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Northwest Baptist Witness Communications Team Leader/Editor: Cameron Crabtree Managing Editor, The Witness: Sheila Allen Graphic Design & Production Assistants: Jennifer Logue and Beckie Bruhn Circulation Services: Twyla Outhier Churches of the Northwest Baptist Convention provide the Northwest Baptist Witness for their individual members through the Cooperative Program. Individual subscriptions are available: $12/yr. in U.S. | $18/yr. int'l Published each month by: Northwest Baptist Convention Phone: 360-882-2100 | Fax: 360-882-2295 | E-mail: ISSN 0745-2195 Circulation: 14,000

Messengers Elect Bill Crews Executive Director
By Cameron Crabtree

VANCOUVER - Northwest Baptist Convention messengers elected Bill Crews as NWBC executive director Nov. 14 at their annual meeting in Yakima, Wash. Crews, 71, former president and chancellor of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, had been serving as the convention's interim executive director since April 1.
The NWBC executive board voted a day earlier to place a search committee's recommendation of Crews before convention messengers. In presenting Crews as the candidate on behalf of the board, Washington pastor Joe Martin called Crews the "youngest mature man I know," a reference to Crews' energy and creative thinking even after more than 50 years in ministry.
Convention messengers approved Crews as the new leader on a ballot vote with no discussion.
"It would be an understatement to say I am humbled by what you have done," Crews told messengers after results of the 262-12 vote were announced. "But I have a confidence that we have a journey to take together over the next several years that we cannot do alone."
Crews, along with various speakers at the meeting, pointed to the need for spiritual renewal and fresh vision across the convention.
Stepping into the post after two years of strained convention relationships following disagreements over the leadership style of previous executive director Gus Suárez, who resigned earlier in the spring, Crews said healing has already begun taking place. He credited much of it to local church leaders in the Northwest.
"It appears to me God has used all of us to begin restoring that sense of confidence and trust that we need," he said. "I am confident God is going to give us all the wisdom, direction and courage we need to pursue the mission he gave us 60 years ago (when the convention formed) to reach the Northwest and the world for Jesus Christ."
Although the NWBC faces the need for critical change, Crews called it an opportunity to see God at work.
"I'm excited and optimistic about the opportunity that God is going to do what only God can do," he concluded. "I would hope when we gather (at next year's convention in Portland) that it would more than a business meeting, but a time of rejoicing over what God has done."
Crews served as a pastor of Victory Baptist Church in Seattle from 1967-72 and Metropolitan Baptist Church in Portland from 1972-77. He was NWBC president from 1975-76 and NWBC director of communications and editor of the Northwest Baptist Witness from 1977-78.
Leaving the Northwest in 1978 to serve as pastor of the 2,300-member Magnolia Avenue Baptist Church in Riverside, Calif., he then served as president of Golden Gate Seminary from 1986-2003 and as chancellor for an additional two years.
Returning to the Northwest in 2004 with their son, Ron, he and his wife, Jo Ann, live in Camas, Wash., near Vancouver.
Crews earned a bachelor of arts from Hardin-Simmons University, a bachelor of divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and a doctor of ministry from Golden Gate.

NWBC Elects New President, Adopts 2008 Budget
By Sheila Allen and Cameron Crabtree

YAKIMA, Wash. - Messengers to the 60th annual meeting of the Northwest Baptist Convention elected Bill Crews as executive director, approved a $5.7 million budget for ministry needs in 2008 and selected Oregon pastor Keith Evans as president.
With the theme "Building Tomorrow Today," the convention drew 405 messengers and 65 registered guests to the convention center in Yakima, Wash.
Messengers acted on the recommendation from the executive board to elect Crews, the former president and chancellor of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary who had been serving as interim executive director since April 1 (See related article).
Evans, senior pastor of Greater Gresham (Ore.) Baptist Church, was elected president in a five-way race. He succeeds Tim Crownover, pastor of Northside Baptist Church in Vancouver, who was ineligible for re-election.
Messengers also elected Tim Foster, pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in The Dalles, Ore., as first vice president, and Eric Sarensen, pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Lakeview, Ore., as second vice-president.
Convention participants heard repeated calls for change in ministry priorities and methods to reverse a 20-year decline of key ministry trends across the Northwest Baptist Convention.
"There is too much at stake to live in the past," said Crews. "I was shocked to learn that every church in our convention could triple in size and we would have touched only 1 percent of the population. Business as usual won't get the job done."
Crews highlighted goals for increases in baptisms, worship attendance and other ministry endeavors that he will help Northwest Baptists pursue.
"Whatever gifts and talents I have, I want to devote to helping our churches get back on track," Crews pledged.
The $5.7 million spending plan for 2008 anticipates $3.2 million in Cooperative Program gifts, a nearly 7 percent increase over the current year's CP giving projections. Monies forwarded from the Cooperative Program portion of the budget to the Southern Baptist Convention for global missions, education and benevolence efforts were raised slightly to 25.25 percent, for a projected $808,000 total.
Funding remained at 7 percent of the Cooperative Program budget for shared funding of the Pacific Northwest Campus of Golden Gate Seminary, for a total of $243,000.
Messengers affirmed the continuation of a five-year plan for the Sylvia Wilson Mission Offering that emphasizes church planting, evangelism and leadership development.
On a related note, the convention approved a $135,000 goal for next year's SWMO, with the allocations specified as $80,000 for church planting and $55,000 for leadership ministries.
Messengers also amended NWBC bylaws to specify that ballots be cast to elect an executive director and other convention officers. An addition to the bylaws states the executive director can be terminated by either a simple majority of convention messengers or by a two-thirds majority of the executive board.
During the executive board's report, convention leaders noted the election of Joe Flegal, who has served as administrative pastor at Greater Gresham (Ore.) Baptist church for 18 years, as NWBC church health strategist. Flegal, who begins his new duties Jan. 1, will be the key leader for developing a pilot project aimed at revitalizing churches across the Northwest.
The administrative committee also approved moving current church health strategist Jim Harvey to the position of evangelism strategist. Because Harvey is past the typical age for retirement, the administrative committee approved an extension of service to December 31, 2008.
The committee also granted a service extension to Ken Brooks, the volunteer mobilization strategist, until the end of next year.
The board also reported action was taken on a motion made at last year's convention meeting asking that the current NWBC retirement policy - stated in the employee personnel manual - be examined to ensure it is "in line with Scripture."
The policy continues to recognize the normal age of retirement for board-elected staff at the point they are eligible to begin drawing full Social Security benefits, but extended service may be granted by invitation of the executive director with the concurrence of the administrative committee.
A request for extended service may also be submitted by the staff member for approval by the administrative committee in one-year increments. With regard to NWBC employed staff, the new policy reflects the provisions of the Age and Discrimination Employment Act, disallowing a mandatory retirement age.
The board also changed the personnel manual's grievance and disciplinary policy to include a recovery process, so that any board-elected staff would have a period of time to improve in defined areas of their job description if they have been deemed unsatisfactory.
Messengers approved a slate of ten resolutions, including one which recognized the contributions of Dan Stringer and Bob Flegal to the Northwest Baptist Convention, both of whom died in recent weeks.
In other business, messengers approved a calendar of convention programs and events for 2009, okayed nominations for individuals to serve on various NWBC boards and heard reports by various convention-related entities.
Participants also listened to sermons from Crownover, Evans, Clint Ashley, member of CrossPointe Baptist Church in Vancouver, Wash., and chair of the executive director search committee, Ergun Caner, president of Liberty Theological Seminary in Lynchburgh, Va., Chris McNairy of the North American Mission Board, and Montia Setzler, pastor of Magnolia Avenue Baptist Church in Riverside, Calif.

Joe Flegal Elected to Church Health Post

VANCOUVER - Joe Flegal, administrative ministry pastor of Greater Gresham (Ore.) Baptist Church, has been elected church health strategist for the Northwest Baptist Convention effective Jan. 1.
The NWBC executive board elected Flegal, 50, at their Nov. 13 meeting held in conjunction with the convention annual meeting in Yakima, Wash.
He will succeed Jim Harvey, who will serve as the convention's evangelism strategist beginning Dec. 1.
Besides giving leadership to the convention's church health ministry area, Flegal will assist in the development of a church consultation pilot project designed to revitalize churches.
"I have known Joe since he was a high school student and I am excited about working directly with him in the pilot project to facilitate healthy churches," said Bill Crews, NWBC executive director.
Flegal has been on staff at Greater Gresham since 1989. He moved there from a staff position at Frederick Boulevard Baptist Church in St. Joseph, Mo., where he served from 1984-89.
He received a doctor of ministry from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in 1999, a master of divinity from Golden Gate in 1992, a master of arts in religious education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1984 and a bachelor of business administration from Hardin-Simmons University in 1980.
He has served on the NWBC nominating committee from 2004-07 and on the Southern Baptist Convention's committee on nominations for 2004-05.
He and his wife, Sueann, have two children.

Pastors Urged to Find Joy in God
By Cameron Crabtree

YAKIMA, Wash. - Church leaders must guard against putting religious duty before devotion to God, Terry Little warned pastors and lay leaders during the Nov. 12-13 Pastor-Layman's Conference in Yakima, Wash.
"We know today that the absence of joy - we would also call that the presence of discouragement - is having a great effect upon the effectiveness of ministry all across our land," said Little, pastor of Crossover Church in Mead, Wash.
But Little cautioned pastors from seeking joy in ministry itself.
"I believe the Lord can use ministry to bring joy into our life, but primarily joy does not come from ministry," he said. "Our joy comes from the Lord."
Living out the Great Commandment to love God with "all you heart, strength and mind" is often hard for leaders, Little declared.
That happens, he said, because church leaders can become preoccupied with their ministry duties. He noted some pastors may not struggle with the easy-to-label temptations that can destroy local ministries.
"But it will be easy for me to travel back to my ministry setting and put my duty above my devotion and my ministries above him," he observed. "And every time that happens I can feel the joy level of my life being absolutely stripped."
Duty is a "trap" that distracts too many leaders, he said.
Ministry leaders should realize God called them as his children before he called them as leaders, Little urged: "Our primary ministry is not unto our church but unto God himself. That itself becomes the source of our joy."
The longtime Northwest Baptist pastor acknowledged the downward trend of baptisms and other key ministry indicators in the Northwest Baptist Convention over the last two decades. But he said they may point to more basic issues.
"I submit to you that before we fix the numbers we must fix the heart," he said.
"I believe we are called to reach people - that is absolutely foundational to who we are as Southern Baptists," Little emphasized. "But there's a difference between reaching people and building the numbers and if we're not very careful we can substitute one for the other."
Leaders can also "miss the people" or "miss the happiness" if they become preoccupied with ministry duties.
Too often, he said, ministry is taken too seriously.
"I've been in Baptist work long enough to know that it's not the 10 Commandments that get us," he quipped. "It's the 11th and 12th ones - 'Thou shalt have no fun.' 'Thou shalt be boring and dead.' Where did we get that one? It's killing us."
Jason Brinker, founding pastor of Harbor Pointe Community Church in Mukilteo, Wash., stressed the importance of God's call in leading the church.
"Ministry is a call from God," Brinker said. "Unless you know you can't possibly do anything else but this ministry, don't do it."
Brinker himself relied on that a year ago when he felt "at the bottom of the pit" in his ministry setting.
"I was pastoring 200 plus people, taking out the trash, turning out the lights, folding programs - I was tired," Brinker told participants. "I just broke before God and said, 'All my dreams, all my plans, do whatever you want to do with me."
The perseverance and trust in God has paid off, Brinker said.
"This last year we have seen over 90 people give their life to Christ, 67 baptized," he noted. "This has little to do with me and more to do with letting God accomplish what he wanted."
The officers elected to plan and preside over next year's event are Corey Zanotti (president), pastor of East Side Baptist Church in Springfield, Ore., Dale Jenkins (first vice president), pastor of Airway Heights (Wash.) Baptist Church, and Ben Trigsted (second vice president), pastor of Starr Road Baptist Church in Otis Orchards, Wash. Patrick Tapia, a lay leader from Tucker Road Baptist Church in Hood River, Ore., will once again serve as the event's treasurer.

Mission Celebration Wrapup
By Sheila Allen

YAKIMA, Wash. -"Live the call, change the world" was declared at the Mission Celebration annual meeting in Yakima, Wash. The conference, held Nov. 12-13, preceded the Northwest Baptist Convention annual meeting, and featured a variety of missions speakers.
Kristy Carr, ministry consultant with Woman's Missionary Union, highlighted a Northwest family participating in Familyfest, a missions endeavor that encourages families to minister together.
"The Gottschalk family of Hillsboro, Ore., was the first family who signed up to go to Juarez, Mexico," said Carr. "They understand the call, and took three of their six children to Puerta Del Cielo Church to help with Vacation Bible School, meeting people and sharing Christ with community members each day. God is calling us all, daily, with opportunities to serve where you live and beyond."
International Board Missionary Philip Cain joined the lineup of speakers who challenged participants in missionary ventures.
"God saved us and gave us a holy calling," said Cain. "I sense people saying I'm not qualified or not skilled enough. He wants willing people to live out their faith in obedience, one step at a time."
Cain noted the privilege he felt to host the many volunteers who travel Niger, West Africa where he serves.
"I let people know they may be used with a smile or a drink of cold water; simple things to draw people to God," said Cain. "There are hundreds of people groups who haven't heard the name of Christ, a billion people. It will take people coming out of the pews and sharing."
Also sharing about opportunities for service was Kay Bennett, of North American Mission Board who serves at the Baptist Friendship House in New Orleans, La., a home for women and children who were homeless.
"Answering the call is not easy," said Bennett. "It doesn't matter where you are, there are abusive situations. You may be the only one to offer help."
Friendship House has 52 ministries for women who come to them, often with no marketable skills.
"People will listen to anything I have to say when they are treated with kindness," said Bennett.
Kim Runner, missions education/women's ministry strategist for the Northwest Baptist Convention, established the Wisdom award, named in honor of Sara Wisdom, who served the convention for over 30 years as WMU strategist. The award was given to outgoing Northwest WMU president Gwen Moor and Carla Goss, student consultant, who both have served four-year terms.
In the future, the business portion of the Mission Celebration will be conducted at the Northwest Women's Summit scheduled for April 11-12. The Mission Celebration will be moved to the Mission Education Conference, slated for Oct. 3-4 in Vancouver, Wash.

Author Points Collegians Toward Chastity
By Chad Pumpelly

ANTELOPE, Ore. - Christians seeking to affirm Christian sexuality should stress purity over virginity, author Lauren Winner told young adults attending Catalyst, an annual gathering sponsored by Northwest Collegiate Ministries.
The three-day event, using the theme "The Naked Truth," drew more than 175 people from 21 campus ministry groups to the remote Wildhorse Canyon in eastern Oregon Nov. 2-4.
Considering Jesus' teaching that lust is sin, even virgins can be sexual sinners in need of forgiveness and redemption, suggested Winner, author of the recently released Real Sex: The Naked Truth.
"The main point of chastity is how we live pure lives in the now," she said.
Critics who think highlighting forgiveness and redemption instead of "saving one's self' offers a degree of permission miss the point, observed one collegiate ministry leader.
"When you teach forgiveness, you're not giving permission" said Ronnie Venecia of the University of Washington-Tacoma campus. "You're sharing the gospel."
This was good news for Brian Schutte from Mt. Hood Community College, who asked what Christians should tell non-virgins seeking to be faithful in the future.
Winner suggested the main concern is neither past sexual sin nor playing a "waiting game" for marriage.
"Chastity is a spiritual discipline of restraint critical to living out single spirituality," she said. "Christians must focus on "how we can live rightly, most loving, and most clearly witnessing to the gospel," the author noted.
Winner insisted that chastity be placed in the context of the greater Christian narrative of "Creation and fall and redemption."
Conferees appreciated Winner's perspective on the subject many church leaders hesitate to address publicly.
"She is unique and non-traditional," said Venecia. "It is good to see people responding well; our generation is hearing something contextual."
During one of the conference's early sessions, a panel of NCM directors opened the floor for questions from participants. It provided an opportunity for students to ask questions like "how far is too far?" and "how can you honor God with your dating relationship?"
Students were encouraged by hearing the struggles and victories in chastity from ministry leaders they knew.
Matt Maw from the University of Idaho noted that the church and the world send a mixed message about sex, so it was good to have "the topic fleshed out."
Students clapped, raised their hands and sang along as the Justin Cofield Band kicked off the weekend's worship session with a late night concert.
"A great style, straight up worship and I dig it," said Jacob Phillips from the University of Oregon in Eugene.
The conference offered opportunities for students from various campuses to mingle. Krystal Fisher of Columbia Basin Community College said it was "spectacular" meeting up with all the other colleges and praying with friends from other campuses.
Recreation was in the mix, too.
Wildhorse Canyon offers several activities for free time including the "Screamer," a giant three-person swing that lifts users 50 feet above the ground, and a sports center with rock climbing towers, ping pong tables, and basketball courts.
"The big swing was pretty much amazing," said Jennifer Miller from Central Washington University. And yes, she screamed.
(Chad Pumpelly directs the Northwest Collegiate Ministry in Yakima, Wash.)

Heritage Awards Named
By Bill Walker and Cecil Sims

YAKIMA, Wash. - A spirit of sacrifice is the hallmark of two couples who received the Northwest Baptist Historical Society's Heritage Award at the annual meeting held Nov. 13-14 in Yakima, Wash. Both duos have spent their adult lives in service to the people and churches of the Northwest Baptist Convention.
Gilbert and Greta Skaar met while he was an infantryman training for the World War II invasion of Europe, when he went to the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, for a program for local servicemen. Greta Lofman's family was providing the entertainment, and their romance began. Gilbert's unit shipped out in a few days, but the pair continued their correspondence throughout the war.
During the Battle of the Bulge, Gilbert's unit was surrounded and nearly captured. They fought their way out and he was later awarded the Bronze Star with Combat Infantry Badge for valor in action. Gilbert likes to tell the story of his salvation and call to ministry while still in Belgium. He was baptized in cold water on Christmas Day in England.
After his discharge, Gilbert enrolled at Hardin-Simmons University and married Greta, then both went on to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. In 1951, the Skaars packed their few possessions and two small daughters and headed for Spokane, Wash., and accepted the call to pastor at First Southern Baptist Church, now called Driscoll Blvd. Baptist Church. The church received 77 additions during his first year of service, and during the next two years sponsored two missions.
In 1956, the Skaars were called to Vancouver, Canada, where Gil was called to pastor and they participated in shaping the Capilano Baptist Association. They left for Medford, Ore., at the call of First Southern Baptist Church, where they experienced growth in membership and added an education wing to the facilities. During this time, Gil served as a member of the committee on boards and agencies for the SBC, then later on the Southern Baptist Convention nominating committee. The Skaars moved from the pastorate to associational work in 1968 and relocated to Shelton, Wash., with their five children.
For the next 23 years the Skaars served the Northwest Baptist Convention as associational director of missions in the Mt. Baker, Olympic, Southwest Washington, Coast and Myrtlewood associations.
Greta spent half a century as a pastor's wife and appointed home missionary. Wherever she went, Greta sang and she was the soloist for many NWBC and SBC meetings, as well as numerous concerts and events through the Northwest. She served on the executive board of the NWBC in the 1960s and served four years as president of the NWBC Woman's Missionary Union and as vice-president of the national WMU.
Since retiring in 1991, the Skaars have spent the last 17 years serving in local churches and as personal role-models for the next generation of believers in their family.
Carlton and Fran Butler have been a part of the work of Northwest Baptists for almost 50 years. They have unselfishly invested their lives in individuals, churches associations and the convention.
The two Tennessee natives met in Texas after graduating from different Baptist Tennessee colleges.
Carlton answered the call to preach while working in a mission near Jackson, Tenn., in 1950. He continued to work at the mission and got his first taste of pastoral ministry.
Fran began to understand God's direction for her life while in college. While participating in the Life Service Band she began to realize God wanted her involved in missions.
Both enrolled at Southwestern Seminary in 1953, and they were married in 1955.Under the influence of Cal Guy and the recruitment visits of Roland Hood, God helped them discover their assigned mission field. During their seminary days, Fran worked as a secretary on campus and Carlton supported the developing family by working in the seminary cabinet shop, honing skills he would use in the years ahead of bi-vocational ministry in the Northwest.
Two sons were born while they were still in Texas and their only daughter was born in Seattle, and these children have blessed the Butlers with five grandchildren.
The Butlers were invited to the Northwest to start and pastor churches in the Seattle area and Carlton provided for the family through carpentry work. They pastored the North City Baptist Church from 1959 to 1966 and then moved to Kent, Wash., to serve for 10 years at Sequoia Baptist Church. While providing for their own support, they led each of these churches in building programs.
In 1976, the Butlers accepted the call to serve Capital Baptist Church in Salem, Ore. During that ministry the building was remodeled to accommodate the growing congregation.
She served as church secretary for 17 years, as well as many other responsibilities. During these years, Fran completed a degree in counseling, and her wisdom and investment in the lives of church members is still paying dividends.
Carlton and Fran have served faithfully in the Puget Sound and Willamette Valley Baptist associations and each of them has served on the NWBC executive board. Carlton has served two terms as vice president of the convention.
After retiring from Capital Baptist in 1994, Carlton quickly volunteered his skills to build the Northwest Baptist Center in Vancouver, Wash., and quickly evolved into the role of chief carpenter. He traveled over 150 times from Salem to Vancouver to bring the building to completion. He then turned his attention to the construction of a facility now occupied by Capital Baptist.
For the last seven years, the Butlers have served as volunteer NWBC church building consultants. In this ministry they have coordinated the work of countless building teams and conducted clinics in all phases of church construction.
Carlton has served as interim pastor or supply preacher for many churches.

Northwest Leaders Voice Concerns, Hope for NWBC Future
By Cameron Crabtree

VANCOUVER - Stronger relationships and more local ministry help are critical to the future of the Northwest Baptist Convention, according to pastors, staff members and lay leaders who voiced their opinions in "listening sessions" convened earlier this summer by the NWBC executive director search committee.
The search committee and local Baptist association leaders co-hosted 25 forums across the convention in August and September to "define reality" and gain a sense of ministry needs and achievements in local churches.
The committee termed the survey a necessary step before seeking resumes of potential executive director candidates, given the "strained relationships" in the convention resulting from disagreements over the leadership style previous executive director Gus Suárez.
"Given the atmosphere in our convention we determined that one thing we needed to do was listen," Ashley told NWBC executive board members Nov. 13. "What we really wanted to know was what was going on in the churches. The listening sessions helped us get a sense of reality about where we are as a convention."
In a summary of compiled listening session notes, Ashley listed the recurring themes: relationships, trust, networking and mentoring, leadership training, personal evangelism, communication, isolation and distance, need for revival and spiritual renewal, the need for NWBC staff to be in the field, and the need for more customized help.
Among the critical questions, according to Ashley: How can the various levels involved in convention life communicate better? How can decision-making flow from the local church level? What is the mission and purpose of the convention? Is there a need for a convention at all? Are too many resources allocated to church planting? How can the relationships between directors of missions and NWBC staff be strengthened? How can events such as the evangelism conference be re-tooled for greater effectiveness?
Ashley acknowledged contradictions in some of the opinions voiced, but noted some consistent patterns.
"There were several recurring themes in just about every place," Ashley said. "Relationships and trust were talked about in every one of them."
He pointed to the theme of trust as "more an issue of pastor-to-pastor relationships" but it also is felt in the local church, associational and state convention levels.
"There is a need for connection and cooperation but it is not likely to occur in the standard meeting forms," Ashley observed.
Communication between convention staff, associations and local churches is one area where improvement is needed, according to comments.
"There's a lot of misinformation and misperception about the convention and expectations about what it is doing and can be doing," Ashley said.
One of the areas affecting all facets of convention life is assisting local churches to become more effective in ministry.
"There are many people out there asking for help, but they don't know where to go for it," Ashley observed.
The help, Ashley said, must be sensitive to local contexts and emerge from the grassroots.
"There is a perception that (convention staff) is trying to tell churches what to do," Ashley noted. "There is a strong desire for field-based strategies but people still want help from NWBC staff."
In too many settings, people know how to work programs but "the imagination and creativity goes flat," Ashley told executive board members in presenting the committee's findings.
"There are a lot of good things going on in our convention but a lot of these things are isolated," he said. "We have many churches that really are struggling in their effectiveness of the mission God has given them."
"The issue of the need for change was a constant theme, but what we're not in agreement with is what that change looks like," he noted.
The need for affirmation and encouragement of pastors and church leaders is substantial, Ashley emphasized.
"Most of you are hurting," he said. "You feel alone and under-appreciated."
Ashley suggested the healing of such hurts can begin with board members and convention leaders reaching out to one another.
"There's no reason for anyone in the Baptist family to feel like you're outside."
The need for relationships was echoed during the committee's report to convention messengers.
"The word relationships surfaced in every session," Ashley said. "We're saying that we need each other but we're also saying we're not connecting with each other."
Ashley made "one fundamental observation" from comments made in the forums: "Our ministry leaders need to be recognized, remembered and appreciated."
The compiled notes from each listening session are posted on the NWBC web site at www.nwbaptist.org. They can also be sent to interested individuals as an email attachment. To request the notes, call convention offices at 360.882.2100 or e-mail Marsha Gray at marshag@nwbaptist.org.