For about 35 years Ken Megginson, a member of Moffett Road Baptist Church, Mobile, has been a faithful reader of The Alabama Baptist (TAB).
Why has he been faithful for so long?
For one, because “it keeps us abreast with what’s going on with the Southern Baptists in our area, which I think is very important,” he said.
Megginson, who serves as an adult Sunday School teacher at Moffett Road Baptist, said one of the best things about TAB has been its great resource value for his Sunday School lessons.
“I like the reviews of what the Sunday School lesson is about. It really helps me prepare for the lesson,” Megginson said. “If there are any articles in The Alabama Baptist that I can relate to the lesson, I use that also.”
For example, Megginson recently incorporated the editorial in the July 1 issue, “Religious Liberty — The First Freedom,” into his Sunday School lesson, as it related to Independence Day.
“When you read in The Alabama Baptist about some of the countries that don’t have some of the religious freedoms we do …. when you read about people being put into jail … it makes me and the people in our Sunday School class appreciate our freedoms and the efforts of those who are making a stand,” he said.
TAB also has prompted Megginson’s church to become more missions-minded over the years.
“Under Brother Terry’s leadership, by his example … (The Alabama Baptist) has led us to incorporate missions more into the vision of our church,” he said.
Katrine Moore, a member of First Baptist Church, Red Bay, agreed. Reading TAB encourages her own ministry and missions involvement as she reads about what others are doing, she said.
“It’s been an excellent resource of what Baptist churches across the state are doing,” Moore said. “It makes me aware of how other churches are reaching out to help people, and I like to read about the different ministries that have helped people in the community.”
Not only does the paper connect people like Moore and Megginson, who live in different cities and attend different churches, with what each other’s churches are doing in the way of ministry and missions, but it also keeps them informed on social and moral issues.
“I look forward to receiving [TAB] each week because it keeps me abreast of issues,” Moore said. “The Alabama Baptist helps us stay current. I feel like The Alabama Baptist is an important way to keep all of Alabama and all Baptists aware of all sides of an issue that need to be explored and reported.”
Megginson agreed.
“I like it when The Alabama Baptist brings to our attention issues that we need to take a stand on,” he said. “In Alabama and in the Southern Baptist Convention, we need to take a stand on these issues rather than just accepting them. The Alabama Baptist brings [those things] to our attention.”
In addition to calling people to take action on an issue or connecting Baptists with what other Baptists are doing, TAB also ministers to its readers.
Just ask Dianne Greer, also a member of Moffett Road, who choked up when retelling the story of how TAB classifieds section ministered to her family just this year.
Greer, who is married with two children, takes one family vacation per year. Because her family is on a tight budget, it is sometimes difficult to find a nice place her family can stay that is affordable.
But in February of this year, while scanning the classifieds, Greer came upon an ad for a beach rental property.
“I was able to find a house for my family the week of spring break for very reasonable,” she said. “It really ministered to me.”
The children of an older couple, who had passed away, turned their parents’ home in Gulf Shores into a beach rental property for families or small Christian groups to use, Greer recounted.
“I thought it was really neat that whenever you look at [the classifieds] you know they are Christian people,” she said. “Thank you Lord that you opened that door for our family knowing that the people who lived [in that house] were His children.
“I thought that was a wonderful tool that [TAB] made available through that section to link Christian companies to (Christian) people. It was a wonderful experience,” Greer added.
Without TAB Greer said she would never have known about this particular Christian rental property, and without TAB, Steve Stephens, an associate in the office of men’s ministries and disaster relief at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions (SBOM), said his office would not have a way to promote what they do throughout the state.
“Anytime there’s something that we are trying to promote as Alabama Baptists, The Alabama Baptist covers it for us and promotes it for us,” said Stephens, who oversees the SBOM’s Royal Ambassadors (RAs) and Challengers ministries. “We do not have a resource like The Aalabama Baptist. You’re it. You’re our resource.”
But Stephens uses TAB for more than just promotion. It also has been the missions resource used with RAs and Challengers groups.
“Even in our recommendation for what the youth ought to study in missions we put The Alabama Baptist as our No. 1 resource because it has information about local, national and international missions,” he said. “We tell them that [TAB] has what they need.”
And for TAB to be that resource for more people like Megginson, Moore, Greer and Stephens, churches are encouraged to take part in the annual Read The Alabama Baptist Day emphasis, which promotes the ministry of the newspaper, on July 25.
July 15 is the last day churches can order free bulletin inserts. To order, call 1-800-803-5201.
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