Haiti: Pray, give and go!

PRAY
• Pray for those who have been affected by Haiti’s earthquake — people who are trapped in rubble or homeless, those who are hungry, injured, traumatized.

• Pray for victims’ loved ones, both in Haiti and in other parts of the world, who are mourning or anxiously awaiting word about their loved ones.

• Pray for all those who are involved in the relief effort, that the Lord would give them strength to deal with the awful conditions they are facing. Pray for those who are trying to organize people and resources to assist with the relief efforts. Pray especially for the Southern Baptist disaster relief assessment teams who plan to arrive in the country the week of Jan. 18 to form plans for volunteer deployment, both to meet urgent needs and to help Haitians’ rebuild their lives in the longterm. Pray that God would stir up His people to respond with the love of Christ to help people in desperate need.”

• Lift up in prayer IMB personnel in the Dominican Republic who will be training national believers in post-trauma counseling for Haiti earthquake victims.

GIVE
• Contribute toward the relief effort at gobgr.org, the Web site of Baptist Global Response, a Southern Baptist relief and development organization. Money donated to the relief effort will be used 100 percent for ministry.

GO
• Near-term attempts to travel to the country would be ill-advised because basic infrastructure in Port-au-Prince was destroyed by the largest earthquake in 200 years. Serious security concerns could emerge as people become more desperate for food and water in areas where police and military control has not been established.

• Southern Baptist disaster relief assessment teams plan to arrive in the country the week of Jan. 18 to form plans for volunteer deployment, both to meet urgent needs and to help Haitians’ rebuild their lives in the longterm. Disaster relief volunteer efforts will be coordinated among Southern Baptist entities, including BGR, NAMB and Baptist state convention disaster relief teams.

On Our Pastors' Minds

Pietism vs Quietism. Both are Losers.

In his book "Our Sufficiency in Christ", John MacArthur describes two extreme views of sanctification: quietism and pietism. Quietism is best seen in the Higher Life Movement and Victorious Life Movement that grew out of Keswick Theology. The mantra of this movement is, "Let Go and Let God." It is view that sees our sanctification as a something sovereignly enacted by God as we passively allow Him to be God in our lives.

The Foundation of Sanctification in Reformed Theology

Rather than view Christians first and foremost in the microcosmic context of their own progress, the Reformed doctrine first of all sets them in the macrocosm of God's activity in redemptive history. It is seeing oneself in this context that enables the individual Christian to grow in true holiness.