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For CBF-endorsed chaplain, calendar is more than a list of names
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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!
summer 2010
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