By Holly Jo Linzay, Regional Reporter MINDEN - Truckers stopping along the Interstate -20 corridor for fuel have an opportunity to get a spiritual fill-up as well thanks to a bible-distribution ministry. So far this year 1,789 free bibles have been placed in racks located inside five different truck stops along I-20, according to Randy Hales, the director of missions of the Bienville, Webster-Claiborne association. A sign is placed near the rack offering truckers the bibles for free. “The Road Home” New Testament bibles distributed are designed specifically for truckers and include personal testimonies from truck drivers. "We know the bibles are getting picked up by truckers passing through,” Hales said. Recently, Hales has received phone calls from truckers driving in Texas, Florida and North Carolina who had stopped at a truck stop along I-20 and picked up one of “The Road Home” bibles. “They had read the bible, had plenty of time to think about it on the road, and then gave me a call. The other day I had a call from a woman who use to be a pagan witch. She’s a trucker and had picked up one of our bibles. We talked for about an hour,” added Hales. The people involved in the truck stop ministry may never know the full … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Mon, 04/15/2013 - 10:13 Peggy Renfrow, site coordinator for the Beauregard Christian Women's Job Corps (BCWJC), and her team of volunteers helps women help themselves and prepare for a lifetime of being independent in Beauregard Parish. By Tammy Sharp, Special to the Message DERIDDER–A hand up, not a handout, is what Peggy Renfrow and her team of volunteers offer to women in need in Beauregard Parish. As site coordinator for the Beauregard Christian Women's Job Corps (BCWJC), Renfrow helps women help themselves and prepare for a lifetime of  being independent. "God's always kept me working with women and children," said Renfrow, who took over responsibilities of running the BCWJC this past August after former Executive Director Mary Koehn retired. Coming from a background in journalism, Renfrow eventually moved into social work, she said, and began working in nonprofits, specifically with battered women. God's perfect timing opened up the spot at BCWJC at just about the same time Renfrow decided it was time to go back to work after having taken time off to help care for family members in need, she said. "It was like God said, 'Okay I'm ready for you to do this now,'" Renfrow said, and she … [Read more...]

Submitted by Brian Blackwell on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 11:55 Jeff Thomas (left) with Meb Keflezighi, who won the American Olympic Marathon Trials, at the Boston Marathon By Brian Blackwell, Marketing Director BOSTON, Mass. – Two Louisiana Baptists are among the thousands of Boston Marathon participants counting their blessings but searching for answers the day after two bombs went off near the finish line of the race. The bombs, which went off around 3 p.m. Monday, April 15, killed three people and injured at least 170, according to an Associated Press report Tuesday morning. Erin Oswalt, a member of Family of Faith church in Baton Rouge, had finished the race and was a couple of blocks away from the scene of the finish line when she heard both bombs go off. Oswalt and other Christians nearby then urged everyone to pray. “We were inspired in Christ-likeness by all the volunteers and special needs guides both before and after the bombs,” Oswalt said. “They serve many hours out of pride for their city, this event and Patriot's Day.” Patriot’s Day is a local holiday commemorating the opening shots of the American Revolution, at Concord and Lexington, in 1775. The Boston Marathon has been run on Patriot’s Day since it … [Read more...]

Submitted by Brian Blackwell on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 16:23 A day after two bombs exploded near the finish line of the iconic Boston Marathon Monday (April 15), pastors and other leaders were urging people to pray for Boston as the city grapples with the questions that arise from tragedy. By Erin Roach, Baptist PressBOSTON (BP) - A day after two bombs exploded near the finish line of the iconic Boston Marathon Monday (April 15), pastors and other leaders were urging people to pray for Boston as the city grapples with the questions that arise from tragedy.Three people were killed and more than 170 were injured, including 17 who were still in critical condition Tuesday, according to The Boston Globe. Metal fragments found in marathongoers led investigators to believe the bombs were loaded with pellets or nails intended to harm as many people as possible, the newspaper said."I would say first of all to just pray for Boston. This was a huge shock," Jim Wideman, executive director of the Baptist Convention of New England, told Baptist Press. "Patriot's Day is a state holiday and a day that the Boston Marathon is always run. It's an exciting day for Boston. Up here, this far north, it really marks the beginning of spring for … [Read more...]

By Michael Foust, Baptist Press IRVING, Texas (BP) -- Members at the Boy Scouts national convention in May will consider a proposal that would leave in place the prohibition on homosexual Scout leaders but would allow youth who identify as gay to join, it was announced Friday (April 19). The proposed policy, unanimously approved by the Boy Scouts executive committee, differs significantly from a proposal that was discussed in February that would have allowed openly gay leaders and youth to join. That policy would have made it a "local option," whereby each sponsoring organization would decide the policy. Under the new proposal, there is a national standard and no local option. "No youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone," the proposed resolution states in part. The resolution criticizes sexual activity by youth, saying Scouting "is a youth program, and any sexual conduct, whether homosexual or heterosexual, by youth of Scouting age is contrary to the virtues of Scouting." Two paragraphs later it further says that "youth are still developing, learning about themselves and who they are, developing their sense of right and wrong, and understanding their … [Read more...]

Submitted by Brian Blackwell on Mon, 04/22/2013 - 13:01 ALEXANDRIA - The half-way point of the 2020 Summit has come and gone. Hundreds of Louisiana Baptists traveled to the center of the state to attend the two-day gathering, which marked the middle of the President's 2020 Commission. Approved by LBC messengers in November, the initiative features 20 teams made up of more than 400 people representing 350 Louisiana Baptist churches who will "examine and evaluate the various missions and ministries supported through the cooperative efforts of Louisiana Baptists," according to the Louisiana Baptist Convention website. "You and I serve a God who hears and who speaks and who wants to guide His people and show us what He wants us to do. So may we approach our task with that in mind – to hear God, to let Him speak, to let Him direct, to let Him lead and to let Him show us His way." LBC President Waylon Bailey said during Monday afternoon's session. Technology also played a part in the 2020 Summit. Audience members and those watching via live webstream had the opportunity to text in questions that LBC leaders answered. Additionally, those watching and attending the summit answered a series of poll questions about the … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Wed, 04/24/2013 - 09:24 Caleb Brown of Longstraw Baptist Church prays with an inmate on Angola’s death row during the annual Louisiana Baptist Revival at the state penitentiary. By Mark H. Hunter, Regional Reporter ANGOLA – Caleb Brown had visited local prisons during other ministry opportunities but a recent visit to Death Row at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola changed him. “They are just regular men, however their future is already planned out for them, but they have hope just like anybody else does,” Brown, 22, from Longstraw Baptist, said following the April 5-6 LBC-sponsored revival at the Angola prison. “One of the guys, seeing he still has faith and hope, that gives me compassion in my heart,” Brown said. “We choose our lives but they are locked down and don’t spend hardly anytime outside their cell. I can’t take my freedom for granted anymore.” Brown was one of about 200 Baptist men from 30 churches who participated in the 17th annual revival where 75 decisions for Christ were made, according to Keith Manuel, LBC’s evangelism associate overseeing the event. “Angola was a huge success in many ways again this year,” Manuel said in a wrap-up report. “First, we saw the Lord … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Wed, 04/24/2013 - 09:27 For the last four years “Be the Church” has spent $100,000 in building material to repair some 40 homes in Washington Parish. By Bob Adams, Special to the Message BOGALUSA – It is one thing to go to church, or even to belong to a church. It is quite another to be the church. Twice each year, in the spring and fall, men and women from the Southern Baptist churches of Washington Parish spend a week intentionally being the church. “Be the Church Week” began in 2009, but its roots extend back several years. Before Hurricane Katrina paid her devastating visit to Washington Parish in August 2005, a group of men at one of the Southern Baptist churches in Franklinton came together to do some upkeep and repair work on their church buildings and property. After caring for their church facilities for some time, they decided to offer their skills and time to some people in their church who needed repair work done on their homes – primarily elderly persons living on small, fixed incomes. Taking their ministry beyond the church facilities brought an increased sense of mission and fulfillment to them. In Katrina’s aftermath many groups and agencies came to Washington Parish to help … [Read more...]

By Kelly Boggs, Message Editor Recent polls indicate that a majority of Americans now support recognition of homosexual marriage. In 2013 eight national polls have been conducted on the subject. The average of these surveys, according to PollingReport.com, indicates a 51 percent support for same-sex marriage. A Pew Research Center poll, conducted in January 2010, found that only 38 percent of Americans were in support of homosexual marriage. A more recent Pew poll, released on March 29 of this year, revealed that 49 percent now support same-sex nuptials. No matter what poll you examine, it is clear that support for homosexuality in general, and same-sex marriage in specific, has increased dramatically in recent years. The question is: Why? Another Pew poll, reported on March 20, sought to discover the reasons for the recent rise in support for homosexual marriage. Of those surveyed who had changed their mind in favor of same-sex marriage, 32 percent said they knew someone who was homosexual. Twenty-five percent had changed their mind because they said they had become more open over time. Another 18 percent indicated they had switched their position because homosexuality was more prevalent and same-sex marriage was … [Read more...]

By Jason K. Allen, President Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary As a convictional Baptist, I am committed to two, and only two, ordinances for the local church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. If I advocated a third ordinance, however, it just might be the Cooperative Program. Of course I am speak with hyperbole, but over the last 15 years my appreciation for this denominational staple has grown by the day. In concert with my deepening affection for the Cooperative Program has arisen a parallel, and increasingly urgent, concern for its future. It has been said that numbers are like people: If you squeeze them, you can make them say whatever you want. Yet Cooperative Program statistics need not be squeezed to signal clear and troubling trends. Since the 1980s, the average percentage that churches allocate to the Cooperative Program has steadily declined. Over the past 25 years, the portion churches forward to the CP has decreased by almost 50 percent, dropping from 10.52 percent in 1987 to 5.41 percent in 2011. Moreover, one of the Cooperative Program’s predominant challenges is generational. Simply put, by and large, the younger the minister is, the less committed he is to it. As president of Midwestern Seminary, I … [Read more...]