2022 SBC Annual Meeting app updated and available

By / Apr 29

ANAHEIM, Calif. (BP) -- Access at your fingertips advance information and updates on the 2022 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting and ancillary events with the SBC Annual Meeting app.

"We're excited to once again provide a wealth of information to those attending the SBC Annual Meeting or watching from afar," said SBC Executive Committee Vice President for Communications Jonathan Howe. "The annual meeting app is a robust tool for all the information needed to navigate your time in Anaheim."

The app is an all-things-SBC 2022 information hub, with schedules of events set for June 12-15, the annual meeting program, biographies of SBC officer candidates and stories related to their candidacies as well as maps of Anaheim and each floor of the Anaheim Convention Center, the meeting’s venue.

Users can also watch the Road to Anaheim video series, register for free wellness checks offered by GuideStone Financial Resources, find available hotel rooms, read up-to-date resources and publications for the meeting and follow social media discussions in the app.

Baptist Press coverage of the annual meeting is compiled under a single tab on the app. The Book of Reports, daily bulletin and Exhibit Hall information is available as well.

The free app is available for iPhones and Android devices in the Apple App Store and Google Play.



Frank Reich among groups going to LA to combat trafficking

By / Feb 7

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Frank Reich is heading to Los Angeles this week for an important mission.

A year after he became head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, Reich and his wife, Linda, formed kNot Today, a nonprofit that works to prevent child sexual abuse and exploitation. Their foundation is among five organizations working together at the Super Bowl to combat sex trafficking, which is often heightened around major events.

"This is one of the most horrific crimes," Reich said on the AP Pro Football Podcast. "Children who are actually looking to adults to protect them and nurture them and help them to grow up to live mature, holistic lives are the actual ones who adults are using – that trust the children are placing in them and then exploiting them and abusing them for their own good. It doesn't get any worse than that."

Former Dodgers general manager Kevin Malone formed The Alliance Against Human Trafficking and Exploitation, consisting of kNOT Today and four other groups. With support from the NFL and the Los Angeles Super Bowl Host Committee, the goal is to disrupt the illicit operations and assist victims.

"We have a real problem in America, with our children being under attack, being targeted by predators, and it's scary," said Malone, co-founder and CEO of the U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking. "It's evil and people aren't talking enough about it."

Kay Bennett is one person who talks about it a lot. Bennett is executive director of the Baptist Friendship House in New Orleans. She works regularly with human trafficking victims, and she saw firsthand the crowds that descend on a Super Bowl city in 2013, when her town hosted the game.

“Like any event, when you’re going to have a large number of people, you’re always going to have more human trafficking victims because you’re going to have more people to buy them,” Bennett told Baptist Press.

She said the best way for churches or individuals to get involved is to work with groups that area already established. She recommended the human trafficking prevention efforts of Send Relief, Southern Baptists’ compassion ministry, as one such option.

“There’s no reason to reinvent the wheel,” she said. “Just join with others. It’s so important just to be aware and to make other people aware of what’s going on.”

Bennett added that the first thing anyone should do to combat human trafficking is pray.

“When we pray, God opens our eyes to what’s going on around us,” she said. Then, get involved by helping individuals one by one.

“In my church and congregation and local schools, I would be a champion for people that are vulnerable,” Bennett said. “Folks living in poverty, folks in the foster care system, folks that are homeless, runaway, throwaways. We can be preventative when we’re being a champion for those folks that are vulnerable.”

Reich and his wife along with daughter Lia are working to not only raise more awareness and help bring prevention, but their foundation also focuses on aiding victims in the area of mental health.

"We're doing everything we can to prevent this from happening, but the reality is it's still going on and in crazy numbers," Reich said. "There's a lot of people who are needing help. Even when a child is restored, when they're rescued, there's a lifelong battle to get back to full mental health."

The Colts offer support through the Irsay Family's "Kicking the Stigma" initiative, which raises awareness about mental health disorders.

"It's such a blessing for us to be connected right with them," Reich said.

Reich's NFL journey has included stops in many cities. He played for the Bills, Panthers, Jets and Lions and served as an assistant coach for the Colts, Cardinals, Chargers and Eagles. Along the way, the Reichs discovered child trafficking is prevalent across the country.

"It's everywhere. It knows no boundaries," Reich said. "We all know the international things and we've seen the movies and we've seen the statistics and the clips, which keep us up at night. But there's equally bad stuff going on in neighborhoods that are right near us that are all over U.S. cities, smaller trafficking rings of children being sexually abused and exploited in horrific ways. That's what we have found out more than anything.

"So, we're really taking a multi-level approach. It is grassroots, boots on the ground in these small communities making a difference, but also using the NFL platform to have a major impact on a national and international level."

Bennett urged anyone who suspects they have witnessed a case of human trafficking to call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-3737-888. The hotline workers have contacts in areas around the U.S. who can respond locally.

“That may save a life,” she said. From The Associated Press. May not be republished. Baptist Press staff contributed to this report.



‘Mary Did You Know’ writer Mark Lowry good-natured over song’s controversy

By / Dec 20

(RNS) — For Mark Lowry, almost every day is Christmas.

Whenever the storyteller and singer takes the stage for a concert, he always closes the show with the same song — “Mary Did You Know?” — no matter what time of year it is.

Mark Lowry

“When you have one hit, you better end with it,” Lowry said in a recent phone interview.

Lowry co-wrote “Mary Did You Know?” with Buddy Greene, a well-respected songwriter and instrumentalist, in 1991, while both were on tour with famed gospel singers Bill and Gloria Gaither. Recorded first by Christian singer Michael English, the song has become a modern Christmas staple — covered by some of the biggest names in the business: Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers and Wynonna Judd, Mary J. Blige, Clay Aiken, Carrie Underwood and the a cappella vocal group Pentatonix.

The idea for the song dates back to conversations the 63-year-old had with his mother about Jesus and Mary. Most revolved around the question: What was it like to raise the son of God?

“Literally, what was it like teaching the Word of God to talk,” he said, referring to a title used for Jesus in the Gospel of John. “What was it like to give him a haircut? Did she ever walk into his room and say, ‘clean this mess up’?”

He added that most of the questions he had did not make their way into the song — only the ones that rhymed made it.

Those conversations also touched on spiritual topics, like the mystery of the incarnation, said Lowry — the Christian belief that God became human in the person of Jesus. They eventually inspired a series of short monologues Lowry wrote in 1984 for a Christmas concert at Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia, then led by the Rev. Jerry Falwell. Those monologues were the glue that held the show together, serving as a transition from one Christmas song to another.

They stuck with Lowry, who thought they might work for a song if he could find the right music. Several musicians tried to come up with melodies, but none fit, said Lowry. Then, while on tour with the Gaithers, he showed the lyrics to Greene and asked him to have a go. Greene took them home and started working on some music. Lowry recalls that Greene, who could not be reached, had spent a day listening to Christmas carols written in minor keys, like “What Child is This?” and “We Three Kings” before composing the melody for “Mary Did You Know?”

“It was beautiful,” he said. “It was haunting, and it made the song work. It didn’t take away from the message — it elevated the message.”

While writing lyrics, Lowry said he imagined himself as an overly enthusiastic angel who showed up at the manger during the Christmas story and was filled with questions. He used the phrase, “Did you know” to express that enthusiasm — as if the angel was bubbling over with joy for what the birth of Jesus meant. The questions in the song are the questions Lowry would have asked if he had been there.

But that phrase has gotten Lowry in trouble in recent years — seen as a kind of theological mansplaining.

“Listeners have complained that, yes, Mary knew that she was going to bear the Messiah, the promised salvation of Israel, and that, therefore, the rhetorical question upon which the song rests is either redundant or condescending,” author Joy Clarkson, host of the “Speaking with Joy” podcast, wrote in a 2018 article entitled, “Yes, Mary Knew.”

That phrase has also inspired a series of sarcastic social media posts. “Mary did you know … that there’s a boy on his way to gift your newborn with a drum solo,” tweeted author and pastor Courtney Ellis. “Mary did you know we’ve been trying to reach you about your extended warranty,” tweeted Texas attorney Robert Callahan II. There’s even apparently a satire of the song, entitled “Mary Freaking Knew.”

Lowry is pretty good-natured about the criticism of the song. He’s quick to admit it has shortcomings — which he thinks are more evident to his fellow Christians who are more familiar with theology than the average person who hears the song. The last thing he wanted to do was to insult Mary or anger his fellow believers.

“I never meant for it to start a war or irritate people,” he said. “I definitely didn’t want that.”

That response fits Lowry’s character. He’s long used humor to help his fellow evangelicals lighten up, preferring laughter to a fight any day.

“We’ve portrayed to the world that we’re superhuman beings, and we’re not,” he told Religion News Service in a 1999 interview. “We’re just sinners in need of a savior.” 

Still, he’s grateful for what he called the “miracle of the song.” Lowry, who has never been married, views his songs as his children. None of them, he said, has grown and had a life of their own the way “Mary Did You Know” has. Most of all, he hopes the song will point people to the story of the baby Jesus and what his arrival would mean.

“I hope the song makes people think about the baby Jesus,” he said. “I hope it sends them running to Luke 1 to find out what Mary knew.”



Preacher and Gospel hip-hop artist Legin promotes counseling in virtual concert series

By / Mar 5

NORFOLK, Va. (BP) -- Southern Baptist preacher, influencer and Gospel hip-hop artist Nigel "Legin" Anderson was just entering counseling to deal with the decades-long pain of having lived without a father's love when his grandmother died, COVID-19 hit and the nation began reeling over racial division.

"I actually started going to counseling … just to deal with some issues of fatherless and some trauma that I had. And I found it immensely helpful in seeing the barriers I had to believing just how much God actually loves me," the 36-year-old husband and father of two children said. "And it just removed a lot of those (barriers) by going back to 12 years old and dealing with trauma that I thought I'd outgrown, but was really impacting my adult life."

Legin -- his name in reverse to showcase God's redemptive work -- transparently shares his ongoing healing with whosoever will tune into his Good Enuf virtual concert series, which kicks off March 16. He says the concert’s theme was born from a desire to address the increased stress felt by many people during the last year.

Legin's counselor joins him onstage during the concert for unscripted mini-sessions on topics including fatherhood and racial reconciliation, surrounded by Legin's performances of his original hip-hop selections with Gospel resonance and truth. His new single "Feelin Blessed" is scheduled to release March 12.

"I think one thing I've learned is that transparency is the best connector,” he said, “and when you're open and transparent, people have a tendency to trust you, and then if they trust you, they can listen to what you have to say."

With depression rising, and with suicide rates predicted to climb under the stress of the global pandemic, Legin encourages counseling from a biblical worldview. He hopes to raise money through Good Enuf concert tickets and direct appeals to help offset the costs for anyone who desires individual counseling sessions but lacks resources to cover costs. He hopes to fund the project for at least a year.

"This is Gospel-centered encouragement to trust Jesus and get counseling if you need it, because we need to save lives,” he said. “We can't preach the Gospel to people who aren't here."

The artist preaches monthly at Crossroads Church in Norfolk, Va., where he serves as creative visionary and collaborates with senior pastor and friend Kevin Tremper.

Tremper has witnessed the personal benefits of counseling in Legin's life.

"In our church as we've talked about these issues openly and the need for people to be transparent and honest about their struggles and where they are … we've seen how taking the stigma away from counseling and mental health is something that is really needed," Tremper said. "There's kind of this idea that counseling is something for people who are really desperately in need or weak and damaged. There were just a lot of stigmas that were attached to counseling.

“I think what I'm excited about for this project that he is doing is that it is helping in a healthy way to normalize our need and desire to pursue our own mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing."

The two also collaborate on racial reconciliation through the Hampton Roads City Collective, which they cofounded in 2016 following the deaths of Alton Sterling, Philando Castile, and five Dallas police officers. Legin's 2020 EP "In This Moment" is his response to racial injustice, political divisiveness, and national disunity. It followed a Norfolk prayer march Legin and Tremper helped organize that the two said drew 100 churches and 5,000 participants.

Legin has released 10 recordings and has shared the stage with numerous artists including Lecrae, KB, Da' T.R.U.T.H, Tedashii, Social Club, Canon, Deraj and Aaron Cole. Legin has performed throughout the U.S. and in London; Nairobi, Kenya, and Pretoria and Cape Town, South Africa.

He often shares his personal struggles on his ministry platforms, including his sermons, music and podcast. An example is his transparency about a difficult relationship with his father, who died 15 years ago, just one day after their last talk.

"My last conversation with my father in his life was, 'I forgive you for not being there.' And he died,” Legin said. “That was our last talk. … When I share that story, people meet me and are lined up to say, 'Man you won't believe what my mom did to me and how can I forgive her?' And I just encourage them. 'She's never going to deserve your forgiveness, but go give it to her anyway.'

“I've learned that transparency connects you to people in a way that art and sermons don't, alone."

He describes such transparency as "scary" and emphasizes that the counseling segments on the concert series are not rehearsed.

"It's scary that somebody on the other end of the stage gets to see that I'm embarrassed about the fact that I'm in my thirties and I still have daddy issues,” he said. “I didn't want to let my daughter see that. But I felt like I could either tuck this away -- which I know doesn’t work -- I can avoid discomfort, or I can be uncomfortable for a little while, and maybe see a lot of fruit for the Gospel in people's lives. And maybe I'm being selfish if I choose comfort."



Sony Pictures to acquire evangelical Christian streaming service Pure Flix

By / Nov 17

(RNS) — Sony Pictures announced Thursday (Nov. 12) it is purchasing Pure Flix's evangelical Christian video-streaming service, which was launched in 2015 as a family-friendly competitor to Netflix.

The streaming service will become part of Sony's Affirm Entertainment, which also includes Affirm Films, the division responsible for popular faith-based films like “ Miracles From Heaven,” " War Room " and last year's "Overcomer."

“Pure Flix is a natural fit with our Affirm brand, which is known for its high quality, uplifting, inspirational content,” said Keith Le Goy, Sony president of Networks and Distribution, in a statement to the LA Times. “Pure Flix has done an amazing job building a robust community of engaged subscribers, and we look forward to continuing to grow and delight audiences with well-curated faith and family entertainment."

Pure Flix was founded in 2005 as an evangelical Christian entertainment production company before expanding into video streaming.

The company, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., has produced the "God's Not Dead" series and a 2017 adaptation of author Lee Strobel's " The Case for Christ." The production side is not part of its deal with Sony.

The streaming service describes its programming as "safe" and "Christ-centered." That includes not just overtly Christian TV shows and movies, like those produced by Pure Flix, but also what it calls "clean classics": among them, "The Dick van Dyke Show," "The Beverly Hillbillies," Shirley Temple's "A Little Princess" and a number of Westerns like John Wayne's "Angel and the Badman."   

Its mission, according to its website, is "to create God-honoring entertainment that strengthens the faith and values of you and your family. Let’s inspire together to be a transformational voice in entertainment that is free from uncomfortable surprises for you and your family. Feel at ease with a safe place for streaming."

Membership plans begin at $6.95 per month for a yearly subscription.

Neither Pure Flix nor Sony has disclosed financial details of the sale, according to the LA Times.

Pure Flix confirmed on its blog Nov. 12 that its CEO, Michael Scott, and co-founder and chief content officer, David A.R. White, who often appears in its films, will join Affirm to develop future programming for the streaming service.

"Get ready for an even better experience of faith-based family content, and an even greater ability to influence the culture for Christ," reads the post on its website.

The LA Times reported faith-based films have "proved reliably profitable" for Sony. The latest film by Alex and Stephen Kendrick, "Overcomer," was filmed on a $5 million budget and brought in $38 million last year. "Miracles in Heaven," which starred actress Jennifer Garner, grossed $74 million worldwide on a $13 million budget.

Major film studios have taken an interest in such movies since the Kendricks Brothers' 2006 surprise hit "Facing the Giants," filmed with the help of the church they pastored at the time, showed evangelical Christians were eager to support entertainment that affirmed their faith and values in ways they felt mainstream Hollywood films did not.

From Religion News Service via The Associated Press. May not be republished.