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Trust the God Who Provides (Not the Means He Uses)

By
Colin Smith
-
communicating with the unchurched

Trust the God Who Provides (Not the Means He Uses)

Elijah is in Cherith, a remote place where God hides him, leads him, and feeds him. Here is this man who trusts and obeys God, and God is providing for him. There is a brook, and Elijah is able to drink from it. And when he does, he must have said, “Thank you Lord! Every day you provide for me through this brook.” Look what happens next:

After a while, the brook dried up because there was no rain in the land… (1 Kings 17:7).

God used the brook to sustain Elijah, and now the means God had used to provide for His servant dried up. Perhaps you are in exactly this position today. God has provided a stream of income for you through a certain form of work. The work you have done, the business you have pursued, has been your brook. But now the brook is drying up. What was working before, isn’t working now. It becomes obvious that you have to move on.

Others are not there yet, but you can see that there is less water in the brook of God’s provision for you than there used to be. You wonder what the future is going to hold for you, and you say, “What happens if this brook dries up altogether?”

Elijah must have expected this. He told the king there would be no rain, and if there’s no rain, the brook will eventually dry up. The dry brook is evidence that God keeps His promise. The same hand that held back the rain would soon pour out His provision through the oil and the flour.

Know When It’s Time to Move On 

The Word of the Lord came to him: “Arise and go to Zarephath which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you” (1 Kings 17:8).

God has more than one way of supplying what you need. When one means of supply dries up, God will provide another. What we learn here is to trust the God who provides, not His means of supply.

If you have had a stable and steady job for 5, 10, or 20 years, it’s easy to get the idea that the job that is what provides for you. No, God provides for you. He may do that through the job and if that stream dries up, He will provide for you in another way.

You may say—God has provided a small group for me, a dear friend for me, a healthy church for me, a wonderful ministry for me. These are the means of God’s supply. The way God supplies will change. The brook will dry up. Change will come in your life.

When that happens, God will call you to leave Cherith and go to Zarephath, where He will provide for you in another way. Don’t get fixated on the means of His supply. Trust the Lord who provides, because He never changes. If you cling to how God has blessed you in the past, you may miss how He will bless you in the future. Clinging to Cherith when God calls you to Zarephath is the surest way to miss God’s blessing.

God says to Elijah, “The brook that was such a blessing to you in the past is not what I have for you now. I’m drying it up.” But there is blessing and ministry for you in a place where you’d least expect it—Zarephath!

Walk in Faith and Obedience 

So [Elijah] arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold a widow was there gathering sticks (1 Kings 17:10).

Obedience was the pattern of Elijah’s life. When he arrived in Zarephath there was a woman in desperate poverty, gathering sticks on the dump outside the city. Elijah asks her for a drink, and as the woman turns to go and get the water, Elijah says, “And bring me some bread” (17:11).

The woman says, “As the Lord your God lives” (17:12). She knows who the Lord is, but she is not yet a believer. At this point in the story, the Lord is Elijah’s God, not hers. “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug” (17:12). There she was at the dump outside the city gathering sticks to make a fire. On this fire she planned to bake some bread, with the full expectation that this would be her last meal.

Then we have these astonishing words:

Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son (1 Kings 17:13).

Elijah was a prophet. That means he spoke the word of God. What the prophet says, God says. So, the word of the Lord comes to this woman through Elijah, calling her to make a great sacrifice.

Notice God also gives her a great promise: “For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth’” (17:14). Someone might say, “Well, this sounds a bit like the health and wealth gospel to me.” Not a bit of it. God never promised wealth to the woman. The promise was not “Make me a cake and I’ll give you a bread factory.” The promise was “Bake me a cake, and the jar of flour will not be empty. The jug of oil will not run dry.”

God will provide what you need when you need it—not an overflowing jar and an overflowing jug. You can trust Him as you walk with Him in faith and obedience.

This article originally appeared here.

Stop Multitasking —It Makes you Dumber

By
Charles Stone
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communicating with the unchurched

Productivity for leaders demands wise time management. But will multitasking make us better time managers? This study says no. A study done at the University of London found that constant emailing and text-messaging reduces mental capability by an average of ten points on an IQ test. It was five points for women, and fifteen points for men. This effect is similar to missing a night’s sleep. For men, it’s around three times more than the effect of smoking cannabis. While this fact might make an interesting dinner party topic, it’s really not that amusing that one of the most common “productivity tools” can make one as dumb as a stoner. (David Rock, Your Brain at Work, p. 36) If you get sucked into multitasking, consider these 4 ways to fight against the tendency.

Many leaders, including me, have too often convinced themselves that multi-tasking leads to better time management. Actually, it doesn’t. Researchers have shown that when we try to do two mental tasks at once, our cognitive capacity can drop from that of a Harvard MBA to that of an eight year old (Rock, p. 34).

Although we technically can do two tasks at once, it dramatically slows our mental processing. So, if you think you are saving time by multi-tasking, you really aren’t. Neuroscientists call this dual-task interference. Because the high level thinking part of our brain (the pre-frontal cortex) works in a serial fashion, one item at a time, when we multi-task we clog up its processing speed and actually reduce our effectiveness.

Linda Stone, a former VP at Microsoft captured the essence in the term continuous partial attention. She describes it this way. “To pay continuous partial attention is to keep a top-level item in focus, and constantly scan the periphery in case something more important emerges.” As a result, this “always on” mode puts our brains on constant alert, thus flooding them with too much stress hormone which slows processing.

So what can we do to moderate this tendency?

  1. Imbed repetitive tasks deep into our long term memory so we that we can actually do them without thinking. An example is driving. We don’t really think about driving because we’ve done it long enough to make it a habit. Such habits don’t require the executive functions of our brains. Rather, they are stored into the part of our brain that stores routine functions, the basal ganglia.
  2. Prioritize your tasks for the day. Every day take a few minutes to plan your day so that you do the most mentally taxing things first. This appointment with the executive center of our brains assures we do our best thinking for what demands it.
  3. Turn off notifications on your computer or mobile device. I thought in my iPad and iPhone all I had to do was to keep an app out of Notifications. I just realized that I have to go into settings and turn off notifications in each app. When I read, I hated getting the reminders at the top of the screen which interrupted my train of thought. I no longer get them.
  4. Determine when you will attend to those tasks that interrupted you. When I write or study, I turn off email. But every hour or so when I take a break, I will turn it on and quickly look at email and respond to those that I can in the moment. That way I can focus on that which requires my mental energy and check off those less demanding tasks at those scheduled times .

How do you handle the multi-tasking monster?

My latest book, Brain-Savvy Leaders: the Science of Significant Ministry, provides practical insight from brain insight on many areas of leadership.

This article originally appeared here.

Jen Hatmaker Corrects Herself: God Didn’t Give Us This Land

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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communicating with the unchurched

Popular Christian author Jen Hatmaker apologized on social media for something she said during the interfaith inaugural prayer service last Thursday, January 21, 2021.

Hatmaker said on social media that she “was proud to offer the final liturgical prayer which was written by the organizers to serve as an anchor,” in the online service that lasted for almost 90 minutes.

Her prayer is written below:

Almighty God, you have given us this good land as our heritage. Make us always remember our generosity, and constantly do your will. Bless our land with honest industry, in an honorable way of life. Save us from violence, discord and confusion, from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Make us that come from many nations with many different languages a united people. Defend our liberties, and give those who we have entrusted with the authority of government, the spirit of wisdom that there might be justice and peace in our land. When times are prosperous, let our hearts be thankful. And in troubled times do not let our trust in you fail. In your holy name we pray, Amen. 

The progressive Christian author posted on Facebook and Instagram later than day, apologizing for saying God gave us the land writing, “I have one regret and thus apology. The very first sentence thanked God for giving us this land as our heritage. He didn’t. He didn’t give us this land. We took this land by force and trauma. It wasn’t an innocent divine transaction in which God bestowed an empty continent to colonizers. This is a shiny version of our actual history. If God gave this land to anyone, it was to the Native community who always lived here.”

She continued on writing, “That line. I knew it as soon as I said it. And I panicked and froze and then just kept going. I am so sorry, community. Primarily sorry to my Native friends. It MATTERS to me that we reckon with our history of white supremacy and the lies we surrounded it with, and I am filled with regret that I offered yet another hazy, exceptional rendition of the origin story of colonization. Ugh.”

Hatmaker was so troubled by what she said earlier that day, she revealed that her “stomach hurt all day.” She then let her followers know that if she could go back and change what was written for her this is what she would have said, “God, may we continue to be a people who reckon with our violent history, repent from the unjust systems we built, denounce white supremacy in all its forms past and present, and continue to work together to form a more perfect union.”

After that first sentence she wrote, “I meant every word,” and gave Rev. William Barber II‘s message high praise making the comment, “he will take you all the way to church.”

Her Facebook post has received over 700 comments, most of her followers thanked Jen Hatmaker for her apology:

Other’s voiced their displeasure with Hatmaker’s and questioned her social media post:

Rick Warren Joins Senators Villanueva, Pacquiao in National Bible Day Celebration

By
Stephanie Martin
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communicating with the unchurched

As the Philippines marks National Bible Day today, politicians in the predominantly Christian nation say the observance has never been more important. God’s Word offers much-needed guidance and hope, they say, especially during the pandemic.

In 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte signed a law designating the last Monday of every January as National Bible Day. “The government shall aid and encourage development of the moral character and spiritual foundation of the Filipino people,” reads the Act, which “recognizes the value of the Holy Bible as the core of Christian faith.” About 93 percent of Filipinos are Christians, and most are Catholic.

‘Our country needs the Lord’

Several senators addressed the importance of God’s Word and the observance. Senator Joel Villanueva, whose father Eddie Villanueva heads the Jesus Is Lord Church Worldwide, calls National Bible Day “a national celebration” of the citizenry’s faith. “It is indeed impossible to govern a nation without the Word of God,” the senator tweeted. “The Holy Scripture is life for those who find them and health or medicine to our flesh.”

Sen. Villanueva adds that COVID-19 and the resulting loneliness have left many Filipinos feeling lost. “This is the reason why we should…encourage them to read the Bible to learn wisdom and find hope and experience the transformative power of the Word of God,” he says. The senator has spoken about grieving his mother and sister, both of whom recently died.

Boxer-turned-Senator Manny Pacquiao also noted the significance of National Bible Day 2021. “This pandemic has been testing our faith and our strength as a nation,” he says, “but it could not stop us from finding opportunities to share the biblical teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ… Today, more than ever, our country needs the Lord.” Pacquiao praised churches for creatively adapting to health-related closures, using online worship “so that we can continue reaching more people for the Lord even during lockdowns.”

‘We know where our heart is’

After thanking Villanueva and Pacquiao for spearheading the National Bible Day legislation, Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa said, “When I discovered that my daughter and I contracted the deadly virus, instead of feeling neglected and questioning our faith, I turned to the Bible. In that very moment, I felt healed.” He added, “As we celebrate National Bible Day, we are reminded that no matter what sickness, trial, or tribulation we face, we know where to put our treasure. We know where our heart is. We put our trust in God.” 

The speaker lineup for National Bible Day 2021 also included David Beasley, executive director of the U.N. World Food Programme, and Rick Warren, author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California. In a video posted to YouTube, Warren shares leadership lessons from Proverbs and urges leaders to invest in God’s Word and in God’s people—two things that will last.

Warren says he misses his friends in the Philippines, where Saddleback has a satellite campus near Manila. In 2012, the pastor said of Pacquiao: “What most people don’t know about Manny is that he has more of the Bible memorized than many pastors do. He not only quotes the Bible from memory; he applies it to his life.”

Francis Chan is Back in the U.S., Says Hong Kong Visa Rejection May Be Blessing in Disguise

By
Megan Briggs
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communicating with the unchurched

Francis Chan and his family have left Hong Kong after authorities rejected their visas, the minister says. Chan is back in the San Francisco, Calif. area after spending 2020 in Hong Kong. While Chan says he is appealing the Hong Kong visa rejection, he is convinced that no matter what happens, “God is sovereign and he is in control.”

Chan and his family members had been planting house churches in Hong Kong before they had to leave in late December, 2020. The author of Crazy Love and Letters to the Church told a group of leaders in a video update that he and his two sons-in-law saw the Lord plant three house churches during their time there.

The house church model is something Chan championed while he and his family were still living in the San Francisco bay area before moving to Asia last year. Relying on lay leaders rather than trained clergy, the model is designed to be self-replicating as the leaders or elders of the house church are training other members of the group to be able to lead a group on their own.  

Hong Kong Visa Rejection Caught Family by Surprise

Chan said he was caught by surprise when their visas were rejected, and initially his house church worried about whether they would be able to keep going without the leadership of Chan and his two sons-in-law. Chan said he shared two thoughts with the potential new leaders of the group. 

The first thought Chan shared is that the Apostle Paul would go to a city where people had never heard the name of Jesus before and leave after just a few weeks of planting a church. Despite having no seasoned leaders, no Bible, and no other resources, these church plants not only survived but became flourishing churches. Chan argued that all these early churches had was the Holy Spirit. He then asked the group “Do you not have enough information or not enough faith?”

The second thought Chan shared was from Ephesians 4:11-12, which says Christ gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” When Chan first encountered this verse as a young pastor, he felt as if he needed to fill all of these roles himself. However, as Chan explained to the house church members, God intends for different people in a body of believers to fulfill these roles–they don’t all fall on the shoulders of the pastor or the leaders of the group. He instructed the leaders of the house church that all they had to focus on was shepherding the group. 

Chan says after he shared these thoughts, the new group leaders were ready to take over. Considering leadership is a skill that requires practice in order to master, Chan speculates that if he had stayed too long leading that group, it “might have hurt the church” in the long run.  

Drawing a parallel from Scripture, Chan pointed out that Jesus told the disciples it was to their advantage he go away because of the power (the Holy Spirit) that would come to them.

Still, Chan said he “hated leaving” and that his whole family loved their time in Hong Kong. It was a “stretching experience,” according to Chan. Explaining a bit of the nature of their ministry, Chan said he and his family were trying to band together believers from different socio-economic groups. One group even had some “street kids” paired with “crazy rich Asians” from the other side of town. It was thrilling and wonderful seeing them come together as one, Chan said. 

Ministering in Hong Kong also stretched Chan as a preacher. Since his Chinese is “horrible,” the language barrier forced Chan to rely almost exclusively on Scripture to preach. Scripture says our elegant words can diminish the power of the cross. “I can barely get the gospel out in Chinese,” Chan said, but, he reasons, that’s “good enough.”

The Chan family also experienced God’s grace in the midst of uncertainty with their visas. While they were unsure what to do or where to go, Chan said he looked around the room during a time of prayer and saw that his family members were praising God. No one had a plan worked out or even a home to call their own, and yet not only were they not worried, they were seemingly at peace with their situation. This, said Chan, and not necessarily the visa situation being sorted out, was evidence of God’s grace.

One of Chan’s daughters and her husband ended up going to Los Angeles while another daughter and her husband went to Ireland. Chan is back in San Francisco, although he has since reapplied to re-enter Hong Kong. The minister said he doesn’t know if they will be approved this time, but either way he is up for whatever task God calls him to in the near future. Perhaps, he speculated, God has something for him to do in the United States at the moment.

Southern Baptist Dwight McKissic to Leave Texas Group Over Critical Race Theory Stance

By
Adelle M Banks
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communicating with the unchurched

(RNS) — The Rev. Dwight McKissic, the Black Baptist pastor who has successfully pushed his denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, to issue resolutions criticizing the Confederate flag and to condemn white supremacy, is pulling his Arlington, Texas, church out of one of two of his state’s SBC-affiliated conventions.

McKissic is not the first Black pastor to make a move in the wake of SBC leaders’ recent statements about critical race theory, an academic framework that examines how systemic racism operates. Charlie Dates, another Texas pastor, recently announced his departure from the national body, following other Black Southern Baptist ministers. But McKissic, who said he would maintain his ties with the Baptist General Convention of Texas while leaving the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, is also among the influential Black leaders in the denomination.

McKissic said that a fall statement from the SBTC sparked his decision. “(W)e the messengers to the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, meeting in Austin, Texas, November 9-10, 2020,” reads the statement, “will advance biblical language and avoid promotion of Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality, and other secular ideologies.”

A few weeks later, the SBC’s six seminary presidents declared that critical race theory was incompatible with their denomination’s faith statement. After an early January meeting with Black Southern Baptist leaders, the seminary leaders, all of whom are white, acknowledged “the pain and confusion that resulted from a lack of prior dialogue.”

Besides the Baptist General Convention of Texas, McKissic and his predominantly Black church, attended by some 1,400 prior to the pandemic, remain affiliated with the National Baptist Convention, USA, a historically Black denomination as well as the Southern Baptist Convention. The BGCT, the older and more progressive of the two state conventions, did not pass any resolutions in 2020.

McKissic, 64, talked with Religion News Service on Thursday (Jan. 21) about why he’s leaving the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and what he thinks could lie ahead for the nation’s largest Protestant denomination.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Why did you decide to leave the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention?

At their annual state convention, the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention passed a resolution, essentially denouncing critical race theory. Having some limited understanding of it, I could not embrace where the SBTC was on that question so I’m no longer compatible with them and made the decision that we need to disengage from them. As a matter of fact, I got the confirmation today they received our letter.

The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention’s definition of critical race theory says, in part, “Critical Race Theory is the secular view that the law and legal institutions are inherently racist.” Do you agree with that definition?

I agree that racism historically and the residue of that currently affect all sectors of American society. The DNA of racism is a part of our legal documents. And, yes, I would agree residual effects of racism are evident or can be found in all aspects of American life, including the Southern Baptist Convention.

Is there some other way that you yourself define critical race theory?

Why has the SBC been integrated since the early ’50s, allowing Black churches in, educating Blacks in college and seminaries, but never in 70 years hired a Black man who has applied for all of these jobs of their different entities? No Hispanic, no Asian or no Black, no matter how many apply, gets hired. Critical race theory is designed to answer the question, Why is that?

They would say, ”That’s not intentional racism. None of the people who were Black qualified.” Critical race theory is designed to say “Not so. So, let’s look at why is this and, how we can change that?” But you can apply that same principle to corporate America, all aspects of America.

How do you feel about Southern Baptist Convention seminary presidents saying they will not allow critical race theory to be taught on their campuses?

I feel that’s suicidal in terms of recruitment of Black students and Black professors. I love Southern Baptist Seminary (in Louisville, Kentucky). I love Southwestern Baptist Seminary (in Fort Worth, Texas) in particular. I think you can still get a very solid theological ministerial education at a Southern Baptist seminary. However, that statement places the issues of race and how it’s communicated on their campuses solely, a hundred percent, in the hands of white males to make a decision. Very unwise. Who determines whether or not a professor steps out of the bounds based on what he or she would say about race? That will always be a white male. The implications of that are staggering.

You have said that the statements that the seminary presidents made could have implications for churches, and African-American Southern Baptist churches in particular. What do you see as the biggest implication?

So, what are the implications if a Sunday school teacher, or a Black Baptist preacher, or anybody — (Bible teacher) Beth Moore for that matter, says something in the pulpit that somebody finds crosses the critical race theory line. Who throws the red flag and holds them accountable? My fear is we don’t know how this is going to be used. Whose definition of critical race theory are you going by? Who determines when you cross that line? Who draws that line? Who holds you accountable?

This article originally appeared on ReligionNews.com.

The Patriotic Idolatry

By
Donny Friederichsen
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communicating with the unchurched

In many evangelical circles, it is still assumed that conservative theology means conservative politics. And to be fair, the same could be said of the “Evangelical left” and liberal politics. But when politics and theology are seen as synonymous, it is typically not theology that is primary.

The reason for this is simple: a robust biblical theology does not support the hyper-individualism and consumerism needed to maintain public interest in today’s modern politics. Nevertheless, modern politics needs to be cloaked in religious language in order to carry the necessary gravitas. The end result is that theology becomes the handmaiden of political agendas. In turn, patriotism becomes one and the same with Christianity for so many. Among the multitude of factors that have given rise to this fact in the United States is the combination of American exceptionalism and Dispensationalist theology.

American Exceptionalism

American exceptionalism is the belief that the United States is qualitatively and fundamentally different and better than other nations. The reasons behind this widely held belief are varied. The amalgamation of a Puritan history, Protestant work-ethic, manifest destiny, and a general pragmatism have all helped shape the belief that God has, in fact, blessed the United States in a way that He has not blessed other nations.

The belief in American exceptionalism was wedded to the growing theological movement known as Dispensationalism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Dispensationalism, a novel theological movement that was popularized by J.N. Darby and C.I. Schofield, convinced Christians that they could most certainly find American exceptionalism in the Scriptures. Through the vehicle of Dispensationalism, America became the pinnacle of Christendom, the “City on a Hill,” but not in the manner it was originally used by John Winthrop when he quoted Matthew 5:14 in 1630. Winthrop argued that the eyes of the world would be upon their colony and if they dealt falsely with God, then God would make them a byword. Winthrop saw no special virtue or exceptionalism in his colonyl; rather he used it as a call to actually live out their Christian faith in spite of their inherent sinfulness.

Contrary to Winthrop’s original meaning, American evangelicals began to see the United States as THE beacon of God’s divine light and the highpoint of humanity. For example, the fiction series, Left Behind, by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins presents a Dispensational view of the end times which makes clear that the US and the modern nation-state of Israel are the principal players in God’s great redemptive plan of history.

God Heard. God Remembered. God Saw. God Knew

By
Darryl Dash
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communicating with the unchurched

Some passages grab me every time. Exodus 2:24-25 is one of them: “And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel — and God knew.” (Exodus 2:24-25)

There’s enough here to sustain someone for years.

God Heard

Exodus 2:23 says, “During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help.” They were burdened beyond what they could handle, and their groans and cries became a prayer.

And then we read these amazing words: “God heard their groaning.”

God hears his people when they’re in distress. When we feel like nobody cares or listens, God hears our groaning. His ear is attuned to us. He keeps track of our tossing and turning; our tears matter so much to him that not one of them is lost (Psalm 56:8). The Spirit even helps us when we don’t know what to pray

Even better, Romans 8:26 says that when we struggle with prayer, and don’t know what to pray, the Spirit helps us.

A lot of us are struggling more than normal right now. God hears us. None of our prayers are wasted. He hears them all, even the inarticulate cries for help.

God Remembered

“And God remembered his covenant with Abraham…”

He never forgot, of course. The term means that he began to act on his covenant promises.

If there’s one thing we can hold onto, it’s that God never forgets his promises. We may have to wait for them to be fulfilled, but God never forgets his covenant, and he never forgets us.

God Saw

For those who feel unseen: God sees.

“Every blow of the hand that buffets you, every cut of the scourge, every scorching hour under the noon-tide sun, every lonely hour when lovers and friends stand aloof, every step into the valley of the shadow, every moment of sleep beneath the juniper tree, is watched by the eyes that never slumber nor sleep” (Maxie D. Dunnam).

“The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous” (Psalm 34:15). Nobody else may notice, but God does.

God Knew

God is aware of our problems. His knowledge is intimate and personal. “The God of the covenant, the God who sees, hears, and remembers, is the God who knows our situation in all its desperate need” (Philip Ryken).

One of the best ways to read Scripture is to look for what Scripture teaches us about God and ourselves.

Here’s what I learn about us: we are often in desperate need, burdened beyond what we can handle, and needing help but hardly having the words to express our need.

Here’s what I learn about God: He hears the cry of his people. He remembers his covenant with them. He sees everything about us. And he knows, and he cares.

As I say, we could live off of this for months. We serve an amazing God who’s ready to hear us in our need.

This article originally appeared here.

Five Moves Churches Are Making in the Second COVID Spike

By
Thom Rainer
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communicating with the unchurched

Many areas are seeing a COVID spike a second time, some even greater than the first spike. We have been communicating with hundreds of pastors each week who contact Church Answers with questions and information.

When COVID became known and pervasive, most churches immediately ceased all in-person activities, including worship services. The most common responses included establishing digital worship services and digital small groups. This time, the responses are different. Of course, we understand that every church and every context are different. Still, we see five common themes among most of the churches in their latest responses to the pandemic.

  1. Continuing in-person services with less participation. This time, most churches have decided to keep the in-person services open. But the leaders have encouraged those with health challenges, the elderly, and those with any exposure to COVID patients and victims to remain at home and watch the services virtually. Obviously, worship attendance has been hit again by this move.
  2. Renewing emphasis on digital services. Churches in general have gone through three phases with digital services. First, they moved to digital with enthusiasm and effort. Second, as they returned to in-person services, many churches gave much less attention to streaming services. Now, in the third phase, churches are renewing their emphasis on digital services. More church leaders are realizing they should not have decreased their emphasis on digital services at all.
  3. Making adjustments to the budget. Many church leaders were pleasantly surprised to see giving stay strong in the early stages of the pandemic. There was a sense that church members were rallying to a cause. The stimulus funding by the federal government helped as well. Then, the giving began to wane in many churches. We anticipate giving to be down around 20% in 2021, even with the second round, and possibly a third round, of stimulus funding.
  4. Many small groups returning to digital. Some churches have moved all of their small groups back to digital. Other churches have a mix of in-person and digital small groups. The churches that have maintained their emphasis on small groups, whether digital or in-person, are typically among the healthiest congregations today.
  5. More staff transitioning to co-vocational. There is a clear and definitive trend of vocational ministry staff moving to a co-vocational role. Some of the moves are by financial necessity. These staff are typically called bi-vocational. They have two paying jobs, one at the church and another in secular ministry. The church does not have the resources to pay the person full-time. More are moving into co-vocational roles by choice, either coming from secular vocations or going to secular vocations. The “tentmaker” ministry may be among the biggest changes in church life in 2021. 

We will keep you updated as we get feedback from the church leaders we serve at Church Answers. And we would love to hear from you about the steps you are currently taking at your church.

Thank you for serving. Let us hear how you are doing.

This article originally appeared on ChurchAnswers.com

Practical Discipleship: Four Questions That Transform Dinner Into Discipleship

By
Christina Embree
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communicating with the unchurched

Practical Discipleship: Four Questions That Transform Dinner Into Discipleship

“When you sit at home…” Dt. 4:7

This verse is found in the oft-quoted passage regarding discipleship in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 where Moses addresses the congregation of Israel and explains how they are to pass their faith on to the next generation. He mentions four specific moments to talk about faith: When we sit at home, when we walk along the road, when we lie down, and when we rise.

I love these four moments because they are universal—every single person ever had done these things. They’ve sat at a place they call home, they’ve left and gone out on the road, they’ve slept and they’ve woken up. These simple, everyday moments are when God shows up, if we are looking for Him.

Over the next few weeks, I’d like to look at these four moments and find some creative ways to use the time we’ve been given. Today, we’re going to look at the moments where we sit at home and how we can redeem that time to share our faith with our kids.

“Highs and Lows!!”

If you’ve ever eaten dinner with the Embree family, no doubt that right after we prayed,
one of us said this phrase. It has become part of our dinnertime DNA and something that has led to incredible faith conversations over spaghetti and salad. Some of our most defining moments as a family in terms of discipleship and growth, especially as a young family, took place because of these four questions.

I can’t take credit for them. That goes to Dr. Kara Powell of Fuller Youth Institute. I had the opportunity a few years ago to attend a seminar led by her about Sticky Faith and how to help our kids develop a faith that sticks beyond high school. She shared this dinner time routine at that conference and I immediately thought, “This is easy! This is something we can do!” and so…we did.

Here are four simple but ever so critical questions we ask each other nearly every day.

1. What was your HIGH today?

Simply put, you are just asking what went well that day. Why? Well, I’m sure you’ve all experienced the oh-so-enlightening after-school conversation that goes something like this:

Parent – So, how was school today? Child – Fine.  

Parent – Well, what’d you do? Child – Nothing.  

Parent – You had to do something. What did you learn? Child – I dunno.  

Parent – Oh come on, give me something! Child – *blank stare* 

Asking a question like “What was your high?” begs the answer in story form. Sure, every now and then, we get a shrug, but most of the time, we get to hear about something that happened that day that otherwise we would not have been privy too. Plus the whole family gets to celebrate the moment together.

2. What was your LOW today?

It is important to recognize that not everything that happens in a day is fun and happy. Sometimes things happen that make us angry or sad. Having a safe place to mention low times and process with family can lead to some of the most meaningful moments in your family’s life. We’ve cried together, talked through some difficult situation, prayed for people who hurt us or were hurting, and addressed some of the harder things kids face in life. We don’t want our kids to live a “facebook” existence where only the good moments get highlighted; rather, we want to teach them that God and home are safe places even in the hardest times.

3. What MISTAKE did you make today?

We all cringe a little bit at this one. It means we have to step back and acknowledge that we may have messed up. It takes humility to admit that, not only to ourselves, but also to our family. And no one is exempt; even Mom and Dad have to answer the question.

Do you know what message this sends our kids? That we mess up, but God’s love is available anyway. Forgiveness and grace are always available. Sometimes, we can genuinely say, “I had a good day and I can’t think of any mistakes,” but those times are outweighed by the moments we recognize that we trip up and fall into the grace of God. We want our kids to know that no matter how big the “mistake,” God’s grace, love and forgiveness are always available, and so is ours.

4. Where did you see JESUS today?

This is by far my favorite question. It’s different from the High of the day. It’s where we have experienced God in our everyday life. I love the answers my kids give to this question, things like, “I saw Jesus when my friend gave me a hug,” and, “I saw Jesus when my teacher forgave some kids who had three strikes and let them have ice cream anyway.” Seeing the attributes of God in the world around them keeps them looking for Jesus everywhere they go. Once, one of my girls wrote a note to a friend in which she said, “When you [did that thing] I saw Jesus in you.” That’s exactly the kind of note we need to be giving one another!

Four simple questions. Four amazing life lessons.

Four easy ways to connect. Four intentional moments for discipleship.

And while the dinner table works for us, maybe it would work better for you on car rides? Or before bedtime? Or maybe even over text if your kids are older?

The idea isn’t to create another “thing” we feel pressured to do.  Rather, it is to layer some intentionality over what we are already doing to create the opportunity to model faith, experience grace and increase love together.

Remember, discipleship at home is never about doing more things. Rather, think of it as an opportunity to invite Jesus into everything we are already doing. Many of use eat dinner at home and most of us strive to do that together, as a family. Inviting Jesus into that everyday practice takes it from ordinary to sacred, from dinner to discipleship, from temporal to eternal, and that is discipleship at home.

For more ideas on how to use the dinner table as discipleship, check out these posts:

This article originally appeared here.

Your Work Matters More Than You Think

By
Colin Smith
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communicating with the unchurched

And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over the household. Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly, and when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave and fed them with bread and water (1 Kings 18:3-4).

God puts his people in some surprising places. The testimony of Obadiah can encourage Christians who have been called to serve God in dark places for His purposes.

Called to Unlikely Places

Obadiah is a godly man, and God has put him in the palace, next to Ahab. Imagine the darkness of this palace with its evil king and its wicked queen. King Ahab didn’t fear the Lord or walk in His ways. But God placed someone next to him who did.

Perhaps you can relate to Obadiah, who loved the Lord but lived and worked in a place that must have torn him apart. Maybe you are serving a company where many things make you deeply uncomfortable. You say to yourself, “I am a Christian. Should I even be here? How long can I go on working for these people?”

Maybe you face intense pressures in your career. You ask yourself, “Should I even be doing this?” And you wonder, “Is it possible to be a Christian and pursue a secular calling in this world that is increasingly hostile to our faith? Can I stay or should I go?”

Then you think, “Maybe I can get a job in ministry. Maybe I could become a pastor or a missionary or work for a nice Christian organization. Then I wouldn’t have to deal with these pressures.” The darker the world becomes, the greater the pressure on Christians to withdraw.

Don’t shy away from positions of influence because they are difficult. God calls His people to be lights in very dark places.

Called for Surprising Purposes

I Kings 18 tells us that there were at least a hundred men who had been called to preach the Word of God (v. 4), but there was only one man standing at the right hand of Ahab. The best that Obadiah can do for God is not to abandon his job and become the 101st preacher, but to persevere in his high-pressure position. Take him out of the palace, and so much is lost.

Obadiah couldn’t possibly have hidden the prophets apart from information gleaned by working in the palace. Think about the risk involved in that! Jezebel is killing prophets, and her husband’s chief of staff is hiding them in caves. Think about the cost! Obadiah supplied food to a hundred missionaries out of his own pocket!

The prophet Elijah could never have done what Obadiah did. Though the two men are brothers in the faith, they have very different callings. Elijah works from the “outside”—standing apart from and speaking into national life—and God has given him a platform to do that (1 Kings 18). But Obadiah has a ministry of influence from the “inside.” He stays in the palace, and he has to be very careful about what he says. Everything in his life is about staying faithful in a situation that often must have felt as if it was tearing him apart. Here are three insights we can gain from his testimony:

a. Expect to be troubled.

In any career, you will find yourself torn, because you are in the world but not of it. Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble” (Jn. 16:33). This world is not your home, so you are serving where you do not belong in a system that will pass away. That will always cause tension.

When you feel pressure to withdraw from your profession because it’s a dark place, please remember—God calls Obadiah’s as well as Elijah’s. He puts his light in some dark places because that’s where it’s needed most. The steadfastness of Obadiah is a great means of preserving the witness of God, and it’s a warning against Christian withdrawal from the world.

b. Expect to be misunderstood.

It is fascinating to me that some writers take a very negative view of Obadiah. F. B. Meyer, a wonderful Christian writer from whom I have benefitted, sees Elijah as the hero, Ahab as the villain, and Obadiah as the compromiser—and what use is a compromiser? But Scripture tells us that Obadiah “feared the Lord greatly,” that he took a great risk to save the lives of a hundred prophets, and that he played an important role in bringing Ahab to Elijah (1 Kings 18).

Some Christians have it in for anyone who is given a trusted position at a high level, whether it be in the world of business, politics, and increasingly in the church. When other Christians don’t understand your work, remember you’re not accountable to them. You’re accountable to God.

c. Trust God to keep you.

How could Obadiah survive in the spiritually stifling world of Ahab’s palace? God can keep you wherever he has placed you. Spurgeon says, “Grace can live where you would never expect it to survive for one hour.” [1]

That’s true in a secular university and in the world of business and politics. God protected the soul of this faithful man who served in the cesspool that was Ahab’s palace. He can do the same for you.

Called to Goodness 

Elijah was a “change the world” person. His mission was to call the whole nation to repentance. His strategy was one of open confrontation on Mount Carmel. God was in that, and God used him in a remarkable way. But God has more than one kind of servant.

What’s fascinating is that Elijah ended his life in great disappointment that God had not done more. Carmel did not lead to the revival he longed to see. But read on in the story of 1 Kings and here is what you will find: In the end, Ahab (who did more evil than all who were before him) repented! It’s one of the biggest surprises in the Bible.

We’re not told if Obadiah lived to see Ahab’s repentance. But at the end of the day, Elijah ended up achieving less than he’d hoped, and Obadiah ended up achieving more than he’d expected.

Dale Ralph Davis has this comment that speaks to all of us who, like Elijah, want to do something great for God:

You want to see the community changed…You want to see the church built…You want to see the nation transformed…You want to see the world reached… How helpful then that Elijah is not God’s only faithful servant. Faithfulness is not so dull that it only comes in one flavor. Moreover, your own pride requires the correction this story can give: You are not called to great works but to good works, not to flamboyant ministry but to faithful ministry, not to be a dashing, but only to be a devoted servant. [2]

_____

1. C. H. Spurgeon, “Obadiah”, sermon, October 19, 1884.
2. Dale Ralph Davis, 1 Kings: The Wisdom and the Folly (Fearn: Christian Focus, 2008), 233.
This article originally appeared here.

3 Things You Control That Keep People Coming Back to Your Bible Study Group

By
Ken Braddy
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communicating with the unchurched

3 Things You Control That Keep People Coming Back to Your Bible Study Group

A weekend baseball tournament for teenagers.

A trip to grandma’s house.

A change in work schedule.

An invitation to play golf with the boss.

There are some things that will keep your group members from attending your Bible study group. Those things are out of your control. My advice? Don’t worry about it because you can’t control the forces at work in people’s lives. It would be better to focus on things you can control that keep people coming back to your Bible study group. These 3 things take away some excuses people have for arriving late or for not attending at all.

  1. Start on time. Not starting on time is one of the reasons why people avoid a Bible study, or why they casually come to the group study late. Isn’t it curious that people can drop kids off at school on time, attend meetings on time, get to work on time, make it to a movie on time, get their kids to sports practices on time, and yet when it comes to Bible study they can’t (or more accurately, won’t) arrive on time? If you, the group leader, do not start on time, then you’ve trained them to arrive late. Why punish those in your group who are sitting there, having arrived on time? It’s one of the most insulting things you could do to those people who respect the posted start time of your group and are waiting for the others to finally get there! If you start on time, you’ll find that people will adjust their schedules. William Shakespeare said, “Better three hours too soon, than one minute too late.” Being late doesn’t help anyone, so my preference is to either start on time, or just a bit early. People will appreciate the stance you take, and in time they will come around to the “new normal” of starting right on time.
  2. Don’t waste time. During the Bible study, keep things on track. The key here is balance – don’t let any one element dominate the others, thereby wasting time that you need for the other elements in your Bible study time. If you have an over-talker in your group (see my blog post about how to deal with that here) you must handle that situation so they do not dominate and waste the time of everyone in your group. Do not talk about sports, the weather, and politics – your people are not there for that! Instead, do what we used to call “total period teaching.” That means that everything that happens during the group’s time together is driving toward the completion of the teaching objective for that session. And that always means you don’t have time to waste.
  3. End on time. Almost as important as the first item in this list, ending on time is vital to the long-term health of your group. People want to know that you’ll honor their time commitment, but not encroach upon other things they have planned that day. They will always overlook a slightly extended Bible study experience, but they will not tolerate you regularly waxing eloquent and chewing up 10-15 minutes of time when the group’s study should have already ended. If you manage #1 and #2 above, this one won’t be a problem. If you do not manage #3, you’ll find people will do one of four things; (1) mentally check out towards the end of your study – “Elivs has left the building” (2) start checking their watches, giving you a hint that you’ve gone over your allotted time (3) get up and walk out so they can move on to their next scheduled event (4) avoid attending the group altogether in the future.

William Penn once said, “Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.” Remember that you, the group leader, control how time is used during your group’s study. Use your time wisely, and you’ll take away at least one excuse people give for not attending your Bible study.

This article originally appeared here.

Biden Administration ‘Committed to Codifying’ Roe v. Wade

By
Megan Briggs
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communicating with the unchurched

Reproductive health and “the right to choose” has been under “relentless and extreme attack” for the last four years, the Biden Administration asserted in a statement released today. Acknowledging the 48th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade, President Joe Biden is not wasting any time as he seeks to undo many of the anti-abortion policies his predecessor enacted. 

“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to codifying Roe v. Wade and appointing judges that respect foundational precedents like Roe,” the statement reads.

While codifying Roe v. Wade will likely be an uphill battle that would need to involve Congress, there is one policy Biden has quick access to now that he’s been sworn into office. That is the Mexico City Policy, which prohibits the U.S. from providing family planning assistance to foreign NGOs if those organizations “perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning.” This policy has been reinstated and rescinded ad nauseam since President Reagan first introduced it, depending on who sits in the office of the President. 

President Trump had not only reinstated the Mexico City Policy while he was in office, but he also expanded it. Critics of the move point to the fact that the Trump administration’s hard stance on abortion funding affected organizations in Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, and South Africa. It also reduced access to contraception, HIV testing, HIV treatment, and cancer screening, according to a 2019 study.

However, U.S. funding for family planning is likely to reappear on the world stage “in the coming days” according to White House advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci. Speaking at an executive board meeting of the World Organization on Thursday, January 21, 2021, Fauci said it will be the Administration’s “policy to support women’s and girls’ sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights in the United States, as well as globally.”

A bigger concern pro-life leaders have is with the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding for abortions and affects U.S. citizens. The Biden-Harris administration has indicated they would also like to reverse this amendment, which would require an act of Congress. If the Hyde Amendment were repealed it would effectively expand family planning to include abortion.

In the statement released Friday, the Biden-Harris administration writes that it seeks to “eliminate maternal and infant health disparities, increase access to contraception, and support families economically so that all parents can raise their families with dignity.”

Biden Faces Pushback For Pro-Choice Policies From Catholic Community

Some Catholic leaders have not been shy about telling Biden he is outside the official teaching of the church when it comes to abortion. In 2019, a priest in Florence, South Carolina, actually denied Biden the sacrament of Communion due to his stance on abortion. 

At the very first press briefing hosted by the new presidential administration, Biden’s press secretary Jen Psaki was pressed by Catholic news outlet EWTN about Biden’s plans to reverse the Mexico City Policy and the Hyde Amendment. 

Psaki refrained from giving a straightforward answer on the Hyde Amendment. “I will just take the opportunity to remind all of you that he is a devout Catholic and somebody who attends church regularly. He started his day attending church with his family this morning,” she said. “But I don’t have anything more for you on that.”

Pope Francis, at least, seems to have extended his blessing to Biden through an inauguration day prayer. The Pope prayed that God “guide your efforts to foster understanding, reconciliation and peace within the United States and among the nations of the world in order to advance the universal common good.”

ND Child Abuse Reporting Bill Gets Pushback from Catholic Leaders

By
Jessica Lea
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communicating with the unchurched

A bill introduced in the North Dakota state legislature could remove “clergy-penitent privilege.” If passed, the new law would require clergy members, who are already designated as mandatory reporters, to report child abuse even if they learn about it while acting in the capacity of a spiritual advisor. 

According to current North Dakota law, a “member of the clergy” who has “knowledge of or reasonable cause to suspect a child is abused or neglected, or has died as a result of abuse or neglect, shall report the circumstances to the department if the knowledge or suspicion is derived from information received by that individual in that individual’s official or professional capacity.”

The proposed legislation, Senate Bill No. 2180, amends the law by eliminating the following sentence: “A member of the clergy, however, is not required to report such circumstances if the knowledge or suspicion is derived from information received in the capacity of spiritual adviser.” North Dakota law states that clergy are also mandatory reporters when learning of abuse involving  a “vulnerable adult”; the proposed bill removes clergy-penitent privilege in that circumstance as well.

Catholic League Fights for Clergy-Penitent Privilege 

SB 2180 has bipartisan support. It was introduced by Sens. Judy Lee, R-West Fargo; Kathy Hogan, D-Fargo; and Curt Kreun, R-Grand Forks, as well as by Reps. Mary Schneider, D-Fargo and Mike Brandenburg, R-Edgley. 

Brandenburg, however, has reportedly withdrawn his support in response to pressure from Catholic civil rights organization, the Catholic League. Even though the proposed bill applies to any clergy member acting as a spiritual advisor, it is of particular concern to Catholics because of the practice of confessing one’s sins to a priest. On Jan. 20 the Catholic League’s president, Dr. William Donohue, sent a letter to the five lawmakers who introduced the bill, accusing them of attempting to violate religious freedom. 

“Can you identify a single instance—just one will do—where it was later learned that a grave injustice was done to a victim of clergy sexual abuse owing to the failure of a priest to disclose what he learned in the confessional?” asked Donohue. Donohue wanted to know why the North Dakota legislators had given a “free pass” to therapists and attorneys and also asked, “Can you identify anything learned by the recent 18-month investigation of the Catholic Church by the Attorney General of North Dakota that justifies such an egregious violation of the First Amendment rights of the Catholic clergy and the Catholic laity?”

North Dakota recently concluded an 18-month long criminal investigation into allegations of sexual abuse against more than 50 Catholic clergy members. No charges were filed because the statute of limitations expired for some of those cases and because many of the accused were deceased. 

Donohue concluded his letter, “We deal with many issues of anti-Catholicism across the nation, but none galvanizes us more than a wholesale assault on our sacraments. What you have done is now a priority for us. We are not going away. We will now blanket the media and the Catholic community with our response.”

According to Donohue, shortly after he sent his letter, Rep. Brandenburg emailed him and said he had withdrawn his support for the bill and planned to vote against it.

Other critics of laws like SB 2180 argue that removing clergy-penitent privilege is not helpful because victims will not admit to abuse if they know their confessions will not be confidential. Rep. Lee counters that she does not comprehend how it could be “ethical, or moral or even religious” for anyone, “a Shaman, a Rabbi, a priest or a pastor or whoever it might be,” to discover a child is being abused, but not to report it. 

States differ as to how they regulate mandatory reporting. According to data compiled in April 2019 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Child Welfare Information Gateway division (HHS), all 50 states have legislation identifying certain people as mandatory reporters. 

Alabama Pastor Ed Litton, Known for Racial Reconciliation Work, Joins SBC Presidential Race

By
Bob Smietana
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communicating with the unchurched

(RNS) — The Rev. Ed Litton, an Alabama pastor known for his work on racial reconciliation, will be nominated for president of the Southern Baptist Convention this summer.

Litton enters an increasingly crowded field for SBC president, joining Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Albert Mohler, Georgia pastor Mike Stone and Randy Adams, executive director of the Northwest Baptist Convention.

Fred Luter, the only Black pastor to serve as president of the SBC, announced his intention to nominate Litton, pastor of First Baptist Church North Mobile, this week.

The two have been friends for more than 20 years and met when they swapped pulpits for a “Racial Reconciliation Sunday” event.

“From there, our relationship developed to more than just colleagues to bring races together,” Luter told Baptist Press, the SBC’s official news organization. “We both shared the hope of drawing people closer to a relationship with Jesus Christ and then growing disciples for Christ. In both of our churches our focus has been the same all of these years.”

Luter and Litton are among the signers of “Justice, Repentance and the SBC,” the December 2020 statement released after the heads of six Southern Baptist seminaries called critical race theory, a set of ideas about systemic racism, “incompatible” with the convention’s statement of faith.

The 2021 SBC presidential race comes at a time of tension for the nation’s largest Protestant denomination. The denomination has declined by close to 2 million members since 2006 and its rate of baptisms has been stagnant for years. Southern Baptists have also been divided over issues of race and immigration and support for former President Donald Trump. Several prominent Black pastors have said their churches will leave the denomination over issues of race.

Mohler, a key player in the conservative movement that took over the SBC in the 1980s and 1990s, appeared to be a shoo-in for SBC president last year. He was seen at the time as a true conservative, but not closely allied with Trump.

Then the SBC annual meeting was canceled due to COVID-19, meaning that current President J.D. Greear, a North Carolina megachurch pastor, would remain in office for another year.

Since then, Mohler changed his mind, going from being a “Never Trumper” to backing Trump’s reelection and denouncing CRT. Both moves alienated Black pastors in the convention.

At the same time, Mohler and other top SBC leaders have been criticized by a group called the Conservative Baptist Network for not being conservative enough and for allowing “unbiblical agendas”  such as social justice into the convention.

Stone, one of the other SBC presidential candidates, is a member of the CBN’s steering committee.

A former president of the convention’s executive committee, Stone is chairing an investigation of Russell Moore, a “Never Trumper” who heads the SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

Stone told Baptist Press that he was not running against anyone but was running toward God’s will.

“I did not seek this out; I feel like it’s a case of the position seeking the person,” said Stone, pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Blackshear, Georgia. “But God confirmed this in my heart and my wife’s heart through a set of circumstances.”

Adams, who is little known in national circles, announced Wednesday (Jan. 20) that he will be nominated for SBC president. Writing on his blog, he said he was running to end what he called mismanagement and a “lack of transparency and accountability in some of our SBC entities.”

He also lamented the decline in baptisms, membership and giving in the denomination and made a series of suggestions on how to turn things around. Among his ideas is involving more small churches in decision-making and moving to virtual national meetings, rather than in-person events.

“Far too many pastors and churches feel shut out of the decision-making process that is controlled by a handful of elites,” he wrote.

Ed Stetzer, a Southern Baptist pastor and executive director of the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College, said that many Southern Baptists are worried about the future of their denomination. They want to work together on ministry and mission and don’t want to be divided by politics or other issues, he said.

Most Southern Baptists, Stetzer said, agree on the denomination’s statement of faith, known as the Baptist Faith and Message. He doesn’t think the denomination is in danger of splitting.

“I don’t think the SBC will split,” he said. “If it splinters it will be a small movement of people who do not think that the Baptist Faith and Message is enough. The denomination has to decide whether it will live by that statement of faith or move further to the right.”

More candidates are expected to announce their candidacy for SBC president in the coming months. In 2008, six leaders ran for president of the convention.

88% of the 117th Congress Identifies as Christian

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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communicating with the unchurched

In a recent report titled Faith on the Hill, Pew Research Center states that 468 out of 531 members of the United States’ new 117th Congress describe themselves as Christian.

The data collected from the CQ Roll Call explains in the report that “nearly nine-in-ten members of Congress identify as Christian (88 percent), compared with two-thirds of the general public (65 percent). Congress is both more heavily Protestant (55 percent vs. 43 percent) and more heavily Catholic (30 percent vs. 20 percent) than the U.S. adult population overall.” When the report was published, two Senate and two House seats were still vacant.

294 out of the 468 that identify as Christian specifically claim to be Protestant, which includes the denominations Baptist, Methodist, Anglican/Episcopal, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Congregationalist, Pentecostal, Restorationist, Adventist, Reformed, and Pietist. In addition to the Protestants, there are 158 Catholic members, 9 Mormons, and 7 Orthodox Christians.

According to the report, 207 Democrats from the House and Senate identify as either Protestant or Catholic. Nearly 200 Republicans in the House alone identify this way. The report states that overall 99 percent of the Republicans in Congress identify as Christian. 

The new Congress has three fewer members who identify as Christian than the 116th Congress had. Members in the 117th Congress who identify as Mormons are all Republicans. Those who are Muslims(3), Hindus(3), Unitarian Universalists(2), and Buddhists(2) are all Democrats, while eighteen other Democrats chose not to answer or answered “don’t know.”

The report shows a gradual decline of Protestants and Catholics since 1961, showing over 100 less Protestants since the 87th Congress of the 1960s.

Second Petition Calls for Franklin Graham’s Firing, This Time Over ‘Complicity’ in Capitol Riots

By
Jesse T. Jackson
-
communicating with the unchurched

Faithful America, who says they are the largest online community of Christians putting faith into action for social justice, posted an online petition last Friday (January 15, 2021) calling for the firing of Franklin Graham from the organizations Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA). The petition, addressed to directors of these organizations, calls on the directors to either fire Franklin Graham, who serves as President and CEO, or to resign themselves.

“As long as Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association stand by Franklin Graham, it must be said that these once-vaunted organizations have forgotten their original Christian missions, abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and are complicit in the spread of dishonest, discredited election conspiracy theories and the deadly, unpatriotic, white-nationalist terrorism at the U.S. Capitol incited by those lies,” the petition reads.

The petition’s initial goal was 20,000 signatures, but organizers raised it to 25,000. The petition currently has received over 24,000 signatures.

This isn’t the first time Faithful America has asked Samaritan’s Purse board members to remove Franklin Graham. On August 28th last year, the group posted a similar petition that garnered over 14,000 signatures. The petition listed the group’s grievances with Graham due to his support of President Donald Trump and, more specifically, for the prayer Graham prayed at the Republican National Convention.

The current petition claims that “Graham gets away with his hatred and conspiracy-theories by hiding behind the humanitarian work of Samaritan’s Purse and his late father’s name.” Citing one of Graham’s latest social media posts which compared Republicans who voted for Trump’s second impeachment to Judas, the group argues that Graham idolizes the 45th President of the United States. Faithful America says that the post revealed Graham was comparing Trump to Jesus, and therefore Graham was being blasphemous. 

Faithful America also accused Rev. Graham of shrugging off the violence that took place at the Capitol building that left five people dead. Citing a quote from Graham about Trump (“We knew he had flaws when he ran for office in 2016”), the group claims there is nothing Christian about Graham’s seeming ambivalence to the role many believe Trump played in inciting the violence. Additionally, the group believes Graham blessed “Trump’s Big Lie” about a stolen election and that “Graham and the religious right must be held accountable for their deadly dishonesty.”

The petition Faithful America is asking people to sign reads as follows:

Dear Samaritan’s Purse and BGEA directors,

As long as Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association stand by Franklin Graham, it must be said that these once-vaunted organizations have forgotten their original Christian missions, abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and are complicit in the spread of dishonest, discredited election conspiracy theories and the deadly, unpatriotic, white-nationalist terrorism at the U.S. Capitol incited by those lies.

Our faith in Jesus Christ demands that we do better than this. Your fellow Christians from across the country call on you to fire Franklin Graham, or to resign from the Board in individual protest.

(This message will be sent to Michael Cheatham, Melvin Graham, Roy Graham, Michael Harwood, Skip Heitzig, Thomas Hodges, Cissie Lynch, Felix Martin del Campo, James Oliver, Brian Pauls, Phyllis Payne, Paul Saber, John Scott, Robert Shank, Paula Woodring, Sterling Carroll, James Furman, Donna Pierce, Ken Barun, George Battle, Jr., David Bruce, Will Graham, Frank Harrison, Greg Laurie, Anne Graham Lotz, Donald Wilton, and Daniel Allen.)

A statement by Paul Saber, a board member who serves on both organizations, given to the Charlotte Observer said that Faithful America “fabricated this lie that (Graham) incited violence at the Capitol.” Saber also said, “The Boards of Directors for Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association have expressed that they fully support Franklin Graham and are more than satisfied with the job he has done and is doing in leading these ministries. Franklin Graham was not in Washington, D.C., and he did not encourage people to go to the Capitol on January 6.”

Rev. Graham posted on social media the night before President Joe Biden’s inauguration saying he was praying for President Biden and Vice President Harris while encouraging others to do the same. He said, “Today as our country inaugurates a new president, there are concerns that there could be violence in Washington, DC, and in state capitals across the nation. I encourage Christians to make this a day of prayer—for peace and calm, and praying for our new leaders, President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.”

On Wednesday, the day of the inauguration, Rev. Graham posted after President Biden’s speech saying, “I appreciated the conciliatory words of President Joe Biden today, urging both parties to work together. If the Democrats go ahead with pushing for the impeachment of a president who has left office, it would only further divide our nation. I hope President Biden will stand up to those on Capitol Hill who want to impeach Donald Trump and tell them to put this behind us. If he wants to unite the country, this would be a huge step forward. I encourage everyone to pray for him.”

Six Core Things Teens Need From the Church

By
Sara Barratt
-
communicating with the unchurched

Six Core Things Teens Need From the Church

“I no longer believe in God.”

Jon Steingard, lead singer for the Christian pop band Hawk Nelson, wrote these words on Instagram on May 20, 2020.

Jon grew up in a Christian home. God and church had always been central in his life. He wrote in his post, “When you grow up in a community that holds a shared belief, and that shared belief is so incredibly central to everything, you simply adopt it. Everyone I was close to believed in God, accepted Jesus into their hearts, prayed for signs and wonders, and participated in church, youth groups, conferences, and ministry. So I did too.”

But as Jon rose in popularity as a Christian singer, doubts, questions, and depression brewed beneath the surface.

“There were still many things about Christian culture that made me uncomfortable,” Jon confessed. “If God is all loving, and all powerful, why is there evil in the world? Can he not do anything about it? Does he choose not to? . . . If God is loving, why does he send people to hell? . . . Why does Jesus have to die for our sins . . . ? If God can do anything, can’t he forgive without someone dying? . . . I was raised to believe that the Bible was the perfect Word of God . . . I began to have questions and doubts about that.”

Reading Jon’s struggles deeply saddened me because he isn’t the only one wrestling with them. According to the Barna Group, 64 percent of 18–29 year-olds who grew up in church will walk away from it. As a young adult, I’ve personally seen friends and peers drift from God. It breaks my heart.

The reasons people walk away from God are as varied as the individuals themselves. But there are six core things teens need from their churches and Christian communities to help them wrestle with tough questions, live beyond a borrowed faith, and stay strong in a world of tremendous pressure.

1. INTENTIONAL DISCIPLESHIP

Robust discipleship is often missing in churches and youth groups. Instead of an atmosphere of serious growth, we often find one of entertainment, with the goal of “drawing in a crowd.” But this approach leaves much to be desired. Remarking on this, A.W. Tozer once wrote, “Segments of Christianity have made every possible concession in efforts to win young people to Christ; but instead of converting them to Christ, they have ‘converted’ Christianity to them.”

“The fun may keep us coming, but it doesn’t feed our souls.

Without a focus on discipleship, churches send teens into an anti-Christian, opinionated, and volatile society, armed with little more than a good time instead of discipleship and truth. Teens can’t wrestle through these challenges alone. They need wise mentors who will thoughtfully and lovingly provide guidance, direction, and accountability—inside and outside of church.

While teens may reject truth for a time, please don’t give up on them or give in to the natural inclinations of their sinful hearts, which—like all of ours—veer toward comfort and entertainment.

The fun may keep us coming, but it doesn’t feed our souls. Don’t be content with high attendance rates accompanied by empty souls and inadequate discipleship.

2. OPEN CONVERSATION ABOUT HARD TOPICS

Teens who walk away from faith are often those who adopted their system of belief from the people around them instead of thinking through faith for themselves. Questioning and learning are parts of growth. It’s vital for young adults to approach hard questions head-on, consider different aspects of a topic, and thoughtfully draw conclusions.

Encourage healthy discussion amongst teens, and openly discuss hard issues. Teens will seek and find answers to their questions. If they don’t find them within the context of Christian community, they’ll most likely find them on social media or through friends and likely won’t find truth.

Hidden doubts fester, but actively seeking answers brings growth and maturity. Don’t be afraid of a teen’s questions or doubts, and please don’t give trite replies. Instead, allow for genuine soul-searching and open conversations.

3. BIBLICAL LITERACY

Teens need the truth of Scripture to navigate our anti-Christian, post-truth culture. Yet many teens are biblically ignorant. They may be familiar with a few catch-phrase verses, but they don’t actually know how to read and study the Bible.

Biblical ignorance equals an unsteady foundation, one that can’t weather the storms of cultural pressure, anti-biblical worldviews, and simple questions such as “Why do you believe in God?” and “What is truth?” If they’re biblically illiterate, teens may begin to doubt God and Christianity because their piecemeal scriptural knowledge can’t hold up against the pressure and conflicting opinions they face in the world.

Teach the entirety of God’s Word to teens in your church. Show them how to read and study it themselves. They can handle it. Even more, they need it.

4. SOLID THEOLOGY

Who is God? Is God good? Is God real? Is God loving?

Every question teens have about Christianity is ultimately a question about God. There are answers to our toughest questions, but without solid theology, we don’t learn them. If our understanding of God is skewed, our entire view of faith, Christianity, the gospel, the church, and even ourselves is also skewed.

While many people think teens can’t handle tough topics like theology or comprehend subjects like biblical doctrine, these topics are not optional but foundational—for everyone in the church.

5. TRUTH-FILLED APOLOGETICS

The world is flooded with unbiblical opinions and arguments. Everything from how the world began to the deity of Jesus Christ is under attack. Apologetics is a valuable tool to help teens answer tough questions with confidence.

Teach teens not only what they believe, but why Christianity is true; not only that they should believe in God, but who God actually is. Help them dig into the historical, scientific, philosophical, and theological truths of Christianity to create a fully-fleshed, three-dimensional view of God, the Bible, and following Jesus.

6. JESUS

As important as it is to be intellectually equipped, it’s possible to know all the facts, learn all the arguments, follow all the rules, and have answers to all the questions without ever falling in love with Jesus Christ.

Teens need to fall in love with Jesus. He is the only one who can transform their lives, redeem their souls, and forgive their sins. He himself is the answer to all their questions and struggles. Jesus does not call Christians to simply believe a set of facts or follow a list of rules, but to lay down their lives in pursuit of him and cling to Christ as life itself.

Too many teens have a loveless Christianity. Lured by compromise and beaten down with doubt, they forsake their first love. As I say in my book Love Riot,

“Following Christ is a pattern that always comes back to, and is paved, with love. This love for Christ overtakes and transforms our lives . . . It turns our lives into living sacrifices of worship, as we’re overwhelmed with his love for us . . . Without love for God, we have nothing.”

YOU HAVE THE WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE

Sadly, people will walk away from God. Like those who turned from Jesus in John 6, they’ll say it’s too hard or that Christianity is untrue.

But there is hope for this generation! God is still at work, his words are still true, and he is relentlessly pursuing the heart of every individual. There is still a remnant who will proclaim, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68).

It’s our responsibility to teach teens those words of eternal life. Let’s do our job well. Let’s equip instead of entertain, teach teens the hard truths they need to hear, pray for them fervently, love them unconditionally, and always point them back to Jesus.

God continues to pursue the prodigal—from Jon Steingard to every person who’s walked away from faith to every teen struggling with doubt. He will never give up on them.

And neither should we.

Sara Barratt © 2021 Gospel-Centered Discipleship. This article originally appeared on GCDiscipleship.com.

Even If There Was Fraud

By
Eric Davis
-
communicating with the unchurched

Even If There Was Fraud

The purpose of this post is not to argue that Biden was, or was not, fraudulently elected in the 2020 president election, but to keep a biblical perspective.

Sources report that 47% of American voters believe that large-scale fraud handed the election to Biden/Harris. Nevertheless, 49% say that fraud was unlikely. A recent NPR/Ipsos poll reported that 67% of Republicans and 11% of Democrats surveyed believe that voter fraud gave Biden election. However, the same survey showed that 19% of Republicans and 85% of Democrats disagree. In either case, dozens of millions of voters believe that there was fraud, and dozens of millions believe that there was not. Numbers do not prove whether or not it happened. The point here is that a huge swath of the US population believes that voter fraud helped usher in the next president.

It’s likely that someone you sing next to in church believes that there is ample evidence of fraud, and is grieved about it. Disdaining them as crazy conspiracists is not the best approach (cf. 1 Cor. 13:4-7). After all, if you’re a Christian, you believe that a peasant Hebrew crucified as a vile criminal will one day appear in the sky standing on clouds.

So for those who do feel that there was fraud, what would Scripture suggest you do? Even if there was, here are a few considerations from God’s word on the issue.

  1. God is sovereign over unrighteousness

“In the day of prosperity be happy, but in the day of adversity consider— God has made the one as well as the other So that man will not discover anything that will be after him” (Eccles. 7:14).

Though he is not pleased with it, God is sovereign over all sin. If there was fraud, though it would grieve God, he is sovereign over it. God remains in control even in the most wretched times (Lam. 3:37-38). He was sovereign over the wretched rule of Egypt (Exod. 2:23-25), the wicked rule of Israel’s enemies in Judges (Judg. 2:14), the evil of the Assyrian deportation (2 Kings 17), the wickedness of the Babylonian exile (2 Kings 25), the unrighteousness of Herod and the Romans (Matt. 2:15), and he was even sovereign over the treacherous treatment of His own Son: “this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death” (Acts 2:23). Despite all of this evil—often committed by governing authorities—God was never de-sovereigned by it.

“His sovereignty rules over all” (Ps. 103:19).

2. The Lord is still on the throne

No evil agenda, large or small, has ever successfully removed God from his throne. And evil men and nations have tried. They’ve done everything in their power, with satanic and demonic reinforcements, to dethrone God. It hasn’t happened and it never will (Ps. 93:1-5). The permanence of the Lord’s position on the throne of the universe is laughably unthreatened by even the greatest evils of man.

“The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 3 ‘Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!’ 4 He who sits in the heavens laughs, the Lord scoffs at them” (Ps. 2:2-4).

The sovereign, supreme rule of the God of the Bible is no more threatened by unrighteous doings and agendas of earthly rulers than his rule is threatened by a cockroach coughing in a Los Angeles sewer.

“The Lord reigns, let the peoples tremble; He is enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake!” (Ps. 99:1).

3. God will use unrighteousness for good

One of the ways that God proves he is sovereign is by orchestrating evil for good. We have history to prove that: Joseph’s suffering and saving a nation (Gen. 50:20), Pharaoh housing the messianic nation and its growth, the cross of Jesus Christ, and countless examples since then. Throughout history, God has masterfully moved the evil of man and government to accomplish his purposes, the greatest of which was the cross. Jesus was the recipient of unprecedented civil corruption, and God did a pretty decent job at ensuring that worked out well. We might not see how God orchestrates evil for good this side of heaven, but he’ll take care of it (Rom. 8:28). God is trustworthy.

4. Jesus is still building his church

The church has survived the harshest storms wicked men have to offer. She was birthed into the Roman Empire, who actively opposed her existence. Despite three centuries therein of persecution, her growth continued. Satan and his world have always hated and resisted the church. Even so, she has spread from Israel, to the Roman Empire through the Apostles, and to places like Africa through the Ethiopian Euncuh, the New Hebrides through John Paton, Burma through Adoniram Judson, China through Hudson Taylor, the middle east through Samuel Zwemer, and the list goes on. It’s almost like unrighteous circumstances helps the church thrive. Whatever the case, the church will never die out because Christ builds it (Matt. 16:18).

5. We are still to be about the kingdom of God

Unregenerate enemies attempted several times to distract Nehemiah and God’s people from sticking to the essential task of rebuilding the wall (Neh. 6:4). What they did was wicked. But Nehemiah and crew stuck to the main thing (Neh. 6:3-9).

In these New Covenant days, there are no less enemies and distractions that seek to pull us down from the wall. But we must keep the main thing the main thing. The kingdom of God is that thing. Regardless of what happens, our sovereign God would have us give ourselves completely to involvement in our local churches, godliness, disciple-making, prayer, love, and the word. Let us not get down from the wall (1 Cor. 15:58).

6. God will uphold justice perfectly

God is a perfect, omniscient God. Nothing escapes his notice. He is perfectly good, too, which means evil will not prevail. Regardless what someone appears to get away with, they will stand before God in the judgment (Rom. 12:17-21) Rev. 20:11-15).

7. We are all liars and sinners

An election fraud allegation is to say that lying occurred; massive, consequential lying. Among the list of things God hates, lying is mentioned twice (Prov. 6:16-19). However, people are lying every day; politicians, employers, employees, nobodies, and neighbors. Everyone lies. Lying can no more be separated from humans than their shadow. “Let God be true and every man a liar” (Rom. 3:4). That means we, too, have lied. No one is exempt. God is the only One who has never lied nor will ever.

Our lies may not be as socially consequential as others, but God is the one we stand before. On top of being liars, we are all atrociously unholy before the holy God of the universe (Rom. 3:10-19). This God requires perfection (Matt. 5:48). So, we have nothing to offer God except wickedness and weakness in and of ourselves. Due to our nature and doings, we stand guilty and unacceptable before God. Since we have all sinned against a holy God, an individual who never orchestrated widespread voter fraud deserves to spend eternity in the same hell as someone who did (Rom. 2:1-5).

8. Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave

However, God did not leave us to ourselves. Moved by his own compassion on sinners, and not because of anything good or righteous in us, God looked upon us with pity (Rom. 3:10-12, Eph. 1:3-6). Incredibly, our offenses against God in thought, word, nature, and deed did not move him to justly boot us all into hell. No, far from it. He radically humbled himself by joining human nature to himself and was born a baby (Phil. 2:5-7). Though he deserved unceasing worship from every human, Jesus received scorn, hate, and a humiliating and brutal crucifixion (Phil. 2:8). He received all of this on purpose in obedience to his Father’s plan to atone for the sin of his people (John 10:18). Though thoroughly sinful, Jesus so loved his people that he referred to them as, “My sheep” (John 10:26-27). Jesus then rose from the grave victorious, validating his saving work for his sheep. This is a great love, indeed. And it has everything to do with those struggling with the unrighteousness around them: we’ve all sinned, Jesus died and rose for us, and our greatest need has been met.

9. We are to pray

As every human nation and government will be filled with unrighteousness, God now calls his people to pray.

“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity” (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

We are to pray for so many encouraging reasons: God hears (Ps. 65:2), God answers and works through prayer (1 Sam. 1:10-11, John 15:7), we are commanded to (1 Tim. 2:1-2), it shows that we are depending on our sovereign God (Luke 11:8), and it is an act of worship whereby God brings glory to himself (Rev. 8:3). If we find ourselves in the rut of angst at times, let us pray. We are to pray and pray and pray, and not lose heart (Luke 11:5-8, 18:1-8; Thess. 5:17).

10. Heaven will be great

Jesus often mentioned that we are to live for our permanent, future, unseen, and eternal home with him and all the redeemed (Matt. 16:24-27, John 14:1-4). While being present and prayerful, this world is passing, visible, dying, and temporal (1 John 2:17).

In heaven, there will be no voter fraud. They’ll be no voting, for that matter. Why should there be? The forever King will be the single most loving, wise, righteous, just, and perfect Individual in the universe, the blessed Lord Jesus Christ (Isa. 9:6-7, John 1:17, Phil. 2:8-11).

“And the Lord will be king over all the earth; in that day the Lord will be the only one, and His name the only one” (Zech. 14:9).

Of course, more could be said here. As God’s people, we are abundantly furnished with what we need to face these rocky times in a manner pleasing to him. Whatever happens, may the Lord’s church abound in faithfulness and fruitfulness.

This article originally appeared here.

The Summit Church Admits Falling ‘Short of the Mark’ in Vetting Bryan Loritts’ Handling of Abuse Case

By
Stephanie Martin
-
communicating with the unchurched

The Summit Church, the North Carolina megachurch helmed by Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) President J.D. Greear, has hired an independent firm to investigate concerns regarding Pastor Bryan Loritts, a recent hire from Tennessee. At Loritts’ previous church, his brother-in-law engaged in sexual abuse, was prosecuted, and served jail time as part of a plea deal.

Although The Summit Church conducted its own investigation into Loritts’ handling of the case, concluding that he made mistakes but acted in “good faith,” it now admits it “fell short of the mark.” The church has contracted with Guidepost Solutions to conduct the independent investigation.

After the SBC was rocked by reports of sexual abuse and cover-up, Greear led efforts to overhaul the reporting system and to care for victims. Through its new Caring Well Initiative, the denomination is training church leaders to protect people from abuse and to make churches “safe for survivors.” 

Misconduct Occurred in Memphis 

In May 2020, when The Summit Church announced Bryan Loritts would become its new executive pastor of teaching and development in June, it wrote to members about a “grievous incident” in Loritts’ past, saying it wanted to be “completely upfront.”

From 2003 to 2015, Loritts was senior pastor at Fellowship Memphis Church, where his brother-in-law, Rick Trotter, served as worship director. In 2010, Trotter placed a hidden camera in a church bathroom to record voyeuristic videos. Although Loritts terminated Trotter within hours, he didn’t immediately call police—a decision he says he now regrets. Loritts insists he didn’t try to cover anything up, a claim some people have disputed.

Fellowship Memphis didn’t disclose the reason for terminating Trotter, who later was hired at another local church, repeated the abusive behavior, and spent 60 days in jail. Speaking to the Biblical Recorder in June, Loritts said, “It wasn’t us (at Fellowship) trying to hide anything. It was following the counsel of the lawyers.” He added, “I feel culpable in what happened with these other people because I didn’t go the extra mile.”

In a statement to The Summit Church, Loritts described the incidents as “devastating and deeply painful for our family”—especially because a family member was also a victim.

Investigation by The Summit Church              

In a June 8 letter, The Summit Church explains the “transparent and thorough process” it undertook before hiring Loritts. That included a comprehensive background check, “extensive” character interviews, and communication with current and former staff at Fellowship Memphis.

The Summit Church reports discovering that no written report about Trotter’s actions at Fellowship were documented with the Memphis Police Department, though both Loritts and the church say they contacted police. “In the last few years,” writes The Summit Church, “it has been made clear that a phone report is often not a full and official report, and that may explain what happened in this matter.”

“Pastor Bryan freely admits that he has learned a lot over the last 10 years (as we all have),” the letter adds. “Looking back now, he sees things he could have done better. This commitment to biblical self-evaluation and humility is exactly what The Summit Church expects of our leaders.”

The Summit Church Admits Falling Short 

This week, in a statement explaining “Reasons for an Independent Review,” The Summit Church said that after conducting its own research, “We were fully convinced that though mistakes in reporting and caring for victims were made, Pastor Bryan Loritts acted in good faith and in pastorally responsible ways.” But it now admits the vetting process was incomplete because it didn’t include an independent review or “an open and confidential channel for victims to report.”

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