Pulitzer Prize winner James McPherson has done me and all history lovers a great favor.  He has written a biography on Abraham Lincoln that is short, readable, engaging, and most of all, helpful.  Let me address each of those attributes individually.

This book is short.  It is short by design, as noted in the preface, when many long and even multi-volume works were being published, McPherson correctly decided that a short account on Lincoln's life was in order.  I read this book in one sitting while in a doctor's waiting room.  It took me less than an hour and a half.  The length was a welcomed surprise because, as I will elaborate on below, the content was still engaging and helpful.  I read many long books in my primary field (theology and religion) so that I do not have the time or the ability to "dig into" the various military strategies at every battlefield, the specifics of each Lincoln-Douglas debate, and so on.  So, I was able to get the meat without the "dessert."  And I was only looking for meat.

That the book is very readable and understandable should come as no surprise.  McPherson is an accomplished author and expert on Lincoln.  This book provides a great read for not only Lincoln lovers, but also for students who need a great introduction to the legacy of our 16th President.  McPherson can also be seen on the History Channel's "The Presidents" and I found him to be clear and helpful in his comments there as well.

The book is engaging, partly because it moves from scene to scene quickly and leaves you wanting a little bit more at every page.  If nothing else, McPherson's book will entice readers to pick up a more exhaustive account of Abraham Lincoln to "fill in the gaps."  For example, the assassination of Lincoln and the mention of Booth all comes in a single, fairly small paragraph. 

Finally, the book is helpful because it provides the necessary information to have a solid grasp on the life legacy of Lincoln.  McPherson even takes time here and there to insert some wonderful points to ponder.  For example, his brief exposition on Lincoln's contempt with his wages going to his father before he reached the age of 21 describes how some believe that Lincoln fostered a hatred of slavery from an early age because of his own "mistreatment" in this way.  I was also very informed and interested in the political decisions behind the issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation.

I recommend Abraham Lincoln by James McPherson without reservation.  Pick up and copy and read it in under two hours.  You will be glad you did.   

I just hung up the phone with Doug Lohrey, associate executive director and CFO of the Colorado Baptist General Convention.  He and I spent about 20 minutes discussing the ramifications of the GCRTF final report for Colorado Baptists.  He was friendly, took his time, and answered my questions graciously.  If you are a Southern Baptist and have not yet read the final report, you can do that here or read my "final report made easy" article here. 

As I have mentioned previously, the two areas of the report that are causing the most alarm concern the wording of "Great Commission Giving" which many believe will detract from the Cooperative Program, and the elimination of cooperative agreements over a period of seven years between the North American Mission Board (NAMB) and the state conventions.  In order to be fully informed in regards to my vote during the annual meeting in June, I wanted to see how the cooperative agreements impacted Colorado.

The Colorado Baptist General Convention receives a substantial amount from NAMB through the cooperative agreements, 2 million dollars total.  This is in contrast to several southern state conventions who not receive near that amount from NAMB.  Of that amount, some $400,000 is used for church planting and another 500,000 used to support 10 out of 11 associations in Colorado, including their DOM's (Director of Missions).  In addition, most of the positions held in the state convention itself are funded through the means of NAMB giving.  So, there is obviously a concern at the state level about personnel and church planting.  Doug did mention that because of Colorado's particular agreement, of which the state matches some funds, they would still have access to about $600,000.  Obviously, that amount will not cover the expenses that are left from a 2 million dollar coverage, but they at least have a good starting place if they, in fact, have to come up with a plan over the next seven years on how to subsidize those funds.

Doug was not angry or "put out" with the task force.  On the contrary, there is much in the report that he was thankful for.  He mentioned his hope that the seven components will be brought as individual motions instead of just one big motion to either "take it or leave it."  He was also thankful that apparently Ronnie Floyd and the other members of the task force listened to the concerns of Colorado Baptists when they met to discuss the initial report released in February, a report that had the cooperative agreements dissolving in just four years, not seven.

I can say this for certain - this will be an interesting meeting and I am thinking one of the most well attended in a long time.  Continue to pray for the SBC and its leadership.  

The Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention will be in Orlando, FL on June 15-16 and there is a pastor's conference on June 13-14.  Below are 5 reasons why I will be in attendance this year.

5.  Raise awareness at First Baptist Church of Evergreen.  This wonderful church where I am blessed to serve, for various reasons, does not have a strong grasp (or interest?) in issues regarding Southern Baptist life.  While this might be a good thing in some respects, it is unfortunate in others.  I would like for my beloved church to have a greater appreciation and commitment to the Cooperative Program, to Lottie Moon and Annie Armstrong, to understand the history and legacy of the greatest missions minded denomination, and to appreciate more why they are worshiping and serving at a local Southern Baptist Church.  If just one church member wonders, "why is Pastor Philip going all the way to FL for a SBC meeting?", then that is a good thing.

4.  Because I still believe.  Reason number 5 is heavily dependent on this particular reason, and it is simply that I still believe in the future and purpose of the Southern Baptist Convention.  I believe, and this is very important, that God will continue to work in the hearts of very imperfect men and women to support churches, missions, and evangelism in order to most effectively win people for Christ.  The SBC has had both a wonderful and tainted history.  I have many friends and acquaintances who are in effect finished with the SBC and have moved on to other things, which is exactly what they should do if they no longer can support the SBC with a clean conscience.  As a matter of fact, I probably have more friends in that camp than I do those who share my position.  I understand and respect their position.  I just don't share it.

3.  My wife and I will be experiencing a week of spiritual renewal.  This will be the first time Andi and I have been away together alone for a multi-day trip since our honeymoon.  Although I loathe the thought of being away from my boy and girl for 6 days, I anxiously await the time alone with my wife and look forward to praying with her, discussing issues with her, and just being close to her for a few days all by ourselves.

2.  Great Commission Resurgence Task Force Report.  I have written plenty about this task force and their report.  It seems only fitting that I should be there in person to see how it is received by Southern Baptists from around the country.

1.  The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  God, in His providence, has timed the opening of Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure new "island" called the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter" on the Friday of the week when I will be there for the convention.  Prayer really does work!!  (I'm kidding of course.  Well, not kidding that prayer works, but that I was praying for it to open during the time I was down there).  So, my brother will be flying down at the end of the week and we will be reviewing the new, highly anticipated island.  It doesn't get much better than that!          

For almost a year now members of the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force (GCRTF) have been discussing a strategy to increase the effectiveness of the Southern Baptist Convention as a "Great Commission" people.  They were assigned the task at the 2009 Annual Convention of creating a proposal for the 2010 meeting that would propel Southern Baptists forward in our goal to reach the world for Christ.  Last week the task force released their final report which will be presented at the Annual Convention meeting in Orlando, FL the week of June 13th.  As is to be expected, the report has been met with both positive and negative reviews.  I would like to simplify and summarize the report's proposals in "lay people" terms as a good many of my readers do not regularly follow the ongoing news of the Southern Baptist Convention leadership.  I do believe this is an important report, whether for good or ill, and we should prayerfully consider it. 

The report is entitled "Penetrating the Lostness" and begins with a statistical reminder of the urgent need to share the gospel.  The stats demonstrate that out of 7 billion people in the world, 6 billion are lost and another 3.5 billion have never heard the gospel message.  Another stat shows that baptisms among Southern Baptists are considerably down today than they were in 1950.  Thus, something must be done.

Next, the report asks the question "What is Holding Us Back?"  Acknowledging that financial resources are necessary to win the world for Christ, the report highlights the actual contributions received at the national level.  The Cooperative Program (CP) is designed where churches set aside a certain percentage of their undesignated giving for the Cooperative Program.  The SBC encourages churches to set aside 10%, although most come in at around 6%.  This amount is then forwarded to the state convention.  The state then decides how much they keep for their own expenses and ministry, and then forwards the rest to the national level.  The average state convention keeps 63% of CP dollars, meaning that the SBC gets around 37% to budget.  So, since churches are not giving a full 10% to the CP and since the states keep a good portion of the funds, there must be a renewed awareness of the necessity for consistent CP giving.

From here, the report offers 7 components to be adopted at the 2010 annual meeting. 

#1
The first component is to establish a mission statement that unites all Southern Baptists for the Great Commission mandate.  That proposed statement is:  "As a convention of churches, our missional vision is to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ to every person in the world and to make disciples of all the nations."

#2
The second component calls on Southern Baptists to embrace a set of core values.  They list these values as:  Christ-likeness, Truth, Unity, Relationships, Trust, Future, Local Church, Kingdom.

#3
The third component, and one of the more controversial recommendations, is that SBC churches recommit to the Cooperative Program as the "most effective means of mobilizing our churches and extending our reach."  That, of course, is all well and good.  The controversial part is when an aspect of this component also wishes to recognize all monies given to other SBC entities, whether it be causes of the national convention, state convention, or local association, be deemed as "Great Commission Giving."  This is the classic and common issue that all churches have dealt with in one form or another.  What do we as churches do when our folks begin giving more to designated causes than they give to the overall ministry of the church, namely the tithe (if you want to use that word for New Testament giving) by which the operating budget of churches is met.  Critics of this component claim that "Great Commission Giving" will in the long run have a detrimental effect on the effectiveness and enthusiasm for the Cooperative Program. 

This component also calls on churches to adopt goals of $200 million annually for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions and $100 million annually for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions.  In comparison, the 2007-2008 amounts for Lottie Moon were 133,904,643 and Annie Armstrong were 57,208,220.

Interestingly, no goal was offered for the Cooperative Program. 

#4
The fourth component addresses the "reinvention" of the North American Mission Board (NAMB).  This, in part, addresses the need for NAMB to begin helping and encouraging SBC churches to become "church-planting" churches, and to increase their effectiveness of training and discipling believers.  This component also calls for the elimination of "Cooperative Agreements."  These are simply a way that NAMB and state conventions have historically worked together, primarily by NAMB sending back a portion of CP dollars to the state conventions for specific ministry work.  The report wants NAMB to retain those funds that will aid in the establishment of a new and more effective NAMB. 

#5 
The fifth component calls upon the International Mission Board (IMB) to have the freedom to break away from any geographical limitations and have the ability to serve and assist unreached people groups in North America.  The report states that the divide between North America and the rest of the world is a thing of the past.

#6
The sixth component calls for a unified strategy amongst the state conventions and the Executive Committee of the SBC in order to more effectively promote the need of the Cooperative Program and encourage greater CP giving in our churches.

#7
The seventh component is another controversial aspect of the report.  It calls for Southern Baptists to approve a 1% increase to be received by the IMB, breaking the historical 50% mark by moving up to 51%.  This 1% will be met by reducing the funds of "Facilitating Ministries" by that 1%.  A quick look at the SBC budget shows that there is only one entity in the "Facilitating Ministries" line, that being the Executive Committee.  So, essentially the report is calling for the Executive Committee to take a 1% reduction in funds in order to give it to the IMB.  Some are concerned that this component does not match up very well with component 6 which calls for the Executive Committee to increase its work with the state conventions to increase CP awareness.  How, they say, can they increase this work when funds are being removed from them. 

The report then ends with a series of challenges for individuals, families, churches, associations, state conventions, Lifeway, seminaries, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Guidestone, and all SBC leaders.   

Read about a family/children's book I recommend here at our FBCE Family Ministry Website.