A PROMISE OF THINGS TO COME:

Nothing could be more simple and pure than an egg. You can boil it, bake it, fry it, scramble it, make an omelette or frittata. It can itself be a tasty, filling meal, or it can go into something else to make it better, from salad dressing to cake. If you have eggs, you won’t go hungry, and chickens usually do their part by producing eggs daily, year-round. An egg is itself a promise of good things to come. When the shell cracks open, you either get another chicken or something nourishing.

In the mid-1920s, eggs meant even more.  In America, Calvin Coolidge was president, a man who had good business sense and a belief in social equality.  But events were in play that would eventually produce the Great Depression in 1929, a time of national financial crisis.  A typical American household had an income of less than $450 a month.  Our lowly egg would have cost two to three cents, depending on location.  Family finances were tight: each family grew and raised as much food as they could, from family gardens and small animals like chickens. Yes, you did have to feed chickens, but they fed you in return. Ladies often kept aside the money they made from selling eggs – “egg money” would often be the difference in unexpected situations, times when just a little money could have a real impact.

God had a plan that needed that real impact, but in a far away place the ladies in our story could hardly imagine:  Bucharest, Romania. The Bucharest Baptist Theological Seminary had acquired land in the city with the vision of building on it, a fine structure that would last a hundred years.  It was a challenging vision. But the leadership of the seminary couldn’t make it happen alone. They prayed and fasted and sought God’s Word to them.  Who would God send to help?

To answer that, let’s look at a Bible verse.  You could call it a promise, or you could call it God’s sense of humor.  1 Corinthians 1:27 says, “But God chose the simple things of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.”  The members of the Women’s Missionary Union of the Southern Baptist Convention learned of this visionary project:  building a strong, beautiful building from which the seminary could reach and evangelize Eastern Europe. As we have seen, times were tough in America – all over the world, really. God gave these women their own vision of what could be accomplished together, and a plan was put together. The ladies pledged to donate their egg money to the building in Bucharest, a place they could hardly imagine and most – if not all – would never see. BBTS found God’s provision in a simple, humble source:  the praying, faithful women of the WMU who were dedicated to following the Lord and spreading the Gospel. A group of women the world would consider weak sold eggs, something the world considered of no significance. And yet look at what God did with their efforts! All through the difficult years of World War II and during the Communist years following, graduates still went out from BBTS, going to the difficult places in their own communities and around the world, shining His light.

An now, God is calling Americans again to help the seminary.  There are many good things happening in Bucharest.  We have recently been re-accredited, which means stability well into the future. We are adding a Master’s Degree in Family Ministry, with the initial cohort forming now.  We offer all classes online, in person and asynchronously, which makes it easy and practical to attend from wherever you live – we can work around your work hours. For those who want to explore what seminary might offer them, we have a certificate program, which is convenient and affordable. For those who have already completed seminary and are ready to pursue the next level, we have a partnership with the University of Bucharest so that you can complete your PhD there. BBTS is dedicated to growing each student in the faith and equipping him or her for ministry, wherever God’s plan takes them.

But we need you.  Once again, Baptists in America can make a real difference.  We have a renovation plan to take the seminary campus well beyond the 2020s.  It’s ambitious, but we feel God has a plan for this project, just like He did 100 years ago.  Toward that goal, we have established Friends of the Bucharest Baptist Seminary, a 501 C-3 foundation to help raise funds in the United States which will exclusively go to fund the renovation and other needs of the seminary. 

Please visit our website at friendsofbbts.org. You can find more information there, including how to donate. You can also link to BBTS’s website to find further information about classes and how to enroll. Now, just like 100 years ago, God’s giving us a promise of good things to come.