By Alex Sibley, Southwestern Communications BATON ROUGE - As both a crew member at Trader Joe's and a minister at Progression Church in Baton Rouge, Joe Handy essentially gets to pastor two locations - his "Trader Joe's campus" and his "Progression Church campus." At Trader Joe's, a grocery store chain, Handy rubs shoulders with nearly 85 coworkers from a wide range of social, cultural, political and spiritual backgrounds, most of whom have little to no interest in visiting a church. "So I try to pastor them right where they are," Handy says. "I'm the only pastor some of them have. I love that I have opportunity to bring church to them. "As they get to know me," he continues, "trust builds, and I get to play the role of friend and pastor in their lives," though they sometimes never realize it. It's fun seeing the worlds of Progression Church and Trader Joe's collide like that." Handy is one of four bi-vocational ministers on Progression Church's five-person pastoral team. Lead pastor Brian Crain is Progression's only full-time staff member, though he did begin as a bi-vocational minister. Needless to say, bi-vocational ministry is an important part of Progression's DNA, paving the way for avenues of ministry that … [Read more...]

Baton Rouge — Louisiana Family Forum has announced the release of their 2017 Legislative Scorecard. This resource provides a tool for the state’s residents to evaluate members of the Legislature on important policy votes. “LFF chose key votes during the 2017 regular and special sessions of the Legislature that provide a snapshot of Louisiana lawmakers' political values with regards to life, liberty, and limited government,” said Louisiana Family Forum President Gene Mills. “We encourage Louisiana residents to use this tool to analyze how their lawmakers represented their family’s values.” Louisiana Family Forum will honor those legislators who had an exemplary voting record at its annual Legislative Awards Gala Sept. 21 at The Church Baton Rouge. The gala provides a chance for the public to celebrate legislators alongside the pastors, churches and families who assisted in writing this chapter of Louisiana history. This year, the organization will honor 26 state senators and representatives as “Outstanding Family Advocates” and 52 legislators will be named “Family Advocates.” The 2017 Legislative Scorecard is also available online. … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer EUNICE – Standing before a room full of 400 students inside the Acadian Baptist Center gymnasium, Brad Lewter issued a challenge during the final moments of Camp Fuego to shine a light in their hometown and school. “Things that make you more like Jesus, give yourself over to those things,” said Lewter, camp pastor for the week. “What will flow out of that is a love for your neighbor, for your classmates. Find that person who doesn’t have a lot of friends and be that light.” Lewter’s message during Middle School Week at Acadian Baptist Center came on the heels of a six-week run there for Camp Fuego. Camp director Jeff Luce estimates about 2,500 middle and high school students attended one of five camps and another 200 came to the children’s camp. Since the camp, now in its 20th year, moved to Acadian Baptist Center in 2011, it has grown by leaps and bounds from its first year, when 250 students attended. This year, 80 campers made a first-time decision to follow Christ, 70 rededicated their life to Christ and 62 surrendered to Christian ministry. Luce said the investment by the massive volunteer staff helps build an atmosphere where campers are willing to open up to them … [Read more...]

EUNICE – Since becoming a camp in 1975, Acadian Baptist Center has experienced significant changes, both physically and spiritually. During its first year of operation, 3,000 people attended its events and three full-time people were on staff. This year, Camp Director James Newsom estimates attendance to be around 13,000 and its staff made up of six full-time, 25 part-time and many volunteers. Gone are the days when camping was limited to mainly staying in tents or bunk houses. Amenities at its camp now include a motel and cabins. The spiritual impact, Newsom said, has been even more significant. A total of 7,114 have accepted Christ as their personal Savior, 5,886 have recommitted their lives to Him and 581 have surrendered to full-time ministry. "It’s amazing what’s God’s done," he said. "It’s been a God thing.”   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p88DXm70jx0 … [Read more...]

By Message Staff BOSSIER CITY – Award-winning Christian music artist Big Daddy Weave is coming to First Baptist Church Bossier City Aug. 17 for its “Set Free Tour.” Scheduled for 7 p.m., the concert will feature the band that has recorded such No. 1 singles at “My Story” and “Redeemed.” The highly-decorated band which was formed in 2002 has received Dove Awards, K-LOVE Fan Awards, Billboard Music Awards and ASCAP Awards. “First Bossier is really excited to host Big Daddy Weave in concert in August,” said Pastor Brad Jurkovich. “We love seeing so many from around the Ark-La-Tex attend these concerts we host and we pray thousands will be encouraged with the hope of Jesus.” Tickets for the concert range from $15 for groups of four or more to $50 for a VIP pass that includes a post-show meet and greet with the band. Also featured during the tour are Micah Tyler and We Are Messengers. For more information, go to https://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1493560. … [Read more...]

Holloway Baptist Church in Deville will be holding Revival July 30-August 2. Churches  are encouraged to send in your revivals, Homecomings, concerts and other church activities to philip@baptistmessage.com three weeks before the event in order to be published in the Message in Louisiana Notables. … [Read more...]

Acadian Baptist Center in Eunice is preparing to host its 100th anniversary celebration and reunion Oct. 13-14. One of the most notable alumni of ABC is Jimmy Warren, the father of Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren. He attended the camp in the 1930s. Camp director James Newsom explains more about Warren's experience there. For more information about the reunion and celebration event, call 337.457.9047 or visit abccamp.com. https://youtu.be/7NV7FICwGvg … [Read more...]

By Louisiana Right to Life A trailer has been released for "I Lived on Parker Avenue,” a new documentary that follows the dramatic cross-country reunion between then LSU student David Scotton and his birth-parents Melissa and Brian, who haven't seen him since the day he was born. In less than a week, more than 65,000 people viewed the trailer on Facebook and on the film’s website, www.ILivedOnParkerAve.com. “This film already has gained a lot of traction," said New Orleans-based director Philip Braun. "Early screening viewers have reacted powerfully to this very human story of a son who searches for his roots and his birth-parents who have wondered for 20 years whether their son has rejected them for decisions they made before he was born. The depth of Melissa's raw maternal emotions has especially affected audiences." "I Lived on Parker Avenue” details the story of David Scotton who was born in Indiana and placed with his adoptive family in Metairie, Louisiana, in 1993. David attended Jesuit High School and is now a law student at LSU. Braun worked with Joie de Vivre Media, a New Orleans-based media organization, to film David's journey, which turned into a 30-minute short documentary. The trailer is available online … [Read more...]