Huffman Baptist focuses on missions

Reaching out to the community and the world has reached new heights at Huffman Baptist Church in Birmingham Association.
   
With M-Fest 2000, HBC brought a greater emphasis to missions.
   
“God has placed a tremendous burden on the hearts of our people to demonstrate the love and lifestyle of Jesus Christ to those whom God has placed in our own back yards,” said Richard Tucker, the church’s family and singles pastor.
   
“It’s so refreshing to be around a people who not only care about the community, but realize the importance of placing actions behind those words,” Tucker said.
   
The missions festival began Oct. 29 with the morning worship service led by Pastor Tim Lovett. A boxed lunch was provided afterward for members and visitors alike, followed by an M-Fest walk-through with more than 20 booths set up in the gymnasium.
   
Information about missions opportunities in the church, community, state, nation and world was available to all participants. Each person received a passport which was stamped at the booths to signify their journey onto the missions field.
   
Jack Green, the missions purpose team leader and former missionary in Korea, said the passport provides a “memento to look back and see what we’ve been doing.” Lovett used 1 Corinthians 9:19–23 to preach a sermon titled “Missions 101.” He said Paul’s willingness to become “like a Jew” was an effort to win people to Christ.
   
“When you belong to God, you are free,” Lovett explained to his congregation. “It’s not dependent on what your neighbor thinks of you or what your religious neighbor thinks of your church,” he said.
   
Lovett said people need to get out of their “comfort zones” and reach lost people. “I’m not interested in swapping fish,” he stated, referring to migrating Christians who hop from church to church. “We have every freedom in the Scripture to do whatever is necessary to win some.”
   
One of the activities Oct. 29 to get people out into the community was delivering packages of homemade cookies as well as information about the church to area fire stations, police departments and hospitals. The project continued into Oct. 30 with stops at area elementary, middle and high schools.
   
HBC launched G.R.A.C.E., a new outreach program, Oct. 30 as well. The acronym stands for God in us, Reaching out, Accepting, Caring for, Embracing all people.
   
M-Fest ended with the Fall Fun Festival, a Halloween alternative Oct. 31. Live entertainment, food, games, face painting, a cake walk, dunking booth and a lip sync competition kept people busy.
   
Church staff members said they were excited about the turnout Oct. 31, as well as the number of people who came from the community, not just church members. “I grew up hearing the term ‘missions-minded’ over and over,” said Tucker, “but real missions involves the heart, the hands and the feet as we not only believe in missions, we practice it as well.”