A Southern Baptist policy manager will headline a new series of webinars from the Baptist Convention of New Mexico, offered by its Christian Life Committee. The first webinar will occur the morning after the convention’s Annual Meeting.
The CLC has announced the first of a new series of webinars aimed at helping New Mexico Baptists have a more significant impact in the public square. The series is called “Impact Webinars.” The committee has teamed up with Hannah Daniels, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s policy manager, to launch the series.
The committee will host the webinar on the Zoom video conferencing platform on Thursday, Oct. 26, at 10:00 a.m. Information and a free registration link is available at bcnm.com/impact.
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During the 45-minute webinar, Daniels will discuss three issues and their importance to local churches: life, immigration and refugees and human trafficking. All three issues have multiple sub-categories. Daniels has said that, if time permits, she may also talk about “the Congressional appropriations process and why that is such a significant focus for us right now because of its impacts on issues around life, religious liberty, gender, etc.”
Engaging daunting challenges
Stephen Baum, pastor of First Baptist Church West Albuquerque, and a CLC member, said, “Part of our assignment as the Christian Life Committee is to provide valuable resources for New Mexico Baptists as we attempt to engage a world that presents numerous and daunting challenges and ministry needs. Our culture has never been without need for the Gospel, and as followers of Christ we are up for the task of taking Christ to our neighbors. These Impact Webinars will serve to equip churches and believers alike for sharpened Gospel witness.”
The committee plans to offer two or three webinars annually, beginning with two this fall. The Oct. 26 Impact Webinar is designed to be instructional and educational. A Dec. 7 webinar will target encouraging New Mexico legislators to maintain their faith while they serve at the Roundhouse during the upcoming legislative session. For that webinar, the CLC is partnering with Capitol Ministries, which provides Bible studies and other spiritual support for legislative bodies.
The committee is working on several projects, meeting monthly, sometimes more frequently. In addition to the webinars, it will host the BCNM’s annual Capitol Prayer Gathering in Santa Fe during January. That event is open to both New Mexico Baptists and state legislators. The committee is also in the process of developing a mini-website accessible through BCNM.com that will offer churches downloadable resources related to social and moral issues, video recordings of CLC events, a searchable set of BCNM resolutions on social and moral issues from the last 28 years. It is also planning for 2024’s Impact Webinars.
The Christian Life Committee serves the convention “to mobilize the convention in addressing moral issues of concern to New Mexico Baptists,” according to the BCNM’s bylaws. The six-member committee currently has one vacancy. Committee members are Skip Hemperley (chairperson), Jerry Walker, Jim Fry, David Guerrero and Stephen Baum.
Messengers elect committee members during the convention’s annual meeting. It uses resolutions adopted during meeting for guidance on the position of New Mexico Baptist on social and moral issues.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Kevin Parker and originally published by the Baptist New Mexican.
