When Southern Baptists agreed to adopt the Cooperative Program in 1925 as our financial plan for supporting missions, it was an admission that we could not accomplish the Great Commission as individual churches and a recognition that we are “better together.” I have chosen that as the theme for the 2014 annual meeting of the South Carolina Baptist Convention.
Almost everything we do, we do “better together.” That spirit of cooperation has led us to become a leader in global missions.
While we are family, we don’t have identical DNA. We read from different translations, employ a variety of preaching styles, and sing every type of music from “Deep and Wide” to “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” We wear three-piece suits and skinny jeans, but we are Baptists. We have confidence in the authority and inerrancy of Scripture.
Sadly, in recent years we have allowed some of our differences to divide us. How we worship, dress and engage in ministry has become a source of contention for some. We have even been divided over whether God chooses us or we choose God.
In the last decade, however, those differences have begun to separate us. Annually, the crowds attending the Southern Baptist Convention and the South Carolina Baptist Convention get smaller and grayer. The absence of many of our young pastors is troubling.
This year I am making some changes that I hope will help us gain a clearer understanding and appreciation of one another. For openers, there will be two panel discussions on Tuesday, led by both “rookie” and “veteran” pastors on worship style and ministry. You will hear from their heart why they go about worship and ministry the way they do. They deserve to be heard. You may discover that men who do ministry and worship differently from you are just as sincere and solid in their reasoning as yourself.
Additionally, there will be a breakout session aimed at encouraging the wives of ministers — led by women who have lived in the fishbowl themselves.
Finally, there will be humor. You will hear from our youngest theologians on a variety of topics, and they are sure to bless your heart. I promise, this won’t be your grandpa’s convention! We’ll laugh, cry and, hopefully, come away more committed than ever, to pray, minister and work “better together.”
— Ralph Carter is pastor of Brushy Creek Baptist Church in Taylors and president of the South Carolina Baptist Convention.