‘EVANGELISM BOOT CAMP’

By Brandon Elrod

about and practicing evangelism as part of their coursework, and Nix has been a key figure who’s helped facilitating what’s affectionately called “evangelism boot camp” by those who attend.

“The churches are enlisted through the associations and the state conventions, and they partner with us,” Nix said. “We connect with those churches, and we go into their neighborhoods and share the gospel door-to-door and on the streets where we meet people. We get the word out that there is a church there that cares for them, but the biggest thing is sharing the gospel and seeing people come to faith in Christ and making sure those churches have the contact information to do the follow-up after we’re gone.”

Crossover provides opportunities to learn lessons about doorto-door evangelism that encourages both seminary students and other participants about how to engage their own communities when they return home.

“I’ve learned that God still uses street witnessing. Paul said, ‘I’ve declared to you publicly and from house to house,’ in Acts 20. Naysayers have said it doesn’t work, but I’ve said it doesn’t work if you don’t work it,” Nix said.

As a seminary professor, Nix needs to get outside the walls of the seminary and the church in order to engage with those who don’t know Jesus, and continually engaging in evangelism helps him better teach evangelism in the classroom. That same impetus is needed for vocational pastors as well.

“We’re called to be fishers of men, and if you want to catch fish, you’ve got to go where the fish are. So, I say you’ve got to get off your seat, on your feet and out into the street to get out there and share the gospel,” Nix said. “Most people will be open to talking with you if you’re kind, caring, not bombastic and not terribly aggressive but assertive, you can share. People will know if you care for them and care for their soul, and they’ll respond.”

Ultimately, Christians need to have faith in the power of the gospel and recognize that the message still has the power to save.

“We project on them that they will not receive what we have to say,” Nix said, “but most of the time, the issue is not that they don’t want to hear but that we don’t take the time to share.”

PH.D. REVISIONS APPROVED

Two new Ph.D. majors were approved in the Fall trustee meeting: Philosophy of Religion, and Ethics. Reinstated was a major in Missiology, formerly known as “Missions.” A name change was made to one major: the Biblical Interpretation major was renamed Biblical Theology.

Nobts Serve Day Yields Salvations And Touches Lives

At least three professions of faith resulted as 185 students, staff, faculty members and trustees—joined by SBC president Bart Barber, his wife and daughter—shared the gospel and served in the community in Serve Day, April 13. The group represented the largest number of participants to date for the once-a-semester event.

After Barber preached in chapel, evangelism teams shared the gospel on the streets and door-to-door while others prayer walked, ministered to the homeless community, served at a nursing home and at the Baptist Friendship House, a home for women in transition.

NOBTS PH.D. STUDENTS WIN AWARDS FOR ESSAYS

Two New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary doctoral students won top prizes in a paper competition sponsored by the L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.

• Micah Chung, NOBTS doctoral candidate in theology, won first place in the second annual paper competition in conjunction with the SEBTS Exploring Personhood annual conference.

• Alex Wendel, NOBTS doctoral resident in the counselor education and supervisor doctoral program, took third place.

A professional degree designed to produce a high level of excellence in the practice of ministry and in a wide variety of specializations.

For more information about the DMin program, please email dmin@nobts.edu or scan the QR code.

STORY

BY

MARILYN STEWART

PHOTOS BY MADELYNN DUKE

IN TODAY’S SHIFTING CULTURE, CAN A PASTOR MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN HIS CHURCH?

IN HIS COMMUNITY?

The answer might be surprising. This feature series explores what a church needs, why a pastor stays, and what it means to be a “success” in ministry. As pastors from varied contexts share their experiences and thoughts here, it becomes clear that a pastor matters as much today as ever. And, for the pastor who is faithful and true to God’s Word, his influence can be LIMITLESS.

Steve Horn

@executivedirector_LouisianaBaptistConvention

Mike Walker (pastor) showed me the big picture of ministry by giving me opportunity to preach, helping me get ready, supporting me. All of that prompted lots of opportunities to preach throughout college. Jeff Fritscher (youth pastor) invested in one-on-one discipleship with me, teaching me how to memorize scripture, how to share my faith, how to have a meaningful quiet time, all those matters of discipleship. Both of those men influenced me incredibly.

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Michael Wang

@NOBTS_Alumni&Staff

During difficult times and big decisions, Pastor Chad Gilbert (First Baptist, New Orleans) has always guided me toward Scripture and prayer. His steadfast love for God and his desire to study Scripture are what make him a wonderful leader and pastor.

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Top comments

Shannon Brown | NOBTS Trustee

Pastor Luter [Fred Luter, Franklin Avenue Baptist Church] has made a significant impact on my life. He has set an example for me to follow with regards to how he’s paved a way and served in ministry within the Southern Baptist Convention. He was the first African American to serve on the Louisiana Baptist Convention’s Executive Board and years later I became the first African American woman to serve. I felt like I was following in his footsteps.

Top comments

KIM CRAIG | Staff

Bro. Ken [Ken Taylor, Gentilly Baptist Church, New Orleans] is an extraordinary pastor who puts Christ’s love into action. He is willing to go the extra mile to meet physical needs as well as spiritual needs. He is a bold witness for the Lord, and an excellent mentor to followers of Christ. Bro. Ken inspires me to love others unconditionally and to be bolder in sharing the gospel in my everyday experiences.

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Many men influenced my life, including a youth minister named Gregg Bennett, another minister named Eddie Robertson, and a college minister named Franklin Scott. Most influential, though, would be Jim Shaddix. Dr. Shaddix not only taught me in the classroom, but mentored me with his life. He showed the high calling and humble privilege of teaching God’s Word and shepherding God’s people, and my life is the fruit of God’s grace in and through him. #pastor_McLeanBibleChurch

3 hours ago

Rex Butler

@ProfessorofChurchHistory&Patristics_NOBTS

During my formative years as a young adult, Bob Utley was my pastor at Trinity Baptist Church, Lubbock, Texas. He influenced me greatly to dig deep into the Bible, to ask hard questions, and then he taught me how to interpret the Bible correctly for answers that would guide my spiritual growth and my ministry as a teacher, both in the church and the seminary.

1,000 Likes 50 Retweets 600 Quotes hurches come in all sizes. Their locations span the globe. With this much variety, is it possible that churches share anything in common when it comes to choosing a pastor? In other words, what does a church need from a pastor?

WAYLON BAILEY: LEADERSHIP IS LOVING

Waylon Bailey, chairman of the NOBTS board of trustees and pastor of First Baptist Church, Covington, Louisiana, knows from his 34-year tenure at the ever-growing church—one of the largest in the state— the needs of churches at various stages and growth levels.

“Leadership, but especially godly servant leadership, is priority number one,” Bailey said. He then added a qualification: “There are lots of number twos under that.”

A phone call years ago shaped Bailey’s thinking regarding the importance of the pastor as leader. The woman on the line confided that her church was struggling though her pastor was a good preacher who cared well for members. His failure was leadership, she said.

Bailey recounted her words. “She said, “‘Our pastor is a really good minister, but he is a bad ‘ad-minister.’”

Her next statement is one Bailey has never forgotten. The woman told him, “It makes us feel that he doesn’t love the church.”

Leadership is one way a pastor shows love to his congregation, Bailey said. The apostle Paul urged believers to imitate him, Bailey pointed out, not from arrogance but from understanding that people need to see what it means to live out the gospel.

“Paul was simply saying you need somebody to help you know how to live the Christian life and the best way to learn that is by seeing,” Bailey said. “That’s what Paul said: Watch what I do; pray like I pray; witness like I witness.”

Leadership is not simply about being the person in charge, but about relationship and love, Bailey said.

“You can lead a church, but you can’t drive a church,” Bailey said. “Nobody wants to be driven, but everybody wants to be led in some kind of relationship. I think churches very much need that, and want that.

“They need somebody who loves the church, who cares for it, who is going to hang in there with them through the hard times,” Bailey added. “All of that is what I mean by leadership.”

ROBBY GALLATY: HOLINESS FIRST

Anyone who knows Robby Gallaty (MDIV ’07, THM ’10, PHD ’11), pastor of Long Hollow Church, Hendersonville, Tennessee, knows that Gallaty leads his church to prioritize discipleship so that every believer is discipled and prepared to disciple others.

While making disciples is crucial, Gallaty reminds his staff members that nothing comes before their relationship with Christ. Everything else—living out the Great Commission, leading the church, and living faithfully in relationships with others—depends on that.

“The tide that raises all of the ships in the port is indicative of the spiritual life or the spiritual fervor of this group here,” Gallaty tells his staff. “If we’re not sold out to Jesus, if we’re not following God, if we’re not anticipating a move of the Holy Spirit in our congregation, then how can we expect our people to?”

Being “sold out” to God requires personal holiness, Gallaty said. While pastors fall spiritually or morally for many reasons and under varied circumstances, Gallaty wonders if those who falter allowed their charisma or competency to “outpace” their character.”

“Character counts to God. Godliness counts to God,” Gallaty said.

He tells his congregation, “The greatest gift I can give you as pastor is not my preaching ability, my counseling expertise, my discipleship acumen, my education. The greatest gift I can bring to this church is my personal holiness before God.”

DAVID PLATT: TEACH GOD’S WORD

Shepherding a church that reflects today’s culture means the pastor stands each Sunday before people of mixed political and social views, backgrounds and generations, and varied levels of spiritual maturity. Helping each to grow in the faith may seem daunting.

David Platt (MDIV ’02, THM ’03, PHD ’04), pastor of McLean Bible Church, Vienna, Virginia, pointed to Isaiah 66 as a reminder that a pastor must preach accurately, but with humility.

“The pastor must be able to teach what God’s Word says and help people apply it to their lives,” Platt said. “When God’s Word does not speak clearly and directly to a particular issue, he must help people apply God’s Word as wisely as possible, recognizing that other Christians and church members may discern wisdom in different ways.

“He must be attentive to pastoring all types of people—from different ages and ethnicities—instead of people who are just like him. All of this requires Isaiah 66-like humility before God and others.”

How can the church possibly compete? How can the church ‘out-disciple’ the world?

Top comments

Robby Gallaty

At Long Hollow Church, Hendersonville, Tennessee, shifting trends in how families “did life,” particularly after Covid, made it clear they needed to change their approach to discipleship, especially with children.

Robby Gallaty pointed to studies showing that 30 to 40 years ago the average church member attended church on Sunday about three times a month. Before Covid, the number was down to about twice a month, Gallaty explained, but dropped further post-Covid to about once a month.

For children, the 30 hours of discipleship training they received at church per year was also far short of the 3,000 “teachable hours” parents spend with their children during the year, Gallaty explained.

While “scripture is clear” that believers must gather in person regularly, it became clear they needed to find ways to “complement” members’ busy lives and empower parents to disciple their own children at home.

“If our ministry is only, ‘You come and see us and we’ll do the ministry for you,’ and not, ‘When you come we’ll equip you to feel confident and courageous in discipling your family and kids at home,’ then I think we’re going to be ineffective,” Gallaty said. “If you’re only building-centric … then the church will be ‘outdiscipled’ by the world.”

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David Platt

“I always say to our people that they are either going to be discipled by the world or by God’s Word, and I’m zealous for them to be discipled by God’s Word,” David Platt said.

Personal daily commitment to Bible study and prayer is vital, but Platt pointed out that believers must help other believers grow.

“We need to cultivate a Deuteronomy 6-like culture in their lives, homes, and in the church where they are talking about and listening to God’s Word all the time,” Platt said. “Otherwise, they’re inevitably going to be discipled by the world.”

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Staying in the pulpit when other opportunities come along isn’t always easy to do. Coming up with reasons to leave, especially on Monday morning, might seem right.

The bigger question might be, Why stay?

Fred Luter Jr. (’82), pastor of New Orleans’ Franklin Avenue Baptist Church, had opportunities to leave after Hurricane Katrina, 2005, devastated the city and made a future in New Orleans look bleak. Other job offers came along also after Luter served two terms as SBC president, 2012-2014. Yet, each was an offer he turned down.

“The offers were tempting,” Luter said. “I just felt my work was not done here, not necessarily because of the congregation but because of my commitment to God, first and foremost, that I would give everything I had to this church, 110 percent.”

From a small church of 65 members in 1986 to today’s member count of more than 7,000, Luter led the church through changes, adjustments, and growing pains to keep the church steady while keeping focused on reaching the lost.

Reaching the lost requires relationship, Luter said, which often comes down to him putting on his jeans and tennis shoes and going out into the neighborhood to meet the neighbors and meet needs, whatever those needs might be.

One day, Luter watched from his third floor office window as young boys behind the church shot basketballs into a milk carton they had tied to a tree. The next day, Luter and the church recreational director showed up on the street with a brand new basketball goal the church had purchased for the boys.

The gift opened the door to friendship and soon, some of the families began to attend.

“I think the key to reaching the unchurched is just building relationships with them,” Luter said. “Let them know that you’re concerned about them, concerned about their families and what they’re going through.”

Luter stays committed to Franklin Avenue Baptist Church out of deep gratitude to the Lord for his salvation, but also from gratitude to the church for the faith they placed in him 36 years ago, he said.

“It was my first church. I had never pastored before. I was just excited that these people wanted me to be their pastor,” Luter said.

His prayer when he first stepped into the pulpit was, “Lord, help me be faithful to this church.”

“It was my commitment to God that has kept me here,” Luter said. “That’s why I’m still here, still committed to it.”

STEVE HORN: ‘LIMITLESS INFLUENCE’

While some might feel that the role of pastor doesn’t garner the respect it once did, the opportunity to impact others beyond the church walls remains real.

“I think the influence of the pastor is still very, very great,” said Steve Horn, Louisiana Baptist Convention Executive Director. “My word is ‘limitless.’ If a healthy relationship exists, I think there’s still incredible influence. I think it’s limitless.”

A long-time pastor, Horn (MDIV ’94, PHD ’98) now serves as a “pastor to pastors” in his role as executive director for a fellowship of more than 1500 churches. Looking back, he recalls opportunities to be a pastor to the community at large.

The day that stands out most in Horn’s mind is Sept. 11, 2001, the day the World Trade Center in New York City was attacked. At the time, Horn was pastor of Highland Baptist Church, New Iberia, Louisiana, but on that day he was a pastor to all.

“The phone just kept ringing. People said things such as, ‘I just had to talk to my pastor,’” Horn said. “That happened all day long.”

Tragedy once again brought a community to Horn for spiritual care during his tenure as pastor of First Baptist Church, Lafayette, Louisiana when a shooter stormed into a movie theater and left three people dead. Residents, many unconnected to his church, turned to Horn for help in processing the event.

“When those public things happen, lost people or not, they want to be involved and have pastors involved,” Horn said. “If you’ve worked hard to establish a rapport with officials and the community at large, you’re likely to be invited into those circles.”

Though difficult, Horn finds those moments of caring for those in deep need to be some of the most fulfilling of ministry. It is the reason a pastor’s influence can be “limitless.”

“To know that God can use you in the midst of those circumstances is meaningful,” Horn said. “It may not be enjoyable, but it’s meaningful.”

WAYLON BAILEY: ‘IT’S ALL I WANT TO DO’

The church Waylon Bailey, pastor of First Baptist Church, Covington, Louisiana, grew up in was not what most might pick as a place that would inspire a young man to be a pastor.

“It was a small church, but it was full of pain,” Bailey said.

Being a pastor never entered his mind nor his parents’ minds though both were active leaders in the church. Who would want their son to face such turmoil?

But one Easter Sunday night, as Bailey sat on the back row of church, God called him to preach. The day-and-night change was so dramatic that Bailey used the term “violent” to describe it.

“In an hour’s time I went from, ‘I wouldn’t do this for any amount of money,’ to ‘This is all I want to do,’” Bailey said. “And it’s still all I want to do.”

Bailey stays because he loves being a pastor. He adds quickly that his wife Martha’s love and giftedness for ministry complements all he does. “There’s nothing in the world that makes me feel like this,” Bailey said recently to her.

Bailey stays also because he sees a world in desperate need of the gospel.

“As long as God allows me to be effective,” Bailey said, “I’m going to do just what I’m doing.”

How Did You Know You Were Called

Top comments

Chip Luter

Chip Luter intended to be an architect. As the son of Fred Luter Jr., Chip never dreamed of being a pastor and his father never asked him to consider it.

At church, he was “Chip off the old block,” but at the Catholic boys’ high school he attended in New Orleans, he was Fred Luter III. Being Black and being Baptist at a Catholic school made him doubt his ability to make an impact on others, but an unexpected compliment from an older white woman one day changed everything.

“It shattered my preconceptions about the influence I could have,” Chip Luter said.

As Luter looks back, he cringes when he remembers what he said to God as a teenager as he considered a call to the ministry. Luter recalled, “Lord, okay. Evidently you want this because I don’t. So, I’ll go into ministry, but Lord, if this doesn’t work out, it’s your fault.”

Years later, Luter was surprised again as pastor of the Sulphur Springs campus of Idlewild Baptist Church, Tampa, Florida when a white woman joined his church, choosing him to be her pastor.

“Once again, what God continued to show me was ‘I’m bigger than your ethnicity; I’m bigger than your age; I’m bigger than your upbringing,’” Luter said.

Now as associate pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church, serving alongside his father Fred Luter Jr., he recognizes that God still leads, often in surprising ways. And at age 39, Luter knows his ministry depends on God. “It’s still on Him,” Luter said. #associatepastoratFranklinAvenueBaptistChurch

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Gabriel Mirabal

Pastor Lema (retired, Iglesia Bautista Emmanuel, New Orleans ) has been a pastor, friend, guide, counselor and teacher, and an irreplaceable blessing to me and my family. We have found a refuge in his home whenever we have needed it. He was the first person God used to get me to think about the idea of being ordained as a pastor. #NOBTSstudent

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Abel Rodriguez

Pastor Lema has been my pastor, friend, and mentor. He is an example of Christian leadership to all around him. He has been an inspiration for me regarding the call of the ministry. I received the call to the pastorate in his church, and his example influenced my decision to obey that call.

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1,000 Likes 50 Retweets 600 Quotes t’s Monday morning and a discouraged pastor drives up to his church office. Things are not going well. By every standard he knows, his ministry is in trouble.

Miles away, another pastor stares down at his latest retirement account report. The hint his deacon chairman dropped yesterday rings in his ears—Maybe it’s time to retire. What bothers him most is a question that sometimes keeps him up at night: Has my ministry been successful?

Measuring a pastor’s “success” is difficult, if not impossible.

“The reality is there’s just no data reason to think about,” said Steve Horn, Louisiana Baptist Convention Executive Director. “Decisions and baptisms can be a false data point.”

Other vocations thrive on tangible measurements such as profit margins and sales, Horn pointed out, but ministry is different. Even judging by the explosive growth of the church in Acts 2 can be deflating, he added.

“It’s easy for the pastor to sit back and say, ‘That’s not happening to me, so there must be something wrong with me,’” Horn said.

The question then is, How can success in ministry be measured?

STEVE HORN: AN INVITATION INTENDED FOR THE PASTOR

The quiet, reserved man that walked the aisle one Sunday to clasp Steve Horn’s hand at the front was someone Horn didn’t know well. But his words to Horn that Sunday were something he never forgot.

“He said, ‘Pastor, I know you probably stand here Sunday after Sunday thinking is this doing any good?’” Horn recounted. “‘I need to tell you that last Sunday I came here with the intention of coming to church one more Sunday with my wife and then going home and taking my life.’”

Horn couldn’t see how his message the previous Sunday could have altered a man’s life so dramatically, but he did remember what he thought as the man returned to his pew that morning.

“Okay, God,” Horn recounted praying as he stood there that day. “This invitation is for me and I’m never going to stand here again thinking, ‘Well, this was worthless because no one came forward.’ Thank you for teaching me this lesson today.”

Horn recounted that countless times someone has thanked him for a sermon that was “life-changing” though he couldn’t even remember preaching that particular sermon.

How God uses His servants is up to Him, Horn explained.

“How do you judge success? … Even when we think we know, we don’t,” Horn said. “As you look back, you just have to ask yourself if you’ve been faithful to the Lord.”

JOE McKEEVER: ONLY THIS

Joe McKeever, a long-time pastor, author, and well-known cartoonist, served many years as executive director of the New Orleans Baptist Association (then the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans), including through the difficult years following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

Throughout his ministry, McKeever (THM ’67, DMIN ’73) often reminded pastors that God works in ways humans cannot see or measure.

“Many a pastor has felt a revival, ministry, or effort was fruitless but later found out differently, that the one person touched went on to do incredible things for the Lord,” McKeever explained.

A woman once approached McKeever as he drew cartoons at a church to tell him, “You baptized my husband.” McKeever did not recognize her husband’s name, but was moved when she explained that her husband, Mark Byrd, was pastor of First Baptist Church, Ridgeland, Mississippi.

When McKeever met Byrd a week later, he made the connection and realized he had been Byrd’s pastor when Byrd was a child. McKeever had never heard that Byrd had answered God’s call to the ministry.

“I was thrilled, of course,” McKeever said. “But without this little encounter with his wife, I’d have no idea.”

McKeever turns to a football analogy when reminding pastors that God knows all they do.

No football player keeps track on his own of his yards gained during a game, McKeever pointed out, because a statistician is watching and recording. When the game ends, the stats will be posted for all to see.

“You are not the judge of your own work,” McKeever tells pastors. “You must assume if you have been faithful, you have been a success. That alone is the criteria.”

ROBBY GALLATY: THEY WILL BE ‘ENOUGH’

If there is a “scorecard” for success in ministry, it might be Matthew 28:19-20 and the command to “make disciples,” said Robby Gallaty, pastor of Long Hollow Church, Hendersonville, Tennessee.

Making disciples, though, is not about numbers, Gallaty explained.

“At the end of your ministry, God’s not going to gauge your effectiveness by how large your congregation was, how big the buildings you built were, how far the reach of your ministry. Those are things God does,” Gallaty said. “What He will gauge the success of your ministry by is your faithfulness to Him.”

Gallaty recalled a Scottish pastor from years ago speaking to a class of graduating seminary students. The pastor recognized that the students seated before him dreamed of preaching to many and pastoring growing churches, Gallaty explained.

“‘And that’s a worthy prayer,’” Gallaty recounted as the Scottish pastor’s words. “‘But most of you are going to pastor smaller churches. God is going to expect you to be faithful with the few you have. And when you stand before Christ on the day of judgment you will realize that the people you had were enough.’”

A growing church is something only God can produce, Gallaty said, and for the pastor who has been faithful to make disciples, regardless of how many, “They will be enough.”

HOW DID YOU KNOW YOU WERE CALLED? Top comments

PASTOR DAVID LEMA SR.

Pastor David Lema Sr. had escaped Communist Cuba after being imprisoned as a young man for his Christian faith, but he could not escape God’s call to be a pastor.

Lema’s long journey took him from Cuba, through Madrid, Spain, and finally to New Orleans where he was asked to begin a new work among a growing Hispanic community. The dilemma came when the Bible study class Lema led began calling him “pastor” and looking to him for spiritual needs. But Lema never wanted to be a pastor. His wife Esther –now married 62 years—never wanted to be a pastor’s wife.

Lema knew he had to go to the Lord. He told Esther he was going into his office at the couple’s apartment to pray, read his Bible, and fast from food and water, but would not come out until he had heard from the Lord.

Four nights and three days later, Lema emerged and announced to his wife, “You are married to a pastor.”

But while Lema was sequestered inside the office, something else happened. Lema agreed he would be a pastor—if that’s what God wanted—but he asked God to give him a big church. Weeks later, after more soul-searching and prayer, Lema came to a different conclusion.

“Who am I to say to the Lord, ‘I’ll be a pastor but You need to do this,’” Lema explained. “He’s the Lord. I am nothing. I went to pray again. [This time] I said, ‘Lord, I will be a pastor. If you want it to be a small church, okay. That thing I said, erase it. You are the Lord.’”

Lema’s Bible study class became Iglesia Bautista Emmanuel, the first Hispanic church in the area, which Lema served as pastor for 39 years. Today, several Hispanic churches thrive in the New Orleans area that are beneficiaries of Lema’s wisdom, encouragement, and prayerful support.

#pastorofNewOrleans’FirstHispanicAmericanBaptistChurch

#servanttotheNewOrleansHispaniccommunityfor50 years

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FRED LUTER JR.

Fred Luter Jr. didn’t consider himself a pastor when he preached out on the street corners of New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward each Saturday in 1978. His goal was simpler than that.

“I got radically saved,” Luter said. “I wanted all the guys I ran the streets with to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.”

Five years later, Luter sensed God calling him to ministry but wasn’t sure what “being called” meant. He turned to three pastors he admired and respected for guidance, though each answered differently. After talking it over with his wife Elizabeth, he fasted and prayed, asking God to confirm his calling, saying, “God, I don’t want to play with this thing. Ministry is too serious to just play with it.”

God did confirm it, through a dream. While Luter was content with teaching in Sunday School and preaching opportunities as they came up, God had other plans. Three years later, he was elected pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church (65 members at the time). This year Luter marked 36 years as its pastor.

#pastoratFranklinAvenueBaptistChurch

As Dr. Paul Chitwood, President of the International Mission Board, says, “The greatest problem in the world is summed up with one word: lostness.” While our seminary mission begins @3939, it does not stay there. Our mission extends to local churches, to parachurch organizations, church plants, international mission fields, unreached people groups, and others. Our mission’s target: people. Our motivation: Christ and His kingdom. Our scope: Beyond the Gates.