Free Baby Dedication Picture for Your Next Service

By

Daniel So

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November 12, 2021

Free Baby Dedication Picture for Your Next Service

Download this free baby dedication picture to celebrate the dedication of babies and infants at your church.

You can use this on your church’s website or Facebook page as well.

Get Download Now

Resource provided by Church on the Move

Download Instructions: To download this resource, log into your free Church on the Move account. Once you’ve logged in, you can download this resource.

Want to learn more about baby dedications as part of the church’s ministry? Try these articles:

New Baby—New Opportunity to Reach a Family

Another great way to connect with new parents is through baby dedication. Attach a class to your dedication and require parents to go through it before their child is dedicated. In the class, explain what the dedication is about and then teach them how to raise their children to love Jesus.

Why We Do Parent Commissioning Instead of Baby Dedication

We Baptists don’t baptize infants. But most Baptist churches replace that ceremony with a baby dedication. The motivation between these two ceremonies often overlaps: The parents wish to commemorate the birth of their child and promise before God, grandma and everybody to raise that child to know God—no water needed.

Front of House Mixing Tutorial With James Attaway

By

ChurchLeaders

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November 12, 2021

Mixing is mixing, right? Well, no. For anyone who runs sound on Sunday mornings, front of house mixing of live sound presents special challenges.

Front of house mixing (FOH) is hard to learn, because there’s no one technique that can take you to the next level. When you learn how to do a sound check, you have to learn to listen and respond. When you watch someone else, you get some more front of house mixing techniques up your sleeve, you have another thing to try when you’re running sound.

In this ten-minute sound check tutorial video on worship band mixing, you can look over James Attaway’s shoulder, hear what he hears, and see how he reacts to it. His company, Attaway Audio, provides proven sound training for church sound volunteers, so they can serve with excellence, eliminate distractions, and play their part in leading worship.

James Attaway says on his website,

I’ve been on stage, playing or leading in some capacity, and I just know by the looks on people’s faces that it sounds weird. The bridge between the band and the congregation is broken, and there’s nothing I can do about it.

I’ve been on the other side, too. Knowing just enough to be dangerous behind the console, making changes that put me on the verge of feedback, but barely squeaking by.

Thanksgiving Youth Group Ideas: 8 Hall-of-Fame Activities for Teens

By

Youth Ministrycom

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November 11, 2021

Looking for some fun Thanksgiving youth group ideas for your student gatherings? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Feast on the eight ideas below. And feel free to adapt them to fit the needs of your preteen or teen group. Kids will thank you!

8 Thanksgiving Youth Group Ideas to Try

1. Turkey bowling

Grab a frozen turkey (don’t thaw it out) and fill a dozen two-liter bottles with water. Line them up, and let ‘er rip. Two warnings: A frozen turkey will knock a hole in a sheetrock wall. And a two-liter bottle of carbonated drink can explode. We promise.

2. Cranberry sauce sculpting

Make sure you use the gelatin version in a can. Set out various tools, such as those you use to carve pumpkins. Oh, and this can get very messy. So provide extra napkins.

3. Jimmy Fallon “Thank You Note” game

Divide students into teams. Then have them write thank you notes, like Jimmy Fallon does on his TV show. When kids are finished, have them read the notes aloud on stage.

4. Local mission project

Depending on the needs in your area, take students out to serve. You can sing outside an assisted living facility, rake leaves for elderly church members, or pick up trash in a local park.

5. Thanksgiving tree

Create a tree out of paper, repurposed wood, or a simple drawing. Then have students attach things they’re thankful for to the tree. For a fun ending, read “The Giving Tree.”

6. List 100 things to be thankful for

Give students 10 minutes to write down 100 things they’re thankful for. The goal is to write items down as quickly as possible, in order to complete the list in 10 minutes. Debrief and invite students to make observations about their lists.

7. Have students write thank you notes to loved ones

Add humor by having kids write the notes on handprint turkeys (using tempura paint and construction paper), like they did as preschoolers.

8. Thank-you notes to students

Have the youth leaders share things they’re thankful for with the group. These might include experiences from the past year, things that make them proud of the group, and so on.

Do you have Thanksgiving youth group ideas that didn’t make this list? We’d be very grateful if you’d tell us about them below!

This article about Thanksgiving youth group ideas originally appeared here.

SBC Executive Committee Meets, Receives Update From Legal Team

By

Brandon Porter

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November 11, 2021

NASHVILLE (BP) – The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee met online Wednesday morning (Nov. 10). Members filled a Committee on Nominations vacancy and received updates on the progress of the Sexual Abuse Task Force, legal counsel for the EC and subcommittee appointments.

“The investigation getting off to a smooth start is important,” Slade said about the initial work of Guidepost Solutions as it investigates any possible mishandling of sexual abuse claims by the SBC EC from Jan. 1, 2000, through June 14, 2021.

Members were also introduced to attorneys from Bradley, the legal firm assisting in document curation and collection related to the independent third-party investigation commissioned by messengers to the 2021 SBC Annual Meeting in June.

“Scarlett Nokes and Gene Desen from Bradley have been very helpful to our staff,” Slade said in a statement to Baptist Press. Slade also explained how Bradley is aiding the staff in facilitating the investigation while still allowing for the day-to-day operations of the Executive Committee staff to continue, noting their help has allowed EC staff to concentrate on its daily work of serving Southern Baptists.

The committee was also informed of the recent death of Bob Neely, a member from South Carolina. Neely was a pastoral associate at First Baptist Church in Spartanburg, S.C. Services for Neely will be held in Spartanburg on Friday (Nov. 12).

Neely’s death brings the total number of members to 68. There have been 16 members resign from the EC since the Sept. 20-21 meeting. One member resigned earlier in the year due to relocating to another state.

The recent resignations forced changes in the committee’s subcommittees. Replacements, appointed by Slade, were reported during the call:

Hoyt Savage (Nev.) as vice chair of the Convention Finance and Stewardship Committee
Dwight Easler (S.C.) as secretary of the Convention Finances and Stewardship Committee
Richard Spring (Calif.) as vice chair of the Convention Missions and Ministry Committee
Jay McCollum (N.M.) as secretary of the Convention Missions and Ministry Committee

In other business, the EC approved the addition of Alvaro Cardozo to the SBC Committee on Nominations. Alvaro, a layperson and member at Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz, Fla., fills an opening created by the resignation of Marta Treumann da Silva.

This article originally appeared here.

Ken Ham Announces Plans to ‘Confront Racism’ With New Tower of Babel Exhibit

By

Dale Chamberlain

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November 11, 2021

Answers in Genesis Tower of Babel — Source: answersingenesis.org

Answers in Genesis CEO and founder Ken Ham has announced plans for the organization’s Creation Museum to “confront racism” with a new Tower of Babel exhibit. Answers in Genesis, which is an apologetic organization defending young earth creationism, has not announced an expected date for the exhibit’s unveiling, saying that “it will take some time to design, raise funds, and then build this attraction.”

Tim Chaffey, who serves as content manager for the Ark Encounter, explained the reasoning behind the exhibit in a blog posted to the Answers in Genesis website.

“Since Babel is best known for its rebellion against our Creator, this structure might seem like an odd addition for a ministry devoted to upholding the authority of God’s Word and spreading the gospel through its many outreaches,” Chaffey admitted. But he then went on to explain that “our purpose in building a Babel attraction at the Ark Encounter is diametrically opposed to the reasons of the original builders over 4,000 years ago.”

“Our rebellious ancestors started building their city and tower in defiance of God’s command to fill the world and to glorify themselves (‘make a name for ourselves’),” Chaffey explained. “The structure we plan to build will be for the purpose of glorifying God by teaching the authority and authenticity of his Word and by sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Chaffey then said that the exhibit will combat the theory of evolution, which Answers in Genesis sees as “inherently racist.”

“While most evolutionists are probably not racists, the philosophy they hold is inherently racist, implying that some people groups are more closely related to apes than others,” Chaffey said. “By eliminating our true history, evolutionists are left with a false view of humanity. Thus, they explain the so-called racial differences through the lens of a fundamentally racist philosophy.”

Chaffey went on to explain that the Babel exhibit will take aim at Critical Race Theory, saying, “Education systems and politicians throughout Western nations have incited and encouraged division by promoting racist concepts like critical race theory.”

“A large part of CRT is the ungodly idea that we must instruct people to see and judge people based on the melanin level in their skin, which is the opposite of what Scripture teaches,” Chaffey continued. “All people are descendants of Adam, and we are all made in God’s image. Our true problem is sin, which includes prejudice and racism, and the solution is the same for all of us—the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

ERLC Issues Urgent Call to Biden Regarding Religious Liberty and Artificial Intelligence

By

Stephanie Martin

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November 11, 2021

L: ERLC, Attribution, via Wikimedia Commons R: The White House, CC BY 3.0 US, via Wikimedia Commons

As the use of technology and artificial intelligence (AI) continues to grow, faith leaders want to ensure that advancements are used ethically and don’t hamper religious freedoms. The Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), which has been a trailblazer in this area, wants President Biden to give faith-based voices a seat at the decision-making table.

In a letter to Biden this week, ERLC acting president Brent Leatherwood writes, “[W]e urge you to include and consult with faith leaders, including an evangelical representative, on the various committees and boards formed as part of this crucial work. This would ensure that an important perspective is accounted for and represented in these monumental decisions before us as a nation and society.”

Artificial Intelligence: Opportunities and Threats

America’s National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act, which went into effect this January, works to coordinate “the development and use of trustworthy AI” in both the public and private spheres. This includes all U.S. governmental departments and agencies, in cooperation with academia, industry, and nonprofit groups.

In his letter, Leatherwood specifies some of these groups, including the Defense and State Departments and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). The OSTP is currently soliciting input for a “Bill of Rights for an Automated Society.”

Although technology continues to spur advancements and connectivity, experts warn of consequences of misuse—ranging from privacy violations to genocide. For example, the Chinese Communist Party uses surveillance to oppress minorities, including Uyghur Muslims.

In April 2019, the ERLC published “the first-ever, faith-based ethical statement” on AI, which more than 80 evangelical leaders have since endorsed. It notes: “The church has a unique role in proclaiming human dignity for all and calling for the humane use of AI in all aspects of society.”

Jason Thacker, now the ERLC’s chair of research in technology ethics, has said AI “presents one of the greatest opportunities for human flourishing in our lifetime, but it also presents one of the greatest threats to human dignity that we’ll ever face.”

Digital Public Square Project Underway

Thacker, author of The Age of AI, announced in September that he’s tackling a Digital Public Square research project to assist church leaders. Goals include creating resources that help faith-based organizations “navigate this digital age with wisdom” and “think through some of the most complex and crucial ethics challenges to our faith with wisdom and insight.”

A Man Saves a Woman From ‘An Unfulfilled Life’ by Marrying Her, Says John MacArthur

By

Dale Chamberlain

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November 11, 2021

In a recent question and answer session at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, CA, pastor John MacArthur said that single men ought to see themselves as the saviors and redeemers of the women who will become their wives, arguing that men save women from an unfulfilled life by marrying them.

MacArthur’s words came in response to the question of a young man named Ben. “I have a question regarding 1 Corinthians 7. So I’ve noticed that many of my brothers and I — all of us meet the 1 Corinthians 7 prerequisite. We are wrestling with God and searching out a woman to potentially be a helpmate,” Ben said.

In the passage that Ben referred to, the apostle Paul instructs the Corinthians that being unmarried allows Christians to devote themselves more fully to ministry but concedes that it would be better to marry than to “burn with passion.”

“I’ve noticed in myself and I’ve heard brothers express this paradox of sorts that we recognize the fact that we have romanticized romance and have, at times, set up this unknown woman as an idol, discontent with what God has given us,” Ben continued. “But we also know that as single men with conscious sexual feelings, it’s not good [for us to be] alone and that God has specifically created us to have a wife.”

Then Ben asked, “So my question is, how do we reconcile these two thoughts in terms of timing?”

“Well, you might be eager to obey the command but can’t find anybody who’s willing to marry you. So there’s always that reality,” MacArthur joked.

After the laughter of the crowd died down, MacArther gave Ben a more serious answer, saying, “This is a really important question, Ben, because marriage is the grace of life. Marriage is the most fulfilling relationship in life on every possible front. And this particular culture we live in today has postponed that more and more. It seems like every year the average marriage age gets older and older and older and older.”

“And this puts tremendous pressure on young people to maintain purity when they have reached the age where they would desire to be married and desire to start a family,” MacArthur continued. “So all I can do is to exhort Christian people not to get caught up in what you said — not to get caught up in the perfections that this society drags in front of you which are not related to reality.”

MacArthur then referred to Ephesians 5, wherein Paul uses the relationship between Christ and the Church to illustrate the selflessness that should characterize spouses’ relationship to one another.

Navy SEAL Shot 27 Times Credits God With Keeping Him Alive

By

Jesse T. Jackson

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November 11, 2021

On April 6, 2007, Navy SEAL Sr. Chief Mike Day was shot 27 times by Al-Qaeda terrorists while searching for a high level Al-Qaeda cell.

Day was the first to enter the room, where he was ambushed by four Al-Qaeda terrorists. Day was shot by the terrorists 27 times and hit with grenade shrapnel before killing all four terrorists. Two SEALs who followed Day into the room were both shot, one fatally. Another SEAL team member was shot in the back of the neck and also died.

“Upon entering that doorway, they all just opened up on me. It felt like somebody was just beating me up with sledgehammers,” Day shared.

In an interview with CBN News, Day explained that his body armor did more than what it was designed to do, because it is limited to taking one round safely. After that one round, “it falls apart to the point where they say that it’s not supposed to stop anymore projectiles.”

Day said that what’s even more miraculous is that the entire gunfight took place inside a 10 foot radius, and any of the 27 rounds should have killed him. Eleven of the shots didn’t find Day’s body armor. He was hit in both legs, both arms, and his abdomen. Day said that “anything but my head, I got shot there.”

“After I’d figured out I was getting shot I said, ‘God, get me home to my girls.’ That was my first prayer to God, real prayer.” And God answered it, Day said.

The Sr. Chief was then able to somehow clear the rest of the house, where he rescued six women and children before walking to the evacuation helicopter.

During his two week stay in the hospital, Day lost 55 pounds and spent the next two years recovering from his injuries. Still dealing with lingering pain today, the retired 21-year Navy SEAL, like many other veterans, has also been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury.

In a situation that felt like certain death, Day has speculated about why he didn’t die in that room on that April night. Day said, “I didn’t die, because maybe I wouldn’t have gone to Heaven.”

He was asked, “Why do you think God kept you alive?” Day responded, “To do what I’m doing now,” advocating for and helping other wounded veterans, including those suffering from unseen injuries like him. He has completed a 70.3-mile triathlon to raise money for wounded vets. Day is also the founder of Warrior Tribe, a non-profit organization that provides resiliency programming for young people, veterans, and trauma survivors.

Day has been awarded 16 medals, which include the Navy Cross, two Bronze Stars, and a Purple Heart.

Al Mohler Claims COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate Is ‘A Threat to Religious Liberty’

By

Jesse T. Jackson

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November 11, 2021

al mohler vaccine mandate — Photo from Twitter: @AllianceDefends

Last week, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary’s (SBTS) president Al Mohler shared that the seminary jointly filed a lawsuit with Asbury Theological Seminary (ATS) against the OSHA ordinance that would require employers to enforce a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The ordinance stems from the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate, which requires compliance by January 1, 2022. OSHA’s COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard became effective November 5, 2021.

On Monday November 9, 2021, the Alliance Defending Freedom, who is representing SBTS and ATS, tweeted a video wherein Mohler explained why he believes the vaccine mandate is a threat to religious liberty. Mohler said that this is the reason the seminary has filed a suit against OSHA.

“We as an institution are encouraging vaccines,” Mohler said, sharing that he himself has already received three COVID-19 vaccine shots. “My encouragement to people based upon my personal advisement is to be vaccinated.”

Arguing that the government is overstepping its reach by forcing religious institutions to vaccinate their employees, Mohler said, “Placing a religious institution in the position of intruding into the lives of it’s employees on matters that are religiously debated, even within the institution, and on which the church body takes no official stand — that is a step, indeed, an enormous step too far. It does place the institution in the role of being an extension of the course and power of the state.”

Mohler asked, “If this mandate stands, then what mandate will follow?”

“On this issue you do not have to be a sociologist, a theologian, or for that matter particularly alert to know that there is quite a distinction of opinion among our churches on this position,” Mohler said. “This mandate will violate conscience and it’s just a question of how many consciences will be violated, how regularly [and] to what degree. That makes this an unconstitutional imposition upon and violation of religious liberty.”

Similar to other prominent Christian leaders like Franklin Graham, Greg Laurie, Beth Moore, and Robert Jeffress, Mohler shared last December that he would be taking the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it was available.

6 Leadership Quotes and Lessons From Marvel’s ‘Eternals’

By

Brian Dodd

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November 11, 2021

I once wrote after watching the first two disappointing episodes of WandaVision that I was going to stay with the series because Marvel had earned my trust. After attending an opening night showing of “Eternals,” they are fast losing it.

First, let’s begin with the characters. I actually liked the Deviants more than the Eternals. The Deviants were monsters simply protecting themselves from a group of people who were needlessly exterminating them.

But even worse, I was deeply offended by one of the film’s storylines. I’m actually mad at myself. When am I going to learn? At what point am I willing to say, “Enough” and leverage my time and financial resources elsewhere?

It is so unfortunate that a particular storyline overshadows the entire movie. I cannot recommend this movie to anyone. At least there was no foul language.

I’m not egotistical enough to think my opinion is going to persuade anyone to forego this film who was planning on seeing it. Therefore, I will provide and overview of the movie and, giving credit where credit is due, a fantastic leadership quote.

Overview

The Eternals are about a group of individuals with super powers who have lived amongst humans for thousands of years. They are only allowed to engage in human conflicts and natural disasters if they are attacked by a group of monsters known as Deviants.

However, this planet has an expiration date which is about to go off and destroy all human life. This forces our decentralized group of heroes to reunite and save a group of people they have come to love.

A Great Leadership Lesson

The greatest quote of the film was when the warrior Thena, played by Angelina Jolie, tells a very compassionate and new leader Sersi, played by Gemma Chan, “When you love something, you protect it. It’s the most natural thing in the world. You’ve loved these people since the day we arrived. There’s no one better to lead us than you. Sersi, get up!”

This is an incredible leadership lesson! When looking to fill a leadership position, the first criteria you should look for is does the potential leader love or have the capacity to love your organization and its people? If not, continue your search.

The following are 5 additional Leadership Quotes from “Eternals.”

14 Questions Pastors Should Avoid if They Fear Vulnerability

By

Charles Stone

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November 11, 2021

Some time back I read an incredible book – Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Dr. Brene Brown. I highly recommend it. Her TED talk on this subject has garnered over 30,000,000 views. She strikes a chord for leaders about risking vulnerability.

As a pastor, vulnerability is scary and carries risks with which we must practice care when being vulnerable. As risky as it is, Dr. Brown says it’s a key to what she calls wholehearted living, what I’d called a Spirit-filled life. She says we live in a culture of scarcity and poses 14 questions in her book (p. 27) in three categories that caused me to reflect deeply about my family, my ministry, and my world. I’ve quoted some here and paraphrased others.

14 Really Scary Questions About Vulnerability

As you read them, what is God saying to you about your family, your life, and your ministry?

Shame

Is my self worth tied to achievement, productivity, or compliance?
Do I use the threat of belittling or ridicule to keep people in line?
Are put-downs and name-calling rampant?
Are blaming and finger pointing norms?
Am I guilty of favoritism?
Am I a perfectionist?

Comparison

Has my creativity been suffocated?
Do I constantly compare and rank myself against others?
Are people in my family or church held to one narrow standard rather than acknowledged for their unique gifts and contributions?
Is there an ideal way of being or one form of talent that is used to measure everyone else’s worth?

Disengagement

Is everyone struggling to be seen and heard?
Are people afraid to take risks or try new things?
Does it feel as if no one is really paying attention or listening?
Is it easier to stay quiet than share stories, experiences, and ideas?

As you read these, what question really resonated with you?

What question would you add to this list?

This article about pastors and vulnerability originally appeared here, and is used by permission.

Jim, You Think Too Much and You Don’t Pray Enough

By

Jim Egli

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November 10, 2021

Five years ago today I heard a still small voice that totally changed the direction of my life. It’s funny, I can tell you!

When God spoke this word to me in October 2016, I was the “Leadership & Missions Pastor” of our church and I was at a “Missions Leader Meeting” at Glen Eyrie, a beautiful retreat center in Colorado Springs, exactly where I was when I heard God’s voice, but I can’t tell you how I heard it. Was it something someone said? Was it a still small voice inside my head? The word, however, was loud and clear: “Jim, you think too much and you don’t pray enough.”

“Jim, You Think Too Much and You Don’t Pray Enough.”

I remember silently answering, “True. Guilty as charged!” But the voice did not condemn, it extended an invitation: “You can quit trying to figure everything out and start listening more closely to me.”

Acting on the Still Small Voice

I thought of a simple way to respond. I would begin taking ten minutes after lunch each day to pray for our church’s missions endeavors. So when I returned from Colorado, on my first day back in the office, after lunch I went to the little “prayer house” on the back of our church’s property to pray for missions. Sometimes our simple, practical responses are the most pivotal.

The first thing that came to my mind in that ten-minute prayer time was a challenge I was facing. It involved a missions issue, and for five years our senior pastor Happy and I had been trying to figure out what to do about this problem. So I did something—which I am embarrassed to admit—that I had not done before, I prayed about it.

I was surprised when God immediately spoke to me. He said, “Forget about changing that situation and instead get involved in reaching Muslim people in West Africa.” I then went to Happy and suggested that our church get involved with the work that the Maryville (TN) Vineyard had begun in West Africa. He responded, “How about you travel over there and check it out?” So, in February of 2017, I made my first visit to Côte d’Ivoire, a journey that totally changed the direction of my and my wife Vicki’s lives. But that is another story [include link to that story on my blog].

What I want to say today is that very often we think too much and don’t pray enough. Thinking is good. God wants us to think! But sometimes we don’t have the wisdom and insight we need, no matter how hard and long we think. We need to come to God who understands us and knows our lives and situations so much better than we do. Sometimes wisdom from God may not come right away. We may have to pray and wrestle through a situation. But there are also times, like mine five years ago, where several moments of praying and listening to God will get us further than five years of trying to figure things out on our own.

Where are you at today? Are you thinking too much and not praying enough? Is there a perplexing situation you haven’t been able to figure out? How about taking time to pray and listen to God’s voice? If you are ready to respond, he promises abundant wisdom to those who ask for it. (James 1:5)

This article on the still small voice originally appeared here, and is used by permission.

One Reader Says Tim Keller’s ‘The Meaning of Marriage’ Is Harmful to Women; Kathy Keller Responds

By

Jesse T. Jackson

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November 10, 2021

Best-selling author and former pastor of New York City’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Tim Keller, took some heat last week after the chapter “Sex and Marriage” in his book “The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God” was accused of being harmful to women.

In a Twitter thread posted by Bryana Joy, the writer, poet, and full-time artist was discussing what she called the “grim link between pornography and Christian marriage resources.”

“I’ve been posting a lot about how Christian sex advice does damage to women’s sexuality & self-concept,” Bryana said to start her 38-part thread. “Today I’ll talk about what these materials have in common with something Christians hate: porn.”

Bryana offered three assumptions she believes the two share. They are as follows: “Women exist for men. Women exist for sex. Men are dominant and women are submissive.” Bryana concluded that “porn and evangelical Christianity are two sides of the same patriarchal coin.”

While she mentions books by Debi Pearl, John and Stasi Eldredge, Gary Thomas, Kevin Leman, and Douglas Wilson, Bryana said a passage from Tim Keller’s “The Meaning for Marriage” was particularly damaging to her.

In Parts 31 and 32 of the thread, Bryana mentioned that “in porn, pain is depicted as a regular sexual experience for women, & the lines between pain & pleasure are catastrophically blurred. Unfortunately, Christian sex & marriage resources sometimes contribute directly to this dangerous messaging, often due to lack of education.”

Bryana then stated that her goal isn’t to pick on Keller and explains that as far as she knows “he is a loving husband and a kind man,” before sharing that a passage in his book “The Meaning of Marriage” caused her damage.

“I shall never forget the damage that was done to me by a passage in ‘The Meaning of Marriage’ in which he casually writes about a repeated occurrence: asking his wife after sex ‘how was that?’ and her saying ‘it just hurt.’ [Although he is a loving husband] his lack of knowledge about women’s sexual pain contributed to my belief that for some women, pain is just ‘part of sex.’ This is false, and can have serious long-term medical consequences for women,” Bryana said.

Sheila Wray Gregoire, who is the author of “The Great Sex Rescue: The Lies You’ve Been Taught and How to Recover What God Intended” and founder of To Love, Honor and Vacuum, backed Bryana’s comments. “Of all the anecdotes from marriage books that we mentioned in The Great Sex Rescue, this passage from Tim Keller stuck with me the most. No commentary that sex actually shouldn’t hurt. It was so sad,” Gregoire wrote.

The thoughts and feelings Bryana, Gregorie, and others expressed invoked a response from Keller’s wife, Kathy. Mrs. Keller is someone who rarely posts on social media and was actually the one who wrote the part in the chapter Bryana referred to.

Kathy replied from her husband’s Twitter account saying, “While I normally avoid social media, I felt that I had to set the record straight, as so many wild assertions are being made about a quote from ‘The Meaning of Marriage.’ First, as anyone who reads the chapter headed ‘Sex and Marriage’ can see, the quote in question is from ME, not from Tim.”

Heavy Metal Church: Church Plant Uses Music to Reach Others for Jesus

By

Jesse T. Jackson

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November 10, 2021

heavy metal church — Unsplash.com: @hectorbermudez

Located in the South East England town of Chatham, a church plant called Fire and Blood uses heavy metal music to reach those who feel alienated in traditional church settings.

The idea for the church was started when friends Rob Byrne, Roger Kiralfy, and George Papachristodoulou decided to combine their love of Christ with their love of heavy metal music. The church also doesn’t hold their worship gatherings in what most would consider a traditional church building. They meet in a nightclub called Tap N Tin every first Sunday of the month.

Fire and Blood church uses The Metal Bible in their services, a special Bible edition geared toward metal music lovers. The Metal Bible contains the New Living Translation’s version of the New Testament as well as testimonies from popular Christian and non-Christian heavy-metal bands, including musicians like Korn’s Brian Welch, Stryper’s Michael Sweet, Tourniquet’s Ted Kirkpatrick, and Iron Maiden’s Nicko McBrain. The Metal Bible was created in order to reach heavy-metal lovers for the gospel. Steve Rowe of the Christian band Mortification calls The Metal Bible “the best tool for evangelization ever!”

Papachristodoulou shared with BBC News, “I think that God placed me in the area to start a metal community based on the Christian faith. Everything the metal culture stands for is very close to the Christian ethos.”

“We’d never encourage someone to listen to music that drives them away from God,” Byrne, who is ordained in the Church of England, explained. “We really want to challenge the stuffy stereotypes that exist about Christians.”

In an interview last year, Byrne said, “If you study the Gospels and observe who Jesus spent the majority of his time with, it was with folks the religious establishment of that era often looked down upon — Christ’s ministry was completely subversive and radical. In a similar spirit, we want to reach out to those who feel alienated by mainstream Christianity and introduce more of our fellow metalheads, goths, and punks to the utterly awesome reality of Jesus Christ.”

Church services include listening to music and themed discussions. Their Facebook page says, “God made Heavy Metal and He saw it was good. And He gave it to humans to make magic out of it.”

One of the church’s leaders said that not everyone is on board with what they are doing, especially atheists. Papachristodoulou said, “We were expecting to have issues with Christians judging us, [but] the atheists were the ones that tried to fault us more. We’ve had some quite interesting conversations on Facebook.”

Kiralfy, who loves heavy-metal music, shared that the church gives him an opportunity to be himself and “talk to people with similar tastes” as him.

Haitian Migrants Bring Vitality to Declining San Diego Church

By

Rev. Gustavo Vasquez

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November 10, 2021

At the beginning of this century, the Rev. Bill Jenkins did not imagine that he would see a deep transformational process in the congregation that he was starting to serve.

Jenkins had been appointed pastor of Christ United Methodist Church in 1999 in San Diego, and for 12 years, he had worked hard to revitalize a declining church.

“The first six years, we tried to grow the church in the old Billy Graham way: revivals, knocking on doors and all of that. The harder that we worked, the smaller the church got,” he said.

In 2005, he told the congregation, “If we don’t do something different, you know what could happen: The church will be closed, the property sold, and you know that movie.”

Jenkins shared with local and conference leaders a proposal for a different church model, focused on community ministries and services. Based on the biblical passage in Matthew 25, about the final judgment and the importance of caring for those in need, he proposed changing the traditional congregation model into a ministry center.

“I wanted to let them understand that it would be such a great loss if we just closed the church and sold the property,” Jenkins said.

One of the big differences between a traditional church and the ministry center model is the use of the building. In the traditional church model, members focus on their Sunday activities.

“Almost everything is around Sundays,” Jenkins said. “If 90% of the time, energy and congregational resources are focused on a few hours during Sundays, the church is on its way to death. The ministry center is a seven-day church.’

The decision to change the church ministry model affected attendance significantly. “In 2011 — the last Sunday that I preached in the old congregation — we had around 35 people in attendance. Now, during the pre-pandemic days, we had around 2,000 people a week,” Jenkins said.

Even amid the pandemic, more than 1,000 people meet every week in the building. Sunday worship alone draws about 300 people to the 10 racially and denominationally diverse congregations hosted in the United Methodist Christ Ministry Center.

Migrant ministries are common in border areas. The former Christ United Methodist Church had a refugee assistance program that was revitalized and expanded under the new ministerial model.

Federal Court Will Take New Look at Masks in Religious Schools

By

AP News

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November 10, 2021

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A federal appeals court agreed Wednesday to reconsider a challenge to COVID-19 mask orders affecting students in a Michigan religious school.

The case involves Resurrection School in Lansing. But any result would cover other faith-based schools in Michigan and set a precedent as well in Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee, three more states in the 6th Circuit.

Resurrection and some parents sued in 2020, saying a state mask order violated the free exercise of religion, among other objections. A federal judge in Kalamazoo, however, turned down a request for an injunction, and a three-judge panel at the appeals court affirmed his opinion in August.

But the full appeals court now has agreed to set aside the panel’s work and start over.

In seeking a new hearing, attorneys for Resurrection said the panel applied the wrong legal standard last summer.

The scene has changed some since the lawsuit was filed. The state health department dropped school mask orders, instead deferring to county health departments. Ingham County, where Resurrection is located, is requiring masks in schools.

The COVID-19 vaccine has also been available for months; kids, ages 5-11, were just added to the list. As a result, some counties are planning to drop mask mandates by early 2022, although schools could adopt their own.

This article originally appeared here.

128K Images of Child Porn, Convicted of Sex Trafficking—OH Priest Gets Life in Prison

By

Jessica Mouser

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November 10, 2021

Catholic priest Robert McWilliams, 41, of Strongsville, Ohio, was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday, Nov. 9, for crimes that include possessing over 128,000 images of child pornography (including pictures of infants and toddlers), extorting minors, and paying at least two teenage boys for sex.

“He’s truly evil incarnate,” said the mother of three boys whom McWilliams victimized, speaking in court. “Father Bobby hunted and attacked my children.” She also called McWilliams “sadistic” and “diabolical.”

“This defendant violated and exploited children in nearly every manner imaginable,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan in a press release from the Justice Department. She continued:

Using his role in the Church, Mr. McWilliams violated the sacrament of confession to identify potential victims, and offered religious counseling to victims he extorted under alter egos he intentionally created to conceal his own identity. He also used social media to target and entice young children into the exploitive world of juvenile sex trafficking, all after having already amassed a large collection of violent child pornography. We commend the victims and their families for the courage they have shown. We are also thankful to Homeland Security Investigations, the Geauga County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force for their work on this case and all cases involving perpetrators who target our children.

Robert McWilliams: ‘This Is Me,’ Not the Church

Robert McWilliams was a seminarian at St. Helen’s Catholic Church in Newberry Township, Ohio. After being ordained as a priest in 2017, he served at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Strongsville, Ohio.

The Justice Department says that court documents show McWilliams began to “amass a significant collection of child pornography” at the beginning of 2019. The priest used information that children told him during confession to blackmail them into sending him sexually explicit images.

“When some victims refused to send additional images,” said the Justice Department, “McWilliams followed through on his threats and sent sexually explicit photographs to the victims’ mothers.” The priest created fake online profiles to entice minors to send him sexual images and videos and also used the app Grindr in order to meet minors for sex, which he paid for with money and alcohol.

The mother who called McWilliams “evil incarnate” said that the priest had befriended and manipulated her entire family. He blackmailed one of her sons into sending photos over text message, said the mother, and had molested one of her sons at church and at her home while the family was watching football. One of her children became suicidal.

Officials started investigating McWilliams in October 2019 after two families reported he had extorted their sons for explicit photos. McWilliams was arrested and placed in federal custody after authorities searched his home on Dec. 4, 2019, and found hundreds of images of child pornography. The Catholic Diocese of Cleveland subsequently placed him on leave.

YouVersion Bible App Hits 500 Million Installs

By

Dale Chamberlain

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November 10, 2021

The YouVersion Bible App hit half a billion downloads on Wednesday (November 10), making it the first faith-based app to reach 500 million installs. Launched by Life.Church in 2008, YouVersion was one of the first 200 free apps in the Apple App Store.

“While some people claim the Bible is irrelevant and Scripture engagement is declining, these 500 million installs indicate otherwise. The Bible continues to be relevant and has the power to transform lives,” said YouVersion Founder Bobby Gruenewald in a press release. “That’s why we’re excited to celebrate this milestone. Not just because it’s a big number, but because each install represents a chance for someone to go deeper in their faith and grow closer to God.”

Gruenwald was on staff at Craig Groeschel‘s Life.Church when he came up with the idea of the Bible App.

In a 2018 interview, Gruenwald recounted the moment the idea came to him while he was waiting in line at the airport, saying, “I had struggled to consistently read the Bible, even though I desired to — I wanted to. I just couldn’t quite find the interface with it that fit with kind of the busyness and the travel, and the way my life was at the time. So, there at the airport that day, this idea came for YouVersion.”

Launched with the purpose of helping people connect with the Bible wherever they are, YouVersion’s app functionality has expanded vastly over the years. The app now offers 2,600 versions of the Bible in over 1,760 languages, more than any other app in the world. Additionally, the app provides guided reading plans, devotionals, podcast recommendations, video teaching resources, and features that encourage consistency and community engagement when reading the Bible.

“It started as a question,” said YouVersion’s website. “What if people could have access to the Bible wherever they go?”

“Every time someone installs YouVersion, they’re getting instant access to a Community centered around the Bible. A Community that’s inviting God to shape their lives through Scripture, Bible Plans, and Prayer,” the website continued.

By partnering with publishers and Bible societies, YouVersion has been able to digitally distribute new Bible translations as soon as they become available. This has allowed users around the world to easily access the Bible in their native languages.

“Throughout the last several years, we have continually seen God do more than we could imagine through YouVersion. As the app has grown exponentially to reach people in every country of the world and change millions of lives, our faith has also grown to see new possibilities,” Gruenewald said. “We believe this is just the beginning for YouVersion. We have a fresh vision for where the Bible App is headed, and we’re excited to roll out new features in 2022 to better serve pastors and church leaders.”

“Today we’re celebrating 500 million installs…but we’re not just reflecting on what God has done, we’re looking forward to what He’ll do next,” said the app’s website. “Imagine a day in the near future when 1 billion people have installed YouVersion.”

You can download the YouVersion Bible app here.

Philip Yancey on Meeting Jesus After Growing Up in Fundamentalism

By

Jessica Mouser

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November 10, 2021

phillip yancey — Photo courtesy of Philip Yancey

The Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast · Philip Yancey on Meeting Jesus After Growing Up in Fundamentalism

Philip Yancey has explored the most basic questions and deepest mysteries of the Christian faith, taking millions of readers with him. He started his career working as an editor and then publisher for Campus Life magazine and is now the author of over 30 books, including, “The Jesus I Never Knew,” “What’s So Amazing About Grace?” and “Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?” Philip’s books have garnered 13 Gold Medallion Awards from Christian publishers and booksellers. He currently has more than 15 million books in print published in over 50 languages worldwide. His latest is “Where the Light Fell: A Memoir.”

Other Ways to Listen to This Podcast With Philip Yancey

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► Listen on YouTube

Key Questions for Philip Yancey

-Tell us about the view you had of God as a child and as a teenager.

-What was it that kept you from leaving Christianity and helped you embrace the actual God of the universe?

-Why was the unfathomable mystery of God so essential to the re-engagement of your belief?

-Why do you say that suffering and grace are two major themes in your life?

Key Quotes From Philip Yancey

“I’ve experienced some of the worst that the church has to offer. People who read this memoir, I think, are going to be shocked at the church I grew up in.”

“The best analysis [David Gushee] can come up with is that 25 to 30 million would be considered ‘exvangelicals,’ meaning they were raised in that subculture but don’t self-identify as evangelicals now. So that’s a lot of people, you know, that’s like more than a third of America who had this subculture that included things like Youth for Christ or Young Life and summer camps and vacation Bible school and all that. My slice of evangelicalism—I shouldn’t even apply that word to it. It was fundamentalism, pure and simple.”

“I was a racist. When you’re a kid, you believe everything the adults tell you. And then I found out, no, they lied. They were absolutely wrong. And then you start thinking, ‘Hmm, maybe they were wrong about Jesus. Maybe they were wrong about the Bible. And I went through a real crisis of faith.’”

“I didn’t go away completely from God. I did for a time, but I was open enough to allow God to bring me back into the fold and to realize what a trade that would be if I forfeited a connection with the creator of the universe just because of the way some church people got it wrong. And I think a lot of people are facing that choice today.”

9 Books for Pastors and Leaders Who Want to Last

By

David Sanford

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November 10, 2021

Here If you still have a heart to last well beyond obstacles and detours, as a pastor or a leader, I highly recommend 9 powerful books for pastors and leaders to equip you. They address issues like trust, disagreements, doctrine, and so much more, and offer constructive and sometimes counter-intuitive perspectives.

It happened again this past Monday. A dedicated, hard-working veteran pastor told me about some of the worst problems within his church. He listed a number of tell-tale markers as he expressed his deep frustrations. I couldn’t help noticing the pain lines written across his face. I admire this man and want the best for him—even through the toughest times.

When you’re tasked with shepherding souls in our gravely fallen world, pastors and leaders naturally face days, or seasons, of discouragement. Even though you know you’re meant to serve in this way, some days can feel like your last.

Every pastor and leader who still wants to be in the ministry five years from now needs to carefully read these books.

All 9 books for pastors and leaders have been game-changers for me.

Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box by Arbinger Institute (Berrett-Koehler). This international mainstream best-seller applies what turns out to be the Golden Rule and a few other biblical principles to daily life including marriage, family, work, and ministry. Foundational truth of this book: We all have blindspots. By definition, we can’t identify, let alone address, our blind spots on our own. Instead, we need to invite a few respected, trusted individuals to speak into our lives with love and truth about each blind spot, weakness, and failing.
Leadership Above the Line by Sarah Sumner (Tyndale). On the back cover I’m quoted saying: “If you lead leaders, push other books aside—and make this the next one you read. Leadership Above the Line is 60 percent story, 100 percent breakthrough insights on leadership formation. Dr. Sarah Sumner’s character-based model is clear, her story is compelling, and her application tools are transformational. Highly recommended!” Rarely does a book offer so much between two covers. I took my staff through it with great results, and you can too.
The Ascent of a Leader:How Ordinary Relationships Develop Extraordinary Character and Influence by Bill Thrall, Bruce McNicol and Ken McElrath. This best-seller redefined what it means to climb to the top of the ladder. The authors forcefully argue against the traditional leadership ladder and, in its place, present a compelling, biblical, and counterintuitive character-based ladder developed in the context of relationships of respect and trust.
TrueFaced: Trust God and Others with Who You Really Are by Bill Thrall, Bruce McNicol and John Lynch. Building on their best-selling breakthrough work, the authors emphasize the pivotal role of trust. Without trust, they argue, we effectively shut out God and others from speaking into our lives—speaking into our character development and the destiny God has planned specifically for you and for me.
Free to Disagree: Moving Beyond the Arguments Over Christian Liberty by John Wecks (Kregel). I sometimes jokingly say this book should be titled, Free to Disagree Agreeably. I recommend reading this book together with…
One Lord, One Faith by Rex Koivisto. Koivisto’s book differentiates between what the author calls “the core of orthodoxy” over against secondary and tertiary points of doctrine and practice.
The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Conflict by Ken Sande (Baker). When Ken Sande speaks, I listen. He’s an attorney, a pastor by heart, and a Bible teacher extraordinaire. In this landmark volume, he presents four basic biblical principles for resolving conflict: Glorify God (1 Cor. 10:31). Get the log out of your own eye (Matt. 7:5). Go and show your brother his fault (Matt. 18:15). Go and be reconciled (Matt. 5:24). Bottom line: Ken Sande says that conflict consistently presents us with the opportunity to demonstrate the presence and power of God at work in our lives.

Finally, every pastor and leader in the ministry for the long-haul needs to read these two books for pastors and leaders…

The Disquieted Soul by Lane Cohee (Credo House Publishers). You and I inhabit a world of Disquieted Souls, living lives of restless discontent. We too can be souls who overanalyze, over-worry, over-perform, and over-protect. We can be souls running as fast as we can, trying to escape our own unhappiness. Perfectionistic extremes and pathologies can be our regular companions. Thankfully, we can learn—and relearn—how to quiet our souls. Lane Cohee shows us how. Must reading.
Confessions of an Angry Man by Brent Hofer (KDP). This former pastor is quite clear: “Obeying my religious convictions does not make me right with God. They also do not make me better than others. They only make me proud. For years I felt like a failure to God because of my anger, jealousy, and lack of love. So I tried to improve my standing with God by obeying all of my outward convictions of right and wrong behaviors. They only made me a hypocrite. Admitting that I was wrong brought trust, transformation, and love for my family and others.” Haunting yet powerfully liberating.

To the degree that each of these books clearly teaches, illustrates, and applies biblical principles, to that same degree they’ll inform, inspire, and renew your soul.

One leader just bought every book I recommended. I wasn’t expecting that, but he’s already finished five of them. You may want to start with two or three.

Why wait? Click on the hyperlinked titles of the two or three books for pastors and leaders that stand out the most to you. And then drop me a line so I can pray for you. My email address appears below.

David Sanford coaches pastors and other Christian leaders passionate about demonstrating the relevance of Jesus Christ in every major sphere of life. His book and Bible projects have been published by Zondervan, Tyndale, Thomas Nelson, Doubleday, and Amazon. His speaking engagements have ranged everywhere from UC Berkeley (CA) to The Billy Graham Center at the Cove (NC). He can be reached at sanforddr@gmail.com.

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Key Quotes From Philip Yancey

All 9 books for pastors and leaders have been game-changers for me.

Finally, every pastor and leader in the ministry for the long-haul needs to read these two books for pastors and leaders…

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