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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Caucus created to expand Interstate 14 through CENLA

WASHINGTON - Congressmen Ralph Abraham, M.D., R-Alto, and Brian Babin, R-Texas, have created a bipartisan I-14 Caucus with the goal of expanding Interstate 14 through Central Louisiana. This news follows the announcement this summer of legislation, HR 6111, the I-14 Expansion and Improvement Act of 2018, to designate existing roads into the congressionally designated I-14 corridor to include communities from Midland, Texas, to Laurel, Mississippi within a strategic corridor effectively connecting military bases from El Paso, Texas, to Charleston, South Carolina, with strategic ports where military equipment can be shipped in support of  our armed forces deployed around the world. In Louisiana, portions of LA 8, LA 28 and US 84 would be included in the I-14 corridor, giving Fort Polk and Camp Beauregard quicker access to the deployment port in Beaumont, Texas. Other state and federal highways near Goodfellow Air Force Base near San Angelo, Texas, and north of the Beaumont would also be added into the I-14 corridor. But the interstate will extend through Mississippi and Alabama and continue to Augusta, Georgia, where it would connect, presumably, with Interstate 20 which connects with Interstate 26 to the Atlantic … [Read more...]

Stagg to serve Big Creek, CENLA associations as Director of Missions

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer ALEXANDRIA – A long-time Louisiana Baptist pastor who moved out of state in 1996 has returned as the new director of missions for the Big Creek and the CENLA Baptist associations. Daryl Stagg, who is a native of Tioga, has served in the Midwest for the last two decades, but he said the allure of coming back to Louisiana proved too enticing to ignore. “I got to a point where I was tired of the heat and moved to a colder climate,” quipped Stagg. “Now being older you get tired of shoveling snow and battling ice on the streets. Coming home and seeing the pine trees and having a lot longer climate is a blessing. I look forward to being around my family, my children and grandchildren.” He began his work as director of missions on Sept. 1. CALL TO MINISTRY Stagg repented for salvation and was baptized at the First Baptist Church in Pineville when he was nine years old. Eleven years later, he accepted a call to vocational ministry when he was a summer missionary in Bangladesh. During the years that followed, Stagg served as pastor of the Bayou des Glaises Baptist Church in Moreauville, Fellowship Baptist Church in Converse, First Baptist Church in Calhoun, and Fellowship … [Read more...]

Louisiana Notables

EDITOR’S NOTE: Do you have a Revival, Homecoming, a new pastor, a community outreach or a concert? The Baptist Message would love to share your church news with the rest of the state. It is very easy to do, just send in your information (who, what, where and when) to philip@baptistmessage.com or call 318.449.4345. To get your event in the paper, please submit your information three weeks prior to the event. ON THE MOVE Marlene Williams is the new communications minister at Fair Park Baptist Church, West Monroe. Josh, wife Carrie, Cagle is the new pastor at Oak Hill Baptist Church, Plain Dealing. Lance, wife Debbie, Rolland is the new pastor at Westwood Baptist Church, Keithville. He comes from Summer Grove Baptist Church. Adam Hughes is the new pastor of Red Bluff Baptist Church, Folsom. Mark Long is the new pastor of Bogue Falaya Baptist Church, Folsom. Robert Fontenot is the new minister to students at Jerusalem Baptist Church, Hammond. Devan and Tiffany Rodriguez are the new youth directors at Loranger Baptist Church, Loranger. John Rushing is the interim pastor at Sardis Baptist Church, Farmerville. HOMECOMING Trinity Baptist Church, Hammond: 65th Homecoming Celebration, October 13-14, on … [Read more...]

Students urged to take Bibles to school Oct. 4

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BP) -- The freedom to distribute Bibles in schools and discuss Scripture openly with fellow students is being celebrated nationwide Oct. 4 at the fifth annual Bring Your Bible to School Day. The Focus on the Family (FOTF) event founded in 2014 is on track for its largest participation to date, founder Candi Cushman told Baptist Press today (Oct. 2). "We'll definitely exceed half a million participants, but it's hard to measure and predict exact numbers because lots of kids wait until the last moment to sign up and join the movement," said Cushman, FOTF director of education issues. "In addition to public school students in every state in the nation, we also have involvement from many kids in private schools and homeschooling communities who choose to do special events or distribute Bibles in their communities as a way of showing support. We welcome all of them." Nearly half a million participated in 2017, up from 8,000 in the event's first year, FOTF said of the event open to kindergarteners through college students, with downloadable free resources for churches, pastors, parents and students at BringYourBible.org. FOTF President Jim Daly said many students appreciate Scripture but are afraid … [Read more...]

Faith holds America together

By James Dobson In our secular age the battle rages not only over the question of religion in our public life. The very concept of faith is under attack. Cynicism and unbelief mock faith and the sacrifices it brings forth. Yet no nation can long survive if it does not have among its people a deep reservoir of faith in all its forms. This is especially true for democracies where the will of the people prevails. In a purely secular sense, faith that things will get better (if not now, then later, and if not for you then for your children) is what motivates millions of people to make countless sacrifices. Faith is the force behind the worker who holds down two jobs so that a son or daughter can be the first in the family to go on to college. It is faith in the notion that hard work and right behavior will be rewarded (in the next life, if not always in this one) that causes us to continue to strive and toil. Religious faith permits a nation to overcome adversity and to deal with the exigencies of life that cause both individuals and countries to suffer. Faith teaches that life is more than a mad rush for wealth, that sacrifice matters, that some of the most important things men do often cannot be completed in one … [Read more...]

Raising children who thrive

By Waylon Bailey You may have seen the report of the Harvard University study about children who attend church, but I am certain you weren’t surprised. This scientific study reported what common sense and common knowledge have always known to be true. Children who attend church regularly (that is, once a week) are happier, better adjusted, and more likely to do well as adults. Who knew? Actually, we all did. All you have to do is look around and you see this repeated over and over. Of course, it’s good to see publication by a very secular university that validates what we and most other people already know. What were the findings? Harvard’s T. H. Chan School of Public Health found that children who go to church once a week or children who pray daily have similar outcomes. Both groups have lower risk of substance abuse and depression as adults. This group is also more likely to volunteer. Study author Ying Chen noted that “many children are raised religiously, and our study shows that this can powerfully affect their health behaviors, mental health, and overall happiness and well being.“ One of the most significant findings for me is that children who have been raised to pray, read Scripture, and attend church … [Read more...]

Tomorrow’s Hope Crusade’s powerful second night leads to 15 more salvations

By Message Staff JENA – Hundreds of people came forward, knelt, and filled the altar to pray for lost souls in a stirring, powerful moment during the second night of Tomorrow’s Hope Crusade. Answering a call by evangelist Scott Camp, people streamed out of the stands and to the altar to pray for family, friends and neighbors Monday night, Sept. 24. “Do you have a burden for someone? I want you to get out of your seats and come to this altar and pray for that person,” Camp told the crowd inside Jena High School’s gymnasium. “God wants to touch this little town. God wants to touch this parish. Aren’t you sick and tired of letting the devil run over you like a smooth road? We need revival. Get on our face before God. “Our hearts have grown cold,” he continued. “We don’t weep over the lost. Church is just a country club with a steeple on top and it is time we change.” A passionate Camp told the crowd he was a changed man because as a “17-year-old boy, alone in a jail cell,” Jesus came and rescued him from a life of sin. “God still heals people today,” he said. “God still delivers people today. And I’m praying that if nothing else this week, you will get full of the Holy Ghost. ... The Holy Spirit of God will give you … [Read more...]

Prayer will be the focus of annual See You at the Pole events tomorrow

By Message Staff Prayer will be the emphasis early Wednesday morning, Sept. 26, when students in Louisiana and all over the country will join for this year’s annual See You At The Pole events. Held the fourth Wednesday of every September around their school’s flagpoles, the students assemble to pray for their friends, community and nation. Some churches continue the day of prayer with a time of worship [See You After the Pole) in the evening. This year’s theme is Broken, based on Ephesians 3:14 which states “I fall on my knees before the Father.” The Baptist Message would like to post pictures of your SYATP activities on our Facebook page and publish a photo gallery later on our website, baptistmessage.com. Anyone who would like to share what your students are doing can email your photos to brian@baptistmessage.com.   … [Read more...]

GBO: Doing more, with a little help from each other

By John Kyle, Louisiana Baptists Communications ALEXANDRIA (LBM) – How do you reach a culture that is seemingly not interested in you? How can you instill a vision and passion for missions in children? How can you use current communication platforms to seed God’s truth across the state? How can you bring a once vibrant congregation back to life? According to Missions and Ministries team leader John Hebert, all of the above is possible, “With a lot of help from your friends.” “In the day-in and day-out grind of ministry, it’s easy to forget how large our task is,” Hebert said. “If we’re going to make the impact all of us agree needs to be made, we need more individuals participating in the Georgia Barnette State Missions Offering.” David Hankins, executive director for Louisiana Baptists, echoed this challenge. “We have literally hundreds of churches and thousands of our members who do not participate in this crucial offering for Louisiana,” said Hankins. “It’s not simply a money issue, it’s a participation issue, a resource issue. The task in Louisiana is so large, so big, it’s going to take an even larger effort on our part to provide the Gospel opportunities needed to engage the estimated two million … [Read more...]

Flora Coleman: 96 years old and still has ‘fire in the belly’

By Janet Tompkins, Special to the Message ALEXANDRIA (LBM) – Who knows what life would have been like for Flora Coleman if her mother and father had not died in 1930 when she was just 8 years old and living on a mountainside in West Virginia? She would not have been separated from her six other siblings, or gone to work in other households. Maybe she would not have become a nurse or wound up in Otis, Louisiana, where she is a member of Dixie Baptist Church. Those experiences, to be sure, have given her an extra dose of perseverance and a faith in God and fire in her belly to make a difference in other people’s lives — even at 96 years of age. SHARING CHRISTMAS JOY Her current project is Operation Christmas Child, the mission program of Samaritan’s Purse to bring a Christmas package and the message of Jesus Christ to children throughout the world. Since 1993, Samaritan’s Purse has partnered with local churches around the world to deliver 157 million Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes of gifts to children in need in 160 countries. Each box is filled with fun toys, school supplies and hygiene items. “Miss Flora” has her home filled with the decorated boxes in every stage of completion.  There are 100 … [Read more...]