Baptists and miracles.

I believe in miracles! Early in 1994, my Aunt Lona Nelon, a faithful Baptist, telephoned me from Asheville, North Carolina, at my home in Brentwood, Tennessee.

She was the aunt who had given me a $20 bill and/or made me a cake every time I went home as a student from Mars Hill College or the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The purpose of her call was to tell me that she was dying and that she wanted me to conduct her funeral. So she listed lots of scriptures from the Old and New Testaments that were her favorites, but she wanted me to choose two to use.

In July 1994, Aunt Lona died. My wife and I drove to Asheville. Prior to Aunt Lona's funeral, I drove to her house, sat alone in her kitchen, where I had eaten many wonderful meals, and pondered her significance to me. Then a miracle happened. I turned around, looked at her refrigerator, and noticed two magnets listing two scriptures--one from the Old Testament and one from the New. Those were the exact scriptures I had chosen in Tennessee to use during her funeral. That was a spine-tingling moment in which I felt the presence of God in a powerful way.

The miraculous saturates the Baptist story. What about the bold witness of Thomas Helwys, first Baptist pastor in England in the early 1600s, who directly challenged the authority of the king of England to deny religious freedom to English citizens? This action resulted in Helwys's spending the rest of his life in prison, where he died a martyr for a fundamental Baptist principle. I view that audacity as a miracle--a miracle whose story continues into the twenty-first century as a model for how to be authentically Baptist.

What about the sheer determination of Luther Rice to travel up and down the eastern states in the early 1800s to raise money for missions? He journeyed thousands of miles on foot and horseback over primitive roads. He endured extreme weather conditions, isolated himself from his family, and suffered sicknesses from time to time. I view Rice's extraordinary efforts to raise funds for missions as a miracle--a miracle whose power runs through every textbook written about Baptist history.

What about the profound influence of Sue Fitzgerald, who in 1963 became minister of education at the Mars Hill Baptist Church in Mars Hill, North Carolina, was ordained by that church in 1973, and then opened the Center for Christian Education Ministries at Mars Hill College in 1975? In her own words, "I spent the next twenty years praying, listening, serving, and growing as I ministered all over Western North Carolina through preaching, teaching, leading workshops, counseling, and being present for pastors and leaders who needed new ideas, materials, or just a listening ear." (1) I view Fitzgerald's life, attitudes, and contributions as a miracle--a miracle whose model calls for us, regardless of our age, "to be open, to listen, and to act at the place where my gifts can be used at a given moment." (2)

I am always searching for ways to describe and advocate the importance of Baptist history and heritage programs, libraries, and archives. Perhaps a key to the entire search is to realize that the Baptist story has more of a miraculous edge to it than most of us ever consider possible. Think about it: It took miracle after miracle, faithfulness after faithfulness, martyr after martyr for Baptists to arrive at the principles that lie at the heart of their existence.

This is 2007. Many deny the presence of miracle. My advice: Don't listen to them. Rather, pay close attention to the role of miracle in Baptist development. It's there. It can inspire preaching, teaching, and worship. It can motivate excellence in writing. It can enhance pastoral care and other ministries.

(1.) Pamela R. Durso and Keith E. Durso (eds.), Courage and Hope: The Stories of Ten Baptist Women Ministers (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press and Brentwood, TN: Baptist History and Heritage Society, 2005), 65.

(2.) Ibid., 74-75

Charles W. Deweese

Executive Director-Treasurer

Baptist History and Heritage Society