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SBC DIGEST: Florence Littauer dies at 92; Bob Fu joins Family Research Council


Florence Littauer remembered for ministry of encouragement and hope
By Tammi Reed Ledbetter

LUBBOCK, Texas (BP) — Florence Littauer, the iconic speaker and author who championed Christian messages of hope, encouragement and understanding, died July 11 after battling a stroke and a subsequent heart attack. She was 92.

In her 50-year career, Littauer wrote more than 40 books and addressed hundreds of thousands of people in the United States and overseas, inspiring thousands of women, including many aspiring writers.

Her ministry began in 1967, when she and her husband Fred moved to San Bernardino, Calif., to serve on staff at the then-headquarters for Campus Crusade for Christ (now Cru). Fred was director of conference services; Florence began teaching women’s Bible studies.

Groups began to invite Littauer to tell her life story and to share how she overcame depression. More speaking engagements followed, then her first book in 1978, an autobiography titled “I Could Be Happy, if Only …” It has since been revised and retitled “Behind the Personality.”

Littauer was regarded as a trailblazer who opened the door for thousands of women to develop their leadership and communication skills. Many Southern Baptist women were beneficiaries of her ministry.

Her best-selling book “Personality Plus” sold millions of copies and has been translated into more than 25 languages. Author John Maxwell described the book as life-changing. “Through Florence’s work,” Maxwell said, “the four personality types — which is widely known as ‘The Personalities’ — became a fun and accessible tool for understanding yourself and getting along with others.”

Read the full story here.

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Family Research Council welcomes Bob Fu as senior fellow for international religious freedom
By FRC Staff

WASHINGTON (BP) — Bob Fu has joined the Family Research Council’s Center for Religious Liberty as senior fellow for international religious freedom. As religious persecution continues to spread around the world, and as China in particular continues to play a troubling role, Fu will provide specific expertise handling religious freedom issues in that country.

Fu was a student leader in China during the Tiananmen Square democracy movement in 1989, and a professor and house church leader in Beijing until he and his wife Bochun “Heidi” Cai were imprisoned in 1996. In 2002, after Fu had been exiled to the United States, he founded ChinaAid and continued to advocate for religious freedom in China.

Fu has also regularly appeared in Baptist Press, commenting on Christian persecution in China.

Read the full report here.

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