Articles by Guest Author

Excerpt from the book: Leadership in the Black Church: Guidance in the midst of Changing Demographics, by Dr. Michael A. Evans, Sr.

African-American clergy are expected to be upfront and outspoken on issues of justice and equality to say the least. The reason it is different in the black community is because of the African-American church.

Almost 20 years ago, waters flooded Southeastern Texas as the effects of the Pacific Hurricane Madeline reverberated across the United States. As volunteers rushed toward the devastation, First Baptist Church of Victoria opened their doors to host the first responders. In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, their heart to host remains.

By Abby Hopkins

Home. A place meant not only for shelter but for shared meals, deep conversations, big dreams, and lots of laughter. A place many are accustomed to, never knowing what it would be like to not have one, or to have one corrupted by abuse.

However, for many children, this is what they are accustomed to. The Poiema Foundation assists those who have faced this reality. It starts by educating the public and raising awareness on sexual abuse, sex trafficking, and other methods of sexual exploitation.

The story began about three years ago. I was a sophomore at the University of North Texas (UNT), in my rookie semester as an RA in the "artsy dorm" and I had decided to apply for GoNow Missions. I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do or who I wanted to serve. I applied for a position in Jamaica because a friend of mine went the previous winter break and highly recommended it. However, I quickly discovered that the timing was not going to work out for that trip. So I ended up going to Discovery Day with absolutely no idea what position I was wanting or being called to.

The first day we were in Flushing, New York, my team prayer-walked around the city to find locations for conducting surveys the next day. We were conducting surveys about the new churches to be planted in that area, to determine how people felt about religion in general and new church plants. We prayed that people would take the time out of their busy lives to talk with us and have open hearts to hear about Jesus Christ.

I went on my first mission trip when I was eight years old. My parents introduced me to missions when they took me to Reynosa, Mexico with our Spanish church at the time. I was so heartbroken by seeing how the people we ministered to lived, and I could not help but gain a huge ambition to do whatever it took to help them while we were there. Since then, I have fallen in love with missions.