During the final moments of the 2018 state Evangelism Conference Jan. 23 at First Pineville, Louisiana College President Rick Brewer surprised Wayne Jenkins, who is retiring Jan 31 as evangelism director, with a humbling honor. The school has formed the “Dr. Wayne and Martha Jenkins Center for Evangelism and Missions.” According to LC public relations director Norm Miller, the center will be a resource of information and inspiration for Louisiana College students and Louisiana Baptist churches interested in training and mobilizing people for spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ at home and abroad.  The center will sponsor events and activities directly related to evangelism and missions, including evangelism endeavors and mission trips undertaken by students and faculty, and will forge and enhance an ongoing partnership with the Louisiana Baptist Convention’s evangelism and missions initiatives. … [Read more...]

By Message Staff Wayne Jenkins will soon retire after 27 years as evangelism director for Louisiana Baptists, and prior to his final day Jan. 31, Louisiana Baptists took a few moments during the closing session of the 2018 state Evangelism Conference to pray over him. Whether Jenkins, who has been battling cancer, was participating in a mission trip to Brazil or visiting with inmates at Angola, he has committed his life to sharing Christ with the lost, Louisiana Baptist Convention Executive Director David Hankins said during the Evangelism Conference. “And he’s not only done it himself, but he’s called his parishioners and his colleagues and the Louisiana Baptist Convention to do the number one task given to us by our Lord and that’s to tell people about Jesus,” Hankins said. “We are better for it and the kingdom of God is larger for it. So on the occasion of Wayne’s retirement as director of evangelism for Louisiana Baptists, we thank God for the remarkable ministry of evangelism of Dr. Wayne Jenkins.”   … [Read more...]

Throughout his life, state Evangelism Director Wayne Jenkins has impacted thousands of people for Christ. Among those impacted has been his children and grandchildren. His family joined him on stage at First Baptist Church, Pineville, during the final session of the 2018 Louisiana Baptist state Evangelism Conference Jan. 23. Jenkins was honored with a presentation on his  retirement Jan. 31. … [Read more...]

ON THE MOVE Charles (wife Sue) Malone is the new pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Winnfield. Reid Terry resigns as pastor of Searcy Baptist Church, Trout. David Logan is the new minister of music at First Baptist Church, Covington. Jake (wife Karen) Roudkovski is the interim senior pastor at First Baptist Church, Mandeville HOMECOMING First Baptist Church, Minden: Homecoming, February 4, 10:30 a.m., building dedication. Guests: Chuck Kelly, president of New Orleans Baptists Theological Seminary and his wife Rhonda Kelly. Pastor: Leland Crawford. REVIVAL Crockett Point Baptist Church, Crowville: Revival, February 4-7, Evangelist: Bill Britt. Pastor: Curtis Owens. LAGNIAPPE Calvary Baptist Church, Forest Hill is seeking committed musicians to form a praise team. Positions needed are: lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass player, drummer, and keyboard/piano player. Singers are also encouraged to reply. Anyone interested (serious inquires only) in filling any of these positions can contact Aaron Dunn at 337.655.0237 or Wayne Dunn at 318.733.0248. New Life Baptist Church, DeRidder: “Soup for the Soul - Sowing Seeds of Hope”, January 26, 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Entertainment:  Peanut Butter & Jelly, … [Read more...]

By Message Staff ALEXANDRIA – Collegians and high school juniors and seniors are invited to the annual Collegiate Evangelism Conference, set for Feb. 2-3 at Calvary Baptist Church in Alexandria. The theme for the conference is “Next.” “The focus is to challenge students as emerging church leaders to live for Christ every day as fervently as possible in the business and life marketplace while they are attending and after they move on from college,” said Mark Robinson, Baptist Collegiate Ministry director for Louisiana Baptists. “We are featuring seminar leaders, worship leaders and speakers that were active in Baptist Collegiate Ministry that have gone on to have thriving lives of Christian service in the secular workplace and serving on church staff.” Rahul Agarwal, the director of men and married couples at Gwinnett Church, a campus of the non-denominational North Point Community Church in Atlanta, Ga., will be the main speaker. He was a former intern at the Florida State University BCM from 1997 to 2001 at the time Robinson served as director. Agarwal later attended New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and became Tampa Bay area collegiate mobilizer for the Florida Baptist Convention. Leading music will … [Read more...]

By Message Staff PINEVILLE – The Voices of Louisiana College are preparing to host a benefit concert next month that organizers hope will raise thousands of dollars for construction of a children’s village in Haiti. Scheduled 7 p.m., Feb. 1, the “Concert for the Children’s Village” is sponsored by the Louisiana Baptist Convention, Louisiana College and Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home. While no admission will be charged, a free-will offering will be taken for a cause dear to the hearts of many Louisiana Baptists, including event organizer Clark Palmer. “Often I have seen when an institution is established to train young people in the ways of the Lord and the Gospel, that institution will have a powerful impact on the surrounding area for possibly decades to come,” said Palmer, pastor of Faith Baptist Church, Tioga. “It seems to me if we will change the nation of Haiti, it starts by changing some small area. That small area is changed by changing the children growing in that area. “It’s like a community of believers producing another generation of God-loving, Bible-loving, Bible-believing Christians who can strengthen churches and strengthen families,” the continued. “By just going to hear some great music and … [Read more...]

By Message Staff PINEVILLE – During the evening session of the 2018 Evangelism Conference, Brent Crowe urged hundreds of adults and youth to make sure redemption through Christ was part of the life story. “When Jesus calls us to tell a story in our life that has redemption as the theme and the redeemer Jesus as the central character, He not only bids us to tell the story but He provides us all the resources that are necessary so that theme will be true in our lives,” said Crowe, vice president of Student Leadership University in Orlando, Fla. “If redemption is not the theme of the story we are telling in our life, then our story is not worth telling.” Crowe spoke Jan. 22 to a packed crowd in the worship center at First Baptist Church, Pineville, while hundreds of youth watched from their home churches via a livestream broadcast during student night at ECON. At the invitation, three students came forward to declare Christ the Lord of lives, four repented to restore fellowship with Christ, two responded to the Holy Spirit's call to vocational ministry and one made an undisclosed spiritual commitment. Student night also featured the testimony of Kayla Sasser, a member of the youth group at Philadelphia Baptist Church, … [Read more...]

PINEVILLE – For those attending next week’s Louisiana Baptist Evangelism Conference at First Baptist Church, Pineville, parking will be somewhat limited. According to Stewart Holloway, pastor of First Baptist, Pineville, the elementary school and city hall have given up their spaces near the church parking lot so ECON participants can park there during the duration of the conference Monday, Jan. 22, and Tuesday, Jan. 23. Street parking also will be available. Once the parking is full, motorists will be directed to other areas in Pineville to park and take a shuttle bus to the church. Buses transporting participants to Monday’s Student Night and Tuesday’s Senior Adult Luncheon will be asked to drop off passengers in the parking lot at the Fellowship Hall entrance. … [Read more...]

WEST MONROE – Jeff Palmer, executive director of Baptist Global Response, a non-profit Southern Baptist organization that provides hunger and disaster relief and assists in development projects worldwide, will headline the 2018 Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship annual meeting. Scheduled to kick off 9:30 a.m., Jan. 27, at Bethel Baptist Church, West Monroe, the meeting also will include a discussion by Guilherme Prezotti, a program officer for Heifer International in Little Rock, Ark. Other planned activities include worship and a luncheon. The Agricultural Development Foundation will hold its winter meeting that afternoon. The fellowship is the parent organization of the Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship. “We are looking forward to gathering with other agriculturally mission-minded colleagues and friends for this annual event,” David Morrison, president of the Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship, said in a statement via email to the Baptist Message. “The two excellent speakers we are blessed to have will enhance everyone’s interest in helping those who are chronically poor and hungry. The highlight of every annual meeting is being able to consider project proposals … [Read more...]

By Message Staff BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and Louisiana Baptist church planter Louis Charrier will be among the speakers at the Louisiana Life March South in Baton Rouge Saturday, Jan. 20. The Life March South is the first of three similar events being held across Louisiana on three consecutive weekends. The event includes a pro-life march from the State Capitol to the Levee Green on River Road, where a program of prayers, speakers and music will be held at the Levee Stage. The Life March will begin at 10 a.m. Participants will gather a few minutes before 10 in the grassy area in front of the State Capitol, then proceed on Fourth Street to North Boulevard and then toward the riverfront. A life ministry mobilization area at the Levee Green will be manned by area pregnancy centers and organizations, and participants can visit the tables before or after the program. The program will also feature personal testimonies from other pro-life advocates, along with music. … [Read more...]