Reflecting on 10-1/2 years and 500 issues of publishing Weekly Baptist Roundup 
by Bill Jones

I just finished writing my column “A word from Bill Jones,” followed by proofreading of every last word and every last link in the last-ever issue – # 500 – of my Weekly Baptist Roundup e-newsletter. Every link but one, that is. I want to use this blog post to jot down a few reflections on those 500 issues, as well as my tenure as executive director of Texas Baptists Committed (1/1/11-7/31/17), from which “the Roundup” sprang to life in May 2011. Then I’ll go insert the link into the Roundup and schedule it to send a few hours from now.

Working Friday on my 500th – and final – issue of WBR (see how much hair I’ve lost doing the Roundup?)

For weeks, I’ve been jotting down reminders on yellow Post-It notes on my desk. So here we go, as short and pithy as I can make them (because it’s 1:20 a.m., and I want to get to sleep – as soon as I put the last Roundup ‘to bed,’ that is).

• David Wilkinson, then exec. director of Associated Baptist Press (now Baptist News Global), who – in the summer of 2011 – told me he was seeing an uptick in clicks on his ABP articles that he believed was attributable to TBC Weekly Baptist Roundup. Encouraging news!
• August 2011 – Steve Vernon, then associate exec. director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), gives the Roundup its first public ‘boost’ as he speaks at a dinner honoring David Currie for his 20 years of service as TBC exec. director, describing it as unique in Baptist life, in providing so much Baptist news & opinion in one place
• Les Carter, longtime member – and frequent teacher – of our Epiphany Sunday School class at Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas, using every opportunity – whenever he taught the class – to tell them they should subscribe; he was a big fan of the Roundup from the beginning
• Stephen Reeves, first at the BGCT Christian Life Commission and then the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, reading the Roundup regularly and boosting it to his colleagues
• Leroy Seat, one of the bloggers whose work I regularly linked in the Roundup . . . the ONLY person to consistently email me to thank me for linking to his blogs; he still does so ’til this day. When I was up in the Kansas City area a few years ago for a reunion of the church youth group in which I grew up in the 1960s, I made a point of meeting Leroy for breakfast. We had a wonderful visit. Leroy and his wife, June, have deep Baptist roots, spending many years as faithful missionaries to Japan. His writing regularly educates and challenges me.
• Soon after starting the Roundup, I discovered that, whenever I went to a Baptist conference, whether the BGCT annual meeting, or CBF General Assembly, or the Baptist History & Heritage Society, and so forth . . . Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama, wherever . . . I could always count on at least three or four people approaching me during the meeting and telling me how much they appreciated receiving the Roundup every week.
• Stuart Blythe, then rector of the International Baptist Theological Study Centre in Amsterdam, whose blog posts I frequently linked . . . how surprised I was when I saw him standing in the lobby of the CBF’s hotel during the 2017 General Assembly. I went over and introduced myself, and told him about the Roundup and that I linked to his posts regularly. We chatted for several minutes; he’s very engaging. He shared with me that he was about to leave Amsterdam for a position as an associate professor of preaching and worship at Acadia Divinity College in Canada. Then he took out a copy of a new book that he had edited, Sampler: Baptistic Theologies/Journal of European Baptist Studies, autographed it and gave it to me.
• Speaking of books, over the years several people gave me copies of their books, and I know their hope was that I would review them and recommend them to my readers. In fact, that was MY hope. However, as I explained recently in announcing my decision to end the Roundup, the hours I spent on the Roundup have not left me the time needed to read the many books I have in my study (hundreds that have gone unread), much less the books given to me by these friends. I’m hoping that I will now have the time to do that reading and, perhaps, still review some of these books and recommend them in my blog, etc.
• Doyle Sager, longtime pastor of First Baptist, Jefferson City, MO, was another op-Ed writer to whom I frequently linked; his columns usually appeared in Associated Baptist Press/Baptist News Global and Word & Way. One time I was walking through the CBF exhibit area (aka The Gathering Place), and Doyle and his wife approached me and introduced themselves; I was so glad to get to meet them and was saddened by Doyle’s recent death from cancer.
• At one CBF General Assembly, immediately after the closing Friday evening worship service, a man approached me to thank me for the Roundup. To my surprise, it was Otniel Buniacu from Romania and then president of the European Baptist Federation. The Roundup reaches around the globe!
• When I became exec. director of Texas Baptists Committed on New Year’s Day 2011, I had two “pet projects” that had been on my heart and mind for some time – I believe God placed them there. One was what became Weekly Baptist Roundup, which I began that May – an e-newsletter that would link to Baptist news and opinion from a wide variety of sources. The other was a series of short (2 to 3 minutes each) videos on Baptist history and principles. I implemented that idea – which I called “Baptist Briefs” – that first week, beginning with the first video on Monday, January 3. Over the next few months, I produced – from my study, using a camcorder set up facing my Lazy Boy chair – 71 of these videos. They had an impact – both on others and on me.
  • Within the first week or two – after putting just a handful of these videos on the TBC Web site – I received a call from Bruce Gourley, then exec. director of the Baptist History & Heritage Society (BHHS). I had known of Bruce and read some of his writings, but we had never met. He called to tell me he had seen some of my Baptist Briefs videos and was favorably impressed. That was the kind of affirmation you can’t buy! Bruce and I have become good friends since, and I have a deep appreciation for him personally and also for his work in preserving Baptist history. At the 2012 BHHS meeting in Raleigh, NC, Bruce gave me the opportunity to speak to the gathering about my Baptist Briefs. A week or two later, I received a request from Bill Sumners, who had heard me speak at that meeting, for a set of Baptist Briefs videos for the Southern Baptist Historical Library & Archives. A check for $75 accompanied the request. Wow, TBC videos in the SBC historical archives – how about that?
  • In late 2011 or early 2012, I received an email from a young man who had seen some of my Baptist Briefs videos on YouTube. Seeing my concern for preserving our Baptist legacy, he wondered whether I would be interested in a project he had recently undertaken. He was a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and was concerned about its swing toward Fundamentalism (it is controlled by the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma [BGCO], which is controlled by the Fundamentalists who took over the SBC). He had launched a movement and Web site called “Save OBU,” with the purpose of separating OBU from the BGCO; to do that, he was researching and exposing actions by the OBU administration that threatened the freedom of its students and faculty. His name was Jacob Lupfer. (Jacob today lives in Jacksonville, FL, and writes for Religion News Service.)
    • Serendipity, thy name is God – or is it the other way around? Anyway, Jacob had no idea that I am an OBU grad myself – class of ’73! Was I interested in Save OBU? You bet I was! Oh yes, the odds were against him, no doubt about it. But I’ve fought for a lot of lost causes myself; I still cling to what Jefferson Smith (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington), played by Jimmy Stewart, said to the corrupt senior senator from his state, then to the gallery, during his filibuster on the floor of the U.S. Senate: “I guess this is just another lost cause, Mr. Paine. All you people don’t know about lost causes. Mr. Paine does. He said once they were the only causes worth fighting for. And he fought for them once, for the only reason any man ever fights for them. Because of just one, plain, simple rule: ‘Love thy neighbor.'”
    • In November 2012, I drove up to Shawnee on the Sunday after Homecoming (it wasn’t my class’s reunion year), met with Jacob that afternoon at a local restaurant, then met that evening with Jacob and a small group of concerned students and one professor to discuss possible strategy for their cause. Over the next few years, I used the Roundup to link to every post that Jacob and his cohorts wrote on the Save OBU blog and frequently highlighted them as featured topics. Jacob’s posts were not fluff; they included deeply and meticulously documented research about the actions of the administration and the involvement of BGCO officials. In 2016, Jacob needed to move on; he had a family and could no longer afford the time and effort required to keep alive the Save OBU cause. Unfortunately, there was no one willing to take up the baton from him. But it had been my privilege to give him whatever support I could during those years, and I hope he doesn’t feel that time was wasted. He brought a lot of key information into the light, and worked for an important cause. He was doing the work God called him to do, and that is NEVER a waste!
    • In February 2020, a similar opportunity arose – to help promote those who were trying to save Logsdon Seminary and, ultimately, Hardin-Simmons University, following a hostile takeover that resulted in the tragic closing of Logsdon. Kyle Tubbs and Jonathan Davis have been the Jacob Lupfers for the HSU cause. Another lost cause? I hope not, but as with Jacob and Save OBU – the odds are against them. Nevertheless, they are doing God’s work, and I will continue to help where I can. Over the past almost 2 years, I have used the Roundup to give their efforts as much visibility as possible.
• After I announced that I would be ending the Roundup, I received a few donations, including one from a dear friend who had not donated before. He prefers to be recognized as “Conservatively Anonymous.” He helped me reach a goal – which was to have 70 unique donors before I quit. He was my 70th donor. Given that I turned 70 earlier this year, I thought that was a nice round number to end on . . . as is my 500th issue tonight.
• I have many people to thank, and I just know I’ll leave someone out. If so, I apologize, but I’m going to give it the old college try anyway.
  • First of all, thank you to those 70 donors who have supported my work since I resumed WBR “on my own dime” in May 2018. Several have given monthly: Patrick Anderson & the Christian Ethics Today Foundation; Aubrey Ducker; Colin Harris; Charlie Johnson; Brenda McWilliams; and Art Travis.
  • Just a few months after I resumed publication, Patsy Ayres, my good friend with whom I had the privilege of serving on the T. B. Maston Foundation for several years (from 2010-2012, Pat was chair, and I was vice-chair), sent a substantial donation, and when I say substantial, I mean it! Thank you, Pat.
  • There are many others who have sent multiple generous donations, and I’m very grateful to them.
  • Then there’s my dear friend Babs Baugh, whom I miss so much. Babs regularly sent generous donations to Texas Baptists Committed while I was exec. director, including one to which she attached a note to the TBC board, saying that this donation was made specifically because they had chosen me as exec. director. What wonderful affirmation!!!
  • Bob Stephenson . . . oh my, another friend I miss dearly. When I became executive director, Bob made a 5-year commitment to bankroll Texas Baptists Committed. Bob is the reason I received a salary. When I was getting ready to go the BGCT every year, preparing for our breakfast and booth there, which meant big expenses, I would give Bob a call. “How much do you need?” he would ask, and a couple days later we would receive a check for that plus an additional $10,000 or so.
    • But with all of these . . . Patsy (who, thankfully, is still with us), Babs, Bob . . . their financial generosity is a distant second to their friendship. I’ve loved the opportunity to visit with them and talk about Baptist principles and history. The credentials of all three of these in that area is unrivaled. They’ve always inspired me.
    • Babs is gone, but the Baugh Foundation continues to generously support many Baptist causes. In the spirit of Babs, her daughter Jackie Moore – also a dear friend of mine – has been exceedingly generous in supporting Weekly Baptist Roundup since I resumed it in 2018.
  • Many thanks to all of the journalists, bloggers, and other writers and news services that have produced the content I’ve linked in WBR. It is you who have done the heavy lifting. I simply had the privilege of sharing the fruits of your labor with some who might not have otherwise seen them.
  • I want to thank the Texas Baptists Committed board one more time. They faithfully supported my work with TBC . . . always were supportive. When our son Travis suffered a stroke in April 2013 and was in hospitals for almost 3 months, Weekly Baptist Roundup was the ONLY work I did, and they never questioned me. In fact, I once took a conference call with the board in my car, in the parking lot of the hospital, and I thanked the board for their patience and understanding. Wesley Shotwell, then the chair of the board, said, “We’re just privileged to walk this road with you, Bill.” THAT is the love of Christ.
  • I want to again thank the TBC board and Wilshire Baptist Church for the retirement dinner they gave me at Wilshire in August 2018. I had wonderful friends involved in that dinner. George Mason, my pastor, emceed a panel discussion between David Currie, Suzii Paynter, and Charlie Johnson, all of whom were throwing compliments my way, causing me to wonder whether they had the right guy! Lance Currie, the last chair of the TBC board, emceed the evening, and he and David presented me with gifts that left me speechless. George Gagliardi sang and played a song he wrote – “Big Bad Jones” to the tune of Jimmy Dean’s “Big Bad John” – in which he skillfully (as is his wont) wove together much of my life story. Finally, Babs Baugh and Marv Knox – who were unable to attend – sent video greetings that were played during the dinner. How blessed I am with such friends as all of these. And then there were numerous family and friends who traveled long distances to be there that evening. Thank you to all of you.
  • Thank you to my family, who have been so supportive of all I do. Thank you, most of all, to Joanna, the love of my life who went home to be with the Lord in February. In May 2018, when I told her I believed God hadn’t wanted me to stop publishing the Roundup when we closed down TBC and that I wanted to resume publishing and request donations to help cover my expenses, Joanna wanted to make the first donation – and so she did. She always will be the love of my life; I miss her with every breath I take, and I look forward to a joyful reunion when the Lord calls me home one of these days. Thank you for loving me, Babe.

Well, as I said, I know I’ve forgotten someone or something . . . it’s inevitable. But it’s almost 3 a.m., and I’ve pretty well thrown the kitchen sink in here, so I’m going to close.

This has been a wonderful experience. Many people have told me that there is nothing like Weekly Baptist Roundup in Baptist life . . . not just in moderate/progressive Baptist life, but in any part of the Baptist world. I guess that’s my ultimate thank you – to God for letting me have this ministry, for letting me take part in God’s ministry, and for listening to my prayer for guidance every week and guiding me through the publication of 500 issues of Weekly Baptist Roundup.

Thanks be to God!