Nestled in the Andes Mountains of Peru, most of the people in Santiago de Chocorvos hadn’t had the chance to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. SANTIAGO DE CHOCORVOS, Peru (BP) – Nestled in the Andes Mountains of Peru, most of the people in Santiago de Chocorvos hadn’t had the chance to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.   But that changed in the small village with the arrival of three Southern Baptist summer missionaries.   Kathryn Oder, Lindy Moser and Elliot Jeffries came to Santiago as part of the REAP South program (Rapid Entry Advance Plan). The International Mission Board-related program steers missionaries into rural areas in the mountains and jungles of Peru and Bolivia where they can interact with unreached people groups.   Oder, Moser and Jeffries did plenty of interacting.   Waking up at 7 in the morning and not getting home until after dark was common for the summer missionaries. Their days consisted of telling others about Christ, praying with people, holding regular church services and visiting surrounding villages -– but it was their ministry to children that had the greatest impact.   Every day around 3 p.m. they headed to the basketball court to play "futbol" (soccer) and … [Read more...]

the inaugural presentation of the Freddie Arnold Lifetime Achievement Award went to its namesake at the 2007 Disaster Relief Training and Roundtable’s Appreciation Banquet.     ALEXANDRIA – The inaugural presentation of the Freddie Arnold Lifetime Achievement Award went to its namesake at the 2007 Disaster Relief Training and Roundtable’s Appreciation Banquet.   David E. Hankins, Executive Director of the Louisiana Baptist Convention, presented the award to Arnold, "giving him double honor" for his service. A church planting missionary in Southeast La., Arnold has been doing disaster relief in that area for the last 18 months, despite the fact that he and his family lost their own home to Hurricane Katrina.   "He’s given his heart and life to everyone else," said Linda Williams about Arnold. Linda is married to Joe Williams, chaplain for the North American Mission Board in New Orleans.   On hand to see Arnold receive the award were his wife Elaine; son, Kerney; daughter, Julie Johnston; and grandchildren, Katie Arnold, Jacob Arnold, and Zac Johnston, who, his family says, goes on many disaster relief trips with his grandpa.   Also recognized were Cal Jones, for his involvement in every aspect of disaster … [Read more...]

Prayer breaks down the barriers to evangelism," preached Ken Hemphill at the 2007 Louisiana Evangelism Conference.     Second in a series NEW ORLEANS – "Prayer breaks down the barriers to evangelism," preached Ken Hemphill at the 2007 Louisiana Evangelism Conference.   Hemphill, the Southern Baptist Convention’s national strategist for Empowering Kingdom Growth, spoke three times during the Jan. 22-23 conference at First Baptist New Orleans that was designed to revitalize the church.   With about 80 percent of the churches affiliated with the Louisiana Baptist Convention either plateaued or declining, there’s a lot of revitalizing that needs to happen, said Wayne Jenkins, evangelism/church growth team leader. One after another, the conference guest speakers hammered home the importance of prayer.   Hemphill pointed out the ire of religious leaders who didn’t like hearing Jesus say the temple was to be a house of prayer for the nations (meaning gentiles), and asked how long his listeners had gone without inviting ‘gentiles’ to church. He explained the reason the fig tree withered overnight was because it – like the temple – already was diseased from the inside out.   "Both looked alive but systemically were … [Read more...]

Two days after Hurricane Katrina keelhauled Chalmette, about two miles south of the New Orleans border, people were telling John Jeffries, for 16 years pastor of First Baptist Chalmette, to look for another church.     ST. BERNARD PARISH – Two days after Hurricane Katrina keelhauled Chalmette, about two miles south of the New Orleans border, people were telling John Jeffries, for 16 years pastor of First Baptist Chalmette, to look for another church.   Almost every building in the unincorporated town – the parish seat, with a population in the 2000 census of about 32,000 people – had been under water 20 or more feet deep, for more than two weeks, because of a wall of water that roared up the Mississippi River from the Gulf of Mexico. Then a massive Murphy Oil Co. tank knocked over by the storm surge split, and sludge covered the floodwater’s muck.   First Chalmette was not spared.   Clean-up and grieving took place first. Then came an almost healing demolition of some of the seven buildings – sanctuary, educational building and five houses – that comprised the church complex.   Even as he worked with Southern Baptist volunteers across the nation in the gutting of the church’s remaining structure, its original … [Read more...]

What is missing most often in America today?     What is missing most often in America today? Is it wealth? I don’t believe this is a real issue for most. You may not be rich but you had plenty of food and a place to sleep yesterday.   Perhaps it is health? Again, my mind says no. Sure, we know of someone whose health is not what it once was due to illness, accident, or age. However, for most it is not a big issue. So what is it that too many folks in America are searching for, longing for and that seems to be so illusive?   I wish I could take credit for having written about it, but I did not. It was written by David, King of Israel. You wouldn’t listen to someone with little or no experience in his field. So for the sake of clarification of credentials, I’ll begin with verse 25 of Psalm 37:25 - "I have been young, and now am old." Immediately we are reminded that experience is the best teacher and David has a wealth of experience to qualify as a teacher for a course on Contentment.   Psalm 37 is filled with the wisdom of a seasoned man who is able to reflect and realize that it is senseless to become agitated by what ceases so soon. Life’s changes have not soured nor disquieted him for he has learned to see God … [Read more...]

The Civil War was a tremendous struggle that touched the lives of every American and ended the earthly journey of hundreds of thousands of young men on battlefields across our land.     One of the most popular classes I am teaching this spring is an intensive study of the American Civil War. With only a few exceptions, this period in American history has captured the imagination of Americans like no other single event in our nation’s storied history. It was, after all, a tremendous struggle that touched the lives of every American and ended the earthly journey of hundreds of thousands of young men on battlefields across our land.   Among the great questions covered each semester is: "What sustained the people and leaders in the midst of this necessary but terrible war?" The original words of the participants, often neglected and sometimes misinterpreted, come through plainly.   At his inauguration in Alabama, the president of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, looked forward to a war, the likes of which he and others in 1861 could not have imagined. He urged his listeners, "Reverently let us invoke the God of our fathers to guide and protect us in our efforts to perpetuate the principles which, by his blessing, they … [Read more...]

In the spring of 2006 1,000 British Muslims were polled. The results were alarming.     In the spring of 2006 1,000 British Muslims were polled. The results were alarming:   -- 28 percent wanted to see Great Britain become an Islamic state --68 percent said that Brits who insult Islam should be arrested & prosecuted --25 percent had either never heard of the Holocaust or contended it never happened --45 percent said that 9/11 was a conspiracy between the U.S. & Israel (another 35 percent said "don’t know") The objective of many Muslims is to Islamicize the world. When a person or a country stands in the way of Islam’s efforts, these Muslims regard it as a "war on Islam."   This does not mean all Muslims hate Christians. For over a thousand years there have been many friendships between Muslims and Christians. However, Muslims who have befriended Christians have disregarded the Koran in the process, since it prohibits such friendships (Q 5:51).   So what are Christians to do? I would like to suggest three responses by evangelicals to Islam.   Understand that we stand in the way of Islam intentionally. We believe that Islam is a religion that promotes false teachings about God. The Apostle Paul … [Read more...]

Religious Freedom Day probably isn’t the American Civil Liberties Union’s favorite government-approved event, despite their attempts to argue that they care deeply about the subject.     Religious Freedom Day probably isn’t the American Civil Liberties Union’s favorite government-approved event, despite their attempts to argue that they care deeply about the subject.   While the ACLU likes to promote itself as the prime defender of First Amendment rights, at least two of those rights are ideological thorns in the flesh for the organization: freedom of religion (if it involves publicly acknowledging God) and freedom of speech (if that speech is formed as a prayer).   President Bush’s proclamation of Religious Freedom Day, celebrated Jan. 16, likely set the teeth of the ACLU and its affiliated activists on edge. Particularly with Bush’s insistence that "freedom is a gift from the Almighty" and included encouragement to commemorate the day in places of worship. The ACLU, after all, is only fond of America when it’s being sledge-hammered into support of an atheistic agenda by complicit courts and pandering politicians.   Somehow – for all the ACLU’s aggressive efforts in courtrooms across America to eliminate … [Read more...]

Fewer than 10 percent of the population might need access to a food pantry, but Fellowship Church has one, for whenever the need emerges.     PRAIRIEVILLE – Fewer than 10 percent of the population might need access to a food pantry, but Fellowship Church has one, for whenever the need emerges.   Fellowship, started by Kirk Jones in 2001, is known for giving things away – such as bottled water to people working in their yards on a hot day, or light bulbs, or flowers to plant in the spring.   "We’re always giving [area residents] something, to show we want to be givers in the community," Jones said. "We want to reach people where they are, and to be real."   Fellowship meets in a fire station’s garage-like rental hall; members set up and tear down for the worship experience each Sunday. That’s expected to change by Easter. Louisiana Baptist Builders are constructing an interestingly-shaped church plant fronted by an octagonal area designed for a day care center.   Day Care is one of the needs in the rapidly-growing area, Jones said. The population has soared from 10,000 to nearly 50,000 in the last 25 years.   Prairieville, about an hour south of Baton Rouge, is known for the excellence of its school system. … [Read more...]

Vernon Parish, home to the fifth-largest military installation in the United States is no stranger to the sounds of war.     FORT POLK – Vernon Parish, home to the fifth-largest military installation in the United States is no stranger to the sounds of war.   Explosions issue from what residents call the "rifle range" – the training area on fort Polk’s 8.1 square miles – rattling residents’ windows and often punctuating front-porch conversations.   After dark, flares glow on the horizon, lighting the way for soldiers training at night.   Sometimes, a low-flying helicopter or plane will suddenly roar into view and seem to brush the tree-tops, giving children a thrill and adults a racing heart.   "Providing highly realistic, stressful, joint and combined arms training across the full spectrum of conflict (current and future)" is the goal of the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) at Fort Polk, according to its website.   Indeed, training is more like dress rehearsal for soldiers, as they interact with other military services as well as local residents who are "role-playing."   Since the training replicates experiences soldiers can expect to have during a real mission, local residents as well as visiting … [Read more...]