Religious educators hear Woodstock leader; historians plan ‘Baptist distinctives’ sermons

LAKELAND (FBW)—Several organizations related to the Florida Baptist Convention met Nov. 10 at the facilities of First Baptist Church at the Mall in Lakeland and in other locales before the Florida Baptist State Convention annual meeting convened in Lakeland Nov. 10-11.

Chaplains’ Conference

Bob Jacoby, a member of the Chaplaincy Advisory Team, advised fellow chaplains to follow Paul’s advice to Timothy in their work. Florida Baptist chaplains who gathered at Parkview Baptist Church in Lakeland Nov. 10 heard Jacoby urge them to be godly examples in life, love, purity and faith, as the Apostle Paul taught young Timothy.

Quoting I Timothy 4:15, Jacoby said chaplains must give “wholly” of themselves so everyone may see their progress.

“Watch your doctrine,” Jacoby warned, before he asked: “Who are you serving?”

Like Timothy, chaplains must persevere in pursuing “righteousness, godliness, faith, love patience and meekness,” and all must be done “with a gentle spirit.”

“Be a leader that God can use,” Jacoby said.

During the four-hour meeting, chaplains rotated among three breakout sessions: “Being Missional in Your Place of Service,” “Building Lasting Relationships,” and “Mapping Your Ministry.” Chaplain’s spouses attended a session, “Help I’m a Chaplain’s Spouse.” All the sessions were led by members of the Chaplaincy Advisory Team.

Chaplain Joe Hunt, in leading “Building Lasting Relationships,” said people wear masks to keep others away: the mask of wisdom, of sophistication, of piousness, of innocence, of naïveté, of clowning, of a lover.

“If we want to build relationships, we have to drop our masks,” Hunt said.

Jacoby, who delivered the theme interpretation and led Mapping Your Ministry, was honored as Professional Chaplain of the Year by the organization. He has served 31 years as chaplain at Baptist Health South in Miami. Charis Williams was honored as Volunteer Chaplain of the Year. She serves with Jacksonville Port Ministries and also is an administrative assistant in the Partnership Missions Department of the Florida Baptist Convention.

Florida Baptist Religious Educators‘ Association

The vital role Sunday School plays in a church’s ministry was the focus of speaker Allan Taylor at the Florida Baptist Religious Educators’ Association meeting Nov. 10. Taylor, minister of education at First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., spoke in the morning and afternoon sessions of the organization’s day long meeting. He has served 13 years at the Georgia church where Southern Baptist Convention president Johnny Hunt is president.

Taylor, a former high school football coach and an admitted “sore loser,” said two rules are necessary in winning a football game: 1. Don’t beat yourself, and 2. Practice the fundamentals of the game. Taylor said the same rules apply to a successful Sunday School.

“Sunday School plays a vital role in church that we’ve really never given it credit for,” Taylor said.

Like a coach encouraging his team at halftime, Taylor told the educators at the FBC at the Mall in Lakeland small groups are where the mission of the church is best tackled. A small group gives everyone an “opportunity for input and involvement,” he said.

Citing examples in Scripture of the importance of small groups, as recorded in Nehemiah 8, Taylor said the people of Israel were divided into groups. They were “probably age-graded,” to study the Scripture after Ezra read it first in the rebuilt Jerusalem. Moses’ father-in-law advised him to share the task of judging the Israelites so that others could share the responsibilities of leadership, Taylor added. Jesus, before feeding the 5,000, asked for the crowd to be divided into groups of 50, and finally, Paul told Timothy to commit his learning to “faithful men, who would “teach others,” Taylor said.

In its business session, FBREA changed its structure to add regional representatives to the leadership team. The representatives “will mirror our Florida Baptist Sunday School consultants from the Florida Baptist Convention,” according to Johnnie Neal, president of the organization.

Florida Baptist Historical Society

Baptist Distinctives will be the theme of meetings and publications of the Florida Baptist Historical Society in 2009 as it celebrates the 400th anniversary of Baptist work. During the Nov. 11 meeting at the Terrace Hotel in Lakeland the organization made plans for the year-long emphasis.

In 1609, British pastors Thomas Helwys and John Smyth fled to Amsterdam after persecution in Britain. There they established a General Baptist church and “embraced believer’s baptism,” said Jerry Windsor, who heads the state historical group. Both the Spring meeting of the society and its annual Journal of Florida Baptist Heritage will be devoted to showcasing Baptist distinctives.

As part of the celebration, the society is inviting pastors to submit manuscripts of sermons about a major Baptist distinctive. The sermons, to be preached in a Florida Southern Baptist church in 2009, should be 2,500-3,000 words, and will be judged by FBHS leaders. The winning sermon will be delivered at the Spring meeting of the FBHS Board April 16-17 at The Baptist College of Florida in Graceville. Sermons should be mailed to the historical society at 5400 College Drive, Graceville, FL 32440 before March 1.

The FBHS annual Heritage Award honored John Leonidas Rosser (1875-1972), who wrote A History of Florida Baptists in 1949.

In business session, the FBHS learned the society now has 380 written church histories in its library. An aim for the organization is to receive a written church history of every church in the Florida Baptist Convention for “research and records,” Windsor said. Judith Jolly of Dade City was elected board chair, and Joe Butler of Orange Park, vice-chair.

Directors of Missions Meeting

Directors of missions of Florida’s 49 Baptist associations gathered Nov. 10 at the Lakeland campus of Florida Baptist Children’s Homes to hear reports of work in the state and to hear of a new strategy to teach personal financial responsibility in churches.

Ashley Clayton, associate vice president for stewardship for the SBC Executive Committee, introduced the DOMs to “It’s a New Day,” a strategy to encourage church members in personal financial freedom. Recounting the current national financial woes, Clayton said, “Everybody knows we are in trouble.” The timing could not be better, he said for the associational leadership to make “It’s a New Day” available to pastors, who then will make the study available to church members and to the unchurched in their communities.

Al Fernandez, director of the South Florida Urban Impact Center in Miami, told the DOMs of the progress among communities and cultures of South Florida. The Impact Center, a ministry of the Florida Baptist Convention, involves the work of the Miami, Palm Lake and Gulf Stream associations.

Bob Bumgarner, director of the Church Development Division of the Florida Baptist Convention, outlined changes in the long-standing Associational Leadership Training (ALT) events that have been held on consecutive days in central, south and west Florida. In an effort to “squeeze a nickel till it bleeds,” Bumgarner said Convention leadership will offer four regional one-day events for directors of missions that will enable DOMs to attend without driving more than two hours. Convention staff members will train associational leadership teams at “times and places they pick together,” said Hershel Adams, president of the DOM organization.

The directors of mission elected Dennis Belz, Halifax association, president; David Drake, Northeast, vice-present; Pete Menendez, Marion, secretary/treasurer; Harvey Webb, Treasure Coast, recreational director; and Wayne Harvey, Santa Fe River, prayer, promotions and Webmaster.

First Baptist Church at the Mall Pastor Jay Dennis, speaking to the church musicians gathered in the chapel of his church, said worship is possible even in difficult circumstances. Citing Psalm 84, Dennis said Christians often must “dig wells in the Valley of Baca” to worship.

Church Music Conference

In a dark, foreboding place like the Valley of Baca, worship is seldom effortless, he said, but wells may be dug: “1) by prayer; 2) by experiencing God’s presence; 3) by standing on God’s promises; 4) by praising God; 5) by searching for God’s provision; and 6) by relying on God’s power.”

“In worship, we experience God’s grace, and then we encounter God’s glory,” Dennis said.

The 16-member Voices of Mobile, under the leadership of Roger Breland, director of the Center for Performing Arts at the University of Mobile, sang for the musicians. Breland said the staging and choreography employed by the Voices of Mobile make the group sought after by both churches and secular organizations. He said the men’s octet version of “The Fishing Song,” which the director described as “visual,” is often requested at secular events.

Terry Williams, director of the Church Music Department of the Florida Baptist Convention, said the next meeting of the Music Conference will be Nov. 8, 2010, in Tampa. The conference meets every other year so as not conflict with the Sept. 17-19, 2009 Worship Expo at First Baptist Church at the Mall in Lakeland.

In business session, officers were elected to serve until 2010: Terry Jordan, West Bradenton Baptist Church, president; Pedro Linares, First Baptist Church, Eustis, president-elect; Gary Smith, Hyde Park Baptist, Jacksonville, vice-president; and Herb Stucky, First Baptist Church, Branford, secretary-treasurer.