It seemed like they were everywhere!  There were hundreds of Indiana Baptists who attended the Southern Baptist Convention in Louisville. It was like a fun reunion! 

I found six full tables of Ministers Wives at the SBC ministers wives luncheons, plus lots of others at different tables.  It’s always such a celebration time, hearing all our missions reports and exciting challenges and Bible preaching and music, visiting with Christian friends, and missing out on sleep. We enjoyed the 150th anniversary for Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, a tour of Kentucky Baptists’ gorgeous new facility, and more banquets and meetings than I can remember.

I had the privilege of doing my book signing beside Mrs. Joyce (Adrian) Rogers. What a delightful woman of God.  She has a wonderful new book for widows.

  Next year’s SBC is in Orlando. See you there.    

You’re going to LOVE this story. It’s a follow-up on that last post about our daughter and son-in-law moving to Indianapolis. I’m just in awe of how God continues to put this all together. I pasted Autumn’s post on Facebook below. Enjoy!

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He made it there! My husband is now in Kiev Ukraine, where he’ll teach a Christian Leadership class at Kiev Theological Seminary these next two weeks.   Steve’s a gifted teacher, and he loves the opportunity to assist our SBC missionaries (Mary Ellen and Joel Ragains) and encourage these young Ukrainian ministry students.  The last time he did this class, God truly blessed in many ways.  Please pray for him during these days.

I’m sure he’s having a yummy bowl of borsch for lunch right about now…

One of my favorite pastors’ wives says that — Cool Beans! — when something really exciting happens.

I was thrilled to see that the On Mission magazine (pastor’s edition) that arrived yesterday featured my article on the back cover.  What an honor!!

“On Mission” is the magazine of our North American Mission Board (NAMB). Your pastor should have received the Spring issue of the pastor’s edition yesterday.  This is a really great issue because it features daily articles about missions in North America for this week’s Annie Armstrong week of prayer for North American missions. Take a look at the website and read some of these amazing stories.

If you’re in a Southern Baptist Church, take a look at www.namb.net for some wonderful, valuable resources for your church, such as video clips, research statistics–I even found where they’ll provide baptism invitations for emailing.

Pray for God’s continued blessings on our North American Mission Board as they lead the way in sharing the saving love of Jesus with the lost in our country, and take advantage of all the resources NAMB provides for our churches.

Gotta say it one more time. Cool beans!

Here’s a note I received about Fresh Ideas for Women’s Ministry book:

Dear Diana – Many thanks for the many ideas in your book on women’s ministry.

I’m so excited to get the women in my church connected in a united effort to bless others in our community and further. A little over a year ago, my husband and I were called to help a good friend and his wife plant a new church. My husband just went full time as the executive pastor and we’re busy with community outreach efforts as well as our first team mission trip to Haiti. My dream for our church is to get small groups of women bonded in their passions to do something for others, and to support each other in the process.

Your book gave me lots of ideas for practical ways to get them involved.Thank you.

Pray for this and other women’s ministries who are adding “ministry” into their “Women’s Ministry!”

GET READY! Our Indiana Baptists’ annual state-wide women’s retreat is fast approaching!

It’s offering a choice of two dates/locations this year, listed above, so if you live in Indiana (or can find your way here), get registered quickly. It’s going to be a great time.  Keynote speakers are Kelly Minter (February 6-7) and Heather Payne (Feb. 20-21).  And…

Take a look at all these great breakout conferences! I’m looking forward to leading one about women’s ministries and another about hospitality.

And here’s a direct link to register for either retreat. Hope to see you there!

P.S. Ministers’ wives (full-time and bi-vocational pastors and staff and denominational ministers) need to register ahead for the ministers’ wives breakfast. Always a very special treat.

Now here’s a really fresh idea that you might use at your church sometime…

A “virtual” bridal shower.  Let’s say a church member’s future bride is in another city and won’t be able to travel to your town for a shower. Or perhaps a member of your Sunday School class has moved to another state, but your class wants to have a shower for her long-distance.

Last week, my husband’s associates at his office decided to plan a bridal shower for our daughter. She’s ‘in Texas, and we’re all in Indiana.  They made it a surprise shower, and sent Autumn a note that they needed her to be available on that certain day and time, and they would “Skype” her on the computer.  If you haven’t used Skype, it’s sort of like the old cartoon, the Jetson’s. You look at one another on the computer as you speak (and it’s free!)  Autumn thought that her parents were receiving a surprise award and she was going to get to watch.

It was a surprise for us as well.  I’d been recruited to stop by the office to volunteer help on a project (so I thought).  As the State Convention of Baptists in Indiana’s staff devotionals began, then, Steve and I were surprised when the overhead computer screen showed that they were calling our daughter, Autumn, and her photo was on the projector.

She laughed for days about the hilarious scene she saw! Since the bride and groom were long-distance, they’d prepared paper hats for the parents of the bride – a top hat labeled “father of the bride” and a fancy box top with bubble-wrap veil labeled “mother of the bride.” There was punch and wedding cake, a darling photo album, and a generous money tree for the bride and groom.

Talk about a perfect long-distance bridal shower! Each person had written fun marital advice on cards for the nearly-weds. Brenda presented a dramatic, comedic version from 1 Corinthians 13–the love chapter. Allison led the whole group in a mad-libs game where they created a silly love story about Autumn and Yale.

This was probably Autumn’s largest wedding shower, and she was 1000 miles away!

Oh, there were a few technical difficulties, but Autumn got the gist of the party. Friends of her parents were showing their love for God and for her, even though the miles between them were many. Thanks, SCBI friends, for your love and thoughtfulness. The wedding day, January 31st, is approaching soon, and we love how you’ve shared our joy.

Now, how could you use this idea –

for a “virtual” birthday greeting for a missionary,

a “virtual” congratulations for a graduating seminary student,

a “virtual” prayer meeting for a military friend…

“They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share” 1 Timothy 6:18.

P.S.  I’m still having trouble with image downloads on this blog, so I’ll come back and add photos when it’s all working again.

Of course, you leaders must plan ahead, so allow me to share an idea for a Christmas project next month.

This is one of the Christmas ideas in my book, Fresh Ideas–1000 Ways to Grow a Thriving & Energetic Church:

A Nativity-a-Day

“For a ministry project, purchase a twelve-piece nativity scene and do this version of the Twelve Days of Christmas for a homebound member or person who will be alone for the first time this Christmas.  Deliver one piece of the nativity scene daily for twelve days, ending with the baby Jesus on Christmas day.  If this is a church or class project, a different member could deliver each day.  A friend of mine did this with “secret” deliveries, leaving daily notes and gift-wrapped nativity pieces on the front porch, by mail or other delivery methods.  At a scheduled time, she and her family delivered the baby on Christmas day.”

I received a note today from a lady who read the book, saying that she was purchasing a nativity scene and planning to do this with an elderly neighbor this Christmas.  Her husband’s Bible class was doing this as a mission project, with a different class member making a delivery each day. (I’m not sure if it’s a person in a nursing home, someone with an extended sickness, or a homebound member.) Each gentleman in the class is assigned a specific day, and makes a visit to deliver one nativity scene piece.  You don’t actually have to do exactly twelve–it could be more or less.  The gift is your reflection of God’s love as you show his care to one who needs it this season. 

My friend who did this with her young children made it an annual tradition. Each year, they would ask the pastor for an idea of a person who needed Christian encouragement, and they carefully made their plan. Each day was an adventure for the children as they planned how to deliver their surprise. As Christmas neared, they sent word through their pastor or a common friend to specify a time on Christmas Day they would like to stop by for the last delivery.  The recipient each year became a dear Christian friend of that family, and they began planning for next year’s Nativity-A-Day. 

Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are such a wonderful time to shine for Jesus…

Keep on shining!

Celebration Time:

(Pardon me for this personal post. But you’re going to love the book recommendations!)

I’m celebrating the completion of two more seminary classes –  

(1) Systematic Theology 11 – I’m really celebrating this one. I’m afraid I’m way over my intellectual capabilities, but still enjoyed the class. I probably spent eight hours trying to understand Jonathon Edwards “In Freedom of the Will.”  My term paper was about God’s immediate forgiveness and it engulfed weeks of my life. I just turned it in today and feel like I accomplished a thesis!  Praising God it’s all turned in.

(2) Personal Evangelism 565 – one of the best classes I’ve ever taken. Dr. David Wheeler is excellent. The assignments were multitudinous, but well worth the effort. 

Here are some really great books from the class that I highly recommend: 

          Family to Family (Pipes) – If you have kids, you’ve got to read this book. It’s a great idea book and instruction book for creating a family mission statement so your family will intentionally honor God. Read it!  

The Unexpected Journey(Rainer) – I don’t know how I missed this Rainer book, but it is un-put-downable.  Each chapter holds a captivating interview with a Christian who was saved from a different faith view — everything from mormonism to satanism to buddhism. Each explains how they found the one true God, and gives tips for Christians about how to share Christ with them.

 Share Jesus Without Fear (Fay) – I’d read this previously, but if you’ve missed it, it’s a must-read-twice book.  Quite inspiring and practical.

Radically Unchurched (Reid) – This book will knock your socks off. It is a factual, in-your-face revelation of reasons our churches are unable to reach the majority of our nation’s younger adults and youth.  Well worth reading.

The Art of Personal Evangelism(McRaney) – Perhaps the best book on personal evangelism I’ve read.  Very practical, usable, inspirational. Read it.

Oh, there were lots of other books in this class, but these are some I thought you’d love.

  Just three more seminary classes to go now…

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One more article published this week:

Let’s Worship Magazine Fall ’08 – (Missions celebration idea)

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Book Signing: One more note–I get to do a book signing during the state convention on Friday evening at 5:30. (for convention details, see www.scbi.org).

If you’ve never had the privilege of spending a couple of days at one of our six Southern Baptist Seminaries, you’ve missed a blessing!  God is working in a miraculous way in the lives of young men and women who are preparing for ministry at those campuses. 

Last year, my husband, Steve, spoke in chapel at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Fort Worth; his alma mater), at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville) and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (Wake Forest NC). As we traveled to each of them, I marvelled at the uniqueness of each one, and the quality and commitment of their faculty and students. 

We’ve also had the privilege of visiting at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (New Orleans) and Golden Gate Theological Seminary (San Francisco) in the past.

The only SBC seminary we’d never seen–until last week–was Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City MO.  The MBTS campus is beautifully situated on a hill overlooking Kansas City, and the students and faculty on that campus are amazing. It is obvious that God is at work there, and the atmosphere is charged with an enthusiasm about sharing Jesus. The school had invited several state executive directors for informational meetings about the school, and Steve was invited to share a word about Indiana Baptists during their chapel service. President Dr. Philip Roberts and his wife, Anya, were wonderful hosts and we enjoyed hearing their heart for preparing future Christian leaders.

If you’ve been following the path of Hurricane Gustav, you may know that New Orleans seminary was evacuated. Their preparation for such an event is extraordinary, however, and seminary classes continue via Internet until students return later this week.  God’s work must go on!  An email from Dr. Rhonda Kelley, President’s wife, says “Thank you very much for your prayers. We feel them. God has been faithful to protect us.” Check their website for updates, and keep on praying for NOBTS.

Our Cooperative Program dollars are well-invested in these six academic training institutions dedicated to teaching future ministers.

I also had the privilege of visiting the campus of the Cuba Baptist Seminary in Cuba this spring, where training has exploded off the campus. We heard personal testimonies of men who spent many years of their lives in prison because they were seminary students. I was on Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary’s campus last month to take a graduate class, and observed a beautiful campus with an enormous commitment to God. Steve and I were at Kiev Theological Seminary last year and were enthralled with our IMB missionaries teaching church planting to Ukrainian pastors. God is raising up many committed young people to vocational Christian ministry across our globe, and He is using seminaries across our world to train and inspire them for service to God.

Pray for our seminary leaders and students! Encourage them. I’ve pasted a chapter of ways to encourage seminarians from my book, Fresh Ideas-1000 Ways to Grow a Thriving and Energetic Church. (pasted below)

RECENT PUBLISHED ARTICLES:

“Fresh Ideas” articles were published this week in the Illinois Baptist and The Utah-Idaho Southern Baptist Witness.

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SEMINARY STUDENTS

“I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5

God’s called them. We’ll encourage them. Need fresh ideas to lift up seminary students from your church?

Recognize Them

Encourage the church to faithfully pray for church members who are called to fulltime ministry by occasionally printing a list of seminary (more…)