Have you ever felt overwhelmed by choices? You go into McDonalds or Burger King knowing exactly what you want, until you see the menu. Then, you decide you want something else. When it comes to eternity, the choices are much simpler. Either you can choose to admit to God that you are sinful, rebellious, evil, and without merit or strength before Him, or you can ignore and reject God and spend eternity apart from God and heaven in a place called Hell. Simple enough. What does the Bible say? That God loves you so much He sent His son, Jesus, to pay the price for everything you ever have done wrong, or ever will do wrong! See the New Testament book of Romans 5:8. That by trusting that Jesus died on the cross for you and asking Him to forgive you of your sin – Romans 3:23; 5:8; 6:23 – you can confess that Jesus is Lord and Boss of the universe, that all will answer to Him and that you are willing now to submit to Him as your Boss. Or, ignore and reject God and spend eternity apart from God and heaven in a place called Hell. Give yourself one last chance to make the right choice for you: Romans 4:8. … [Read more...]

By Sarah Sutton, Message Summer Staff Writer MONROE – For the past year and a half the women of First Baptist Monroe have been working to promote something in their church they felt was seriously lacking– connection. The Women’s Missions Ministry began in mid 2008, thanks to Sandy Miller, coordinator. In January 2008 Sandy Miller and her husband Pastor Alan had been at FBC for a little over a year and a half.  It was then, she said, that God gave her a vision for a women’s ministry. After discussing her desire for a new ministry with her husband and other members of the church, Miller decided on “connection” for the ministry’s theme. As the world becomes more technologically advanced, with text messaging and email, people need personal connections, Miller said. This Women’s Missions Ministry connects women with each other, and with Jesus. In May 2008, the ministry held its first event, “Friendships in Bloom.” Around 20 women were involved designing graphics, helping with publicity and decorating for the event. A few even made goody bags for the Friday night fellowship. The preparation paid off, Miller said. Over 130 women, young and old, attended to mingle and get to know each other. It was the start of many … [Read more...]

By Sarah Sutton, Message Summer Staff Writer SHREVEPORT – Luke Lee began making short films in high school as a fun, on the side hobby.  He said he never planned on making it a career. Lee works full time as Media Associate, overseeing the video portion of the media ministry, at Brookwood Baptist Church in Shreveport.  However, the 22-year-old filmmaker started producing videos for the church long before he was listed on the payroll. In his junior year of high school, Lee finally felt confident enough to produce videos with his friend, Chris Lyon, who introduced him to the idea of filming in eighth grade. The video director at the time, Bruce Hennigan, and Pastor Mark Sutton would come to them with ideas or requests. There were no obligations, Lee said, and it was very “free form.” He thought it was over once he graduated and left for Louisiana Tech. Lee went to Tech to major in Graphic Design, not planning on making filmmaking anything more than a hobby.  He said it was over Thanksgiving break he realized exactly what opportunities in film were available. “The number of people needed for media is outrageous,” Lee said. “From the time I was in eighth grade to very recently, that opportunity opened … [Read more...]

By Sarah Sutton, Summer Staff Writer SHREVEPORT – Brookwood Baptist Church in Shreveport is making massive changes in order to further advance their ministry to the people inside and outside of the church. With the extreme growth Brookwood experienced over the last few years, the church decided that their current facilities were no longer equipped to handle the changing needs. Once Brookwood assessed these new needs, they created a plan to modify the available spaces, creating the project “Renovate.” Brookwood currently has between 1,300 and 1,500 attendees of the three weekend services, not counting preschool or children, and the numbers are still growing. “We are adding a church wide family service by creating a kid/family friendly worship space for 300 people, upgrading our audio and visual in our worship services, and additional gathering space for adults including a new coffee shop with a unique mission emphasis,” Associate Pastor of Worship Mike Smith said. The proceeds from the coffee shop will go to Thousand Hills Coffee, a ministry to the Twa, utsi and Hutu ethnic groups in Rwanda. When presenting “Renovate” to the church, Pastor Mark Sutton stressed the importance of the family worship … [Read more...]

GCR Task Force Recommendations 1. Rally towards a clear and compelling missional vision and begin to conduct ourselves with core values that will create a new and healthy culture within the Southern Baptist Convention. 2. North American Mission Board to prioritize efforts to plant churches throughout North America, and to reach our nation’s cities. 3. Entrust to the International Mission Board the ministry to reach unreached and under-served people groups without regard to geographic limitations.4. Move the primary responsibility for Cooperative Program promotion and stewardship education  ministry assignments from the Executive Committee to the state conventions. 5. Reaffirm the Cooperative Program “as our central means of supporting Great Commission ministries” and establish a broader category of “Great Commission Giving” to celebrate all the financial support. 6. Raise the percentage of Cooperative Program funds received by the International Mission Board in the 2011-2012 budget year to 51 percent. (Read the full GCRTF progress at http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=32352) … [Read more...]

By Staff, Baptist Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – Members of the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force told reporters Monday that their proposed dissolving of cooperative agreements between the North American Mission Board and state conventions will make the respective sides stronger and more equipped to reach the nation with the Gospel. The proposal could have a significant impact on state conventions located in areas which do not have a strong Southern Baptist presence. [img_assist|nid=6103|title=GCR Task Force members Johnny Hunt, Ronnie Floyd and R. Albert Mohler Jr. took questions concerning proposed changes|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=65]The various cooperative agreements NAMB has with state conventions would be dissolved by the end of a four-year period to free up more money to “budget for a national strategy” to prioritize the planting of churches, particularly ones in cities. Currently, the state conventions forward a portion of Cooperative Program money to the SBC’s Allocation Budget, and NAMB takes its portion of that budget and sends $50.6 million each year back to the state conventions -- a process that is “complicated” and results “in a lack of productivity and accountability,” the report … [Read more...]

By Joe McKeever, pastor, cartoonist and retired DOM BAGNO The most common complaint denominational people and guest preachers hear when they call on local churches is, “I’m unhappy with our pastor.” Invariably, it’s some lay leader of the church speaking. [img_assist|nid=6106|title=Joe McKeever Pastor, cartoonist and retired DOM BAGNO|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=75]Let’s state the obvious here: some pastors we ought to be unhappy with. I’m thinking of one preacher who was known to curse, tell shady stories, gamble, and drink. When he was forced out of the pulpit, no one shed a tear. But what about all those other situations where some church members are unhappy with their preacher? Let’s see if we can do some good on this subject. One: It’s always something. If the pastor is effective at all, someone is always going to be unhappy with him. Mark it down. It’s par for the course. The pastor who takes a stand on issues will find some disagreeing with him. When he preaches on a controversial doctrine or calls for purity in the personal lives of leaders, some will be unhappy. Ninety-percent of a pastor’s headaches in ministry do not come from the unbelieving world but from within the church. … [Read more...]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – Southern Baptists must be gripped anew by the lostness of the world, repent of their self-centeredness and focus their local churches on taking the Gospel to those who have yet to hear, the chairman of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Great Commission Resurgence Task Force said Feb. 22. Toward that end, Ronnie Floyd, pastor of First Baptist Church in Springdale, Ark., presented a “progress report” to the SBC’s Executive Committee on the task force’s work. [img_assist|nid=6107|title=GCR Task Force Chairman Ronnie Floyd presents the progress report of the group to the SBC Executive Committee|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=66]The report specified six “components” of a vision they believe Southern Baptists will rally around and experience renewed passion for the Great Commission – making disciples of all the world’s people groups. To open his 90-minute presentation, Floyd drew on Joel 2:12-17 to deliver a challenge about the need for urgent, wholehearted repentance if Southern Baptists are to participate in the evangelistic harvest that will accompany the outpouring of God’s Spirit in the last days. “I believe with all my heart that God is calling us to return to Him now in deep … [Read more...]

By David Jeremiah, Pastor Shadow Mountain El Cajon, California Our victories are gained on our knees. As we turn ourselves, our plans and our problems over to God, He intervenes. When we bow before Him, we’re acknowledging Him as our “Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend.” [img_assist|nid=6109|title=David Jeremiah, Pastor Shadow Mountain El Cajon, California|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=83|height=100]Sometimes we make the mistake of not getting on our knees before accepting a job offer, making a purchase, choosing a new church, or making any decision of consequence. People are quietly watching, and they know when we’re living in prayerful obedience or when on the other hand, we act without consulting Him. It’s also obvious to others when our knees draw down blessings from above. In the January/February 2003 issue of Pray! magazine, Elmer Towns said that he and his wife made it through college by faith, praying together and trusting God to meet their needs. Towns earned a dollar an hour driving a school bus, but his income barely met their needs. “One evening,” he wrote, “the only thing in the kitchen cabinet was a can of tuna, so my wife served a tuna casserole. As we clasped hands to thank God for the food, I … [Read more...]

I need your help. If you can explain the following, please let me know. It really has me stumped. [img_assist|nid=6111|title=Jeff Iorg, President Golden Gate Seminary|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=80|height=100]Recently, I heard a wonderful testimony of a believer who had overcome his struggle with alcohol. He told the story of how he initially got involved with alcohol, how it became more and more of a problem, the high price he paid in lost relationships and health struggles, and the victory he finally won through prayer, counseling, and tough choices. He concluded by declaring he would never touch alcohol again. When he finished, he received a nice ovation – deservedly so. It is always good to hear a touching story of redemption and recovery. Shortly thereafter, I was part of another conversation in which a person told a different story. She reported she had never had a drink of alcohol; having decided at an early age drinking made no sense on any level. She also concluded by declaring she would never touch alcohol. But the response to the second person was quite different than the first. The second person was called a “legalist” who “doesn’t understand the social value” of sharing alcoholic beverages … [Read more...]