By Louisiana College communications Christian Universities Online (CUO) has ranked Louisiana College the third most affordable Christian college in the United States and included LC in the category of “50 Best Value Christian Colleges and Universities” for 2015 - 16. “Though the two are related, there is a distinct difference between affordability and value,” said Dr. Rick Brewer, president of LC. “We have worked hard to close the affordability gap by making our rates competitive with public institutions,” he said. “Our differentiating value proposition, however, is that we offer academic rigor with curricula that are founded on a Christian worldview.” “We are intentional about offering the best education possible at a reasonable cost,” Brewer continued.  “We do this primarily because we believe what Colossians 2:3 says about ‘all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge’ being in Jesus Christ.” “That so few schools are on both lists speaks to how God has blessed LC, and to our commitment to prepare graduates and transform lives for kingdom growth,” Brewer said. For information about financial aid at LC, go to www.lacollege.edu/finances/financial-aid.   … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer Two feet of water is now inside a church north of Monroe due to the heavy rainfall in the area but its members are looking for ways to show Christ’s love even in a bleak situation. “The building is flooded but the church is fine,” said Chad Merrell, pastor of First West Fairbanks. “The church is serving our community and loving people like Jesus. Pray that we have opportunities to serve and share the hope of Jesus with people whom we never would’ve met had water not risen.” Some of his members along with those from its parent church, First West Monroe, are helping evacuate homes, feed volunteers and fill and deliver sandbags, Merrell said. He expects many more opportunities to be available in the coming days and weeks ahead to minister to others affected by the storm. “Pray for first responders and volunteers,” he said. “Pray for families who have been evacuated. Pray the rain will stop.” Since Tuesday, torrential rainfall has caused massive flooding throughout Louisiana. Nearly two feet of rain has fallen in some areas and the rain may not move out of the state until sometime Sunday, according to long-range forecasts. Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency … [Read more...]

By Message Staff First Baptist Church in Haughton opened its doors Tuesday evening to neighbors whose homes were flooded after a strong system produced high winds and up to a foot of rain in some areas. Regardless of the amount of time evacuees need to stay at the designated American Red Cross shelter, Pastor Gevan Spinney says his congregation will shine the love of Christ in a dismal situation. “The evacuees have been very grateful but are devastated,” said Spinney, who also is Louisiana Baptist Convention president. “Most of the people here have lost a lot and are kind of shell shocked. We plan on loving them as long as we need to.” Nine people stayed inside the church’s Family Life Center Tuesday evening, and the church as well as some area businesses are providing food for the evacuees, Spinney said. “We are getting a lot of texts and calls from people in the community asking how they can help,” Spinney said. “We’ve gone through some tragedies in Haughton as a community in the past and this proves again that folks love on each other and take care of their neighbors.” Louisiana associational directors of missions in the affected areas told the Baptist Message no churches were damaged in the first wave of bad … [Read more...]

By Norm Miller, LC communications PINEVILLE - Louisiana College senior social work major Caroline Weatherford was chosen by the Louisiana Council on Social Work Education to present a paper at a statewide National Association of Social Worker’s Conference in Baton Rouge, La., March 17. Among all the papers submitted from Louisiana’s higher education social work programs, Weatherford’s committee-reviewed paper was top choice for presentation from the undergraduate level. Originally written as part of Weatherford’s Social Work with Communities and Organizations’ coursework, the paper conjoins her class’s semester-long community service learning project focused on reducing the stigma of mental illness in Central Louisiana. “I am honored to present this paper and am excited I was chosen,” Weatherford told LCNews. “But I am even more excited that I'll be able to share the work that my classmates and I did. Hopefully, this will raise the awareness of stigma even more.” Weatherford and her classmates completed two public awareness projects. The first was a "Chalk Out," where students wrote statistics about mental illness on public sidewalks. “The purpose was for people to read these statistics and, if they have a mental … [Read more...]

By Message Staff PINEVILLE – God speaks to Christians in many ways and places. What comes next is a simple but challenging requirement … saying yes to God, no matter what the cost. “God speaks to us in all sorts of places, in all sorts of ways,” Kevin Adams told Louisiana College students and others on Wednesday evening. “And the challenge for us tonight is, are we going to say yes Lord.” Adams’ message was part of a three-day Joseph Willis Symposium and Revival that ends tonight at LC. Adams is pastor of East Baptist Church in Lynn, Mass., and a Welsh revival historian. During his three days at LC, Adams has spoken each night during the revival, as well as in chapel and classes on campus. He also was part of a panel discussion Wednesday evening, March 2, about the subject of revival. Among his topics during the symposium was how God used 26-year-old Evan Roberts to spread revival in 1904 in Wales. The revival resulted in 100,000 people coming to accept Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. He emphasized to the crowd, which consisted mostly of LC students, that not all of them will have a testimony like Roberts. But having a testimony, he told the audience, is important because it can make a difference … [Read more...]

By Staff, Baptist Message WASHINGTON, D.C. – A sharply divided U.S. Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments in an abortion rights case that could have far-reaching implications not only in Texas but also a number of other states including Louisiana. The high court is hearing a challenge to a Texas abortion law, enacted in 2013, that requires doctors who perform abortions to having admitting privileges at nearby hospitals and prohibits clinics from providing abortions unless they meet the standards of outpatient or ambulatory surgical centers. The high court heard the arguments with only eight justices, because of the recent death of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, a leader of the conservative wing for nearly three decades. Scalia, 79, was found dead Feb. 13. The court's new alignment makes a 4-4 split in this case a possibility. If the court were to divide evenly, it would result in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals' decision upholding the state law remaining in effect in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. A tie, however, would not establish a precedent and not be controlling in the rest of the country. Benjamin Clapper, executive director of Louisiana Right to Life, issued the following statement March 2 after … [Read more...]