Pan Dulce

Collaboration in Missions: From the Nile to the Rio Grande

I am very pleased to announce a new agreement between the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas and Buckner International. We reached an agreement with Pastor Jesse Rincones, Sr. Pastor of Alliance Baptist Church in Lubbock, Texas and President of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas (HBCT), also called Convencíon. Convencíon is comprised of over 1,100 Hispanic Baptist congregations across the state of Texas. You can read the full story at the Baptist Standard.

The Missions Agreement calls for greater engagement of Buckner with Hispanic churches affiliated with Convencíon. We will be working together through Humanitarian Aid projects such as Shoes for Orphans Souls, mission trips, and enlistment of mission volunteers to work both in Texas and across the globe. I am very encouraged that the Officers of Convencíon would consider this kind of collaboration following the Centennial Celebration in 2010.

The idea of developing this kind of relationship developed in one of the most unlikely places as several Hispanic pastors, Officers of Convencíon, and Staff leadership were with me on a trip to Egypt. As we shared time together in Cairo and on the Nile River, we began to brainstorm about the impact of Hispanic churches in global missions. We agreed that the time had come for Hispanic churches to take their place as a missions force ready and able to contribute to this kind of Kingdom work.

The precursor to this vision trip was the vision of Buckner donors who wanted to see Hispanic pastors experience the connection of their history, culture, and faith to Muslim friends in an Arab cultural context. The trip took place in 2010 and is now bearing the kind of fruit we had hoped for. The vision of two faithful stewards continues to bear fruit and strengthen the opportunities for collaboration and the advancement of Kingdom work both in Texas and in other places around the world.

We will be launching efforts from this agreement in February and will highlight the agreement at the annual meeting of Convencíon this June in San Antonio, Texas. Buckner does great work in over 115 cities around the world and we realize that collaboration with local congregations is critical to impacting lives for the better whether here in Texas or across the globe.

One Mission Indivisible

The title for my blog is a paraphrase from the pledge to the Flag of the United States of America: “One Nation indivisible…” One of the themes circulating in my mind recently is the idea that we have one mission from God not two or three. I have been thinking about the Micah 6:8 passage that teaches what God requires of us: to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God.

Dr. Thom Wolf calls this God’s Life Syllabus. The Syllabus has three parts: Justice, Mercy, and Humility (Faithfulness). Wolf calls the trilogy Hope, Love, and Faith (See Matthew 23:23). The point is that there are three parts to the syllabus. The parts are not optional. Using an agricultural metaphor, Wolf says the syllabus can be thought of Weeds (Justice), Deeds (Mercy), and Seeds (Faithfulness). When we pull weeds we overturn injustice and bring hope. When we do deeds we demonstrate God’s love in a tangible way. When we plant seeds we point to faith. It takes Conviction to take a stand against injustice; it takes Compassion to do deeds for our neighbor; and it takes Courage to share the good news of the faith. At Buckner we internalize the syllabus and call it Conviction, Compassion, and Courage. The syllabus can be laid out as follows:

Justice	Mercy	Humility
Hope	Love	Faith (Faithfulness)
Weeds	Deeds	Seeds
Conviction	Compassion	Courage

My point in all of this is to say Jesus followers are responsible for all three parts of the syllabus, even though we may specialize in one area or the other. Some of us or some organizations may feel more passionate about justice issues; some of us or some organizations may be more focused on mercy ministry or social ministry; some of us or some ministries may be more focused on evangelism, disciple-making, and church planting.

William Carey (1761-1834) understood this when he went to India. “He did not go there to plant churches or set up medical clinics for the poor. He was driven by a more comprehensive vision – a vision for discipling a nation…including restoring all that was broken through the Fall…Carey introduced the Linean system of plant organizations and published the first science texts in India; he created the idea of savings bank in India to fight the evil of usury; he campaigned for the humane treatment of lepers; he established the first newspaper ever printed in any Oriental language; he translated the Bible into 40 languages; he was the first man to stand against the ruthless murders and widespread oppression of women; he had a wholistic ministry and impact on India. He followed the pattern of Jesus’ ministry: preaching, teaching, and healing (Matthew 4:23).
(See Scott Allen, William Carey: A Missionary Who Transformed a Nation in Mission Frontiers: The Bulletin of the U.S. Center for World Mission, Vol. 33, No. 5, September-October 2011, pages 15-18).

God’s mission is indivisible but we seem to be fragmented in our approaches. Some of us are focused on weeds, others on deeds, and others on seeds. Some of us have a dual focus of weeds and deeds; weeds and seeds, or deeds and seeds. What would it take for us to embrace the whole mission and gain a vision for transforming a nation?

Recalibration Back to Jesus

This past week we held our annual staff retreat featuring our leadership team from across the Buckner system. One of our guest speakers was Dr. Jeff Warren, Senior Pastor of Park Cities Baptist Church, the church where my family has its membership.

Pastor Jeff did an amazing job of pointing us back to Jesus as the core of our mission. He said our theology is determined by our Christology and our Christology is determined by our missiology. He encouraged us to have a radical devotion to Christ; to focus on the person of Jesus who guides our mission, which in turn informs our structure, organization, staffing and direction.

He encouraged us to seek Jesus in our quiet time, in our personal devotional moments. He said that when we do not have a quiet time with the Lord, all others around us become a victim of our unspiritual life.

In a nutshell, we have to constantly recalibrate back to Jesus.

So here are my own reflections:

It appears to me that there may be many ministries and perhaps individuals that need to recalibrate back to Jesus. There may be some ministries, as stated by Dr. Warren, where Jesus is trying to get in and impact the core.

We are going through the time of the year at Buckner when we re-evaluate our organizational structure, our sense of vision, and our budget for the coming year. This word from Dr. Warren was a timely reminder that all we do is about the person and work of Jesus.

In very plain language, the Scripture is our guide for faith and practice. Dr. R. C. Buckner read his Bible and did what it says. He landed on James 1:27 and focused on serving orphans and widows. About 132 years later, we are doing that same thing only now we are pursuing this agenda in over 117 cities around the world.

It is time again to recalibrate back to Jesus and his Kingdom. Everything else is of secondary importance.

Buckner Night at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Texas

Buckner has been selected to participate in the Texas Rangers “Community Corner” during a Rangers Baseball game on Saturday September 24th as they play the Seattle Mariners. Buckner will benefit from exciting promotional opportunities, including a 30-second commercial spot about Buckner to air in the second inning of the game.

  We would like to invite all Buckner friends and family to join us there! Tickets are $16 with $2 from every sale coming back to Buckner to benefit vulnerable children, orphans, and families. Everyone who purchases a ticket and sits in our group section will receive a free t-shirt at the game. Please feel free to share the attached flyer with others.

You might want to encourage a group of friends or a group from your church to go out to the Ballpark, enjoy a baseball game, and serve children at the same time. I hope to see you there!

 Click the image above to download flyer.

Heaven is For Real

I just finished reading a book called Heaven is For Real by Todd Burpo. It is an amazing account of a pastor’s son that went to heaven and back. The book is one of those stories that is very hard to put down. It is very well written. It is a true story.

At the risk of ruining the experience of reading the book (like telling you about the movie before you see it), Colton, the 3 year old boy describes heaven in a way that is simple and yet full of detail, way beyond what the normal Sunday School curriculum would provide for children that age. He also describes his view of earth and the lives of people he loves in full detail that he could not have known as a 3 year old.

The story involves crystal clear descriptions of Jesus, the angels, loved ones, how saints intercede for us, and so on. One of the facts that stand out is the description of children in heaven. Colton Burpo says there are many children in heaven and made the point over and over again how much Jesus loves children.

Get your copy of this this book; read it; and pass it on. It will amaze you, touch you, and encourage you in your faith, especially if you love children.

Last night I gathered with about 1,000 parents and children at the Annual Awards Banquet of the  Dallas Patriots under the leadership of Logan and Haley Stout. Pete Delkus of Channel 8 News was on hand. The Dallas Patriots presented me 12,000 pairs of shoes and a check for $10,000 for more shoes! Wow! This will go a long way to provide shoes for children all around the world.

It strikes me that at Buckner, we are focused on making life better for vulnerable children, orphans, families, and elders. Jesus loves children so he must love the work of Buckner. We are blessed to care for the children Jesus so loves.