June 1, 2020 Illinois Baptist

Illinois Baptist

Conflicting guidelines confuse relaunch plans

Illinois | Despite President Donald Trump’s declaration that churches across the country should reopen, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has not loosened limits on church gatherings in the state. In a May 26 press conference, though, Pritzker did appear to welcome churches to submit their plans for reopening safely.

“I think it’s vitally important,” Pritzker said of allowing people to worship. “All we want to make sure is when they do it that they’re safe.”

Under Pritzker’s “Restore Illinois” plan, church gatherings would continue to be limited to 10 people or fewer through most of June. Phase 4, which could start in late June, would increase the cap to 50. Many church leaders have said the limits on church gatherings are too stringent,

Small children in quarantine

SAMMY SIMMONS

CONVENTIONAL WISDOM

Snapshots from the world of Illinois Baptists

In a survey conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, pastors cited the rise of false prophets and less acceptance of traditional morals as two signs of the end times.

PASTORS EXPECT JESUS’ RETURN

97% of pastors at evangelical and historically black churches believe Jesus will literally and personally return to earth again, and the majority expect to experience his second coming:

I expect Jesus to return in my lifetime.

Not sure

Disagree

– LifeWay Research, April 2020

CHURCH NEEDED HERE

Location: Western Rock Island

Focus: Multicultural communities

Characteristics: This diverse region in the Quad Cities is home to immigrants and refugees from Africa and the Middle East.

Prayer needs: Pray for a new church plant to share the gospel faithfully in Rock Island and show God’s love and compassion.

– IBSA Church Planting Team

the cooperative program

Giving by IBSA churches as of 05/22/20 $2,005,447

Budget Goal: $2,423,077

Received to date in 2019: $2,354,869

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

Pivoting

Recently I was talking with my wife, Beth, about a situation at work where we were heading in one direction, faced some major obstacles, and had to pivot to a new direction. Then we faced additional obstacles and had to pivot again. As I shared my frustration, I noticed Beth grinning, and asked why. “That must be your new word,” she smiled. “You seem to be ‘pivoting’ a lot lately.”

I had to admit it was and is true. These days we are still meeting obstacles and changing directions over and over, it seems, and in ways that are making many of us, not just me, look for a word that is more precise than just change, or adjust, or even turn. We are pivoting.

I think I first came to understand what pivoting means when I was a young boy learning to play basketball. After learning the fun parts of the game like dribbling and shooting, I was told that if you stopped dribbling you had to keep one foot in place, your pivot foot.

At first, I found that quite limiting, and even a little annoying. But I eventually learned that, once stopped, the ability to pivot on a firmly grounded foot actually gives you much-needed flexibility to look all around for a different way forward. And in these days of sudden stop due to the Coronavirus pandemic, many of us are doing just that.

For several weeks now, most churches have needed to stop public meetings and pivot to online worship services. Sunday school and Bible study groups have had to stop small group gatherings and pivot to helping members learn how to videoconference. We’ve pivoted from offering plates to online giving, from personal visits to phone calls, and from the handshakes and hugs of fellowship to virtual waves and smiles.

And the pivoting is far from over. Some churches have already pivoted again to drive-in worship services or drive-through giving. Others are preparing to pivot to reopened buildings with physical distancing, one-way hallways, face masks, hand-sanitizing stations, and alternate service times.

Some churches are pivoting to new financial realities. Some are pivoting to new ways to perform funerals and weddings. And thankfully, many are pivoting to creative new ministries in their communities, communities full of people being forced into their own pivoting.

As in basketball, having your forward progress and plans halted suddenly, and against your will, can cause frustration and sometimes even a competitive anger. Many of us have been forced to “pick up our dribble” when we’d much rather be driving directly to the basket and scoring.

But there are some wonderful, innovative things that can happen when you are forced to stop, and to reevaluate, and to look for creative alternatives. You may be able to see your options, and even your defenders, more clearly. You may be close enough to the basket to pivot to a creative shot you hadn’t planned. Or you may spot a teammate who is in an even better position to score.

Even in the midst of this tragic and frustrating pandemic, I have seen churches reach wider audiences, discover creative new ways to serve their communities, and mobilize members with previously unused skills. I have seen older pastors learn to use new technology tools, and less vulnerable members learn to compassionately serve more vulnerable members. I have seen churches display remarkable resilience, generosity, and creativity. And it all came as a result of pivoting.

We certainly didn’t choose this stoppage. But how we as churches choose to pivot in the midst of it will make all the difference.

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

Good things can happen when we’re forced to stop and reevaluate.

Protest at new clinic

After Planned Parenthood opens 19th Illinois location

Waukegan | As non-essential businesses remained closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Planned Parenthood opened a new clinic in northern Illinois. The clinic is the organization’s 19th in Illinois and, like its predecessor in Fairview Heights, was built in secret. The Waukegan Health Center is located within a 1.5-mile radius of both a middle and a high school.

“We knew it was coming, especially after the passage of last year’s Reproductive Health Act,” said Bonnie Quirke, president of Lake County Right to Life. “Still, it was devastating.” The Reproductive Health Act, which allows abortions throughout pregnancy, was signed into law last June.

The Pro-Life Action League organized a protest May 22, posting on Facebook that 400 people turned out to speak out against

the clinic.

Waukegan is in Lake County, the third largest county in Illinois. According to a May 12 media release from Planned Parenthood announcing the opening, the clinic was originally scheduled to open in March, but was delayed due to the Coronavirus.

Quirke has visited the location and noted the new landscaping includes multiple fir trees around the entrance, and that the public sidewalks have been removed from around the building. The building formerly housed a bank and has 100 parking spaces.

Quirke urged churches and church members to act. “We have given up our religious rights, we have allowed abortion rights, and have remained silent,” she said. “We have to mobilize.”

– Lisa Misner

Mandated reporters

Attorney advises training for all children’s ministry workers

Springfield | Changes passed in 2019 to the Illinois Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act and made law this year have left church leaders confused over who is required to complete mandated reporter training. Prior to the changes, within churches, only pastors were mandated reporters required to complete online training provided by the Illinois Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS).

Now Andrew Willis, an attorney for the Chicago-based church law firm Mauck & Baker, is advising churches to consider all church childcare workers—professional or volunteer— mandated reporters who are required to complete the online training.

In an article addressing the confusion, Willis noted the law doesn’t make a distinction between paid or volunteer workers and specifically uses the term “professional or official capacities,” which would include unpaid roles. “It is therefore advisable for churches to consider all volunteers in roles

that require interaction with youth under the age of 18 to be informed that they are mandated reporters and have them undergo certified training,” Willis wrote.

According to the law, a mandated reporter is required to report when they have “reasonable cause to believe that a child known to them in their professional or official capacities may be an abused child or a neglected child.” A child is defined by the state as anyone under the age 18.

DCFS provides free online training to mandated reporters at mr.dcfstraining.org. The training takes 60-90 minutes to complete.

Anyone can report abuse by calling the DCFS hotline at (800)-25-ABUSE (800252-2873). DCFS is required to protect the caller’s anonymity. However, if the case goes to court the name may become public. Willis’s full article is available at mauckbaker. com.

– Lisa Misner

remembrance

Journey Church founder mourned

“Do not think his final moment is the last word on his life,” Ed Stetzer wrote of Darrin Patrick, who died May 7. “He cared about pastors and his death reminds me that we need to care about them as well.”

Patrick died of an apparent selfinflicted gunshot wound while target shooting with a friend, his church announced. The 49-year-old pastor was serving as teaching pastor at Seacoast Church in South Carolina, but is best known as the founder of Journey Church in St. Louis. The multisite congregation currently has five locations, including one in Belleville, Ill.

Patrick was removed from leadership at Journey in 2016, after which, Stetzer wrote, the pastor used his struggles and eventual restoration to help others.

Patrick is survived by his wife, Amie, and their four children. “We will be a mess for a good while,” Amie Patrick posted on social media, “but we will be ok. We grieve deeply with unwavering hope that this world is not the end and that we will see our Darrin again.”

– Christianity Today, Christian Post

Marveled at salvation

Ravi Zacharias, renowned Christian apologist, evangelist, and author, died May 19 after a brief battle with cancer. He was 74.

“It was his Savior, Jesus Christ, that my dad always wanted most to talk about. Even in his final days, until he lacked the energy and breath to speak, he turned every conversation to Jesus and what the Lord had done,” his daughter, Sarah Davis, wrote after his death.

“He perpetually marveled that God took a 17-yearold skeptic, defeated in hopelessness and unbelief, and called him into a life of glorious hope and belief in the truth of Scripture—a message he would carry across the globe for 48 years.”

Born and raised in India, Zacharias was saved at the age of 17, saying he was converted after attempting suicide when a Youth For Christ worker visited him and read from the Gospel of John. He earned degrees from Ontario Bible College (now Tyndale University) and Trinity International University.

He founded Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in 1984. In addition to speaking all over the world, Zacharias also wrote or edited more than 30 books.

– Baptist Press

DARRIN PATRICK

RAVI ZACHARIAS

COVID hampers flood relief

Disaster Relief leaders in Michigan said concern over COVID-19 has amplified urgent needs resulting from severe flooding in the state. As the Baptist State Convention of Michigan mobilizes response teams, state disaster relief director Bob Kiger said some volunteers might find the work too risky in a state hard-hit by COVID-19.

Kiger also said some displaced residents are scared to stay in shelters due to the threat of Coronavirus spreading there. He reported some Michiganders are sleeping in their cars outside shelters. “What the church is going to be able to do is make sure these people have food,” Kiger said, “and possibly guarantee them that they will at least be socially distanced from everybody else” inside shelters.

SBC officers call for lament

The elected officers of the Southern Baptist Convention called for lamentation and solidarity after 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery was gunned down while jogging in a neighborhood outside Brunswick, Ga. The investigation of Arbery’s death lagged until video of the shooting was released. Three men have since been arrested and charged in the case.

SBC President J.D. Greear and Vice Presidents Marshal Ausberry and Noe Garcia called the moment a “crucial opportunity to share the love of Christ” in a letter to Baptist state convention executives obtained by North Carolina’s Biblical Recorder newspaper. “Leaders can guide their congregations to a season of prayerful lament,” Ausberry, SBC first vice president, told the Recorder. “Leaders need to address the sinfulness of what has occurred, practice forgiveness, and pray for justice.”

Roe’s turnaround debated

The pro-life activism of Norma McCorvey was called into question after the May release of “AKA Jane Roe.” McCorvey, better known as Roe in the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion, became a pro-life advocate and converted to Christianity later in her life. But the new documentary purports she made the switch because pro-life leaders paid her.

Some of McCorvey’s friends and acquaintances spoke in defense of her turnaround. “Her many years as a dedicated pro-life advocate was not a lie,” former Planned Parenthood director turned pro-life advocate Abby Johnson posted on Facebook. “The abortion industry is a lie. They lied about and manipulated her so many years ago, they did it right before her death and they are even doing it after her death.”

– Baptist Press, Biblical Recorder, Christian Post, Facebook

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

IMB cuts spending amid shortfall

SBC entities will report at online meeting June 2

Richmond, Va. | The COVID-19 global pandemic has contributed directly to a shortfall of about $4 million in the International Mission Board’s budget, and necessitated spending cuts and a hiring freeze for stateside positions.

During a virtual meeting May 13-14, IMB trustees approved the appointment of 59 new missionaries and received an update on the impact of the pandemic. IMB President Paul Chitwood noted that increased giving through the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering had the IMB strongly positioned when the pandemic began, but said the impact on local churches (and from there the IMB) “is quickly becoming evident.”

Chitwood said revenue for March and April was $2 million below budget. Meanwhile, the IMB has incurred approximately $2 million in unbudgeted expenses while evacuating and relocating IMB personnel because of the pandemic.

“That...includes getting our missionaries back to the field, or, in some cases, getting them established in new places,” Chitwood said. “Some of our missionaries were required to leave everything behind and will need to start life anew in another harvest field.”

Chitwood said along with spending cuts, the hiring freeze was instituted “for most stateside staff positions.” Regardless of the pandemic, Chitwood assured trustees the work of IMB missionaries continues. And significantly, 59 more will soon be in the field. The new missionaries, along with two others appointed in January, will be

commissioned in a first-ever virtual Sending Celebration June 9 at 6 p.m. (CDT). The celebration will premiere live on IMB’s Facebook page and will also broadcast on IMB’s Vimeo channel and Twitter feed.

SBC goes online June 2

While the 2020 SBC Annual Meeting has been canceled for the first time since 1945, Southern Baptists will still have an opportunity to hear from SBC entities through an online event June 2 hosted by the SBC Executive Committee.

SBC Advance, a two-hour online event, is not designed to be a substitute for the annual meeting, but will provide ministry updates from and interviews with all SBC entity and auxiliary heads, as well as SBC President J.D. Greear. The event will be livestreamed at SBCadvance.com starting at 2 p.m. (CDT) Tuesday, June 2, and will be available online afterward.

Sallateeska Camp manager named

Brock Vandever will join the IBSA staff as camp manager at Lake Sallateeska, the state association’s camp facility in southern Illinois.

He and his wife, Polly, previously served 10 years in West Africa, where they worked to plant churches among a people group that is less than 1% Christian. The Vandevers also helped equip local churches and believers for evangelism, church development, and discipleship, and coordinated logistics for visiting mission teams.

Prior to their decade overseas, the Vandevers were part of Metro Community Church in Edwardsville, where Brock served as a small group pastor intern. He is a graduate of Southwestern Seminary, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in theology and is working toward his Master of Divinity in church planting.

“We are excited to be joining the IBSA team,” Vandever said. “Our heartbeat is to join the work God is doing in Illinois, use the

gifts and talents the Lord has given us, and help people as they grow in their relationship with him. We feel honored to have the opportunity to serve the churches of Illinois at Lake Sallateeska.”

The Vandevers will begin their service in Illinois July 1.

– From Baptist Press reports

COMMITTED – South Asia, site of the worship pictured above, is one of the regions where IMB workers are engaging people groups previously unreached with the gospel. Photo from IMB

Photo from Baptist Press/Facebook

NORMA McCORVEY

From the front: pastors weigh scripture and guidelines for resuming worship

Continued from page 1

especially if entertainment venues and other businesses are allowed to reopen.

The same tension has been felt in many places across the country. Churches in California and Minnesota made national headlines by defying governors’ orders and meeting in-person. President Trump called churches “essential” May 22 and urged them to reopen immediately, saying he would “override” any governor who didn’t allow it. Pundits debated whether Trump has authority to overrule state orders.

The national conversation has undoubtedly added to pressure and confusion local pastors are facing as they prepare to reopen their churches, or prepare for more weeks of waiting. Wheaton College’s Ed Stetzer called on pastors to ask Pritzker for the opportunity to collaborate on reopening plans.

“We do not think that Chicago churches need to open now—this weekend. There is too much community spread,” Stetzer wrote on his blog. Still, he said, the church can’t stay closed forever. “Right now, there is no end date and no hope for churches meeting.” Stetzer has led a group of church and denominational leaders in Illinois to send a letter to Pritzker, asking the governor to more strongly consider churches’ needs.

Even without looser guidelines, some Illinois churches are planning to reopen early or are already hosting in-person services.

Several non-Southern Baptist churches in northern Illinois defied the stay-at-home order in May, and three were fined by Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot (see column at right).

New Beginnings Christian Fellowship, an IBSA church in Ashland, gathered in their building on Mother’s Day after several weeks of drive-in services in the parking lot. “It was a small enough group of people, we were able to social distance,” said Pastor Darin Peterson. The church has continued meeting indoors since then and plans to do so going forward.

Peterson said the state’s current measures have gone beyond the responsibility of government. Still, the pastor said, his church is making some modifications. They’re not holding traditional Sunday school for now, moving classes online instead. Childcare currently isn’t offered at the church, which usually runs fewer than 30 in worship on Sundays.

New Beginnings reflects what most churches will likely find when they finally do reopen—the need for new patterns and practices, and, in some cases, a very different landscape than the one they left.

Guidance for the way forward

IBSA hosted two virtual town hall meetings in May to address the state’s reopening plan and its impact on churches. Pastor panelists shared their churches’ plans and highlighted the struggle between following the biblical mandate to meet together, submitting to authorities, and loving their neighbors.

In Benton, Pastor Sammy Simmons said his church has tried to be good neighbors to their community during the pandemic. Immanuel Baptist has given out food, and worked to support local schools, city workers, and nursing home administra-

CHURCHES, TOGETHER – First Baptist Church of Petersburg and Together Church in Springfield gathered for drive-in worship in the parking lot of a local high school May 17.

tors. The church launched drive-in services in May, with Simmons preaching under an umbrella on one rainy Sunday (see photo on page 1). They’ve also sought to persuade government officials, Simmons told the IB.

“We have written a letter to the governor, had a conversation with our mayor, and talked at a Franklin County Board meeting,” said Simmons, who is president of IBSA. “I hope we have been a blessing to our elected officials during this time. However, we have wrestled like many churches with God’s commands, the governor’s phases, and wanting to love our county well.”

Currently, Immanuel plans to begin holding worship services in their building June 7, limiting seating capacity and utilizing different areas of the building while also holding multiple services.

In Chicagoland, Pastor Scott Nichols and his church are also wrestling with the tension between church and state. The uneasy relationship between the two spheres is actually a good thing, Nichols wrote in a reopening plan for Crossroads Community Church, a multisite congregation with campuses in Carol Stream and DeKalb.

“The governor did not stop us from meeting—we chose to comply,” Nichols said.

“And while the time may come for meeting despite government orders, we will comply for as long as our convictions allow that choice.” His church is currently planning for a July 5 reopening with multiple gatherings of 50 people across all sites. They will also continue online worship.

As churches across Illinois and the U.S. prepare to reopen, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines for communities of faith, including encouraging face coverings, promoting social distancing, and minimizing sharing of worship materials. The guidelines are available at cdc.gov.

At a May 26 press briefing, Pritzker was asked if the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) will release specific guidelines for churches, as the agency did for state legislators when they reconvened in Springfield. Pritzker said lawmakers created their own plan and brought it to public health officials for review.

The same is true of worship, he said. “We want them to have their own ideas, what will work for them, and then make sure IDPH guides them in the proper ways.”

Every Thursday at 11 a.m., IBSA hosts a webinar to help churches navigate issues related to COVID-19. Go to IBSA.org/churchhelps for more information.

– Meredith Flynn

Location makes uneven and uneasy reopening

Tensions escalate in Chicago

Three Chicago churches were fined for meeting in violation of the state’s stay-at-home order. The churches, none of which are Southern Baptist, were fined $500 each. Willie Wilson, a Chicago businessman and former mayoral candidate, announced he would pay the churches’ fines, NBC5 Chicago reported. “It is shameful that the church is discriminated against while liquor stores, marijuana dispensaries, and Home Depot are treated as essential businesses,” Wilson said.

Chicago’s Department of Health sent letters to the three churches in late May, threatening to temporarily close them down if they continue meeting in groups of more than 10. Pastor Cristian Ionescu of Elim Romanian Pentecostal Church told NBC5, “There is not going to be a stand down on our part.”

What is your best guess on reopening your building for worship?

839 17 28+8+

8% 39% 17% 8%

28%

May June July Fall or next year Don’t know/ haven’t decided

109 pastors responding to a survey following the May 14 IBSA Town Hall

Virginia churches coalesce

Nearly 200 Virginia pastors sent Gov. Ralph Northam a letter in mid-May, asking for modifications to executive orders that banned gatherings of more than 10 people. Northam responded, including churches in phase 1 of the state’s reopening plan and allowing indoor gatherings at 50% seating capacity, plus other precautions.

“Our main thing was, first off, we understood the seriousness of the pandemic, that our churches were autonomous but also responsible, and that we really wanted to ask the governor to make sure to trust the people of his state and the churches of his state,” said Brandon Pickett, associate executive director of the SBC of Virginia. “And especially with freedom of religion, that our churches could be free, safe, and responsible all at the same time.”

California allows small gatherings

After a San Diego church appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court for relief from the state’s stay-athome order, Gov. Gavin Newsom released guidelines for churches to begin reopening. Newsom had previously won legal challenges made by churches, but was warned by the U.S. Department of Justice not to discriminate against them in his reopening plans. California reopening guidelines for church gatherings limit attendance to 25% of building capacity or 100 people, whichever is lower.

IBSA. org

Disaster Relief adapts to meet new needs

Strategic partnerships play key role in ministry during pandemic

Springfield | Disaster Relief volunteers are used to running toward danger or its immediate aftermath. “With this COVID-19 response, it’s very difficult to find ways that we can run to that danger,” said Butch Porter, state director for Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief (IBDR).

This season traditionally finds volunteers on the road, traveling throughout the state and elsewhere to help after spring storms. But as the Coronavirus pandemic has restricted normal operations, DR volunteers have shifted focus, and are partnering with organizations and ministries across the country to meet urgent needs.

In Chicago, IBDR deployed a laundry unit to the Coney Park YMCA. The unit, provided through a partnership with Missouri Disaster Relief, will be onsite through mid-June at least, Porter estimated. IBDR partnered with the North American Mission Board to provide another laundry unit in Chicago to serve a shelter for women and children.

Volunteers also worked to provide needed supplies across the state, including masks. Individual IBDR volunteers and IBSA churches made cloth masks to send to Chicago church planter Bryan Coble, who will use the masks to minister in his church’s Irving Park neighborhood.

Porter said IBDR will also receive a large shipment of cloth face masks from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to be used by churches and organizations across the state as needed. FEMA also plans to provide meals for distribution in 13 southern Illinois counties.

IBDR has also supplied toilet paper for the Christian Activity Center in East St. Louis, and meal supplies for a food pantry in Herrin, Ill. House of Hope posted a thank-you on their Facebook page for the 40-plus cases of to-go trays that will help them get meals to more people in need. Additionally, Porter

Cleaning product ready

Available for churches preparing to reopen

Illinois | Disaster Relief will provide disinfectant cleaning solution to churches and other facilities preparing to reopen as the state loosens COVID-19 restrictions. Churches, church schools, daycares, senior living facilities, nursing homes, and families can pick up the cleaning product at one of 16 locations across the state.

The bleach solution will be available in most parts of the state by June 1. It is pre-mixed with water and ready to use. Disaster Relief training director Sharon Carty said the

team will also have other products available for churches and families.

“I’m very excited that we will be able to assist our churches in a new and different way through Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief,” said Carty, a member of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Carlinville.

Instructions will be provided when the product is distributed. Individuals picking up bleach are asked only to bring a clean container with a lid. For a list of where disinfectant is available, go to IBSA.org/dr.

said, volunteers in Wabash Association will distribute several pallets of paper goods provided through Matthew 25 Ministries of Ohio.

For more information about IBDR and upcoming opportunities to serve, go to IBSA.org/dr.

Positions open

Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services needs people with heart

We are seeking dynamic individuals with great communication, development, and organizational skills. Positions will be regionally based and perfect for bivocational pastors. Everyone encouraged to apply; full-time and part-time roles available.

MR. CLEAN – Disaster Relief volunteer Glen Carty delivered bleach solution to be used by churches across Illinois.

DELIVERING HOPE – Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief donated more than 40 cases of to-go containers to the Herrin House of Hope food pantry, one of several projects volunteers have completed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

How Christianity answers COVID-19

At the end of March, Time published an essay by distinguished New Testament scholar N.T. Wright with the rather brazen title “Christianity Offers No Answers About the Coronavirus. It’s Not Supposed To.” The title is wrong, and the essay is strange, to say the least. But it serves as an interesting catalyst for asking what answers the Christian faith does have regarding the present pandemic.

Dr. Wright reflects on the privations we’re experiencing, which are indeed painful—not to mention the many who are sick and have died....For Wright, those who try to offer explanations are silly, rationalistic, and acting in a pseudo-Christian manner.

Wright doesn’t think that offering an explanation is the appropriate Christian response; nor does he think that offering concrete hope is: “What if, after all, there are moments such as T.S. Eliot recognized in the early 1940s, when the only advice is to wait without hope, because we’d be hoping for the wrong thing?”

Now, there surely are bad ways to offer answers in a time of crisis. People do offer trite and unhelpful words to those who are suffering. People go well beyond what God has revealed, and declare that the disaster is a punishment for x sin, and will go away if people do y....

The church does not have a specific answer for this specific disease. But the church does have an encompassing answer that applies to this disease as to every disease of this world, the people on it, and our souls: the sufferings of this world are the result of sin. And the church does have a hope, and should “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the

reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15). God has provided a wonderful answer to all suffering, the gospel of Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Is the coronavirus pandemic a punishment? Yes, for our world is in rebellion against God Almighty. Is it a warning? It should be. Every disaster and disease is a memento mori (a symbol of death), urging us to remember that we should use this short life to prepare for the life to come.

Is it a sign? It signifies that this world is broken, and our time here is short. But does that mean “the only advice is to wait without hope, because we’d be hoping for the wrong thing”? Not if we’re hoping for the Second Coming, the Parousia.

T.S. Eliot has good things to say, but I prefer the apostle Paul on this one: Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope…For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words”

(1 Thessalonians 4:13, 16-18).

Joshua Steely is senior pastor of Chatham Baptist Church. This is an excerpt from a longer essay published on ChristianPost.com.

From Coronavirus: the gift of uncertainty

We Baptists are a certain people. We are sure about our theology. We are sure about our ecclesiology. We are sure about the way we do things, or we’d belong to some other denomination, Baptists are fond of saying. As we have it all right, there’s no need to switch.

But in the COVID season, we all have to grapple with uncertainty—even the Baptists. And maybe that’s one of the lessons of the pandemic.

The pundits were all clear immediately after the shutdown: When the shelter-at-home order was lifted, we would all find that “church” would be completely different. People would abandon in-person meetings for the joy of virtual meet-ups from their own homes. People would take responsibility for their own discipleship, having

learned to manage without in-person teachers. People would find myriad ways to minister based on new needs brought on by quarantine and isolation and privation. And communities which had largely ignored Christianity in recent decades would be hungry for the gospel message.

But what if they’re not beating down the door once we’re back to open it? And what if our own people stay away out of concern for their health? Or what if the uncertainty of the times— and lack of clear evidence of what God is doing right now—makes them ask questions for which we don’t have certain answers?

Dare we say, I don’t know?

A few evangelical analysts are backing off their sweeping statements that the whole world is radically changed

It’s not about our rights

It often amazes me that even small things can separate brothers and sisters because of our human sinfulness. No wonder our Lord— and the New Testament—challenges us to love one another and reminds us that “love covers a multitude of sin” (1 Peter 4:8). Frequently the sin is not in the issue at hand. Frequently the sin is the loveless, arrogant attitude that insists that we are right.

Christianity is not about our rights. In fact, almost the opposite is true. Christ gave up his rights (Philippians 2) and died on a cross of love for you and for me. Paul instructs us that love gives up rights for others (1 Corinthians 13), and that we should sacrifice our rights for our brother (1 Corinthians 8).

Our adversary, the devil, will use anything to separate the people of God. Unfortunately, because of our human arrogance and our willingness to turn ant hills into mountains, we quickly escalate from differing opinions to vilification. We make tertiary issues into primary issues. We fight over tiddlywinks while the world goes to hell.

In these days, there are going to be differences of opinion regarding the reopening of our churches for public worship. Prayerfully extend grace to your brothers and sisters who may see things differently than you do. Go the extra mile to make your church family comfortable by abiding by the collective wisdom of your leaders. If you feel uncomfortable with your leaders’ decisions, stay home a little longer. If you are at risk due to health issues, please be safe and wait. Out of love, your brothers and sisters will understand.

Please wear the mask, or whatever else you must do, for your brother, and don’t grumble about the sacrifice you are making. Jesus never grumbled about what he did for you.

Leo Endel is executive director of the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention. This is excerpted from an essay on Baptist Press.

on the other side of the pandemic. But not enough of those in-the-know are yet saying “I don’t know.” And maybe they should.

Not knowing is part of being human. It’s one of the things that distinguishes us from God. God knows, because he is God. We don’t know, because we are not God. And that distinction makes us rely on God all the more.

Uncertainty is a gift I have not opened—until now. I have lived most of my life fairly certain of things, even in extended seasons of change, illness, death, and loss. But now, in the tidal wave of uncertainty, I am more willing to say, “I don’t know; only God knows.”

Of that I am certain.

Eric Reed is editor of Illinois Baptist media.

“Disciplined runners consistently clear their heads and focus fully on the journey ahead…because their passion and zeal for the goal supersedes the strain. The goal beckons them onward. Passion doesn’t negate weariness; it just resolves to press beyond it.”

– Priscilla Shirer, teacher and author

LEO ENDEL

The church in action

Across Illinois, congregations are launching ministries and adapting plans to meet needs and share the gospel.

Care packages go fast in hard-hit neighborhood

Chicago | After Starting Point Community Church had to scrap more than one plan to help their community due to COVID-19 restrictions, Pastor Jonathan de la O said his congregation started back at square one with a simple question.

“What can we do?”

The answer: Fill as many boxes as possible with purchased and donated items. Then, invite the neighbors to drive by and pick up the boxes full of groceries, toiletry items, and art supplies for kids. Within half an hour, the pastor said, the boxes were gone.

Starting Point’s ZIP code on the city’s northwest side has one of the highest totals of Coronavirus cases in the state. The economic fallout has also been hard on his community, de la O said, with residents already under-resourced and some not eligible for aid through the CARES Act. “We’ve got to find ways to serve them” has become his church’s mission. When de la O posted a video about the first box giveaway outreach, the church raised $1,000 toward the next project in a matter of hours. One neighbor dropped groceries off on de la O’s porch to be included. The church plans to distribute the boxes one Saturday a month through August at least.

“We are a small church with a big heart and an even bigger God,” de la O said. “We believe that God is orchestrating everything, and that he can and will use us to share Christ with others.”

Harrisburg | With people unable to meet in large groups, the COVID-19 pandemic threatened to shut down a southern Illinois church’s weekly community meal. But faced with the question of whether to continue, organizers Joe and Stacey Thompson said the answer wasn’t if, but how.

The Harrisburg couple has continued the ministry of First Baptist Church, adapting their regular plan of sharing a meal around tables at the church, and instead serving hundreds of meals curbside every Thursday evening. Across the state, churches made similar adjustments for heightened restrictions, while still responding to basic needs—needs the pandemic has made even more urgent.

In Chicago, Harmony Community Church has run a food pantry ministry for more than a decade, but the pantry’s coordinator told The New York Times Magazine the number of people in line increased by almost 50% in mid-March.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the state, the Thompsons have also seen an increase at His Table, the weekly meal ministry in Harrisburg. Joe, an associate pastor at the church, said they’re serving more than 300 meals each week.

“We’re grateful to be able to serve them,” he said. “We’re hopeful when this changes, they’ll continue to come and sit down with us.”

Churches across Illinois are also supporting community food pantries and feeding initiatives. When a local soup kitchen temporarily shut down because of the pandemic, First Baptist Church of Eldorado stepped in. Two women at the southern Illinois church prepare several dozen meals three days a week, and Pastor Randy Plunkett said the number of people they’re serving has grown. On their first day, 10 or 12 people picked up a sack lunch, delivered curbside at the church. The number of meals has increased to around 130 given out each week.

“The repeat clients are giving me an opportunity to build relationships as I visit a bit with them each day and let them know how to watch our online services,” Plunkett said. In addition to curbside service, the Eldorado church also delivers any leftover meals to people who didn’t make it to the church that day.

In Chicago’s Irving Park neighborhood, Bryan Coble and Sow Chicago partnered with other organizations in their community to support the local food pantry with donations, as they seek to meet increased needs. The church plant also donated 1,000 toothbrushes and 700 tubes of toothpaste to the food pantry.

Before COVID-19, said Coble, the food pantry was serving around 60 families. The

As more seek meals amid pandemic, churches respond

URGENT NEED – Volunteers serve at Harmony Community Church’s food pantry ministry in Chicago, which has seen a recent increase in clients.

‘WE ARE WITH YOU’ – Starting Point pastor Jonathan de la O waves to neighbors during the church’s first giveaway outreach in April.

Continued

number has more than tripled in a region hard-hit by the virus.

Sow Chicago had 12 mission teams scheduled to serve alongside them this year. Now, with most mission teams around the world forced to cancel their plans, Coble is mobilizing the teams to keep serving Chicago—from home. Church partners outside of Chicago are making masks to send to the city for people who need them. Sow Chicago will distribute them, along with hand sanitizer.

Quick thinking has been required in Harrisburg too, where the biggest

COVID-19 testing site

challenge has been restructuring the way the weekly meal is prepared and provided, absent the 25 volunteers who are usually on hand to serve. But God has made a way, Stacey Thompson said.

“For the last six or seven weeks, we just constantly have been getting calls from church members: How can we help?” she said. Donations of money and supplies have continued to come in, she said, and God has provided—often on the very day they needed it.

Chicago | Evening Star Missionary Baptist Church distributes food every Thursday through a partnership with the Greater Chicago Food Depository. One Thursday in May, the church added a new component to the weekly ministry, providing a place for Chicagoans to be tested for COVID-19.

The church serves a needy community, said Pastor Vesta Dixon, and African American and Latino communities have been severely affected by the pandemic. That’s something his church wants to resolve as much as possible, the pastor said.

“It was a good crowd that came in to be tested, and we’re probably going to be doing another one down the road,” Dixon said.

“We’re always interested in doing something for the community because to me, that’s what the church is about.”

WINDOWS OF OPPORTUNITY – “It was the first time we had seen most of those people since the shutdown began,” Pastor Paul Cooper said of his church’s parking lot offering for North American missions and a local backpack program for kids. Cooper and his family greeted church members glad to see each other after several weeks away.

CURBSIDE SERVICE – Pastor Randy Plunkett delivers a meal outside First Baptist Church in Eldorado. The church launched its meals ministry after a local soup kitchen was forced to shut down temporarily.

Drive-thru offering sparks generosity

Marshall | Pastor Paul Cooper’s church doubled their offering to support missionaries in North America and donated food to support a community backpack program—all while sitting in their cars in the parking lot. Marshall Baptist Church’s “Be a Blessing Drive Thru” April 26 collected more than $2,000 for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering, doubling what had been given throughout the month and surpassing the church’s goal by 20%, Cooper said. Drive-thru givers also brought food for a backpack program the church participates in with other congregations in the region.

“It was such a blessing! There was a lot of excitement and even some tears,” Cooper said. “We got to encourage people that were hurting and rejoice with folks who were just excited to be doing something with the church.”

Metro East congregation forges community connections with cloth masks and ice cream

Alton | Volunteers at Calvary Baptist Church started making cloth masks after a church member requested some for her co-workers at a local hospital. After the first batch, other people started asking about them, said Dave Zimmerman, as demand rose and masks became hard to find.

Part of Illinois’ reopening plan requires people to wear face coverings when they’re out in public and social distancing is hard to maintain. Calvary is helping essential workers and others in their community by producing more than 5,100 masks so far.

“It’s been quite a project,” said Zimmerman, a Calvary deacon who’s heading up the project. The church’s team of mask-makers sew at home, and Zimmerman delivers them to businesses, restaurants, and care facilities around town. They also keep

some masks in the church lobby, where individuals can drop by and pick one up. Zimmerman estimates 1,500 masks have been given away that way.

The church also has found new ways to reach out to first responders on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19. They’ve delivered gift bags to police and fire departments and workers at two local hospitals. Led by Pastor Andre Dobson, Calvary has worked to support local businesses, purchasing gift cards and meals for first responders and on one Friday afternoon, treating 200 of them to ice cream.

The church has long worked to build relationships with first responders, said administrative pastor Rick Patrick. “This is a natural extension of ways we look to be supportive of those who are so supportive of us.”

VESTA DIXON

‘CALVARY CARES’ – The Alton church uses the catchphrase to describe how they view their community and the world. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Calvary has cared for Alton by making thousands of cloth face masks, and for first responders by providing goodie bags and meals.

IBSA publications honored by peers

Two associations of Christian communicators announced their annual awards in April, including several honors for Illinois Baptist media. The Baptist Communicators Association (BCA) honored the Illinois Baptist with second place in newspaper design and the overall newspaper category, and the Evangelical Press Association (EPA) recognized the IB with an Award of Merit. Both organizations honored the team with awards for writing, design, and multimedia, including:

• 1st place, newspaper front page (BCA), Kris Kell

• 1st place, first-person (BCA):

“Helping couples struggling through infertility,” Leah Honnen

• 1st place, feature (BCA):

“Why I need resurrection,” Eric Reed. The piece also won 2nd place in EPA’s biblical exposition category.

• 2nd place, news (BCA):

“Making church a safer place,” Lisa Misner

• 2nd place, feature (BCA): “Green wave: The coming impact of legal marijuana use by Illinois churches,” Meredith Flynn

• 3rd place, single-theme issue (EPA): Southern Baptist Convention coverage by the IBSA team

EPA also awarded the IB a first-place award for a cartoon concept drawn by Dennis Fletcher. In the BCA competition, MissionIllinois.org, the website built around the annual Mission Illinois Offering & Week of Prayer, won a first-place award in digital media.

Thank you for allowing us to share your stories. We’re honored to do so.

SBC 2020: Put a lid on it reporter’s

Remember The Year Without a Santa Claus? Santa woke up with a cold in the 1974 animated special, so he took his doctor’s advice to go on a December vacation. By the end of the show, however, Santa was back on the job in the nick of time, because no one could imagine a year without a Santa Claus.

The same might be said of a summer without a Southern Baptist Convention. But here on the cusp of June, it’s really going to happen. And maybe, that’s a good thing. For the first time since World War II, Southern Baptists are skipping the annual meeting for the sake of safety. And the overall outcome? 2020 will be remembered for what we didn’t do.

We didn’t fight.

With no election for SBC president, Reformed and Traditional leaders positioning for a showdown will have to wait another year to join the confrontation over their divergent views. Southern Seminary President Al Mohler announced his candidacy early, to find the Northwest Baptist Convention Executive Director declaring his own run to bring new direction for the SBC. Randy Adams advocated a turn away from some social issues and debate over the role of women, and a return to evangelism as central to Baptists’ mission.

That election goes on hold, and J.D. Greear, who has already served through

Let’s all stay on mission.

two tumultuous years that included the sex abuse scandal, will serve an additional oneyear term. It appeared Greear would exit the hot seat before the next big issue: the SBC Executive Committee’s probe of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC). 2020 will be the year that ERLC President Russell Moore avoided floor debate over his leadership of the SBC’s voice in Washington, and his perceived disfavor with the Trump administration.

In a year without an election, new head of the SBC Executive Committee Ronnie Floyd has an opportunity to consolidate his leadership. For example, when objections arose over the slate of speakers for the Pastors’ Conference, EC leaders called for changes to the controversial line-up, but the whole Orlando event was canceled before the deadline arrived. Another disaster averted. 2020 might be the year we talk about encouraging greater participation in the SBC through online elections, and welcome more decisions affecting state-level ministries made in the states.

But more likely, 2020 will simply be the year Baptists didn’t argue, because we didn’t meet. And who could have imagined that.

Cooperative Program support is more important than ever.

As our churches seek to recover from the current crisis, please remember those who share the gospel worldwide on behalf of Southern Baptists.

– Eric Reed

A few positive outcomes of canceling the Orlando convention

IN FOCUS

The hippies next door

Fifty years after Barbara Watson welcomed troubled kids to her small town, her legacy of loving well lives on.

BY MEREDITH FLYNN

Elkville | Jeff Lestz walked into the rundown farmhouse expecting to find a den of iniquity. It was the summer of 1971, and the 14-year-old had hitchhiked south to reunite with hippie friends from Chicago who had established a commune of sorts outside Elkville.

He found his friends sitting on the floor, surrounded by books and eating popcorn. They all got up to greet him, he remembers, and invited him to join their Bible study.

“I honestly thought they had just lost their minds,” said the London-based CEO of a financial services firm. What had actually happened to the Cosmic Cowboys Community Band, as they referred to themselves, was an encounter with Barbara Watson.

The mother of three and member of First Baptist Elkville had been praying with her friends for opportunities to reach young people in nearby Carbondale. Then, the Cosmic Cowboys moved into the house a mile from hers. And Barbara went on mission to share Jesus with them, Lestz said.

Instead of going somewhere else to reach the hippies, God had brought the hippies to her.

Counterculture moves in Bill and Barbara Watson were living in a home owned by an uncle who had asked them to move in and take care of it while he was away several years for work. The uncle thought he’d be gone for 15 years, but it turned out to be

TRUTH STORY

JEFF LESTZ - in 1971

A memoir by an international business executive testifies to the importance of a faithful witness. Barbara Watson, pictured above (back row, second from left), felt called to share the gospel with hippies in Elkville, just before Jeff Lestz arrived as a long-haired 14-year-old in 1971.

Continued from P. 11

only three—three very pivotal years, said Cheryl Russell, the Watsons’ middle daughter.

“It was God’s perfect timing that put Mom at that house at that time, to meet these kids and to help these kids.” The Watsons’ daughters sometimes tear up when talking about their parents’ ministry to the hippies. Bill died in 2008, and Barbara in 2016.

Their oldest daughter, Debbie Knight, was a junior in high school when her family’s relationship with the hippies started. “I thought it was the coolest thing ever,” she said, acknowledging that she probably didn’t realize the drug culture associated with them. At first, the Watson daughters said, their parents differed on how to interact with the new neighbors.

“Dad wasn’t too happy to begin with,” Cheryl said. The sisters remember their mother giving rides to hippies hitchhiking into Elkville. “Her excuse was that they didn’t get into the truck with us,” said youngest daughter Katie Ritter. Instead, they rode in the back.

In the conservative, rural community, parents were trying to shield their children from the sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll coming out of Carbondale, Lestz said. “You’re trying to keep your kids sheltered, and all of a sudden, it moves in right next door.”

Barbara was worried about her new neighbors, but not for the reasons other people would have been. One bitterly cold night, the Watson family was surprised to see some of the Cosmic Cowboys peering through their window. Their mother brought them in, Katie said. “She said they had no food, no wood for a fire, and they were cold and hungry.”

Barbara settled them in the family’s basement, and started cooking. She played recordings of Christian music for them. She talked about Jesus.

The Chicago teen, raised in the Jewish faith, had lost both of his parents years before, and bounced around from one difficult situation to the next. In Elkville, another hippie eventually became his foster father, but if that hadn’t worked out, the Watsons were prepared to take him in.

They had done the same for a couple of the young women at the commune, who realized after they became Christians that they shouldn’t be living with men. So, they moved into the Watsons’ basement for a while.

Bill Watson had experienced a turnaround on the hippies, his daughters said. Early on, he had threatened to rent their home out from under them. But later, he protected the hippies when some ill-intentioned former acquaintances came looking for them in Elkville.

Not everyone was ready to accept the hippies living in the house with no running water, though. Their appearance, hygiene, and basic way of living was foreign to many in the Watsons’ small town. Elkville hadn’t changed much in years, Debbie said, and most residents were related to each other.

“And then in walks something like this,” she said. “It turned it upside down, and people were scared.”

Barbara herself described the disconnect in the Baptist Press column (pictured below). “They were dirty,” she wrote. “They wore big boots, caked with mud. You can imagine how they smelled, since they would go up to two weeks without a shower.”

Her daughters said Barbara’s ministry to the hippies cost her. Her determination to build relationships with them caused friction in personal relationships. Customers who once bought Avon beauty products from her stopped coming to the door when she rang the bell.

“But then we look at what we gained by knowing the hippies,” Cheryl said. “We’re always afraid of people who are not like us, and to find out they were people too…God loved them just as much as he loved us.”

Debbie said her family’s ministry back then is something that made her who she is now. “That’s something not everybody gets to witness or see actually happen—how they changed.” She wishes she’d paid more attention to how the estrangement affected her mom.

“I’m sure it upset her, but it didn’t stop her.”

‘Her story lives on’

“They saw through the drugs and the long hair and the rebellion and all that,” Lestz said of Watson and those who reached out to the hippies in the early days, “and they just saw some people who needed love.”

Reaching out to the hippies gave her family the greatest year of their lives, Barbara later wrote in a column for Baptist Press. “We can hardly believe what happened.”

A town turned upside down

Through the witness of Barbara and others like her, most of the Elkville hippies met Jesus. Which is why they were holding a Bible study when Jeff Lestz arrived at the farmhouse.

Jeff Lestz became a follower of Christ in Elkville, after Barbara’s witness to his friends sparked their witness to him. After he walked into their Bible study, they invited him to church, where he trusted Jesus as his savior. He married Margo, his high school sweetheart, and the two lived in Illinois and Missouri until relocating to the United Kingdom 17 years ago. He is CEO of Genistar, a financial education company focused on helping families become financially free. He also serves on the board of directors for Hillsong church in London.

This summer, Lestz is planning to release “Against All Odds: The Remarkable True Story of a Street Kid Who Became a Millionaire.” It’s a memoir about his life in the foster system, transformational years in Elkville, and journey to financial faithfulness. In the book, he describes that first visit to church. The congregation sang “Coming

Home,” Lestz wrote, while the pastor asked if anyone there wanted to start a new life, in Christ. Jeff raised his hand.

“There I stood with my hand raised in that little church, in a little village, in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by strangers and a bunch of happy, former drug-dealing hippies,” he wrote. “I can only describe it as a miracle.”

After their years with the hippies, the Watsons continued to find ways to help people. They became foster parents. Barbara worked in a nursing home, and found other ways to serve people in need. In her 70s, she went on her first international mission trip to Africa. Followed soon afterward by her second trip to Africa, this time with her daughter Cheryl.

Scott Slone, pastor of FBC Elkville, remembers Barbara signing up to participate in a 24-hour prayer campaign at the church. She picked the midnight time slot because she had trouble sleeping, he said. She prayed at the church until 4 a.m.

“It almost brings me to tears when I talk about it even now,” the pastor said. Barbara had started saving for her third mission trip, but was unable to go because of her health. She donated the money to FBC Elkville’s mission trip fund, where it has helped others go on mission trips. “Her story lives on,” Slone said.

When asked what set their mom apart, her daughters point to a consistent desire to care for people, instilled early on, and a solid faith. “I just think her strength in God was the one thing that got her through it all,” Debbie said. Cheryl echoed her sister.

“It was her relationship with Jesus.”

JEFF LESTZ - Today

JOYOUS OCCASION – Barbara Watson celebrates the wedding of a young woman named Helene (left), who moved out of the hippie commune and into the Watsons’ home following her conversion to Christianity.

EXTENDED FAMILY – This 1998 photo shows Bill and Barbara Watson at their Elkville home with two of their daughters, Katie and Cheryl, Jeff Lestz (bottom left) and Michael Toppel, one of the original residents of the Cosmic Cowboys commune.

Barbara Watson column from 1972

RESOURCE

How my impatience points me to the gospel

Dads (and practically everyone) around the world are finding themselves in interesting, unforeseen situations due to COVID-19. Many people are working from home—with their kids. God, in his kindness, has been using this time to expose some things in my heart that needed to be addressed.

This is often the process God uses to sanctify his children: he will use circumstances we wouldn’t choose for ourselves in order to expose things about our hearts and lives that are not yet fully surrendered to him.

I’ve heard it said before that when you get married, your sin and selfishness are exposed in new ways. (That’s true.) Then, when you have kids, your sin and selfishness are exposed in even more new ways. (That’s true as well.) I’m just at the beginning of this journey called fatherhood; the oldest of our three kids will be five this coming October. It didn’t take five years, however, for my ongoing dependence on God’s grace to be further exposed. In order to be a godly earthly father, I need the sustaining, transforming grace of my perfect Heavenly Father every day. Dads, if you are reading this and feeling the weight of your inabilities and shortcomings as a daddy, I have good news for you. That sustaining and transforming grace is yours through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And here’s more good news: God doesn’t use any exposure of our sins just to kick us in the shins. He reveals these things so we can repent, receive grace and forgiveness, and put on new Christ-like responses.

Please don’t miss what I said: this situation exposes our hearts. We must be careful to distinguish between the occasion for sin and the cause of sin. While certain situations may make it easier to sin, we can never blame our

actions on situations or other people. God’s word is crystal clear; the things we do come from our own hearts (Luke 6:43-45).

For me, God has been revealing I can be quick to anger with my children when they interrupt my schedule for the day. This anger has revealed itself in speaking in a frustrated or harsh tone, loud exhales, impatience, or not taking the time to truly listen to them.

What is really going on in these moments? My fleshly, rapid-fire response may point to how noisy they are being, how much they are arguing with each other, how many questions they ask, or the fact that I had to get up from my desk for the 75th time in the last hour to get something for them. But the Bible cuts through the excuses of the flesh.

The problem is not outside of us, it’s inside of us (James 4:1-2). The reason I’m getting sinfully angry is because they are hindering me from accomplishing something that I want. Specifically, to complete the task I’m working on without interruptions. It’s not that I’m wanting something bad.

The problem is that I’m wanting it too much. It has become a controlling desire.

To use the Bible’s language, it has become an idol. How do we know when a desire has become an idolatrous desire? When we are willing to sin to get it, or we sin when we don’t get it.

This is where the good news of the gospel comes in. Because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, my right standing with God doesn’t hinge on my ability to be a perfect Christian father. My right standing with God is fully secure in the perfect work of Jesus. This means I don’t have to hide sin that has already been paid for. I can freely confess it before the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:1416).

Because of Christ’s death, I’m no longer to live for my selfish desires, but for him (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). The indwelling Holy Spirit now gives me the power to turn from sin and walk in Christlike ways. The gospel reminds me that I am now an ambassador for God, and this job begins first in my home.

As I seek to please God above all, I view those moments with my kids not as interruptions, but as opportunities to love and serve my family as Christ has done for me. Seeing my sinful tendency to anger causes me to pray and rely on Christ more. My tendency to impatience has made me more thankful for the Father’s perfect patience.

Most Father’s Day celebrations will look different this year. Let’s use these unprecedented times to consider what God might be trying to reveal about our hearts in this season, and to praise him for his perfect example of fatherhood.

Brady Rueter serves as a biblical counselor and men’s ministry leader at Delta Church in Springfield, and is pursuing a Master’s degree in biblical counseling from Southern Seminary in Louisville, Ky.

A Future for the Latino Church

Daniel A. Rodriguez

This book has tons of data and examples of effective urban Latino churches! Another helpful resource I’ve been reviewing lately is “Neighborhood Mapping.” It presents a great way to map your local community and assess the needs there.

Teaching from Rest: A Homeschooler’s Guide to Unshakable Peace

Sarah Mackenzie

Almost every page of my copy has highlighted sentences. The author reminds us, “God is not demanding I be successful on my own... He’s calling me to be faithful and to trust him for the results, which may not look like what I was expecting.”

Small Church Essentials

Karl Vaters

This was a valuable reminder that God’s kingdom consists of churches of all sizes. The author encourages small churches and their pastors to thrive in their context by focusing on their effectiveness in carrying out the Great Commission with intentionality.

– Kevin Carrothers, associational mission strategist, Salem South Baptist Association

– Stevi Smith, pastor’s wife, First Baptist Church, Grayville

– Marvin Del Rios, associate pastor, Starting Point Community Church, Chicago

Sheltering in place with small children exposes how much I need Christ.

dave says

Tithe on stimulus check?

QShould my wife and I tithe on our stimulus checks? She thinks we should, but I’m not sure. In my mind, we already gave our money to Caesar—so to speak—and now he’s just giving it back. What do you think?

AWell, it’s your money you’re getting back. The government doesn’t really create anything, it only takes money from us. And in this case, it gave you back some of what it took. I don’t really see that as a tithing circumstance.

The other side of the coin is that you really can’t go wrong being generous. The tithe is your baseline for generosity. You shouldn’t tithe or not tithe because of a set of rules, but if you’re having a theological or philosophical discussion about how the tithe works, I think your reasoning is sound.

It’s certainly not a salvation issue, but generosity is a good rhythm to have in your life. And honestly, these stimulus checks are kind of like tax refunds. You gave it to the government, and now they’re giving it back.

So, in my mind it’s okay either way. I’ve just always had an attitude of when in doubt, it’s better to give.

Go ahead, knock it out

QWe’re debt-free except for our house. We’re following your plan, and just started saving for retirement, but we only have $15,000 left on our mortgage. We can have that paid off in six or seven months, so would it be okay to go ahead and pay off our home as soon as possible before continuing to save for retirement?

AI’m generally pretty hardcore about sticking with the proper order while doing the Baby Steps. But in your case, with such a small amount left to pay on your home, I think I’d go ahead and knock that out.

Most of the people I talk to still have six figures left on their mortgages. There’s a big difference between that and the situation you two are in right now. You guys could be completely debt-free by Christmas, and you’ve already started to make a move on retirement planning. I say go for it!

THE NEW REALITY

Needed now: new leaders

A majority of pastors say they prefer lay-led initiatives to new church programs, Barna reported, but churches may not be doing everything they can to equip leaders for those efforts.

68% of pastors say for their church to be healthier, lay people must take more responsibility

41% say their churches aren’t good at developing new leaders

Part of the problem may be tension between allowing Christians to do the work they’re called to do, and knowing how much pastoral oversight is necessary. Kansas pastor Charlie Robinson acknowledges that unleashing church members for ministry promotes a certain kind of chaos.

“Holy Spirit chaos.”

Charlie Robinson

The pastor of Northridge Church in Sabetha, Kan., taught on the principle of “unleashing” members for ministry at the 2020 Midwest Leadership Summit. He warned pastors against the temptation to swoop in and be a hero. He also urged them to cast a bigger net than the insiders who are usually the focus of almost all training.

Instead, Robinson said, train all your people for ministry, with equipping that is clear and consistent.

– Barna Research

Church hosts Zoom variety show

meet the team

Kim Ayers Ministry Assistant, Mobilization

Family: Married to Jeff; two children: Micah (19) and Trinity (14)

Born and raised: In Springfield, Ill.

Favorite thing about church as a kid: My mom helped in Children’s Church and it was so fun. I know the excitement that she brought into learning about Jesus helped stir in me a desire for a friendship with him.

Favorite thing about church now: That all the children worship in the sanctuary with their parents and then go to children’s church. I love seeing them sing their little hearts out for Jesus.

Favorite sports team: St. Louis Cardinals

Favorite movie: Marvel movies

Favorite book: The Bible

Favorite Old Testament prophet: Moses

Favorite Scripture: Romans 8:15

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

DAVE RAMSEY

“Back

Row Bob” was social distancing, when social distancing wasn’t cool.

“The Holy Spirit guides and directs. We’ve got to make sure we get rid of the chokehold points.”

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BETHALTO PRESENTS – Worship pastor Justin Falloon (pictured at right) hosted a virtual showcase April 24 highlighting the talents of First Baptist Church. The church-wide fellowship included musicians, a virtual quilt show, and trampoline gymnastics. Watch the video at Facebook.com/FirstBaptistChurchBethalto.

online EVENTS

Talking to kids about the pandemic

the counselor Q

Our kids, who are 7 and 9, are asking questions about what’s going on in the world. Our oldest in particular is quieter than she was a few months ago, and more withdrawn sometimes. We’re wondering if she could be dealing with some fear she’s not talking about. How can we help them?

AWith something as scary and unpredictable as a global pandemic, we shouldn’t be surprised at your daughter’s processing difficulties. In a sense, we are all like children experiencing this for the first time.

We are all likely dealing with fear we aren’t talking about. Kids are often reluctant to discuss their fear, in an effort to protect their parents from pain. They may perceive you as worried enough already. It is helpful to take a quick mental snapshot of your own fear, current behavior, and recent conversations, to gauge the extent to which you may be inadvertently transferring your anxiety to the children. We have all observed how calm parents are often followed by calm children, and vice versa. Of course, there are exceptions to this; however, it is wise not to underestimate the correlation between our emotional state and the emotional state of our children. Kids become experts at reading body language and detecting unease.

How is God redeeming these otherwise dark days? Through families, who are sitting around the table together, laughing, sharing a meal, and relearning how to have a conversation. Parents are more focused on what matters most: God, and family.

You ask, “How do we help them?” First (and always), pray to be present and wise. Address them with honesty and simplicity, leaving out global markets, politics, and death statistics. Reassure them: it isn’t clear how long it will take, things are getting better, and you will be here to keep them safe.

Preservation and perseverance are two godly characteristics we should always model to our children. Adult Christians have been gifted with wisdom, developed through countless past deliverances. It is helpful for you to remember, meditate on, and share these past deliverances with your children, to help them begin their own accounting of God’s presence in their lives.

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

Church Helps Webinars

What: Guidance for churches and leaders navigating the COVID-19 pandemic

When: Every Thursday at 11 a.m. Register: IBSA.org/church-helps

ReVision Revitalization

What: Helping pastors prepare to lead change and revitalization

Upcoming sessions:

July 15: Create and cast a compelling vision August 12: Creating a culture for change

September 16: Preparation, process, and practice Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

Ministry innovation for uncertain times

Camps plan phased reopening

What: On-the-job training for new pastors, or a refresher for any leader in need of it

Upcoming sessions:

August 6: Conducting a funeral, part 1: What funeral directors wish pastors knew Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

Leading to the Next Level

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

June 11: Leading and managing change (with a special focus on social media engagement)

July 9: Communication styles: Are you being heard?

August 13: Situational leadership: Knowing which leadership style is best to lead others Register: IBSA.org/leadershipdevelopment

IBSA camps are following the guidelines presented in the “Restore Illinois” plan. When North-Central and Southern Illinois are allowed to enter phase 3 (presumably in June), the camps will be opened to groups of no more than 10 with special restrictions, though larger June camps have already been canceled. IBSA camps will not be able to host groups greater than 10 until these regions move into phase 4. Because of this, all large July camps have been canceled.

WITH THE LORD

Linda Kay Hahn, 59, died April 28 after a brief battle with cancer. Her husband, Wes, is pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Bridgeport. She worked 12 years for Lawrence County Memorial Hospital, most recently as director of patient financial services. Hahn is survived by her husband, four children, and three grandchildren.

Delia Claudean Mathis, 99, died April 22. She served alongside her husband, J.L. Mathis, for 60 years of ministry in many churches across Illinois. He preceded her in death in 2009, after 65 years of marriage. Mathis most recently had been a member of First Baptist Church in Louisville. She is survived by two grandsons.

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

First Baptist Church in Bethalto seeks a senior pastor. Candidates should uphold The Baptist Faith & Message (2000), have completed a Master’s degree or higher from a Southern Baptist seminary, and preferably will have five or more years of pastoral experience. Send resumés to pastorsearch@fbcbethalto.org.

First Baptist Church, Patoka seeks a full-time pastor to lead this loving, mission-minded congregation of 50-60 active members. Send resumés to Tom Chapman at 595 East 100th Ave., Patoka, IL 62975.

MARK McCORMICK

Nate Adams is continuing the legacy of cooperative giving supported by his great-grandmother a century ago.

See Nate’s story and the whole video series at IBSA.org/CP