Conventional Thinking: Disorderly conduct
As summer comes to a close and the school year begins, many parents breathe a sigh of relief. For far too many families, the 2018 summer hours were spent, not with fun in the sun, but in endless screen time. This screen time often comes in the form of movies, TV shows, music and the ever-present video games. According to Fortune Magazine, one video game alone—“Fortnite”—“has snagged more than 125 million players in less than a year,...
Conventional Thinking: Faithbook
In the wake of recent Facebook security breaches, in which many account users’ personal information was compromised, the stock price of Facebook took a major fall, costing its founder and owner Mark Zuckerberg billions of dollars. The sudden drop in Facebook’s stock price has been accompanied by people, many of whom have grown weary and leery of the social media giant, cancelling their accounts. Yet, Facebook remains the largest...
Makeover for ministry: Langston BSU/BCM building undergoing remodel
LANGSTON—In June 1993, the Baptist Messenger published news about building improvements made at the Langston University Baptist Student Union (BSU). Now, 25 years later—and after years of fruitful ministry at the building and on campus—the BSU, now called Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM), property once again is undergoing major improvements and enhancements. Volunteers with the Oklahoma Baptist State Convention and the Baptist...
Conventional Thinking: VBS, a great success
The cookies and lemonade are consumed. The clever decorations are put away, and the volunteers have moved on to the next ministry opportunity. Yet the fun memories, take-home crafts and important spiritual lessons that happened, still linger. Yes, as many Vacation Bible Schools (VBS) have come to a close, it’s a good time to think about what just happened and what can happen next. First, there is the opportunity for VBS follow-up. Not...
A winning way: Coach, pastor mentors on the field and off
NORMAN—Both occupations build people up and offer encouragement. They both speak impassioned words on a regular basis. And they both are well-known jobs on the field of life. Today’s pastors and coaches have many things in common. It just so happens that at least one man in central Oklahoma literally does both. Pastor Mat McIntosh of Norman, Blue Lakes, also serves as athletic director and high school football coach for Community...
