Steve Graham and Bo Prosser and Sue Joiner, director of Called Back to the Well program in New Mexico.

Participants will explore the wilderness of Big Bend National Park as part of the community resurrection.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

Oct. 18, 2010 – Jan. 6, 2011 n

Through CBF’s Student.Go missions program, students can spend a summer or semester serving at a CBF ministry site or alongside CBF field personnel, gaining hands-on experience in ministry. Students are provided with room and board, local transportation at the ministry site, orientation and a stipend.

Learn more: www.studentdotgo.org

Coached by the Spirit Ignatius House, Atlanta, Ga.

n Nov.

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June 20-22, 2011

Make Me an Instrument of Thy Peace: The Prayer of St. Francis Tampa, Fla. Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

Application deadline for Spring semester Through CBF’s Student.Go missions program, students can spend a summer or semester serving at a CBF ministry site or alongside CBF field personnel, gaining hands-on experience in ministry. Students are provided with room and board, local transportation at the ministry site, orientation and a stipend.

Learn more: www.studentdotgo.org

March 1, 2011

Application deadline for Summer semester

Oct. 29-31, 2010 This event for peer learning group conveners and lay leaders will be led by CBF’s Steve Graham and Rick Bennett and the Center for Congregational Health’s Melissa Clodfelter.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

April 25-28, 2011

Called Back to the Well

Global Missions Cohort Baptists interested in serving as CBF field personnel are required to participate in a 10-week online cohort, the first of a three-part application process. The deadline to register for the October-January cohort is Oct. 8.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/Missions/Serve/Career

Feb. 21-23, 2011

ChurchWorks Conference

Oct. 17-20, 2010 This retreat for ministers and lay leaders is designed to engage you in narrative thought and practices that can illuminate your personal story and how you are leading with it.

This retreat will be led by Keith Herron, pastor of Holmeswood Baptist Church, Kansas City, Mo, and Steve Graham, director of ministerial excellence at CBF. The event will be hosted by Ray Higgins, coordinator of CBF of Arkansas, and Steve Sheely, pastor of Rolling Hills Baptist Church, Fayetteville, Ark. Learn more: sgraham@thefellowship.info

Jan. 17-19, 2011

The Spiritual Formation of Jesus

Aug. 19-21, 2010 Are you curious about being a church planter? Maybe you are already taking steps to start a church and need some direction. Or you could be a church planter years into your ministry but could use some fellowship and conversation. Tex Sample, a specialist in church and society, is the main speaker.

Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/events

Dec. 1-4, 2010

Youth Worker Summit: Sacred Space for Youth Workers

n

June 23-24

CBF General Assembly Tampa, Fla. Learn more: www.thefellowship.info/assembly

‘We’re thriving’ CBB reports ...

Despite recent market volatility and current international credit uncertainty, Gary Skeen, president of the Church Benefits Board, said there is reason for optimism for retirement investors.

“The last two years have been a period of unprecedented financial uncertainty,” Skeen said. “But I can confidently report that the programs we have put in place at the Church Benefits Board have weathered the storm. In fact, we’re thriving.”

Skeen said when the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s 403(b) plan was created in January 2008, it was designed on a new model — one that more closely resembles the 401(k), which has been a popular investment tool with for-profit businesses for years. It features mutual funds as the underlying investment vehicles, bringing more diversity and choices to investors.

“At the time, we couldn’t foresee a recession as bad as the one last year,” Skeen

said. “Everyone was affected in one way or another and nearly everyone lost money in their retirement investing. The good news is our funds performed exactly as intended with ‘conservative choices’ losing less than ‘aggressive investments.’”

Skeen said the rebound that began in the fourth quarter of 2009 was so strong that the CBF 403(b) passed the $20 million threshold allowing an additional 0.4 percent cost savings in 2010 per investor. Skeen said he is also working with investment partner The Standard to create a more diverse portfolio of choices and to create an easier way for individual investors to invest.

Another change on track this summer is a new in-house statement and billing system designed to improve customer service.

“We’re always looking for ways to upgrade service to our members, and we think we’ve found a better solution to billing and collections,” Skeen said.

“We are bringing the entire process in-house so our members will be dealing directly with Church Benefits Board employees. We feel like this is the best way to improve our customer service.”

Your benefits are our ministry.

Established in 1998, the Church Benefits Board is a ministry of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

Contact CBB at (800) 352-8741 or learn more at www.churchbenefits.org. CBB’s mission is to provide Fortune 500-quality benefits to ministers and church members as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission.

New Preaching Resource from CBF

I

n the introduction in Preaching for the Missional Journey, authorcompiler Chuck Bugg writes: “Mission is done in the context of community. In fact, mission is not so much done as it is the lifestyle of the church. Living with the echo of Jesus’ words in the Great Commission in Matthew’s Gospel, the church understands that it is the missional people of God whatever it is doing and wherever the people of the community are. The nature of the journey is people who are called together by God and who become the presence of God in the world.”

The 25 sermons in this volume reflect the journeys of diverse congregations as they seek to be missional. Each one offers a unique insight as we journey together. Place your order before Oct. 15 to receive 15 percent off the list price of $15. To order, visit www.cbfstore.info or call (888) 801-4223.

History informs future as

FellowshipBaptists celebrate th 20 Assembly M of communion and sermons by Bill Leonard, outgoing dean at Wake Forest University School of Divinity, Winston-Salem, N.C., and Lauren Winner, author and professor at Duke University, Durham, N.C. “Tonight [the early Baptists] force us to ask: Can we give a witness? What compels our individual or collective consciences here and now? Christian witness lies at the heart of who we are, how we act and what we do when the times get out of hand,” Leonard said. “A church without a witness is a church without

J.V. McKinney photo; Patricia Heys photo; Carla Wynn Davis photo

ore than 2,400 Fellowship Baptists gathered in Charlotte, N.C., June 24-25 for the 20th annual General Assembly. Attendees had the opportunity to participate in workshops, network with others in their state and region, learn about resources, mission communities and partner organizations and worship together.

The Assembly worship sessions reflected on the event’s theme — 1 John 3:1-2, featuring traditional worship elements, celebration

an identity whatever name it may use.

“Tonight let’s stop worrying about our name and start reclaiming our witness; let’s quit fretting over the loss of culture dominance and turn loose our consciences. Let’s go out as children of God, born again, and again and again in one of the church’s dysfunctional, grace-filled families; children of God in the water and at the table, in the word and in the world; children of God knit together by grace.”

During the course of the three days, Fellowship Baptists gave $29,276 to the CBF Offering for Global Missions, which pays for the salaries, benefits and operating and ministry expenses of CBF field personnel and is currently running at 71 percent of its annual budget.

CBF field personnel Gennady and Mina Podgaisky and their children visited with other Fellowship Baptists at the Assembly’s missions picnic.

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At the Assembly’s resource fair, female pastors who contributed to the new book “This Is What A Preacher Looks Like” signed autographs.

For full coverage of the 2010 General Assembly, including

Patricia Heys photo

On the first day of the Assembly, the Fellowship unveiled eight mission communities during the Discover and Engage Your Passion workshops, which focused on church planting and faith sharing; disaster response; economic development; education and training; internationals; justice and peacemaking; medical; poverty and transformation.

“Our ‘passion’ rests at the very heart of our calling,” said Rob Nash, CBF Global Missions coordinator. “It is not a geographical location or a particular job or career. Our passion is that thing that gives meaning and purpose to our lives — that drives us to make a difference in the world. It is a heart concern that God puts in the deepest part of us and which

During the Children’s Assembly, children paraded with wagons through downtown Charlotte, collecting nonperishable food items for those in need.

J.V. McKinney photo

Volunteers were an essential part of the Assembly.

Todd Blake, left, and Cheryl Moore Adamson, right, invite attendees to celebrate communion during one of the worship sessions.

we couldn’t explain if we had to. It just is.”

In the business sessions, the Assembly approved the $14.5 million 2010-2011 CBF missions and ministry budget. CBF’s new officers were also elected during the session, including moderator-elect Colleen Burroughs, vice president of Passport Inc., and recorder Joanne Carr, a member of First Baptist Church in Augusta, Ga. Christy McMillinGoodwin, associate minister for education and missions at Oakland Baptist Church in Rock Hill, S.C., assumed the role of CBF moderator at the conclusion of the Assembly.

In his report, CBF Executive Coordinator Daniel Vestal reflected on the Assembly theme of 1 John 3:1-2, addressing the present reality of the Fellowship and his hope for the future.

“I believe the great test facing Cooperative Baptist Fellowship — and perhaps the larger Baptist and Christian family — is whether or not we really want to be who we are in Christ: ‘God’s servants working together’ or whether we want to be God’s servants working separately in competition and even in conflict? Will we affirm and celebrate our identity and let it shape our mission.”

Several events occurred before the As-

sembly, including the Leadership Institute, where more than 220 ministers and leaders heard from Alan Roxburgh, author of “Leading Missional Churches” about how church leaders can assist churches in discerning their role in God’s mission.

At the Charlotte Sessions, college students gathered for a week-long collegiate missional experience. The event included a day of learning and missions at Hyaets, an intentional Christian community in Charlotte, and participation in aspects of the Assembly.

On June 23, at Pritchard Memorial Baptist Church, a CBF partner, the Fellowship commissioned 16 individuals to full-time missions service. (See pages 22-23) “You come with your lives, saying you take this seriously,” Nash said to the new field personnel. “You are doing what Scripture calls us all to do — following in the footsteps of Jesus. As you go, you have our prayers, our promise of support and our promise to stand with you. Commission means ‘to send together,’ and that is what we are doing tonight.

We send with you all we can give as we all seek to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.”

By CBF Communications

videos of the keynote addresses, visit www.thefellowship.info/charlotte. fellowship!

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Meet the new

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CBFfield personnel he following individuals were commissioned as CBF field personnel at the beginning of the 2010 CBF General Assembly, June 23, at Pritchard Memorial Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C. All are serving as AsYouGo affiliates, self-supporting personnel serving

through the CBF Global Missions field team structure. Whether through business or education employment or through the direct financial support of churches, the AsYouGo program provides a global missions connection for CBF-minded people who have a specific mission calling.

Anna Anderson

Cindy & Ryan Clark

Ministry: Community Development Ministry Coordinator Team: Transformational Development Hometown: Wilson, N.C. Church: Forest Hills Baptist Church, Wilson, N.C.

Ministry: Visiting professor of Pastoral Care Team: Southeast Asia Team Hometown: Atlanta, Ga. Church: Peachtree Baptist Church, Atlanta, Ga.

AsYouGo Affiliate Eastern North Carolina

Anderson will be working alongside her husband, LaCount Anderson, who was commissioned as one of CBF’s field personnel in 2009. The Andersons work to address issues of poverty, homelessness and hunger.

“I believe God is leading me in a new direction at this stage in my life, being placed in these particular areas and in these strategic times for a purpose I am seeking to understand and the scope of which will be unfolding as I continue on this journey of service,” Anderson said. “I am excited about the possibilities and potential for serving God in this way.”

Rachel Brunclikova AsYouGo Affiliate Czech Republic

Ministry: Liaison between existing Roma ministries and partnering churches Team: Gypsy Team Hometown: Sonora, Texas Church: First Baptist Church, Sonora, Texas Brunclikova will serve as liaison between existing Roma ministries and partnering churches.

“I feel like this is a return to service for me,” Brunclikova said. “Since I live here in the Czech Republic and am married to a Czech citizen, I believe that I have a unique understanding of both the Roma situation and the churches here. I hope that I can stand in the gap and help bring understanding and compassion.”

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AsYouGo Affiliates Baguio City, Philippines

The Clarks will serve on faculty at Philippines Baptist Theological Seminary, teaching courses in pastoral care and providing administrative support.

“We have always had a sense of calling to working with populations of people who need our gifts,” Ryan said. “This is a great opportunity to bring our gifts to areas with great need. We have loved our experiences in short-term mission service and are at a point in our lives where we can spend some time in international service.”

Anjani & James Cole AsYouGo Affiliates Northern Spain

Ministry: Evangelism and House Church Ministry Facilitators Team: Internationals, Europe, North Africa Hometown: Abilene, Texas Church: First Baptist Church, Abilene, Texas The Coles will be living in Soria, Spain, working to build relationships and foster a community of believers. Anjani spent part of her childhood in this region of Spain. The Coles have also served in Spain on short-term mission projects, working alongside CBF field personnel Tiffne and Joel Whitley.

“Our hope is to personify what it is First Baptist Abilene is attempting to bring about,” James said. “We have a new passion for missions in our church. Our leaders have been emphasizing, even pleading, with our congregation to find out what we can do to spread God’s love outside its walls. We want to be pioneers in this chapter of our church.”

Lindsay

Jennifer Jenkins

Ministry: Advocate for Women and Children Team: Community, Agricultural Development/Arts, Development and Education Hometown: Fayetteville, N.C. Church: Tabernacle Baptist Church, Richmond, Va.; Snyder Memorial Baptist Church, Fayetteville, N.C.

Ministry: Medical Missions Team: Latin America-Caribbean Team Hometown: Jacksonville, Fla. Church: Forefront Church, New York

AsYouGo Affiliate Southeast Asia

AsYouGo Affiliate Haiti

As an advocate for women and children, Lindsay focuses on developing and implementing ministries relevant to empowering women and transforming families.

She will study the issues that most affect women and children in Southeast Asia.

“I have a great passion for seeing the world’s weakest and most neglected set free to experience life in rewarding and liberating ways,” Lindsay said.

“Thousands of women and children are exploited each day. I hope to empower women and children to see God at work in their lives by encouraging them to seek justice and mercy in their own life situations.”

Mickael Eyraud & Kamille Krahwinkel

AsYouGo Affiliates China

Ministry: University English Teachers Team: China Team Hometown: Nice, France (Mickael); Owensboro, Ky. (Kamille) Church: Panther Creek Baptist Church, Owensboro, Ky. Eyraud and Krahwinkel will serve as English teachers in the Hainan Province of China. They’ll seek to be the presence of Christ as they build relationships with students, professors and church and government leaders.

“God wants us to use what He has given us — our gifts, experiences and resources — to serve Him and others and to give back to this world that is in need of Him,” Kamille said. “But it is not just the two of us that are engaging in full-time missions. This is a mission that includes the body of Christ, all the body of Christ, working together.”

Blake & Rebekah Hart AsYouGo Affiliates Chile

Ministry: Field Personnel to Chile Team: Latin America-Caribbean Team Hometown: Atlanta, Ga. Church: First Baptist Church, Tucker, Ga. The Harts will serve in Northern Chile among the Aymara people, an indigenous tribe that lives in the Andes Mountains of Peru, Bolivia and Chile. They will work to address issues related to poverty, including access to clean water and education. With few pastors in the region, the Harts will also develop new churches and ministerial training programs.

“This is a huge opportunity for us to be a part of something so much bigger than us,” Rebekah said. “Once we’re established, I think there will be a variety of areas where churches can work alongside us. To form a holistic ministry, we’ll need the help of congregations, individuals and partners. We’re excited about the chance to be part of a bridge that will connect individuals with the work that God is doing.”

Jenkins will use her medical experience to serve the people of Haiti, working to improve the continuity of health care. Previously, Jenkins has served in Haiti on three short-term mission trips.

“Since the earthquake my focus has become clearer,” Jenkins said. “There is a great need for follow up care with infections, wound care, physical therapy and the rebuilding of lives. It’s an opportunity to be Christ to a people who are desperately seeking a safe refuge. In the past health care was always disjointed at best, and now that the major crisis has passed it becomes the slow painful process of rebuilding. We have an opening to be Christ to these people as never before.”

Carole Jean & Jack Wehmiller AsYouGo Affiliates Murrayville, Ga.

Ministry: Advocates for the Invisible Poor in the Americas (Haiti and Dominican Republic) Team: Latin America-Caribbean Team Hometown: Murrayville, Ga. Church: First Baptist Church, Gainesville, Ga. The Wehmillers will train in asset based community work, focusing on Haiti and the Dominican Republic. They’ll work with local partners to assess needs, such as medical, water, food, etc., and identify community and congregational groups who are interested in collaborating to help meet those needs.

“This is proving to be a very exciting time in our lives,” Jack said. “It is coming not at an early age, with an entire lifetime ahead of us, but instead at time when years become more and more precious as they pass. It seems that our purpose is being more clearly defined with the passing of each day. Please pray that as we move forward that we will recognize where God wants us.”

Mark & Sara Williams AsYouGo Affiliates Johannesburg, South Africa

Ministry: Church Planter/Social Worker Team: Sub-Sahara Africa Team Hometown: Raleigh, N.C. Church: Forest Hills Baptist Church, Raleigh, N.C. The Williams will be serving in South Africa with ARISE ministries, which focuses on planting churches in rural areas. Mark will work on providing training, resources and support to local pastors and community leaders. Sara will work to address the needs of children in the communities, especially orphans.

“I believe that as Christians we are all called into a life of service, and that wherever you are there is a mission field that needs willing servants,” Sara said. “Mark and I feel that we had a specific calling to a mission field overseas and can see how God has been preparing us throughout our lives for this task.

The service to which we have been called both meets our skill set as well as the passion and desires of our heart. Although everyone is called to the mission field, some are called locally while others are called to the ends of the earth.” fellowship!

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Cooperative Baptist Fellowship 2930 Flowers Road South, Suite 133 Atlanta, GA 30341 www.thefellowship.info • (800) 352-8741

Come celebrate 20 years of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship 2011 CBF General Assembly | June 24-25 | Tampa, Fla. | Register online at www.thefellowship.info/assembly

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elebrate 20 years of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship at the 2011 CBF General Assembly June 24-25 in Tampa, Fla. Make plans early to be part of this historic Baptist celebration.

You can pre-register online today at www.thefellowship.info/assembly.

A CBF group discount will be available at the following hotels. See the Assembly website for more information and to make a reservation.

• Tampa Marriott Waterside • Embassy Suites Tampa Downtown • The Westin Tampa, Harbor Island • Hyatt Regency Tampa • Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk