by Henry Durand/The Christian Index SUWANEE, Ga. (BP) — Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief coordinator Dwain Carter said Saturday that the response in the wake of Hurricane Helene’s rampage through Georgia would be an “all hands on deck effort.” Carter said a huge area of the state has been affected by the storm, with effects ranging from wind damage to flooding, and loss of power and communications. As many of the GBDR’s 1,100 volunteers as are able to respond will be activated in the … [Read more...]
Midwestern Seminary’s For the Church conference addresses faithfulness for beauty of the church
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (MBTS) – Midwestern Seminary welcomed more than 1,500 guests to campus on September 23–24 for the 2024 For the Church National Conference, “Faithful: Serving the Most Beautiful People on Earth.” Pastors and ministry leaders from around the country gathered to hear sessions by Jason K. Allen, J.T. English, Tony Merida, Kevin Ezell, Jared C. Wilson, and Crawford Loritts. The event also featured a Women’s Pre-Conference with Jen Wilkin, a Student Pastor Summit, and various … [Read more...]
Wedgwood Baptist Church 25 years after mass shooting: SWBTS alumni share memories
by Michelle Workman FORT WORTH, Texas (BP) – On Sept. 15, 1999, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary alumnus Jay Fannin (MACE, ’98) was helping at a youth event he had organized at Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, where he had been named the youth minister 20 months previously. But that time of prayer and worship that was attended by 14 area church youth groups quickly turned into a tragedy when an armed man walked into the sanctuary and began shooting. Eight people were … [Read more...]
Southern Baptists cooperative ‘force for good,’ Iorg maintains at installation
NASHVILLE (BP) – The Southern Baptist Convention is a diverse, cooperative “force for good” that is poised to move forward on mission, Jeff Iorg said at his installation as the eighth president of the SBC Executive Committee Sept. 16 in Nashville. Whether in Christian youth education and discipleship, church planting and development, pastoral and ministerial preparation, evangelism, national and international missions, women’s ministry or financial giving, Southern Baptists have … [Read more...]
Todd Fisher reflects on God’s faithfulness amid continuing recovery from accident
by Baptist Messenger staff OKLAHOMA CITY (BP) – Oklahoma Baptists Executive Director-Treasurer Todd Fisher announced on Facebook Aug. 28 he was heading home after an extended hospital stay that resulted from a serious automobile accident that occurred in late July. In the Facebook post, Fisher shared an update on his health and reflected on God’s provision on his road to healing. “Overall, everything looks positive regarding my injuries,” he wrote. “One of my ankles still concerns … [Read more...]
New Illinois abortion laws could be trouble for churches, ministries
by Lisa Misner/Illinois Baptist State Association SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (BP) – The Illinois General Assembly continues to find new ways to further enshrine abortion into law. Within the last month, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed one bill requiring insurance companies to provide full coverage for abortions and another making abortions a protected human rights issue. The actions came just ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago where the party emphasized its commitment to … [Read more...]
Anthem Church, Columbia, fosters church planting in Mankato, Minn.
MANKATO, Minn./COLUMBIA, Mo. – Columbia’s Anthem Church is a fairly young Missouri Baptist church that’s putting an emphasis on missions, missions training, and church planting. Though it was a church plant itself just seven years ago, it’s already starting to grow other churches and recently sent members to Mankato, Minn., to aid a new work in the hometown of Minnesota State University. A member of the Heart of Missouri Baptist Association, Anthem is also a Salt Network church. The … [Read more...]
First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, tears down sanctuary site of 2017 mass murder
SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (BP) – The site of the deadliest church shooting in the nation no longer stands, as First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas, moved forward Aug. 12 with a 2021 decision to demolish its former sanctuary. Church members voted 69-35 in August 2021 to demolish the sanctuary after a gunman killed 25 there in November 2017, including a pregnant woman, and injured 20 others before killing himself. While a lawsuit challenged the decision, it was not filed … [Read more...]
Young Oklahoma prayer warrior meets St. Louis church planter
ST. LOUIS – You never know who might be praying for you. Just ask Michael Byrd, the pastor of Faith Community Bible Church in north St. Louis. Or you could ask Bethany Chapin, an 11-year-old from Oklahoma City. Byrd, his wife, Traci, and Faith Community were featured last summer as part of LifeWay’s Vacation Bible School curriculum, highlighting North American missions. Byrd said it was humbling to know people were praying for them from all over the nation. “During the time we received … [Read more...]
Park Street Baptist Church in Butte, Mont., is living out Acts 8:4
EDITOR’S NOTE: The pastor’s name has been changed for security reasons. BUTTE, Mont. (BP) – Park Street Baptist Church and the BSU (Baptist Student Union) at Montana Tech University co-mingle to encourage the congregation to tell others about Jesus as they disperse around town, around the country, and around the world. Judson frequently crosses borders into security-sensitive areas, modeling Acts 8:4, “Those who have been scattered preached the word wherever they went.” He does so … [Read more...]
Throat cancer fails to loosen his grip on God’s sovereignty
CLEVELAND, Tenn. (BP) – “Don’t feel sorry for me,” Ernest Easley writes in a new book. A feeding tube is how he gets nourishment. He struggles to speak. Diagnosed with malignant throat cancer in 1998, severe side effects from 44 radiation treatments still afflict the longtime pastor. Even so: “I feel sorry for you if you haven’t learned the peace that comes from resting in God’s sovereignty,” Easley writes in “Resting in God’s Sovereignty: A 30-day Devotional on God’s Plan for His … [Read more...]
Historic pulpit survives fire at First Baptist Church, Dallas
DALLAS (BP) – A pulpit used by Southern Baptist notables like George Truett and W.A. Criswell emerged intact after surviving a fire that gutted the historic sanctuary at First Baptist Church here over the weekend. “So indescribably grateful for this miracle,” another former FBC pastor, O.S. Hawkins, shared. “In the midst of the total destruction of the church in the fire this 130 year old pulpit of Truett and Criswell and the others of us somehow someway miraculously survived. Thank you … [Read more...]
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