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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Mission:Dignity buoys retired pastors, widows

By Roy Hayhurst, GuideStone Financial Resources EDITOR'S NOTE: June 28 is Mission:Dignity Sunday in the Southern Baptist Convention. DALLAS (BP) - Virginia Pangle summed up what Mission:Dignity means to a pastor's widow like herself. "I don't have to worry about being cold, hungry or going without my medicine," she said. Mission:Dignity, a ministry of GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, ensures that Pangle along with nearly 2,000 other retired Southern Baptist pastors, their spouses or widows are able to have a sense of financial dignity in retirement. The ministry, fully supported by gifts from individuals, Sunday School classes and churches, provides monthly grants to retired Southern Baptist workers in critical financial need. The neediest couples can receive up to $600 each month in assistance. Mission:Dignity Sunday, held the fourth Sunday of every June on the Southern Baptist Convention's calendar, is set aside for churches to make a special offering for support of the ministry. Sixty percent of Mission:Dignity recipients are widows; one out of every four recipients is a pastor's widow age 85 or older. Mission:Dignity receives no Cooperative Program funding. "GuideStone … [Read more...]

Gay marriage is too dangerous

By Will Hall, Message Editor EDITOR’S NOTE: Warning this editorial contains excerpts of statements by the FDA which pointedly describe homosexual behavior. Despite Supreme Court Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy’s statement in 2013 that there is “no legitimate purpose” for denying gay marriage, his legal opinion in United States v. Windsor (which set off a spate of federal judicial activism that overturned 26 voter-approved state protections for traditional marriage) ignored the preponderance of research showing that same-sex relationships are just “too dangerous” to legalize. EXTREME STD RATES For six years, President Obama’s Food and Drug Administration alerted the public about the dangers of the very behavior which defines homosexuality. Until mid-March 2014, the FDA website warned that anal intercourse “is simply too dangerous to practice” – even when wearing condoms – “because it can cause tissue in the rectum to tear and bleed” and allow diseases to pass easily from one partner to the next. Even now, data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention backs up this claim, revealing that men who have sex with men have the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases than any other demographic … [Read more...]

Gibbie McMillan named to IMB board

By Baptist Press staff COLUMBUS, Ohio (BP) - Gibbie McMillan, a pastor and Louisiana Baptist men's ministry and volunteer strategist as well as state director of disaster relief, was among 11 late nominees the Southern Baptist Convention entity trustees elected June 16 at the SBC annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio. Also at the annual meeting, messengers asked questions of two SBC entity heads. The 11 additional proposed trustees were nominated by a seven-member subcommittee of the Committee on Nominations appointed at the committee's March meeting in Nashville. The need for late nominations arose for a variety of reasons such as initial nominees' opting not to serve, trustee resignations and trustee deaths. The Committee on Nominations' entire slate of nominees to the SBC Executive Committee, the four convention boards, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the six seminaries and the Committee on Order of Business was elected after messengers rejected Virginia messenger Brent Hobbs' motion to replace International Mission Board nominee Tom Polvogt of First Baptist Church in Katy, Texas, with Johnson Ellis of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas. The 11 late nominees were: -- EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: … [Read more...]

‘Love stronger than hate,’ victim’s son says

By Baptist Press CHARLESTON, S.C. (BP) -- Less than 24 hours after his mother died at the hands of an assassin during a church prayer meeting, Charleston Southern University sophomore Chris Singleton stood before television cameras and declared that "love is always stronger than hate." Flanked by coaches and teammates, Singleton, who plays baseball at CSU, thanked his teammates for their "amazing" support and recalled his mother's example of showing love to others. "If we just love the way my mom would, then hate won't be anywhere close to what love is," he said. "My mom was a God-fearing woman. She loved everybody with all her heart." Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45, was a speech therapist and women's track-and-field coach at Goose Creek High School outside Charleston. She was one of nine people shot to death June 17 by a lone gunman in the basement of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Charleston. Chris Singleton recalled a game in which he was standing in the on-deck circle. He caught his mom's eye, and she told him she was praying for him. "Mom, don't you think I already did that?" he said. His mom replied, "You can never have too much prayer." Answering reporters' questions, Singleton … [Read more...]

Light shines from Charleston after massacre

By Baptist Press CHARLESTON, S.C. (BP) -- The national media spotlight has been on Charleston for several days following the massacre of nine Christians during a Wednesday night Bible study at the predominantly black Emanuel AME Church. A 21-year-old white supremacist, Dylann Storm Roof, joined in the service for about an hour before opening fire on the group. This act of racist hate could have exploded into confusion and violence, but the light from Charleston has shone brighter than the media light that has been on the picturesque South Carolina city. Roof said he chose Charleston "because it is the most historic city in my state. Someone has to take it to the real world, and I guess that has to be me." What Roof soon discovered was that the hate and evil he demonstrated was met with real-world Christians who chose to respond with what seemed like unbelievable love and forgiveness. Chris Singleton, a sophomore at Charleston Southern University and member of the baseball team, felt the pain of the attack. His mother was one of the nine who was shot and killed. Less than 24 hours following her death, he said, "Love is always stronger than hate." Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley said, "If that guy thought in his … [Read more...]

Pre-screenings set for ‘War Room’

By Joe Dupree, Message Staff Writer Sherwood Pictures and the Kendrick Brothers, makers of Flywheel, Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and Courageous, will debut their fifth film, War Room,  in theaters across America in late August (Aug. 28). First, though, several select towns in Louisiana will have the opportunity to have a pre-screening of the drama that explores what the power of prayer can do and the impact it can have on people's marriages, parenting, careers, friendships, and everyday life. Tony (T.C. Stallings) and Elizabeth Jordan (Priscilla Shirer) have it all—great jobs, a beautiful daughter, and their dream house. But things are not what they always appear to be. They are about to find their perfect little world start to crumble down as their marriage begins to strain. Tony faces the task of maintaining a successful career while also battling various temptations. On the flip side, Elizabeth resigns herself to increasing bitterness over what her husband is facing. But they are about to face an unexpected twist when their lifes take a dramatic shift when Elizabeth meets her newest client, Miss Clara. Elizabeth discovers Miss Clara’s ‘War Room’ and begins question what that room is all about. She is … [Read more...]

LC’s Division of Business receives 10-year accreditation reaffirmation

by Norm Miller, Special to Baptist Message PINEVILLE (LCNews)-- The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) reaffirmed on June 6 the accreditation of Louisiana College’s Division of Business. “Achieving ACBSP reaffirmation is a rigorous process,” said Dr. Cheryl Clark, LC’s interim vice president for academic affairs. “Each accreditation standard assesses a college’s ability to perform in critical areas, such as teaching, research, curricula development, and student learning.” “This reaffirmation of accreditation for our Division of Business is a credit to our exceptional faculty who clearly and compellingly teach with a commitment to quality,” she said. “Every one of our professors cares deeply about the college and about making sure that students have a tremendous experience during their years at LC.” First accredited in 1995, LC’s Division of Business is one of the oldest members of ACBSP. “ACBSP’s reaffirmation of accreditation confirms that Louisiana College's business program meets the standards of excellence in the areas of leadership, strategic planning, student and stakeholder focus, measurement and analysis of student learning and performance, faculty and staff focus, and education … [Read more...]

God’s Provision at Acadian Baptist Center

By Joe Dupree, Message Staff Writer EUNICE - Three years ago, the leaders at Acadian Baptist Camp set a goal, actually two goals. The first was to raise $1.4 million to complete much needed renovations to the cafeteria and dorms as well as some much needed maintenance around the Baptist encampment in south Louisiana. The second was to raise that goal to over $2 million. Within a few months of its start, through God’s blessing, the money began to flow into the campaign. It not only surpassed its original goal of $1.4 million but quickly went over the new goal of $2,030,000. As of today for the second campaign, ABC has collected $2.2 million in cash and pledges. The 40-year-old camp is supported by six associations, 80 churches, numerous individuals and companies “Before we got started, we hired a company to interview a hundred of our constituents, board members, campers, local pastors, and supporters to determine what kind of response we might get,” said James Newsome, director of Acadian Baptist Center. “The results showed there was a lot of love for ABC and the ministries we have here. A lot of kids have been saved here at the camp over the years. “So, we decided to look to the future and began a capital … [Read more...]

More Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers trained at two Monday night sessions

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer Two Monday night training sessions resulted in 31 more members of Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief mud-out team members. Twenty-two people attended a training session at Summer Grove Baptist Church in Shreveport while nine were present at Alford Heights Baptist Church in Many. They join other disaster relief volunteers who are serving in areas impacted by the recent flooding of the Red River. Ricky Woodard is among those who already have benefited from the ministry of disaster relief volunteers. Woodard, whose Shreveport property is less than 100 yards from the Red River, estimates work done by the mudout team from Zoar Baptist Church saved him nearly a month’s worth of clean-up. “They’re like a bunch of ants coming together and getting things done almost instantly,” Woodard said, with his two grandchildren standing nearby. “I’m so appreciative.” The team worked all day, removing mud and debris inside homes in the neighborhood heavily damaged by the river’s recent floodwaters. Loren Warren, a member of the team from Zoar Baptist Church, said that despite the temperatures that reached the upper 90s, the humidity was a small inconvenience compared to the blessings the … [Read more...]

Louisiana Baptist DR teams begin cleanup work in Caddo, Bossier and DeSoto parishes

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer SHREVEPORT - Less than a football field away from the Red River, Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief teams are working on homes heavily damaged by the river's recent floodwaters. Teams arrived earlier in the week to begin work on homes throughout the Shreveport/Bossier area. The teams that are on site are the incident command, chaplains, assessors, feeding, laundry, childcare, medical professionals and the in the trenches mud-out recovery teams. A childcare team will arrive Saturday to give comfort and games to kids of those families seeking help from volunteer agencies of VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster) as well as a variety of government agencies. Additionally, a Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief medical team that includes a medical professional on call for physician level will be assisting in the recovery effort as well. The wheeled units on site this week are from Bellaire Baptist, First Baptist Blanchard, Zoar Baptist, Rolling Hills Ministry, and Eastern Louisiana Baptist Association Some of these same units will join up with other units coming in next Monday. Operations will be from Eastwood Baptist Church in Haughton to Summer Grove Baptist Church … [Read more...]