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Shepherding Thoughts
by Pastor Ben Francis
Welcome to Shepherding Thoughts: An inside look at a Southern Baptist Pastor's comments on navigating popular topics in Christianity and Religion.
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Ben Francis
Dec 15, 20248 min read
A Pastoral Guide to Preparing for Communion
Communion ; the Lord’s Supper ; also called the Eucharist . ** A Note upfront : This guide represents the Baptistic tradition and...
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Ben Francis
Jul 12, 20246 min read
Give us Preachers, not Shepherds!
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do...
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Ben Francis
Apr 5, 202411 min read
Is the Southern Baptist Convention Overstepping its Authority?
A discussion of Creeds, Authority, and Autonomy There is a growing discussion in some corners of the SBC that the Convention is preparing...
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Ben Francis
Mar 18, 20247 min read
What Are Pastors Doing During the Week? 10 Things...
I often get a lot of questions about how I spend my time as a Pastor. People are understandably curious about what I do. Some people are...
240 views0 comments
Ben Francis
Mar 5, 20245 min read
10 Leadership Lessons from the Movie: Greyhound
In 2020, the Movie Greyhound was released on AppleTv in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. It was a groundbreaking movie for several...
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Ben Francis
Jan 26, 20248 min read
Our Responsibilities in Baptizing Our Children
In Matthew 19:13-14, we read these words, “Then children were brought to Him that He might lay His hands on them and pray. The disciples...
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Ben Francis
Sep 21, 20237 min read
How God is Saving Me from Preaching
Thoughts from a growing Pastor-Shepherd… I'm a Pastor-Shepherd, and I preach and teach every week; multiple times each week. And by God’s...
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Ben Francis
Apr 28, 20238 min read
What Does it Mean to Be Pastored?
Life in the Local Church Belonging to a local Church of the Lord Jesus Christ entails all sorts of things: Membership, fellowship,...
201 views0 comments
Ben Francis
Apr 15, 20238 min read
A Lament for the Hard Things: The Joy of Pastoral Ministry; A Follow-Up…
When I sat down to write the previous post, “A Lament for the Hard Things,” my goal was to share a tangible illustration of what I had...
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Ben Francis
Apr 11, 20235 min read
A Lament for the Hard Things…
This painting hangs in my study reminding me of days like today. Like the man in the painting, pastoral ministry calls men to come in...
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Ben Francis
Feb 23, 20235 min read
Was Disfellowshipping the Right Move? Yes.
On Wednesday, February 22, 2023 the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention reported out that it had voted to Disfellowship...
218 views1 comment
Ben Francis
Jan 31, 20235 min read
What I’m Reading: January 2023
Well, another year has come and the pages continue to turn! I have been encouraged lately that many of my friends have posted about their...
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Ben Francis
Jan 19, 20237 min read
Sing Louder, Men!
A Guest post by Rev. Justin Morehead Colossians 3:16 - Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another...
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Ben Francis
Dec 2, 20228 min read
The State of the SBC: A Mid-Year look…
This post will be lengthy, but I hope to provide an accurate summation and overview of SBC happenings at present… Things Going Well… 1 -...
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Ben Francis
Sep 5, 20226 min read
Is In-Person Preaching better than a Screen?
With the advent of new technology, new possibilities are introduced to the human experience. The rise of computers, the internet, and...
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Ben Francis
Sep 1, 202211 min read
Has Big Eva Made Too Much of her Human Leaders?
“Big Eva” …Big Evangelicalism. The structures and Institutions that make up American Evangelicalism with all of its power, prestige, and...
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Ben Francis
Jun 19, 20229 min read
SBC 2022 Follow-Up Thoughts
First things first: Southern California is beautiful! Tera and I thoroughly enjoyed our time in Anaheim. The weather was in the upper...
530 views1 comment
Ben Francis
Sep 21, 20216 min read
Marks of Healthy Preaching
In a previous post, we discussed the pressing need for good, healthy, Biblical preaching. In this post, we want to outline some of the...
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Ben Francis
Sep 20, 20218 min read
What is Good Preaching? And Does it Really Matter?
Preaching is one of those words that, for the most part, makes us think of things like: Church, Sunday, a Preacher, etc. But, what makes...
169 views0 comments
Ben Francis
Aug 21, 20215 min read
Who are Deacons to Be?
New Testament Deacons: Servants in the Household of God. Who are these Deacons to Be? -In the last post on Deacons, we looked at the...
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