I've been in Indianapolis since this past Sunday night for the Southern Baptist Convention. It's been a hectic week, so not much time for blogging... just the occasional tweet via Twitter. I jokingly told some of my friends that I was going to Indy to hang out with some of my nutty relatives in the Family of God. I was joking. Really. Well, for the most part.
Nutty relatives. As as the saying goes, "Every family has one." (Note to all my relatives: No this does not apply to you. No, you are not the "one" I am talking about here. Do not send me nasty emails!)
The other night on the Daily Show, they showed a video of this woman ranting and raving like a lunatic at the Democratic Rules committee meeting the other week. The shot came back to host Jon Stewart who had this pained expression on his face and said, "OK, Grandma... see you at Passover... love you." We all fell on the floor laughing. That's what I'm talking about... nutty relatives.
You gotta love Baptists. They get a bad rap for the most part nowadays (much of it deserved, sadly) but they are good people. They love the Lord, they love people (they really do) and - from the looks of the "messengers" to the 151st Southern Baptist Convention, they love them some food, too. Not too many folks around here look like they've missed too many meals. Sadly, I include myself in that assessment. (I fit right in here in more ways than one.)
My colleagues and I all arrived here on Saturday by different flights and in one case by car (and through the flood waters.) While we were on the way, we were playing - via Blackberry Messenger - a game we called "Spot the Baptists." I'll bet we were right at least 80% of the time. You can just tell when someone is a Baptist... they look like Baptists. You couldn't miss them. (Keep in mind, I'm allowed to say this. I've been a Baptist since I was enrolled in Cradle Roll when I was a month old... If you don't know what "Cradle Roll" is, ask a Baptist.)
Three years ago this week, I left vocational ministry after more than two decades serving Southern Baptist churches. When people ask me about my denominational affiliation, I jokingly tell them I am a Recovering Southern Baptist. The church we attend is technically a Baptist church, but as is the case with so many outreach oriented churches these days, they do not advertise the fact that they are Baptist.
Here's the thing. Some of the nicest, kindest, godliest people on the planet are here i Indy this week. I lot of them are dear friends of mine. As I said earlier, they love people. They also hate sin. Sometimes they get those two things mixed up, or at the very least they come across that way, and so they have a reputation for being mean spirited and even downright hateful. The vast majority of them don't come across that way, and the majority of those who do don't mean to come across that way. Many Baptists know they have an image problem and they want to correct it. They want their unchurched friends and neighbors to know that they sincerely love them.
I've enjoyed being with my Baptist brothers and sisters this week. Hanging out with them has reminded me of something this week. I love them all. Even the nutty ones.
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