November 1, 2023 Illinois Baptist

Illinois Baptist

Incognito

Your next pastor?

Artificial intelligence & the pulpit P. 9

missions

NATIONAL NEWS

2nd Southern Baptist Elected U. S. House Speaker P. 5 GOSPEL JOURNEY

40 new believers Reported in migrant ministry’s second year P. 11

SPECIAL SECTION

Building and giving Cooperative Program report Inside

Why more missionaries must work under cover P. 7 PLUS: ‘Warme William’ offers cold comfort, Lottie Moon stories. P. 6

IllinoisBaptist.org

News journal of the Illinois Baptist State Association

NOVEMBER 01, 2023 Nonprofit Organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID Springfield, Illinois Permit No. 964

Vol. 117 No. 11

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Marion gathering nears

Annual agenda includes church health, messengers’ vote on Israel resolution Springfield | When messengers to the 2023 IBSA Annual Meeting gather in Marion November 8-9, they will be asked to vote on a resolution calling for prayer to end the conflict in Israel. The Committee on Resolutions and Christian Life will bring the motion along with three others, at a convention that focuses broadly on church health, the wellbeing of pastors, and missions.

“Illinois Baptists are urged to honor, support, and uphold in prayer the work of Christians in Israel and the Middle East,” the resolution says, “both Messianic Jews and Palestinian believers, to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with their unbelieving relatives, neighbors on all sides of the conflict…”

The document traces God’s covenant relationship with Israel and the admoniADAMS tion for his people to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Other Southern Baptist entities and their leaders made statements quickly about the deadly conflict after Hamas terrorists attacked Israelis. One news analyst said that Southern Baptists, with the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission in the lead, were heading the evangelical P. 4

Thanks for freezer meals, Bluey, and courage P. 12

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Illinois Baptist

The Illinois Baptist staff

NATE ADAMS

Editor - Eric Reed Graphic Designer - Kris Kell Contributing Editor - Lisa Misner Comm. Coordinator - Nic Cook Graphics Assistant - Makayla Proctor Team Leader - Ben Jones

The general telephone number for IBSA is (217) 786-2600. For questions about subscriptions, articles, or upcoming events, contact the Illinois Baptist at (217) 391-3127 or IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

The Illinois Baptist is seeking news from IBSA churches. E-mail us at IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org to tell us about special events and new ministry staff.

POSTMASTER: The Illinois Baptist is owned and published every month by the Illinois Baptist State Association, 3085 Stevenson Drive, Springfield, Illinois 62703-4440. Subscriptions are free to Illinois Baptists. Subscribe online at IBSA.org.

The BIG Baptist family album Our Illinois mission field: Campuses David Park and his wife, Catarina, are planting Voyage College Church in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood.

They hope to reach students at U of C and IIT. David is a California native with degrees from UC Berkley and Talbot School of Theology. “The college campuses are full of young people who are looking for their life purpose,” he said. “Pray for a productive harvest.

Pray for Christians on the campus to take their call seriously and to boldly proclaim the gospel.”

Pray the news: The Church in Israel The Church is alive in Israel, among both Messianic Jews and Palestinian Christians. About 2% of Israelis identify as Christian. Pray for believers to serve as peacemakers, bringing the true peace of Jesus Christ to the region. Pray for a spread of the Gospel in the homeland of our faith.

Cooperative Program at work

Sending missionaries was slowed during the Covid pandemic, but the work has fully resumed, IMB reports. For example, while riding a boat up a tributary of the Amazon River Basin, an IMB missionary talks with a village leader of the Shuar people about his culture. A volunteer team from the U.S. joins the trip. —IMB photo

Total giving by IBSA churches as of 9/30/23

$3,915,622

2023 Budget Goal to date: $4,291,268

2023 Goal: $6 Million

Don’t come alone!

I

hope many hundreds of Illinois Baptists are planning to load up the car or church van and drive over to Marion for the IBSA Annual Meeting next month. If that describes you, or you’re at least considering the possibility, let me urge you to do something that could make the trip especially worthwhile: Don’t come alone!

Take an imaginary look over your shoulder into the back seat of your vehicle, and imagine bringing with you a brightly colored bucket, labeled “Buckets of Blessing.” These have been distributed this fall at Associational Annual Meetings or can be acquired from our IBSA staff.

Your bucket might be yellow, red, orange, green, blue, or even purple, because this year each of those bucket colors represents a different Baptist ministry in Illinois, including four ministries of the Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services, and also the Christian Activity Center in East St. Louis and an Immigrant Care Package ministry to migrants in Chicago.

Each of these ministries has ongoing, year-round needs for practical, everyday items that any of us could purchase at the grocery or discount store this week. Soap, paper products, toiletries, socks, first aid supplies are just a few of the items these important ministries use all the time. Customized lists for each one can be found at IBSA.org/buckets-of-blessing.

Of course, donations don’t need to arrive in a colorful bucket. A box or a bag is fine! But this is a wonderful way to turn a meeting into a mission project, and I hope that together Illinois Baptists will fill another truckload of blessings for these important ministries.

By the way, when you looked over your imaginary shoulder, was there still some room in your back seat? Why not invite someone else from your church or association to drive over with you?

In addition to the worship, ministry updates, and business sessions of the Annual Meeting, there will be at least ten specialized ministry gatherings, for young leaders, church planters, disaster relief volunteers, worship leaders, and more. A full list can be found at IBSAAnnualMeeting.org. The exhibit area alone is a great opportunity for networking and missions cooperation.

Especially if you have a key leader or two from your church, or a new member who doesn’t know much about Baptist life beyond your church, or a young leader you’re seeking to develop or encourage, what a great opportunity to invest in them! Maybe your spouse will be in the front seat with you, or maybe not. But who could be in the back seat?

“Don’t come alone” is a great challenge for us to consider, and not just for the IBSA Annual Meeting. Imagine looking over your shoulder once more, this time into the backseat of your car as you leave for church. Maybe it’s on a Sunday morning, or maybe it’s for a fall festival, or a children’s program, or some other event at your church.

What if we were each investing in caring relationships with our neighbors and coworkers and friends, so that we could quickly recognize the best opportunities to invite them to come to church with us?

Friends in our church plant years ago had a 3rd grade daughter who was an inviting machine. Her parents’ agreement with her was that they would offer to drive to church any friends she invited, and also invite the parents.

Can you imagine what might happen if just five families in your church did that?

Whenever we’re going somewhere to worship or to serve the Lord, let’s remember to look in the backseat, and to ask ourselves what it would take to not come alone.

Do you have room in the back seat?

Nate Adams is executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association.

Respond at IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

November 01, 2023

IBSA.org

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NEWS Missions pioneer remembered

IBSA Annual Meeting

Former IBSA staffer Jack Shelby dies at 87 Carbondale | Jack Shelby opened a lot of doors. Long before he joined the staff of the Illinois Baptist State Association in 1999, Shelby was making inroads for the gospel in Europe and Asia with Southern Baptists’ Foreign Mission Board (now the International Mission Board), and creating paths for the multiple hundreds of missionaries who would follow.

As an SBC missionary beginning in 1969, Shelby served at Hong Kong Baptist University and Baptist Theological Seminary in Penang, Malaysia. He led the Malaysia-Singapore Baptist Convention for two years.

In India, he was National Indian Ministries director for three years.

Shelby’s penchant for languages served him well as he and his wife, Avah, moved to Wiesbaden, Germany and then to Moscow, Russia after the fall of the Iron Curtain.

Shelby became volunteer coordinator of Europe Area where he oversaw the planning work throughout the former Soviet Republics and Central Asia.

IBSA Missions Director Shannon Ford, a former missionary to Ukraine, said his call to the missions was made possible by Shelby’s pioneering efforts. “Jack laid the groundwork for everything IMB missionaries are doing in Eastern Europe today. I was at the SBC in Houston, Texas in 1993 when I felt the call to missions to the former Soviet Union. Jack’s push to get missionaries and volunteers to that area of the globe captivated my heart and many others.”

In a tribute to his late father-in-law, Carbondale pastor Phil Nelson wrote he saw the “love for the nations and a love for the gospel” in the hearts of his future in-laws when he met them. “I am grateful to God for

Headed to Marion

AVAH AND JACK, 2014 the years I have had to witness the testimony of two faithful followers of Christ.”

Shelby was a native of Harrisburg and grew up in Southern Illinois. He held degrees from the Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and Golden Gate Seminary (now Gateway). In Illinois he pastored churches in Enfield (1957-59) and Harrisburg (1960-62), and three churches in California before leaving for the mission field in 1969.

Returning home, Shelby served as IBSA director of Missions and Men’s Ministries from 1999-2005. In 2006, he was named associate executive director and team leader for Missions Mobilization. He retired later that year but served the network on contract in various capacities through the 2010s including as Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief (IBDR) State Director.

In 2014, Shelby was awarded with the Robert E. Dixon Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in Southern Baptist Disaster Relief having dedicated 13 years to the ministry (pictured above). Shelby is survived by wife Avah, daughter Melanie (Phil), sons Mark and Scott, and several grandchil

dren and great grandchildren.

Nelson, the

pastor of Lakeland

Baptist Church,

wrote, “I am a

better man and

pastor because of

your influence.”

Many people

would say the same.

— IB staff

The IBSA Annual Meeting will be held at Cornerstone Church in Marion November 8-9. It will be preceded by the IBSA Pastors Conference, starting at 1 p.m. on November 7.

Church health is the theme of the Thrive’23 meeting. IBSA Executive Director Nate Adams will also speak on the new “FOR the Pastor” emphasis, which draws together existing IBSA ministries with new cohorts and retreats for pastors.

In announcing the yearlong focus, Adams and the IBSA Health Team have pointed to statistics which show that only 23% of pastors report being happy and content in their identity in Christ, in their church, and in their home, while 50% would leave ministry if they had another way of making a living.

Nine-in-ten pastors say they feel fatigued or worn out on a weekly or daily basis.

“Before a pastor decides it would be easier to move on to a new ministry or chooses to leave ministry altogether, we need to address these realities,” Adams said, as the team corralled IBSA resources for a new outreach.

“We are surveying pastors and gathering them in listening groups to help our network better know and understand their current challenges and needs,” Adams said. “We will add pastoral care elements to our training and gathering times. And we will develop closer comradery among pastors who share similar challenges and concerns.”

The Pastors Conference preceding the Annual Meeting will offer a series of sermons from Romans 8 on “Life in the Spirit.” The purpose is, similarly, refreshing pastors who have endured a tough season in ministry.

IBSA President Michael Nave will bring a message, and the worship team from his church, Cornerstone, will lead praise. In addition to affinity group gatherings and an exhibit hall in the large lobby area, the event will offer community times in the Baptist tradition of the ‘eatin’ meetin,’ with four dessert fellowships on Wednesday night.

Churches may be represented by up to 15 messengers, but their participation must be approved by the church and messengers must be registered.

For more information on the gathering, visit IBSA.org/IBSAannualmeeting.

HONG KONG, 1971

The Ticker Follow the latest Illinois Baptist news

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4 IBSA.org From the front: Resolution Continued from page 1 response. The International Mission Board and the SBC Executive Committee both posted prayer guides.

While supporting the calls for prayer, IBSA Executive Director Nate Adams preferred to give Illinois Baptists themselves opportunity for response through a broader, more official mechanism.

WORSHILL “I try to exercise restraint in making personal statements or even signing others’ statements, especially on political or even legislative matters,” Adams said. “I feel most confident speaking for Illinois Baptists when messengers to our Annual Meeting first speak through a carefully considered resolution.”

Adams has used this approach when responding to pending legislation or pro-life issues, drawing on previous resolutions by messengers at the state and national convention levels.

The Committee on Resolutions met online and chose to bring the resolution to the messengers so it carries the weight of some 900 IBSA churches.

The statement concludes, “Be it resolved that Illinois Baptists, through their State Association, join together with the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention in urging national lawmakers and policy makers to sustain support for modern day Israel, even as the Church upholds spiritual Israel before God Almighty.”

In the meantime, Illinois Baptists have responded to calls for prayer, including Ric Worshill, the executive director of the Southern Baptist Messianic Fellowship. “It’s just heartbreaking because this year has been the highest in anti-Semitism throughout the world since the Holocaust, and it’s really sad that they would pick the last day of a Jewish holiday to do all this barbaric stuff.”

Worshill, who lives in metro Chicago, called for unity among Southern Baptists. “We need to be one,” he told Baptist Press. “We need to be one about everything. We need to be one about the Lord. We need to be one about politics. And we need to be one about being against the attacks of Satan in prayer. That’s the biggest thing I can say. There should be no division in the body of Christ.

We, Southern Baptists, need to stick together.”

Illinois Baptist

Bombed Gaza hospital formerly ‘Baptist’ Southern Baptists have long history in the region Gaza, Israel | The Gaza City hospital that suffered a deadly blast Oct. 17 in the Israeli-Hamas war is formerly Southern Baptist, an International Mission Board (IMB) spokesperson confirmed to Baptist Press.

Early Palestinian reports claimed Israeli Defense Forces were responsible for the blast causing 500 deaths. However, western intelligence sources reported the blast was caused by an errant missile shot from within Gaza by Islamic Jihad Militants. The French newspaper Le Monde has only been able to find evidence of 10-50 deaths at the site of the hospital.

Southern Baptists operated Al Ahli Arab Hospital from 1954 until 1981—when it was known as Baptist Hospital—before turning the facility over to Anglicans. It’s one of 22 hospitals in northern Gaza.

Southern Baptists continued to work at the facility at least through 2007, according to news reports, but IMB cited security concerns in opting not to verify whether IMB workers are still deployed to the facility.

“Due to security considerations for our personnel and the national

believers with whom we work, we usually don’t discuss their locations,” an IMB spokesperson told Baptist Press.

“However, we want to assure you that with any event in international news that could affect someone’s security, leadership is in contact with anyone who might be affected— even due to travel or other reasons— to confirm their safety and security.

This is one of those situations.”

The hospital founded in 1882 continues to be referenced as Al Ahli Baptist Hospital in some news reports and is widely known in the region as the Baptist Hospital.

As recently as November 1994, Baptist Press reported that a Southern Baptist surgeon and his wife both worked at the hospital as missionaries from the U.S., and the couple are believed to have served in the area until 2007.

And, as recently as 1992, about 10 Southern Baptists workers were stationed in Gaza, according to Baptist Press archives.

Since 1922 the Palestinian Christian population has dwindled from 70,000 to about 1,000. In the last week of October, as Israeli troops massed at the border ahead of an ground invasion, more than 5,000 Palestinians had died in Gaza according to the United Nations, while AP reports 1,400 Israelis died in Hamas attacks, “with no ceasefire in sight.”

— IB staff with Baptist Press, Le Monde, Christianity Today

WARTORN — Christians worldwide pray for peace in the Middle East, devastated

by Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel and military response, such as this one on a Palestinian Christian’s apartment home in Gaza.

BETTER TIMES — War in Israel prompted fond remembrances from many Illinois Baptists who toured the region. IBSA’s Pat Pajak led more than 600 Illinoisans on tours, including this group of pastors visiting Jerusalem in 2017.

November 01, 2023

IBSA.org

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New Speaker of the House is Southern Baptist Louisiana Representative Mike Johnson was also ERLC trustee Washington, D.C. | The new Speaker of the House of Representatives has a long history with Southern Baptists.

The U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson from Louisiana is a member of Cypress Baptist Church in metro Shreveport.

He served as a trustee for the SBC’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission for eight years, 2004-2012.

“He deserves and needs our prayers, as do all leaders, for the challenging days ahead,” ERLC President Brent Leatherwood tweeted at the time of Johnson’s election.

Johnson, 51, is the second consecutive Southern Baptist to helm the House. Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield, California was also a member of a Southern Baptist church. He served 10 months in Republicans’ highest post, and was third in line for the presidency behind Vice President Kamala Harris, before his ouster on Oct. 3.

“I’m thankful that the Speaker takes his ERLC experience to the Capitol in this new way,” said IBSA Church Health Director Scott Foshie, who is also an ERLC trustee. “The ERLC’s advocacy work and its clearly articulated positions will help him as he shapes an agenda that reflects a biblical world view. Illinois Baptists should unite in prayer for Speaker Johnson as he represents Baptists in the public square.”

“He deserves our earnest prayers, along with all of our political leaders,” Leatherwood posted, “as many significant decisions lie ahead about Amer-

ica’s future and its role in the consequential events occurring across the globe. Clear-eyed leadership, based in reality, that works to build consensus around these issues is needed now as much as ever from the Speaker’s chair.”

Leatherwood met with Johnson after his election as ERLC President. It was Leatherwood’s first appointment on Capitol Hill. “It was clear to me he carries an abiding devotion to our convention of churches, subscribes to our principles that are dear to so many Southern Baptists, and has a deep pride in our nation,” Leatherwood said.

“My faith is very real to me,” Johnson told the Louisiana Baptist Message when he first ran for Congress in 2016, “and God is ever present in my life. I’m a committed Christian and my faith informs everything I do.

“My values follow the model of our Founding Fathers, I believe, and I think this is important” he said. “We were established as one nation under God. We are perilously close to forgetting that principle now—and we desperately need to return to this fundamental understanding.”

Johnson repeated some of these commitments from the House dais in a speech moments before he was sworn in.

Prior to his tenure in Washington, Johnson was a practicing attorney. He successfully defended a 2004 bill to

protect marriage before the Louisiana Supreme Court. As the LBM reported, Johnson was a pro-life champion in his state. Johnson and his wife, Kelly, were married in 1999 and have four children. The couple launched a podcast in 2022 called “Truth Be Told” that addresses issues of religious liberty, politics, and faith. The most recent episode was posted Oct. 8.

Johnson was the fourth nominee put forward by Republicans in the House, and the only one who could muster enough support to meet the 217-vote minimum. Johnson was the number five ranking Republican, and leader of the party conference. As USA Today reported, “The Louisiana Republican now has a monumental task ahead of him: mending the deep divisions that have plagued the House Republican

Former DOM indicted in abuse case

Colfax, La. | Former Director of Missions Daryl Stagg was indicted in Louisiana on sexual abuse charges, a local district attorney announced October 16. Stagg was serving as Associational Mission Strategist for the Big Creek and CenLa Baptist Associations (Grant and Rapides Parishes, respectively), a position he held since 2018.

Before that he was employed by Harmony Baptist Association in Sedalia, M0. from 2012-2018, and before that he served as Director of Missions for Lake County Baptist Association in Illinois from 2005-2012.

Stagg, 61, was indicted on four counts of first-degree rape, five counts of sexual battery, and one count of indecent behavior with a juvenile in Louisiana. He was arrested June 8, and initially charged with 12 felony counts in two parishes (counties), and bond was set at $1.45 million. Four more charges were added later.

At a news conference in June, investigators said that an additional investigation had been opened in Kenosha, Wisconsin, which is just across the Illinois state line from Lake County.

Leaders of Lake County Association were notified immediately after the Illinois Baptist State Association was alerted to the

arrest. No additional information about the Kenosha probe has been released.

“An arraignment date will be set, and a trial date will be set at the arraignment,” Grant Parish District Attorney Jay Lemoine said, noting that “Stagg remains in jail at this time.”

—IB staff, with Louisiana Baptist Message

Biggerstaff sentenced

Mt. Vernon | A former pastor was sentenced to three years in prison on one charge of child grooming in Jefferson County Circuit Court Oct. 19. Garrett Biggerstaff entered a guilty plea on the count Sept. 11. A second count was dropped. Biggerstaff was arrested on the abuse charges in January. He worked as athletic director for Spring Garden Consolidated Community School District. He was also pastor of Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Fairfield, but the church terminated Biggerstaff shortly after his arrest.

A minor first reported claims of grooming behavior, leading to an investigation by Benton Police and an arrest in Sept. 2022. In addition to the jail time, Biggerstaff was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and restitution to the victim to cover counseling services.

— with information from Judici.com and WMIX

conference since it took control of the House in January.”

Johnson will also have to navigate funding the government as a Nov. 17 deadline nears. He told the Washington Post he has a plan. Also at issue, the funding support for Israel in its war against Hamas terrorists. Johnson promised to bring a bill supporting Israel within minutes of his election.

Funding for Ukraine is also pending, but that is less popular among his fellow Republicans. He also promised to bring action to fix “the broken border” along with a string of other issues including economic decline, whose consequences he called unbearable.

“We will defend our core principles to the end,” Johnson said.

—IB Staff

SWBTS: Greenway may sue Ft. Worth | Former President Adam Greenway has threatened Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) with a $5 million lawsuit, saying their reporting of his mishandling of millions in seminary funds is exaggerated and humiliating. The SWBTS Board of Trustees expressed disappointment with the Sept. 25 letter, saying they had reached an agreement with Greenway in February.

“As stewards of precious institutional resources, we cannot in good conscience capitulate to his absurd demand for $5 million,” chair Jonathan Richard said in a statement. “Our focus remains on confronting the financial challenges facing Southwestern, which would only be compounded by agreeing to his demand.”

Greenway served three years, the shortest presidency in SWBTS history. He was dismissed in September 2022 after the allegations were made public.

Expenditures were “grossly inflated and false,” Greenway’s attorney said. That included reports of an espresso machine valued at more than $11,000, which became the subject of online jokes and at least one jocular reference from the platform at the 2022 SBC Annual Meeting. The actual cost of the machine, the lawyer said, is $5,952.67.

— with reporting by Baptist Press

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Illinois Baptist

Bear one another’s burdens

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering & Week of Prayer

Missionaries in Belgium offer a real listening ear

For International Missions December 3-10, 2023

L

ostness around the world is growing every day. In fact, 59% of the world’s population remains unreached. This means there are less than 2% evangelical Christians within their people group or nearby. Unless something changes, they have little to no chance of hearing the gospel in their lifetime.

Your missionaries are a steadfast presence among the lost. You pray, give, go and send. Together we are committed to reaching the lost. In obedience, we will follow the Lord’s command to go into all the world.

Many of the unreached people groups live in hard-to-reach places, like remote areas around the world. But did you know that Europeans are now considered unreached? Europe has 800 million people, and only 1% are evangelical Christians. Though the continent has a historical presence of churches, many have turned away from faith of any kind. Europe’s top five unreached peoples—Russians, British, French, Italian, and German—make up 55% of the European population.

Consider this picture of lostness from Belgium.

A big blue bear sits on a park bench, arm extended to the side as if inviting people to come and talk. Writing on the bench does just that, invites passersby to sit and talk because “Warme William listens.”

While people sit and talk to the inanimate bear, International Mission Board missionaries Don and Pam Lynch park a bicycle cart, start a generator, and turn on an espresso machine.

The missionaries are also ready to listen.

Through offering a cup of coffee, the Lynches and team members have a chance to connect with people, start conversations, and open doors to the gospel. When people share their struggles, the missionaries can actually hear, build relationships and, most importantly, introduce a loving Savior.

The bear can’t do anything.

A government initiative in one region of Belgium led to the creation of Warme William to address rising numbers of depression and suicide among teenagers and young adults. Without

BARELY THERE — The big blue bear Warme William is touted as a good listener for people considering suicide. But our IMB missionaries in Belgium offer espresso and a real listening ear to those who show up there. — IMB Photo belief in a personal Lord, people resort to talking to the bear.

“When 99.5% don’t know the Lord, then they have no hope for the future and there’s no consequences for anything,” Don said. “If you have no hope for the future, you don’t have anything to look forward to. Life is either a great adventure or a slow death.”

In addition to a regular coffee cart ministry, the Lynches hosted volunteer teams this summer during Belgium’s Ghent Festival, one of Europe’s most popular cultural events. Volunteers engaged with visitors of the festival and offered a listening ear and a prayer to a God who listens.

Don and Pam request prayer that God will provide more opportunities to have deep gospel conversations with people and long-term friendships. And pray that God will lead more workers to seek the lost around the world and respond with the gospel solution.

— Richard Hunt, IMB

COFFEE TALK — Residents of the city of Ghent, Belgium, line up for free coffee. IMB missionaries Don and Pam Lynch set up shop in parks to offer coffee and conversations. — IMB Photo

The story of Don and Pam Lynch and their ministry is one of eight stories and videos available for mission studies and promotion of the annual offering. Learn more and download resources at IMB.org.

This year’s Week of Prayer will be observed Dec. 3-10. In this season, Southern Baptists are encouraged to consider the power of “Impacting Lostness Together.” The goal for the 2023-2024 offering is $200 million.

Last year’s offering totaled $194,314,716 (as of Sept. 28), surpassing the $190 million goal for the 2022-2023 Lottie season.

Goals like these are only reached through cooperation of Southern Baptists by prayer and faithful giving. While the offering is named after the Christmas season, people can give throughout the year.

During this year’s SBC annual meeting, IMB President Paul Chitwood emphasized the importance of working together. “Your IMB missionaries are addressing the world’s greatest problem with the only solution, God’s solution— the gospel. But they need your prayers, your support, your continued generosity and more workers in the harvest,” he said.

“This can only happen if we work together to raise up more missionaries and champion the Lottie Moon offering and the Cooperative Program,” Chitwood said.

3,521missionaries engaged 67new people groups and places and saw 178,177people come to Christ last year

This year’s Week of Prayer and Lottie Moon Christmas Offering downloadable resources are available now on the IMB’s website. The site includes stories, full-color photos, videos, the Global Impact Guide, social media graphics, presentation graphics, kids’ resources, goal posters, and a bulletin insert.

New this year, churches can get a more personalized experience. It is now more convenient for a church to collect online gifts for the Lottie Moon offering. Each Southern Baptist church can receive a personalized link on IMB’s website with the church’s name and giving goal.

The Lottie Moon Christmas Offering is a registered trademark of Woman’s Missionary Union.

November 01, 2023

IBSA.org

MISSION

Behind the Curtain Two Illinois couples in central Asia are among thousands of missionaries who must serve under cover

BY BEN JONES

“R

eaders should be careful not to make assumptions when reading IMB’s annual statistical report nor to compare it year-to-year. For security reasons, the total number of personnel and close partners in each part of the world who provide data for this report is not publicly released.”

This disclaimer appears in the final pages of the International Mission Board’s Annual Statistical Report. It’s a reminder that included in the more than 3,500 IMB missionaries serving around the globe, there are many who cannot be named, whose stories cannot be shared, and whose very presence in a country cannot be acknowledged. They are undercover.

Josh and Madison* embraced that lifestyle from the beginning of their missionary service. “When we started talking to the (mission) board,” Josh said, “the consensus we got was that people with our kind of background, with a secular degree and work history, need to go to one of those parts of the world that, you know, the guys out of a

pulpit just can’t go.”

These missionaries, originally from Southern Illinois, are serving in a region of the world known as Central Asia.

This massive territory stretches from the Turkish shores of the Aegean Sea all the way to the northwestern tip of China. Its terrain is formidable, with vast deserts and endless mountains.

Josh described the spiritual climate in a way that can feel as imposing as the landscape. “There is this veil of Islam. And the darkness that it brings runs really thick.”

After serving in this region for nearly a decade, they have learned that reaching people here can be as challenging as traversing the mountain ranges. Overcome one obstacle and there is another one standing behind it.

“They directly contest the deity of Christ, and even if we get past that, they directly contest the death of Christ,” he said. “It’s not the things that they don’t know or don’t believe. It’s that they specifically believe the opposite and are taught in the opposite direction.”

P. 8

Secret service Christians are in jeopardy all over the world, including many countries we might not expect. So are the missionaries who serve there. The numbers of brave people who are sent with assumed names and job titles are growing, for the sake of the gospel.

7

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Continued from page 8 Yet despite the challenges, Josh and Madison have found that the culture also presents many opportunities to build relationships and share about Christ. In a land where relationship and hospitality are highly valued, being the American family leads to many open doors into neighbors’ homes.

The couple has learned that many in their country desire to host the Americans out of a sense of cultural honor, but Josh said they are now praying God would redeem that desire for his purposes and their salvation. “We want to see them host us because they want to enjoy fellowship because they have the Spirit of God.” Slowly but surely, they are seeing that prayer come true. God is opening doors of hospitality and relationship that are leading to ongoing gospel conversations. After years on the field, the incognito missionaries saw their first salvations. And recently a man Josh has been discipling has engaged in more teaching and care with the young church.

“About 60% of our personnel currently serve in countries where they can’t get a missionary visa….

That’s higher than it’s ever been.”

— IMB President Paul Chitwood Technological (dis)advantages While undercover missionaries are nothing new, the increase in the number of IMB missionaries serving in these circumstances is. The growing number of individuals and couples standing “behind the curtain” has been noticeable to observers of the quarterly IMB Sending Celebrations. At the most recent Southern Baptist Convention in New Orleans, 71% of new missionaries being appointed could not be publicly identified due to security concerns in their future locations.

According to IMB President Paul Chitwood, “About 60% of our personnel currently serve in countries where they can’t get a missionary visa….

That’s higher than it’s ever been.”

There are several reasons for this. As IMB missionaries have engaged more unreached people groups, it has taken them to more locations with security risks. Central Asia is one of those places, with most of their people group engagements happening within the past 20 years.

Technological advances have also caused increased security challenges. Sophisticated technology is now leveraged by countries to remove

IMB PRAYER PROMPS FOR CENTRAL ASIA missionaries from their borders. Increases in facial recognition and tracking systems can make access to certain countries very challenging.

And in recent years, there has been an increase in global migration due to war, natural disasters, and other crises in places that have been historically difficult to reach with the gospel. As displaced people settle in new countries, this has created amazing opportunities for migrants to hear the gospel, many for the first time. But it also has created more need for security cautions for missionaries working with these migrants in other parts of the world, like Europe and the Americas.

Hard soil, hopeful signs Mark and Meredith* are also IMB missionaries from Illinois serving in Central Asia. They have been on the field for more than 20 years. Their region has particularly difficult soil, but the couple has remained steadfast. They trust that God is at work, even when they don’t see immediate fruit.

Serving in this secure location requires unending patience and discretion. Pushiness is off the table.

Extending and receiving hospitality and slowly building relationships are vital. Regular conversations over tea present opportunities to build trust slowly, and sometimes talk about faith.

Meredith adds that while the progress of evangelism is slow, the Spirit is at work in these conversations. Recently one of her friends has expressed a desire to begin studying the Bible with her.

PERSECUTION GROWS — Here are the top 50 countries in the world where Christians are persecuted, according to Open Doors US.

Meredith is hopeful that this will lead to a transformed life, but the strain of serving under the difficult conditions is also evident.

Mark shared that it is been essential that they ask themselves, “Has God changed our call?” The answer, “no,” brings clarity and a sense of peace. As well as a return to the missionary task.

While the spiritual and cultural conditions there currently result in more sowing than harvesting, other parts of Central Asia are experiencing significant spiritual growth. The upheaval from political unrest and natural disasters in other parts of the region is beginning to deliver migrants into their community.

Mark said the recent arrival of a newly converted migrant has been exciting and encouraging. In a part of the world where ethnicity is often synonymous with religion, the presence of a Christian who looks like the indigenous people and shares their language—who is not from the global west—may open hearts and minds.

Central Asia is home to 378 unreached people groups, with languages and cultures all their own.

Almost half are unengaged. According to joshuaproject.net, “70% of the largest Frontier People Groups (unreached and unengaged) in the world are in the top ten countries where Christians are most persecuted.”

Because of challenging conditions in places like these, an estimated 3% of mission work conducted from all Christians goes to the unreached. The IMB runs counter to this trend, with its historical commitment to go to difficult places and reach unreached people. IMB’s most recent data estimates over 80% of their missionary teams are focused on reaching unreached people groups. Their 3000 Project, launched at the 2023 SBC Annual Meeting, seeks to send 300 missionary explorers to some of the hardest to reach places on the globe to research and engage 3,072 of the last identified unengaged people groups on earth.

Back stateside for a brief season, Josh and Madison are quick to thank the churches for their support through CP and Lottie Moon giving, and to point them to the One responsible for the work.

“We get to tell pretty awesome stories about what’s going on, and I’m careful to make sure they know I’m not here to tell them about something that I did. I’m here to tell about something that God is doing and that by his grace, I have front row seats!” *Names changed for security purposes

November 01, 2023

IBSA.org

9

GROWING MEET THE TEAM

table talk

“I Lisa Misner

Social Media and Public Policy Manager Hometown: New London, Mo. Schooling: Bachelor’s in history and poli-sci from Culver-Stockton College, Master’s in communications from U of I at Springfield Enroute to IBSA: Driving to a job I didn’t like, I was praying about what God wanted me to do. As I passed the IBSA building, I heard this still, small voice say, “What about here?”

That was 1996 and I started out as the ministry assistant in Evangelism.

Verse: “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:31).

Favorite Bible person: Martha. Like the rest of us, she gets caught up in the busyness of life but Jesus, who is a dear family friend, teaches her to slow down and recognize the important things in life.

Hobby: Volunteer at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum Abe fave: A section at the Museum on the White House years depicts the personal and political attacks President Lincoln endured. Some things never change.

The coming of A.I. preaching Are artificial intelligence sermons actually sermons at all?

’m going to plagiarize a sermon, and you have to guess who wrote it,” Rabbi Joshua Franklin warned those at a synagogue in East Hampton, New York. After the two-minute talk, some guessed his father or a famous rabbi wrote it. When he revealed it was from ChatGPT, some applauded.

“You’re clapping, but I’m terrified,” he replied.

Discussions surrounding the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on society, including ministry, exploded recently with the release of ChatGPT (a chatbot that writes original content) in November. But artificial intelligence has been around for decades.

The first AI programs were written in 1951 to play chess and checkers. Currently, we interact with artificial intelligence on a regular basis, often through our phones. “No matter where you are, you are being shaped by technology. Even if you aren’t aware of it, you are interacting with AI,” says Jason Thacker, author of The Age of AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity.

The generative aspect of recent AI advances is what makes it unique. This new function has led pastors to turn to AI for more than research assistance. “ChatGPT can be good as a research aid,” Griffin Gulledge said, “(but) any type of ‘ghostwriting’ would be no more ethical than passing off another person’s sermons or commentary

as your own work.”

Using his normal means of research, the pastor of Madison (Ga.) Baptist Church, had trouble narrowing down the ways the twelve apostles died. So he and asked the AI application.

“By seeing the ChatGPT answers, I was able to return to my own resources, knowing what to specifically look for to verify its answer.”

Gulledge sees limited value in AI as a tool in sermon preparation, but said he would never use it to write his sermon or assume the generated answers are correct.

Samford University biblical and religious studies professor Tyshawn Gardner would agree.

Gardner has been preaching for almost three decades. He has seen technological changes that benefit him in sermon preparation. “Research via technology helps reduce the time it takes me to prepare my sermons and allows me access to a greater number of resources,” he said.

Still, Gardner argues, pastors must guard the sermon prep time.

Ice cream: Rocky Road Author: Dick Francis, a jockey for Queen Elizabeth turned mystery writer.

Favorite movie: Any James Bond film with Sean Connery Desert island disc: “Abbey Road” by The Beatles Superhero: Wonder Woman A quote you find yourself saying often: Winston Churchill told the British people during World War 2, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” In other words, never give up. God will see you through whatever happens.

“It is a time that we hear from the Spirit what the Lord wants to say to his church and the world. A message that does not begin with the Holy Presence is not a sermon at all,” he said. “Pastors should be mindful that any curtailing or undermining of the sacred task of preparation is a reproach upon the sacred task of proclamation.”

Thacker worries some pastors may be tempted to overly rely on technology, including generative AI, given the ever-growing demands of ministry. To do so, he said, misunderstands the purpose of a sermon. “This is not about the transfer of information,” Thacker said, “but whole person transformation, which can only come after a preacher has been wrestling with God’s Word and is shaped by it himself.”

The Gre(AI)t Commission Some may argue Christians should use whatever means possible to fulfill the Great Commission. But “we can’t approach technology, or any issue, from a strictly pragmatic perspective,” he said. “The Great Commission doesn’t say we’re supposed to spread information but to teach people to obey what Jesus has commanded us.

Teaching involves human connections.”

Gardner said God does not call us to fulfill his purposes apart from his means. “Even God is bound by parameters he has set by his word and actions with humanity,” Gardner said. “We don’t see God using or commanding us to use anything artificial, especially in proclamation. In his Word, the process of biblical preaching is clearly revealed.”

If lacking development by a human being created in the image of God working in concert with the Spirit of God to communicate the Word of God, the sermon would be little more than an instruction manual. When asked what an AI-generated sermon would be missing, Gardner says succinctly, “God.” Aaron Earls is senior writer for Lifeway Research.

It’s the latest in Sermon A.I. Just type in a church member’s name and the approptiate verses and rebukes pop up.

10 IBSA.org

Illinois Baptist

with the lord Former IBSA staff member Ila June Neisler, 91, died Aug. 29. She was married to Pastor Donald Neisler who preceded her in death in January.

The couple from Athensville planted and served a number of central Illinois churches over six decades. They married in Long Beach, California in 1952.

She retired from IBSA as secretarial coordinator for the Missions and Church Development Divisions in 1996. Survived by two sons and two daughters, the Neislers were members of Western Oaks Baptist Church in Springfield.

Larry Paul Shelton of Salem died September 16.

Shelton, 80, held three degrees, including a Doctor of Christian Philosophy from Anchor Theological Seminary. He was ordained in 1968, and served churches in Flora, Iuka, Salem, Odin, Centralia, Mulberry Grove, and St. Elmo. He also served as a church planter with the Illinois Baptist State Association. Shelton had served as moderator with the Kaskaskia Baptist Association and an evangelism director and trustee charter member of the Greater Salem Area Foundation.

Pastor Shelton is survived by his wife, Janet, two daughters, and their families.

churches Churches seek affiliation at Annual Meeting

Six churches are asking to affiliate with IBSA at the Annual Meeting in November. They are › Anchor Church, Palos Heights › Empowerment Community Church, Chicago › Life Community Church, Hillsboro › New Nazareth Missionary Church, Chicago › Oreana Church, Oreana › Transformation Church, S. Chicago Heights Messengers will be asked to affirm the affiliation of the churches with the state association. The churches have been interviewed by the Credentials Committee, including their support for Cooperative Program and agreement with the Baptist Faith & Message.

CLASSIFIED AD FEE FEE BAPTIST CHURCH Bridgeton, St. Louis County, Missouri is seeking a full time Senior Pastor.

For more information, go to feefeebc.org/jobs.

Please submit resume and biographical profile to pastorsearch@feefeebc.org.

Big milestone Olive Branch Church in Wayne City celebrated its 150th anniversary October 1 with special worship, testimonies, guests, and dinner. “It was a little different than some homecomings, but it was what God had planned for us,” the church posted on Facebook. “Our time of reminiscing was priceless (with) a lot of laughs, smiles, and tears of joy. There might have even been some shouting going on.”

Pastor Steve Hamson led the event honoring the church that “has been a starting place for many a Christian.”

“We know God has great plans for this church sitting beside the road,” they reported, “and we pray we stay open to hear his leading.”

Your IBSA Ministry Partner Faith, Family & Freedom Fall Banquet

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Friday, November 3, 2023 Bolingbrook Golf Club / 2001 Rodeo Drive, Bolingbrook, IL Reservations before Sept. 4th / $100 Eric Metaxas is the bestselling author of fourteen books, including his most recent Letter to the American Church; Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy; Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery; and If You Can Keep It: The Forgotten Promise of American Liberty. His books have been translated into twenty-five languages. The host of nationally syndicated radio and television shows and the acclaimed conversation series Socrates in the City, Metaxas is a prominent cultural commentator whose work has appeared in the New York Times, the New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New Republic, and the Wall Street Journal.

OUR CULTURE IS CHANGING Churches face legal issues all the time, so they need to be prepared. And when an issue arises, churches need trusted counsel.

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We can help your church prepare itself for these changes.

Enter code IBSA20 to receive a reduced annual membership of $200, which is 20% off the regular price.

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adfchurchalliance.org/partners#ibsa

November 01, 2023

IBSA.org

11

Second harvest among migrant workers

Hispanic churches join downstate mission trip, 40 salvations reported Wayne City | At pumpkin harvesting time last year, a fledgling ministry to migrant workers produced 18 salvations and opened a cross-state relationship with Hispanic church leaders. This year, six Hispanic churches joined the outreach to workers from Central and South America working in the pumpkin fields.

And 40 salvations were reported among the workers.

“Our first night we saw more conversions than we did for whole trip last year,” said Jonathan de la O, pastor of Starting Point Church in Chicago, and one of the leaders of the three-day mission trip. Downstate churches provided meals and Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief (IBDR) feeding team provided grills for meal preparation and brought the shower/laundry trailer for the workers’ use.

“The brothers and sisters from Ten Mile Baptist Church were encouraged to engage more” than they were able to last year, as they bridged the language barrier. “We had our folks translate for them,” de la O said. Immanuel Baptist Church also sent a volunteer team.

The dinner and worship events were moving, he said. “Leon Adams, the farmer who orchestrated everything, and I shared a ‘what is happening moment’ when we mixed the Anglos with the migrant workers to help them find Bible passages that were then read out loud by close to 40 migrant workers.”

It was all about relationships. “At some point we separated the room, had Anglos on one side of

the room shouting “Jesus te Ama” to the migrant workers and the migrant workers shouting back “Jesus loves you!”

One breakthrough factor was the presence of Javier. “He’s from Venezuela, he’s been living with us for three months,” the pastor said.

Starting Point Church has hosted refugees who have been shipped to Chicago after crossing the U.S. border into Texas. This, he said, is another opportunity to turn their Chicagoland ministry into missions.

“Javier was a believer before coming and has demonstrated a lot of Bible knowledge and maturity. He was able to share his testimony one of the nights we were at Wayne City,” he said. “It was impactful and a joy to have him come with us.”

TESTIMONY TIME — A recent immigrant from Venezuela to Chicago, Javier (in the yellow shirt), joined the downstate mission trip in October. At the dinners for workers, he shared his Christian faith in Spanish and helped open doors for 40 salvations. Workers in the field (pictured in 2022) were the first recipients of the harvest time outreach.

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Illinois Baptist

Tracker

BRIGHTER DAY

A prayer of thanks

Trends from nearby and around the world.

(Editor’s note: For decades, Chicago Tribune columnist Joan Beck memorialized each year with a poetic column of thanksgiving. The verses below are our attempt to follow her example and remember the blessings of 2023.)

A

s we gather together to count Wednesday). For bigger blessings: the Lord’s blessings, 403 years dedicated teachers and kind librarafter the first Thanksgiving ians. Compassionate nurses and Day, we wonder at the beauty of patient doctors. For hands to hold God’s creation. For double rainbows through diagnoses, relapses, and and blue moons, four seasons and remissions. On those days and every family pets, all things bright and day, You’re a good, good Father. beautiful, all creatures great and We thank you for leaders small. We thank you, Lord, who have walked through for them all. the hardships of 2023 O Lord my God, when with courage and grace.

I in awesome wonder And for others who have consider all the works struggled, asking forThy hands hath made, giveness, and reminding the blessings that come us that all have fallen to mind quickest are short, and yet, there is the everyday gifts: food grace greater than all sin. on our table and family All creatures of our God MEREDITH FLYNN around it. Faithful friends and King, lift up your ready with last-minute childcare or voice and let us sing, of the deep, a freezer meal. A church, imperfect, deep love of Jesus for sinners such as but dogged in her determination to us. For a child’s big question with an love well, no matter the sacrifices easy answer: Does God really love me required. that much? He does.

Neighbors, undaunted by miles As we near the end of this year, or shuffled schedules, arriving with anchor our hearts in the surety of heavy machinery and yellow hats.

Your love, Your kindness, Your They cut down trees and hauled away goodness, Your desire that no one debris, and stayed as long as they would perish, but that all would know were needed. everlasting life through Jesus.

Come thou fount of every blessing, O praise Him! Alleluia! tune my heart to sing Thy praise, for these and all gifts in the year past and Meredith Day Flynn is a wife and the years to come. mother of two living in Springfield.

For small things: new Bluey She writes on the intersection of episodes just in time for a road trip faith, family, and current culture. and National Taco Day (even on a

Faith:

Dropout Zone

16

“At that age, the attendance rates start to diverge for those who stay in church as adults and those who drop out. The next few years become the church dropout danger zone when most teenagers leave behind regular church involvement.”

30%

AWSOM

NLSY researcher Lyman Stone concludes that “most nonreligious children are born into religious households and lose their faith while under the supervision of parents who believe that they are successfully transmitting their religious values.”

December 3-10

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and Week of Prayer

Where: Tabernacle Baptist Church, Decatur When: 7 – 9 p.m. Friday, 9:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. Saturday What: Student girls in 5th – 12th grades Cost: $25 (includes lunch) Register: IBSA.org/awsom-conference

What: Offering for International Missions Where: Your church Info: IMB.org/pray/week-of-prayer

November 3-4

January 23-25

Where: Lake Sallateeska Baptist Camp Cost: $25 What: Student boys in 6th – 12th grades Register: IBSA.org/students

Where: Crowne Plaza Hotel, Springfield What: Training for over 1,000 leaders from 12 Midwestern states and 9 state conventions Contact: AubreyShelby@IBSA.org Info: MWadvance.org (attendance by invitation only)

Forged

November 7-9

IBSA Pastors Conference & Annual Meeting Where: Cornerstone Church, Marion Cost: Free Info: IBSAannualmeeting.org

—Lifeway Research

of high school seniors say religion has no importance.

EVENTS November 3-4

is often the pivotal age for young adults who drop out of church.

Midwest Leadership Summit (MLS)

—NLSY survey

Networking Send items to IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org Martinsville First Baptist Church seeks bi-vocational pastor. This fall we will celebrate our 144th anniversary. We are seeking an energetic candidate to work with a motivated congregation to grow programs for all ages. Send resume to MFBCpastorsearch@yahoo.com.

Old DuQuoin Baptist Church seeks bi-vocational pastor. Please send resume to Pastor Search Committee, 8831 Old State Route 14, DuQuoin, IL 62832.

Bankston Fork Missionary Baptist Church seeks bi-vocational pastor. Contact attorneyninabrown@ gmail.com, or write to Pastor Search Committee, 5890 Highway 13 West, Harrisburg, IL 62946.

Search more church openings at IBSA.org/pastor-search or scan this code.