The 2009 Southern Baptist Convention is now history. We met in Louisville, KY this year. The facilities were great, but there were few restaurants nearby. However, one could get "fast" food from vendors at the hall. I noticed they all had "sweet" tea. Yes, Virginia, we are in the South.
We had a break Wednesday afternoon. Since I had never seen The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, we drove through the campus during their open house celebrations. It is a beautiful setting- lots of tall trees, red bricks, and white pillars. The neighborhood around it is gorgeous. Again, this is the South.
We also visited the Louisville Slugger bat factory. We were taken through the shop while various aspects of bat manufacturing were described. Any baseball fan would love the tour, not to mention the souvenir bat you are given as you leave. NOTE: YOU CANNOT TAKE THE BAT ON A PLANE WITH YOU. IT IS CONSIDERED A WEAPON. IT WILL BE CONFISCATED.
But back to the Convention. I thought it went smoothly, despite some hyped headlines like this one on a 95-5 percentage vote: "Vote Reveals Underlying Tensions in SBC." What?
There were also some way-out-there motions made. One would think the convention was all about Pepsi, the KJV Bible, and Mark Driscoll. These were blips on the radar.
The big news was the overwhelming vote to establish a Great Commission Resurgence panel. I'll have another blog post on this one. The news is out- the SBC has lost membership, baptisms are down, and so is missions giving. Something needs to be done. I see nothing wrong with the evaluation of structure and program. But I fear that this will be like so many programs that come down the pike to local Baptist churches. Much noise and effort are made. In the end, little changes.
We heard some great preaching. David Platt is a 27 year young rising star. We will be hearing much more from him. One preacher did something I've never seen at a Convention. He used a visual aid. It was a round bottomed fire bucket. He used it to make the point that the bucket is not meant to sit somewhere. It is meant to be passed on- like the gospel. I have been working with creative illustrations lately, so I was intrigued. I noticed that the audience was as well, especially when the bucket fell off the podium with a loud thud. The preacher had everyone's attention. Even those who seemingly wander aimlessly around stopped to take note. Drooping eyes popped open. Maybe I need a fire bucket next Sunday.
We were led well by Dr. Johnny Hunt, convention president. I listen to his preaching podcasts every Saturday as I exercise. It gets me fired up to preach on Sunday. He has such a passion for the gospel, which is inspiring and contagious.
We heard some great music and singing. There were contemporary songs, praise songs, Southern Gospel, Gospel R&B and some music borrowing a bit from all. I especially liked the choir and orchestra from First Baptist, Woodstock GA, where Johnny Hunt is pastor. I sometimes wish I lived near Atlanta so I could go to church there.
I met some old acquaintances, made a few new friends, and had some wonderfully inspiring and informative conversations with seminary professors, Baptist leaders, other pastors, and a few strangers. I specifically recall meeting a layman who was standing near entrance to the Convention floor. He looked like a lost puppy. As my friend Rick and I stood there, he came up and introduced himself. He was very friendly. He mentioned that he was encouraged to get out and meet people. He did.
There are all kinds of people and perspectives in the Southern Baptist Convention. I am grateful to have a small part in its work to share Jesus with the world. Sure, it has problems, and maybe even faults. But I'd rather do missions, evangelism, and ministry with my SBC brothers and sisters than on my own.
Ah, this blog post is finished. Where's my sweet tea?
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