by Eric Reed & Lisa Misner/The Illinois Baptist SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (BP) – Church leaders from the central states engaged 12,000 hours of training, teaching and worship at the three-day Midwest Leadership Summit meeting in Springfield, Ill., Jan. 23-25. In multiple plenary sessions led by national SBC speakers and church-planting practitioners, and in 80 breakout sessions, almost 1,000 leaders shared and received equipping for ministry in their unique Midwest settings. The biennial … [Read more...]
SBC EC search team making progress in search for next president/CEO
NASHVILLE (BP) – The team searching for the next leader of the SBC Executive Committee said it has moved into what it calls an investigation phase, according to a press release from the group. Neal Hughes, chairman of the SBC Executive Committee President/CEO Search Team, said the group is “following the vetting process for EC personnel as outlined by our attorneys and approved by the trustees in the recent September meeting.” According to the release, the investigative process … [Read more...]
Christian school volunteer arrested on sexual abuse charges
by Laura Erlanson JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (BP) – A school volunteer in Missouri was arrested earlier this month on sex-related charges. Jennifer Cecil was a volunteer at a local Christian school and a member of Concord Baptist Church in Jefferson City. The school, Lighthouse Preparatory Academy, is not affiliated with Concord Baptist Church. Cecil was charged with first-degree sexual abuse, sexual contact with a student, second-degree statutory rape and second-degree statutory sodomy, … [Read more...]
Former Missouri DOM arrested on sex crime charges
COLFAX, La. (BP) – Daryl Stagg, 60, a Southern Baptist associational mission strategist (AMS) serving dozens of churches in north central Louisiana, is jailed on 12 counts of felony sex crimes, the Grant Parish Sheriff’s Office reported. Stagg previously served as a Director of Missions at the Harmony Baptist Association in Sedalia, Mo., from 2012-2018, according to his LinkedIn profile and Missouri Baptist Convention records. Stagg is charged with three counts each of first-degree rape, … [Read more...]
Messengers deem Saddleback, two other churches not in friendly cooperation with SBC
NEW ORLEANS (BP) – Messengers to the 2023 Southern Baptist Convention have upheld the Executive Committee’s decision that Fern Creek Baptist in Louisville, Ky., Freedom Church in Vero Beach, Fla., and Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., are not in friendly cooperation with the SBC. Registration Secretary Don Currence reported the results to messengers on Wednesday morning: Vote to sustain EC actions – Fern Creek Baptist: For – 91.85% (9,700) Against – 7.63% … [Read more...]
Barber, Stone to be SBC presidential nominees at annual meeting, June 13-14
Bart Barber to be renominated as convention president NEW ORLEANS (BP) – Pastor Steven James of Lake Charles, La., announced, Feb. 13, his intent to re-nominate Texas pastor Bart Barber for SBC president at the 2023 SBC Annual Meeting in New Orleans this June. Barber was elected to the position for the first time at last summer’s gathering in Anaheim. James and Barber know one another well due to their time together on the board of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. “During our … [Read more...]
Legacy of Crossover’s evangelism efforts set to continue in New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS (BP) – Southern Baptists were venturing to Las Vegas in 1989 for the SBC’s Annual Meeting, a controversial location due to the city’s negative reputation. Many reportedly threatened to boycott the meeting, but others recognized the intent – to emphasize evangelism and make an impact for the Gospel in the host city. “The intent that is being made to witness to the people in Las Vegas is a unique feature of this convention,” John Wright, chairman of the SBC Committee on Order of … [Read more...]
ARITF pivots, moves away from Guidepost Solutions
CHARLESTON, S.C. (BP) – Abuse Reform and Implementation Task Force chair Marshall Blalock announced Tuesday (April 4) the task force will no longer recommend Guidepost Solutions to establish and maintain a database for those credibly accused of sexual abuse. Messengers approved the creation of a “ministry check” website at the 2022 SBC Annual Meeting in Anaheim, Calif. The move comes after continued concerns were expressed by Southern Baptists to the ARITF in connection to a … [Read more...]
Sons to lead 2023 Committee on Resolutions
FARMERSVILLE, Texas (BP) – SBC president Bart Barber has named South Carolina pastor David Sons as the chairman of the Committee on Resolutions for the 2023 SBC Annual Meeting to be held in New Orleans this June. Sons, lead pastor of Lake Murray Baptist Church in Lexington, S.C., was a member of the 2022 committee in Anaheim and serves as the vice chairman of the SBC Executive Committee. “I’m humbled and honored to have been asked to serve our Convention of churches as chairman of … [Read more...]
McRaney/NAMB court date moved to August
OXFORD, Miss. (BP) — A U.S. District Court agreed with attorneys representing the North American Mission Board on March 3 that a continuance was necessary to complete the discovery process in a case brought against the entity by former state executive Will McRaney. Senior U.S. District Judge Glen H. Davidson signed the order moving the court date to Aug. 7 from the original date of June 5. March 3 was the previous discovery deadline. NAMB attorneys filed the motion for continuance on … [Read more...]
Saddleback Church deemed “not in friendly cooperation” with SBC
NASHVILLE (BP) — The Southern Baptist Convention's (SBC) Executive Committee affirmed a recommendation from the SBC Credentials Committee Tuesday (Feb. 21) to deem Saddleback Church as “not in friendly cooperation with the Southern Baptist Convention.” The move comes less than a year after founding pastor Rick Warren left the helm of the church and was replaced by Andy Wood and his wife, Stacie. While not co-pastors of the church, Andy serves as lead pastor of the church while Stacie … [Read more...]
Bryant Wright visits Send Relief ministry sites in Turkey earthquake zone
SOUTHERN TURKEY (BP) – Send Relief President Bryant Wright is on the ground amid the rubble and devastation caused by a major earthquake in Turkey and northern Syria. In a video released Feb. 11, he urged Southern Baptists to give and to pray. More than 35,000 people died in the Feb. 6 quake and its aftershocks. The death toll still could rise as bodies remain buried underneath homes and apartment buildings. Send Relief, a collaboration of the International Mission Board and the North … [Read more...]
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 38
- Next Page »