Almost four decades ago while I was serving as pastor of an inner city congregation near a Baptist seminary, I would often have seminary students visit to see if they could obtain some ministry experience as a volunteer with our…
Over and under
Overwhelmed and under qualified. That’s how I feel many times when I survey the things that fill my plate. Actually, I should say plates, because on any given day there are a number of plates that I juggle to keep…
Deacons in a Baptist church are a waste if . . .
Sarah looks at the ballot for deacons for the coming year in her congregation. Today in the Sunday worship services is the annual election of a new set of deacons. As she looks at the ballot, she wonders to herself,…
Asking Good Questions
“[And] they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.” (Luke 2.46, NRSV) This month hundreds of thousands of students flock back to school ready to learn, ready to read, and ready to…
Number crunching and list keeping
Every couple years I put on my accountant hat and crunch numbers. Not the tax-paying accountant hat I put every year by April 15 and sweat over numbers. My number-crunching-accountant hat is the one I put on when I start…
Food courts and fender benders
Editor’s note: this blog post appeared previously as a commentary on baptistnews.com. We have not yet arrived—not completely and totally. Baptist women serving in ministry still hear words of opposition, encounter suspicions and doubts, and experience the pain of exclusion….