October Meeting Reflections: David Smith

October 27, 2009 | 0 Comments

Most of us are already aware of the generous spirit of the Austin Baptist Association since they host our monthly meetings. But in our October meeting, we got a look at just how generous that Spirit is as David Smith, the Director of Missions, spoke to us this month.

David began by sharing the heart of the ABA for church planting. Their vision for church planting is as follows: Utilizing cooperation, passion and innovation, the ABA will provide an environment to aid the local church to expand the Kingdom by planting local churches. According to David, Austin Baptists connect with about 1.7% of Austin on any given Sunday. The ABA recognizes that any work of the Kingdom of God is going to be much bigger than Baptists alone, and their heart is to connect with anybody and everybody who is sharing Christ in Austin.

David followed with some exhortations for each of us as church planters. His statements were simple, but needed reminders for each of us, to hold tightly to each of these practices:

• Read God’s Word – Specifically, read the whole thing every year. David gave each of us the annual reading plan from Discipleship Journal.
• Love God – With all your heart, soul, mind, and strength…with all of your being.
• Love your spouse – The most memorable advice he ever received from a pastor he deeply respected: “If you want to be a success in ministry, you love your wife.” David encouraged each of us to date our spouse at least once a week, and he put his money where his mouth is by giving everyone in attendance a $25 restaurant gift card.

I love David’s heart. But I know that he is one of many who have a spirit of partnership to see new churches in Austin. I’ve never seen cooperation like I see in Austin, and I’m thankful for what David and others do for the sake of our ministry in the greater Austin area.

Categories: Reflections