By Marilyn Stewart NEW ORLEANS - As the world watched the royal wedding festivities at Great Britain’s Windsor Castle May 19, graduate candidates waited patiently to receive their diplomas inside the Leavell Chapel on the campus of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. NOBTS President Chuck Kelley reminded the chapel audience that while a media frenzy that morning surrounded Prince Harry and his new bride Meghan Markle, no reporters waited outside to talk to them. “So, why does this day matter?” Kelley asked the crowd. “The occasion we are here for today is far, far more significant than that gathering that has the eyes of the whole world.” Every graduate is important, Kelley explained, but the ministries and positions of service each would soon occupy did not depend on them. “Your life matters,” Kelley said. “But, it’s not about you. It’s about Jesus. He holds the key.” Kelley explained that he carries in his pocket a key once used to unlock cell doors at the Louisiana State Penitentiary, Angola, La. Worn past its usefulness, the key now is “retired,” Kelley said. “I carry it with me always as a reminder that Jesus changes everything,” Kelley said. Once known as the “bloodiest prison in America,” the … [Read more...]

ALEXANDRIA (LBM) –Twenty-two retired Louisiana Baptist directors of missions, along with former Louisiana Baptist Convention missions and ministries staff and other guests, gathered at the Alexandria state missions center, May 15, for a first-ever reunion. Don Mabry, who retired as Louisiana Baptist Convention state missions and ministries director in 1999, said the meeting allowed the directors of missions to reminisce about the highlights and challenges they faced. “We enjoyed each other’s company and had a good fellowship time of remembering some of the wonderful things that went on with Louisiana Baptists,” Mabry told the Baptist Message. “On this day, we rejoiced together about what the Lord has done with a lot of our folks. Through the years there have been some very wonderful people serving the Lord in Louisiana. When some of them called and asked if we could have a reunion, I told them sure and I think everyone had a great time.” Addressing the directors of missions, LBC Executive Director David Hankins commended them for still caring for pastors and churches in the state. “Some of the best help that’s being done in our churches around Louisiana is by you guys who still have the passion for the Lord in your … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer HAUGHTON (LBM) - Members of First Baptist Church in Haughton humbled themselves individually and corporately leading up to the Haughton Harvest, and consequently saw the Holy Spirit convict 160 people of their need for Christ, May 6-9. “We have never prayed as much for a revival as we have for this,” said Pastor Gevan Spinney. “Everyone got involved and when we showed up during the revival, we were expecting God to move. We asked Him to save our friends during that week, and it was really awesome to see God answer those prayers. The biggest thing is we prayed and asked God to show up, and He did.” The Haughton Harvest is one of hundreds of events held or scheduled this year as part of the statewide Harvest campaign to “pray for every home and share with every person” in Louisiana. Nearly 900 of 1,650 Louisiana Baptist churches have signed up to participate in concentrated prayer and soul-winning activities such as multi-church crusades, door-to-door outreach, one-on-one evangelism, single-church revivals and other activities which leverage compassion ministries to share about the love of Christ. FREEDOM IN CHRIST Almost 2,000 people showed up over the course of the four … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer NORTHEAST LOUISIANA - Extended prayer preceded revival at a pair of recent Harvest crusades in Louisiana. Twenty-six people committed their lives to Christ during the Red River Crusade, and the Morehouse Youth Revival saw 16 individuals submit to live for Him. “Prayer was absolutely essential to having the effective crusade we experienced,” said Red River Crusade Director Richard Kaufman, pastor of Martin Baptist Church in Coushatta. “We prayed where vehicles would be parked, where people would sit in the stands and even where people would be standing to get their food and drinks in the concessions area. The great evangelist Billy Graham said three keys to revival are prayer, prayer and prayer. The same thing goes for a crusade. I was overwhelmed at just how the Lord blessed our efforts.” Both crusades were among a number held so far this year as part of the statewide Harvest campaign to “pray for every home and share with every person” in Louisiana. Nearly 900 of 1,650 Louisiana Baptist churches have signed up to participate in concentrated prayer and soul-winning activities such as multi-church crusades, door-to-door outreach, one-on-one evangelism, single-church revivals and other … [Read more...]

WASHINGTON (LBM) – Family Research Council President Tony Perkins was one of three evangelical Christians to be appointed to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) May 15. Perkins, FRC founder and a former Louisiana legislator and interim pastor at the Greenwell Springs Baptist Church, American Values President Gary Bauer, and best-selling author and Kairos Company President Johnnie Moore were among five individuals named to the commission charged with protecting religious freedoms globally. Nadine Maenza, executive director of the family advocacy group Patriot Voices, and California State University Associate Professor Tenzin Dorjee also were among appointees joining the three evangelical appointees. Dorjee was named to a second term and former West Virginia First Lady Gayle Conelly Manchin was appointed in April. President Donald Trump named Bauer and Moore to the commission. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) tagged Perkins. Perkins vowed as a USCIRF member to help fully implement the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act (Frank Wolf Act), passed in 2016 to strengthen the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA). He also said he would address religious … [Read more...]

By Louisiana Right to Life BATON ROUGE – In a preliminary ruling issued May 23, U.S. District Court Judge John DeGravelles of the Middle District of Louisiana sided with the nation’s largest abortion provider by allowing it to proceed with its case attempting to force the Louisiana Department of Health to issue a license to perform abortions in the same New Orleans facility where taxpayer funded Medicaid family planning services are provided. However, by the afternoon, Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast and its abortion-providing affiliate, Planned Parenthood Center for Choice, were dealt a setback when Governor John Bel Edwards signed HB 891 (Hoffmann, R-W. Monroe).  That legislation creates a firewall between public funding and abortion by requiring that entities who provide Medicaid family planning services and entities that perform abortion must be “physically and financially separate.” The new law may moot Planned Parenthood’s challenge by its requirement that the State obtain guidance from the Trump administration’s Center for Medicaid Services before the law goes into effect.  Louisiana is hopeful for favorable guidance from the federal government on Medicaid funds in light of the administration’s recent announcement of … [Read more...]

By Office of Congressman Ralph Abraham WASHINGTON - Congressman Ralph Abraham is applauding the Trump Administration for proposing a rule change that will help prevent any federal tax dollars from supporting abortions. President Trump’s administration announced last week that the Department of Health and Human Services will seek to change a rule regarding Title X family planning funding. The new rule would bar a clinic from receiving these funds if family planning services and abortions are offered under the same roof. Title X funds account for about $260 million. The largest single recipient is Planned Parenthood, which receives between $50-$60 million per year. No funding would be cut if the rule change is implemented, and savings from non-compliant facilities would be reinvested in other clinics, such as rural and community health centers. Abraham is staunchly pro-life and joined 153 members of the US House of Representatives in writing to HHS Sec. Alex Azar in April requesting the rule change. “Places like Planned Parenthood have no business receiving any taxpayer money to help them perform abortions. This rule change will ensure that family planning funding is actually going toward family planning services, not … [Read more...]