Never in my three-plus decades of being a senior pastor have I known those in my profession to be more battered and beleaguered. Thousands leave the ministry annually. Rarely a week goes by that I don’t hear of another church conflict or forced termination. Statistics back this claim, as a recent Gallup Poll revealed that the clergy has fallen to a favorable rating of only 42 percent of those surveyed. At least we still rank above lobbyists, car salesmen, and members of Congress. Despite the decline and doom, I contend that being a pastor is the best job in the world.

Georgia Sen. Ed Setzler, R-Acworth, along with more than 25 other senators, introduced SB 180, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act today at the Capitol.  This bill provides people of faith the same protections from state and local government actions that they now have from federal government actions. This legislation is very simple – it merely provides that the RFRA protections from federal law will also apply to religious-liberty questions arising under Georgia law.

Our church member Syble Elliott turned 99 the other day. She is one year away from joining an extremely elite club. Only about one in every 5,000 people in the US reach the century mark. What’s the secret? Genetics plays a major part, but these people manage stress, eat right (keeping meat consumption to a minimum), don’t smoke, and exercise regularly. Syble’s secret? “The grace of God! You’re blessed with some things and you don’t know why. You just say, ‘thank you, Lord!’”

I was inspired to ask and answer this question when I could not perform a wedding for a relative who is marrying a young lady that has yet to believe in Jesus Christ.  How do we help such a person believe in Christ? 

Effective leaders consistently prepare for the future, and that includes providing quality spaces for ministry. One Lifeway article highlights the importance of having a plan that renovates the space without wrecking your ministry. Is it possible to create more space and still have money for ministry? Can we find better ways to utilize the space we already have without spending excessive amounts of money (which can be about as hard to find as a dad serving in childcare on Sunday)?

On February 1st, new gambling legislation was introduced in the Georgia Senate. Senator Billy Hickman authored Senate Bill 57 to legalize sports betting and horse racing through the Georgia Lottery. This bill is not a constitutional amendment, but rather a legislative bill that will only require a majority vote in the Senate to pass.

My favorite major league baseball team since childhood has been the Cincinnati Reds. One reason is because Cincinnati is located along the same river I grew up near in Western Kentucky – the Ohio. Another reason is that they were a great team. In the 1970’s, the Big Red Machine won six division titles, four National League pennants and back-to back World Championships (1975-76). One of the key players in that run was Pete Rose, who once said, “I’d walk through hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball.” And play he did.

My dad did the grocery shopping for our family. For him, it was a social thing. He loved running into friends and visiting in the aisles. He must have influenced me. I do most of our grocery shopping and still go inside the store. No outside pickup for me. I do some of my best ministry inside when I run into church members, prospective members, and other friends.

For more than eight years the Georgia General Assembly has been dealing with the issue of expanding gambling in Georgia. Every year the proposed legislation has failed to pass out of the House and the Senate. This year, it is once again being discussed at the Capitol. I expect to hear a familiar argument, “Just let the people decide.” However, the people in one way have already “decided.” We are also hearing that there will be an attempt to go through the Georgia Lottery to legalize sports gambling. This means legislation would only be required to have a majority vote in both chambers, rather than a two-thirds majority with a constitutional amendment.

More than we’d like to admit, life changes and it never goes back to the way it was. Yet, if life were a coin, there would be two sides. There would be the side of “I don’t mind losing these things” and then there’s the other side of, “I wish I could go back to the way it was.” Maybe we just want things to be normal again. But there is no “normal again.” There is only what we can do now. It is what we can do now that leads us into a better future.

In my years as a published author, I have encountered countless people who talk about writing a book, yet few follow through. If you’re one of those dreamers who have a book in you, it’s time to buckle down, bite the bullet, and get the job done. Why?

On January 13, 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed that January 22 would be the first National Sanctity of Human Life Day. January 22 is the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion-on-demand in the U.S. in 1973. This month marks the 50th Anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, which led to the deaths of over 60 million preborn children in the United States alone. But this year, on the National Sanctity of Human Life Day we will be celebrating last year’s overturning of Roe v. Wade on a Sunday. This will be the first time in 50 years.

I read recently that thousands of churches close their doors every year. Who knows how many others are on life support? We live in a time when, more than ever, congregations need revitalization and renewal. The eternal destiny of millions depend on the faithful witness of our local churches. As I think about churches dying, I’m reminded there are certain poisons that trigger death.

Bills-Bengals game Monday night, January 2. The Bills medical staff immediately responded with CPR and an AED that made a difference. Miraculously, Damar is still with us. This game-halting play in the first quarter suddenly made football secondary to a life hanging in the balance. This episode starkly reminds us life is fragile and uncertain. We’re one heartbeat away from eternity.

In 1980, two years after Charlotte and I got married, I started my MDiv program at one of our sister seminaries. I remember our excitement in those days. Even though we were poor (like most seminary students) and did not know how the Lord intended to use us for his mission, we were passionate to serve him. That is why I chose the MDiv program.

When the centuries-old church was written off by the Diocese of London, God provided a miracle from unlikely places. Once again proving God, and God alone, has the final word in the affairs of mankind and His church. It was a beautiful bright Sunday afternoon in London in the fall of 2019, a few months before the pandemic shuttered the cities of the world. The morning was spent attending church, the London museum, and several other points of historical interest in the area around St. Paul’s Cathedral. Realizing there was extra time before meeting up with my traveling companion, another history nerd, later in the day, I decided to walk the mile and a half down Fleet and Strand Streets to Trafalgar Square.

On January 9 the Georgia General Assembly will convene for its 2023 legislative session. This year is set to begin what will be the first of a two-year legislative cycle. Therefore, new legislation will be introduced to the Georgia General Assembly. It is not uncommon that over a two-year period, Georgia Baptists will monitor anywhere from 25 to 30 pieces of legislation, covering approximately 18 or more subject headings.

Georgia Baptists pull together through Mission Georgia to share the gospel with some of the state's most vulnerable and hardest-to-reach people. Fueled by the generous giving of Georgia Baptists, Mission Georgia provided nearly $392,000 in 2022 to ministries that provide direct care to children, mothers-to-be, victims of human trafficking and international refugees.

Leonard Ravenhill, the English evangelist, wrote, “The greatest undiscovered area in the resources of God is the place of prayer . . . at the judgement seat, the most embarrassing thing the believer will face will be the smallness of his praying.” The Bible tells us prayer is important. God calls us to pray (Jeremiah 33:3). We also know prayer makes a difference in our lives and impacts the lives of others (James 5:16).

Bells clanging, bodies burning, smoke rising — I’ll never forget my first experience of the Aarti along the banks of the Ganges. People were passionately worshiping. Not the Most High God, but the goddess of the Ganges River. Every year hundreds of thousands of worshipers make the pilgrimage from around the world to Varanasi. Every night thousands gather along those banks and in small boats on the river to experience this unique and well-choreographed worship service.

DULUTH, Ga. – Georgia lawmakers will see a renewed effort from the state’s largest religious group to protect biblical definitions of gender and to oppose efforts to expand gambling when they convene next month in Atlanta for the start of the 2023 legislative session. Messengers to the 1.4 million-member Georgia Baptist Convention approved a series of resolution last month, including one that reiterates their opposition to allowing male athletes to compete as females in sporting events.

The Georgia Baptist Pastors Day at the State Capitol will take place Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023. Combining the annual Legislative Prayer Breakfast and Pastors’ Day into one helped make last year’s event such a success. Because of that, this year’s event, hosted by the Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s Public Affairs department, will once again combine the two. We encourage you to join us at 7:30 a.m. for breakfast and to hear from legislators, public policy experts and activists.

“Will you make the first and most expensive Christmas gift this year a gift to our Global Missions Offering?” Sitting in the sanctuary of Calvary Baptist Church in Winston Salem, North Carolina, on the first Sunday of December, I heard Pastor Will Toburen ask that question of his congregation.

Most people no longer get a tax deduction when they donate to charity. That shouldn’t keep you from making donations, but you may want to change your approach. Typically, only taxpayers who itemize deductions can write off charitable contributions.

America’s largest Christmas tree is no longer found at Rockefeller Center in New York City. America’s tallest Christmas tree now resides in Enid, Oklahoma, standing at 140 feet, 75 percent taller than the Rockefeller Center tree. Last year’s tree, dubbed the “Christ Tree,” was ringed with 20,000 multi-colored LED lights, decorated with 10,000 ornaments, and circled with 12 smaller trees.