December 1, 2021 Illinois Baptist

Illinois Baptist

A real life saver

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ‘Build Back’ act raises concerns

Washington | Religious freedom concerns for faith-based child-care programs plague President Biden’s Build Back Better Act approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in November, according to Southern Baptists’ ethics entity. The bill faces a steeper hill in the Senate.

The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) and other organizations urged congressional members to revise provisions in the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package.

They say the legislation will prevent faith-based centers and schools from participating in good conscience in the proposal’s expansive pre-kindergarten and child-care programs. Its mandates, the ERLC and others say, would affect the practice of faith-based recipients, if they choose to participate, in such areas as hiring, admissions, and teaching. It could open providers to requirements regarding gay and transgender rights that conflict with their religious beliefs, critics say.

“Faith-based groups play a vital role in providing quality child-care and pre-K to America’s children,” said Chelsea Sobolik, the ERLC’s director of public policy. “These organizations must have the freedom to serve parents and children according to their religious beliefs.

“Many nonpublic schools intentionally avoid federal financial recipient status because of how it could subject them to troubling provisions related to sexual orientation and gender identity language that raises serious religious liberty concerns,” she said in a written statement. “The Build Back Better proposal must respect the religious freedom of these institutions.”

The Illinois Baptist staff

Editor - Eric Reed

Graphic Designer - Kris Kell

Contributing Editor - Lisa Misner

Copy Editor - Leah Honnen

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) 391-3119 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 62703-4440. Subscriptions are free to Illinois Baptists. Subscribe online at IBSA.org.

The BIG Baptist family album

Illinoisans on the Mission Field

Nate Praytor, his wife, Amanda, and their three children are planting Gospel Grace Church in Woodstock. They have been sent out from Embassy Church in Palatine, a northwest suburb of Chicago.

Pray the news: Jesus at the center

The Nativity at the Illinois State Capitol is but one opportunity to bring the gospel to the public arena. Pray for all who will see the display to have their hearts warmed to the Savior and his free gift of salvation. More on page 5.

Your Cooperative Program gifts at work

NATE ADAMS

Christmas conversations

In this heavily commercialized time of year, advertisements constantly call for our attention, from Halloween to Thanksgiving and on through Christmas. There’s always something to sell, it seems, whether candy and costumes, turkey and travel, or presents and poinsettias.

One major retailer’s Christmas television commercial has especially caught my eye this season. It doesn’t feature any particular product for sale. Instead, it simply shows cheerful people decorating their homes for Christmas, while also walking through the housewares section of this retailer’s store. The words of the peppy song that customers and employees sing to one another as they go about their shopping and decorating are simply, “May you have joy, comfort, and peace.”

The tune is catchy and has stuck in my mind, along with the name of the retailer. The message of the song seems appropriate for the Christmas season, a wish for joy, comfort, and peace. So, in one sense, the commercial seems effective and positive.

At the same time, I found myself thinking, has this retailer simply co-opted these three amazing, miraculous blessings that were proclaimed by the angels when Jesus was born, for the purpose of selling merchandise? Rather than joy, don’t they really mean happy feelings? Rather than the comfort of not being afraid of God’s wrath, don’t they really mean being physically comfortable, perhaps with the help of what you buy at their store? And rather than the peace that comes from being reconciled with God by trusting in Christ, don’t they mean quiet holiday time with friends and family?

This retailer is simply doing what so many merchants do at this time of year—promising the benefits of Christmas without speaking of their true source.

Music teacher Gwen Williams, who calls herself “Miss Chocolate,” leads a class for children at Friendship House in New Orleans. Kay Bennett (right) leads the ministry, which is supported by Southern Baptists and partners with Illinois Baptist Women.

Giving by IBSA churches as of 11/30/21 $5,062,458

Budget Goal year-to-date: $5,603,857

Received to date in 2020: $4,764,984

Total 2021Goal: $6.2 Million

Counterfeit messages can present gospel opportunities.

As I looked online at this and other commercials, I found new Christmas ad campaigns titled “Rebuild the World,” “Believe,” “Walk This Way,” and “One Step Closer to Home.” I’m sure they were all creatively, inspirationally, and expensively produced. But I guarantee they do not understand, promise, or deliver in those messages what the Christ child did when he came to earth.

Still, let’s not just lament what we already know to be true and regrettable about commercialism at Christmas. Instead, let’s take advantage of these counterfeit or corrupted Christmas messages when we see them, and turn them into conversations about the real messages of Christmas. Let’s turn Christmas conversations into gospel conversations.

For example, how simple it would be to ask someone if they had seen the commercial about “joy, comfort, and peace.” Ask what they think of when they think of true joy. Or perhaps, when was the last time they feel they experienced it? What an opportunity to tell someone about the joy that we find in relationship to Christ, no matter the outward circumstances.

Apparently the commercial titled “Believe” is about a reindeer who is squeamish about flying. What a great, light-hearted conversation starter, that could lead to what it means to believe in something wonderful that seems impossible.

And Christmas conversations needn’t be tied to advertisements alone. There are so many ideas and phrases out in the culture at this time of year that can lead someone spiritually back to the true message of Christmas. As is true all year round, the question is whether we are looking for them.

They say the way they teach FBI agents to spot counterfeit currency is by training them thoroughly to know the real thing. As we spot counterfeit or corrupted messages this holiday season, let’s turn them into Christmas conversations that may lead someone to know Jesus personally.

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

The ERLC and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops also have expressed their opposition to the bill’s failure to retain bans on federal funding of abortion. In multiple letters to the Democratic-controlled Congress this year, the ERLC has urged retention of such prohibitions in spending legislation.

Whether religious organizations participate in the expanded child-care program appears to be a significant issue. A national survey by the Bipartisan Policy Center in December 2020 showed 53 % of families that use center-based care place their children in one connected to a religious organization.

The proposal in the budget reconciliation bill would make a significant change in how federal funds for child-care providers are viewed and what restrictions are placed on such centers.

For more than 30 years, the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program has protected the right of faith-based groups to participate to the same extent as non-religious ones. The program gives certificates to eligible parents, who give them to the child-care center they choose.

The CCDBG’s rules guard “the religious identity, religious teaching, religious hiring, and religious admission standards” of religious providers that receive the certificates, according to the Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance.

The House version of the budget reconciliation bill, however, would mandate faith-based providers that receive certificates in the expanded program must abide by the bans on religious requirements for hiring and admissions. The legislation must guarantee that recipients “will not be required to adhere to sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) language” in order to participate, the ERLC said.

Applying the Head Start program’s nondiscrimination requirements, the budget reconciliation proposal would bar sex discrimination, thereby preventing participation by providers that offer sex-segregated care, the bill’s critics say.

The universal pre-K program proposed in the budget reconciliation bill includes the same restrictions as those for child-care but also would grant funds directly to the providers instead of giving certificates to parents. No religious training or activities would be permitted in the pre-K program, according to critics.

Supporters of the requirements insist all child-care recipients of federal funds must abide by nondiscrimination rules, The New York Times reported.

The Build Back Better Act also eliminates prohibitions on federal funding of abortion such as the Hyde Amendment. The Hyde Amendment, which has barred federal funds in Medicaid and other programs from paying for abortions in every year since 1976, has saved the lives of what is estimated to be about 2.5 million unborn children.

– Tom Strode, Washington Bureau chief, Baptist Press

Slade pursues calm after ‘chaos’

Sexual Abuse Task Force reports progress in investigation

Nashville, Tenn. | Headlines coming out of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee (EC) have calmed significantly since October, and EC Chairman Rolland Slade is thankful. The EC members and staff need an opportunity to catch their breath, he said.

not to let outside noise be a distraction.”

Julio Arriola, the EC’s Executive Director for Hispanic Relations and Mobilization since December 2019, announced he has taken a new position as Director of Send Network SBTC, a church planting partnership between NAMB and the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.

Slade said that along with evaluating the EC staffing structure before hiring a new president, they anticipate the third-party investigating firm, Guidepost Solutions, may have recommendations for how to better receive information coming from survivors and local churches within the convention. The Guidepost report will be provided no later than mid-May 2022.

Next steps for the EC include naming an interim president and continuing to pull documents for the sexual abuse investigative team working with Guidepost Solutions, but the day-to-day routines also must continue, he noted.

“We do have lots of questions that need answers, but we are asking if they are really as urgent as they might feel in the moment,” Slade said. “We’ve been through systematic chaos for four years … and we need time to think about what we want to do.”

The top seat shifted from Frank Page to Augie Boto (as interim EC president) in 2018. Ronnie Floyd was elected president in 2019 but resigned in October of this year along with executive vice president Greg Addison and 16 board members.

Slade is committed to establishing stability for the staff and spent the first four days of November onsite in Nashville in what he describes as “a ministry of presence.” He plans to do the same the first week of December and for several months into 2022.

“My intention going in was knowing that Dr. Floyd and Greg wouldn’t be there Nov. 1 (because both wrapped up their time with the EC Oct. 31). “I was there to answer questions and prayerfully be of some comfort,” Slade said. “I wanted to reassure the staff the train isn’t off the tracks...and to encourage them to continue to do what they do.

“They are professionals and are good at what they do,” he said. “I encouraged them

“I don’t expect we’d have a new president before Anaheim,” he said, referring the SBC Annual Meeting in June. “But we will need to hire for Julio’s position....It’s the most critical role to fill right now.”

These and other updates were discussed during the Nov. 10 special called EC meeting, which was held via Zoom. While details coming out of the meeting were shared with Baptist Press for a report posted later that afternoon, other members of the media were not invited to attend.

Slade acknowledged it was an oversight on his part because the agenda seemed like basic housekeeping types of things rather than the dramatic debate that took place in September and October over the vote to waive attorney-client privilege in the Guidepost investigation.

Slade also noted he has encouraged EC members to remain in a state of prayer for a 30-day period.

Survivors, witnesses interviewed

Meanwhile, the Sex Abuse Task Force reports Guidepost Solutions, the third-party company investigating the EC’s handling of sexual abuse claims in the denomination, is making significant progress in the first six weeks of its study. Guidepost has “received and reviewed relevant materials provided on a rolling basis” by the EC staff. Investigators have conducted “numerous interviews with survivors, witnesses, and current and former SBC EC members and staff,” since the contract between the Task Force and Guidepost was signed on Oct. 5.

– Jennifer Davis Rash of The Baptist Paper, and Baptist Press

Missouri’s SBU on probation

The accrediting body for Southwest Baptist University (SBU) in Bolivar, Missouri, has placed the school’s accreditation on probation. The move follows an investigation into actions by SBU and the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) during a three-year conflict at the school over power and theology.

BFI raises ministry distributions

Springfield | The Baptist Foundation of Illinois (BFI) will increase funds distributed to Christian ministries in the fourth quarter of 2021 and first quarter 2022. BFI had projected a distribution of 4.75% for the quarters, but elected to raise it to 5% based on strong investment performance numbers.

The increase represents a significant decision in a volatile economy when most agencies decrease endowment distributions. According to BFI Executive Director, Doug Morrow, the bottom line is that more money will go to Christian causes.

“The Board authorized BFI to distribute endowment gifts based on the total return for 12 regressive quarters,” said Morrow. “During that time, we have seen sustained growth in our endowment production. Of course, as our investments continue to grow, we are able to send more money to support ministry work.”

BFI is projected to distribute more than $333,000 to ministries including IBSA, the Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services, Christian Activity Center in East St. Louis, NAMB, IMB, and local associations.

Retiring but not quitting

Hawkins will focus on pastors, widows in need

The Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a Chicago-based accrediting agency, handles educational institutions in 19 states, mostly in the Midwest. At issue are requirements by the state convention that faculty express support for certain theological positions, and that SBU be subject to the state convention as “sole corporate member.” The HLC wrote, “More time is needed to ensure that the SBU board is...without undue influence from MBC...”

New SBU President Rick Melson said in the statement, “This action is based on governance issues and is not a reflection on the quality of SBU’s academic programs, faculty, or staff.”

Florist case settled

The Washington state florist sued because she refused to provide flowers for a gay couple’s wedding has settled the case after an eight-year legal battle that went before the U.S. Supreme Court and was headed there again. Barronelle Stutzman agreed to pay the plaintiff $5000, and at 77, to sell her floral shop to her employees. A release by her representative at Alliance Defending Freedom said the settlement would allow Stutzman, a Southern Baptist, to “preserve her conscience” and avoid “potentially ruinous legal fees.” In her statement, Stutzman said Jesus “walked with me every step of the way” in the protracted legal fight.

Her parting words were to wish the plaintiff, her former customer, well.

Top 3 persecutors named

A group that tracks persecution of Christians in the world has named three top offenders for 2021: the Taliban, Kim Jong Un of North Korea, and Nigeria, with two guerilla groups that assault Christians. International Christian Concern documented 24 persecuting entities in a 150-page report, based on interviews with believers and leaders who have been attacked. This is the first year they have named a Top 3.

“Nigeria is one of the deadliest places on Earth for Christians, as 50,000 to 70,000 have been killed since 2000,” said ICC President Jeff King. “Nigeria is home to the infamous Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram, which has displaced millions of people and killed tens of thousands of others.”

At least three million Christians in Nigeria have been driven from their homes, ICC reported.

– Christian Post, Word & Way, The Pathway, Christianity Today

Fort Worth | When O.S. Hawkins wakes up in 2022, he’ll have a new job—of sorts. After 25 years, Hawkins will retire as president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s GuideStone Financial Services. He will become president emeritus, and he will continue to champion the cause of retired pastors.

Hawkins is passionate about Mission: Dignity, the GuideStone ministry that provides retirement assistance to pastors and widows near the poverty line. In 2020, Mission: Dignity served more than 1,800 people and donors raised $10.4 million to undergird this ministry.

Additionally, author royalties and proceeds from the “Code” series of books Hawkins has written since 2012 all benefit Mission: Dignity. More than two million copies have been sold for classes and individual use.

“We’re on a mission at GuideStone to provide dignity to some forgotten servants, those retired pastors, and in most cases their widows, who need financial assistance,” Hawkins said. “It is a joy of my life that in our stewardship of GuideStone, we have raised $200 million for these pastors and their widows.”

When Hawkins arrived at GuideStone in 1997, monthly payouts through what was then called the “Adopt an Annuitant” ministry were $50 per month. Today, the neediest couples can receive $600 each month in assistance.

Hawkins is working to raise an endowment to help provide expense grants to Mission: Dignity recipients who may need dental work, a new refrigerator, tires for their cars, or similar expenses that can be prohibitive on the limited incomes of many retired pastors.

In September 2020, Hawkins asked trustees to establish a search committee to identify the leader to whom he would pass the reigns of the ministry. Hance Dilbeck joined Guidestone as President-elect in July 2021. He was Executive Director of the Oklahoma Baptist Convention for three years, and pastored in the Sooner state for 30 years.

“I’m only retooling, though,” Hawkins said. Fit and spry at 73, he has no plans to slow down. “I will dedicate my life to raising money for Mission: Dignity, writing, and teaching,” Hawkins said.

– excerpted from a GuideStone article

Lewis leaves NAMB, starts BLVD

A church planting leader familiar to Illinois Baptists is leaving his role at NAMB for a new project. Dhati Lewis, president of NAMB’s Send Network, will devote himself to launching BLVD (“Boulevard”), an initiative to empower disciple-makers serving majorityminority, multiethnic communities.

“The question for me has always been: Where can I make the greatest Kingdom impact? I’m going to miss leading this

incredible family, but it’s never been about a position or title. It’s about the mission, and it’s one we’re still on together as a Send Network family,” Lewis said.

BLVD seeks to foster greater ethnic diversity among church planters and start more new churches in ethnic minority communities lacking a strong gospel presence, a focus Lewis had while at NAMB. Lewis is expected to collaborate with NAMB and Send Network on this new effort.

– Baptist Press

DHATI LEWIS

HAND OFF – Outgoing Guidestone President O.S. Hawkins (right) leads prayer for his successor, Hance Dilbeck, Jr. (center), at the SBC Annual Meeting in Nashville in June.

BARRONELLE STUTZMAN

Capitol makes room for Jesus

Springfield nativity returns after Covid absence

Springfield | Standing in the State Capitol Rotunda before a nativity display featuring the Christ child, Bishop Thomas Paprocki of the Springfield Catholic Diocese urged Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker to veto legislation which would repeal parental notice of abortion for women under 18.

Paprocki said House Bill 370 (HB 370), the Youth Health and Safety Act, “attacks the rights of not only the unborn, but of parents.” He noted “science shows life begins at conception” and the heart begins beating at 5-6 weeks.

He declared the Capitol building to be a place “where much evil has been perpetrated in recent years” listing multiple laws, many having to do with abortion.

Paprocki was speaking at the ceremony celebrating the 13th year a nativity scene is on display in the rotunda. It was hosted by the Springfield Nativity Scene Committee (SNSC) and underwritten by the Thomas More Society of Chicago. Public scenes expressing religious faith must be privately hosted and temporary, according to interpretations of First Amendment rights. Near the creche stands a menorah and a Christmas tree.

SNSC was the first group in the nation to display a nativity scene in this manner in 2008. Since then, groups in 32 other states have followed.

After Covid’s impact, how do we get worshipers back?

Covid has come. People have left. Attendance is down. So how do we get them back?

This is one of the most common questions asked by church leaders as we look forward to 2022 and beyond. And the question behind the question: Is the current attendance a new normal for the church?

For a while, probably. But here are a few general observations, both from the latest research and from hearing from leaders while consulting throughout the state:

• Worship attendance is down. Lifeway Research reports that the average church is at 63% of their pre-Covid attendance.

• Giving is close to or above budget.

• Bible study group attendance is much lower than pre-covid.

• Ministry to the local community is well received by those accepting help.

Let me argue that all of this is encouraging.

First, we can appreciate the fact that we’re not alone. It’s great news that we still have a core group of members actively attending, serving, and giving to the mission of the church. Praise God for those loving, serving saints!

Second, we have a way to grow our leaders. One way to start is to launch our Bible study groups ministry and help them again become a strong part of the church. After all, whether the groups meet on campus or off campus, a robust groups ministry provides structure, trains leaders, promotes intimacy, and deepens spiritual growth.

Even more, Bible study groups that operate with

a team structure is the wisest approach. Several people within the group can become involved in important tasks, both in growing each other and growing the number in the group. This helps to develop people as they grow, serve, and share their faith.

Third, we can reintroduce our church to our community. Since ministry efforts (such as food distribution) have often been well received by the community, we have an opportunity to reshape and reintroduce our churches to communities who need Jesus!

It also means that we can rethink what membership in a church means: that every member is not just a minister, but even more, every member is a missionary. In other words, our core people, the faithful ones who are with us, can be on mission to reach people in the local community with the gospel as we come out of Covid.

Fourth, we can invite our neighbors. Research indicates that people still do trust their neighbors, and Lifeway reports 51% of them said they would come to church if their neighbor invited them. Our core group of church members can and should invite friends, relatives, associates, and neighbors to church.

When we not only train our people to share their faith, but

also inspire them to do the simple things like inviting those they know and love to church, we can see a gospel movement happen as lives are changed forever.

All is not lost. People need hope. And the church still stands.

Remember that in many cases we still have a core group of faithful members. They stand ready to be mobilized to do high quality, purposeful, and gospel-focused ministry, and that ministry is welcomed by the community.

Fran Trascritti is IBSA’s Team Leader for Leadership Development. FranTrascritti@ IBSA.org.

IN THE ROUND – Singers, clergy, and worshipers gathered in the rotunda Nov. 30 to dedicate the creche. A larger banner nearby cited First Amendment reasons for a religious display in a public space.

Chicago connection

AMissionaries are equipping Hispanics in South Asia ministry to Hispanic people in South Asia had roots in Chicagoland, which may seem to be an unlikely origin story.

IMB workers Skip and Kim Meyer* have spent their lives on two very different mission fields but with the same purpose: giving hope to people who need it and equipping others to do the same.

The Meyers moved to South Asia in 2004 with the desire to plant their lives in an area with a great need for the gospel. Their lives on the mission field started, however, in South America where they grew up as friends—each the child of missionaries. After they married, they knew continued service in international missions was their calling.

“We considered ourselves willing to go to hard places where many others might not want to go,” Kim said. “God confirmed in little ways here and there that South Asia was where He wanted us. It has the greatest concentration of lostness on the planet and it’s our privilege to serve here.”

The region’s 1.7 billion people occupy an area less than half the size of the U.S. God is using Skip and Kim’s knowledge of the Spanish language and Latino culture to mobilize Hispanics and Latinos to serve countries in South Asia that have a desperate need for the gospel. Some of those volunteering for international mission service are from the Latino community in Chicago.

As the Meyers have gone to some of the least-reached areas of South Asia, they’ve ministered alongside and trained Hispanic and Latino Christians who are committed to seeing the gospel reach regions it has never been before.

Skip and Kim said the impetus for their partnership and mobilization of Hispanics and Latinos came through a connection with Hispanic Southern Baptists from Chicago who came on multiple short-term trips. The Lord also facilitated a connection with a short-term team from South America who traveled to South Asia to serve around the same time.

“These short-term teams resulted in long-term teammates who are still with our region today,” Skip says.

Antonio Morales* joined one of the volunteer teams from Chicago and stayed several weeks longer before returning to the U.S.

“This was pivotal in his decision to follow the Lord to South Asia. He went back, convinced his wife Ana*, and the rest is history,” Skip says. Antonio and Ana are now strategy leaders with the IMB.

Counting our blessings in Lottie Moon Offering season

Thanks to Southern Baptists’ generosity, last year’s Lottie Moon Christmas Offering surpassed $5 billion in total giving for international missions since the seasonal offering began 1918. In 2020, IMB missionaries reported

• 769,494 people heard a gospel witness

• 144,322 became new believers

• 86,587 were baptized

• 18,380 new churches were planted.

247 new people groups and places were engaged in 2020, but 7,283 people groups are still unreached. Some 4.5 billion people in the world don’t know Jesus as Savior. And 155,473 people are dying daily without Jesus.

Skip says it is a joy to see them being obedient to God’s call to share the good news in South Asia. The Meyers are strong advocates of the mobilization of churches from Spanish-speaking cultures.

The Meyers frequently host training events for Hispanic volunteers and long and short-term workers. Skip says that leading them to become faithful and effective longterm missionaries is a goal.

During this season for prayer and financial support for international missions through the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, Southern Baptists are encouraged to pray for Hispanics and Latinos as they serve in hard-to-reach regions of South Asia. In particular, remember the Meyers and other IMB missionaries as they serve in areas in great need of the gospel. And pray for more Hispanics and Latinos to answer the call to serve.

*Names changed for security purposes. – from IMB

(1) FAMILY BUSINESS – Former missionaries stand in front of a map of Venezuela with their three children in the 1990s. One of their sons, Skip Meyer*, now serves in South Asia. His knowledge of Latino culture and the Spanish language enables him to mobilize Hispanics and Latinos to serve countries in South Asia that have a desperate need for the gospel.

(2) NEW PATHWAYS – The Meyers walk with their family to local villages, seeking ways to gain entry to a remote area for ministry to South Asians. South Asia has the largest concentration of lostness in the world. The need for more workers is equally great.

(3) POPULATION EXPLOSION – Men and women ride a crowded train in South Asia. The region’s 1.7 billion people occupy an area less than half the size of the U.S.

(4) OPENING DOORS – Another missionary couple, Sebastian and Alicia Calderón*, visit the home of a South Asian man. The Calderóns, who are from Central America, came to serve with IMB missionaries in South Asia.

– Photos supplied by IMB. Learn more at IMB.com.

IN FOCUS

Is wide-eyed fascination still possible after all these years?

BY ERIC REED

rown-ups often say Christmas is for children, especially when they’re surrounded by little ones on a sugar plum rush eagerly reciting their wish lists to anyone with North Pole connections. When our celebrations grow quieter with the passage of time—less about tinsel and toys, more about a few days off and fond memories—we may ask in a different way what Christmas is about.

We know the ancient truth we’ve marked annually since childhood: Christmas is Jesus’ birthday, right? But in a quiet room with just a few lights twinkling and a dog snoozing at your feet, it’s fair to say, What is Christmas all about now?

As a pastor, my favorite moment of the busy holiday season was right after the Christmas Eve service. The last verse of Silent Night was sung, the last candle was extinguished, and the last worshipper stepped out onto the sidewalk. I would walk back into the sanctuary, illuminated

only by the exit sign and lights on the tree, and sit in a back pew.

The atmosphere was still pregnant with the presence of God. (We could debate the theology of that statement, but it felt that way to me.) The Babe was born, the Incarnation re-lived, God with us. For a few more moments I would linger, amazed by it all.

After my reverie, I would unplug the tree lights, lock up the building, and take that feeling home with me.

When I in awesome wonder

We live in an age that needs wonder. Maybe that’s why the Marvel Universe movies are so popular, with Captain Whatever. People need to marvel at something. Superheroes will suffice.

A colleague of mine says we’ve all seen too much. So many mysteries of the universe have been solved that it takes something wildly spectacular to amaze us anymore. Wide-eyed wonder

Set to music

The Christmas carol on page 8 is an Appalachian song collected by John Jacob Niles in Murphy, North Carolina from Annie Morgan, a young woman described as a traveling evangelist. She sang the song repeatedly until Niles memorized the tune and later transcribed it. Niles first published the carol in Songs of the Hill-Folk in 1934.

wonder as I wander out under the sky, How Jesus the Savior did come for to die.

For poor on’ry people like you and like I...

I wonder as I wander out under the sky.

is hard to achieve in a time of ready-made answers and information available on voice recognition. Google knows all. Siri tells all. YouTube reveals all. And you never have to leave home.

On a recent evening, my Smart TV alerted me to simultaneous livestreams of gnus at a watering hole in Namibia, the green glow of aurora borealis over Canada, and a view of deep space with its 10 billion galaxies. (“Your video will play after the ads. 3-2-1...”) I watched all three in live time from my recliner.

Our greatest sense of wonder may come not from considering 100 thousand million stars in the Milky Way (that’s the number scientists say), but instead looking back through time to a single star over a solitary town that produced wonder the world has yet to fully comprehend. Maybe that which produces wonder is not so much “out there,” but in here. That this infinite God cares about lowly humans is a wonder.

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?”

(Psalm 8:3-4)

hen Mary birthed Jesus ‘twas in a cow’s stall,

With wise men and farmers and shepherds and all.

But high from God’s heaven a star’s light did fall, And the promise of ages it then did recall.

f Jesus had wanted for any wee thing,

A star in the sky, or a bird on the wing, Or all of God’s angels in heav’n for to sing,

He surely could have it, ‘cause he was the King.

Lost in wonder, love, and praise

This word translated “wonder” (thauma) appears 44 times in the New Testament, in one form or another. In this form it appears eight times in the Gospels, usually in response to Jesus’ teachings and miracles.

In Luke 1, the people wonder when John the Baptist’s father, made mute for his disbelief, was asked what to name the child. Wouldn’t a miracle baby born to an old couple be named after his father, Zechariah? “He asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marveled all” (Luke 1:63 KJV). Zechariah followed the angel’s instructions after all.

The people wonder again in Luke 2. The news revealed by angels over Bethlehem was so great that the shepherds could not keep it to themselves. A Baby born in a cattle shed is God’s chosen one. “And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds” (Luke 2:18 KJV). Wonder is a human response to things we don’t understand, along with shock, fear, dismay, and awe.

Wonder gives us something to hold tightly when circumstance threatens to overwhelm us. It is the positive side of skepticism.

John the Baptist’s father was doubtful when the angel predicted the old man was to be father to a son. In contrast, young Mary was amazed by the angelic announcement she received, that a virgin would conceive, and it would be God’s miracle plan for saving humanity.

Her wonder would be repeated many times during her Son’s earthly life. “But Mary was treasuring up all these things in her heart and meditating on them” (Luke 2:19 CSB). Another translation says she “pondered” them—an excellent word for the mulling nature of wonder. Something amazing but without ready explanation deserves ongoing consideration. Our wonder should not flicker briefly then be gone, but linger and be turned over in our minds.

Mary stored up her wonder to tell later. In contrast, the Magi’s reaction was immediate. Their wonder produced celebration. Their revelry began as they journeyed from Herod’s palace in Jerusalem to lowly Bethlehem, even before they found the prophesied King. “When they saw the star, they were overwhelmed with joy. Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped him” (Matt. 2:10-11 CSB).

Wonder produces worship, then and now.

Oh, the wonder of it all

A friend in Chicagoland told the story annually about the December without snow. Everyone there loved the first snowfall or two, especially the inchesdeep blanket that transformed bare-limbed December into a winter wonderland.

That year—now over 20 years ago—there was no snow.

Well into December, weather records were broken daily by its absence. Everyone was dreading a green Christmas, my friend especially. This mother of young children envisioned a holiday with sleds and skates and Frosty on the front lawn. How could Christmas be Christmas without snow?

Christmas Eve arrived with a few puffy clouds, but no snow in the forecast. She bundled up her family and they trundled off into the dark for the Candlelight Service. At church, they sang the carols and shared the light and heard the story once again. The Babe was born in Bethlehem, even without my friend’s traditional Midwest blanket of white.

As the pastor opened the doors for the worshippers to depart, my friend saw it: The snowfall had started while they were in worship. Every surface sparkled. The moonlit landscape was indeed a wonder.

“But, you know,” she would say with every telling, “as happy as I was to see the snow, my miracle had happened inside. I realized Christmas would come, and we’d greet Jesus all over again, no matter the weather.”

Isn’t that the essence of Christmas? It isn’t based on outside circumstances, but on the inside.

Christmas distilled is the wonder that God Himself came to earth to be our Savior. Even without the customary festivities, Christmas instills wonder once again. The worship it produces is the right response to the One who did the most wonderful thing ever on our behalf. We need only to revisit Bethlehem...and Calvary.

The wonder of it all, just to think that God loves us.

Eric Reed is editor of Illinois Baptist media.

GROWING

What’s happened to our confidence?

If you watched the recent World Series between the Atlanta Braves and the Houston Astros, perhaps you noticed a 31-yearold reliever for Atlanta named Tyler Matzek. Many pundits talked about how he was the most dominant reliever in the playoffs this year and a key reason why the Braves won.

This young man was a first round draft pick in 2011 but soon found himself out of the major leagues. Why? He lost confidence in his ability to pitch!

gospel. He knew its power, for the gospel had transformed his life. Paul knew if people heard the gospel and responded in repentant faith, it would transform them, too.

The essential question is this: Has the church lost her confidence in the gospel?

If we judged by surveys that tell us about how little Christians share their faith with others, we would conclude that those who claim to have been changed by the gospel have lost their confidence in the gospel to change others.

ence between our belief and our practice.

How do we get there?

(1) Communicate the power of the gospel clearly to our congregations. We must preach with confidence. Preach on the life changing power of the Gospel. Remind our churches of what the gospel has done for them and can do for others.

The Learning curve

Experiencing God

Henry Blackaby, Richard Blackaby, & Claude King

It took quite a while, but he finally made it back, simply because he rediscovered his confidence in his ability.

I am afraid the church is experiencing the same issue, the loss of confidence, not in our ability but something far greater: the gospel!

The church will state her utmost confidence in the gospel! “The gospel is what changed our lives and redeemed us,” she will declare. Perhaps, even more passionately she will state, “The gospel changes everything and is the only hope for the world.” Yet, there is a disconnect in our stated confidence in the gospel and our lived-out actions concerning the gospel.

The Apostle Paul stated, “I must tell the good news to everyone. That’s why I am eager to visit all of you in Rome. I am proud of the good news! It is God’s powerful way of saving all people who have faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles” (Romans 1:15-16 CEV).

Paul’s practice of sharing the gospel is tied to his confidence in its purpose and power. Paul was absolutely convinced that the gospel was the only path and plan that God had to redeem sinful humanity. Paul had complete confidence in the

An objective observer would say the church seems to have few successes to celebrate when it comes to the gospel. If one is honest, the church seems to look a lot like the Tyler Matzek of a few years ago, possessing everything necessary to succeed, but not succeeding, due to a loss of confidence.

What would happen if the church regained her confidence in the gospel of Jesus Christ? Would it not change our churches? Would it not be evidenced by more believers sharing the gospel?

If Illinois Baptists truly want to see a gospel movement sweep across our state and change our communities, it will require once again having complete confidence in the gospel of Jesus Christ. This will mean no differ-

(2) Confront the disconnect between belief and practice. It isn’t easy to point out the inconsistency of maintaining belief in the power of the gospel while never sharing it with others. We must make sure we confront this in our own lives, as well as challenging our people in this area.

(3) Coach our people in the process of sharing to build confidence in their practice. As a pastor-coach, I take seriously the idea that people are fearful to share because they do not feel prepared to share. They need us to coach them. In the new year, our church leaders need to make ongoing evangelism training a normal part of the discipleship process.

Like Paul, I am confident in the gospel! It is still “the power of God unto salvation.” When our churches are confident of this, we will see what God does among us through his Word and his Spirit.

Scott Harris is IBSA Mission Team Leader and Evangelism Director. ScottHarris@IBSA.org

This is an oldie but goodie, and it has just been updated. I did this Bible study with a few ladies from my home church and could not recommend it more. This study helped reveal God and how our experiences with him should be life changing for us, in how we see him and how others see his testimony through us.

The Cost of Discipleship

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

I go back to this book every couple of years. It has been transformational for me to recognize the demands of sacrifice, understanding the difference between “costly grace” and “cheap grace.”

Logos 9

Bible software

About two years ago, I purchased Logos 9. It has been the biggest asset in helping me prepare for Bible studies and sermons. I recommend the digital resource for anyone serious about presenting the Word of God.

– Mariah Bowker Development Officer, BCHFS

– John Yi Church Planting Catalyst, IBSA

– Kelly Carruthers Pastor, Louisville Baptist Church

“A reminder, new regulations require best behavior in flight.”

A gospel movement sweeping across our state will require no difference between our belief and our practice.

Simply put, it’s AWSOM

Teens return for annual discipleship weekend

Decatur | After a year off, 268 girls and their leaders gathered for two days of missions and discipleship at AWSOM, an acronym for Amazing Women Serving Our Maker. The IBSA-led event, held at Tabernacle Baptist Church, featured Chrystie Cole, a women’s ministry leader from Greenville, South Carolina.

“Our hope for AWSOM this year was to provide an opportunity for students to reconnect in person and be challenged and encouraged while surrounded by other girls their age,” said Carmen Halsey, IBSA Leadership Development Director and leader of Illinois Baptist Women.

“We serve a lot of small churches that don’t have large student programs, but discipleship is needed. AWSOM provides an opportunity for a leader to bring students to a time of discipleship and worship, but most importantly they get to see that there are other girls their age seeking to follow Christ as Lord,” Halsey said. “It reminds them that they are not alone.”

More than 260 students and leaders signed up to for a six-week devotional journey delivered on the AWSOM YouTube channel starting

Nov. 15. The video series follows a similar track developed for the Priority Women’s Conference during the Covid shutdown. In this series, Rachel VanBebber helps the young women model abiding with Christ. VanBebber is a student at Southwestern Seminary and has twice interned with Halsey and the IBW team. VanBebber (far right) served as emcee.

January 13

Tax Seminar

What: Valuable tax info for current and retired ministers, treasurers, and other leaders

Where: IBSA Building, Springfield

Contact: FranTrascritti@IBSA.org

January 18-20

Midwest Leadership Summit

What: Focused equipping for leaders from Baptist state conventions across the Midwest

Where: Crowne Plaza, Springfield

Info: MWAdvance.org

January 20

Illinois Leadership Luncheon

What: Midwest Leadership Summit attenders will learn how IBSA can help their churches take its next step in ministry developent.

Where: IBSA Building, Springfield

Contact: Your local association

February 7

Edge Leadership Courses

What: Multi-week training, instructor led, online

Info: IBSA.org/ibsa-online-courses/

Contact: FranTrascritti@IBSA.org

neTworking

Worth a thousand words

(Editor’s note: This picture may be worth two thousand words, or more. Pastor Jon Sedgwick recently reported on a special baptism service at New Hope Baptist Church in Coal Valley. The explanation of the photo sent by Sedgwick (third from the left) is a wonderful and emotional testimony.)

It was a great day in the Lord! We have a baptistery inside, but some family members of those getting baptized did not feel comfortable inside a church building,

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

Heartland Baptist Network seeks part-time Associational Mission Strategist. The successful candidate needs to demonstrate relationshipbuilding, communications, entrepreneurial, and overseer skills. Education: master’s degree from SBC seminaries or Bible colleges preferred. Please send resumé and letter of intent by December 1, 2021 to: PO Box 6352, Springfield, IL, 62708 or e-mail Christine McVay at HeartlandDOMsearch@ gmail.com.

Karnak First Baptist seeks pastor Send resumè to Tamra Peck at tpeck@ joppa38.com or 458 Old Karnak Road, Karnak, IL 62956.

Vienna First Baptist seeks senior pastor. Minimum five years’ experience and seminary training preferred, not required. Send cover letter, picture, 3 references, and link of recent sermon to: P.O. Box 727, Vienna, IL 62995 or vfbc301@gmail.com. Call 618-6583741 with questions.

CLASSIFIED AD

Star Hope Baptist Church, Elsberry, MO, is looking for a full-time pastor Candidate must embrace the tenets of the BF&M, support the Cooperative

Program, and be aligned with the MBC and SBC. Interested candidates should submit their resumés to shbc@starhope. org.

Baptist Children’s Home Executive Director Search

Illinois Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services (BCHFS) seeks Interim Executive Director and Executive Director. BCHFS is a licensed child welfare agency whose mission is to provide Christ-centered services that

protect, heal and restore. The Executive Director manages program services, raises funds, evaluates services to children and families, and more. To apply, send letter of interest and resumé to Rebecca@RebeccaWhittington.net.

so—outside in a trough.

It was an amazing experience and many tears were flowing. We had not baptized anyone in over a year, but the Lord was moving in lives during that time.

From right to left in the picture: A senior in high school who has been going to New Hope for many years and recently committed her life to the Lord. Next is a single mom who has had great struggles in the past, but now is fully committed to living for and growing in the Lord.

The next two are in their 60s and have had trouble with the law in the past. The man went to court the week after the baptism for an infraction in 2016 and was expecting to serve 60 days in jail. I had told him that though we come to Christ, he doesn’t remove the consequences of sin here on earth. He doesn’t give us a “get out of jail free” card. Well, the judge dropped all charges. God is good and this man praised God. They are both hungry to grow in the Lord.

The man (second from left) had a stroke when he was 21 and cannot speak. He has been attending church for a long time and we believe he was saved a few years ago. He wanted to be baptized to show what Christ had done for him. Obedience.

The last man (far left) is a county law officer. He began attending a small Bible study with another county officer and myself and was scared to come into the church building at first. He began to grow and the other law officer led him to the Lord. He is now witnessing to other officers and those he sees professionally.

God is moving and we praise him for his goodness. We are looking forward to many more being saved and getting baptized.

Ministry partners who participated in IBSA’s 2021 Annual Meeting:

Baptist Children’s Home & Family Services

Baptist Foundation of Illinois Campers on Mission

Church Renewal Journey

Gearhart Church Insurance Group

GuideStone Financial Services

Hannibal LaGrange University

Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief

Illinois Baptist Women

Illinois Family Institute

International Mission Board Judson University

Lake Sallateeska Baptist Camp

Madison Adoption

Midwestern Seminary and Spurgeon College

North American Mission Board

Rethink Ministry

Send Relief

Simplify Church

Southeastern Baptist

Theological Seminary

Southern Bus & Mobility

Southwest Baptist University

Streator Baptist Camp

United States Navy Chaplain Corps

Walk Thru the Bible

The big Christmas edition Tracker

Keeping X in Xmas?

XP

100 million

The number of Bibles sold each year on average, with a total value of $425 million Americans purchase at least 25% of them, with many as Christmas presents.

Blogger Matthew Schmitz says “Xmas” never removed Christ from Christmas. The word Christos in Greek begins with the letter “X” or chi. However controversial it may be today, in the early fourth century, Constantine the Great created a military banner with the first two letters of Christ on it: chi and rho (an “r” sound that looks like our capital P).

Scholars say the first time this abbreviation was used for Christmas dates to 1021, “when an Anglo-Saxon scribe saved himself space by writing XPmas.”

– from First Things

$837

BRIGHTER DAY

An unlikely rescuer

Ida Lewis was only 12 when she made her first rescue off the coast of Rhode Island. The lighthouse keeper used her rowboat to save lives for more than 50 years, eventually winning fame for her exploits and a visit from President Ulysses S. Grant. She officially saved 18 lives though the total is probably more. As some tell it, burly soldiers stationed near the lighthouse didn’t want Lewis credited with saving them when they got into trouble.

MEREDITH FLYNN

Numbers

The average per-person amount spent on gifts predicted this year will fall short of the 2019 record of $942, but rise from last year’s low of $820

– Gallup.com

On duty: Baby Jesus’ security guard

British artist Mark Wallinger staged an “art installation” in Leicester Square, according to The Guardian newspaper. He wore a security guard’s jacket and stood on duty over an empty baby crib. When people asked why, he responded, “There’s a baby going to be born soon! We are waiting for the birth of a king!”

– Chrisduffett.com

Skimpflation

Even after they faced death on the stormy seas, they refused to be identified with their unlikely rescuer. You can imagine them shrugging off the idea that they

sented first to the most unassuming of visitors. He was born not just to pluck drowning sailors from the ocean, but to save a world already dead in sin. But the most recent State of Theology report from Lifeway found many of us are unclear on the danger and the rescuer. Just over half of American adults believe Jesus was a great teacher but not God. Surprisingly, 30% of evangelicals agree with the majority. And 65% of Americans agree that everyone sins a little but most people are good by nature. Just under half of evangelicals agree. As parents of small children, we’ve found the nativity to be

ever needed help in the first place.

People

That’s the new term for businesses’ response to Covid’s financial challenges: offer less but charge more. Churches should do the opposite. “People are longing to be treated with dignity, care, and personal attention,” pastor Carey Nieuwhof says. Christmas services may provide the jump start needed for worship in 2022. So, “put your best people on guest services. Look people in the eye. Smile.”

Reginald

the Red-Nosed Reindeer

That could have been Rudolph’s name. The retail store marketers who created him also considered Flossie, Feckless, and Fireball.

I wasn’t familiar with Ida Lewis until a recent trip to New England where several landmarks are named for her. As our tour guide shared about their local hero, I was more intrigued by the soldiers who refused to admit they’d needed saving. That’s an easier boat to put ourselves in—we know the pain of admitting we need a rescuer from a mess of our own making.

There’s a timely parallel between Lewis’s story and the season we celebrate this month. Our rescuer was even more unlikely than 12-year-old Ida Lewis in her rowboat. Jesus was born in a lowly stable and pre-

the easiest part of Jesus’ story to tell our kids. We talk about the manger, the animals, the shepherds and wise men. But in those details we can overlook the frailty Jesus willingly took on, and the peril we face without him. This year, I’m committed to reflect more on those parts of the Christmas story. May we celebrate a Savior born in anonymity, to rescue the world from the danger of sin.

Meredith Day Flynn is a wife and mother of two living in Springfield. She writes on the intersection of faith, family, and current culture.