The Roundup 5 years later - I didn't know what I was getting myself into!by Bill Jones, TBC executive director

This week marks the 5th anniversary of TBC Weekly Baptist Roundup, originally titled TBC Midweek Baptist Roundup. TBC published the first issue on Wednesday, May 11, 2011.

I didn't know what I was getting myself into - a commitment that I would need to fulfill every week before I could rest. And that's no exaggeration! I have published the Roundup from Hong Kong (in September 2011, when Joanna and I were there visiting her family); and Israel (in April 2012, when we went there with a group from Wilshire & Temple Emanu-El in Dallas).

From April-June 2013, following our son's stroke, I was spending 15-16 hours a day in hospitals, so I published the Roundup from a number of hospital rooms for those 2-1/2 months. In the stress of that trying time, the Roundup was my therapy, my 'salvation,' if you will. And many of you joined us in praying for Travis's recovery, and we are deeply grateful for your prayers and concern. Three years later, Travis is doing well and ready to go back to work (in other words, he's looking).

But it IS a commitment, one that I feel very keenly. That May 11, 2011, issue was opened by 482 people; at present, around 800 people are opening the Roundup every week, and about 1,500 open at least one issue every five weeks. Over the past 5 years, as I've attended conferences throughout Texas and other states, I can count on several people coming up to me during the conference to tell me how much they appreciate reading the Roundup every week. So I have a commitment to people who are counting on finding the Roundup in their email every week.

In those 5 years, the Roundup has evolved drastically in content and format, but then so has the world of Baptist news and opinion, especially opinion, as the number of Baptist bloggers & op-ed sites has grown by leaps and bounds.

By a quirk of scheduling fate, the May 11, 2011 issue and the 5th anniversary issue coming up this Saturday share an almost identical item - in May 2011, we promoted, in Upcoming Baptist Events, the Baptist History & Heritage Society Conference being held in Texas, specifically at Dallas Baptist University. So, too, here in May 2016, we are promoting the upcoming Baptist History & Heritage Society Conference to be held in Texas; this one will be May 23-25 at Baylor University's Truett Seminary in Waco.

I began the Roundup with the purpose of keeping the name of Texas Baptists Committed in front of a wide audience every week, but it quickly became much more than that, as I realized its usefulness as a forum for promoting the good things going on in Baptist life and various opportunities for Baptists both to serve and to be served in their time of need.

So I added Did you know . . . ?, in which we highlight various Baptist resources and opportunities; and sections of student news, both in Texas and beyond, to highlight what our Baptist students and schools are doing. Of course, from the beginning, there was Upcoming Baptist Events to keep people informed of events both in Texas and elsewhere and provide links to schedules and registration.

From time to time, I receive requests to promote a special event or other newsworthy Baptist item, and I try to fulfill those requests whenever possible. I appreciate the opportunity.

What has been most fulfilling to me, as I read upwards of 75-80 articles each week for inclusion in the Roundup, is that I have been encouraged by the good things that Baptists are doing - disaster relief; advocacy on issues that affect the "least of these," such as payday loans and human trafficking; mission efforts at home and far afield, meeting the most desperate human needs in the name of Christ; and in-depth theological education, to name just a few. And I've been similarly encouraged by the good things that Baptists are writing - opinion and analysis articles that challenge Baptists to carry out the Gospel of Christ, that challenge us to go deeper in reading Scripture, to go beyond the comfortable understandings of faith that we grew up with.

My wife and I are members of a Sunday School class in which we all push each other's buttons. We challenge each other's suppositions and presuppositions, and we usually come out with more questions than answers, but that's good, because we have something to chew on all week; the discussion sets us to thinking. The Opinion and Analysis section of the Roundup seems to picture a similar discussion. The disparate perspectives show us that Baptists can't be pigeonholed; the old saw that 'where two Baptists gather, three opinions sit between them' may be inadequate these days. And that's a good thing! It shows the Holy Spirit uniquely at work in each of us.

I enjoy bringing all of this content together - or 'aggregating,' which I was recently advised is what I'm doing - but the real work is done before I get started. The real work is done by all of those reporters, editors, op-ed writers, bloggers, and other news service staffers who prepare all of this content upfront. All I do is link to it. So TBC and I - and you Roundup readers - owe a great debt to all of these who do such excellent work, week in and week out, and I say thank you to all of them.

Finally, thank you to all who read the Roundup regularly and especially to those who have made a point of expressing your appreciation to me. It means a lot.

Now, on we go to the next 5 years!