Faith & Culture

Integration of social ministry and verbal witness allows believers to make a holistic difference in people's lives.

Baptist layman and bestselling author John Grisham opposes the death penalty, as evident in his only nonfiction book and multiple fiction books and short stories.

Baptists remain divided over the use of the death penalty as the ultimate punishment for crime.

Kingdom advancement depends upon volunteers, area church leaders believe.

Greg Morrow, pastor of First Baptist Church of California, Mo., is passionate about volunteering for missions. He leads his church on mission trips and is a volunteer leader for a parachurch organization that mobilizes people to give time to mission endeavors.

Pastoral Succession: Congregations and ministers will face leadership transitions. They can determine together how to facilitate a smooth change.

God's grace made pastoral succession work at Broadview Baptist Church in Abilene, Texas, leaders believe. Now the retired senior pastor still attends and still serves the congregation he led for nearly 38 years.

Initiating the "second act" of life -- the retirement years -- should be carefully anticipated and thoroughly planned.

Frank Fain, director of educational services at The Baptist Home in Arcadia Valley, Mo., likens retirement to the biblical concept of Sabbath, when believers should take the time to strengthen their relationship with God; give renewed attention to their relationship to family, friends and others; and come to accept themselves.

The reasons to change churches are as varied as the people who do.