By Leroy Seat Yesterday was Independence Day in the United States, but the Fourth of July is not one of my favorite holidays — for various reasons — but partly because the original Declaration of Independence, ratified on July 4,…
Airplane evangelism
The young woman who sat down next to me on the Southwest Airlines flight volunteered that she was a student at a certain Baptist university, where I also had attended 30 years earlier. Intrigued, I asked more about what she…
A pastor’s Independence Day prayer
God of all grace and mercy, as we celebrate our nation’s Independence Day, we are grateful for our heritage and concerned for our future. We are thankful, Lord. We are grateful for the privilege of living in “the land of…
Faithful apologies
By Bill Leonard Perhaps St. Paul initiated it, punctuating his apostolic CV with an apology for behaving as one who was “in pious zeal, a persecutor of the church” (Phil 3:6) — “breathing out threats,” Acts says, against Jesus’ followers….
Change is Good
When Fellowship Baptists met in Greensboro in June for their General Assembly, they embraced not only change but a clear future for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. As CBF moves along in its third decade of life, the General Assembly expressed…
Still believing in the church
By Roger Lovette Moving through the kitchen I barely picked up the TV words. They were interviewing another minister who said he just could not believe in God. He has started a church for atheists. He even wears a clergy…
Life lessons I learned in Sunday school
Recently a family visited our church from what they described as a more contemporary church in the community. When a person or family visits with us from another local church, I always thank them for visiting, commend their church, and…
Say no to immigration bill
By Miguel De La Torre I oppose Senate Bill 744, legislation passed 68-22 on Thursday to significantly overhaul the nation’s immigration laws. I have worked, written and lectured on immigration reform throughout the country for the past several years, but I…
Why the DOMA decision is a win for religious liberty
No doubt you’ve heard by now that the Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) on Wednesday on the basis that it is “a deprivation of the equal liberty of persons that is protected by the Fifth…