She was hooked. What a terrible reality to have to admit. But now what? What would she do? Where could she get help? As she pondered and prayed, her eyes glanced toward the only light in the room in those wee hours of the morning. From the front page of a paper lying beneath the lamp jumped the words “Here’s Help.”
The words pulled her from her chair. She picked up the paper and began reading. It was too good to be true.
The story was about a Christian drug rehabilitation facility near where she lived. The director talked about how even Christians get hooked and about how the center used a Christ-based approach to break addictive power.
The next day, she made the call and her life was changed. Today she is drug-free, active in her church and her family ties are strong. She gives thanks that God used the words from a story in The Alabama Baptist to literally save her life.
The husband and wife were part of the core leadership of their church. They were active in most everything. They prayed for missions and gave to missions but never thought about going on missions.
While reading The Alabama Baptist, they learned of an upcoming missions trip to Venezuela and that volunteers were needed.
At first, they passed over the story, but the idea of participating nagged at both of them. Foreign travel was not something either had done. Nor did they speak the language of the people to whom they would be going.
Still they decided to volunteer. They went on their first missions trip and their lives were changed.
Today the couple has been on more than 20 international missions trips and is still going. Both credit their participation to that story in The Alabama Baptist that God used to prod them toward ministry through volunteer missions.
Sharing valuable information
At the pastor’s suggestion, the church had taken the first steps toward checking backgrounds of its employees, including the pastor’s. There are just too many incidents of misconduct by church employees and volunteers in the news to do nothing, the pastor contended.
But a thorough program to protect the church’s children might ripple the waters of church fellowship. How does a church tell a longtime children’s worker that a background check has to be done on him or her in order to continue as a Sunday School teacher?
At a deacon’s meeting, a deacon raised the question about how the church safeguards its children. He shared information about what other churches do, information he read in The Alabama Baptist. Others present had read those stories as well as stories about what can happen when a church does not have safeguards in place.
From that discussion, the church decided to implement a thorough child protection program. The pastor called The Alabama Baptist to thank the editor for the articles about child safety at church. The articles were the catalyst the church needed to take action, he said.
These true stories indicate the many varied ways God uses The Alabama Baptist as a resource for Christian living for individuals and for churches as a whole. The state Baptist paper regularly shares practical helps for issues facing Christian families. Topics range from beating summer boredom for children to helping senior adults with life’s transitions.
The Alabama Baptist helps readers with useful information for their personal lives. Topics range from positives like total wellness and healthy eating to problems like self-mutilation and the use of methamphetamine.
Most stories in the state Baptist paper are about what God is doing among and through Baptists in the world. Inspirational testimonies may come from international personalities such as Masters golf champion Zach Johnson or a local youth who is making a difference in his or her community. Stories about ministries in churches provide a regular flow of stimulating ideas for other churches to consider.
The Alabama Baptist is about missions. Studies show that the state Baptist paper is the primary source of missions information for lay members of cooperating churches. Feature stories highlight how God is using Baptists to make a difference around the globe as well as in this nation.
The Alabama Baptist is also about news, news from all the ministries Baptists support through their state and national conventions. Every entity and every ministry regularly shares its news and information through the pages of the state Baptist paper. That regular flow of common, trustworthy information makes it possible for Alabama Baptists to work together in the cause of Christ.
The state Baptist paper is a vital resource for Christian living. Some churches even use the paper as their curriculum for Discipleship Training each week, gathering to talk about the issues covered in that edition. As a result, regular readers of the state Baptist paper give more to missions, participate more in denominational life and pray more than nonreaders.
An important resource for life
That is why most Alabama Baptist churches provide the state Baptist paper to their active, resident families through the church budget.
The state Baptist paper is part of the Christian literature provided by the church for members because it is such an important resource helping members in their personal lives, their professional lives and their corporate life in the church.
Sunday, July 29, is Read The Alabama Baptist Day. One good way to observe this special emphasis is to make sure members of your church receive their state Baptist paper through the church budget.
Share with others: