Click to Login or Sign Up

Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Lakeside plants, waters, harvests during VBS

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer PINEVILLE – On the final night of Vacation Bible School at Lakeside Baptist Church, Pineville, Pastor Lloyd Bye “watered” what had been spiritually planted, baptizing three young boys in a horse trough, May 31. “Each year we have made announcements on Family Night about how many accepted Christ, but some parents do not get to witness a baptism because they are not active in church,” Bye told the Baptist Message. “This time parents got to see the harvest we reaped from the seeds that were planted, and it made it special for the boys that their parents were witnesses.” Daniel Edwards actually was “harvested” during a recent VBS by a sister Louisiana Baptist congregation. “I accepted Christ at Faith Baptist Church in Tioga,” Edwards said. “But my Granny asked if I wanted to get baptized here since I have spent so many summers at Lakeside.” He added that it was “special” because both churches are part of his spiritual life. The Family Night worship service capped a fruitful week for Lakeside Baptist. Eleven children out of 46 who attended had repented for salvation by the end of VBS. VBS AND MORE VBS is one of several evangelistic outreaches for the congregation, … [Read more...]

Former addicts celebrate Christ at First Rayville

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer RAYVILLE – Every Thursday evening at the First Baptist Church in Rayville, up to 150 people with hurts, habits and hang-ups are celebrating victory found in Christ. Through the church’s Christ-centered Celebrate Recovery ministry, modeled after Alcoholics Anonymous, individuals are breaking the chains of bondage to alcoholism, compulsive overeating, drug use and other addictions and dysfunctional behaviors. Additionally, many are repenting for salvation and making commitments to live for Jesus. After enjoying a meal, participants gather inside the First Rayville youth room for worship, music and a time of celebrating milestones on the journey to recovery and healing. Once a month, individuals are given the opportunity to come forward to commemorate a certain number of days they have been clean from their addiction – some 30 days, some three months and some even several years. The service concludes with an evangelistic message and invitation. After the hour-long worship service, participants gather into gender-specific smaller groups to address dependency issues. Eddie Wren, pastor of First Rayville, said the program strives to show the love of Christ to those who are … [Read more...]

Port Barre expanding Kingdom boundaries

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer PORT BARRE (LBM) – Nearly 150 volunteers from Texas have spent a portion of their summer helping the First Baptist Church in Port Barre to expand its Gospel reach into the community through the construction of a worship center that will accommodate a growing membership. Under the direction of Mike Shumock, who serves as missions builder strategist for Louisiana Baptists and is the coordinator for Baptist Builders, a construction missions group, three teams from Texas are working with Louisiana Baptists to frame, install sheetrock, wire and plumbing inside the 20,000-square-foot facility. Once completed, the structure will house a worship center (with future seating for up to 600), youth room, reception area, nursery and coffee bar as well as restrooms and an education space with nine classrooms. Groundbreaking was held in early January and the new facility is expected to open by Christmas. “It’s been an amazing experience for us,” Pastor Benji Richard told the Baptist Message. “We have heard about groups coming to build other churches, but there is nothing like a first-hand experience. They don’t make it about just building a building but make it about Kingdom work. They have … [Read more...]

SBC NEWS: Charges, Challenges, Changes

By Will Hall, Message Executive Editor BETH MOORE: SBC is misogynistic LifeWay’s top seller of books and Bible studies sparked a social media battle when she announced she would be preaching on Mother’s Day at a large church. A number of Southern Baptist Convention theologians weighed in and Beth Moore fired back, unleashing her discontent even with evangelicals’ support of Donald J. Trump during the 2016 presidential election. One of the first critics to comment was Owen Strachan, associate professor of Christian theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri. Strachan blogged, May 7, that it was against God’s Word and design for “a woman to teach and preach to adult men.” Calling it a “sinful practice,” he added that “to do so is to bring the church body into disobedience against God.” Moore tweeted May 11 that she was “compelled to my bones by the Holy Spirit … to draw attention to the sexism and misogyny that is rampant in segments of the SBC, cloaked by piety and bearing the stench of hypocrisy. ...” and appeared to peg her distress to several high-profile SBC pastors who supported then-candidate Trump. “I had the eye opening experience of my life in 2016. A fog cleared for … [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 Stephen (wife Crystal) Craver is the  new director to the Shreveport Metro Baptist Collegiate Ministry. Aaron Brewer is the new associate director for the Baptist Collegiate Ministry in New Orleans. REVIVAL Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, Mount Hermon: Family Crusade, July 7-10. Evangelist: 2TALK42 Ministries. Pastor: Scott Spinks. Philadelphia Baptist Church, Deville: Revive Monday, July 8, 15, 22, 29. July 8: Evangelist: Bob Pittman. Worship: Jason Crabb. July 15, Evangelist: Jerry Chaddick. Worship: PBC Worship Team. July 22: Evangelist: Mike Stone. Worship: PBC Worship Team. July 29: Tarande Greene in concert. Pastor: Philip Robertson. Standard Baptist Church, Olla: Revival, July 14-17, Sunday, 10:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m., Monday-Wednesday, 6:30 p.m. Evangelist: Malcom Ellis. Pastor: Shad … [Read more...]

Louisiana Baptists Executive Director-Elect Steve Horn releases speaking schedule

For a chance to hear newly elected Louisiana Baptists Executive Director Dr. Steve Horn, multiple chances are available around the state. Horn has a speaking schedule through late October: July 8, 6 p.m. - Zoar Baptist Church, Baton Rouge July 21, 8 a.m. - Philadelphia Baptist Church, Deville July 27, 6 p.m. - First Baptist Church, Covington July 28, 9:30 and 11 a.m. - First Baptist Church, Covington August 18, 10:15 a.m. - Mount Vernon Baptist Church, West Monroe August 25, 6 p.m. - First Baptist Church, Pineville September 4, 6:30 p.m. - Bayou Church, Lafayette (Men's night event) September 8, 10:30 a.m. - First Baptist Church, Haughton September 15, 10:30 a.m. - First Baptist Church, Winnfield September 22, 5 p.m. - First Baptist Church, Eunice (Acadia Baptist Association meeting) September 29, 10:30 a.m. - Alto Baptist Church October 6, time TBD - Bayou Church, Lafayette October 7, 6:30 p.m. - Riverside Baptist Church, Watson (Eastern Baptist Association meeting) October 13, 9 a.m. - First Baptist Church, Ponchatoula October 14, 6:30 p.m. - Holmesville Baptist Church, Downsville (Concord Union Baptist Association meeting) October 17, 6 p.m. - First Baptist Church, Broussard … [Read more...]

Tragedy turns to triumph in wake of pastor’s death

By Message Staff TERRYTOWN – Tragedy turned into triumph on the Westbank campus of Celebration Church, a week after its pastor was tragically killed while trying to help a motorist change a flat tire. Dennis Watson, lead pastor of Celebration Church that has campuses in the Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Northshore areas, told members and guests inside a packed worship center on the Westbank campus Sunday, June 23, they have showed their trust in God and love for Pastor Claude Williams and his family. Williams was one of three people who died Sunday evening, June 16, while trying to help a motorist change a flat tire on the upper level of the Westbank Expressway in Marrero. During the service, 15 people turned to Christ, and many more made decisions to accept Jesus as Lord during two memorial services held June 21 and 22. “The Lord tells us we will experience trials and tragedy in life,” Watson said during the June 23 worship service. “The Lord also tells us that He will bring us through our trials and tragedies. To overcome life’s trials and tragedies we must remember who God is and what He is able to do for and through us.” Drawing his message from 2 Corinthians 1:1-11, Watson reminded the congregation that God … [Read more...]

AG Landry praises ruling on Bladensburg Cross

By Staff BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM) – Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry praised the U.S. Supreme Court’s 7-2 ruling, June 20, that protects from destruction a nearly 100-year-old white cross in Maryland that serves as a memorial to fallen soldiers. “As a veteran, I stand with millions of others in eternal gratitude and respect for our departed’s military service,” Landry shared with the Baptist Message. “Forcing Maryland to remove this veterans’ memorial would have dishonored their sacrifice and created the very divisiveness and hostility toward religion that the Establishment Clause seeks to avoid.” He was part of a group of 28 state attorneys general who joined a lawsuit to aid the American Legion against the effort of the atheistic American Humanist Association to force the dismantling of a 32-foot Latin cross erected in 1925 to honor 49 soldiers of Prince George’s County, Maryland, killed in World War I. Justice Samuel Alito wrote an extensive majority opinion, declaring that the war memorial did not violate the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution in part because it “carries special significance in commemorating World War I.” Citing the “image of the simple wooden crosses that originally marked the … [Read more...]

SEBTS’ Lyon new VP for NOBTS

By Marilyn Stewart, NOBTS Communications NEW ORLEANS (NOBTS) -- New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary President Jamie Dew named Larry Lyon, June 19, the vice president of enrollment, beginning July 1. Lyon, who has served as director of enrollment at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary for eight years, steps into a new position approved by the NOBTS trustees executive committee in their regularly scheduled meeting June 4. Noting that enrollment grew significantly at Southeastern during Lyon's tenure there, Dew said Lyon is "a gifted administrator with proven abilities in the areas of recruiting, retention and completion" and "a proven leader with exceptional strategic instinct and training. I'm excited to see him develop an efficient and effective enrollment strategy for NOBTS." The announcement is Dew's first official action since his election as NOBTS president by the full board of trustees June 5. President Emeritus Chuck Kelley retires July 31 after leading the seminary for 23 years. According to the job description approved by trustees, the vice president for enrollment, as chief strategist and catalyst for all enrollment-related matters, will "drive and direct the institutional strategy" for maximum … [Read more...]

La. pastor arrested for rape, church ministers to the hurt

By Staff WESTLAKE, La. (LBM) – Bruce Baker, director of missions for the Carey Baptist Association, said the Bellview Baptist Church in Westlake is asking for prayers of healing for a young girl who was raped by the now former pastor of the congregation. John Ward, 45, who had served at the church since 2012, was arrested June 17 on 10 counts of first degree rape, 40 counts of indecent behavior and two counts of pornography involving a juvenile, according to a news release from the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Department. An anonymous call to the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services’ tip line led to an investigation during which Ward confirmed to detectives that he had been molesting a girl, now 11 years old, for two years. He also told investigators he videoed the girl while she was nude on two separate occasions. Judge Sharon Wilson set his bond at $640,000. “Bellview Baptist Church leaders are cooperating fully with the sheriff’s office in the investigation,” Baker shared with the Baptist Message. “The deacons, in consultation with Carey Baptist Association, unanimously voted to immediately terminate Ward’s employment with the congregation because of his sexual immorality and failure to maintain the … [Read more...]