Barbecue Baptist Church delivers meals, hope, and levity: How being “guests” liberates us to speak biblical truth

Barbecue (Stock photo)

Chad McMillan, the pastor of students, evangelism, and missions at First Baptist Church in Navasota, Texas, had a novel idea. He put his pastor on a trailer surrounded by plexiglass and armed him with a T-shirt gun to distribute toilet paper rolls wrapped with Bible verses. It went so well, they added a pulpit, piano, and sound system to do pop-up worship services while flinging the TP.

Then McMillan started Barbecue Baptist Church. The church borrowed a catering truck from a member and traveled around the county, serving about four meals a day, four days a week, along with a short worship service. Last month, they took the ministry on the road from Navasota to Nashville, visiting first responders and medical professionals across six states in seven days. 

Along with the meals, they are offering a message of hope and some humor as well. “Not to make light of what’s happening,” McMillan explained, “but to try to give people a moment of levity and joy to know that God loves them, and we love them.” 

A price it’s easy for me to ask you to pay 

When you’re offering free toilet paper and barbecue, people tend to be grateful. When you’re called to share unpopular biblical truth, they can be less so. 

It is especially challenging to speak such truth to people when our success depends on their affirmation. 

Most of you reading this article make your living in the secular world and are therefore measured by secular means. In such a culture, it can be risky to stand up for spiritual truth. As we’ve discussed before, if you defend biblical marriage, you’ll be branded a “homophobe.” If you advocate for life from conception, you’ll be accused of participating in a “war on women.” In these days of cancel culture (for more, see my paper here), those who oppose biblical truth have unprecedented means of attacking Christians. 

At the same time, we are clearly called to be Jesus’…

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Click Read More to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Denison Forum.

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A Pop Quiz for Pastors and Church Leaders

Based on what I’ve learned about church leaders via years of church consulting, here’s a pop quiz for pastors and other church leaders. Many leaders with whom I’ve worked could not answer these questions – questions I believe strong church leaders should be able to answer: 

  1. What are your church’s mission and vision statements? You might be surprised how many leaders can’t answer this question.
  2. What are the demographics of the community within 5-10 miles of your church? Too often, leaders guess at this answer. 
  3. What are the names of your community’s government officials? Spiritual leaders in a community should know these names, particularly to pray for them.
  4. Is your church growing? If so, is it growing by evangelistic growth? Transfer growth? Biological growth? You should know the source of your church’s growth.
  5. What is your church’s baptism/conversion: resident members ratio? This ratio (baptisms/conversions per resident member) hints at the church’s level of evangelistic effectiveness.
  6. What is your church’s facility capacity (# of parking spaces, education capacity, worship center capacity)? An administrator may know most of this information, but pastors should be aware of these important data as well. My guess is that COVID has resulted in more churches raising these questions.
  7. What are the names of your staff members’ spouses and children? Not knowing suggests an unhealthy disconnect between the leader and the staff.
  8. What is the testimony of your primary…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Thom Rainer.

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Todd White repents of failing to preach ‘the whole Gospel,’ calls out American Church

Todd White, head of Lifestyle Christianity, speaks on July 25, 2020. | YouTube/Todd White

Lifestyle Christianity leader Todd White has publicly repented for failing to preach the whole Gospel and criticized the American Church for refusing to address sin and repentance to a watching world. 

In an emotional message delivered Sunday, White, a former drug addict turned evangelist, revealed he recently underwent a season of painful “pruning” where God impressed upon him the importance of preaching on the topic of sin and the need for a Savior. 

“If people don’t know they’re sinners, they won’t see their need for a Savior,” the Watauga, Texas-based pastor said. “This is hard for people. This is hard for me, because I feel like I haven’t preached the whole Gospel. And I repent. I repent. You have no idea. I will not be responsible. I believe that when I preach that the blood of people is on my hands.”

“I’m convicted. I am not perfect but I am strongly convicted. I feel like I just met Jesus again. There’s just this rekindled thing inside of me….

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Click Read More to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – The Christian Post.

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Franklin Graham Warns of ‘All-Out Socialism’ If Americans Don’t Vote and Pray in November

Franklin Graham Warns of ‘All-Out Socialism’ If Americans Don’t Vote and Pray in November


Evangelist Franklin Graham said Monday the United States is in danger of becoming socialist if Americans don’t vote in November for leaders who “love this country, defend the Constitution” and “support law & order.”

Graham made the comments in a series of tweets. Although he didn’t mention specific candidates or parties by name, his comments were in line with his recent criticism of the Democratic party.

“The chaos erupting in cities controlled by liberal, socialist-leaning leadership should cause great concern,” Graham tweeted. “If this kind of leadership wins in local, state & national elections in November, we’ll see more of this, which would lead to the demise of our nation as we know it.”

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Graham then referenced Portland, Ore., which has seen nightly violent protests that police labeled riots.

“Socialism is dangerous, and we have a party and many politicians who are flirting with all-out socialism. Portland is an example of what will take place in other cities if Americans do not take a stand in defense of the nation –…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Richard Ross Compares 2020 to 1968, Questions If a Spiritual Revival Is Imminent

Richard Ross Compares 2020 to 1968, Questions If a Spiritual Revival Is Imminent


A recent Associated Press poll found that a majority of Americans, 8 out of 10, think the country is going in the wrong direction. There is little to no doubt that the United States has been through a difficult season between political turmoil, a pandemic, racial unrest and financial hardship. You may be like me in wondering has our country been through anything like this before. The book of Ecclesiastes is clear that there is nothing new under the sun, so the short answer to the question is yes, we have been here before, although the circumstances were different. Many Historians and Sociologists believe that what we’re going through currently resembles the year 1968. Our country was dealing with a long war and the assassination of two leaders along with a President who decided not to run again. However, it’s what happened after 1968 that little is talked about, which is our country experienced a revival, unlike anything we had seen before in modern history. Recently Richard Ross, Founder of True Love waits and Youth ministry expert for the last 51 years, sat down for an interview to discuss why what we are experiencing could be the beginning of a spiritual awakening.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

CH: How long have you been in student ministry?

I have just completed 51 years of ministry entirely focused on Jesus, teenagers and the adults who…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Caucus Uniting Pro-Israel Christian Leaders with Israel’s Parliament to Relaunch This Week

Caucus Uniting Pro-Israel Christian Leaders with Israel’s Parliament to Relaunch This Week


The Knesset Christian Allies Caucus is set to relaunch this week at the 23rd Knesset at the Friends of Zion Ambassador Institute in Jerusalem.

According to CBN News, the KCAC works as a link between pro-Israel Christian leaders and Israel’s Knesset, or parliament.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Friends of Zion International Chairman Dr. Mike Evans, Speaker of the Knesset Yariv Levin, US Ambassador David Friedman, and KCAC Director Josh Reinstein are expected to speak at the launch event.

“Our launch events are typically held in the Knesset with local Christian leaders in attendance. The coronavirus restrictions have actually given us a new opportunity to restructure this program and allow for a wider audience, spanning 42 countries and participation from world leaders and our international Israel Allies Caucus Chairman.

“This will bring home the message that faith-based diplomacy is the strongest weapon we have in the arsenal of international Israel advocacy” Reinstein said.

Israeli parliament member Sharren Haskel will deliver the keynote address. Haskel is serving as the Chairperson of the KCAC.

“This virtual event is a perfect example of efforts that can be extended even during these times of closed borders in order to reach out to our international base of supporters and encourage them to keep up their efforts in support for Israel,” Haskel…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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U.K. Christian Ministry Loses Bank Accounts after Campaign by LGBT Critics

U.K. Christian Ministry Loses Bank Accounts after Campaign by LGBT Critics


A Christian ministry in the United Kingdom recently received death threats, had its bank accounts closed, and saw Instagram and Facebook removed content from their pages. In addition, Core Issues Trust, which is committed to supporting men and women who voluntarily want to try therapy and counselling for unwanted same-sex attractions, also had their accounts suspended with Mailchimp and PayPal, Fox News reports.

The trouble for CIT started on July 3rd, when users on Twitter started putting pressure on Barclays to close the ministry’s accounts, saying that CIT supported harmful “conversion therapy” methods. Two weeks later, CIT received a notification from Barclays notifying them that their accounts would be closed.

According to Forbes, activists appealed to Barclays because the bank is the lead sponsor of “Pride” in London and Twitter users argued it was hypocritical of them to claim to support the LGBTQ community while offering services to CIT.

In a recent statement, Mike Davidson, the CEO of Core Issues Trust addressed the harassment his ministry has faced and answered the charges that they engage in conversion therapy. Regarding the closing of their accounts, he said, “A coordinated campaign has resulted in our ministry coming under immense pressure and key service providers canceling their services, action which we consider discriminatory.”

Then, Davidson addressed…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Biden Seeks to Win Senior Vote in New Ad Criticizing Trump’s Handling of COVID-19

Biden Seeks to Win Senior Vote in New Ad Criticizing Trump’s Handling of COVID-19


A new ad blitz will be published by presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s campaign this week, aiming to win over the senior demographic by criticizing President Trump’s treatment of the coronavirus pandemic.

Fox News reports that former Vice President Al Gore had won the senior vote in the year 2000, making him the last Democratic Presidential Nominee to do so.

The first ad entitled “Didn’t Matter” was released by Biden’s campaign featuring a woman named Jessica who lost her grandmother, Susana Martinez in April from COVID-19.

“Last time I saw my grandmother, we weren’t going to be allowed in the hospital. We asked if we could video chat her and everyone could say a little something. We gathered as a family and prayed. But the fact that she was alone, it just breaks my heart,” Jessica said tearfully.

She asserted that Trump “made a huge mistake in downplaying this virus. There was a lack of leadership, a lack of responsibility, and a lack of resources. I felt like our elderly have not been a priority for this administration, that they don’t matter. And I feel like my grandmother didn’t matter.”

In an accompanying video entitled “Dignity:15,” Biden argued that seniors “are being hit the hardest” and asserted that in fighting the coronavirus we should “start by caring for aging parents and loved ones, making their homes…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Pastor, 5-Year-Old Boy among 10 Christians Killed in Herdsmen Attacks in Nigeria

Pastor, 5-Year-Old Boy among 10 Christians Killed in Herdsmen Attacks in Nigeria


JOS, Nigeria, July 28, 2020 (Morning Star News) – Muslim Fulani herdsmen on Friday (July 24) killed a church pastor, a 5-year-old boy and eight other Christians in attacks in north-central Nigeria, sources said.

The boy, Joel Cephas, and the Rev. Shamah Kuyet Ishaya of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) in Zikpak were killed in attacks on predominantly Christian areas in and around Kafanchan, Jema’a County, in southern Kaduna state, between 8 p.m. and midnight, sources said.

The assailants wounded 11 other Christians and burned at least three homes.

Area residents Gideon Agwom, Rachael Nuhu and Essau George, among others, informed Morning Star News by text message of the deaths and the wounded, saying the victims belonged to ECWA, Baptist, Anglican and Roman Catholic churches.

The attacks, which took place during a 24-hour curfew due to the break-down in security in the area, were the latest in a wave of unchecked assaults on Christian communities in Kaduna state this year. The herdsmen attacked the Kafanchan satellite areas of Zikpak, Maigizoh, Ungwan Masara and the College of Education area in Kafanchan.

Pastor Ishaya was a graduate of the ECWA Theological Seminary in Igbaja, Kwara state, and seminary Provost John Olu Adetoyese confirmed his death in a press statement.

“Pastor Shamah, among many others, was gruesomely murdered by Fulani herdsmen in an overnight…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Ministry leader questions John MacArthur’s resistance to Calif. COVID-19 shutdown order

Pastor John MacArthur speaks at the Shepherds’ Conference in California, March 6, 2020. | Screenshot: Facebook/Shepherds’ Conference

A prominent ministry leader has expressed concern over megachurch pastor and author John MacArthur’s decision to keep Grace Community Church open despite a state order.

Earlier this month, California announced that churches and other in-person public gatherings in 30 of its counties would be closed to help curb an uptick in COVID-19 cases.

MacArthur said that Grace Community would remain open despite the order, arguing that the state government had “no right to interfere in ecclesiastical matters in a way that undermines or disregards the God-given authority of pastors and elders.”

“… we cannot and will not acquiesce to a government-imposed moratorium on our weekly congregational worship or other regular corporate gatherings. Compliance would be disobedience to our Lord’s clear commands,” MacArthur stated.

“… when any government official issues orders regulating worship (such as bans on singing, caps on attendance, or…

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Click Read More to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – The Christian Post.

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