SBC Life Articles by Chip Alford

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–“How smart is your child?” According to two Southern Baptist Sunday School Board leaders, that’s the wrong question to ask. The better question is: “How many ways is your child smart?” While leading a session on “Multiple Intelligences” during the Oct. 20-23 National Children/Preschool Seminar in Nashville, Tenn., Tommy Sanders and Beth Cole […]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Richard Kirk has a suggestion for a course offering at Southern Baptist seminaries: Vacation Bible School Survival 101. Kirk, minister of education at First Baptist Church, Bothell, Wash., literally went “above and beyond” the call of duty recently to add excitement to his congregation’s VBS. The church used materials published by LifeWay Christian […]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Approximately 60,000 professions of faith were reported in 1998 in Southern Baptist Vacation Bible Schools, a ministry that attracted more than 3.2 million people to churches across the country. According to the Annual Church Profile (ACP), an annual statistical report compiled by LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, 29,042 Southern Baptist […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–Walk through Aspen Lodge at Glorieta, a LifeWay Conference Center, this summer and you’re likely to run into some familiar families. There’s the Bradys, Partridges and DeFazios. You might even bump into some Taylors. You know, of the Mayberry variety. OK, so it’s not the real TV families you remember from your younger […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–Anyone who thinks retirement is all about fishing and golf hasn’t met J.D. McCambridge. Since his retirement two years ago, he’s been everywhere from Canada to Colorado helping build churches and seminary housing. Active with the Texas Baptist Men Camp Builders, he and his wife, Sue, drive their 37-foot recreational vehicle across the […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–The world is in the midst of a visual revolution, and the church has to join in to minister effectively in the 21st century, a consultant for LifeWay Christian Resources said. Steve Williams, a specialist in LifeWay’s discipleship and family leadership department, said the visual revolution began with the introduction of television in […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–Struggling to attract a crowd to discipleship training? Developing a purpose statement for the ministry and trying different methods of publicity could help increase interest and attendance, a leader from the Baptist General Convention of Texas said. “Developing a purpose statement for discipleship helps your membership understand why you’re doing what you’re doing […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–Planning for retirement includes more than just managing your finances and dreaming about how you’ll spend your leisure time, Howard Foshee believes. “Retirement is something of a misnomer. You don’t retire from life; you retire from a job,” Foshee said during his July 19 seminar, “Getting Prepared for the Second Half,” which was […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–Failure to deal with a painful family history can be a trigger for depression later in life, an editor of life support materials at LifeWay Christian Resources said during a July 19 seminar at LifeWay Conference Center Glorieta. “God intended for us to have healthy families. Unfortunately for a lot of us, that […]

GLORIETA, N.M. (BP)–How do you like your church music? Traditional, contemporary or blended? That’s a question music ministers across the Southern Baptist Convention are asking as they struggle to appeal to the musical preferences of their congregations and reach out to the unchurched. According to Lee Hinson, a consultant in the music ministries department at […]