By Jennifer Tramel, Baptist Press RIDGECREST, N.C. – I noticed slight bass from the vibrations of thunder when I checked into Ridgecrest for the Gideon Media Arts Conference and Film Festival. Then, the lights slightly flickered. It was appropriate that the event for Christian media would begin in dramatic fashion. This was the third year for the conference and film festival and the number of attendees rose to 230, a significant increase from the 50 attendees at the first event. As I began interviewing for the news video, it was clear that each one of those individuals had one thing in mind: spreading the message of the Gospel by means of Christian mass media. “More people go to the movies on Sunday than go to church,” said David Nixon, director of “Letters to God” and producer of “Facing the Giants” and “Fireproof.” “The culture has changed,” he told attendees, “and why shouldn’t we, as Christians, be affecting the culture through popular mediums? We should go where the masses are.” Upon hearing these words during the first night’s opening speech, I could see ambition in many faces, but also concern. David was spot on, but the problem for many attendees was their lack of technical background or the experience … [Read more...]

by Polly House, LifeWay Communications NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Training church leaders has been a forte of LifeWay Christian Resources for almost a century. It’s important. Churches recognize that and so does LifeWay. Training has historically meant that a church leader – a Sunday school teacher, for example – would find a course that he or she wanted to take; leave home and go to, say, another church in that person’s local association; and listen to someone from LifeWay with expertise in Sunday school functions teach how to become a more effective teacher or leader. Times – and training – are changing. A new, free Sunday school training event will debut July 11, this one with a twist. “Great Expectations: Live Sunday School Training from LifeWay Ridgecrest Conference Center” will be offered to a virtual audience live, online from LifeWay Ridgecrest Conference Center. Instead of being trained “at” a conference center, the audience will be trained “from” the conference center. “This free online training event is designed so that an attendee’s Sunday school class can have even greater impact on the church, in its local community and in the lives of its members when expectations are raised and thinking is enlarged,” said … [Read more...]

By Marcus Rowntree, Baptist Press OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. (BP) – At 102 years old, Ruth Carlisle still knew the power of prayer. When one of the hospice workers tending to Carlisle told her about a grandchild who had been diagnosed in the womb with a serious birth defect, Carlisle did not hesitate. “Let’s pray,” she said. Seven months after birth, the baby was completely normal. The faith in prayer, concern for others and trust in God that Carlisle showed in that moment were constants in her life, which included 29 years on the mission field. The longest-living retired IMB missionary, Carlisle died June 5 at the age of 102. Her passing sealed the legacy of an unassuming woman whose life and ministry continue to astonish those who knew her. Carlisle, a native of Shawnee, Okla., and her husband Robert were appointed as missionaries to Uruguay in 1940 by the Foreign (later International) Mission Board. Their orientation was a 30-minute chat with the board’s president, followed by a journey by ship to Uruguay. Arriving in Uruguay with no Spanish language or cross-cultural training, the Carlisles learned on the job while planting churches. In 1956, they started a Bible institute in their home. It was difficult work … [Read more...]

By Karen Willoughby, Managing Editor BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (BP) – Living Hope Pastor Jason Pettus points to results, especially when it comes to missions. “We don’t talk much about the Cooperative Program as a program,” Pettus said. “We talk about the results of it. We talk about the half-dozen students we send to seminary every year. We talk about what we are able to do in our city and around the world through the SBC. We don’t talk about the Cooperative Program; we show what it accomplishes.” [img_assist|nid=6505|title=Part of newly-renovated campus of Living Hope Baptist Church in Bowling Green Kentucky|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=63|height=100]Pettus, 37, pastor of Living Hope Baptist Church in Bowling Green, Ky., was 28 when he was called in 2001 to lead the congregation. Worship attendance has grown from 1,500 to around 2,300 in tandem with the church’s increased emphasis on missions. “We couldn’t run a seminary and provide disaster relief and plant churches and reach the nations the way the Southern Baptist Convention does,” Pettus said. “The Cooperative Program allows what we give to go further than it could in our hands alone. There is no other method I know of that would enable our church to be engaged in … [Read more...]

By Bonnie Pritchett, Southern Baptist TEXAN JERUSALEM – Many Christians would cherish the opportunity to travel to Israel and visit the places where our Lord Jesus Christ walked, taught, died and rose again. Such a trip, which some say is akin to a spiritual journey, takes much prayer, money, and preparation. Unless, of course, you’re a guest of the Israel Ministry of Tourism, where the entire trip – organized by them – is a sprint to see as much as possible in as little time as possible, racing against an unseen clock that would time out before we, as reporters, could confirm that the tomb was, indeed, empty. Atop Mount Carmel (Actually, atop the gift shop of the monastery whose monks tend the site) I briefly reflected on one of my favorite Old Testament stories: Elijah vs. the prophets of Baal. The tourist-condensed version went something like this: “God 1, prophets of Baal 0. God wins. Everyone, back on the bus!” There is so much of spiritual and historical significance to see in Israel that one could easily lose sight of them by focusing on the schedule. But in the end, I was thankful for that bus and our very able and long-suffering guide, Rivka Cohen-Berman. Those whose business and pleasure it is to organize … [Read more...]

By Staff, Baptist Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – Ergun Caner will no longer serve as dean of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary in Lynchburg, Va., but will remain on the seminary’s faculty, according to a public statement released by Liberty University. “After a thorough and exhaustive review of Dr. Ergun Caner’s public statements, a committee consisting of four members of Liberty University’s board of trustees has concluded that Dr. Caner has made factual statements that are self-contradictory,” the June 25 statement said. “However, the committee found no evidence to suggest that Dr. Caner was not a Muslim who converted to Christianity as a teenager, but, instead, found discrepancies related to matters such as dates, names and places of residence.” Under Caner’s leadership, seminary enrollment has tripled to about 4,000 students since 2005. Caner’s contract as head of the seminary was not renewed when it expired June 30, but he has accepted a teaching contract, according to the Liberty statement. Caner has “apologized for the discrepancies and misstatements” that led to the investigation, the statement added. University Provost Ron Godwin led the investigation. Caner came to prominence in the aftermath of … [Read more...]

By Mickey Noah, Baptist Press ORLANDO, Fla.(BP) – From Nevada to New York and many states in between, about 100 Southern Baptist Convention bivocational pastors attended the inaugural luncheon (June 15) of the newly named Bivocational and Small Church Leadership Network during the SBC annual meeting in Orlando. [img_assist|nid=6509|title=Ray Gilder, national coordinator for the SBC Bivocational and Small Church Leadership Network, addresses bivocational pastors.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=67]“Being a bivocational pastor does not mean you’re a little preacher or part-time preacher,” said Ray Gilder, the network’s national coordinator and bivocational ministry leader for the Tennessee Baptist Convention. “You may be getting part-time pay but you are the full-time pastor of your church.” Gilder knows the ropes because he is also bivocational himself, the pastor of 200-member Gath Baptist Church in McMinnville, Tenn. “Most pastors in Southern Baptist life are familiar with bivocational ministry,” said Gilder, adding that an estimated 75 percent of all SBC churches run less than 100 people in Sunday school. About half of the convention’s 50,000 churches are small and bivocational – not only small, rural … [Read more...]

TIOGA -- In all, 67 children and leaders from South Korea are in Louisiana this week for the sixth year of Camp USA. Camp USA is a self-funded, three-week American immersion program for Korean youngsters. Week one is in central Louisiana; week two is in southeastern Louisiana; week three is in Houston. A partnership between North Rapides Baptist Association and the Home Mission Board of the Korean Baptist Convention, Camp USA is one aspect of Reach Missions Partnerships, coordinated by David Cranford, pastor of First Baptist Church of Ponchatoula. Cranford previously was pastor of Tioga First Baptist Church, which is the lead church for week one of Camp USA. Susan Duke coordinates. “We’re excited to have this opportunity to share God’s love with Korean students and their leaders,” Duke said. “They stay in host homes, getting a real feel for what life is like in America – or at least, in Louisiana – and for the hosts, it’s like foreign missions at  home.” Their first week was spent with the students in Vacation Bible School, early afternoons in “English and Culture” classes, both at Tioga First. Mid-afternoons change each day: 4-wheeler riding Monday; fishing and water slides Tuesday; remote control cars Wednesday; … [Read more...]

Compiled by Joanne Brechtel COMINGS & GOINGS Mike Smith, new as pastor at Brookwood Baptist, Shreveport. Ken Gilmore, new as pastor at Evangeline Baptist, Wildsville. Brandon Gill, new as interim pastor at New Hope Baptist, Jennings. NEEDED Bi-vocational pastor needed at Bonita First Baptist Church; call 318.647.3637 or 318.647.5307 after 5 p.m.; send resume to PO Box 305, Bonita LA 71223. Pre-school program director needed at Oak Park Baptist, New Orleans; send resume to OPBC, 1110 Kabel Dr., New Orleans LA 70131; fax 504.392.1810 or email pastor@oakparkbc.com. ANNIVERSARIES MONROE – Lakeshore Baptist: 56th Ministry Celebration; Sunday, July 25. TALLULAH – First Baptist: 25th Anniversary Celebration of John Rushing as pastor. RUSTON – First Baptist: 125th Anniversary Celebration/Reception 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 7; Clyde Fant, speaker; and at 11 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 8, Danny Wood, speaker. BERNICE – Evergreen Baptist: 120th Anniversary and Homecoming 10:45 a.m. Sunday, July 25; Jimmy Yocum, speaker; Jerry Chapman, music; covered dish luncheon; Charles L. Davis, pastor. SPEARSVILLE – First Baptist: 162nd Anniversary Reception 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 7; 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 8; Steve Dominy, speaker; Dale Liner, … [Read more...]

By Karen Willoughby, Managing Editor EDITOR’S NOTE: The Louisiana Baptist Message talked with three of the 42 Louisiana churches that participated in the simultaneous Native American revivals last fall. (See page one article for the rest of the story.) TICKFAW – The night before Pastor Michael Baham received an email from his director of missions that forwarded Randy Carruth’s request for churches to get involved in Native American ministry, Baham heard at the tail end of a sermon that the American church had neglected Native Americans. God got his attention with the juxtaposition of those two bits of information, Baham said. “As a result of our experiences in Nebraska with Ron Goombi and with Sandstone Community Church in the war zone on the streets of Albuquerque, N.M., our people who have been along on those trips have gained an awareness and a passion for reaching people outside our own context, reaching the homeless and hurting and broken of our community, and especially with Native Americans,” Baham said. On its first mission trip, to Albuquerque in October 2009, Woodhaven Baptist Church in Tickfaw collected and brought a load of winter clothing, which was distributed along with hot meals to homeless … [Read more...]