My letter to Dr. Ronnie Floyd today would be the same as the one I wrote to him in 2015. Because, you see, the answer is right there in front of him and in front of the whole SBC family. They choose to ignore what is right before their eyes.
One of the favorite ministry expressions is “It is easier to get forgiveness than permission.” So, Dr. Floyd, let’s go for forgiveness. God will forgive you if you call on women to preach the precious Gospel of Jesus Christ. Don’t you believe that? Plead to God for forgiveness because the urgency is so great. Moses pleaded with God to change His mind. You can, too, if you feel the urgency is that great.
This past week at the SBC Convention, Dr. Floyd reiterated the urgency he expressed in 2015.
“Vision 2025 is a call to reach every person for Jesus Christ in every town, every city, every state and every nation,” Floyd said. “There are 331 million Americans and 7.9 billion people in the world. Eternal lostness exists and eternal hell is waiting, so we must do all we can to reach people so their names can be written in the Lamb’s book of life. …
Citing eternal lostness and the reality of hell, SBC Executive Committee President and CEO Ronnie Floyd called Southern Baptists to back the initiative “with your lives and ministries and churches,” saying, “This is not just a good thing we should do. It is the most urgent thing we should do.
“The urgency is now.”
The helicopters are flying over your roof, Dr. Floyd. If the urgency is that great, grab it!
October 5, 2015
Dr. Ronnie Floyd
Southern Baptist Convention
The Executive Committee, SBC
901 Commerce Street
Nashville, TN 37203-3699
Dear Dr. Floyd,
I can hear your heavy heart in your Presidential Postings of September 8, 2015. “We need a breakthrough.”
My heart also hurts for our nation, our world, and for our Christian faith.
Only God can send the breakthrough, but God works through people, through leaders such as yourself. God works through laypeople such as who I am. As Great Commission people, we must find a way to be what Jesus commanded us to be. Jesus himself led the way, and it is to him that we must look.
You said, “And yes, we also need pastor-leaders by the thousands to rise up and lead forward toward gospel advancement beginning in their towns, cities, across America, and the entire world.”
Jesus said the same thing when he saw the crowds of people needing a shepherd, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”
I offer you the breakthrough.
Women are here, called and seminary trained and are ready to be sent into the harvest as pastors and leaders.
“A religious man is on top of a roof during a great flood. A man comes by in a boat and says “get in, get in!” The religious man replies, “no I have faith in God, he will grant me a miracle.” Later the water is up to his waist and another boat comes by and the guy tells him to get in again. He responds that he has faith in God and God will give him a miracle. With the water at about chest high, another boat comes to rescue him, but he turns down the offer again because “God will grant him a miracle.” With the water at chin high, a helicopter throws down a ladder and they tell him to get in, mumbling with the water in his mouth, he again turns down the request for help for the faith of God. He arrives at the gates of heaven with broken faith and says to Peter, I thought God would grant me a miracle and I have been let down.” With tears in his eyes, St. Peter responds, “I don’t know what you’re complaining about, we sent you three boats and a helicopter.”
Dr. Floyd, if you are serious about wanting a breakthrough to reach the masses, you’ll take who God has sent.
Shirley Taylor, Street Evangelist for Women’s Equality
bWe Baptist Women for Equality's Blog 