As a child, Beth Roach wanted to be the world’s first singing-astronaut-turned-international missionary, she told the Vernon Baptist Association WMU gathered at First Baptist Church here recently. LEESVILLE – As a child, Beth Roach wanted to be the world’s first singing-astronaut-turned-international missionary, she told the Vernon Baptist Association WMU gathered at First Baptist Church here recently. Though the singing-astronaut gig fell by the wayside, Roach did become an international missionary with the IMB and served with her husband, Bruce, for almost seven years in Yemen, a small, Middle Eastern nation that is almost 100 percent Muslim, she said. Now, however, the couple, along with their two sons, leads a quieter life in Minot, N.D. “Wherever God sends you is exciting,” Roach told her audience. “God knows where we are now. He brought us to the Dakotas and knows what He has for us.” The Roaches, both Louisiana natives, are entrenched not only in North Dakota life but also in the task of spreading the gospel in that state, Beth said. She is the adult missions consultant while her husband, a doctor, is also very active in their church, Cross Roads Baptist, as a deacon. The Message incorrectly listed Roach’s … [Read more...]

With his genesis in the poor delta parish of Franklin in far northeast Louisiana, Winn Association Director of Missions Clovis Sturdivant can certainly appreciate the “immediate connection” he enjoys in the rural north central parish he now calls home. WINNFIELD – With his genesis in the poor delta parish of Franklin in far northeast Louisiana, Winn Association Director of Missions Clovis Sturdivant can certainly appreciate the “immediate connection” he enjoys in the rural north central parish he now calls home.   “The joke I make is that I was born in a sanitarium.  Of course, all we know about a sanitarium today is that it’s a mental institution. But back nearly 59 years ago, a sanitarium was just a hospital – King’s Sanitarium in Winnsboro. He was one of the doctors in town. It was a hospital on blocks, no air conditioning.”   The sturdy, gravel-voiced DOM now lives in Winnfield, where he had led this association for 11 years, but his journey here from Bayou Mason in the Crowville area was not necessarily direct.   His father, a World War II Army veteran, died in 1952 of a war-related condition.   “It was me and my sister, who was a year old; times were hard. My sister and I were … [Read more...]

English professor earns Ph.D. English professor earns Ph.D. Don Shipley, Jr. received his Ph.D. in English with a concentration in Religion and Literature from Baylor University on May 12, 2007. The title of Shipley’s dissertation was Chesterton and His Interlocutors: Dialogical Style and Ethical Debate on Eugenics. Shipley is the coordinator for the Division of Humanities at Louisiana College. New Testament/Greek prof earns Ph.D. Jason Meyer, professor of New Testament and Greek, received a doctor of philosophy degree from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., on May 18. Meyer graduated with a Ph.D. degree in New Testament. His dissertation title was Paul, the Mosaic Covenant, and Redemptive History. English professor earns MFA degree Rosanne Osborne, Ph.D., Hixson Professor of English, received an MFA in Creative Writing from Spalding University in Louisville, Ky. on June 1. Osborne’s thesis, Between Dream and Memory, is a collection of poems in four parts: poems triggered by news stories juxtaposing autobiographical fragments and cultural commentary, a sonnet sequence that reckons with the shaping influence of tools in life, autobiographical memories … [Read more...]

.     BOGALUSA – Pat Dubroca was to be guest speaker for the Hilltopers meeting June 12. Topic: Medicare and supplemental insurance. Clay Norwood is pastor. HAYNESVILLE – First Baptist plans its annual churchwide celebration for July 1, and a weekend revival for July 7-8. BATON ROUGE – Broadmoor plans its Holy Moses Extreme Summer Music Camp for 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 25-29, for all children who have completed kindergarten through fifth grade. Cost: $50. Auditions for the main cast are set for 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, June 21. Register by June 14. John Goodwin is pastor. HOUMA – The 240 youngsters who attended VBS at Mulberry Baptist as a missions project made 290 “cookie boxes” for soldiers from Houma serving overseas. Two dozen cookies were carefully packaged in a box that also included a letter from a child, a photo of the class the child was in and an evangelistic tract. Mary Dowden was VBS director. Steve Graves is pastor. Mulberry Houma by the end of the year will have $100,000 due in a mortgage balloon note. Steps are being taken to pay off the note so it doesn’t have to be refinanced. “We do not want the efforts to pay off the building note to affect tithing; this is a separate financial … [Read more...]

Welcome! Drew Kelley is new as minister of music at Temple Baptist in Springhill. Wayne Reeves is pastor. Shawn (wife Laurie) Kaffka is new as minister of students at First Baptist Haynesville. Shelby Cowling is pastor. Jodie McGlocklin is new as minister to children at First Baptist Morgan City. David Willoughby is pastor. Mark Spradling is new as minister of youth at First Baptist Morgan City. David Willoughby is pastor. Chris Canterbury is new as youth minister at First Baptist Spearsville. James Miller is pastor. Jay Avance is new as pastor at Bluff Creek Baptist in Clinton. Robert C. Rollins Jr. is to be ordained to the gospel ministry at 2 p.m. June 24 at Harmony Baptist in Glenmora.   Needed Olla First Baptist Church is seeking a full-time pastor. Please send resumes to Olla First Baptist Church, PO Box 326, Olla LA 71465. Attn: Pastor Search Committee. Phone: 318.495.5506. St. Landry Baptist, Ville Platte, seeks a full-time pastor. Send resume to Pastor Search Committee, 134 Benny St., Ville Platte LA 70586 or call 337.363.5051 or 337.461.7299. College Place Baptist, Monroe, seeks a full-time minister of music/education. Send resume to College Place Baptist Church, Attn: … [Read more...]

The Tiger Legacy sprang into action when construction work began May 1 on the Tiger and Red Rooms in the Baptist Collegiate Ministries facilities at Louisiana State University. BATON ROUGE – The Tiger Legacy sprang into action when construction work began May 1 on the Tiger and Red Rooms in the Baptist Collegiate Ministries facilities at Louisiana State University.   The entire chapel will be renovated later this year, after the north complex is completed.   “Some of the walls have been knocked out,” said Steve Masters, BCM director for the last 11 years. “We’re adding more than 4,000 square feet of space but we’re doing it in such a way that we will be able to continue our ministry programs during the construction.”   Over the last five years, alumni, current students, parents of alumni and current students, area churches and others have raised more than $750,000 to renovate the Baptist Student Center at LSU; about $150,000 more is needed. The Louisiana Baptist Convention has pledged up to $900,000 in matching contributions. Volunteers have stepped up to do the work, and more are needed – to help with framing, demolition, electrical, plumbing, heating/air conditioning, concrete and … [Read more...]

The LSU BCM offers a variety of ways to engage students in Christ-centered fellowship as well as spiritual growth and leadership training activities. Missions endeavors also are a major component of the work led for the last 11 years by Steve Masters, an out-doorsman who regularly takes students with him on camping, hunting and fishing expeditions. BATON ROUGE – The LSU BCM offers a variety of ways to engage students in Christ-centered fellowship as well as spiritual growth and leadership training activities. Missions endeavors also are a major component of the work led for the last 11 years by Steve Masters, an out-doorsman who regularly takes students with him on camping, hunting and fishing expeditions.       LSU BCM ministries:   Leadership training: More than 60 students serve on the BCM leadership team. They plan, coordinate and implement the various BCM ministries.   Each fall the BCM mails newsletters about the BCM to the more than 4,000 students who indicate a Baptist preference on their application, and sends emails to them throughout the year, informing them of BCM meetings and events. BCM also regularly sponsors get-acquainted outreach tables in Free Speech … [Read more...]

John Yeats, communications director for the Louisiana Baptist Convention, was elected at the 2007 SBC annual meeting in San Antonio to serve for the tenth year as the Southern Baptist Convention’s recording secretary. ALEXANDRIA – John Yeats, communications director for the Louisiana Baptist Convention, was elected at the 2007 SBC annual meeting in San Antonio to serve for the tenth year as the Southern Baptist Convention’s recording secretary. The position of recording secretary carries with it significant responsibilities throughout the year, Yeats said. Besides being responsible for the accurate record of the convention proceedings and the training of volunteer pages, the recording secretary also performs the final edit on the SBC Book of Reports and the SBC Annual, and serves ex officio on the SBC Executive Committee. “Yeats designed the process for the flow of information from the convention floor to the convention platform and distribution to the Order of Business Committee, a process that has enhanced the accuracy of the official record,” reported Baptist Press in an article announcing Yeats’ nomination for another term in the position. “[My wife] Sharon is next to me 90 percent of the time [at … [Read more...]

I told the children, “People think of missionaries as unusual people who go to strange lands and do amazing things. But the facts are far different. Missionaries are normal people who go anywhere – perhaps to your own town – and they do simple things. From his blog: www.joemckeever.com. Read it weekly to keep up with New Orleans and how healthy churches grow. PINEVILLE – I told the children, “People think of missionaries as unusual people who go to strange lands and do amazing things. But the facts are far different. Missionaries are normal people who go anywhere – perhaps to your own town – and they do simple things.   “Basically, what they do,” I said, “are four things: 1) they talk to people; 2) they build relationships with people; 3) they ask questions; and 4) they look for ways to help people.”   From 600 to 800 children and their adult church workers gathered recently for the annual Mission Jamboree (M-Jam) conducted by the Louisiana Baptist Convention’s Women’s Ministry Division of which Janie Wise is the leader.   We met at Louisiana College in Pineville. Jim Chester – Baptist preacher, funny-funny man, and magician/illusionist – formed the parenthesis for the day’s conferences by … [Read more...]

With only the promise of the personal satisfaction of helping others and honoring God, fifteen students from the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home (LBCH) began preparing months ago for their recent work with Operation NOAH (New Orleans Area Homes) Rebuild. NEW ORLEANS – With only the promise of the personal satisfaction of helping others and honoring God, fifteen students from the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home (LBCH) began preparing months ago for their recent work with Operation NOAH (New Orleans Area Homes) Rebuild. “We believe in learning by doing,” said Tommy Frost, director of cottage life at LBCH.  “And working with NOAH puts into practice what it means to be a servant.” Operation NOAH Rebuild is the partnership of Louisiana Baptists and the North American Mission Board to impact New Orleans with the gospel while rebuilding flood-damaged homes. In preparation for one of NOAH’s toughest job assignments – gutting a flooded home – students washed cars, mowed lawns and cleared gardens as service projects in the Monroe area. Frost said the projects emphasized teamwork, safety and service. With a philosophy that sees work and worship as going hand-in-hand, Frost said that he wanted the NOAH project to … [Read more...]