Virtual Prayer Walk Now On-Line

Not everyone can make the trip to New Orleans to walk our streets and pray for the physical and spiritual recovery of our city. Not to worry, our friends at the Louisiana Baptist WMU have put together a virtual prayer walk that will allow believers around the world to lift up New Orleans to our Lord. Try it out yourself then pass the link on to a friend. The more prayer the better.

http://www.lbc.org/Women/Interior.aspx?id=4182

This link has also been added on the sidebar

The Way You Dieux The Things You Vieux

"Going to the dogs" would be considered a compliment during the annual Barkus parade that rolls through the French Quarter during Mardi Gras. Barkus (a spoof on the Super Krewe Bacchus) is a dog parade that raises money for the Humaine Society. Towards the end of the winding parade route is Vieux Carre Baptist Church and a wonderful opportunity to minister to the owners of the estimated 1500 dogs in the parade. After morning worship (the parade rolls on Sunday afternoon) pastor Greg Hand and his congregation set up a rest stop in front of the church for both dogs and people. Water dishes and doggy treats are provided for the marching dogs while their owners enjoy cookies, hot chocolate, and coffee. Chairs were provided for owners to rest their feet and Vieux Carre opened its doors for people to use their restrooms. Mardi Gras cups with doggy treats and information about Vieux Carre were given as gifts to the owners when they stopped by the church. This simple act of hospitality was well received. I actually heard one lady, once she realized who was doing this, exclaim "This is a church?" She was blown away by the fact that a church, not to mention a Baptist church, would do something so thoughtful and kind for the community. Oh, if only we could all find a way to do something for our community that was produce that kind of response. Those opportunities are all around us you know. We just have to be intentional in looking for them. Vieux Carre could have closed their doors and chosen to get out ahead of the crowd. I'm thankful they saw this as an opportunity to love people with the love of Christ.

Find out more about Vieux Carre Baptist Church and their unique ministry at http://www.frenchquarterchurch.com/

Its That Time Again

If there's one thing we love in New Orleans, its a good party. Now before you start throwing the items on your desk at the computer screen, there's a few things you need to know about Mardi Gras. That stuff you see on T.V., the drinking, the carousing, the flashing (don't act like you don't know), the debauchery, only accounts for less than 10% of Mardi Gras activities. The rest of Mardi Gras, the part that never makes the news and that we locals love, is very family friendly and safe. Personally, I love the parades, although not as much as Jaime. The second thing you need to know about Mardi Gras is that its ingrained in the New Orleans culture. Mardi Gras is just what we do. Wisconsinites sit bare-chested on aluminium bleachers in Lambou Field in sub-zero weather. New Yorkers cram into Time Square like sardines each New Year's Eve. Iowans willing subject themselves to presidential candidate after presidential candidate every four years. New Orleanians stand on the side of the street with hands raised in anticipation of catching 13 cents worth of beads from a guy who paid around $2000 for the right to throw them. The third thing you need to know about Mardi Gras is that its a great time to show people the love of Christ. Because many have such a harsh view of Mardi Gras, their view of those that participate becomes tainted. What passes for evangelism during Mardi Gras usually takes the form of judgement and condemnation. Do I approve of some of the activities that go on during Mardi Gras? No. More importantly, does God approve of some of these activities? No. However, not once do I recall in Scripture where Jesus brow beat or belittled a sinner. In fact, we usually find Him having dinner with them or hanging out in their homes. Jesus has authentic love for the lost and demonstrated perfectly what it means to be in the world but not of the world. Pray for our efforts this Mardi Gras to love people as Christ loves us as we live out our faith in plain sight of parade goers. Pray for us as we share the Gospel with those who listen and may Christ be glorified this Mardi Gras season.

Think Greek

As the spring semester gears up at our colleges and universities in the Greater New Orleans area, men and women dedicated to bringing Christ to these campuses make last minute preparations for their respective campus ministries. Cory Olivier, regional BCM director for New Orleans, and a good friend, keeps these various campus ministries organized. From four year colleges and nationally recognized universities, to community and trade schools, Cory and his team are working hard to see lives transformed by the power of Christ. Colleges are micro communities with their own subset of people groups that need culturally relevant means of experiencing the Gospel. One of those people groups are Greeks. No, not those Greeks. I'm talking about frat boys and sorority girls. These social and service organizations are on nearly every college and university campus nation wide. Mention Greeks and it doesn't take long for images from the movie Animal House to creep into one's mind. Some would say that's just a stereotype. I say Greeks work hard at their reputation and I'll leave it at that. Regardless, Greeks are just as in need of a Savior as everyone else. The trick is reaching them. Although Greeks make up only 1% of college students nation wide, they dominate positions of leadership in business, industry, and politics. Here's some numbers:

• 85% of Fortune 500 executives are Greek
• Of the 50 largest North American corporations; 43 are headed by Greeks
• 76% of U.S. Congressmen and Senators belong to a fraternity
• 85% of U.S. Supreme Court Justices since 1910 have been Greek

All this (and more) out of only 1% of college students. The results of reaching the Greeks for Christ boggle my mind. Campus ministry doesn't happen in a bubble. There are lasting effects on society when we support the efforts of our Baptist Collegiate Ministries. Students, get involved. Churches, find out what you can do to help minister to your local college or university. And if you like a challenge; think Greek.

Special thanks to Chaz Churchwell for providing the information for this entry.

You can contact Cory Olivier at nometrodirector@bellsouth.net

Geaux Tailgating!!!

Fact: LSU fans are professional tailgaters

Fact: I am not

No matter. We had a blast tailgating during the LSU vs. Ohio State Championship game on January 7. There's nothing like making outreach fun. One "fun" aspect that is debatable is that Jon Young and I had to spend the night on the neutral ground on Poydras St. in order to secure a location. We turned our trusty canopy tent into the camping variety and slept on the ground like real men, real crazy men. It was worth it in the end. We were able to being visiting with our fellow tailgaters on Sunday night instead of having to wait until later on Monday. We spent most of our time Sunday night visiting with the social director of one of LSU's fraternities who too was spending the night on the street and happy not to be alone. The night passed slowly and we were often awakened by fans honking their car horns as they drove past. Thanks to a few cups of coffee the next morning, we were ready for a long day of meeting and visiting with the hundreds of fans in our immediate area. In fact it was not long before a charter bus pulled up and dropped off a load at a group of about 10-12 RVs set up next to us. Professionals remember. Our volunteers from LSU-A were a blessing and they fell right into the day's festivities. We visited, played football with kids, and did a little face painting. We did our best to show those around us the love of Christ and to bring them one step closer to a relationship with Him. We ended the night by distributing just over six cases of specially labeled bottled water and two boxes of evangelistic audio CDs. It was a great event and we learned a lot from the experience and look forward to presenting this to our churches as a valid means of engaging our sports community for Christ.

Football, Hawaiians, and Freezing Temperatures

The New Year was kicked of with the annual Sugar Bowl and we were there for a trial run of our new tailgating outreach. While die hard fans from Georgia and Hawaii walked the streets of downtown New Orleans, we were setting up to tailgate. My truck was loaded down with our tent, ice chest, grill, about 12 cases of bottle water to give away, and all the other little things that were needed to make the outreach possible. We were able to get a great spot on the neutral ground (that's what we call our medians) next to the interstate about a block and a half from the Superdome. Everything was nicely in order except for one minor detail. It was the coldest it had been all winter. The high on January 1 was 41 degrees with a wind chill in the lower 30's. Now I know what you folks from up north are thinking, "That's not cold." I'll agree that the temperature drops lower up there but remember that our climate is wet. What is tolerable up north soaks into your bones in New Orleans. The wind that day blew constantly between 12-15 miles an hour with gust up to 20. Needless to say, our weather conditions for tailgating were less than ideal. Our tent acted more like a sail at times and even tumbled over my truck at one point. Despite the weather, we had a good time and our efforts were well received. Locals were supportive and visitors were grateful for our hospitality and assistance. Few people took our water (I wouldn't want it either as cold as it was) but we at least made it through the day and were able to make note of things done right as well as needed improvements. Next up, LSU and the BCS Championship.

Jaime and I would like to give a big thanks to Jon Young for sticking it out for the duration. What a trooper!

Something New For New Years

New Years is a popular time to commit to do something new and different. I think this old tradition can be a healthy thing for our churches as well. New Orleans is a city that revolves around and bases its economy on sports and entertainment. This is a major aspect of our culture that has been almost completely untouched by our area churches. These events open the door wide for both local and kingdom outreach and yet we typically shy away from them. Our churches that have made even small attempts at such events have seen encouraging results in exposure and establishing relationships. Its natural for many to want to avoid the commotion and crowds these events bring. I know because I'm one of them. However, if we're to have a lasting impact for Christ in our city, we have to engage it at every level. Jesus' ministry on earth left no cultural stone unturned and we ought to follow His example. So what's new for New Years? We will be piloting a simple, reproducible, cost effective outreach strategy to those participating in the area's many sporting events and festivals. We even kicked off the New Year with a tailgating outreach at this year's Sugar Bowl (a report on this is coming) and have plans to do the same for the BCS Championship game. Later in the year we hope to have in place a hospitality outreach for festivals. Pray for our churches as we work together to develop a strategy for taking Christ to places where He has too long been absent. This is no small thing so be faithful in your prayers.