By Barry Howard Good and gracious God, I come to you praying for those who are members, formally or informally, in the congregation I serve. I pray for the young and the elderly, the sick and healthy, the employed and…
A pastor’s prayer for pastors
By Barry Howard This prayer was offered at the Mercer Preaching Consultation on St. Simon’s Island, Ga., on Sept. 26, 2011. Gracious God, I come to you as a pastor praying for pastors. I pray for all men and women…
Who will you invite to church this Sunday?
By Barry Howard A young professional said: “I got out of the habit of going to church while I was in college. I usually slept in on Sunday mornings. I’ll get started back when I get my life together.” A…
A day that haunts; a faith that hopes
By Barry Howard A pastoral prayer for Sept. 11, 2011: On this 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, we gather to remember an atrocious day, a day that we wish we could forget. We confess our…
Celebrate religious liberty, exercise the freedom to worship
By Barry Howard Fourth of July weekend is upon us. Where will you be this Sunday morning? While many of us have appropriate plans in place this weekend to celebrate our nation’s independence with picnics, barbeques, ice cream and fireworks,…
Being a multi-mission partner church
By Barry Howard Multiple mission partnerships seem to be the new norm among many churches, and especially those that network with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. A quick survey of the list of CBF churches indicates that fewer than 10 percent…
Call me a Cooperative Baptist
By Barry Howard Trying to come up with an appropriate name for a group of Baptists is like trying to nail Jell-O to the floor. It just keeps jiggling and refuses to be still. Because faith is dynamic and emerging,…
What is a moderate Baptist?
By Barry Howard Recently, as I was preparing the eulogy for our pastor emeritus at First Baptist Church of Pensacola, Fla., I came across a copy of an article from the Dallas Morning News dated December 1992. The column was…
Lessons from storms past
By Barry Howard On Palm Sunday in 1994 a tornado touched down near Ragland, Ala., and cut a trail to Rome, Ga., demolishing hundreds of homes, destroying five church campuses and taking 29 lives before leaving that area. Entire communities…