Exciting partnerships

October 25, 2010 admin Baptist Bible College Update Comments Off on Exciting partnerships

by Jim Edge

Mega-changes are taking place within our American and glob­al culture, and they affect you, your church, and ministries around the world. Society is marked by moral decline, economic uncertainty, and spiritual confusion. The world is looking for hope. As believers, we believe God has placed us here “for such a time as this.” Society’s ongoing search for hope gives us tremendous oppor­tunities to impact our world. To do so requires that we have a clear vision and a focused strategy. We know our only hope is found in Christ. “The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous run­neth into it, and is safe.” (Proverbs 18:10)

At BBC, God has allowed us the privilege of building upon the past as we move into the future even during these difficult times. We are able to do so by fixing our eyes on Jesus. Let me share with you three of the many improvements we are making at the college.

First, we are refining and expanding our Christian Life Ministry component. Because of our emphasis in the local church, we want to make sure our students are participating and leading in minis­tries in their local churches here in Springfield. The city of Spring­field is home to many fine churches. Our administration and facul­ty are currently evaluating the CLM program and will bring refine­ments to enhance this important aspect of the students’ education.

Second, we want every graduate to have a global relevance; that is, a real perspective of the gospel advancing around the world. One goal is that every graduate will visit a mission field by the time they graduate. With the recent introduction of the Bob and Ann Baird Scholarship Fund to help fund these internships, our goal is closer to becoming a reality. We also want to welcome foreign students from around the world to become students at BBC and to rub shoul­ders with students. At BBC, we want the world to be a classroom.

Third, we are working strategically to expand our financial partnerships. We are thankful for 446 churches that have supported BBC thus far in 2010. We are working tirelessly to build on that base and expand the number of churches who partner with us. In recent months, we have determined it is necessary to have more than one avenue of contributions to support the college. In response, we have established the Patriot Alliance (www.gobbc.edu/partners/), and are inviting individuals to partner with us also. Please pray for us as we build a solid family of churches, individuals, and businesses who will join with us to train the next generation of Christian leaders.

By fixing our eyes on Jesus we are able to see above the noise and confusion of our society and lead BBC into the 21st century. By God’s grace we will not retreat; we will not stand still. By God’s grace we will continue to improve in every area to become the college our founders envisioned over 60 years ago and one the pastors of the BBFI expect today.