It’s Friday on the Gulf Coast and we are headed into a holiday week as we celebrate the 4th of July. Sunday we will find the Worship Center decorated in red, white and blue. If you are in Pensacola, join us for a great day of worship.
 
Today in the Dallas Morning News the pastor of FBC Auburn, Alabama, had an article entitled “A Moderate Baptist Considers Today’s SBC.” Pastor Jim Evans wrote in his column that he sees modest shifts in the conservative SBC. He is an outsider looking in. The paper called him a “Baptist pastor of a moderate stripe.” Pastor Evans’ insights were that the SBC has been aligned with Republican policies and might be shifting a little. He suggests we should do more in the area of poverty and the environment. He also speaks of SBC president Dr. Frank Page and his appointments to convention boards as being a move away from rigid fundamentalism. 
 
The article goes on to speak of flat line growth in SBC churches. He says it is the result of political rancor.

Baptisms are down in our denomination. However, I believe our problems are not with politics but with slothfulness, prayerlessness and spiritual deadness. We are often more concerned about the people in our churches than the lost souls we are to be reaching locally and around the globe.
 
I urge you to join me Sunday evening at Olive. We are having a prayer time in the service for revival in the American church. We will be confessing our own sins. I hope when the world looks at us in the years to come they will say those Baptists at Olive were of a “helpful and holy stripe.”

Pastor Ted Traylor

Early this morning Paris Hilton was released from a Los Angeles County jail. She was incarcerated on June 3. The time spent came from an alcohol-related reckless driving charge and driving with a suspended license. She did her time. Actually she did more time than most for this charge. Being a celebrity cost her some added days. Now what will happen with her? Will she ever drive again when alcohol is involved?
 
Maybe I am a little sensitive to this issue. A few months ago I did the funeral for a 24-year-old college graduate from our church killed by a drunk driver. A few weeks ago I sat with grieving grandparents who had lost their 21-year-old granddaughter killed by a drunk driver. Today I opened the Pensacola News Journal to see the picture of a young Alabama couple on vacation in Pensacola. They were weeping over their 7-month-old daughter killed by a drunk driver. This stupidity demands action.
 
1. If you are a parent and have a child who comes home having been driving while drinking take action. Drop the hammer. Take the keys. Take the car. Your child could be looking at a life ruined if they speed recklessly into another. Take action and responsibility before it is too late.
 
2. I encourage lawmakers, judges and officers to enforce the law. I realize summer brings a rash of this activity to our vacation destination city. Enforcement is not easy. However, we must act to protect others. Thank you for what you do to make our streets safe.
 
3. If you are going to party with alcohol make sure someone sober is behind the wheel. This choice has to be made while you are sober. Everyone is sorry and never meant to hurt anyone after they ram someone from the rear and kill them. Get smart and keep alcohol out of your life and out of your car.
 
I found it ironic that just above the PNJ picture of the cute baby killed in the DUI accident, was the front page headline of a new wine and mini-bar opening in downtown Pensacola. I pray no 40-year-old walks out of there tonight to slide behind the wheel of a car with an elevated blood alcohol level. Drunk drivers always make bad headlines.

Pastor Ted Traylor

Back in 1845, the Southern Baptist Convention was formed for the purpose of uniting churches for the cause of missions around the world. In those days, people felt the call of God to a foreign land and moved there for life. Travel was slow and the world was vast. Now we live in a day when the globe seems smaller. With little effort, we make our plans and board a plane to fly to Russia for short term mission trips then come back home and return to work or school. Yet we are still in the world mission business as Southern Baptist Christians.

The Cooperative Program was developed in 1925 and adopted by the convention as our unified method to fund mission endeavors. Each church autonomously decides what to give. That money is sent each year to their state convention. In turn, each state convention determines the percentage of the received funds to forward on to the SBC. While Florida forwarded 40% of the monies received from the churches in 2006, each state convention determines its own contribution annually to the SBC.  Then the SBC divides the CP money to fund convention causes. These divisions are set each year during the annual session of the convention.
 
Last year our church supported many mission works. One of the ways we were involved was voting 10% of our undesignated budget funds to the Cooperative Program. That amount was $720,000. Here is how that amount given by Olive was allotted:
 

• $432,000 (60%) remained in Florida to fund state convention causes as voted by the Florida convention
• $144,000 to the International Mission Board of the SBC
• $65,632 to the North American Mission Board of the SBC
• $63,820 to the six SBC seminaries
• $4,292 to the Ethics and Religious Commission of the SBC
• $9,562 to the SBC for operating costs
• $694 to the SBC Historical Library and Archives

It is the conviction of some, including myself, that we must direct more of our funds to foreign fields. Let me state up front I believe in the CP and the good work happening in our state conventions. The home front must maintain a strong gospel witness. Just as we want to keep Olive vibrant and growing, so must our state work remain vital and important. However, when we have vast regions of the world with no gospel witness it seems we are out of balance by keeping more in state conventions than we are sending to the unreached world. Florida is not saturated with the good news by a long shot. Nevertheless, we do have churches in every corner of the state preaching the Gospel.
It is my hope we can begin directing more CP dollars to facilitate planting churches in the larger cities of America and worldwide. These areas lack the impact of the Gospel. While the CP of the SBC is far from perfect, it remains an amazing tool.  As the world changes we must be open to asking some hard questions about our funding processes.

Pastor Ted Traylor

On Sunday night I quoted from the booklet entitled “Building Bridges.” It is authored by David Dockery and Timothy George. In the opening chapter Dr. Dockery speaks of seven groups in the diverse family of conservative Southern Baptists. He goes on to say that there are subgroups in most of these. I would add that many are a combination of one or more of these. For now I want to identify again those groups he introduced: 

1. Fundamentalists ~ these are hard-line people who have more in common with Independent Baptists than with the SBC heritage. 

2. Revivalists ~ these from the Sandy Creek background are Baptists who are hot-hearted for a fresh work of the Spirit but they are suspicious of education. 

3. Traditionalists ~ these also come from the Sandy Creek theology which includes evangelism and revivalism but they affirm education. 

4. Orthodox Evangelicals ~ this is a peaceful group with a commitment to the full truthfulness of the Bible that includes a serious intellectual and cultural engagement while interacting with all who would claim the great orthodox Christian traditions. 

5. Calvinists ~ they have much in common with group #4 but tend to be at times less irenic or inclusive. They come from the Charleston tradition of an educated clergy and reformed theology. 

6. Contemporary Church Practitioners ~ these leaders seek to find new ways to connect with the culture, resulting in new models for doing church. Saddleback, Willow Creek and some emergent types would be in this group. 

7. Cultural Warriors ~ these conservatives desire to engage the issues of culture and society. Their priority is cultural transformation and social justice. 

All of these groups helped bring the “conservative resurgence” to the SBC. Now we are seeking to keep these groups together to touch the world with the Gospel. The enemy target is no longer liberalism in the denomination. Our focus must change to be the advancement of the Gospel in the lost world. To date we have not brought the coalition together for this cause. We must do that or the SBC will slowly die from inward fighting. It is time to fight the GOOD FIGHT. 

Pastor Ted Traylor 

Liz and I returned from San Antonio and the SBC meeting on Thursday evening. Weather delayed us in Houston and we were four hours late but we arrived home safely. I did get back in time to pray with a group of intercessors at the church at 7:30 p.m.
 
I will report about the SBC this Sunday evening. Let me give you a few items here. Dr. Frank Page led with grace and was elected to a second term. Next year in Indianapolis, we will elect a new president. This will be a very important election for the SBC. We must have God’s man to lead in the years to come. Many are saying it will be the most important election since the conservative resurgence. Be praying for God to raise up His man.
 
Great reports came from the two mission agencies. I was especially thrilled at the job Dr. Hammond did with his first NAMB report. He was marvelous. He shared three things. I believe each messenger walked away knowing NAMB’s vision was to “Share Christ, Start Churches and Send Missionaries.” We must get serious about these matters. While giving and church planting was up, the number we baptized was down by 7,000. Olive was in the top 100 churches in baptisms but we are not where we need to be. We must lead out in soul winning like never before.
 
The one item of spirited debate at the SBC ‘07 was on the discussion of the Baptist Faith and Message. This is the doctrinal statement adopted by the convention in 2000. While it is a minimal statement, some want to make it all encompassing. Some issues are not covered in the BF&M. And we must speak to those. But I do not see the issue being one we cannot overcome with some intelligent conversation. Yet some are becoming mean-spirited in the debate. This must not be tolerated. Using crude verbiage about fellow Baptists in this debate has no place. We must be better than that.
 
All in all the convention was a good one. While I am a Christian first, I am still proud of our heritage and stand as Southern Baptists.

Pastor Ted Traylor

Greetings from San Antonio and the Southern Baptist Convention. Liz and I have been very busy and have enjoyed the week. She is the president of the Ministers’ Wives Luncheon for 2008 and has had many meetings to attend this year in preparation for leading that event next year.

Dr. Frank Page was elected to a second term as SBC President on Tuesday.  President Bush will speak to the convention today by live video feed. I will have more to tell you in Friday’s blog after I return home and the convention has concluded.
 
Please note:  This Thursday evening I have scheduled a prayer meeting in the worship center at Olive. It begins at 7:30 p.m. and you are invited to attend. I have three very special items for which our church needs to pray. Make your plans to join me.

Pastor Ted Traylor

…things are busy here at the SBC. I will try to post later today.

As the 2007 meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention kicks off, I encourage you to be praying for President Frank Page. Also pray for Dr. Hayes Wicker as he and First Baptist Naples lead out in the Pastor’s Conference. (Here at Olive, we know what that is like.)  

Around this time of year, many questions come to me about being a Baptist. A few years ago as President of the Florida Baptist Convention, I preached a message entitled “What Is a Baptist?” Let me borrow from it today. Here are some indications for one to understand the important markings of a Baptist:  

1. Baptists are Soul Competent. Historically it has been understood that a man is able to stand before God without the aid of any earthly mediator. A lost man certainly needs Christ to get to the Father. The emphasis here is that man stands before God individually and is competent to do so. The “priesthood of the believer” comes from this thought.   

 2. Baptists are Scripturally Confident. Here the idea is that we stand with confidence in the Bible. The Bible is the inerrant and infallible Word of God. No shadow of doubt can ever be cast over the Holy Scriptures.   

3. Baptists are Structurally Cooperative. Baptist churches are independent and autonomous. No one from Baptist headquarters tells a local church congregation what it must or must not do. Fiercely independent Baptists come together in cooperation to do missions around the world. This is the strength of Southern Baptists.   

4. Baptists are Sovereignly Commissioned. The last words of Jesus are first priority for us. The Great Commission commands us to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. This is our mission. This is the number one reason we have Vacation Bible School. We share the Gospel. We did that this week at Olive and many boys and girls were saved.  

As you look at these pictures of VBS be mindful that this is priority work for Baptists at Olive. I am grateful for every volunteer that helped get the job done this week. 

Pastor Ted Traylor                          

Southern Baptists will meet for their annual convention session and other meetings. Several have asked me if anything is on the horizon that we should be watching for as part of the convention business and issues. Interpreted that means is anything controversial coming up. With Baptists one never knows for sure.
 
While it might not be talked about in official business there is a meeting coming up in Atlanta in 2008 that has the attention of many. It is the New Baptist Covenant Convocation being hosted by former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. The meeting is said to be an effort to unite Baptists in the United States for a positive voice rather than a negative one. Others have said it is nothing more than a get-out-the-vote rally for Democrats as the 2008 election year kicks off. Southern Baptist leaders have shied away from the meeting.
 
The recent press about the New Baptist Covenant meeting brought to mind a message I preached in November of 2000 in the Olive pulpit. The title was, “Why Jimmy Carter is not a Southern Baptist.” The sermon followed the letter and video Mr. Carter sent to 75,000 people announcing he was resigning from the Southern Baptist Convention to join the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. In reality an individual does not belong to the SBC. Only churches belong and people belong to churches that make up the convention. But I understand what he meant in that letter. He said the more dramatic miracles in the Bible might not be true. He also said he could not imagine innocent people who had not heard the Gospel being left out of heaven. He took exception with churches not allowing women to be pastors. And finally he criticized the SBC for seeking to convert Mormons, stating they were Christians. It became apparent the former President did not need to resign SBC life. He had already left us.
 
A big issue in days to come will be, “What is a Baptist?”  Where is the edge of the Baptist tent? Can you believe anything and be a Baptist? I want you to remember that Southern Baptists are not defined by what a convention says. Baptists are highly independent autonomous churches. We must continue to define Olive according to Scripture. We will then have no trouble finding likeminded churches to covenant with in a convention for the cause of missions around the world.

Pastor Ted Traylor

Today is June 1. If you live along the Gulf coast you know this is the official start date of the hurricane season. The first named Atlantic storm was Andrea (a pre-season tropical storm.) The next storm is named Barry. Should he come our way do you know what to do? Now is the time to prepare. Local preparedness leaders are pushing our  local citizens to adopt the motto “The First 72 Are on You.” That means you should prepare to care for yourself for three days after a storm hits. Other agencies will be stepping into action immediately after but you should count on your own preparation to carry you through the first 72 hours. No private or governmental agency can care for everyone at one time. So what should you do?
 
1. Know what you and your family plan to do. Will you evacuate or stay?
 
2. Where are the shelters you could use?
 
3. Get your supplies together and placed in a location known to your family.
 
4. Supplies include food, medicine, batteries, flashlights, drinking water, etc.
 
5. Talk to your neighbors. These are always good times to “love your neighbor.” Then we “tell our story.”
 
6. Be ready to go to work once you have your own homefront stabilized. After the storm passes the Christians should spring into action.
 
At Olive, we have a plan for the church. We are not a shelter. However, if feeding trucks need a place to station, our church facility will be a main site. Southern Baptist Disaster Relief is the third largest relief agency in America. Just this week Eric Sheaffer from our associational office was on campus training volunteers. This joint effort is remarkable.
 
Olive also has a plan for ministry after the storm to our own members and area. Our volunteers will be mobilized and sent into the local field as needed. No two emergencies are the same but we have experience in this work and we will do what is necessary when the need presents itself.
 
Let’s ask the Lord for a peaceful six months. I praise Him for last year and the absence of storms here. Do it again, Lord!

Pastor Ted Traylor 

Prayer Alert for Tori Soritau

Dr. Traylor,
Please pray for us. Tori, our daughter, is in a hospital in London. We were on our way back to the states and she became sick. We are staying at a hotel in Gatwick Airport until Tuesday, we hope. Do not know yet. You can let others pray too, please.

Ilie”Elijah”Soritau
Emanuel University of Oradea