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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

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 Roland Fontenot is the new pastor at First Baptist Church, New Iberia. His first day at the church was Oct. 10. Aaron Watson is the new music minister at Calvary Baptist Church, Shreveport. Will Englerth will be ordained for the Gospel ministry October 17, 3:00 p.m. at Conway Baptist Church, located at 4323 HWY 549 in the Conway community in Union Parish. The council will meet at 2 p.m. Friends and family are invited to attend. HOMECOMING New Prospect Baptist Church, Dry Prong 97th annual Homecoming, October 10, 10 a.m. Dinner will be served after the service. Speaker: John Willie, pastor of Alpine Baptist Church. Worship: Robert Willie. Pastor: Trey Lewis. REVIVAL New Hope Baptist Church, Elmer: Revival, October 10-13; Sunday 10:45 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday-Wednesday 6:30 p.m.. Evangelist: Sam Moore. … [Read more...]

Kennedy votes to send disaster aid to Louisiana and extend flood insurance, Senate passes

By Jess Andrews, Office of Sen. John Kennedy WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) has voted in support of a short-term funding bill that would send disaster aid to Louisiana and extend the National Flood Insurance Program without raising the debt limit. The Senate passed the bill on Thursday, Sept. 30, which now moves to the House of Representatives. “If you even glance at the storm damage levied on Louisiana over the last year, you know our people need disaster relief," Kennedy said. "I’m thankful the Senate did the right thing by voting to send aid to our state, extend the flood insurance program Louisianians depend on and keep the government open." Senate Republicans attempted to pass a bill similar to Thursday's legislation on Sept. 27, but Democrats blocked that move before eventually removing the debt ceiling provision from their funding bill and bringing that measure for a vote today. Kennedy has explained the need for disaster aid and criticized the political gamesmanship that originally led Democrats to tether that aid to lifting the debt limit. Video of Kennedy’s comments made on Sept. 27 is available here. … [Read more...]

LC revival: Wilton urges students to become ‘new’

By Baptist Message staff PINEVILLE, La. (LBM) – Don Wilton challenged Louisiana College students, during the campus revival service Wednesday, Sept. 29, to examine their own relationship with Christ and surrender all to Him. Wilton, pastor of First Baptist Church in Spartanburg, S.C., based his message on Colossians 1:25. He emphasized to the students that they could experience the same transformation that the apostle Paul experienced in his encounter with Christ. He also offered that each follower of Jesus will experience the fullness of God’s Word if they surrender their life to Him. “Do you know Jesus,” Wilton asked the students gathered inside Guinn Auditorium. “It begins with your relationship with Christ. Maybe today you need to give your heart to Jesus. Pray that simple prayer. Just do it.” Wilton was the featured speaker for the revival services, Sept. 28-30, which resulted in numerous decisions for Christ. Campus faculty will follow up with the students and disciple them. The decisions come as 30 students already have professed their faith in Jesus during the fall semester through the “Awakening” worship services featuring evangelist Curtis Zackery of Franklin, Tenn.,  Aug. 14-16 and the “Arrival” … [Read more...]

Children’s home opens new recreation center

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer MONROE, La. (LBM) – The Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home and Family Ministries has opened a new recreation center that not only will provide a place to swim, play basketball and enjoy birthday parties but will offer healing to the many children on campus. “This place will be special because it will be filled with joy and laughter of our children,” LBCHFM President and CEO Perry Hancock said during his remarks at the dedication ceremony, Aug. 20. “For them, that is more than special. Most of them have experienced neglect. Many have faced abuse. But here, they will be able to relax and enjoy life. And while they are playing, God will be at work healing their minds and hearts.” The 18,300 sq.-ft. Children’s Recreation and Activity Center includes an indoor pool, gymnasium, and gift room (Christmas and birthday surprises are processed and stored here), and replaces the former gymnasium and pool, which were more than 60 and 40 years old, respectively. Though the project was announced in 2018 and set to open in 2020, the novel coronavirus pandemic, hurricanes and unexpected rising construction costs delayed the dedication until this year. The recreation and activity center … [Read more...]

Georgia Barnette Offering helps rescue women and children from sex trafficking

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer MONROE, La. (LBM) – Lindsey Crawford had not realized how prevalent sex trafficking was in her community until she met a young mother who was a former victim. For several weeks, Crawford could not forget the incident and asked God how she could be a part of the fight to end human trafficking in her hometown and beyond. What resulted was the creation of “Freedom13,” a jail ministry that focuses on outreach to formerly trafficked people in northeast Louisiana with the intentions of rebuilding their dignity. The ministry’s name is based on Galatians 5:13: “For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” “At ‘Freedom13’ we want to provide opportunities for women to start over,” Crawford said. “But more than that, we want women to know how important they are to the Lord, to us, and to the Body of Christ. We hope they will find or be reminded of their Gospel-centered, God-given purpose and walk it out, every day.” Since its founding, “Freedom13” has helped rescue more than 20 women and children from the sex trafficking industry and offers them resources to gain a new life through a … [Read more...]

Missionary, minister residential care programs resume

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer MONROE, La. (LBM) – After COVID-19 temporarily halted a program that assists ministers and missionaries, the Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home and Family Ministries has restarted the Ministerial Care Residential Program. The program that began in 2018 will host its first approved applicants as soon as Sept. 1. Louisiana Baptist terminated ministers, and International Mission Board missionaries on stateside assignment, transitioning to a new ministry or recently retired will be eligible to receive a free apartment on the LBCHFM’s campus in Monroe for up to one year. LBCHFM President and CEO Perry Hancock told the Baptist Message he is excited to offer the opportunity for ministers and missionaries to rest while they seek God’s direction for their future plans. “Ministers have benefitted greatly from the program,” Hancock said. “They have been able to rest from the challenging demands of ministry. That may sound ‘elementary’ but burnout is an ever-present possibility in ministry. “I believe that the program has also helped some to refocus or clarify God’s call for their ministry,” he continued. “Some have discovered that, rather than being a senior pastor, they need to … [Read more...]

LC’s C3 speaker declares CRT unbiblical

By Staff PINEVILLE, La. (LCNews) - “CRT bears witness to the reality of whether or not you believe the Bible is true,” Dale Clayton said, Sept. 20, as the keynote speaker for Louisiana College’s annual Christ Church Culture Conference. “You have to question if you really believe in the Bible or not,” Clayton, vice president of Coaches’ Ministries at Nations of Coaches and former president of the Black Coaches Association, emphasized. “If you believe in the CRT junk, you’ve got a blind mind.” Critical Race Theory is an academic and social movement based on claims that U.S. law and institutions are inherently racist and function to create and maintain social, economic and political inequalities between whites (oppressors) and minorities, in particular blacks, (oppressed). “If you buy into this, you are buying into destruction of the United States,” Clayton observed. LC President Rick Brewer told the crowd that CRT is surging among diversity training programs and public policy positions by governments, corporations and educational systems of all levels nationwide. “Equity. Social justice. Inclusion. These are CRT buzz words,” Brewer said. “Equity sounds non-threatening as opposed to neo-Marxism. But this will be the … [Read more...]