Episode 255

Healing from Trauma & SBC Diversity Entering a New Age

Dec 26, 2022

Alameda County, Calif., across the bay from San Francisco and including cities such as Oakland and Berkeley, probably wouldn’t be the first location Southern Baptists associate with a sign of the Convention’s future. And, about five years ago, Lynnette Ezell and a friend walked into a north Georgia Department of Family Services office bearing diapers.

Transcript

As we take a look back at 2022, we’ll be remembering some of our favorite stories from this year.
Here’s one…

Alameda County, Calif., across the bay from San Francisco and including cities such as Oakland and Berkeley, probably wouldn’t be the first location Southern Baptists associate with a sign of the Convention’s future.

However, it contains 127 Southern Baptist congregations. That’s more than any county in Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri or Louisiana. Oklahoma, Alabama and Georgia each have only one county numbering more. Another notable distinction for Alameda County – 44 of those congregations are African American, followed closely by 42 that are Asian American. Anglo congregations are a distant third at 24.

That’s not all. Five other California counties have more churches than Alameda – Los Angeles (593), San Diego (203), Orange (163), San Bernardino (133) and Riverside (133).

Those findings and much more can be discovered at the GCRM Ethnic Research Portal. Accessing the information is free upon registering with the site.
===

About five years ago, Lynnette Ezell and a friend walked into a north Georgia Department of Family Services office bearing diapers.

“I made an appointment and said, ‘How can we help?’” Ezell told Baptist Press in a phone interview, recalling the moment she sat down across the desk from a social worker.

“I decided before I went in there that whatever she said, we were going to do,” Ezell said. “She leaned forward, and she said, ‘You know that God and Jesus and all that that you all talk about at your church? The only time our children hear the name of God is when someone’s swearing at them.’”

That forthright statement from an overworked social worker went right along with the lessons Ezell had learned in her journey as an adoptive mother – many times physical needs must come before spiritual ones.

The Ezells had three biological children and then adopted three children internationally – children Lynette calls “special gifts” that “God grafted into our lives.” The children were different ages upon their adoptions, but even babies can have internalized trauma.

Developmentally, children who have endured trauma may be years behind their chronological age. And pushing them to learn and behave the way they “should” for their age is “setting them up to fail,” Ezell said. Churches should keep this in mind when placing children who’ve suffered trauma in Sunday School classes or other age-specific activities.
===

Good News for Today is sponsored by The Voice of the Martyrs


Good News for Today is made possible through our friends at The Voice of the Martyrs, a nonprofit organization that serves persecuted Christians around the world. Founded in 1967 by Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, VOM is dedicated to inspiring believers to deepen their commitment to Christ and to fulfill His Great Commission — no matter the cost. Find out more and sign up for their free monthly magazine at vom.org/goodnews.
===

Read the full piece and sign up for our daily emails at Baptist Press.com.

Related Episodes

Scientist Uses Resurrection to Lead Hundreds to Christ, God’s Design Best Learned in Church & Good Friday

Professor James Tour of Rice University uses his expertise in nanotechnology to engage in deep discussions about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. God’s design for human sexuality is better learned in the church through the Scriptures than on TikTok. That’s what Nick Moore, the pastor at First Church in Gatlinburg, Tennessee says. And, today is Good Friday. It’s the day Christians remember the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on a Roman cross.

Supreme Court Hears Abortion Pill Case, “Jesus” Film Coming to a Screen Near You & When We Blame Others For Ministry Difficulties

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on March 26 in a case that will rule on the availability of mifepristone, a drug commonly used in medication abortions. Sight & Sound’s “Jesus,” portraying the Savior’s life in a theatrical musical, will be available for free livestreaming Good Friday through Easter, March 29-31. And, everyone involved in ministry faces challenges. In the Baptist Press Toolbox, Chuck Lawless writes about the sad consequences when we start blaming others for more than their share.

Easter Sunday Remains a High Attendance Day, Gospel’s Power Showing & Prayerfully Waiting on God’s Timing

Most pastors are expecting one of their largest crowds on Easter, but those expectations have tempered some in the past decade. Ministering to people in recovery centers and homeless shelters has resulted in some amazing Gospel success stories at Faith Baptist of Myra. And, in one of His most well-known parables in which He taught the importance of patience in prayer, Jesus contrasted a powerful judge to a vulnerable widow (Luke 18:1-8).

0 Comments