Lurking no Longer

After almost a year of lurking on other people's blogs, I have decided it is time for me to jump in the water and try it out. I am amazed at the wisdom, humor and knowledge displayed on many of the blogs I have been reading and figured, I could at least add my two cents. I have also been disturbed by the tone and attacks on many blogs but I guess it is the world we live in. My main purpose in writing, is that as someone who has served on staff in Baptist churches for the last 18 years, I am afraid we are coming apart at the fringes. I considered myself naive enough to believe that after all that we saw in the convention in the 80's and 90's we would finally get down to the task (and focus) of once again striving to reaching our world with the message of Christ. I am now finding that many of those who considered themselves "warriors" in the fight for doctrinal purity can't seem to put down their swords and will not be happy until the SBC looks like "they deem it to be".
A recent Barna report looks at this current generation that considers themselves evangelicals and the lasting effects the church has had on them and the results are startling. Over 60% of those once involved in church drop out of the local church between the ages of 20-30, (something I guess we have been seeing for awhile) but what is so disturbing is these young adults dropping out once considered themselves active in church. These are not unchurched masses, but products of our student ministries and churches. It should break our hearts and cause a lot of introspection, but I am afraid the mainline groups are more concerned with tearing each other down because someone believes the Bible doesn't teach or does teach abstinence from alcohol, or whether someone might have a PPL. We continue to strain at gnats.
Oh well, I have a unique perspective on some of this because I serve on staff at probably the largest (if not most well known) Southern Baptist Charismatic church. I know just the thought of what some seem to be two mutually exclusive titles to be disturbing, but that is who we are. We are innerantist believers of the BFM who happen to believe that all of the gifts of the Spirit are available today. We strive to find a balance between Spirit and Truth (sometimes we suceed and other times we have failed and had to back track). I am a graduate of a Texas Baptist University and SWBTS. I consider myself a Biblical conservative (according to many of the definitions qouted online) and I do not speak in tongues (or have a PPL as those that like abreviations call it) and see no contradiction in those terms. I guess that is where the discussions start. I have seen and heard a of things about Baptist and the gifts in the last couple of weeks and this is my way of tossing my hat in the ring of discussion.