Cooperative Program

I’ve always loved playing games and competing. Like many of you, I enjoy competition, and I always have. I played sports in high school, competed in various recreation leagues as an adult, and I always enjoy a good board game. Now I have many favorite board games, but one that definitely stands out is the […]

Did you know that the topic most referenced in the Bible is love? While that may not surprise you, you may be surprised that the second most referenced biblical topic is money. In fact, there are more than 1,000 references to money in the Bible. Famously, love and money are connected in 1 Timothy 6:10.

In October 1823 on a Tuesday, Alabama churches sent messengers to a meeting in Greensboro. Those in attendance helped form the Alabama Baptist State Convention. They promptly elected Charles Crow as their first president. At the time, there were roughly 5,000 Alabama Baptists in about 125 churches. From those days until now, God has blessed the

I’m sure many of you have already completed your Christmas shopping and you’re just enjoying the holiday season watching Hallmark movies and/or football games and sipping on hot chocolate. For those of us who are last-minute gift buyers, there’s still a few days left to procrastinate. Not only is this the time of year to

As we think about our lives as followers of Christ, we should be constantly reminded of a few foundational truths: We belong to Christ. We have been redeemed, and we now live for Christ and His glory – not our own. We have been given the Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20) and Great Commandment (Matt. 22:36-40)

Several years ago, I was serving as a youth minister, and we were looking to make the youth area more, “youthy.” I think we’ve all seen this type of thing in churches, haven’t we? The church I was serving had space for the youth ministry that had formerly been the sanctuary many years earlier. The

When my son played T-ball, the Tigers had a pitcher that was the fastest player in the league. This kid had amazing speed, but the rest of his team wasn’t quite so fast or very good at baseball. When we played the Tigers, one of our boys got a hit with two runners on base.

“Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He

Jay Stewart has been named director of the office of Cooperative Program and church financial resources at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions. “I was raised here in Alabama, and my whole life has been blessed by the work of Alabama Baptists and the Cooperative Program,” he said, noting that he studied at New Orleans

Alabama Baptist brothers and sisters: I believe in, participate in and thank God for the Cooperative Program. The CP is personal for me because I am the pastor of an SBC church but also because my father has been an SBC pastor for more than 40 years. I learned at an early age the value of