Category Archives: Leadership

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October 22, 2015

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Children's Ministry, Faith Home, International Missions, Leadership

Pete Leija Installed as Special Projects Coordinator for Honduras

Installation of Pete Leija as Special Projects CoordinatorPete Leija was installed as Special Projects Coordinator during the recent rededication of the Willingham Center at Faith Home in Honduras.

Pete serves as a deacon at the Morehouse General Baptist Church in Morehouse, Missouri.  He has made many Mission One MVP (M1) trips to Honduras and is well-regarded by the pastor’s and leaders in Honduras. Pete spent 40 years connected with the US Army dating back to the Vietnam Conflict and also serves as mayor of Morehouse, Missouri and as a general contractor.

The Special Projects Coordinator is a volunteer position responsible to coordinate capital improvement projects of Faith Home and the Honduran Churches with the Mission One Coordinator, Dr. James Pratt, and Mission One team leaders.

Pete Leija - Special Projects CoordinatorIn a very short time, Pete has already been able to complete several projects from money that had been donated by various teams over the last couple of years.

Raised in a migrant workers home in Texas, Pete’s father spoke English and Spanish but his mother spoke only Spanish.  From that background he made his way through the ranks of the Army National Guard, married, and made his way to Morehouse, Missouri. There he became connected with the local General Baptist Church and started a contracting business. He even became mayor.

Pete has a huge heart for Honduras and loves Faith Home and the ministry of our General Baptist Churches in Honduras. He will not only serve the churches in Honduras, but will host most of the Mission One teams coming to Honduras. Pete will be a great asset to our Faith Home Director, Christina Massey.

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October 8, 2015

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Executive Office, General Baptists, Leadership, Pastoring, Staying Connected, Staying Strong

Staying Connected, Staying Strong

Staying Connected, Staying StrongStaying Connected, Staying Strong

Those four words say a lot to me not only as Pastor, but also as Executive Director.

As a pastor, I am reminded of the parable Jesus told:  “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?” [Matthew 18:12 NKJV]

Jesus used a simple illustration to communicate a directive to every pastor-shepherd. In order to truly disciple Christians into fully devoted, mature followers of Christ, helping them stay connected to the body of Christ is essential. Jesus made it clear that shepherds keep their sheep connected to the fold. For the local church this means we are to seek for straying sheep and help them reconnect to the fold of the church. [bctt tweet=”Jesus made it clear that shepherds keep their sheep connected to the fold. For the local church this means we are to seek for straying sheep and help them reconnect to the fold of the church.”]

As Pastor, I’ve always viewed this shepherding task as a very important and serious responsibility. The spiritual lives of my sheep are dependent upon their connection to the church. A shepherding pastor must also strive to help members stay in the fold of the church. If they stay connected they are better protected from tragic pitfalls and hidden obstacles that await outside the church. A church is always stronger with 100% of its sheep in the fold than it is when even a few are missing.

As Executive Director, the words, Staying Connected, Staying Strong, also have a sobering effect on me. I am reminded that as General Baptists strive to advance the Kingdom, every mission field is crucially important to us. For we “are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27). We can never forget the sacrifices of missionary families who travel to different states or countries to spread the gospel. We can never forget the sacrificial giving of individuals and churches that help develop new ministries in the U.S. and around the globe.

I always feel a burden when I visit our mission fields. I want to make sure that our missionaries and national workers know that they have a larger General Baptist family in the United States who love them and want to stay connected with them. As a network of churches called General Baptist, we must stay connected to the ministries God has provided to us. [bctt tweet=”As a network of churches called General Baptist, we must stay connected to the ministries God has provided to us.”]

We try to maintain this connection by having our missionaries, and now some national workers as well, travel to the United States to attend the Summit. I want this to continue each year so the ability to meet with, pray with, worship with, and laugh with their greater General Baptist family will breathe encouragement into the lives of our missionaries, national workers and the mission fields they represent.

I believe Jesus is pleased with our General Baptist family when we seek to stay connected at the local, national, and international levels.

Local pastor, I know how tough ministry life can be. One weapon in Satan’s arsenal is isolation and separation. Pastors, we don’t want you to be disconnected, struggling to do ministry alone. We have designed conferences to equip you to do the work more creatively, efficiently, and meaningfully than ever before. Our Barnabas Project attempts to make personal connection to you. We offer services to help personal networking and maintain current communications.

Local church, regardless of your size, location, or budget, we value your connection to General Baptist Ministries. In light of the troubled state of our culture and the recent ruling by our U.S. Supreme Court regarding marriage and family, the time to stand strong together upon the Word of God is now.

Missionaries and national workers, we believe in your sacrifice and mission. We are dedicated to giving you our prayers as well as our financial support.

Staying Connected, Staying Strong. May these words stir every General Baptist. No Pastor can be left behind. No mission field can be forgotten. No local church can be cast aside. No General Baptist can be overlooked. You belong to a larger body of believers committed to helping you do more together than you could ever do alone.

Clint Cook – Executive Director
General Baptist Ministries

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July 30, 2015

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Christian Life, Congregrational Ministries, General Baptists, Leadership, Pastoring

Life in Those Old Denominations: 5 Ways to Participate

Having just completed our annual Mission & Ministry Summit I have been reminded not only of the history of our own denomination but also the value of belonging and participating in a denominational network. Nevertheless, while hundreds of General Baptist leaders gathered in Collinsville, Illinois for Powerful Worship, Practical Training and Personal Missionary Connections, (you can read about the event here) hundreds of others chose not to participate. As I reflected on participation in denominational enterprises it struck me that there are at least five ways I can participate.

  1. Participating through shared theology. The heart of our General Baptist movement, network, denomination is a commitment to our core theology of a General Atonement. This seems old-hat to those of us who have always held such a simple belief. As stated in the Scripture, Jesus Christ by the grace of God tasted death for every man so that whosoever will may be saved. It seems strange to think that this concept was considered heresy in most Baptist circles in the 1820’s when our movement was born. It also seems strange to think that many evangelicals today avoid that simple truth without realizing that they then portray a view of God as capricious, arbitrary and unreasoning.

When I served as pastor, I regularly met new people in our community who came from a church background that was non-General Baptist. They were delighted to learn that we believed as they did that God offers equal opportunity to all who would by faith accept Jesus as a personal savior.

Whenever I espouse belief in a General Atonement rather than a Limited Atonement, then I am participating in our General Baptist denomination by sharing a mutual theology.

  1. Participating through shared mission. The natural outgrowth of belief in a General Atonement is taking the Great Commission seriously. Thus when I pray for, support or participate in the denominational mission, then I am participating in the General Baptist cause. Shared mission involves missionary activity throughout the world, church planting within the United States, and various initiatives to teach and train as we make disciples in obedience to the Great Commission.
  2. Participating by personal networking. Shared theology and shared mission puts me in connection with others and while I cannot be connected personally with every adherent of the General Baptist cause, I can and do make connections with some others. Many times these connections are framed within my local church or regional association. On other occasions they cross regional boundaries as I find personal connection with like-missioned people across the nation or around the world.
  3. Participating by officially belonging. While shared theology, mission and network are excellent starting points, officially belonging is an important and meaningful way to participate in the life of our denomination. This official connection generally occurs through participation in a regional association that in turn is connected to the General Association of General Baptists. Churches that are not part of a denomination may become direct affiliates of the General Association to establish an official connection. Help is always available from denominational officers and denominational offices to assist any church who shares our core theology, mission and network to make official connections.
  4. Participating by showing up. Attending the first time is always a bit awkward whether it is a pastor’s conference, The Summit, or a Council of Associations meeting. Repeated attendance, however, means that soon we learn the expectations and nature of the gatherings. Repeated attendance also means that soon we learn not only how to navigate the denominational circuit but also that we anticipate seeing, greeting and catching up with folks who have become partners in the gospel. After 40 years of attending the General Association and after directly working with The Summit for 10 seasons now, I still look forward to showing up and checking up on folks I may only see once in a while.