August 1, 2020 Illinois Baptist

P.

Rising counts

Illinois | Smaller churches appear to have some advantage over larger bodies as efforts to resume in-person worship gatherings continue, despite the emergence of new hot spots. The number of churches that don’t plan to reopen until “sometime next year” has grown from 1% to 5% in a month, according to researcher George Barna. The most recent example: Andy Stanley’s multi-site megachurch in Atlanta, Ga.

“We cannot guarantee your safety,” the pastor of North Point Community said in a video announcement. Stanley cited his state’s uptick in Coronavirus cases, the results of a member survey, and the experience of churches that have already reopened only to witness a rise in illnesses.

CONVENTIONAL WISDOM

Snapshots from the world of Illinois Baptists

ADDRESSING RACIAL INJUSTICE

Last fall, Barna asked practicing Christians how motivated they are to address racial justice issues in society.

% who are motivated or very motivated White practicing Christians

Researchers also asked whether the U.S. has a race problem.

% who definitely agree

CHURCH NEEDED HERE

Location: Clinton

Focus: Residents of this central Illinois community

Characteristics: Nicknamed “Clintucky” for its rural feel, Clinton is best known for its nuclear power plant and a large lake and recreation area.

Prayer needs: Pray for a new church that would reflect Clinton’s quiet, easy-going way of life.

– IBSA Church Planting Team

the cooperative program

Giving by IBSA churches as of 07/17/20

$2,953,615

Budget Goal: $3,388,462

Received to date in 2019: $3,102,479

2020 Goal: $6.3 Million

The Illinois Baptist staff

Editor - Eric Reed

Managing Editor - Meredith Flynn

Graphic Designer - Kris Kell

Contributing Editor - Lisa Misner

Administrative Assistant - Leah Honnen

The general telephone number for IBSA is (217) 786-2600. For questions about subscriptions, articles, or upcoming events, contact the Illinois Baptist at (217) 391-3119 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 627034440. Subscriptions are free to Illinois Baptists. Subscribe online at IBSA.org.

NATE ADAMS

The next generation

What a spring we have had, and what a summer we are having. What many once thought of as the “vision” year of 2020 is being eclipsed by a pandemic like the world rarely sees. Beyond its obvious threats to health and life, the Coronavirus has also invaded our daily conversations, our behaviors and lifestyles, our economy, our travel, and in some ways, even our churches.

To complicate matters further, the racial and political climates of our country have grown extremely unsettled and contentious. With this kind of world swirling around us, it’s often difficult to feel a sense of progress, or optimism about at least the immediate future.

In the midst of this chaos, a child was born. On June 17, little Ezra William Adams entered the world, our first grandchild. And somehow since he’s arrived, the world’s upheaval doesn’t seem to need as much of my attention. This little boy does.

Ezra is the next generation. He is the future. He reminds me that God’s plan is not only worldwide, it is also history long. And while God cares deeply about the here and now of the pandemic and its challenges, he is also at work in the then and there of Ezra’s life, which may well stretch into the 22nd century. Somehow that makes today’s problems seem a little smaller.

It occurred to me the other day that, for our family, Ezra also represents the fourth generation of Illinois Baptists. I can only imagine what Illinois churches and the Illinois mission field will look like when Ezra reaches my age. But I know it is my responsibility to help preserve in his life and for his future the biblical doctrine and commitment to worldwide missions cooperation that are the heart and soul of our Baptist identity. That’s more important than whether this year’s events can take place as planned, or whether next year’s budget is higher or lower.

I am reminded of this responsibility on an even larger scale when I walk down the hallway outside my office. Each trip to the breakroom or restroom or elevator requires that I walk past the portraits of 10 previous executive directors. Sometimes I pause and wonder what it was like to serve our diverse network of Baptist churches in the 1920s or 1950s.

My portrait beside them still seems small by comparison. Yet their presence, and their precedence, encourages me. Some had short tenures and some long. History tells me that some served during very troubled and challenging times for churches, and some during times of significant advance.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that even when circumstances around you seem chaotic or contentious, even when measurable progress seems hard, there is real value in simply persevering, and in faithfully carrying forward the vision, and sustaining the legacy and the mission for the next generation.

Your church may by thriving now, or it may be persevering through a downturn. The same may be true of your own ministry. It’s important to remember that we are each stewards of our particular time in history, and that being faithful during times of adversity and slow progress may be more difficult, even more valuable, than being faithful during times of success and advance.

Little Ezra’s arrival reminds me that I am a link in a chain. I am a steward for a season. I am one out of four generations, and by God’s grace there will be others. In fact, when September rolls around, we are likely to still be awaiting a vaccine for the Coronavirus. But at the end of that month, a second little baby, who we already know to be a girl, is due to arrive.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that I find such comfort in the midst of the chaos when a child is born. Bethlehem’s child was born in the midst of such chaos, and he too brought tremendous comfort and peace.

Nate Adams is executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association. Respond at IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

I am a link in a chain, a steward for a season.

Pastor seeks end to violence

Calls churches across Illinois to join Chicago prayer walks

Chicago | Pastor Edgar Rodriguez’s son knelt on the colorful United States map painted near where 10-year-old Lena Nunez died June 29. Nunez was watching TV in her home when she was hit by a stray bullet that came through window.

The young man paused at the map to pray for an end to the violence that has devastated communities and families in the city. Nunez is not the only child to die during a hot, violent summer in Chicago. Gun violence over Fourth of July weekend injured 87 people and killed 17, including children 7-year-old Natalia Wallace and 14-year-old Varnando Jones. In a 10-day period, four Chicago toddlers were shot. Two of them died.

So far this year, more than 1,900 people have been shot in the city, and around 400 have been killed.

Pastor Rodriguez mobilized Christians to march and prayer walk in the city’s neighborhoods starting July 13. Rodriguez, pastor of New City Fellowship, started in his backyard in Humboldt Park and moved on to Logan Square, Englewood, and Austin. He’s working to get other churches to join him in praying and fasting to stop the violence.

“That’s what it’s going to take to wage war,” he said. “That’s what it’s going to take to break strongholds….Over the years we’ve partnered with different churches, particularly those down south.

“As many Christian brothers and sisters as can, come join us.”

Doug Morrow, co-pastor of Together Church in Springfield, led a group of men to join Rodriguez in a July 20 prayer walk through Humboldt Park. “We visited and prayed with several community members,” said Morrow, who also serves as executive director of the Baptist Foundation of Illinois. “One single mother had her son T.J. with her. He was about 3 1/2 and proud of his shoes as he ran around. We visited and asked how we could pray for her...When we asked what her greatest need was, she said, ‘Safety for my son. I don’t want him growing up in the streets.’”

After the Fourth of July weekend violence, Pastor Corey Brooks told FOX News, “People are afraid to leave the house…. They’re causing havoc in our community and they are causing a lot of destruction and unfortunately, as a result of their destruction, children are being shot. Innocent bystanders are being shot.”

Brooks pastors New Beginnings, an IBSAmember church in the city. He said something must be done immediately about the violence.

Rodriguez said it’s been a blessing to walk the neighborhoods and pray with people, but

Beloved Rochester pastor dead at 42

Leaves behind wife, 3 sons

Chad Williams, senior pastor at Rochester First Baptist Church, died July 13 while on vacation in Alaska with his wife, Jennifer.

Williams, a Tennessee native, was born July 20, 1978. Chad and Jennifer were married May 13, 2006. In addition to his wife, he leaves behind three young sons, Nate, Peyton, and Logan.

Williams became pastor at First Baptist in January 2018. Prior to serving there, he was family pastor at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Decatur for five years. He also previously served as minister to students at Sharon Baptist Church in Knoxville, Tenn., and Faith Baptist Church in Durham, N.C.

He served Central Baptist Association as co-partnership coordinator from 2017 through his passing. Williams was also a site coordinator for IBSA’s Youth Encounter evangelism event from 2015-2018.

“Chad had an eternal impact on the lives of multitudes of individuals at Rochester First Baptist Church and beyond,” his church posted on Facebook, noting his unique ability to mentor the next generation of Christian leaders.

“We can honestly say that we see Jesus more clearly, worship him more fully, and treasure his grace more deeply because of Chad’s impact.”

The day after his death, church members held a prayer and consolation service and then visited with the Williams family outside their home. A neighbor came over to listen to the testimonies, and accepted Jesus as his savior.

he also noted an overall sense of hopelessness. “One guy was 28 and said [his life is] already gone, there’s nothing you can do. ‘All this Jesus talk, it’s too long. You should have been out here when I was young.’”

The pastor and those walking with him are seeking transformation. “We’re not trying to pray these people out of their neighborhoods, we’re trying to pray that Jesus enters their heart and changes them so that they can be a part of the change in that community,” Rodriguez said.

“Where salt and light are, darkness leaves.”

To contact Rodriguez about upcoming prayer walks, e-mail newcityhp1@gmail. com.

– Lisa Misner

“Today and the days to come, we grieve,” read his church’s post. “We grieve the loss of our dear friend and pastor. We grieve for the pain felt and experienced by his family, but we do not grieve without hope. A hope found in the gospel he regularly shared.”

Williams earned a Master of Arts in Christian Education at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., and a Bachelor of Arts in History/ Youth Ministry at King University in Bristol, Tenn. One of his favorite Bible verses was Philippians 1:21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

A funeral service for Williams was held July 20 in Kingsport, Tenn. The family plans to hold a memorial service in Illinois at a later date.

CHAD WILLIAMS

PEACEMAKERS – Church members and leaders from Chicago and Springfield joined Pastor Edgar Rodriguez (second from left) on a July 20 prayer walk in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood. The walk is one of several Rodriguez organized amid heightened gun violence in the city.

IBSA annual meeting

Board changes plans

Shortened, moved due to COVID-19

Springfield | The IBSA Board of Directors voted to move the 2020 Annual Meeting and shorten the event to one day to accommodate concerns presented by the Coronavirus pandemic. The meeting will be Wednesday, Nov. 4, at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Decatur. There will be no exhibit hall or ancillary meetings. Leaders of the IBSA Pastors’ Conference plan to postpone their gathering which usually meets adjacent to the IBSA Annual Meeting, or to deliver its inspirational content online.

The 2020 Annual Meeting had been scheduled for the Crowne Plaza in Springfield, but with the state still in Phase Four of the Restore Illinois pandemic recovery plan, meetings with attendance larger than 50 are still prohibited. The hotel could invoke a “force majeure” clause, thereby canceling the meeting on 60 days’ notice. Instead, the hotel agreed to honor its contract with IBSA in 2021. The IBSA Board also acted to move the 2021 An nual Meeting to the Crowne Plaza in Springfield, and to cancel plans to meet at Broadview Missionary Baptist Church in metro Chicago next year. That action will save IBSA significant losses from breaking the contract outright.

The Board voted unani mously to make the move in a video conference July 14. IBSA

Executive Director Nate Adams thanked Board members for their action. “We believe this is necessary and safe and prudent to allow us to meet,” he said. He told the Board the new location will allow for social distancing and provide video feeds to overflow rooms to help protect messengers and guests from Coronavirus transmission.

IBSA’s annual gathering usually draws 500 or more in attendance, although “it’s very likely the meeting could be smaller than that,” Adams said. “It’s difficult to predict whether Illinois will be back in an earlier phase of the reopening, given the flareups in parts of the state.”

Tabernacle Baptist Church resumed Sunday services in June with attendance of about 300 in their sanctuary, which seats over 1,200. That represents a room capacity of about 25%, in keeping with recommendations for churches by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

“If we are still in Phase 4 of Restore Illinois, we expect the meeting would be on,” Adams said. He acknowledged that situation could change, requiring future alterations to the plan if the state reverts to Phase 3 of Restore Illinois due to a rise in COVID-19 cases. “It’s still fluid,” he summarized.

The IBSA Annual Meeting will be livestreamed from Tabernacle, allowing people who may be uncomfortable in large groups in November to view the event. The IBSA Constitution does not presently allow for remote voting, so off-site participation will be limited to watching the video feed.

If the state reverts to Phase 3 because of additional COVID-19 cases, it is possible the Annual Meeting could be presented for online viewing only with no messengers present. In that case, the Board would vote on the 2021 IBSA budget on behalf of the Association, and no other matters requiring balloting would be presented in 2020.

– Eric Reed

From the front: ERLC URGES COOPERATION WITH VIRUS CONTRACT TRACING

Continued from page 1

In Illinois, many IBSA churches relaunched in-person gatherings in June and July, adding services, spreading out chairs, or blocking off every other pew to help churchgoers maintain social distancing.

Current guidance from the Illinois Department of Public Health recommends that churches limit attendance to 25% of building capacity or 100 attenders, whichever is lower. Many IBSA churches can operate within the guidelines, but some have delayed reopening anyway, particularly in hard-hit communities.

The vast majority of churches in the Chicago Metro Baptist Association remained closed over the summer, said Rick Dorsey, pastor of Beacon Hill Missionary Baptist Church and the chair of the association’s administrative council. While many are planning late summer or fall reopenings, some churches in at-risk communities are waiting.

“Many African-American churches are choosing to be extra cautious before deciding to begin to reopen,” Dorsey said, “especially churches whose membership include a larger percentage of those considered to be at higher risk by the medical community.”

Early in the pandemic’s sweep across Illinois, downstate communities were less affected than the northern part of the state. The state’s current increases are more widespread, with the highest testing positivity in the south. In central Illinois, a non-IBSA church in Litchfield saw an outbreak of at least 25 cases after restarting in-person services in June.

In July, Gov. J.B. Pritzker subdivided the four regions originally established to identify resurgences of the virus into 11 regions. He also released new metrics that could bring back restrictions.

Two join IBSA staff

Springfield | IBSA welcomed Jacob Kimbrough in July as the new manager at Streator Baptist Camp. A former residential specialist at Missouri Baptist Children’s Home, Kimbrough most recently worked for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in Kansas City, where his wife, Katie, received a Master’s degree in biblical counseling from Midwestern Seminary.

In his role at Streator Camp, Kimbrough will be mentored by former manager Mike Young, who is now serving as pastor at New Beginnings Baptist Church in Streator.

IBSA also announced that Ashby Tillery, discipleship and missions pastor at Second Baptist Church in Marion, will serve as the Association’s zone consultant in Zone 10. He will relate to Antioch, Big Saline, Clear Creek, Saline, Union, and Williamson Associations.

If a region sees a sustained increase in the 7-day rolling average in the testing positivity rate, plus an increase in hospital admissions over seven days or reduction in hospital capacity, restrictions would go back into effect, including stricter limits on gatherings. Three consecutive days with a positivity rate greater or equal to 8% would also trigger restrictions.

As church leaders in Illinois brace for a rise in cases, other states renewed restrictions amid further outbreaks. In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom resumed the state’s ban on indoor worship services. In Alabama, a Southern Baptist pastor shared a first-person account of a COVID-19 outbreak among his church’s staff and volunteers.

“We didn’t see anything like this in March, April, or May, but what we are watching now can only be described as a wave of infections spreading through our church,” wrote Derek Allen of First Baptist Tillman’s Corner in Mobile. It started in a church staff meeting.

The Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) released a statement encouraging churches to cooperate with government efforts, including contact tracing. The statement, released July 10, says “churches should create a process that utilizes all available means of contacting members and guests of the church’s activities to ensure widespread notice is made in the event of a potential exposure.”

The inability to conduct contact tracing among thousands of worship attenders was a reason Stanley cited in their decision to stay closed.

Tillery has been at Second Baptist since 2009, serving first as student pastor until moving into his current role in 2013. He served at churches in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri before moving to Marion. Tillery and his wife, Mandy, have two daughters.

– Christianity Today, Baptist Press, ERLC, KSDK News

JACOB KIMBROUGH ASHBY TILLERY

RICK DORSEY

ANDY STANLEY

Schools challenge mask requirement

Pritzker responds with suit to mandate face coverings this fall

Channahon | Two private academies and a school district are at the center of a growing debate over masks in Illinois schools.

In a letter sent on behalf of Families of Faith Christian Academy in Channahon, attorney Tom Devore informed the state’s Board of Education and Department of Public Health that the school is “declining to implement the health and safety protocols” released in June for Illinois schools.

Among the protocols the school will not mandate when classes begin Aug. 20: face coverings for students and staff. Families of Faith is one of three entities to challenge the school guidance—Devore is also representing a school district in southeastern Illinois and a private academy in Yorkville.

“The mask was the number-one thing for most parents we interviewed and talked to,” said Randy Blan, Families of Faith’s headmaster. Blan said the school has been assessing the COVID-19 situation since Illinois schools shut down last spring. “The infection rate as well as the danger to children is so miniscule that I think parents need to be the one to decide what’s best for them,” Blan said. “It shouldn’t be something that’s dictated to them.”

Enrollment at the 15-year-old school is usually around 150, he said, but Blan expects it to be higher when the semester begins. The academy is a ministry of Families of Faith church, an IBSA congregation pastored by Blan. The school meets in the church’s building in Channahon, a village southwest of Joliet.

According to statistics from the Illinois Department of Public Health, the ZIP code where the school is located has seen 59 cases of COVID-19. Its county, Will, has the fifth-highest number of cases among Illinois

CLEAN, SPARSE – While some schools oppose social distancing guidelines, this school in central Illinois is reducing the number of students per classroom, spreading desks apart, and eliminating shelving where multiple students may touch supplies.

counties, but is well below Cook and other suburban counties.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker responded to the challenges from schools July 16, filing a lawsuit that seeks a judge’s approval of his order that students, teachers, and staff wear masks in the fall. Blan contends the state doesn’t have the authority to require masks.

Families of Faith cares deeply for its children, families, and staff, the pastor said. “We have implemented new policies this year to keep our school safe and germ-free, but we believe that our parents have the right to choose.”

Disaster Relief delivers supplies

Hannibal, Mo. | Hannibal LaGrange University, preparing to reopen this fall, got an assist from Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief. Volunteers delivered disinfectant, soap, laundry supplies, and 6,000 face masks.

IBDR workers have turned from flood recovery to pandemic assistance.

In Rantoul, volunteers Kent and Susan Plackett delivered meals and supplies donated by their church, First Baptist in Tolono, to a ministry center serving families in need (pictured at right). And across southern Illinois, IDBR volunteers delivered 1,800 boxes of meals from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to 16 senior centers in the region.

Disaster Relief has resources available for churches and ministries navigating the current phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, including masks, disinfectant, AA batteries, and access to filled backpacks and hygiene kits. Go to IBSA.org/dr or e-mail ButchPorter@IBSA.org.

Christians split on President

If the 2020 presidential election were held now, 82% of white evangelical Protestant registered voters would vote for President Donald Trump or lean that way, according to a summer survey by Pew Research. But support for Trump is less among other Christian groups, including Black Protestants. Only 8% said they would vote for Trump or lean toward voting for him, if the election were held today.

Pew noted white evangelicals’ approval of Trump has slipped slightly, to 72%. Still, the share who say they would likely vote for him is very close to the percentage of white evangelicals that voted for Trump in 2016.

Little Sisters prevail in court

An order of Catholic nuns were back before the Supreme Court in July to defend their right not to comply with a mandate requiring employers to cover birth control and abortion-inducing drugs in their healthcare plans. In a 7-2 ruling, the Court said the Little Sisters of the Poor do not have to violate their consciences, upholding two rules by the U.S. Department of Human Services that exempt the sisters from the mandate on religious and moral grounds. It marked their third victory at the Supreme Court.

IBSA is currently involved in a lawsuit that challenges that state’s Reproductive Health Act, which requires health insurance policies sold in the state to provide coverage for elective chemical and surgical abortions, with no exemptions even for churches.

Justices favor ministerial exception

Religious liberty advocates cheered the Supreme Court’s 7-2 ruling in favor of two Catholic schools facing discrimination suits from former employees. The Court found the employees performed religious duties in their work and therefore fall under the ministerial exception rule, which protects religious organizations from some employment lawsuits.

The Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) had previously filed a friendof-the-court brief in the case, which Justice Samuel Alito cited in the July 8 opinion. ERLC President Russell Moore called the ruling “crucial” in reaffirming religious liberty. “If a religious organization cannot recruit leaders who agree with the beliefs and practices of those organizations, then there can be no true religious freedom.”

– Pew, ERLC

Get breaking news in The Briefing online, posted every Tuesday at www.ib2news.org.

Gorsuch: LGBT rights

“The Court’s opinion is like a pirate ship. It sails under a textualist flag, but what it actually represents is a theory of statutory interpretation that Justice Scalia excoriated—the theory that courts should ‘update’ old statutes so that they better reflect the current values of society.”

Roberts: abortion limits

“Unreal. Justice Roberts just voted with the four liberals on an abortion case because of stare decisis...The precedent he’s upholding is from a case just four years ago, that he dissented on. If he thought the Court got it wrong four years ago, today was his chance to correct it.”

– Ryan T. Anderson, The Heritage Foundation

“After today’s disappointing decision by SCOTUS, one thing is clear: We need more Conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme Court.”

– Vice President Mike Pence

“S Summer surprises from the Supreme Court

omething is going on with John Roberts.” With those words, CNN legal correspondent Jeffrey Toobin summed up a whirlwind week of Supreme Court rulings that provided conservatives with some unpleasant surprises.

First, Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch sided with liberal justices in Bostock v. Clayton County, a 5-4 ruling that extended the Civil Rights Act to include LGBT employees, but casts doubt on whether religious institutions can let their convictions guide their hiring practices.

Chief Justice Roberts also sided with Gorsuch and Justices Kagan, Sotomayor, Ginsburg, and Breyer on the LGBT ruling, and with the Court’s liberal justices on a ruling concerning DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). But the biggest surprise from Roberts was a seeming reversal of his own position on abortion rights. In June Medical Services v. Russo, he sided with liberal justices to overturn a Louisiana law that requires people who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital.

Roberts was on the other side in a similar case four years ago concerning a Texas law. But he was overruled then, and because the earlier case set a precedent, he noted, the doctrine of “stare decisis” means Roberts has to stand with it now.

Many Court watchers are now calling Roberts the high court’s swing vote, filling a vacancy left by retired Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy. Some pundits are going further, noting Roberts’s recent positions are worrisome for conservatives encouraged by a conservative-leaning Supreme Court.

“What we have today is a bitterly disappointing decision, especially on the part of the Chief Justice for his flip-flop,” said Mallory Quigley of the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List, after Roberts appeared to change his view on the abortion issue at hand. His opinion in that case and others this session sends a message, Toobin said, that the current Court doesn’t have the five votes needed to overturn abortion laws. Overturning Roe v. Wade, he said, could require an additional nominee from President Donald Trump.

In 2016, then-candidate Trump promised to nominate conservative, pro-life justices. Gorsuch and Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh were confirmed in 2017 and 2018, respectively, and while they sided with the other conservative justices on the June case, Gorsuch’s departure on Bostock didn’t add up for many conservative pundits. Gorsuch’s opinion also caused some to doubt his reputation as a textualist who adheres to the original wording of the U.S. Constitution (see column at left).

“Conservatives losing at SCOTUS at the hands of conservative jurists appointed by conservative presidents,” tweeted Illinois native Andrew Walker, an associate professor at Southern Seminary who formerly served on the senior staff of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

“Honestly, courts matter,” he said in another tweet, “but the idea that election choices can be leveraged on the predictability of future court rulings is turning out to be bad calculus.”

– Meredith Flynn

August is National Make a Will Month

– Associate Justice Samuel Alito

MISSION

Purpose in the pain

Behind bars and on the outside, first-hand experience fuels ministry to inmates and families.

BY MEREDITH FLYNN MISSING PIECES

“What got you interested in corrections ministry?”

The question, posed over lunch, was a reckoning of sorts for Karen Vinyard. The Eldorado mother took a deep breath, and said the words.

“My husband is currently incarcerated.”

Vinyard had signed up for a ministry day trip to an Illinois prison with IBSA’s Carmen Halsey and Rob Cleeton, a pastor with a long history in corrections ministry. Their lunch beforehand was an opportunity for Vinyard to tell the story she rarely shared publicly. Her husband served 13 years for a drug offense. He was released to home confinement in 2019.

“Admitting it to other people is hard,” Vinyard said. That’s why she makes time to represent Illinois Baptists in the world of corrections ministry—outreach to incarcerated people, their families, and “returning citizens” who are released from prison.

As part of a team brought together by IBSA, Vinyard helps raise awareness for the families whose trials are often forgotten, or overlooked. “Sometimes I felt like I was in a tunnel, or the trenches actually,” Vinyard said. More than we know are likely in those same trenches—the ministry Prison Fellowship estimates one in ten churchgoers have a loved one in prison.

“People won’t talk about it, because there’s this shame factor,” said Mary Johnson. She represents Prison Fellowship in Illinois and Wisconsin, and helps churches across the region know how to get involved with corrections ministry initiatives.

The first step, both women said, is being aware of how many families are affected by incarceration, and the numerous ministry opportunities for churches willing to take on the task. For Vinyard, raising awareness of the

The pain of having an incarcerated loved one affects more families than we know, said Karen Vinyard, including churchgoers across Illinois. She tells her own story to help forgotten families, and connect churches with vital ministry opportunities.

Continued from page 7

issue is a calling born out of personal experience. Sometimes, she said, there is purpose in the pain. Coming clean

For years, Vinyard was a married mother who attended every sports event, graduation, and church potluck by herself. In fact, “I did not like church potlucks,” she said. They served as another reminder that she was alone, while others gathered as whole families. Other families with an incarcerated loved one are in the same boat.

“It is an incredible grief at times,” Vinyard said. “You’re still married, and yet that spouse is never there with you.” Children, too, bear the brunt of family upheaval, she said. Vinyard quoted Prison Fellowship in calling kids “the invisible victims of crime.” It’s estimated that more than 5 million children in the U.S. have had an incarcerated parent.

Since getting involved, Vinyard has represented corrections ministry at IBSA’s Priority Women’s Conference. Standing at a table in the exhibit hall, she recruits volunteers to go with her to a transitional home in Arkansas where former inmates receive care and support as they re-enter life on the outside.

At the table, Vinyard also listens to people who come to share their own stories—they have a loved one who’s incarcerated, or about to enter prison. The first step for churches that want to help is to realize the people who talk to Vinyard are also in their pews. And like her, many hesitate to share their stories publicly.

“It’s like you’ve got to come clean,” she said. Once they do, Vinyard encouraged churches to come around families with love and support. Many have financial needs, especially if the primary provider is the one incarcerated. They also may want for community and connection. Invite them to share a meal, she suggested. Consider how holidays, even Memorial Day or the Fourth of July, might affect families who are missing a loved one.

Vinyard is quick to say other ministry leaders in Illinois volunteering inside prisons are the real heroes.

“All I am doing is just sharing my story, and just letting people know it could happen to anyone,” she said. “People are out there in our pews and congregations that are hurting.”

Help who you can

While Karen Vinyard uses her voice to call her attention to forgotten families, Jeff Gee runs hard after sustainable, redemptive programming for people getting out of prison. In Herrin, Gee pastors Hurricane Memorial Baptist Church. He also runs a bicycle repair shop that has employed returning citizens to fix up bikes.

“It’s amazing what a bicycle can do,” said Gee, in his 12th year as pastor at the church. He’s currently planning to develop the bicycle program into more job training for people in his community. Gee’s church is part of an inter-denominational collective that supports the Herrin House of Hope, a ministry that provides people in poverty with basic needs—food, clothing, and shelter—as well as continuing education and skills development.

People as a rule are afraid of returning citizens—those getting out of prison, Gee said. “You have to get over that.” Many who entered prison addicted to substances get clean while incarcerated, he noted. They also are a captive audience

for Bible studies. Many meet Jesus there.

When they get out, Gee said there are four basic things they need: lodging, employment, food, and transportation. That’s where the bicycles come in. The repair shop was the focus of a 2016 Illinois Baptist story, along with Gee’s passion to help decrease the state’s recidivism rate—the percentage of former inmates who return to prison.

His current focus is on ramping up job training efforts, while continuing ministry through Herrin House of Hope and his church’s Celebrate Recovery program. He encouraged more churches to consider how they can help populations in need, starting by reducing the stigma around returning citizens.

“The best thing you can do is make an alliance with other churches,” he advised, pointing to the partnerships that created Herrin’s multifaceted ministry. Seek local and regional funding, he said, and volunteers. Lots of volunteers. This specialized ministry requires a full force of helpers and resources from the moment you unlock the door, Gee said.

“There are some people that you can’t help, but there are a lot of people that you can.”

Setting captives free

Since 1976, Prison Fellowship has served inmates and their families with the goal of sharing the hope and freedom of the gospel. IBSA partners with Prison Fellowship for training and resources to help churches engage in corrections ministry. Mary Johnson, field director for the ministry in Illinois and Wisconsin, shared some of the ways IBSA churches can help incarcerated people and their families:

Study the issues. Prison Fellowship provides free online curriculum for churches that want to understand the complexities of the criminal justice system. “Outrageous Justice” is a six-session video study highlighting first-person stories of incarceration, and justice that truly restores.

Adopt an ‘angel.’ Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree outreach provides children of incarcerated parents with Christmas gifts. Even more effective, Johnson said, are the connections it forges between churches and hurting people in the community. After an Angel Tree outreach, she said, a church has “unending opportunities” to help families in need.

‘I can be a voice’

Karen Vinyard was scheduled to take a team to minister in Arkansas in June, but the trip was canceled due to COVID-19. It would have been the fourth time she’s traveled to Cornerstone Transition Home, where women go for education, support, and help getting used to life outside of prison. She’s hopeful someone in Illinois will catch a vision for what a similar facility could do to help families here. (The photo above is of Vinyard, far right, with a mission team at Cornerstone.)

Her own family celebrated her husband’s homecoming last fall, and have been marking milestones since then. June 21, 2020, for example, was “the best Father’s Day ever,” according to the couple’s daughter, a 2017 college graduate and recent newlywed.

Vinyard recently shared their story with Woman’s Missionary Union (watch the video at vimeo.com/ibsa/vinyardwmu). But she doesn’t take any credit for ministry gains or higher visibility. She is adamant that she’s only using the experience God gave her.

“The comfort that I’ve received from the Holy Spirit, I’d like to share that with others,” Vinyard said, referencing the passage in 1 Corinthians that she calls her life verse.

“I can be a voice, and that’s what I would like to be.”

Build relationships. The ministry has halted volunteer initiatives inside prisons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Johnson said Prison Fellowship’s main focus is still sharing the gospel and discipling inmates who accept Christ. The ministry has just over 100 academies in the U.S., including four in Illinois, that offer multiple months of Bible studies and other Christian programming. Johnson said Prison Fellowship is currently developing ways local churches can be involved with the academies. “This is something that really works. We see total transformation.”

For more information about how to reach corrections ministry leaders in Illinois, contact Brad Lovin at (217) 391-3131 or BradLovin@IBSA.org.

JEFF GEE

Lower attendance. Our new normal?

August 6, September 8

Training Night

Where: Aug. 6: Emmanuel, Carlinville; Sept. 8: Pleasant Hill, Mt. Vernon Register: IBSA.org/TrainingNight

Church Helps Webinars

What: Guidance on current issues for church leaders Upcoming dates and topics: IBSA.org/church-helps

ReVision Revitalization

TRAINING NIGHT

Free, quality church leadership training in topics including discipleship, missions, age-graded ministries, worship, and more.

Churches reopening following weeks of COVID-19 shutdowns likely found a major difference on Sunday mornings: fewer worshipers. “Early attendance is significantly lower than the pre-quarantine era,” church health expert Thom Rainer reported.

Rainer said half the churches he surveyed reported attendance of 60% lower or less than pre-quarantine numbers.

In a survey collected in late May and early June, 64% of Americans said they were “somewhat uncomfortable” or “very uncomfortable” to return to in-person worship gatherings. Of those given the opportunity to attend worship the previous week, more than half chose not to, the American Enterprise Institute reported.

White evangelical Protestants are the only group that expressed comfort going back to church, with 61% saying they were either very comfortable or somewhat so. Other groups were less likely to agree:

White mainline Protestant .. 36%

Black Protestant ......... 32%

White Catholic ........... 39%

Hispanic Catholic ......... 26%

Other Christian ........... 41%

What: Webinar series designed to help pastors prepare to lead change and revitalization Upcoming sessions:

August 12: Creating a culture for change September 16: Preparation, process, and practice Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

Geography plays a role in how comfortable churchgoers are, as do church demographics. Many churches have suspended children’s classes indefinitely, and parents with young kids may not be as comfortable attending a worship service with everyone in tow.

Chris Turner, director of communications for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, told Religion News Service that attendance has been spotty at churches that have reopened in the state. And he put himself in the cautious category.

– ChurchAnswers.com, Religion News Service

What: Webinars offering on-the-job training for new pastors, or a refresher for any leader in need of it Upcoming sessions:

August 6: What funeral directors wish pastors knew September 3: Funerals: The pastor’s perspective Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

Leading to the Next Level

What: Webinars equip leaders in all areas of influence— relationships, marketplace, and the local church Upcoming sessions:

August 13: Situational leadership: Knowing which leadership style is best to lead others September 10: The heart of leadership Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

September 7

Edge Online Courses

What: Become a sharper leader right where you live and serve. Multi-week courses are instructor-led, fully online, and highly interactive. Upcoming Sessions: The Fall 2020 term begins Sept. 7 and will offer three separate courses: Leading Self, Preaching at the Next Level, and Introduction to Mobilization.

Contact: BenJones@IBSA.org

September 10-11

Essentials Training

What: Foundational leadership development and training for local church leaders in ministry to women, students, and children.

Where: IBSA Building, Springfield Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

September 13-20, 2020

“In my heart, I’m there with you….But at the same time, I’m going to let you work out the bugs before I come back.”

– Chris Turner

THE cooperative program • 2 nd quarter report april 1 - june 30

13 million

8 million

Our mission field Illinois is home to people, and more than who don’t yet know Christ.

This report includes contributions received by the Illinois Baptist State Association through the second quarter of 2020. For questions about this report, contact the IBSA Operations Team at (217) 391-3106, e-mail JeffDeasy@IBSA.org, or write to P.O. Box 19247, Springfield, IL 62794-9247.

The state is an urgent mission field. Evangelism and missions Leadership development

When your church gives to the Cooperative Program, stays in Illinois to support ministries in key areas:

56.5%

IBSA camps

Church planting Church revitalization

Top 100 Illinois churches in Cooperative Program support through the second quarter of 2020

Church of the Cross, Mahomet 65.40 New Prospect, Broughton 64.43

Wisetown, Greenville 62.64

Iglesia Camino Al Cielo, Joliet 62.60

Red Hill Church, Edwardsville 62.59

Grace Fellowship Davis Junction 62.20

New Beginnings, Streator 61.58

Sandy Creek, Tamms 61.39

Calvary, Monticello 61.01

Casey First, Casey 60.63

Ozark, Ozark 60.44

Hanbit Korean, Elgin 60.00

Calvary, Pittsfield 59.51

Carmi First, Carmi 59.02

Grace Fellowship Ashton, Ashton 59.00

Redeemer, Urbana 58.76

Amboy-Sublette

of 2020

Revitalized churches

When you give to the Cooperative Program, your gifts help start new churches, and strengthen those already

200

67% church

The needs go hand-in-hand. Revitalized churches are better equipped to plant new works where they’re needed.

ASSOCIATIONS Total Per Churches CP Capita Innovation season

Across Illinois, churches have pivoted to address needs created or compounded by the 2020 global pandemic.

Livestreamed worship

Drive-in services

Online discipleship groups

Virtual Vacation Bible School

IBSA has created a collection of resources to help churches navigate COVID-19, including a “Church Helps” webinar series.

Our Illinois mission field is vast. Thank you for your gifts to the Cooperative Program. They make a difference, here at home.

RESOURCE

Let’s not get

(too)

political

But this election season, let’s resolve to engage the process

People can be very passionate about their beliefs. Religion and politics are two of the areas where people can become the most passionate, sometimes too much so, resulting in terrible arguments and division.

Most Christians are familiar with the oft quoted passage from Matthew 22:20-22, when the Pharisees tried to trip Jesus up by engaging him in a political debate:

“‘Whose image and inscription is this?’ he asked them. ‘Caesar’s,’ they said to him. Then he said to them, ‘Give, then, to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’ When they heard this, they were amazed. So, they left him and went away.”

As we enter into the homestretch of the 2020 election season, we would do well to remember Jesus’ words. We should also think about what we personally can be doing to prepare, and what our churches can be doing. Here are few things to think about: Educate yourself. Know the Bible and where God stands on the issues. The Apostle Paul wasn’t afraid to engage the culture, but he knew where God stood on the issues, and Paul stood right there with him. Our culture believes each individual has their own truth. As Christians we know God is the only truth. Remember the old saying: if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.

Diversify. Don’t follow a single media source. Read and watch multiple sources to see things presented from different points of view and to get the whole story. As you watch, don’t let your emotions sway you. Your ultimate guide is the Bible, not emotions which can easily cloud judgment.

Mask-to-mask discussion. We all find ourselves in political discussions with friends across the table or some other way in-person. When you do, think very carefully, and pursue sound, well-reasoned discussion

The Learning curve

The Emotionally Healthy Leader

Peter Scazzero

Highly recommended!

Our leadership team read this book this year. The author’s goal is to help leaders develop a deep, inner life with Christ.

backed up by facts and most importantly, the Bible. You don’t want to hurt your friendship or witness. Social media. How do you use your voice on social media? Some are keyboard warriors while others seek to be a unifying force. Join groups that share your interests and follow candidates to stay up-to-date. Don’t agitate or argue with others. You most likely won’t persuade them, instead you’ll just make them angry. Pray for Springfield, or Illinois, or the USA. During the abbreviated Spring 2020 legislative session, Rep. Dave Severin asked Illinoisans of all denominations and political parties to come together in the House gallery to sit quietly in prayer as it was meeting. This effort can be duplicated at local government meetings and from homes while viewing government meetings online or on television. Postcard prayers. The Illinois chapter of Concerned Women for America provides 12 months worth of preprinted postcards to mail to state and local officials. A prayer is printed on the card—you just sign your name below it and drop it in the mail. Included with the cards is information about the official, their duties, and the area they serve. Visit ConcernedWomen.org for more information.

Voter guides. In some races it’s easy to find out candidates’ views on issues, but not always. Organizations such as the Illinois Family Institute, Illinois Right to Life Action, and others publish voter guides prior to primary and major elections. Visit IllinoisFamily.org and IllinoisRightToLifeAction.org to find out how to get copies.

Become a polling place. Many churches serve as polling places for their communities. If your church would be willing to serve the community in this way, contact your county clerk’s office and tell them about the church building’s availability on election day. They just might need another polling place in your area. Remember, no matter where we stand politically or how divided our nation may seem, we are brothers and sisters in Christ and will live together with him in eternity.

The Color of Compromise

Jemar Tisby

The author describes his book this way: “The Color of Compromise is about telling the truth so that reconciliation— robust, consistent, honest reconciliation—might occur across racial lines.”

Foundations

meet the team

Brock Vandever

Manager, Lake Sallateeska Baptist Camp

Family: My wife, Polly, and I are currently adopting internationally and would love to add more kids to our family through adoption.

Illinois experience: I’m a transplant from Oklahoma but my wife is originally from the Metro East area.

Favorite thing about church as a kid: My family did not attend church together when I was growing up, but every summer my aunt would take me to her church’s VBS. I loved hearing stories from the Bible told with the felt boards. I loved those felt boards!

Favorite thing about church now: I love the corporate worship of communion, as we gather together and each remember the event and the person that changed our lives.

Favorite sports team: Dallas Mavericks

Favorite movie: The Magnificent Seven

Favorite books: To The Heart of the Nile (Pat Shipman), The Screwtape Letters (C.S. Lewis), and Ghost Soldiers (Hampton Sides)

Favorite Old Testament prophet: Amos

Favorite Scripture: 1 John 3:18

Robby and Kandi Gallaty

I know, another “read through the Bible in a year plan.” But this one is designed for readers to meet weekly in small groups. How powerful this could be for your church if several groups were reading the same Scripture at the same time!

– Derrick Taylor, pastor, Net Community Church, Staunton

– Jacqueline Scott, ministry leader, Dorrisville Baptist Church, Harrisburg

– Paige Hume, ministry leader, Lincoln Avenue Baptist Church, Jacksonville

Lisa Misner is manager of social media and public policy.

Painful perfection

I’m a perfectionist. This causes problems with my wife and children who say I am “controlling.” As a Christian I want things to be better, but the harder I try, the worse things get.

the counselor Q A

Here’s a cautionary tale by a recovering perfectionist.

racist–but not like you think

Some of the earliest conversations I remember about the Civil Rights movement were happening above my head in my grandmother’s beauty shop. But while the shampoo-and-set ladies were still sputtering about the Freedom Riders, my first-grade class was being integrated. As I remember it, none of us six-yearolds had a problem with Beverly or Geneva who braved the trip across our Mississippi town to break down racial barriers. At our life stage, segregation was boys vs. girls, and from my side of the playground, it appeared the girls welcomed our small pioneers.

No one discussed the social advance that our recess detente represented; it just was.

MARK McCORMICK

The pursuit of absolute perfection is a false noble cause. The Greek myth of “Sisyphus and the Rock” springs to mind—the eternal punishment of working to complete an impossible task. The internalized pain the unhealthy perfectionist acts upon is often transferred to those they love most. When we are selfrighteous, we are also judgmental. This is the trap, the endless cycle of trying to replace God with self.

Heaven and its inhabitants are sin-free; earth and her inhabitants are not. God’s plan is to redeem us back to perfection entirely, but not here, not yet. True enough, we are called to excellence in our service to others, and in our efforts to honor God. Unhealthy perfectionism is the enemy of excellence, though. It is what legalism looks like in action, and we all know how Jesus reacts to that.

You must be in a lot of pain. The pain driving your perfectionism is where your healing must begin. People around you have seen your good heart. Sadly, you may be blind to your Godgiven goodness, because to you, good is never quite good enough. The humility you need (to connect with to heal) has been displaced by self-imposed tighter limits and an increased effort to avoid losing control.

Reliance upon God’s perfection is the opposite of this. Trusting that God is enough to provide for us requires the submission of self, the letting go of reins, and a continual revisiting of how we became Christians in the first place. Richard Winter’s excellent book, “Perfecting Ourselves to Death,” will be helpful reading, as will counseling with a qualified Christian counselor.

By the way, your counselor won’t be perfect either; remember the goal is to connect with God’s perfection, not the expectation of perfection from ourselves or any other human being.

Mark McCormick is director of clinic operations for Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services. Send questions to IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

As I consider my first cousins, mostly born within a decade of the 1965 Civil Rights legislation, I can say I think many in my generation earnestly confronted our heritage of racism. When a church I served in ethnically diverse New Orleans voted to repudiate racist connections at the time of its founding 75 years earlier, the action felt personal.

We held a ceremony affirming our sorrow for past prejudices and our present love for all peoples, that coincided with similar statements by the Southern Baptist Convention in 1995. We invited our neighboring pastor Fred Luter to celebrate communion with us afterward. And as a pastor, I was especially happy when our friend was elected the first African American president of the SBC.

If you had asked me back then if I were a racist, I would have said no. I would have said no during my decades in Chicago. There I found valuable friendships and partnerships among pastors of many races and ethnicities in my work with the local association and state convention. And when my wife fell ill, I learned we were both on the prayer lists in many African American churches. I felt sure those prayers, frequent and fervent, were heard and answered. I would have said no, because I felt I had repented of racism on a personal level long ago. Many Christians, including Southern Baptists, would say they have asked to see the world and the church and people as God does: neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free.

But in June I was confronted with a new kind of racism—one I could not deny. I watched a murder: Eight minutes and 46 seconds as a white police officer suffocated a black man pinned to the pavement with his knee. It was horrific. Never has any video affected me as that scene did and continues to do so. The resulting marches worldwide served to rip the veneer from claims of colorblind society and equal opportunity. While, like many white Christians, I have sought to end racism on an individual basis and have preached many such sermons through the years, I have not actively challenged systemic racism. Indeed, in that way, I am a racist.

For much of my life, I thought the American dream was avail-

able for everyone who really wanted it, who really tried. My mother, divorced, raised me alone. Yet, I had a good education, entry into a good career field, and open doors for ministry when my call came. If I could succeed given our lowly circumstances, I assumed anyone else could as well.

But no.

The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the resulting protests have shown me what I did not fully see. As Dallas pastor Tony Evans has pointed out, the nation’s failure to confront racism is the church’s failure. Yes, believers may have repented individually and denominations with our statements and resolutions. But our repentance has not produced ministry that overcomes the basic inequities in opportunity. There are whole systems to be reformed, and without the commitment of the church, it won’t happen. Government hasn’t fixed it. Legislation hasn’t fixed it. HUD hasn’t fixed it. HHS hasn’t fixed it.

The social and economic forces that create ghettos and food desserts and underperforming schools and inadequate health care for people of color remain unaddressed. And the criminal justice system is weighted against them, especially young black men. Our penal system rarely succeeds at rehabilitation; it’s not designed for that. The recidivism rate is above 80%. Too often we send people to prison and their punishment is that they are trained to become career criminals.

If those factors were defining and limiting and ending the futures of as many white people, they would not be tolerated. Why do we tolerate them for others?

Repentance does not end racism; it is only the beginning of the ending. And yes, I know the term “systemic racism” will be politicized and argued and even resented. And I do not intend a wholesale indictment of law enforcement or American justice. But the reform that begins in the heart of one person who begins to love like Jesus loves must in turn reform every aspect of our culture. Until it does, no one has overcome.

Eric Reed is editor of IBSA media.

I’m

“That should take care of the pastor’s splash zone.”

Campers’ mission goes on

Volunteers keep annual service weeks at IBSA camps

Streator and Lake Sallateeska | Illinois Campers on Mission travel to camp facilities every summer to help spruce up the grounds and make repairs to buildings onsite. Although 2020 has presented unprecedented challenges for mission teams of all kinds, the Campers spent two weeks at both Streator and Lake Sallateeska this summer.

At Streator, their projects included replacing siding and a garage roof, cleaning bunk rooms, touching up paint, and sewing stuffed bears used to share the gospel with children. At Lake Sallateeska, the Campers painted, built a new porch, and replaced part of the chapel roof, among other projects.

The Campers also said goodbye to outgoing managers Mike Young and Philip Hall and their families, and welcomed Brock and Polly Vandever to Lake Sallateeska, and Jacob and Katie Kimbrough to Streator.

neTworking

Find more information on ministry positions at IBSA.org/connect Send NetworkiNg items to IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org

Central City Baptist Church in Centralia seeks a full-time pastor, but would consider a bivocational pastor for our small congregation of around 60 people. Please send resumes to centralcitybaptistchurch@gmail.com.

“God has been gracious to grant us safety, wisdom, men and women with skills that we need and who can lead others, and the ability to help others while enjoying wonderful fellowship while we serve,” said Camper on Mission Karen Mowers. “We always come excited to get started and leave worn out and exhausted and ready to take a few days off, and come back to do it all again.”

Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services seeks dynamic individuals to serve in donor ministries. Positions are regionally based, full-time or part-time. Contact John McCarty at john.mccarty@ bchfs.com.

Elm Street Baptist Church in Murphysboro seeks a parttime music minister. Qualified applicants should send a resume to esbc1933@outlook.com or Elm Street Baptist Church, 1907 Elm St., Murphysboro, IL 62966.

Nominees needed for IBSA leadership

Have you ever considered serving at the state level?

The IBSA Nominating Committee and Committee on Committees are seeking nominees for at least 30 positions on IBSA’s Boards and Committees.

Go to IBSA.org/nominations for an online nomination form, and a description of the Association’s six committees: Constitution, Credentials, Historical, Nominating, Order of Business, and Resolutions

Affiliating with IBSA

and Christian Life. In addition to IBSA’s committees, the Nominating Committee will recommend people to serve on the Association’s three Boards: IBSA, the Baptist Foundation of Illinois (BFI), and Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services (BCHFS).

E-mail BarbTroeger@IBSA.org for more information or to request a printed form. The deadline for submitting nominations is Aug. 14.

Keep teaching

dave says

QMy wife and I are trying very hard to save money and pay off debt, but we’re not making progress as quickly as I had hoped. What do you think of the idea of putting a hold on our son’s allowance for the jobs he does around the house until we get into a better financial situation?

AKids should learn at an early age that money is connected to work. Even a child who’s in kindergarten is old enough to begin doing some age-appropriate chores around the house.

I admire your drive and determination to get out of debt, but if it were me, I wouldn’t stop the process. I would, however, stop calling it an allowance. There’s a victim mentality attached to that word. He’s doing work, and reaping the rewards.

Churches that wish to apply for affiliation with the Illinois Baptist State Association must submit an application for membership by September 22. Go to IBSA.org/membership to request an affiliation packet. For more information, contact Barb Troeger at (217) 391-3107 or BarbTroeger@IBSA.org.

We did this kind of thing in our home with our kids, but we called it a commission. We kept it very simple for them, and very affordable for us. If they did their jobs, they got paid. If they didn’t do their jobs, they didn’t get paid. It didn’t take long for them to make the connection.

Don’t let these teachable moments slip away!

Q

I read where you recommend investing 15% of your income into Roth IRAs and other pre-tax retirement plans. Do you also advise counting a company match as part of that percentage?

Your 15% A

Employment situations, and employers, can change at any time. I want you putting in 15%. That way, you don’t have to rely on someone else to complete your retirement savings plan. Planning for retirement is your responsibility. It’s not your employer’s job to make sure you have money to live on in your old age. Stick 15% in there yourself. If your employer matches workplace contributions, that’s great. Things will be even better!

Financial advisor Dave Ramsey is a prolific author and radio host.

DAVE RAMSEY

HOT TIN ROOF – Campers on Mission volunteers replaced the roof over Lake Sallateeska’s chapel porch in June, one of many projects they completed at IBSA’s southern Illinois camp facility. The Campers’ annual summer service at the camps also included two weeks at Streator (photo, top left).

Mission Illinois

to talk about our usual state missions stories right now. This is the year when regular ministry stopped, and crisis ministry kicked in. Illinois Baptists were prepared. The work of your state missionaries was refocused on helping churches with their pandemic response.

Together, even now, we rise to the challenge.

Community transformation Church revitalization Ministry innovation

Most years, about half of IBSA churches give around $350,000. This year, we need more churches and higher goals supporting state missions.

Please encourage your church to participate.

Mission Illinois Offering & Week of Prayer

It would seem odd

The Offering is different this year because this year is different.