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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

PREVIEW (“Overflowing Peace”): Our Shepherd is the LORD Almighty

By Tara Dew, special to the Baptist Message NEW ORLEANS (LBM) -- This is the first of four excerpts Tara Dew has made available to Baptist Message readers from her newly released book, “Overflowing Peace,” a follow-up work to her best-selling book, “Overflowing Joy.” David begins Psalm 23 with “The LORD is my Shepherd, I have everything I need.” What a truth-packed verse! It is the most essential statement in the whole Psalm. If we truly believe this, then everything else will make sense. David’s first five words are: “The LORD is my Shepherd.” It is important that we understand who God is before we look at what He does or how He acts. Look at the name of God which David uses to start verse 1: “The LORD.” In our English translations of Psalm 23, it is not written “Lord” with lowercase letters. God’s name is written with all uppercase letters, “LORD.” This means that David uses a special name that God gave to Himself. It is four Hebrew consonants, and the English transliteration is YHWH, pronounced “Yahweh.” In our English Bibles, you will find it translated LORD, Yahweh, or Jehovah. Remember, names have meaning, especially in the Old Testament. We must understand the meaning of this name of God so that we can better … [Read more...]

Baptist Message to go ‘digital only’ in 2027

By Will Hall, Baptist Message executive editor ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – The Baptist Message, Louisiana Baptists’ news service, will con­tinue publishing a print edition through December 2026, then begin dig­ital-only operations in January 2027. The transition from a print product has been studied since 2024, according to Will Hall, the Baptist Mes­sage execu­tive editor. “I conducted a Nehemiah Walk of our operations as well as looked at other Baptist newspa­pers around the country to better understand how to move forward with our ministry,” he said, noting that he also looked at generational trends in how individuals prefer to receive their news. “I also looked at various ways to structure a financial model that works for continuing the Baptist Message into the future,” Hall said. Finances are a considerable factor in the decision because the news service expects a $100,000 drop in revenue after 2026. Hall said the shortfall would have forced the Baptist Message to increase sub­scriptions by at least $5 per customer, adding that “prudence would dictate an increase of up to $10 per subscriber so that we would not be chasing funding all the time.” “I do not, and our trust­ees do not believe this is a cost our … [Read more...]

LBC Disaster Relief teams to deploy

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer MONROE, La. (LBM) – Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief teams are set to deploy in response to the destructive winter storm that devastated parts of the state over the weekend. LBDR State Director Stan Statham told the Baptist Message that an Incident Management Team will provide support, adding that a feeding team will begin preparing food that the American Red Cross will serve to 80-100 people at the Liller Maddox Marbles Community Center in Monroe. Statham said chainsaw teams have been activated in Louisiana and that he expected other state Baptist convention chainsaw teams will assist in operations that likely will last two to three weeks. He said Louisiana Baptists who are not part of the disaster releief organization can offer prayers for the teams that have been formed and for the victims of the storm. “Pray for safety of those impacted and also for those responding,” Statham told the Baptist Message. “We have had several deaths, so pray that the power gets back home, that the linemen working to restore power are safe and that our volunteers stay healthy and travel with no issues.” Statham said financial resources are needed, too. “Last year taxed us,” he … [Read more...]

LCU welcomes new dean of Young School of Business

By Elizabeth Clarke, LCU News PINEVILLE, La. (LCU News) - Louisiana Christian University has named Marcia Hardy as its new dean of the Young School of Business and Martin MBA program. Hardy is the dean of the Ray and Dorothy Young School of Business. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of California-Los Angeles, specializing in management from the Anderson School of Management and research and evaluation from the Graduate School of Education. Her original research explored the success factors of entrepreneurship. She also received Ph.D. certification from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, studying organizational leadership, strategic management and planning. Hardy holds an M.S. from the University of Missouri, Kansas City and a B.S. from Loyola University in New Orleans, and is certified in Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Business Strategies Program from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Additional national certifications of hers are extensive, including in Quality Matters, Google Analytics, and negotiation and leadership from Harvard Law School. She has decades of experience in academia, most recently at Northwestern State University as a tenured full professor in business … [Read more...]

LCU joins Louisiana Baptists on statewide Together Tour

By Elizabeth Clarke, LCU News PINEVILLe, La. (LCU News) - Louisiana Christian University is joining the Louisiana Baptists on a statewide Together Tour in 2026 to promote commitment and cooperation among churches and other Southern Baptist organizations across Louisiana. “My goal in these meetings is to hear from all concerned,” said Louisiana Baptist Executive Director Steve Horn. “What can we do better? What are we committed to doing moving forward? What should we be doing that we are not doing? What are we doing that Louisiana Baptists want us to stop doing? Where have we lost trust in this cooperative endeavor to do more together than we can do by ourselves?” Horn said that this is not a plea to give more, but rather an opportunity to listen to all member organizations. “We are listening to what you want to do cooperatively as we think about the next 100 years. At the same time, hear me say, ‘we cannot continue to do what we are doing without addressing the situation.’ “  In 2008, Louisiana Baptists gave $22,650,020 through the Cooperative Program. In 2024, Louisiana Baptists gave just over $17,000,000. “We may not be at a crisis, but we are certainly at a crossroads,” Horn said. LCU President Mark Johnson said he … [Read more...]