ENDS NEWS & TR
I N I S T RY GOSPEL M
Rite of passage: God’s favorite number & & S S N T O R I SPO MISS Moore Y M I N I S T RWalker
President Emeritus of Awe Star Ministries Email | walker@awestar.org @WalkerDeanMoore
B O X He invented them; O OforLnumbers. T H God has a fondness C R U H C there was a time when numbers didn’t exist.
I can’t tell you exactly what life was like before numbers were invented, but I imagine it was confusing when the hostesses asked, “How many are in your party?” and all you could do was shrug your shoulders and say, “This many,” as you pointed to the people whoFwere going S to sit at your table. IED S Icreated LAS CWhen God numbers (and He is continuing to create them because only God knows where infinity ends), He became partial to certain ones. He likes the number 40. I am not sure why, but He uses it a lot. Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, and Noah spent 40 days and nights on a boat. God also likes the number 10. He gave the Ten Commandments, C EHeSpromised not to destroy Sodom V O Iand and Gomorrah if 10 righteous people could be found. The number three is in second place as God’s favorite. Jesus arose from the grave on the third day. He manifested himself as three persons in what we call the Trinity. But His favorite number of all is seven. He created the heavens and earth and rested on the seventh day. The Israelites walked around the wall seven times before they blew their horns. After Jesus fed the multitude, the disciples collected seven baskets of leftovers. There are seven holes in your head and
seven layers of skin on your body. The T has M E Nrainbow TAhasI N seven colors, scale seven notes. And don’t T Ea R Nand E forget the seven deadly sins. The number seven is used 735 times in the Scriptures. And seven determines the winner. Don’t believe me? How many potential games P L Efor & are there in a playoff P E Oseries the NHL, MLB and NBA?H If you NEWS C R U H C said seven, you are right! If God had to pick his favorite number out of infinity, my guess is He would pick the number seven. I like the number seven also. If it’s God’s favorite number, I am going to go with Him. But there isUanothC LT U R E S& EW er reasonN I like seven: It is 7-year-old Titus the Honorable’s soccer jersey number. I don’t know if soccer was even a game when I was growing up. Our school didn’t have a team, and neither did the school in the next county. But now that two of my grandsons play the sport, I love soccer. Dear Titus the Honorable, I know you are 7 years old, and you wear the number seven on your soccer jersey, but I wanted to introduce you to another number seven, a seven that’s especially important. One day the disciple they called Peter asked Jesus a very serious question. “’Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times’” (Matt. 18:21-22). You see, Titus, the number seven has to do with forgiveness. When we mess up and hurt someone, we have to ask them to forgive us. It is hard to do; you must humble yourself and confess that what you did was wrong.
Then you need to ask the other person to forgive you. But there is something more difficult than asking for forgiveness: forgiving the person who wronged you. It takes a big person to forgive someone who has hurt you. In fact, you can’t do it on your own; you must ask Jesus to help you forgive. I know what I am talking about. I have asked people to forgive me, and they keep bringing up what God has already forgiven to cause me pain. To forgive means to restore the relationship you had with the person before they sinned and not bring up the sin again, just as God has done for us. Peter was asking Jesus, “If my brother hurts me again, do I forgive him the second, third or even the seventh time?” Jesus told him that he needed to forgive those who hurt him 77 times (some translations say 70 times seven). If you notice in that passage, Jesus used the word “seven” three times. In the Bible, seven is the perfect number, and true forgiveness is perfect forgiveness. We need people who will demonstrate Jesus’ type of forgiveness to others. Titus, since you are 7 years old, you wear that number in your body, and you wear it on your soccer jersey. I pray you will carry the sevens in your heart: the spirit of true forgiveness. If you do, you will be Exhibit A to show people the forgiveness Jesus offers the world. God loves the number seven, and I love the young man who wears it. Love, Poppy
‘BSU saved my life’ Cris Lowery Oklahoma Baptists’ State Baptist Collegiate Ministries Director
“BSU (Baptist Student Union) saved my life.” The first time I heard that phrase was in an administrative council meeting where I was serving as the interim pastor. Jim Bellah was the chairman of the council, and I was talking about the fact that I had taken on a new responsibility as the state Baptist Collegiate Ministries (BCM) director and would need to be traveling to visit campuses. Without a thought, he responded with, “BSU saved my life!” He went on to talk about how being part of that campus ministry helped give him needed direction and encouragement during a critical decision-making period in his life. Since that time I have heard versions of that story over and over. Another one I’ve heard is, “That’s where I met my husband or wife!” I began to wonder if BSU/BCM was the early version of a Christian dating service until I listened more closely to what was being said. The stories generally had a common theme of a love for God and direction in life that was shared by the other person. Sometimes, it was their love and devotion to following Christ. Other times, it was centered on a call to ministry or heart for missions. Without exception, it was mentioned that it didn’t hurt anything that the other person was rather attractive. Other common comments are, “That’s where I learned how to walk closer with God; where I learned how to share the Gospel; where I learned I could be on mission every day of my life or where I met some of the best friends I’ve ever had.” But of all the stories I’ve heard about the positive impact of the campus ministry Baptists have invested in all these years, the one that excites me most is when I hear someone say, “That’s where I met Jesus! And my life has never been the same since that day.”
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It’s a common theme in BCMs around the state. You don’t have to look very long or far before you run into someone who met Jesus as a result of college ministry. Sharing the story of how Jesus can change lives was woven into the DNA of BSU/BCM in its inception and continues to be the vision of every BCM leader. It’s important enough that every campus has a strategic and intentional evangelism plan. And it’s working! It might be tempting to think that the fall semester of 2020 would see fewer students come to know Christ, but we’re learning that isn’t true. It has been said that it’s amazing to see what God will do when there’s no question about Him getting the credit. That’s what we’re seeing on campuses across Oklahoma. Change of strategy often comes as a result of unexpected challenges. The new strategies for this semester have definitely come as a result of new challenges, but the vision of seeing students come to Christ has remained the same. Rather than focusing on lost opportunities, BCM leaders have looked for new opportunities created by the ongoing pandemic. In a time where isolation is being encouraged, the number of Gospel conversations BCM leaders and students are having on campus is on the rise. As a result, students are praying to receive Christ and starting their spiritual journeys as new Christians. On the University of Oklahoma campus, 23 students prayed to receive Christ in the first few weeks of school as a result of seizing a unique opportunity. This type of story has been repeated across the state, as BCM leaders have identified new opportunities and taken advantage of them. At the back-to-school Momentum conference in Sep-
October 22, 2020 | The Baptist Messenger | www.baptistmessenger.com | Gospel Ministry
tember, church and campus-based ministries came together to challenge students to live on mission as they began their fall semester. As a result of the challenge, students were saved, some expressed a call to full-time vocational ministry and others pledged to live their life on the mission field. From campus to campus across Oklahoma, this story is being repeated as the Spirit of God moves in ways that can only be credited to His power and direction. I have the ongoing privilege of seeing BCM leaders facilitating opportunities for students to come to Christ and future pastors, staff members, church leaders, bi-vocational leaders, godly mothers and fathers grow in their walk with Christ at a time when critical life decisions are being made. Oklahoma Baptists everywhere can be proud of the investment being made in the lives of students, administrators, staff and faculty on college and university campuses around our state. In every way, we are still “Saving Lives!”
