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More than 500 N.C. Baptists serve in weekend state missions blitz
By
Carla Wynn Davis, CBF Communications
November 6, 2007
HENDERSON, N.C. – The small Flint Hill neighborhood in Henderson, N.C., hadn’t seen
 | | Anna Selby of McGill Baptist Church in Concord, N.C., helps at the Flint Hill site during the CBFNC missions weekend. Carla Wynn Davis photo |
traffic like this in years. Cars and church vans packed in a small lot, bulldozers moving through the neighborhood, and dumpsters in the street. People buzzed about picking up pieces of houses that once were, chainsaws fired, and hammers clanged at old bricks – all in the shadow of a local church wanting community change.
“Whenever you see something like this unfold, you know God did it,” said Brenda Peace, pastor of Greater Little Zion United Holy Church – a congregation that wants to transform its own struggling community.
The congregation came a step closer Nov. 2-4 as members of Cooperative Baptist Fellowship churches in North Carolina converged on Vance, Warren and Halifax counties for a weekend missions blitz. About half of the 500 participants helped in Henderson, where First Baptist Church has been partnering with Pearce and other African-American churches for community change.
“Your being here sends a powerful message to us that we are not in this mission alone – that we are joined by other Baptists who care all across our state,” Paul Baxley, pastor of First Baptist Henderson, told participants before work began. “What you are doing is making an investment in hope.”
The event was sponsored by CBF of North Carolina and hosted by four area CBF partner churches already active in their communities – First Baptist Henderson, Littleton Baptist, Warrenton Baptist and Wise Baptist.
“We couldn’t do this without local churches taking the lead,” said CBFNC coordinator Larry Hovis. “This is a local church-driven mission.”
CBFNC was in part inspired by its work with Together for Hope, CBF’s national rural poverty initiative in 20 of the poorest U.S. counties. Henderson and Littleton have “pockets of poverty,” said CBFNC missions coordinator Linda Jones.
The 500 participants came from all over the state – all ages and all levels of experience to work as one. It included children like Jonathan Dean, who came with the Summit Church in Webster to help carry off pieces of a demolished house, and those retired like B.F. Waddell, who fired up a chainsaw while he celebrated his 86th birthday.
“If you can [serve], you might as well,” said Waddell, a member of McGill Baptist Church in Concord.
About 30 miles away in Littleton, Emily Lemons encouraged children while she helped with carnival games.
“It shows them that somebody loves them and cares about them,” said Lemons, a member of Ardmore Baptist Church in Winston-Salem. “Hopefully they’ll make the connection that God loves them.”
That hope was shared by many serving in Littleton, whether they were spinning cotton candy at the carnival, making supply kits at a pregnancy support center, picking up trash around the community or painting the local John 3:16 community ministry center.
“We hope we make a little bit of difference,” said Tim Cunningham, a member of Westwood Baptist Church in Cary, N.C.
It’s that little that goes a long way in Littleton, where Littleton Baptist Church pastor Mike Currin was thrilled with how much had been done in one weekend.
“There’s no way [our church alone] could do all these things we’re doing in one day,” he said. “This gives people hope that people care.”
The large turnout gives CBFNC leadership hope that participants will be inspired to begin being more missional in their own communities.
“I’m hoping they’ll see how you do this and take it back with them,” Jones said.
CBF is a fellowship of Baptist Christians and churches who share a passion for the Great Commission and a commitment to Baptist principles of faith and practice. The Fellowship’s mission is to serve Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission.
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Cooperative Baptist Fellowship ©2007 Church Benefits Board 800.352.8741, P.O. Box 450329 Atlanta, GA 31145-0329
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