In this second blog reflecting on the recent Cooperative
Baptist Fellowship General Assembly in Greensboro, NC, I want to share some
personal impressions related to trends that seem to be emerging in the
movement. This is not meant to be
definitive or even objective, but just some things that seem to be bubbling to
the surface.
First, leaders of CBF are being good stewards of the
resources placed in their hands. The national
organization is now leaner and more focused.
This comes not only from necessity but from good management
principles. One example is the three
emphases of the 25th Anniversary Endowment Campaign—sustaining global
missions, forming healthy churches, and nurturing young Baptists. These are key aspects of the future of the
movement.
The sustainability of a global mission strategy empowered by
long-term mission personnel was presented repeatedly at the meeting. Missions is what got many people into the
Fellowship and it must remain a pillar of its work. CBF field personnel have learned how to
partner with churches, other missionary sending groups, and indigenous
personnel for effective ministry. This
must continue.
Nurturing young Baptists assures the future of the
Fellowship. In my humble opinion, CBF
has given lip service to this emphasis without allocating adequate resources
during the last two and half decades.
Yes, there have been projects and efforts to engage young adults and
youth but not enough. What has been provided has produced positive
results. For example, the significant attendance
of young adults at the Assembly, but the seminaries must get some credit for
this as well. More resources need to be
focused on theological education, church internships, and scholarships.
Forming healthy churches includes a church starting
initiative, an intentional congregational renewal process, advocacy work that helps
others find their voice, and financial literacy programs. All of these are worthy goals, but finding
ways to work with churches without recreating the old denominational dependency
model is tricky.
As mentioned in the previous paragraph, there is a clear
effort on the part of CBF to deal with economic issues. Whether it is helping ministers to deal with financial
indebtedness or ending abusive pay day lending operations, economic advocacy is
a core concern in our culture and I applaud CBF for addressing it.
Another trend that I find encouraging is the development of
an environment of empowerment based on coaching. CBF entities have employed coaching in a
number of ways—CBF fellows, church starting, etc.—and this trend is
growing. This harnesses the gifts of
those involved in the coaching process to find their own answers and pursue
them with accountability and purpose.
Overall, CBF continues to make strides in creating a “denomi-network”
that is nimble and proactive. This was
clear in the General Assembly’s program and emphases.
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