The Gathering CBFNC Newsletter - July–August 2018

gathering the

of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina

July/August 2018

Vol. 23 Issue 4

do justice

the heartbeat of God

by Larry Hovis, CBFNC Executive Coordinator

Due to the timing of the Annual Gathering, CBFNC’s fiscal and organizational year runs April 1 - March 31. The first major event of the year is our annual All Councils Retreat, an overnight experience in late April or early May for the Coordinating Council, Ministry Councils, staff, and sometimes other invited CBFNC leadership groups. It’s a time for team building, organizing for the new year, developing a shared focus, and spiritual formation.

We met this year on May 3-4 at Caraway Conference Center.

The first day featured presentations by two guest leaders. Dave Odom, of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity, spoke on the topic, The Pivot: Necessary for Today’s Leadership. Utilizing the basketball image of the pivot, in this age of challenge and fast-paced change, he encouraged us to keep one foot planted in tradition while we experiment with new approaches.

The second presentation, Mercy and Justice: The Heartbeat of God, featured Barry Jones, professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Campbell University Divinity School. He reminded us that a normal heartbeat has two phases, systole and diastole. During the first phase, diastole, blood from the atria (upper chambers) fill the ventricles (lower chambers). During the second phase, systole, blood from the ventricles is pumped to the body or lungs.

In a similar way, Barry noted, mercy and justice are two phases of God’s “heartbeat.” Beginning with Exodus and working his way through other biblical texts, he showed how mercy and justice aren’t extras or add-ons to biblical faith, but sit at the core of God’s character, and should be central for God’s people.

The overarching direction of biblical faith, beginning with Israel and moving to the Church, reveals a God who is greatly concerned with extending mercy and justice, and forming a people who maintain that focus as well.

A healthy faith will show mercy and seek justice. One without the other is a like a heart out of rhythm. Justice without mercy produces self-righteousness, Barry noted. Mercy without justice is arbitrary and short-sighted.

I struggle more with justice than with mercy and I think that’s true of most folks in our Fellowship. We tend to lean more to the mercy side of the equation than to justice. Perhaps that’s because we think of justice primarily as punishment for wrongdoing. We hear about injustice in the criminal justice system. We have an image of God that is focused primarily

on love, grace, and forgiveness and we gravitate toward biblical texts that support that inclination.

We have a too small and distorted view of justice. Too often, we only think of justice in terms of a corrupt system that unfairly punishes those who have the least access to power. True justice is about making things right. It’s about restoring order to chaos. It’s about treating everyone with dignity and fairness, regardless of external differences. The scales of true justice are blind.

Justice involves police, courts of law, and prisons, to be sure.

They serve an essential function in society. Biblical justice is about restoring a fallen creation to its proper state. It’s about reconciliation. It’s about loving God and neighbor as ourselves ... that is, not only having nice feelings for our neighbor but actually desiring and working for the same good for our neighbor that we desire and work for ourselves. It’s about “making all things new” (Revelation 21:5).

In some ways, mercy is individual and justice is structural. That is, we extend mercy by forgiving our neighbor who has wronged us and addressing the immediate concerns of our neighbor in need. We do justice by addressing the systems that keep our neighbor in need or encourage our neighbor to behave destructively.

The struggle to understand mercy and justice reminds me of a story I heard about a group of friends who were having a picnic, lounging at a bend in a river near rapids. Someone noticed a swimmer in the water flailing his arms and shouting, “Help! Help!” The friends mobilized and managed to save the drowning person. Afterward, as they rested, they noticed someone else struggling against the current. They saved that one, too.

Then more people appeared in the rough water and they mobilized a rescue effort, eventually saving dozens of people from drowning.

Finally, one of the picnickers left the rescue operation and started walking upstream. A companion shouted out, “Why are you leaving us? There are so many more to save. We need you!”

She replied, “I’m going upstream to figure out why all these people keep falling in the river. Someone needs to address the source of this problem.”

Mercy and justice are complex concepts, but they are central to God’s character and to the work of God’s people. Either without the other is incomplete. Christians and churches who strive to be heart-healthy will focus on both.

True justice is about making things right.

It’s about restoring order to chaos.

It’s about treating everyone with dignity and fairness, regardless of external differences.

2 • The Gathering – July/August 2018

that church

by Marc Wyatt, CBF Advocate for Internationals

You may recall that our friend, Jay (featured in CBF Global’s Offering for Global Missions video, www.vimeo. com/222863247), is a Special Immigrant Visa arrival in North Carolina. For their service to the U.S. government in Iraq and Afghanistan, certain Iraqis and Afghans are granted Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) status overseas by the U.S. Department of State and are admitted to the U.S. by the Department of Homeland Security. The Department of State, in conjunction with the Voluntary agencies and Office for Refugee Resettlement (ORR), assist with the resettlement and integration of SIVs into the U.S. An SIV is eligible for the same ORR benefits and services for the same time period as a refugee, from the first day the SIV arrives in the U.S. While storm clouds swirled outside, 19 friends assembled from Snyder Memorial, Fayetteville; First, Fayetteville; Mount Pisgah, Fayetteville; First, Red Springs; and Godwin Heights, Lumberton.

We met around the table to talk about folks like Jay who were now our neighbors. We hoped to encourage each other in our ministries of welcome and hospitality, learn from one another, and seek ways to collaborate when and where it was possible.

Our conversation started with an excerpt from Embracing Our Neighbor, a 30-day prayer guide produced by my colleagues on the Internationals North America Team. Dr. Greg Smith states, As CBF Global Missions field personnel serving in cities and towns across our great country, we have heard and responded to the call to welcome with open arms the immigrants, refugees, international students and others whom God brings to our shores. Ours is not the job of timidly peeking through the blinds at new faces moving into our neighborhoods, but of joyously flinging open the front door and shouting “Welcome, friend, we’re glad you’re here!”

Yet Christ’s call to “welcome the stranger” (Matthew 25:35) leads us as his followers to embrace and receive the stranger as a true neighbor, even as a fellow traveler (Luke 10:25-37) who, like we ourselves, is in need of acceptance, friendship, healing, and opportunity.

Embracing our neighbors takes on different forms and meanings. It means taking the initiative to reach out to our immigrant friends, even when we face rejection or misunderstanding. It means loving our new friends enough to share our lives with them and receive their lives in return. It means listening to their stories, without prejudice and without judgment, walking alongside them when the road is smooth, and, especially, when it is rough and the destination is unsure.

Ultimately, though, embracing our immigrant neighbors and friends means receiving and caring for each of them as God in Christ receives and cares for us (John 13:34-35).

CBF’s Global Missions Distinctives provide guidance as we model what it means to embrace our neighbors in Jesus’ name. Empowered by the Holy Spirit and through ministries of incarnational presence, we gladly embrace our international neighbors:

By bearing witness to Jesus Christ as we invite these friends to trust their lives to him. The greatest gift we share with refugees, immigrants, international students, and others is our faith in Jesus to recreate, renew, and transform all of life. Our witness through the actions we embody as well as the words we speak gives validity to the ministry we share with our international neighbors. n

By cultivating beloved community in a way that seeks genuine relationships with all internationals with whom we come into contact.

We cherish the bonds of love and trust forged between our international friends and ourselves. We believe each person, no matter who they are or how they arrived in our communities, is made in God’s image, full of worth and demanding our respect. n

By seeking transformational development in all aspects of life. Daily God is working to renew not only personal and community life but also the social and cultural structures which govern and control life. Our calling is to “co-labor” or collaborate with God (1 Corinthians 3:9) to transform the many systems that impact the lives of our neighbors, in full anticipation of God’s kingdom coming “on earth as it is in heaven.” n

We led the group in a brainstorming session and read Leviticus 19:33-34 and Deuteronomy 10:18-19. We stated, “Let’s imagine a church that hears God’s words and says, ‘We want to be that church!’ When that church embraces its international neighbors, what does it look like?” Our friends responded with these words: No Fear. Open. Hospitality. Diversity. Empathy.

God not Government. Giving. Warm. Friendly. Incarnation.

Investing in cultures. Community. Listens. Out in the community. The community is in the church. Learns. Partners with others. Outward-focused. Relational. Fun. Good food.

Shared ministry (all kinds). Diversity in worship. Availability.

Trusts. Willing to change. Willing to down-size. Willing to share with others. Intentional. Cares about others more than selves.

Art reflects people in church. Multilingual. Multicultural. Flags of countries. Interpreters. All have access to resources. Staff reflects diversity in congregation. Allows children to be around foreigners. Hospitable toward other faiths.

Then we asked, “What does that church have to do differently to become a church that embraces its international neighbors?” They responded: Something must die. Willing to be rejected by others. Change long-range plan. Education. Discover Biblical hospitality. Embrace differences.

Friends, let’s be that church that believes what the Bible says, asks good hard questions of itself, makes changes, and embraces with open arms their international neighbors. That church is doing just that over in Cumberland and Robeson Counties. What about in your neck of the woods? Want to be that church too?

The Gathering – July/August 2018 • 3

Christian Women’s Job Corps (CWJC), a ministry of WMU, Chowan University. When she saw the campus and met staff and is a strengths-based ministry that provides job skills and life students, Akevia told her mentor that she couldn’t even hope skills to men and women living in poverty. Each participant has to attend Chowan. Her mentor reminded her that CWJC was in a Christian mentor to journey with him or her as they transition the “hope business” and pledged to walk through the process to self-sufficiency in Christ. There are currently 14 sites in NC, if Akevia wanted to go to Chowan. With financial assistance others in southern Africa, and more in development stages. (both need and academic) and Akevia’s dedication to work Doing Justice is during semesters in the DNA of and over breaks, CWJC. At its very Akevia graduated core is a Biblical from Chowan understanding University in May

by Cara Lynn Vogel, Coordinator, Women’s/Men’s Job Corps of NC of poverty as the with a manageable result of broken amount of debt. relationships— Akevia said, relationships “I am now eight with self, others, days away from resources, and reaching my goal God. We are and becoming who able to approach and what I was others with a destined to be—a desire to see teacher. God has God’s handiwork used my journey in them. Our to strengthen my participants faith. Because of marvel that this organization instead of and the Christian questions about people who 2018 National Certification Training what they cannot have loved and do or don’t have, encouraged me, my we ask about their son and I will have strengths and how they’d like to change their life. a better life. He will not have to worry about where his next meal There are countless stories to tell you about our participants. will come from or if the light bill was paid on time. Generational Here are a few I’d like to share with you: poverty ends with me, because of you!”

in the hope business

Goals within reach: In May, Akevia Wilson, a participant at the Roanoke-Chowan CWJC in Ahoskie, was recognized by National CWJC with the Sybil Bentley Dove Award. This grant is given to one participant/recent graduate who best exemplifies the purpose and transformation of CWJC. Akevia shared in her testimony that she knew that she was supposed to be a teacher from a very young age.

After graduating from high school, she entered college and worked two jobs, but by 19 she was a college dropout. She worked in multiple dead-end jobs for the next few years until she experienced a traumatic death in her life. She was homeless, Akevia Wilson pregnant, and hopeless when she came across Britton Ministries, a Family Care Unit of NC Baptist Children’s Homes.

Akevia then discovered Roanoke-Chowan CWJC and realized that her goal of teaching was not impossible. Her son was born and she returned to community college. She began to search for a college or university to complete her Bachelor’s degree. After visiting a couple of state universities in the area, she visited 4 • The Gathering – July/August 2018

Pass it on: The original graduating class of LifeWorks with CWJC in Waynesville included four women. Each of those women has completed the training to become a site coordinator.

The three who still live in the Waynesville area are working at the site to provide opportunities for other women to discover their potential. The fourth graduate currently lives in South Carolina and is working to begin a site in her new community.

A lighter load: Pivot CWJC in Forsyth County began classes in February. On the first day, Site Coordinator Carol Polk asked the women to close their eyes and see the burdens that they were carrying as a backpack. She asked the students to walk outside the door and put their virtual backpacks down so that they could concentrate on what God had for them. In a class in April, one participant said, “You remember that backpack you told us about on the first day? Mine’s not as heavy because I have all of you. God didn’t want me carrying all that stuff.”

As State Coordinator for CWJC of NC, I am privileged to hear these stories of God’s work. I strive to provide resources to enable communities to transform from a hand-out to a hand-up ministry to reach those in poverty. For more information, visit www.cwjcnc.org or e-mail me at cwjcnc@gmail.com.

In Waking Up White: and Finding Myself in the Story of Race, Debby Irving shares a personal journey uncovering distorted ideas of race and racism against the backdrop of her own identity as a white woman raised in Winchester, Massachusetts.

Attending a college course on Racial and Cultural Identity, Irving awakens to the realization that her identity interferes with her attempts to understand racism. As a result, she shifts her focus to learn about her own socializations of growing up white in America. The author discusses how, when, and why cultural experiences are unique, nurtured, and embedded in each of us.

At the end of each chapter, Irving provides questions and additional insight to introduce the reader to their own stories of race and racism. The author is transparent and clear, helping the reader understand personal cultural socializations and honestly face the reality of racism and race as a social construct.

This book is highly recommended for leaders, laity, and groups intentionally seeking to cross cultural boundaries and willing to learn and engage with the prompts and exercises in the book.

Rev. Daynette Snead is President of DIASPRA, Associate Pastor of First Chin, New Bern, Chairs the Racial Justice Ministry Team of CBFNC, and a Doctor of Ministry Cohort at Gardner-Webb University.

Do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly; this is what the Lord requires of each of us as Micah 6:8 so eloquently instructs. We are challenged and encouraged through CBFNC’s year of Mercy and Justice to strive to live in ways that reflect the love of God and the ways of Jesus Christ. We don’t have to look far past the front page of the newspaper to see the systemic and long-term effects of racism and poverty in our own backyard.

Bryan Stevenson, a lawyer whose work focuses on Death Row inmates, shares some of his experiences in his memoir, Just Mercy. This book forces readers to become acquainted with the United States Justice System through Stevenson’s narrative which describes serving alongside marginalized clients in the throes of the cycle of poverty.

Just Mercy introduces readers to the relationship between poverty, race, and the justice system through the story of the legal case of Walter McMillian, a black man sentenced to Death Row in the 1980s. Through

Stevenson’s advocacy and persistence, he was proven innocent and won his release.

As we continue to live life through the lens of Justice and Mercy, we must carefully remove the scales from our eyes that keep us from seeing every person as a beloved child of God. The shackles of racism, hatred, and discrimination can only be released through the redeeming and reconciling power of inclusion, love, and advocacy.

Jaime Fitzgerald is a recent Gardner-Webb University MDiv. grad, Youth Minister at First, Tryon, and CBSF intern in western North Carolina.

Written by Psychologist Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? invites the reader to engage in conversations about race. She writes, “Talking about racism is an essential part of facing racism and changing it.

But it is not the only part.”

In her introduction, Dr. Tatum communicates her intent to write a non-academic book that provides a definition of terms, acknowledges the complexity of identity, offers an understanding of the Black/White context, and challenges the reader to work toward breaking the cycle of racism. Breaking the cycle also includes moving beyond Black/White issues to invite conversations with people who are Latino, AmericanIndian (or Native-American), and Asian-Pacific.

While acknowledging that racism is not a thing of the past, Dr. Tatum devotes a chapter to defining terms like prejudice, White privilege, and racial identity. Specific examples illustrate that information which is assumed, omitted, or distorted contributes to misinformation that feeds racism. Dr. Tatum challenges people of all color to move from active or passive racism to active anti-racism.

Of course, special attention is given to the illustration that is the title of the book. Specifically, Dr. Tatum describes entering a middle-school or high-school cafeterias and noting the segregation of races at the tables in the room. Additional facts provide an understanding of when “segregation in the cafeteria” occurs (as young people enter puberty and during struggles with personal identity). It is also important to note that “segregation in the cafeteria” is not only a symptom of young people and in schools. This type of racism occurs in the teacher’s lounge, at church, in civic clubs, and in corporate dining rooms. While published in 1997, the book is relevant today and definitely challenging for twenty-first-century living.

mercy & justice

bookshelf

Ka’thy Gore Chappell, former CBFNC Leadership Development Coordinator, is Executive Director of BWIM NC.

The Gathering – July/August 2018 • 5

partner churches Churches making contributions October 2016 - March 2018

Giving Trends:

2014 through 2018

Designated Undesignated

In the 2017-2018 budget year, undesignated gifts totaled $1.26 million, breakeven with the previous year. Designated gifts exceeded $2.3 million, resulting in total gifts of $3.59 million.

CBFNC is grateful for the trust congregations and individuals place in us. As you form your church budget for next year, we prayerfully and humbly ask that you consider increasing your gifts to CBFNC. We are taking great care to be good stewards of these resources through the ministries we coordinate and the cultivation of positive relationships with our cherished ministry partners.

To view CBFNC’s 2018-2019 budget, visit www.cbfnc.org/budget.

Churches contributing to CBFNC are listed in bold type. Churches that contribute to CBF Global only are listed in regular type.

Designated in blue are churches that participate in the CBFNC Mission Resource Plan, providing financial support for other Baptist ministries through CBFNC. For additional information about the Mission Resource Plan or for more information on partnering with CBFNC, visit www.cbfnc.org. This list does not include churches who partner with CBFNC or CBF Global in other, non-financial ways.

Earlys............................................. Ahoskie

First................................................... Biscoe

First................................... Carolina Beach

First................................................ Ahoskie

First.................................. Black Mountain

Westwood............................................ Cary

First............................................Albemarle

First..........................................Bladenboro

Chadbourn............................... Chadbourn

Mount Zion....................................... Alexis

Lennons Cross Roads.............Bladenboro

Piney Forest............................. Chadbourn

Angier............................................... Angier

First...................................... Blowing Rock

Ephesus................................... Chapel Hill

Baptist Fellowship........................... Angier

Boiling Springs................ Boiling Springs

HillSong.................................... Chapel Hill

Neill’s Creek.................................... Angier

Little Rock...................................... Boomer

Iglesia Bautista Amor de Dias

Iglesia Bautista Torre Fuerte.......... Apex

First................................................... Boone

.................................................. Chapel Hill

Olive Chapel .................................... Apex

Boonville......................................Boonville

Lystra....................................... Chapel Hill

Woodhaven......................................... Apex

First......................................... Bryson City

Mount Carmel......................... Chapel Hill

Oakwood Park............................ Asheboro

First......................................... Buies Creek

University...............................Chapel Hill

West Asheboro.............................. Asheboro

Memorial................................. Buies Creek

Grace Crossing........................... Charlotte

Calvary......................................... Asheville

Bullock............................................Bullock

Iglesia Bautista Hispana ................ Charlotte

First.............................................. Asheville

First..............................................Burlington

Iglesia Communidad Evangelica

Morningside................................. Asheville

First.......................................... Burnsville

Internacional La Red ................ Charlotte

Mount Carmel............................... Asheville

First............................................... Butner

Park Road....................................... Charlotte

Connaritsa...................................Aulander

Calypso........................................... Calypso

Pritchard Memorial................... Charlotte

First............................................Belhaven

Hominy...........................................Candler

Providence.................................. Charlotte

Benson........................................... Benson

First................................................. Canton

St. John’s..................................... Charlotte

6 • The Gathering – July/August 2018

partner churches

Churches making contributions October 2016 - March 2018

Sardis........................................... Charlotte

Unity Christian Church International

Union Cross............................Kernersville

Together in Christ Intl. Ministries

.................................................. Fayetteville

Spilman Memorial........................ Kinston

................................................... Charlotte

First...........................................Forest City

Oak Ridge....................................... Kittrell

First............................................ Clarkton

Florence.................................. Forest City

Knightdale.............................. Knightdale

First.............................................. Clayton

Mount Vernon..........................Forest City

First....................................... Laurinburg

White Oak...................................... Clayton

First............................................Four Oaks

Goshen..............................................Leland

Mosaic............................................ Clayton

Pauline..................................... Four Oaks

North Brunswick Fellowship.............Leland

Clemmons First............................Clemmons

Burningtown.................................Franklin

College Avenue.................................. Lenoir

First...............................................Clinton

Franklinton............................. Franklinton

First.................................................. Lenoir

Grove Park..................................... Clinton

Fremont Missionary ..................Fremont

Churchland.................................Lexington

McGill............................................ Concord

Covenant.......................................Gastonia

First.............................................Lexington

First...........................................Cramerton

First...............................................Gastonia

Jersey...........................................Lexington

Open Arms............................... Creedmoor

Loray.............................................Gastonia

First ..............................................Liberty

Cullowhee..................................Cullowhee

New Hope......................................Gastonia

First ........................................Lincolnton

The Summit...............................Cullowhee

Reynoldson........................................ Gates

Bear Swamp................................. Littleton

First................................................. Dobson

First............................................Goldsboro

Littleton......................................... Littleton

First...................................................Drexel

Rosewood First..........................Goldsboro

Hickory Rock...........................Louisburg

First.................................................... Dunn

First .............................................. Graham

Louisburg................................... Louisburg

Westfield............................................. Dunn

College Park............................Greensboro

First.......................................... Lumberton

Calvary.......................................... Durham

First..........................................Greensboro

First............................................... Madison

Durham Memorial....................... Durham

Lindley Park............................... Greensboro

Antioch...........................................Mamers

Iglesia Bautista Valle De Esperanza

Southeast..................................Greensboro

First................................................. Marion

....................................................... Durham

Immanuel.................................Greenville

Calvary........................................ Mars Hill

Hope Valley................................... Durham

The Memorial............................ Greenville

Mars Hill..................................... Mars Hill

Lowes Grove................................. Durham

Oakmont.................................... Greenville

First........................................... Marshville

Mount Hermon............................. Durham

Pleasant Hill.......................................Grover

First .............................................Mayodan

Temple........................................... Durham

Hallsboro..................................... Hallsboro

New Bessemer....................... McLeansville

Watts Street.................................. Durham

Flat Rock...............................Hamptonville

First................................................ Mebane

Yates.............................................. Durham

First........................................... Henderson

Mount Adar................................... Mebane

First.................................................. Eden

Providence......................... Hendersonville

Eatons........................................ Mocksville

Edenton......................................... Edenton

First................................................Hickory

First........................................... Mocksville

Blackwell Memorial........... Elizabeth City

Mountain Grove ...........................Hickory

First................................................ Monroe

First..................................... Elizabeth City

Hiddenite..................................... Hiddenite

First............................................Mooresville

First.....................................................Elkin

Emerywood............................... High Point

First..................................Morehead City

First......................................................Elon

First........................................... High Point

First...........................................Morganton

Emerald Isle........................... Emerald Isle

Iglesia Bautista Esperanza Viva

Calvary.....................................Mount Airy

Enfield..............................................Enfield

................................................... High Point

First..........................................Mount Airy

Fair Bluff.....................................Fair Bluff

Parkwood.................................. High Point

Piney Grove.............................Mount Airy

First..............................................Fairmont

First....................................... Hillsborough

First...................................... Mount Gilead

First............................................. Farmville

First.........................................Huntersville

First......................................Mount Holly

Cedar Falls................................. Fayetteville

First.......................................... Jamestown

First...................................... Mount Olive

First.......................................... Fayetteville

First............................................. Jonesville

Murfreesboro....................... Murfreesboro

Lafayette.................................. Fayetteville

First.......................................... Kannapolis

Nashville..................................... Nashville

Mount Pisgah........................... Fayetteville

New Life Chinese..................... Kannapolis

First.............................................New Bern

Snyder Memorial.................... Fayetteville

First.........................................Kernersville

Kendalls................................. New London The Gathering – July/August 2018 • 7

partner churches

Churches making contributions October 2016 - March 2018

Trinity........................................... Newton

First..............................................Roseboro

First.............................................. Wallace

First..................................... N. Wilkesboro

First...............................................Rowland

Warrenton................................. Warrenton

First..................................................Oriental

Lamberth Memorial.................... Roxboro

First......................................... Washington

Enon................................................ Oxford

Roxboro......................................... Roxboro

First....................................... Waynesville

Hester.............................................. Oxford

First.....................................Rutherfordton

First....................................... Weaverville

Oxford............................................. Oxford

First..............................................Salisbury

Crossroads Fellowship......................Weldon

Roberts Chapel...........................Pendleton

Ephesus............................................ Sanford

Baptist Tabernacle........................Wendell

Iglesia Cristiana Nuevo Amanecer

First................................................ Sanford

First.................................. West Jefferson

..................................................... Pfafftown

Flat Springs................................... Sanford

Fishing Creek............................Whitakers

Pfafftown..................................... Pfafftown

Primera Iglesia Bautista .............Sanford

First.......................................... Whiteville

Iglesia Bautista Misionera Roca Fuerte

Double Shoals.................................. Shelby

Mount Zion................................ Whiteville

...................................................... Pittsboro

Dover................................................. Shelby

First......................................... Wilmington

Mount Gilead............................... Pittsboro

Broad River Community ............... Shelby

Masonboro.............................. Wilmington

Crabtree Valley............................ Raleigh

First................................................Shelby

Temple..................................... Wilmington

First.................................................Raleigh

Poplar Springs...............................Shelby

Winter Park............................ Wilmington

Forest Hills......................................Raleigh

Ross Grove....................................... Shelby

First..................................................Wilson

Greystone........................................Raleigh

Zion.................................................. Shelby

Wingate......................................... Wingate

Hayes Barton..................................Raleigh

Rocky River.................................Siler City

Ardmore.............................Winston-Salem

Heritage ........................................... Raleigh

Nobles Chapel......................................Sims

College Park......................Winston-Salem

Iglesia Bautista La Roca................Raleigh

First.......................................... Smithfield

Fellowship..........................Winston-Salem

Longview.........................................Raleigh

Sharon........................................ Smithfield

First....................................Winston-Salem

Macedonia.......................................Raleigh

First.................................... Southern Pines

Iglesia Cristiana Sin Fronteras

Millbrook........................................Raleigh

Spencer.......................................... Spindale

............................................Winston-Salem

New Hope........................................Raleigh

First........................................ Spring Hope

Knollwood..........................Winston-Salem

North Raleigh Community........... Raleigh

Central........................................Spruce Pine

Northwest...........................Winston-Salem

Ridge Road.....................................Raleigh

First............................................ Stanfield

Peace Haven.......................Winston-Salem

Samaria ..........................................Raleigh

First.................................... Stantonsburg

United.................................Winston-Salem

Shiloh Restoration .........................Raleigh

First.............................................Statesville

West Side .........................Winston-Salem

St. John’s ........................................Raleigh

First............................................. Stoneville

Winterville.............................. Winterville

Swift Creek................................... Raleigh

Brunswick Islands...........................Supply

Wise..................................................... Wise

Tabernacle.......................................Raleigh

East Sylva.............................................Sylva

Bethlehem................................ Youngsville

Temple.............................................Raleigh

First.....................................................Sylva

Youngsville............................... Youngsville

Triangle...........................................Raleigh

Olyphic.................................... Tabor City

Zebulon..........................................Zebulon

Trinity........................................... Raleigh

First................................................Tarboro

First.........................................Red Springs

Antioch...................................Taylorsville

Calvary........................................ Reidsville

First................................................. Tryon

First...........................................Reidsville

Round Hill...............................Union Mills

Richfield........................................Richfield

Cornerstone....................................Valdese

First.............................................Richlands

First.............................................. Valdese

Rosemary.........................Roanoke Rapids

First............................................. Wadesboro

First.......................................... Rockingham

Falls...................................... Wake Forest

Dortches............................... Rocky Mount

Grace Haven ........................ Wake Forest

Lakeside............................... Rocky Mount

Heritage.................................. Wake Forest

Rolesville..................................... Rolesville

Wake Forest........................... Wake Forest

Rose Hill....................................... Rose Hill

Woodland............................... Wake Forest

8 • The Gathering – July/August 2018

Special Causes: Highland UMC, Raleigh: Wyatt Ministry Monument Heights, Richmond, VA: Wyatt Ministry

passion for collegiate engagement

by Wanda Kidd, CBFNC Collegiate Engagement Coordinator

Schools across the state and beyond are on a much-needed CBFNC, through Collegiate Engagement efforts, has given break. In no time at all, though, homework and backpacks full of young adults the freedom to ask questions that allow them to school supplies will be headed out the door and conversations face complex life issues with a faith perspective. We have done about cafeteria food and who is picking up whom after school that with a great deal of thought and investment. That is why will fill the air. For those who are sending their college-age we have made a significant commitment to ministry with this children off to campus this fall, other concerns dominate population, not just for CBFNC students, but for all students on parental thoughts. our NC campuses. These If it is their first students are the lifeblood year, the concerns look of the church that flows something like this: Will through them into today’s they make friends? Will they church and the church’s get up and go to class? Will hope for tomorrow. they miss us as much as we Collegiate engagement miss them? Oh, but I hope is different from they will not be homesick and congregational planning. miserable. Did we do enough Church ministry is slower to prepare them for this moving with time to ponder transition? I hope they will not and blend young adults do something really stupid. into the life of the church.

Student concerns during the first two Ministry on campus, however, is like How to support CBFNC years of college focus mostly around a moving sidewalk full of upheavals, Collegiate Engagement relationships, selection of majors, unbounded joy, and heartbreaking grades, and places they want to go and sadness, most of which is done Tell others about CBFNC and things they want to do, usually with separate and isolated from a students’ collegiate engagement; friends and groups other than family. family and church system. That is The last years are full of angst about where we, as CBFNC, want to be Pray for the students and the what to do next, where to go from here, present not only with our students mission of collegiate engagement; and how to pay off school debt and but with all students.

Give to support CBFNC collegiate fund graduate school.

CBFNC has seminary trained These life passages are profound campus missionaries serving on engagement; and and, in many instances, overshadow the several of the state campuses along Share names of students in your education that we send young adults to with outreach to some of the family, church, and community college to acquire. What we often fail to community colleges in the area. We acknowledge or even realize is that all also partner with historically Baptist who are on NC campuses. of these concerns, questions, and hopes campuses to offer retreats and mission are theological in nature and require opportunities. We work with local space with the help of someone trained to assist them. congregations in two ways, assisting them in connecting In recent years, due to budget restraints, mainline churches with students on local campuses and offering ways to remain have too often underestimated and undervalued the importance connected to their homegrown students. of ministry and mission to young adults and collegiate Our prayer is that all CBFNC Baptists understand and value engagement. College is not only the transitional time our the role of campus missions as an integral part of our overall children and students can personally claim their faith, but it is mission and to understand that every church is a campus church. the perfect time to introduce the multitude of students who Collegiate ministry looks expensive on paper, but it pales in have never had a church family to a relationship with Christ. comparison to the cost we pay by not equipping, calling out, Contrary to conventional wisdom, young adults are open to and connecting with the unreached students on our campuses.

God’s engagement in their lives. Increasingly, young adults do Collegiate ministry is a mission of grace and hope living into the not know of a place where it is safe to explore “purpose of life Christian Gospel by seeing the souls of our best and brightest, questions” with a Christian lens that gives both space and time and being willing to do what it takes to reach this people group. to do so. This reality is equally true for those raised in the local Thanks to CBFNC, we have the will and the passion to church and those brand new to exploring Christian faith. continue to offer this hope to our future generations.

The Gathering – July/August 2018 • 9

CBFNC Honorary and Memorial Gifts

CBFNC Financial Report

Col legiate Ministry: Facebook fundraisers in honor of the birthdays of Lawrence Powers and Kevin Moore

April 2018 Contributions Undesignated: $97,752 Designated: $164,290 May 2018 Contributions Undesignated: $98,043 Designated: $168,011 April 2018 - March 2019 Monthly Undesignated Goal: $104,922

Check out our blog! cbfnc.wordpress.com

To contribute, e-mail smitchell@cbfnc.org.

Ministers on the Move Our encouragement and support go to the following ministers who have recently moved:

Donate to CBFNC today! www.cbfnc.org/give

Coordinators’ Visits April 2018 - May 2018

Sammy Ballard to First, Mebane, as Pastor

Ardmore, Winston-Salem

Brittany Darst to Macedonia, Raleigh, as Youth Minister

Bethlehem, Youngsville

Trevor McPherson to Tabernacle, Raleigh, as Associate Pastor of Families Andrew Rawls to Viewmont, Hickory, as Pastor Jonathon Shattuck to Lamberth Memorial, Roxboro, as Pastor Larry Trivette to Maplewood, Yadkinville, as Associate Pastor of Worship and Family Ministries Chris Wilson to Rolesville, Rolesville, as Minister of Children and Youth When you make a move or know of someone who has changed places of ministry, let us know by e-mailing us at cbfnc@cbfnc.org.

For assistance to search committees and ministers seeking vocational discernment, visit our reference and referral page on our website at www.cbfnc.org or call (336) 759-3456 or (888) 822-1944.

10 • The Gathering – July/August 2018

Chadbourn, Chadbourn Emerywood, High Point First, Fairmont First, Goldsboro First, Huntersville First, Kannapolis First, Lexington Forest Hills, Raleigh Providence, Hendersonville Snyder Memorial, Fayetteville CBFNC ministry coordinators are available to visit your church to speak, preach, teach, consult, lead, and minister.

Contact the CBFNC office for more information.

because

mercy first loved us

by Will Watson, Pastor, United, Winston-Salem

I distinctly remember sitting with our church missions team last fall and sharing the story of Welcome House Winston (more specifically, the precious mothers and babies we were serving in Jesus’ name), and the question arose, “How did you come upon this ministry in the first place?” After a few moments trying to piece together how the request for assistance with asylum seekers was first shared with me, I stammered, “All I can say is that somehow, someway, God has us involved and is at work.”

That’s truly what has happened with Welcome House Winston—his people have been called, God has involved His people in ministry, and His work is blessing the lives of four precious Congolese gifts sent to our city. It is fitting, I think, how the Spirit brought these precious folks to live in Winston-Salem; after all, the second word after the hyphen, Salem, means “shalom; peace and wholeness.” God is bringing himself to us at Welcome House Winston; God is bringing his “shalom” to our city, and his name is Mercy.

Late last summer, CBFNC Missions Coordinator Linda Jones e-mailed a handful of ministers asking whether God was leading any of us to help out a couple families seeking asylum here in NC. Because God had nudged me over the last couple of years about the plight of refugees, it seemed natural to meet with my church’s lay leaders to determine how God would lead us. After all, hospitality is inherent in God’s personality, and the Bible is filled with stories of how to treat brothers/sisters from foreign lands: We welcome them graciously ... no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Our first meeting took place nearly six months ago (at the time of this writing), and several of us met to hear the story of our Congolese friends who, at the time, were receiving love and compassion from Winterpark, Wilmington. As Marc Wyatt shared the opportunity for our local churches to create a welcome house ministry for these families, God began opening doors in our conversations: “Yes, I believe our church can assist with that.” “It would be great to see how our meetings would strengthen the bond between our sister churches.” “What are the housing options for our new friends?” “Who will be in charge of leading this Welcome House Winston team going forward?” After this meeting and then another in October, Steve Loftis answered the call to lead us and has since proved to be a superb example of humility, open-mindedness, and leadership.

As various team members assumed their roles and giftedness in the group, an apartment was finally secured and the joy of furnishing our new friends’ abode began. Everything our new residents would need was donated by our friends and/or fellow churches, and by the time Thanksgiving arrived our Congolese families were welcomed to Winston-Salem with open arms. We celebrated their arrival with a party at Peacehaven, Winston-Salem, and, with the help of a French interpreter, we were able to ask God’s blessing on their new lives here in our city (emphasis on “our!”).

Today, the ladies and their babies are working to understand their new lives here in the Triad, and they are appreciative of our assistance and love. While we have served them in various ways, they are stepping out independently to become self-sufficient, which is a major goal of these Welcome House ministries.

One of the most beautiful things to see and hear is their desire to worship with us in our congregations.

They want to be with us! They see the genuine article of Jesus Christ displayed in our worship, our prayers, and our communities of faith.“Draw near to God and he will draw near to you” (James 4:8). God is doing this in our new friends’ lives, and He is doing that in all of us as we serve one another ... by loving mercy.

“Loving Mercy” is the mandate issued by God through the prophet Micah, imploring his people to live out mercy, justice, and humility. The team members I serve alongside through Welcome House Winston were loving mercy way before we even knew about our Congolese friends. But you see, Mercy traveled from Wilmington to Winston-Salem and found us. Through our own experiences of Christ’s loving-kindness, we now have the opportunity to love these families with that same mercy. This is the biggest blessing: We love mercy because Mercy first loved us.

Welcome House Winston, as well as all the CBFNC Welcome Houses across our beautiful state, are an act of mercy through our merciful God. By loving asylum seekers and refugees, God is demonstrating his mercy to us, teaching us compassion, and showing us how he truly loves us: But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:4-5, NIV)

Welcome House Winston is humbled to show mercy to our new neighbors only because Mercy first showed up on the doorsteps of our hearts, loved us ... and welcomed us home. Amen.

The Gathering – July/August 2018 • 11

NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID WINSTON-SALEM PERMIT NO. 162

Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina Bringing Baptists of North Carolina Together for Christ-Centered Ministry 2640 Reynolda Road Winston-Salem, NC 27106

888-822-1944 www.cbfnc.org

Return Service Requested

Upcoming Events CBFNC Webinar: God, Evolution, and The Big Bang.

Why I Believe in All Three July 12, 2018, 11-11:45am

Growing Young Regional Workshop October 20, 2018 First, Lumberton

CBFNC Webinar: Making Church a Safe Place to Talk About Dangerous Things July 26, 2018, 11-11:45am

Children’s Mission Day October 27, 2018 Conetoe Family Life Training Center, Tarboro Mars Hill Baptist Church, Mars Hill

CBFNC Webinar: Conflict and Communication.

Opportunities for Growth August 14, 2018, 11-11:45am Growing Young Regional Workshop August 18, 2018 First, Mocksville Youth Beach Retreat September 7-9, 2018 Fort Caswell Elevating Preaching September 17, 2018 Wake Forest School of Divinity, Winston-Salem

Growing Young Regional Workshop November 10, 2018 First, Black Mountain Children’s Mission Day November 17, 2018 Conetoe Family Life Training Center, Tarboro Providence Baptist Church, Charlotte Youth Ski Retreat January 25-27, 2019 Winterplace, WV