We survived. Whether the pandemic, a cancer battle, or grief after significant loss, eventually seasons of despair and lament come to an end. As Christians, looking back at difficult seasons often reminds us of the faithfulness of our God. Gratitude may well up within us. By His grace, we survived.  But what’s next? When we’ve come to the end of ourselves in a difficult season, how do we begin to

In 1998, when I became editor of the Baptist and Reflector at the age of 40, I had attended mid-year meetings of the Association of State Baptist Papers (now Publications) held during the SBC annual meeting with former editor Fletcher Allen. I didn’t attend my first winter annual meeting until the next year but I was very familiar with the work of ASBP. Last week, I attended the most recent

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following column is Part I of a three-part series. It was published in the current print edition of the Baptist and Reflector. The other two parts, which will be published in upcoming print editions, are available here: Part II and Part III.  Should We Sing Those Songs?! Have you heard about the new “worship war”? This one has nothing to do with musical style, what instruments we

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following column is Part III of a three-part series. The other two parts are available here: Part I and Part II. Should We Sing Those Songs?! NOTE FROM THE WRITER: In Part I and Part II, we were introduced to the new “worship war,” a debate about the suitability of worship music based on a song’s origins. We explored the issue’s importance, highlighted some theological concerns, and

Do you notice church signs? You know, the types of marquees out front that often have pithy sayings. Sometimes they accidentally mean things someone had no intention of saying.  But often, they communicate profound meaning with minimal words.  That’s the case with the marquee at a small church in a county seat town near here. The sign reads: “Need direction? Let prayer guide you through 2023.”  Prayer seems to be

Baptist Press posted an article on Feb. 1 with a headline that made my heart ache. It read, “Public trust in pastors falls to record low” (see article in full at baptistandreflector.org). According to the latest Gallup survey, about one in three (34 percent) rate the honesty and ethical standards of clergy as high or very high. That percentage is a two point drop from last year’s historic low of

I was determined to watch the released video of the Tyre Nichols murder.  For more than three hours, I watched Memphis’ WMC-TV5 livestream news coverage of the brutal, frenzied, depraved, animalistic, tortured beating of Nichols by five Memphis police officers. The violence was non-stop. It was horrific. It was demonic. He was 60 yards from home. Nichols called for his momma. Those were his final words. Thank God his mother