By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer MANDEVILLE, La. (LBM) – Nearly 150 staff and members with First Baptist Church, Mandeville, gathered inside the worship center to read all the way through the Bible during the last weekend in March, according to congregational sources. Held for the second year, “Our Eyes on your Word” began at the end of the congregation's Wednesday midweek worship, March 25, and concluded Sunday morning, March 29.  Men, women, boys and girls of all ages read passages aloud for an hour at a time around the clock. Pastor Ronny Cooksey read three times during the marathon: Genesis 1-2 to kick off the event, Ezekiel at 3 a.m. on Saturday, March 28, and Revelation 22 during the second worship service Sunday morning. The church live streamed the entire event so members and others could tune in and be encouraged any hour of the day. Cooksey said the 78-hour event was “low budget but highly engaging.” “It wasn’t very flashy, yet was so fun,” Cooksey told the Baptist Message. “On the one hand, it’s about lifting up the Lord’s Word and devoting a weekend to just elevating His Word. And then we had a team accomplishment feeling, where long-time and even new members came together for a fun event. “When I … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message Staff Writer PINEVILLE, La. (LBM)  – In a year when Louisiana Christian University is marking its 120th anniversary, the school celebrated the inauguration of Mark Johnson as its 10th president. The ceremony reflected a theme of service to the college, Louisiana Baptist churches and central Louisiana that has been the heartbeat of his first months as president. “My father, being a pastor for over 50 years in ministry and a grandfather in ministry, taught me at an early age, ‘Trust the Lord with all your heart, lean not to your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and then see what happens,'” (a reference to Proverbs 3:5-6) Johnson shared during the March 26 ceremony. “Because I was supposed to do three things, and the Lord was supposed to do one; He was supposed to direct my path. And so I stayed with that for my whole life. A lot of places where I could have spoken back, I decided not to because I was going to trust the Lord with all my heart, lean not to my own understanding, in all my ways acknowledge Him and He would direct my path." The event, held inside Guinn Auditorium, emphasized the importance of faith, family, business partnerships and educational excellence … [Read more...]