In this special series of the CBF Stories Podcast, you’ll hear from some of the 25 Leaders to Know for 2020. Each year the CBF Ministries Council recognizes 25 Young Leaders to know as part of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s ongoing investment in young Baptists. This year features graduate students and seminarians, continuing their education … Continue reading
By Layne Smith A friend of forty years and I are taking a stab at gardening this year. We reserved a 10×10 foot plot in our community garden. We discussed long and hard about what to plant. Okra was always at the top of the list. Recently, I’ve begun listening to the Bitter Southerner Podcast. … Continue reading
By Andy Hale We have passed the two-month mark in the Coronavirus pandemic in America. In the United States alone, over 1.5 million have been infected with the virus, over 26 million people have lost their jobs, and nearly ninety-thousand people have died. Sickness, job loss, death, depression, a crisis of identity, and despair—the coming … Continue reading
By Elket Rodríguez COVID-19 has transformed Fellowship Southwest’s immigrant relief ministries all along the U.S.-Mexico border. Among the pastors who guide the effort, some are reinventing their ministries, others have identified new service opportunities, and still others have suffered losses and obstacles that put their work at risk. Yet they demonstrate resiliency only achieved through … Continue reading
By Laura Stephens-Reed Two-plus months into doing all the things at home—working, parenting, recreating—every part of me is weary. As an introvert, I need regular time inside a bubble that popped long ago. I know that extroverts are struggling in different ways, unable to be in places and around people that give them energy. If … Continue reading
Note from Rick Burnette, CBF Domestic Disaster Response Manager — For CBF Domestic Disaster Response to engage disaster recovery sites, three criteria must be met: There must be the presence of local CBF congregations, ministry partners and/or CBF Global Missions field personnel who are willing and able to engage in needed response The disaster-affected CBF … Continue reading
By Ashleigh Bugg The COVID-19 crisis has affected Cooperative Baptist Fellowship field personnel around the world. Greg and Sue Smith, who run LUCHA Ministries, Inc., in Fredericksburg, Virginia, say the crisis has caused them to reestablish their original goals. “This has brought us back to the grassroots needs of people,” Sue said. “In more recent … Continue reading
By Andy Hale Will American self-centric ideology only allow us to submit to a stay-at-home order for so long? NPR dropped a report that cell phone data usage shows that fewer people are following the social distancing guidelines. Of course, some states, like Georgia, have reopened in their personally designed phases. While some have lauded this … Continue reading
By Andy Jung There’s no mistaking that the COVID-19 pandemic has made us ever-more reliant on technology. Many of us have come to depend on it for work, for connection and for entertainment. We spend countless hours on Zoom or other meeting platforms to continue our work in a variety of fields. We use the … Continue reading
By Jason Coker The word “pandemic” comes from the Greek “pan” meaning all and “demos” meaning people. It literally means “all people.” The term has been used specifically to describe a disease—a disease that affects all people. Today we are in a pandemic. Some say that we have been in a pandemic for over two … Continue reading
