Posted on Oct 8, 2007

TAYLORS, S.C. (BP)--During this year's SBC Pastors' Conference I was part of a breakout session led by Dr. T.W. Hunt. This dear man of God has spent years seeking the face of God and also teaching God's people about prayer.

Dr. Hunt called for God's people to get serious about prayer. He has encouraged us to have a prayer focus, to bring our convention to a God-centeredness. He spoke eloquently about certain qualities in the Godhead. These qualities are otherness, love, humility, Christ's supremacy and nobility.

He wants us to see the otherness of God and see that accomplished in our churches, institutions and in our convention. In other words, we are to follow the principle of our Lord Jesus who was constantly putting the needs of others before himself. If we did so, imagine what our convention would be like. Instead of pushing our own agendas, what would happen if we saw others as more important than ourselves?

Can you imagine what would happen to us if sacrificial divine love, exampled by our Lord Jesus, was exampled in our convention? Let us love each other with God's kind of love.

Dr. Hunt's call for the quality of humility is one of great need. In my presidential sermon at the SBC annual meeting, I stated that Southern Baptist preachers seem to have the unique ability to "strut while sitting down." Can you imagine what would happen if we quit speaking negatively of one another, but affirmed others constantly? Dr. Hunt also spoke of the need to recognize Christ's supremacy. In other words, let us be Jesus people. Let us think like Him, feel like Him, act like Him and relate like Him.

The quality of nobility is desperately needed. Similar to Christlikeness, it shows that we are being prepared for eternal nobility by focusing on His word and way.

This call to prayer echoes that which I have been saying over these past months. Jesus wanted His churches to be called "houses of prayer." Let us not disappoint our Lord.
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Frank Page is president of the Southern Baptist Convention and pastor of First Baptist Church in Taylors, S.C.