by Gary Long

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We recently launched our new monthly print newspaper, Faith & Field, under the BGAV masthead. It feels good, and it feels right. I’ll admit, I wasn’t crazy about the name Faith & Field at first, but it’s grown on me. My hope is that you quickly connect it to our historic identity as Christians who see the world as a mission field—and to our Baptist roots in the story of the Bedford Plowboys.

I can’t think about plowing without remembering my childhood on the farm. The smell of spring soil, the softness of freshly turned earth, so soft you’d sink mid-calf after the first plowing. First came the bottom plow to turn the land, then the disc to smooth and break up the dirt, then the cultivator to make the raised beds in rows—each step preparing the field for planting. My grandfather was a careful, by-the-book man, but he could never plow a straight row. Every spring he’d look out at the crooked lines, wave it off, and laugh, “You can plant more on a crooked row, anyway.”

That memory comes back as we launch this publication. I think, too, of John Claypool’s reminder that “God can write straight with a crooked stick.” The pairing fits. None of us plow perfect rows, but God can still make something good grow.

Jesus once said, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” In other words, the field in front of us matters more than the one behind us. Every week, pastors and leaders are plowing faithfully—preaching, visiting, feeding, praying, stacking chairs, and starting over again on Sunday. It’s not glamorous, but it’s holy work.

That’s where Faith & Field comes in. This paper isn’t a coffee table decoration; it’s meant to help keep your rows growing. Our goal is simple: deliver three things that matter.

News: Stories that connect you with the larger BGAV family.

Inspiration: Voices that remind you why the long days and late nights matter.

Resources: Tools you can actually use in your church and community.

Crooked rows and crooked sticks. That’s ministry. It’s hard. And it ain’t always pretty. Maybe Faith & Field will be a bit like that—not perfect, but useful for your work in the field. And perhaps God will write straight with the crooked stick of our lives.

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Gary Long is BGAV’s chief marketing officer.