Baptists in the Bahamas

Last week, I was teaching at New Hope Baptist Church in the village of Mt. Hope on the island of Abaco. The island is beautiful. The weather is hot. Electricity is not as plentiful as in the U.S. Electric power was off 4 to 6 hours on three of the five days I was there.

There were only two pastors in the group of 9 people who attended the sessions Monday through Friday nights. The others in the group were leading churchwomen. I taught some pastoral care principles, using some material that I have used here in our church: The Real Love Bible Workbook, Understanding Your Grief, and handouts on listening that I have shared with our deacons. I gave everybody in the group copies of Understanding Your Grief by Alan Wolfelt and of Being a Good and Faithful Servant by Cecil Sherman.

The group was very receptive to what I taught, especially Pastor Elon McIntosh of St. Thomas Baptist Church in the village of Wood Cay. He is typical of most Baptist Pastors in that area, which is called Little Abaco, in that his congregation is small and his major source of income is lobstering. Elon told me that last season did not bring him much profit, because the price of lobsters was low due to the bad economy.

I was on the lookout for the possibility of taking a group of members of our church to Abaco to help one or more of the churches. I think that a group of 5 or 6 of us could help with Vacation Bible School next summer. I learned of an 80 year-old woman who was trying to move from one house to another. She definitely needs some help.

On Wednesday evening, August 4, I will tell you more about my trip and my experiences with the people of Little Abaco.

The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Florida is building relationships with Baptist Churches in the Bahamas. I am grateful to be a part of this effort. Here is the link to the CBF of Florida web page. http://www.floridacbf.org/missions/caribbean/bahamas

Being a Comforting Church, Not a Comfortable Church

We have a Long Range Planning Committee at work on behalf of our church. This committee is thinking and praying about the kind of church God wants us to be as we make plans for the next 10 years. John Pierce, the editor of Baptists Today, recently wrote an editorial that can help us to think about what God wants New Hope Baptist Church to be.

He wrote, “Perhaps we are putting so much energy into trying to create ‘comfortable’ churches that we have failed to recognize the importance of being ‘comforting’? One does not need to go to church on Sunday morning to be comfortable. A blanket at the lake, the soft music at the coffee shop and the cozy sofa at home can provide that pleasure. Finding comfort from the storms of life, however, is a more difficult pursuit.”

Then John gives three basic ideas that can help a church be more comforting than comfortable.

“One, a person who is hurting must feel that the church really cares. Compassion and sensitivity are not programmed – they are formed though spiritual discipline.

“Two, fear of condemnation is a roadblock to community. One will only risk his or her pain, struggles and other evidence of human frailty in an environment of understanding, acceptance and grace.

“Three, the church must be a place where the transcendent presence of God can be experienced more so than anywhere else. Worship – regardless of style – must allow for those who bring burdens, fears, hopes, uncertainty, joy and confusion into the full presence of the Divine.”

God wants New Hope to be a comforting church. How would you say we are doing at showing people that we care, at providing an atmosphere of acceptance, and at bringing people into the presence of God in our worship services? What do you think we need to do to get better at being a comforting church?