Well, hello, Alabama Baptists, and a belated Happy New Year to every single one of you! I hope you had a good holiday season. The holy days that we had, to be able to celebrate Christmas and then bounce into this new year in a, I’m sure, very rapid pace. The word for the year, for me and for our State Convention as we look toward it in November, is the word, “Compelled.”
Now, that’s a compelling word, isn’t it? The scripture tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:14, Paul is articulating about the love of Christ and what that means. He said, “The love of Christ compels us.” So we’re compelled by the love of Christ to be a minister in the name of Christ, a minister of reconciliation, an ambassador for Christ, workers together for Christ. All of that’s wrapped up in the motivation that we have by the love of Christ. We are compelled.
While I have your attention, let me invite you to participate in the State Evangelism Conference. We’re calling it, “E3”. And the Es stand for Evangelism, Establish, and Equip. That’s the goal of the State Evangelism Conference, and you’ll be hearing more about it and reading more about it in the days to come. January 26-27, Sunday night and Monday at Lakeside Baptist Church in Birmingham.
Let me again say how delighted I am to serve with you as one of the people that we call the Alabama Baptist Family, to minister alongside you. It’s my delight and my joy. May we have the best and most productive year in 2025!
