Dear friends, We are one month away from the 178th Annual Gathering of the American Baptist Churches of Wisconsin! Be sure to join us on Saturday, October 8th, from 8:30-4:30 at First Baptist Church of Beloit. Hotel information, registration, and more can be found here. Our guest speaker is my friend Rev. Rick Barlow. Rick […]
Dear friends, The back-to-school sales have begun. It’s still summer, but autumn is creeping closer. For many congregations, this is the first fall since 2019 where Christian Education ministries for children are resuming, since young children are finally able to be vaccinated. There is a lot of expectation and hope moving forward. Yet we are […]
Dear friends, The first half of 2022 is over. I don’t know about you, but with all the news lately of violence and political upheaval, trials and court rulings and elections—I feel like 2022 could use a do-over. And why not? We serve a God of new beginnings. God wipes the slate clean […]
Dear friends, May was not the month I expected or hoped for. Personally, illness and injuries plagued my family, so I had to cancel some of my planned visits and meetings this month. However, it was the violence that ripped through communities which broke me, again. Milwaukee. Buffalo. Galena, California. Uvalde, Texas. A culture of […]
Dear friends, Christ is Risen, Indeed! The Easter season lasts 7 weeks until Pentecost (this year, Pentecost is on June 5th). In this Easter season, we remember that the disciples experienced the risen Christ as we experience the arrival of spring, as the old hymn “Now the Green Blade Riseth” sings: Now the green blade […]
Please see a letter of recommendation from the current elected officials of ABW of WI.
On Saturday, March 5, 2022, Underwood Memorial Baptist Church hosted our first event supported by the New Wineskin Events Grant called Authentic Diversity. Authentic Diversity was an online event in partnership with Rhonda Hill of Race and Faith, Emerald Mills of Diverse Dining, and the Wisconsin Council of Churches. Fifty registrants gathered for just over […]
Rev. Jim Carlson, Ph.D. has retired from ministry. For the last 6 years, Jim has served as the Hispanic Liaison for ABC of Wisconsin. In this unique role, Jim worked with the leadership of the four Hispanic congregations in the region: Kenosha, Iglesia Bautista El Calvario; Racine, Iglesia Bautista Renacer; Milwaukee, Iglesia Evangelica Bautista and […]
Dear friends, I have spent my first month unpacking, getting settled into a routine, learning how to pronounce certain names like “Waukesha” (but don’t ask me to pronounce “Oconomowoc” yet) and meeting many of you! In my first month I have visited nine churches of our region, and I have scheduled most Sundays through mid-June […]
The Commission on Congregational Mission has taken up the issue of Racial Justice and Racism in the church as its focus for the latter part of 2021 and the first part of 2022. Commission members have been tasked with reading a volume and returning to the Commission with a review of the text as part […]