Don Campbell and Jim Simpson got more than just a good meal when they attended the Education/Music Association (EMA) banquet Nov. 14 at Moffett Road Baptist Church, Mobile.
Campbell, senior adult and pastoral care pastor of First Baptist Church, Birmingham, was presented the Paul Stewart Excellence in Music Ministry Award for his 40 years as a music minister at three Alabama Baptist churches and two Texas Baptist churches.
Simpson, minister to senior adults at Dawson Memorial Baptist Church, Birmingham, received the Christian Educator of the Year Award for his 43 years as an education, pastoral care and senior adult minister. He has served six Alabama Baptist churches and one Oklahoma Baptist church.
EMA members also enjoyed the musical group Sounds of Mobile, under the direction of Bruce Earnest, chair and director of the musical theatre department at the University of Mobile (UMobile).
Prior to the banquet, EMA members heard from Mark Foley, president of UMobile, on leadership trends for the future and Lee Wright, coordinator of church compensation services at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions (SBOM), and Miguel Perez of GuideStone Financial Services on retirement trends.
Foley said there is a disturbance in the evangelical world in the United States.
If Christians keep doing things “as usual,” then they will eventually lose the nation, turn the church into a monument and “see the influence of Christ decline to a point that it is as significant as a yawn,” he said.
Three symptoms of this disturbance in churches are plateauing/declining membership, congregations growing older and a biblically illiterate generation.
Foley said these symptoms are prominent because of two problems.
First is church-centric thinking — Christians placing the emphasis on going to the church building and a successful day measured by attendance numbers instead of spiritual fruit.
Second is generational transition.
“There are 100 million people that are Gen Y,” Foley said. “They are going to change everything … and lead this country in 20 years. What are you doing to engage ages 31 and younger (in your church)? What are you doing to disciple them?”
Noting there are two solutions to the evangelical disturbance, he said Christians can either dig a foxhole or position themselves for an assignment from God.
“We need people who will no longer retreat,” Foley said. “People who will stand for what they know is right, no matter what.
“If we humble ourselves, seek His face, pray and turn from our sin, God will have an assignment for us.”
In other business, new EMA officers were elected:
- President, Jim O’Dillon, First Baptist Church, Cullman
- President-elect, Guy Anderson, Elkdale Baptist Church, Selma
- Vice president, Sonya Tucker, SBOM
- Secretary, Bill Carr, First Baptist Church, Bay Minette
- Treasurer, Larry Morrison, First Baptist Church, Sylacauga
Dale Huff, director of the SBOM office of LeaderCare and church administration, is adviser of EMA.
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