At the Power of Our Pride Presidential Town Hall last week in Los Angeles, presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke made an interesting statement. The event was sponsored by The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation, the world's largest civil rights organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual and...
Early Sunday morning, an email hit my inbox from a pastor announcing Jesus had told him to write a letter demanding President Donald Trump be impeached. He sent me the letter and wanted my support for his campaign. Any guess what the theme of his message was later that day?
Baseball has been part of the backdrop of my life. Playing as a young man and then coaching, umpiring, and administrating in various leagues has given me countless opportunities for sharing the gospel and serving people. For ten years, my baseball ministry culminated in my service as the...
Last week, Union Theological Seminary in New York had a chapel service in which they confessed their sins against plants to a collection of plants placed on the stage...
As part of a recent news story, a Christian spokesperson was quoted authoritatively as a leader in our movement. He was given this platform because – as his online bio indicates – he is a thought-leader and social media influencer. Never mind he has never led a church, directed an organization...
The current issue of Sports Illustrated has a feature article about the influence of Christianity on the Clemson football program. Their head coach, Dabo Sweeney, expresses his faith publicly and often. The Clemson program includes a team chaplain, Bible studies, character development mentors...
The International Mission Board (IMB) of the Southern Baptist Convention is my preferred partner for fulfilling my global missions responsibility. Of course, Gateway trains future missionaries and promotes the IMB as a primary channel for graduates serving overseas. But the IMB is more than my...
In many ways, Southern Baptists are stronger than at any time in our history. For example, we have record enrollment across our six seminary system. Our efforts over the past decades have produced the most well-educated clergy in Christian history. Our six seminaries now have the largest...
While preaching in a southern state this past weekend, the invisible yet tangible support Southern Baptists give their entities revealed itself in a meaningful way. After my message, an older gentleman came up to talk with me. He said, “It was good to hear about Gateway. We have always prayed...
This past spring, Gateway had a successful social media-driven fundraising campaign. We raised $75,000 in seven days to launch our 75th anniversary celebration. The money was mostly donated by text message. It was a contemporary approach to fundraising that resonated with donors – particularly...