JEFFERSON CITY – The Missouri Baptist Convention’s first African American officer, Jon Nelson, is not only a husband, father and church planter, but he is also a testimony to the grace of God that hunts us down and refuses to let us go. Only this grace can take an adversary, such as Nelson, and bring him into the service of the One he hated so much. Growing up in his parents’ inner-city church in Kansas City, Nelson admits he often intellectually wrestled with Christians there. “When I … [Read more...]
‘The difference is Christ’ – Drug addicts find gospel freedom through Harvest Outreach
HANNIBAL – The change Jesus made in ex-convict Tina Hall after her release from opioid incarceration on Aug. 9, 2016, is the difference between worldly night and heavenly day. “Addiction caused liver problems,” Hall said. “Nothing changed me or made me want other choices. I just wanted to get out. This time leaving prison, I had nowhere to go. My mom passed away when I was in prison.” That’s when Harvest Outreach stepped in. Harvest Outreach is a ministry of Living Way Christian … [Read more...]
Soli Deo gloria: Handel’s ‘Messiah’ lifts Christ high
COLUMBIA – On a cold, clear night in November, a crowd of 1,700 people gathered at Jesse Hall on the campus of the University of Missouri. They sat in rapt silence for nearly three hours as Scripture was unfolded, telling the story of Christ. It began with the prophecies of Isaiah, moved onto His birth in Luke, wound through His ministry and death in the Gospels, celebrated His resurrection with shouts of Hallelujah, and ended with selections from Revelation in anticipation of His second … [Read more...]
‘Consistency’ leads to Thanksgiving success: FBC Canton provides holiday meals for nearly 10 years and counting
CANTON – For 10 years now, First Baptist Church here has met a fellowship need by feeding the community. The church offered a full Thanksgiving meal – turkey, ham, green beans, mashed potatoes, noodles, cranberry sauce, and two pie flavors – to the community members, with their choice of dine in, carryout or local delivery. “It’s God’s way of blessing our community,” said volunteer Sandra Gibbs, who with her late husband Minor (Chubby) Gibbs birthed the idea. “We do what we would do with … [Read more...]
First Baptist Reavisville baptizes 23
REAVISVILLE – Once a year, members of Reavisville First Baptist Church and their families gather at the creek for a day of worship and celebration. Hundreds of people watch and cheer as new believers are baptized in the water and brought to new life in Christ. On August 26, this year, Pastor Mark Reavis and his deacons baptized 23 new believers, and they’re just getting started. According to Jeannie Reavis, wife of Pastor Mark, this has been a wonderful year for their church. “We’ve been … [Read more...]
‘There’s power in God’s Word’ – At 83, Nicolls travels globally for the Great Commission
ARNOLD – Jim Nicolls thought he’d just been broken for the people of northern Mexico. Surely, that’s why he wept through the night during his first mission trip in 2000, when he led a construction crew in building houses at a squatter’s camp along the U.S.-Mexico border. “That first night, I just laid there all night, weeping,” he recalled. “God broke me. I kept saying, ‘Why, God, am I here, and they’re there?’” More than the spiritual lostness, it was the “abject poverty” that existed … [Read more...]
More than 35 FBC Troy widows rev up the Harleys
TROY – A cloud of leather, exhaust and exhilaration descended upon First Baptist Church in Troy on August 18 for their 3rd annual Widows Ride. It’s an annual tradition that brings fun and joy to women who have been widowed, as well as all of the people who put on the event. The Widows Ride – also known as the Biker Babes Ride – is an outreach event for widowed women in Lincoln County coordinated by First Baptist Church in Troy. There were about 90 participants this year, including more … [Read more...]
Fenton church makes gospel connections
FENTON – One church plant’s musical method for building relationships has struck a note for residents of this St. Louis suburb. Connect Church, a Missouri Baptist affiliated church plant here that launched on Easter 2015, is making connections in Fenton by hosting a Guitar Club for area children. During Guitar Club, Connect Church’s founding pastor Chris Perstrope – also one of the Missouri Baptist Convention’s newest multiplying churches missionaries – helps children learn the basics not … [Read more...]
Juggling time, responsibility as a bivocational pastor
ALTON – It’s hard to catch time to interview Pastor Joby Steele. He is a high school principal and a bivocational pastor in the southern Missouri community of Alton. He says the Google Calendar app makes it possible for him to stay on track and his wife, Brenda, can check in on his schedule as well. They are a busy family with ball games, family vacations and a lot of school and church activities each week. A typical week in September looked like this: • Alton High School during the … [Read more...]
Branstetter devotes life to sharing God’s light with boys, girls
JEFFERSON CITY – The stage is dark. Rick Branstetter appears before the audience, garbed all in black, sporting a tall black hat with a large red band and a black cape with red lining. He holds a large book with two words emblazoned in brilliant gold letters on its front cover: “Holy Bible.” “In the beginning, it was dark,” he says. “The Bible tells us it was dark. God looked around, and God said, ‘Let there be light!’” Branstetter shouts these last words. Stunned, his audience snaps … [Read more...]
FBC Joplin hosts confab for small churches
JOPLIN – Much like the young shepherd David, some churches might appear small in the eyes of man, but they often have the most heart in the eyes of God. “People who attend smaller, or normative-sized, churches are looking for authenticity,” said Jamie Tickel, pastor at First Baptist Church (FBC) here. “They want to belong, they don’t want to slip in and be anonymous. When they make the decision to go to a smaller church, these are people looking for a relationship.” Tickel was one of … [Read more...]
FBC Kimberling City ensures every child has warm, comfortable place to sleep
KIMBERLING CITY – Falling asleep in church is one thing, but it’s another entirely for a church to step up and make sure children in the community get a good night’s sleep. First Baptist Church here is doing just that with Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a program that provides bunk beds and linens to children aged 2 to 17 in the Branson area who otherwise would be sleeping on the floor. First Baptist’s chapter of the national organization hosts build days where different groups from the … [Read more...]
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