Being both a servant and a leader seem to contradict each other. LAFAYETTE – Being both a servant and a leader seem to contradict each other. But the Servant Leader is exactly what Jim Hunter is teaching to professionals around the world. Hunter will hold a Servant Leadership Workshop Friday May 4 from 8:30 - 11:30 a.m. at East BayouBaptist Church located at 2234 Kaliste Saloom RoadinLafayette. “When we talk about servant leadership, Jim is the expert on that,” event coordinator Brad Price said. “He is similar to John Maxwell, maybe just not as well known.” Price said the event is designed to reach those in the “marketplace, those people that are in positions to lead others including Presidents of companies, CEO’s, Managers, Supervisors, Teachers, Coaches, Parents - virtually anyone in a leadership position. Power versus authority, is one of the areas that Hunter will discuss according to Price. “It is relationship and character based,” he explained, “it is based on patience, kindness, humility, respect, forgiveness, honesty, selflessness and commitment.” Hunter has authored two books on the subject including The Servant, subtitled A Simple Story About the True Essence of Leadership with more than 1.8 … [Read more...]

Much as I love visiting all the wonderful churches in Louisiana, there is even more to see and do in this great state. LONG LEAF – Much as I love visiting all the wonderful churches in Louisiana, there is even more to see and do in this great state. One of the neatest places might be less than an hour south of Alexandria, just off Hwy. 165. It’s the Southern Forest Heritage Museum, and it’s even more spectacular than usual this next Saturday – April 21 – with Heritage Day at Long Leaf. This is where the timber industry began in the 1890s in Louisiana. A water-powered circle saw started up in 1896, and the company-owned town of Long Leaf grew up around it. The mill ceased operation Feb. 14, 1969, and everything basically is still as it was then. The museum opened in 1996. It’s like walking into your childhood. Posters, pictures, artifacts and information that brings history and memories to life – and that’s just inside what used to be the commissary. On the rest of the museum’s 57 acres is a treasure-trove of machinery that men will remember their dads using. The mill, of course, is still standing, with all its saws and equipment. The belt-and-shaft-driven machine shop, built in 1915, still works – that was too … [Read more...]

I recently read the book Letters to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. It is an evangelistic masterpiece. Harris has invested years of his life preparing to write this book. But Harris is an atheist and one of the leading “evangelistic atheists” of our day. I recently read the book  Letters to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. It is an evangelistic masterpiece. Harris has invested years of his life preparing to write this book. He is so passionate about sharing his faith with others that he took the time to write a defense of his beliefs and publishing it for the whole world to read. Letters to a Christian Nation is a national best-seller. Within its pages, Harris is bold. He realizes that everyone is open to talk about faith these days, and while most of us stay silent, he speaks loudly and clearly about his faith, which he says is intellectually defensible and exclusive. Isn’t this wonderful? Well, not really. You see, the faith that Sam Harris is presenting in his book is actually no faith at all. Harris is an atheist and one of the leading “evangelistic atheists” of our day. Harris is passionately committed to leading everyone he can to believe that they have no eternal purpose. According to him there … [Read more...]

f children are indeed the future of this country, then the nation’s highest court will soon decide how much protection our future deserves. If children are indeed the future of this country, then the nation’s highest court will soon decide how much protection our future deserves. After a disturbing decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, the Supreme Court has agreed to review next term whether a child pornography law -- the PROTECT Act of 2003 -- is unconstitutionally overbroad or vague. The 11th Circuit put the future of our children in jeopardy when it reversed the conviction of child pornographer Michael Williams. The court said, “Non-commercial, non-inciteful promotion of illegal child pornography, even if repugnant, is protected speech under the First Amendment.” In essence, the court expressed trepidation that the PROTECT Act would criminalize the pandering of material as “child pornography” when in fact it did not meet the legal definition of that term. But it’s a classic case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. As an example, the court expressed concern that a “proud and computer savvy grandparent” might be subject to prosecution under the PROTECT Act, simply for … [Read more...]

Tom Brokaw, former anchorman for NBC Nightly News, wrote a book about “the greatest generation” in which he detailed the lives of those who lived through the great depression and endured World Wars I and II. Most people of that generation take pride in being independent and helping others, yet they do not easily accept help for themselves. Tom Brokaw, former anchorman for NBC Nightly News, wrote a book about “the greatest generation” in which he detailed the lives of those who lived through the great depression and endured World Wars I and II.  Most people of that generation take pride in being independent and helping others, yet they do not easily accept help for themselves.  They don’t stop to think about how it steals a blessing from those offering help. The Bible gives us many examples of God’s people asking for or accepting help from others.  In Exodus 17, Moses accepted help from Aaron & Hur to keep his arms “lifted up to the throne of the Lord,” when the Israelites won a great victory in battle over the Amalekites.   In Exodus 18, Moses accepted the advice of his father-in-law, Jethro, and appointed leaders to help decide the minor disputes of the people. As a result, the people were better served and … [Read more...]

Morehouse Baptist Association, which occupies the parish by the same name just south of the Arkansas border is home to 26 Southern Baptist churches and almost 30,000 people. MOREHOUSE ASSOCIATION – Morehouse Baptist Association, which occupies the parish by the same name just south of the Arkansas border is home to 26 Southern Baptist churches and almost 30,000 people. A mixture of woods and urban areas, the area is definitely a sportsman’s paradise, said Associational Missionary – the name Morehouse Association gives its Director of Missions – Jerry Price. For instance, Chemin-A-Haute State Park on Bayou Bartholomew offers 503 acres of wooded, secluded camping areas, while BigSloughLake attracts anglers and bird watchers as well as those who just want to relax and take in the fantastic views from the new cabins built along the lake. The 2,228 acre Bussey Brake Reservoir, owned by International Paper Co., offers some of the best bass and white perch fishing in the state. Wham Brake, also owned by the International Paper Co., is open to the public for duck hunting. In downtown Bastrop, the parish seat that is also a Louisiana Main Street city – part of the state’s historic preservation program – … [Read more...]

The 26 churches in this association don’t allow size to be an obstacle when it comes to taking the gospel to their communities. MOREHOUSE ASSOCIATION – The 26 churches in this association don’t allow size to be an obstacle when it comes to taking the gospel to their communities. With permission from LifeWay Christian Resources, which markets the product, to use its FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy on an associational level rather than the church level as it was designed, the association has seen lives changed. FAITH – an evangelistic pneumonic device much like “the ABC’s of salvation” – stands for Forgiveness; Available – as in, forgiveness is available to all--; Impossible – it is impossible for God to allow sin into heaven; Turn – repent; and Heaven. The strategy involves teams of three in a 16-week class – called a semester – that provides classroom instruction on evangelism and regular opportunity, through planned visitation, to put that knowledge to use. “One advanatage to doing it association-wide is that you have more people involved, which creates more excitement,” said Marty Black, pastor at Bonita RoadBaptist Church in Bastrop and an organizer for the FAITH Evangelism semesters for the … [Read more...]

Erry Price, Associational Missionary – same as Director of Missions – for the Morehouse Association, has been known to lift up the Lord’s Supper, but not in the way you might expect. WEST MONROE – Jerry Price, Associational Missionary – same as Director of Missions – for the Morehouse Association, has been known to lift up the Lord’s Supper, but not in the way you might expect. During his first pastorate at a small country church, Price prepared to observe his first Lord’s Supper as a pastor. Unbeknownst to him, workers had placed a cloth not only over the elements of the Supper, but also beneath them, so that when Price went to remove the top cloth, he accidentally took hold of the bottom cloth. The deacon on the other side of the altar, following his pastor’s lead, also took hold of the bottom cloth and before either of them knew what was happening, they had lifted the Lord’s Supper off the table. “For a moment we levitated the grape juice, with sweat popping out on both our foreheads,” Price said. Then the deacon whispered, “Preacher put it down very slowly,” which Price did. From then, the service went smoothly. Price has gone through shaky times, as the incident above illustrates, as well as humbling times, … [Read more...]

Northeast Baptist School here is a variation on the norm. WEST MONROE – NortheastBaptist School here is a variation on the norm. While all other Southern Baptist schools in Louisiana were begun by a single church, this school was begun by – and continues to be supported by – the Northeast Baptist Association. Indeed, NortheastBaptist School is one of only six  schools in the nation owned and operated by an association rather than by a single church, said Ed Gamble, Executive Director of the Southern Baptist Association of Christian Schools. In 1994 a group of Christian laity, through research, found that a large number of Baptist children in the area were attending parochial schools and other private schools, Anita Watson said. In effect, Baptist parents were placing their children under the direction of other theologies. The need for a Baptist school seemed obvious. “They had 34 kids to begin with, 4-year olds through eighth grade, with several combined classes,” said Watson, who began working at the school in 1999. “It just grew a little by little from there,” she said. “The way the school has grown has been very much a God-thing.” The school currently serves 220 students in classes for 3-year-olds up to … [Read more...]

Getting a school started takes hard work, but, like anything worthwhile, can have tremendous payoffs, said Don Whatley, missions pastor at Baldwin Baptist Church and founding principal of First Baptist Christian School in Lafayette. BALDWIN – Getting a school started takes hard work, but, like anything worthwhile, can have tremendous payoffs, said Don Whatley, missions pastor at BaldwinBaptistChurch and founding principal of FirstBaptistChristian School in Lafayette. Whatley, who, as a consultant, paid staff member or interested relative,has had his hand in beginning or growing at least five Southern Baptist schools, insists on the need for more private, Christian schools. “People are really looking for something that is godly that they [can] give their children over and beyond what they can get at the public schools,” he said. “The school just took off so rapidly,” Whatley said of First Baptist Christian in Lafayette. “We weren’t expecting it to be that fast. We found out that a lot of folks were looking for something different. At one point we were the fastest growing private school in Lafayette.” Aside from providing quality Christian education, Whatley found that First Baptist Christian also … [Read more...]