I would echo one point you made. If Morris Chapman had given a public enunciation of his reasons for asking for this resignation, he would be violating employee confidentiality codes and be staring down the muzzle of a lawsuit.

His “rumors” comment was unfortunate, but an employer should not publicize his reasons for ousting an employee.

I’d like to know what happened, but Morris Chapman should not be the one to tell us, as I understand things.

I like your approach.

The way I see it… get personally involved in the mission of planting a few churches every year and you will be hard pressed to find time to yak about political reorgs as you are making disciples. Acting in love makes ill political motives evaporate at a much faster rate.

Blessings,
Chris

In fact, they could probably just change the dust cover on the one they’ve already written and accomplish pretty much the same thing. Clarity – Movement – Alignment – Focus. Four words for the Task Force from someone who doesn’t know much about anything.

Good post. Everyone needs to take a deep breath on this and make sure they have the facts before making premature judgments.

David,

As usual, I agree with you completely. If the GCR is not about a heart change, then what is it about? Will restructuring save us? Absolutely not. It has to be about a heart change.

Plenty of people promoting the GCR find hope in the entire document. But, alas, we did not debate or approve the entire document. We approved a study of our organization. And it is that which prompts the questions. Some of us do want to believe there is more than a structural/political move to this – and so we ask questions that demonstrate some things do not seem to comport with the goal.

Who would argue with our common brokenness and need for repentance?

These are public questions about public actions. None are intended as innuendo and rumor.

Thus, whenever I hear rumors and rumblings about fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, whatever “side” they may happen to be identified with, I choose, until I have specific evidence to the contrary, to believe the best about them.

I believe that the great majority of those promoting the GCR are doing so primarily with a sincere desire to see God’s Kingdom advanced. I also believe that many, if not most, of those who have expressed some misgivings about the GCR, are sincerely motivated as well. Do some public figures in the SBC have ego issues? Undoubtedly. So do I. Don’t we all? But, by the grace of God, He keeps calling us to repentance, brokenness, and humility.

If there are specific problems that need to be dealt with, by all means, let’s deal with them. But, on the basis of specific evidence. Not rumors and innuendo. And, let’s go to “the offending parties” personally, and try to make things right first, before casting doubt publicly on the motives of anyone.

In the movie “Cold Mountain”, Inman says, “I’m sure God is weary of being called down on both sides of the argument.” Set during the Civil War, it is an obvious reference to preachers and people on both sides laying claim to be on God’s side or rather having God on their side. (I used this in 2003)

This quote continues to seem to fit us still.

We cannot organize our way to overcome matters of the heart.

As far the GCR goes…I’m truly afraid that by signing it we simply put ourselves at ease and left the convention being able to pat each other on the back and say “Boy we sure do love the Great Commission”. I don’t expect much if anything to change or else that would have been at the center of the conversation. Whats happened since the convention?
All we’ve done is decided that we want to study something….

Overstate on …

Thanks for putting this together. You’ve certainly given us plenty of things to sit back and chew on for a while. I’m fascinated sitting here trying to connect all the political dots.

Like you, I am concerned that the Great Commission Resurgence gets the cart before the horse. I wonder, in the end, what good any sort of politically-enabled convention restructuring (that portion of the GCR that gets all the attention, at least) can possibly have to help move us toward fulfilling the Great Commission when we seem to neglect the Great Commandment. After all, if we Baptists have trouble loving each other (as often seems to be the case in our internal political struggles), how in the world are we supposed to love the lost?

I may be overstating the state of things, of course… but these are things I ponder.