As I See It, Part Two
The Southern Baptist Convention and conflict go hand in hand. I am over thirty years old and I have never known a time when there was peace and harmony in our convention. The battle of the conservative resurgence, to changing the SBC structure, to signing the Baptist Faith and Message 2000, to boycotting Disney, and to disqualifying anyone from serving as a missionary who has a private prayer language shows that we as Southern Baptists maintain conflict.
As I see it something is happening with many Southern Baptists. They are tired of all the fighting. The same thing is true in our secular world. Last November, the republicans lost seats in Congress over the war in Iraq. Most Americans want to pull out of Iraq, they are tired of fighting a battle that in their view was meaningless. Unless the war ends soon, there will probably be a democrat serving as our next president. The American people are tired of war and want change. The same is true of many Southern Baptists. Most Southern Baptists are tired of battles over meaningless things and are calling for change. We are tired of all the name calling and back-biting. If the battles continue, I would expect to see changes in SBC leadership or huge drops in membership.
My solution to the problem is for Southern Baptist Leadership and pastors to lead the way in fighting the good fight. Building God’s Kingdom and spreading the message of Christ, this must be our unifying battle cry.
posted by OKpreacher at
11:25 AM
4 Comments:
Do you think most Southern Baptists are really knowledgeable about conflicts going on within the convention? Maybe people in church leadership and lay people willing to seek out current events on their own, yes, but the average joes sitting in the pews don't have any idea. What do you think is the best way to keep them informed without creating more chaos? I'd like to hear your views...you seem creative! :)
While your politics are wrong (the Republicans lost seats because of political corruption and immorality - not the war), I agree with your statements on the dismay and disconnection of some leadership in the SBC and average church member...
Dear anonymous,
I am glad that you can see that there is dismay and disconnection between the SBC and the average church member. Pray with me that it will change.
I'm confused on why you would say my politics are wrong. I am not defending one political group over another, I'm only stating facts. All polls show that the majority of American people are ready for the war in Iraq to be over. All polls showed that the war was the biggest issue when it came to voting for a candiate. Why else do you hear democrates saying they have a mandate from the American people to end the war in Iraq? The reason is most of them got voted in to office because of their opposition to the war in Iraq.
This is not a big issue, but be careful next time you say someone is wrong about something.
OKpreacher
OKPREACHER:
Thank you for joining with me to pray about this important issue. If churches are going to be effective, they have to be practical and applicable to the average church member...
True, most American's are ready for the war to be over (including myself), that is not the reason Republicans lost seats. Exit polls after the midterms showed that most of the seats lost by the Republicans were lost because of moral issues - not the war.
While many Americans are tired of the war, I believe that most people understand the importance of staying the course. While polls say that people want out of Iraq, I would argue that the majority of those same individuals would rather stay to complete the task at had than to pull out prematurely.
Without a doubt, as Christians we must realize that we're called to be independent of partisan politics. But to Christians (especially in America), we should have a vested interest in winning this war and staying the course until the work is complete.
Yes, we do have "Harry Reids" in the world who believe that the war is lost - but the point is that no sane American likes war...although it is sometimes necessary. I believe that the war has been slightly mismanaged; and for some, this has been a point of discontent. But I won't concur that the GOP lost seats in the midterm because of their stance on the war... and no exit poll from the election that I've seen will add to that argument.
...and you're right: Its not a big issue. But I'm never willing to say that someone is wrong about anything unless I have facts to back it up.
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