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The (most) Amazing Race • Christmas season devotions on page 13

Volume 107, No. 19

IB Insider Needed today: Holy boldness page 7 Words & pictures: 9 preachers, 11 singers in 3 days page 9 It’s in the bag page 11

Mobile Nativity takes Gospel to the streets page 12 From Lottie Moon’s kitchen page 15

NOVEMBER 25, 2013

Baptists aid after deadly tornadoes Illinois response

By Meredith Flynn

Washington, Ill. | Joshua Monda stood just outside his church Sunday morning, watching a powerful tornado churn on the horizon a half-mile away. He shot video with his cell phone before calling the few other church members standing outside to get inside. Sirens sound just as the video ends. Twenty-four hours later, Monda stands in a WalMart parking lot in a part of Washington not blocked off by police and first responders. Pastor Monda made it to First Baptist Church briefly that morning, but his office is on the move as he tries to meet immediate needs in the aftermath of an EF-4 tornado that flattened parts of Washington. Several other communities all over the state suffered fatalities and severe damage from tornadoes on November 17. Immediately after the tornado, Monda posted his cell phone number on Facebook for anyone needing assistance. He has received calls from all Continued on page 3

STRUCK DOWN – This is what remains of Bill and Shirley Sadler's home in Washington. The chairman of deacons at First Baptist Church and his wife were at church Sunday morning when a tornado devastated whole neighborhoods. Photo by Joshua Monda

• Chainsaw teams working and more on standby

After the vote Guidance for churches now that same-sex marriage is legal

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By Lisa Sergent

Nonprofit Organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID Peoria, Illinois Permit No. 325

• Volunteers prepare more than 2,000 meals a day

2013 Annual Meeting Special report starts on page 7

Messengers take a stand

Springfield | The 107th Annual Meeting of the Illinois Baptist State Association brought messengers together Nov. 13-14 under one theme with three pieces: Churches, Together, Advancing the Gospel. “Last year we introduced this as the ‘heart cry’ for our work together as churches,” IBSA Executive Director Nate Adams said. “Illinois is our mission field. The Illinois Baptist State Association is who we are, but ‘Mission Illinois’ describes what we must do!” For two days at the Springfield Hilton, 455 registered messengers and 41 guests heard reports focused on the

business side of cooperation, and celebrated how God is drawing people to Himself through the planting of new churches across the state. Messengers gathered just blocks away from where, one week earlier, Illinois lawmakers voted to legalize same-sex marriage. The challenge of being the church in the current culture was a topic for speakers at the IBSA Pastors’ Conference and the Annual Meeting, and the subject of a resolution messengers adopted unanimously. “The value system is shifting so we look like the bad guys, the outlaws, Continued on page 2

Springfield | After the General Assembly voted to make Illinois the 15th state in the Union to allow same-sex marriages, many Christians asked themselves, “What do we do now?” “We need to remember our own sinfulness as we deal with people who are struggling with sin and remember that our sin is why Christ died,” said Tim Sadler, IBSA director of evangelism. “So we approach other sinners with grace, with the message of hope.” The action taken November 5 by the General Assembly created a new environment for Southern Baptists and their churches to minister in Illinois. Some feel the rules have changed, but Sadler shared God has already paved the way for them. “We stand on the precedent of thousands of years of history and the clear teaching of Scripture. So while it is admirable and right to stand in disagreement with the law, it is not acceptable to be unkind or un-Christ-like toward anyone.” He reminds Illinois Baptists, “Every person is created in the image of God and therefore has value. Jesus, in His Continued on page 6