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Ronnie Floyd is doing an exceptional job as President of the Southern Baptist Convention. My family and I never miss the annual convention and pastor’s conference: we always come away refreshed and encouraged by God’s work in churches across America and the world. I strongly encourage Christians of all denominations to attend: it is an extraordinary event, the hight point of every year, where any follower of Christ can delight in Christ’s Word and work.
I hope you’ll also read “What Every Church Needs to Know About the Cooperative Program.” It is genuinely amazing what God is doing through this simple but powerful means.
4 Considerations for Every Southern Baptist Church in 2015
by Dr. Ronnie Floyd
January 5, 2015
As we near the coming of the Lord, we should be more focused than ever before. As our 50,000 plus churches and congregations partner together in gospel causes, the time is now for us to rise up like never before.
I want to ask you to consider these four things with me in 2015.
1. Personally, collectively, and cooperatively, we need to own the Great Commission.
As Southern Baptists, our missional vision is to present the gospel of Jesus Christ to every person in the world and to make disciples of all the nations. There is not one of us that can escape this vision, not because it our vision as Southern Baptists, but because it is the vision of Jesus Christ for each of us as His disciples.
When I challenge us to own the Great Commission, I mean we must own this responsibility personally. This means that my church and your church must own the responsibility of presenting the gospel of Jesus Christ to every person and make disciples of every people group in our own region. It also means we must work cooperatively to reach the world for Jesus Christ.
Our church cannot do it by ourselves. Your church cannot do it by yourselves. Our 50,000 plus churches and congregations must cooperate like never before through our 1,100 associations, 42 state conventions, and twelve Southern Baptist entities. As Southern Baptists, we must own the Great Commission in every way possible.
2. Increase your financial support of our Great Commission work together.
Unashamedly and unapologetically, I humbly request that each local church increase their giving through our Cooperative Program. I have never been more convinced that each church must give more than we have ever given before through our Cooperative Program. Whether your practice is to give by percentage or dollar amount, I call upon each of our churches to increase our giving. This is imperative if we are going to see all of our Great Commission ministries advanced regionally, nationally, and internationally.
The Cooperative Program is Southern Baptists’ unified plan of giving through which churches give to reach the world for Jesus Christ. As Southern Baptists, I have heard us talk about our great commitment to the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
Friends, we must renew and increase our financial commitment to seeing the gospel advanced throughout the world. Therefore, consider this strongly and urgently. Tell the story. Trust your people. I believe they will step up in an unprecedented manner.
3. Plan now to have your church represented at our upcoming Southern Baptist Convention on June 16-17, 2015, in Columbus, Ohio.
Since the moment I was elected as President, I have extended a clear calling to Columbus, Ohio, for our annual gathering in 2015. Regardless of the size of your church, we need your church represented.
Why is this so important? We need our Southern Baptist family in one place, praying, worshipping, and working together to see the Great Commission completed in our generation. Soon, I will begin to talk about many more specifics of our upcoming gathering, but right now, do all you can to be in Columbus, Ohio. If you have questions, go online to our annual meeting website or call 615-244-2355 to have your questions answered.
Remember, we would like to see every church represented in Columbus. Join me. I believe this will be one of the great spiritual highlights for each of us this year. Come early! Help us in Crossover Columbus on June 13, participate in our pre-convention gatherings like the Pastors’ Conference, the Women’s Missionary Union, the Pastors’ Wives session, and others. We need to come to Columbus on June 16-17, in clear agreement, visible union and in extraordinary prayer for the next Great Awakening and to reach the world for Christ.
4. Join many of us that are praying and seeking the face of God daily for the next Great Awakening and to reach the world for Christ.
Our beloved nation and world needs the next great move of God to come upon us more than anything. Our churches in America need a mighty spiritual revival. Disunity needs to cease and unity in Christ’s community must begin to prevail.
Spiritual awakening is our greatest need in America. We need to see places, regions, and prayerfully even nationally, a sweeping, God-sized moving of God. It has happened before. It can happen again. America’s need has never been greater.
We must reach the world for Jesus Christ. This is why we are praying and seeking the face of God for the next Great Awakening. A massive harvest is needed and every people group in the world deserves the privilege to hear the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.
Join others who are downloading, reading, and sharing this special and free e-book, Pleading With Southern Baptists. Please consider sharing it with your church and others.
Southern Baptist Family, we can do this
We can do this together. Pastor and leaders, you are not in this quest alone. Take these four considerations to the Lord in prayer, then take them to your church. The need is now. The urgency is upon us. This is our time.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
