Backpacks rolling into Savannah along with messengers

Campus ministers Keith Wade, left, and Warren Skinner, right, help load boxes of backpacks into the 18-wheeler provided by the North American Mission Board. Wade serves at the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega and Skinner at Georgia Tech in downtown Atlanta. JOE WESTBURY/Index

Jim Shaffer, right, delivers a carload of backpacks to Bill Barker at the collection site behind Calvary Baptist Temple. Barker is director of Appalachian Regional Ministries and Schaffer was delivering the items collected by the MOPS ministry at Kennesaw First Baptist Church. JOE WESTBURY/Index

SAVANNAH — As messengers rolled into Calvary Baptist Temple on Monday morning for the first day of the Georgia Baptist Convention’s annual meeting, they brought with them tens of thousands of backpacks for needy children in Appalachia.

Bill Barker, director of Appalachian Regional Ministries (ARM) based out of the North American Mission Board, said he was confident a record 50,000 backpacks would be collected this season with Georgia being the front runner.

This is the fourth year that Georgia Baptists have responded to the call for the Christmas gifts for many children who otherwise would not have a Christmas present. As of Nov. 9 Georgia Baptists had pledged 25,893 fully stuffed backpacks, well on their way to the 30,000 goal. Last year churches collected a record 31,396 backpacks.

The response from Georgia Baptist churches has grown considerably since the first 4,400 were collected in 2012 from a challenge issued by then-Convention President John Waters, pastor of First Statesboro.

Keith Wade, campus minister at the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega, loads boxes of backpacks bound for needy children in Appalachia. The backpacks are being transported in an 18-wheeler provided by the North American Mission Board who oversees Appalachian Regional Ministries. JOE WESTBURY/Index

Four states involved

Campus ministers statewide have been busy today unloading the boxes from trailers and cars and loading them into the North American Mission Board’s 18-wheeler headed for the forgotten hollers and communities of Appalachia.

Barker said four states are participating in the effort and show the best spirit of Southern Baptists to the world.

“About 3,000 children who received backpacks last year are already participating in the mail-in Bible study lessons administered through ARM,” he noted. The Georgia Baptist Mission Board partners with ARM to identify sites where the backpacks are most desperately needed.

Lauren Youmans, campus minister at Brewton Parker College, rolls another load of backpacks to the collection site at Calvary Baptist Temple. JOE WESTBURY/Index

As a child completes a lesson, he or she mails their answers to ARM which grades the lesson and sends a new lesson. At the end of the program the child receives a free Bible.

Physical, spiritual needs met

State Missionary Frank Nuckolls, who oversees the program for Georgia Baptists, said last year’s donations of school supplies, warm winter coats, gender specific Christmas presents, and copies of the Christmas story resulted in 1,317 professions of faith.

Kevin Kilgore, minister of education at Northside Baptist Church of Tifton, unloads about 150 backpacks from several churches. His church served as a regional collection site for the items. JOE WESTBURY/Index

“These backpacks provide a wonderful means to meet both the physical as well as spiritual needs of the children and their parents. For many they are the only Christmas presents these children will receive.”

Other reports

Elsewhere this morning (Nov. 14), Executive Committee members heard reports which will be presented in more detail in tonight and tomorrow’s sessions. Among those, Convention President Thomas Hammond refreshed Executive Committee members with an overview of The Big Invite, a plan to encourage Georgia Baptist congregations to reach their neighbors through invitations to attend Easter Sunday services.

Bill Barker of Appalachian Regional Ministries is confident 50,000 backpacks will be collected this year from four states ... with Georgia remaining the largest contributor with more than 30,000 collections. JOE WESTBURY/Index

“It’s sad for me to tell you that only two percent of our church members … 2 out of every 100 … will invite anyone to church this year. There is a great potential for a harvest if we will get our eyes off of ourselves and onto the harvest,” he noted.

Hammond then explained how members of his church recently knocked on 2,200 doors in Alpharetta to invite residents or leave printed invitations on their doors. That Easter Sunday saw 800 first-time visitors to First Alpharetta’s Easter service, and 11 professions of faith.

Georgia Baptist Convention President Thomas Hammonds discusses a portion of The Big Invite, which will be unveiled tonight in his message to Convention messengers. The emphasis focuses on a statewide invitation for churches to invite the unchurched in their communities to Easter Sunday service. JOE WESTBUY/Index

“Statistics show that many people – not all, but many – are open to attending a worship service if only we invite them,” he added.

This year’s 195th annual meeting will begin at 6 p.m. tonight at Calvary Baptist Temple and will adjourn at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. For a full schedule visit the Index website at www.christianindex.org and click on the Annual Meeting link on the right-hand side of the page.

The Voices of Truth from Brewton Parker College sang the blessing for the lunch meal following the Executive Committee meeting. The vocal ensemble is conducted by David Wilson, head of the newly-reinvigorated Music Department at the Mount Vernon college. JOE WESTBURY/Index

Mark Sterling, pastor of Curtis Avenue Baptist Church in Augusta and fourth vice president of the Georgia Baptist Convention, brought the devotional at today's (Nov. 14) Executive Committee meeting. JOE WESTBURY/Index