‘Beg God for tears’: Pastors challenged to be broken for lost people at Southwestern  SBTC breakfast

Recognizing evangelism is the “heartbeat” of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, O.S. Hawkins, Matt Queen, and Nathan Lorick spoke about the need for “tears” for lost people to a capacity crowd at the seminary’s alumni and friends breakfast held Nov. 15 in Corpus Christi, Texas, as part of the annual meeting of the SBTC.

Setting the context for the panel discussion, Hawkins, senior advisor and ambassador-at-large at Southwestern Seminary, recounted that growing up in Fort Worth, Texas, in the 1950s the culture was “grateful and thankful” as the nation emerged from World War II. Tracing the decay in culture through the decades, Hawkins said the culture believers are now called to reach with the Gospel is one “where what used to slide and slither down the back alleys of our towns and villages now proudly parades down Main Street.”

Lorick, who has served as the executive director of the SBTC since 2021, recalled the words of Paul in Romans 10 as he wrote that he had “great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart” over the nation of Israel and their need for salvation. Lorick, who previously served as evangelism director of the SBTC from 2012-2017, said God used the passage to reveal a “key element” of evangelism.

“I think we’re missing a movement of God among salvations among lost people because as pastors and lay leaders, we’re missing tears for the people who are far from God or running from God,” Lorick said. He explained the “greatest motivation” in his own life to share the Gospel “are the tears that come out of the overflow of my heart being broken for lost people.”

He recalled a man in the last church he pastored that experienced two sleepless nights due to decisions made in a church business meeting but was not as “upset” over his five adult children who were lost. Lorick added the situation made him question, “Where have I shepherded wrong, that a guy can be broken over a dumb Baptist business meeting but not lose sleep over the salvation and the souls and the eternity of his kids?”

Lorick encouraged the gathering of pastors that during the “midst of cultural shifts and winds, beg God for tears.”

Queen, associate dean of the Roy J. Fish School of Evangelism and Missions, professor of evangelism, and L.R. Scarborough Chair of Evangelism (“Chair of Fire”), shared testimony of presenting the Gospel at a recent Wednesday night evangelism training at a church. Queen explained his custom is to always share the Gospel at any event. When he did so at the conclusion of the training, five people were saved. He said the pastor explained “we usually don’t give invitations anymore.”

“I thought, ‘Look at what you’re missing,’” recalled Queen, who will assume the role of interim provost and vice president for academic administration on Jan. 1. “I didn’t manipulate anybody. I didn’t hit anybody upside the head. I didn’t force anybody to make a decision. I just gave them opportunity, ‘Do you want to respond today?’ and they responded.”

Explaining how evangelism has worked in his church, Lane Prairie Baptist Church in Joshua, Texas, Queen said that of the 300 attendees who worship during the Sunday morning service, about 60 participate in door-to-door evangelism on Sunday evenings. He said during one night of going door-to-door they were able to share 26 full Gospel presentations, though no one prayed to receive Christ. However, he added, “the overflow of us being faithful in our evangelism doing [door-to-door] and in other ways throughout the week” led to a teenage girl and another woman confessing Christ during the following week’s Sunday morning service. Queen said both were individuals the church members had intentionally shared with during the week.

“Will you see someone come to faith in Christ every time you give a Gospel invitation? No. Will you see someone come to faith every time you knock on the door? No. But if you don’t ever give an invitation, and if you don’t ever knock on a door, if you don’t ever share the Gospel, you’ll never see someone come to faith in Christ,” Queen challenged.

Queen encouraged the gathering to create a “culture” in churches where church members are sharing the Gospel with lost people. Addressing the pastors in attendance, he said, “If your people don’t hear and see of you sharing the Gospel, you won’t see or hear of your people sharing the Gospel.” He exhorted the pastors to exercise “tears in prayer.”

Hawkins, who pastored churches in Oklahoma, Florida, and Texas, said “the best thing he ever did” for his sermon preparation “was what happened with the heart.” He said beginning at First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale, where he pastored from 1978 to 1993, he would weekly pray for five families in the church. Two weeks prior to praying for them, he would reach out to the families and ask for prayer requests. 

“The shortest way to anybody’s heart is through the throne of grace,” Hawkins said. “We are never more like Jesus when we are washing the feet of people in our church.”

Lorick encouraged the pastors to lead their “churches to be praying churches.”

“Because when we pray, I believe we touch the heart of God and I believe God moves among us,” Lorick added. “I think it’s rather simplistic in the midst of a culture, we’ve got to get back to the things that are hard work and the things that aren’t glamorous and the things that nobody writes articles or puts tweets out about. We’ve got to pray and then be obedient.”

Queen concluded the panel discussion by explaining a partnership between the North American Mission Board and the SBTC that will launch in the spring across Texas and provide pastors and church leaders a tool called “Who’s Your One?: Advancing the Movement” that will help pastors lead their churches to pray for lost people and to assist pastors in leading their churches “in a culture of evangelism by celebrating evangelism.” 

In his final remarks, Queen challenged the pastors to celebrate when a person comes to faith in Christ, but also when a church member shares the Gospel.

“Our people replicate what the pastor leads the church to celebrate,” Queen said.