For the past week many of you have been participating in the Week of Prayer for North Carolina Baptist Hospital. Thank you for praying for the patients and their families, as well as the staff, of our Baptist Hospital. The Week of Prayer helps us focus our hearts as we prepare to give to the Mother’s Day Offering for Baptist Hospital.

My parents are now in their 80’s. I love my mom and dad, and enjoy brief visits with them whenever my business travels in western North Carolina allow me to be close enough to stop for awhile. Dad’s health still allows him to visit patients in hospitals and rest homes and he continues to enjoy preaching in different churches, but Mom does not get around as well as she once did.

When tragedy strikes, such as the earthquake in Haiti, our hearts are gripped by the photos we see on television and the videos of people searching under the rubble for family members. The cry for help rings out and we respond, eager to do something, anything, to help.

“He is not here: for He is risen. . . ” In those six words, spoken by an angel that first Resurrection Sunday, God confirmed that Jesus was indeed His Son. Jesus, who on Friday had been beaten, spat on, humiliated and crucified like a common criminal, conquered death, hell and the grave because He was fully God and fully man.

I am convinced God is calling North Carolina Baptists to become the strongest force in the history of this convention for reaching people with the message of the gospel. North Carolina Baptist churches and associations are utilizing numerous approaches to help achieve that goal.

Soon after becoming the Executive Director-Treasurer of the Baptist State Convention (BSC) I developed a document entitled, Seven Pillars for Ministry: Biblical Concepts for a Christ-Centered Vision to strategically and proactively guide the work of your BSC staff.

During the January meeting of the Executive Committee David Horton shared about the ministry of Fruitland Baptist Bible Institute. I had invited David to share a testimony in order to help members of our Executive Committee learn how North Carolina Baptists make an eternal impact for the Kingdom through their support of the Cooperative Program.

Not long ago we included an article on our web site about how students at Campbell University started a ministry to reach out to international students. Students attending the five affiliated North Carolina Baptist colleges and universities continue to make me proud as I hear about their involvement in missions and service on their campus, in the community and around the world.

There is something refreshing about the term “new” because it reminds us that things do not always have to be the same. God has always been in the business of doing new things. Through the process of salvation God redeems and transforms sinful human beings into new creatures in Christ Jesus (2 Cor.

Christmas is a time considered by some as the most wonderful time of the year. Many people in North America and other countries take notice of this season through Christmas decorations, parties with friends, family reunions and giving gifts. Our American soldiers and Christian missionaries celebrate Christmas even though they are far away from home serving in lands where the residents do not recognize and are not allowed to acknowledge the true meaning of Christmas.

Even though Southern Baptists promote and pray for international missions throughout the year, we are in the season when Woman’s Missionary Union challenges us to give special attention to a concerted prayer effort and the special offering that our International Mission Board (IMB) depends on to provide more than half of their annual budget.

During the past three and a half years as I have served as your Executive-Director Treasurer, God consumed my heart with one guiding vision, one heart cry, for our convention: “By God’s grace, we will become the strongest force in the history of this convention for reaching people with the message of the gospel.

This will be my last opportunity in the Biblical Recorder to encourage you to attend the 2009 annual meeting of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (BSCNC). This gathering will be held on November 9-11 at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro.

For many of us, most of the time life seems good and we take pleasure in living. We enjoy the simple things — flowers, the aroma of fresh coffee and we love to see the sunrise. However, during other times strong emotional undercurrents threaten to drag us down as a result of grief, anxiety, difficulty, depression, fear resulting from health problems, family problems or loss of financial security.

Being a genuine disciple of Jesus is more about who we are than what we do. The real character of a person is manifested in what he or she mentally dwells on or does when no one else seems to know. God knows all about our character and our level of spiritual maturity.