TAMPA, Fla. (ABP) — Hundreds of listening sessions by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship 2012 Task Force have surfaced identity, community and ministry as the three themes of greatest concern to CBF members.
David Hull, appointed in 2010 to lead the 14-member task force to hear member concerns and craft recommendations to “align our organizational structure with the vision and values of members,” said the “listening is not done.”
More sessions are scheduled around the country and two were held during the CBF’s 20th anniversary meeting in Tampa, Fla.
Hull, pastor of First Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ala., said he expects the task force to begin crafting recommendations in late August that will eventually be presented to the 2012 General Assembly in Forth Worth, Texas.
Their goal, Hull said, is “greater effectiveness in the next season of our history.”
With task force members standing behind him, Hull said the listening sessions revealed universally “people who are passionate about CBF.”
That passion comes, he said, from “deep love for our founding principles” and from a “desire for change within CBF.”
Hull elaborated on the three theme words that surfaced during listening sessions: identity, community and ministry.
He said CBF was formed in “reaction to denominational changes” but 20 years later other primary factors need to shape the identity.
In finding community, Hull said, relating to one another extends “far beyond the organization known as CBF.” It includes how state groups relate to the national organization and to each other; how ministry partners, individuals and churches relate to CBF and “How do we live together in this community we all love?”
“CBF cannot do everything,” Hull said. “So what should we be doing?”
He solicited suggestions on how to organize CBF’s structure to address ministry opportunities that reflect members’ priorities.
“The best thing we can all do is to pray for our beloved community as we seek direction for God’s tomorrow,” he said.
Norman Jameson is reporting and coordinating special projects for ABP on an interim basis and is a contributing writer for the Religious Herald.