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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Six resolutions to be offered for messengers’ consideration

By Message Staff ALEXANDRIA (LBM) – The Resolutions Committee has drafted six resolutions for messengers to consider for adoption as consensus policy statements during the 171st Session of the Louisiana Baptist Convention. The committee’s recommendations will be offered for a vote at 3:05 p.m. as part of the Tuesday portion of the Nov. 12-13 program. The six statements cover a span of issues. One expresses appreciation for those who played a major part in the annual meeting. However, the remaining five address key spiritual matters, moral issues and social concerns that are hot topics of public debate. ON PROTECTION OF FAITH-BASED ADOPTION AND CHILD CARETAKING ENTITIES was forwarded to the Resolutions Committee from the Moral and Social Concerns Committee in support of national legislation to defend Christian orphanages, adoption agencies and other child caretaking ministries from attack because of biblically-held beliefs about marriage and the biological basis of gender. The resolution was requested by Perry Hancock, president of the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home and Family Ministries. He expressed concern to the committee about increasing hostility in some cities and states, including Boston, Philadelphia, … [Read more...]

Christian bands re-open Guinn in style

By Kirbi Cochran, Message Staff Writer PINEVILLE — What better way to celebrate Louisiana College’s re-opening of the newly remodeled Guinn Auditorium than to have a concert featuring Big Daddy Weave and Brandon Heath, two of the top Christian musical artists in the country. The auditorium’s renovation was made possible after the college made an insurance claim to GuideOne, an insurance company that works primarily with Christian colleges and churches, following a destructive hail storm in 2015. Guinn was one of 18 buildings on campus that received interior and exterior improvements after GuideOne approved a claim for $18 million. At a cost of $6.5 million, work on the 40-year-old facility was finished at the beginning of this school year after almost two years of work. The centerpiece of the campus, Guinn not only received a new roof but also had its interior completely refurbished with a new ceiling, walls, tile, carpet, seats, sound system, HVAC, and an LED lighting system that is capable of illuminating the walls in a variety of colors. While LC students got an early sneak peek by attending weekly chapel services as well as a rededication ceremony on Sept. 30, the public had to wait until the official grand … [Read more...]

Can I change my disposition?

By Waylon Bailey Can I change my disposition? I’m sure you’ve heard someone protest how they cannot change. Usually, they say something like this. “You have to take me the way I am. I can’t change. That just the way I am.” Is that true? Is it impossible to change? Are we destined for impatience, frustration, anger, and bitterness? Or, is it possible that God can do in my life what seems impossible to me? The Bible gives every indication that you are not stuck with the same old way that you’ve always been. What does the Bible say about change? First, the Bible is clear that to be “in Christ“ means to be a new creation. Being saved isn’t about trying harder or reforming our image. To be in Christ is to be made new. “Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old passed away; behold, new things have come“ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Second, the Bible says that we have been given the Spirit of Jesus to work within us. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work within us. When you think about that power, you must say, “I do not have to be the way I have always been.” Third, God produces fruit in the life of a Christian. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, … [Read more...]