Submitted by philip on Mon, 12/01/2014 - 12:13 Louis Charrier (left) and Buddy Hampton (right) play Cajun music in front of the Engage Acadiana exhibit located in the hallway of First Baptist Church in Lafayette at this year’s annual meting. In addition to handing out goodies and tasty morsels, Louisiana Baptist Convention teams, entities, camps and other organizations handed out valuable information which tied in with the Annual Meeting theme of Engage 2020, which is a goal of the convention to reach the next generation and every people group. By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer LAFAYETTE – With a crowd gathered around, Louis Charrier and Buddy Hampton cranked up their string instruments and began to play a high-energy Cajun tune inside the hallway of First Baptist Church in Lafayette. Just outside, Kevin Billiot and his family from Alpine First Baptist Church posed for a personalized photograph aboard an airboat. The music and airboat were more than just an avenue to have a good time, but were on hand to educate Louisiana Baptists about Cajun country and how they could do their part to Engage Acadiana with the gospel. “This was a way to give people an idea of some of the things we have done here and show our … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer ST. GABRIEL – As a drama team performed an interpretive movement to the song “City On Our Knees” during a worship service at the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women, chaplain Debi Sharkey drew the parallel. “From what I know, the song is about good and evil or light and darkness,” Sharkey said of the drama, which was performed by inmates in the prison who are students at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary Extension program there. “In that way, LCIW is like that. “We have some who are believers and some who are not,” she continued. “So, the dance was a way to express that when the two worlds collide, light should overcome the darkness. In the end, the girls would like to see all of LCIW a city unto God – a City on their knees.” The service was part of a recent revival at the maximum security prison about 10 miles east of Baton Rouge and included participation from many Louisiana Baptists. Approximately 175 volunteers from 25 Louisiana Baptist churches participated in the revival, which included a gift box distribution to the inmates, three worship services on Saturday, a worship service on Sunday and a baptismal opportunity on Sunday night. Food was provided for the … [Read more...]

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Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 09:21 George Ross By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer NEW ORLEANS – George Ross understands the God-sized task that is before him in the New Orleans area. From 2013 to 2023, Southern Baptists have set a goal to plant 120 churches in a city where evangelicals comprise 11.6 percent of the 998,644 people who live there. The ratio of Southern Baptist churches for every resident in metro New Orleans is 1:8,011. Those statistics are according to the North American Mission Board, where Ross serves as the agency’s SEND North America city coordinator for New Orleans. New Orleans is one of 32 cities in the US and Canada part of SEND North America, which is NAMB’s strategy to mobilize and assist churches and individuals in hands-on church planting in those cities. Since he arrived in New Orleans on Oct. 1, 2013, 10 churches have been planted, of which one is Hispanic and nine are multi-ethnic. Another 110 churches must be planted in the next nine years – including 10 in 2015 – a goal that Ross believes is possible, but only with prayer and cooperation from Southern Baptists both in the area and around the United States. “This will certainly be a difficult task, but not an … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 09:23 Ed Stetzer By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer SHREVEPORT – Today, 75 percent of Southern Baptist churches in Louisiana are either plateaued or declining. While this may look like grim news, hope is on the horizon with RESET: a Revitalization Conference, which is the theme of next month’s Louisiana Baptist Evangelism Conference. Organizers are hoping this conference will help those churches find encouragement and some solutions to grow. “Pastors and staff should load up a van or bus with leaders to come hear speakers and seminar leaders who will instruct and encourage a church that needs to be revitalized,” said Wayne Jenkins, Louisiana Baptist Evangelism and Church Growth Team Director. The two-day event, which takes place at Summer Grove Baptist Church on Jan. 26-27, will feature inspiring messages by speakers from Louisiana and beyond. Headlining the list is Ed Stetzer, executive director of LifeWay Research in Nashville, Tenn.; Leroy Fountain, church health strategist for New Orleans Baptist Association; Gary McIntosh , president of Church Growth Network in Mirada, Calif.; Ted Traylor, pastor of Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola, Fla.; and Don Wilton, pastor … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 09:34 Working with the Baptist Union of Bulgaria, Cedar Crest Baptist Church of West Monroe and Blackaby Ministries teamed up to put on a national conference for 127 Bulgarian pastors and leaders in Bulgaria. Among the group making the conference happen were (from left) Tom Blackaby of Blackaby Ministries, Cedar Crest Baptist Administrative Pastor Lynn Wilson, Richard Blackaby of Blackaby Ministries, Senior pastor Greg Clark, and Cedar Crest’s Mission Pastor David Moreland. By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer WEST MONROE – A Louisiana Baptist church has obtained the exclusive publishing rights to the Experiencing God book in the nation of Bulgaria. And by doing so, Cedar Crest Baptist Church in West Monroe hopes this is just the beginning of many changed lives in this East European country. Cedar Crest has been working in partnership with the Baptist Union of Bulgaria and the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention since 2009. The church has taken teams to Bulgaria to conduct pastor training and leadership development, VBS style events for children and sports camps for all ages. The idea to translate Experiencing God into Bulgarian began in 2010 … [Read more...]

By Kelly Boggs, Message Editor America’s slow slide toward secularism has been taking place for some time now. I would argue for at least three decades and the Christmas season has been a clear indicator of our country’s penchant for secular style over traditional substance. The essence of Christmas, the reason for the season, is the birth of Jesus Christ, nothing more and nothing less. It is distinctly and exclusively a religious holiday – a time when Christians around the world commemorate the birth of their Savior, the very reason for their faith. However, in American popular culture the reality of Christmas has not just been lost; it has been discarded like ripped wrapping paper. Christ’s birth is no longer the focus. All things secular trump the sacred as Americans celebrate Christmas in name only. A case in point involved the music popular during the Christmas season. A culture’s music reflects its values. Examine the tunes that are popular and you have a pretty good idea of the orientation of a society’s moral compass. The easiest way to sample a culture’s musical tastes is via the radio. Some radio stations dedicate their entire programming to Christmas-themed music during the month of December. And almost all … [Read more...]

By Trey Graham, Pastor First Baptist Church in Melissa, Texas In 1991, Andrew did what dozens of pastors and scholars only hoped to do. My friend Andrew, with no theological training or philosophical expertise, unwittingly but unmistakably showed me the true meaning of Christmas. After Andrew and I returned to college from our winter break, he asked me what presents I had received for Christmas. I began to tell him about the new clothes, the best-selling books, the popular running shoes and all the other items on the list of precious gifts given me by family and friends. He seemed somewhat impressed, pleased at my apparent holiday windfall. “So, Andrew, what did you get for Christmas?” I asked. Expecting to hear his wonderful list of presents, my roommate instead replied silently, holding up but one small item, an alarm clock that probably cost less than $5 at the thrift shop. “That’s nice”, I answered, thinking that I was sure glad I hadn’t received such a present, seemingly so small and insignificant. Later, as roommates often do during late nights of academic studies interspersed with stories about home, I would tease Andrew by pretending to throw that clock into the air and then catch it right before it hit the ground, … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 12/12/2014 - 09:46 By Joe McKeever, Pastor, Author, Cartoonist I’ve been to Bethlehem. It’s fairly indistinguishable from many other Judean towns, except for the Church of the Nativity built over the traditional site of Jesus’ birth. Bethlehem is located on a ridge some 2500 feet above sea level, and five or six miles southwest of Jerusalem. Why, with all the grand locations in the world to choose from, did God choose for His Son to be born in Bethlehem? I can think of three good reasons. TO FULFILL PROPHECY Seven hundred years earlier the prophet Micah quoted God: “As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah...from you One will go forth from Me to be ruler in Israel, His goings forth are from long ago, from days of eternity.” Now, some Messianic prophecies are cryptic – they are identified and understood only after the event has occurred. Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 must have perplexed readers for hundreds of years as to their meaning. Only after the Savior went to the cross did the followers of Jesus realize how the first seems to be the thoughts of the Lord on the cross, and the second an eyewitness description of that event. God placed such prophecies in the Bible so that when they happened, His … [Read more...]