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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Nov. 16 deadline for churches who have hosted Boy Scouts

By Baptist Message Staff ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM)—The Boy Scouts of America have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and reorganization and as a result will not be liable for keeping their pledge to hold churches harmless against sexual abuse lawsuits that may be filed in the future for actions in the past. Consequently, churches need to file a “placeholder claim” with the courts by Nov. 16 in order to have protection against any claims arising from any relationship with the Boy Scouts of America – whether having chartered a troop or merely hosted one and regardless if that troop is still active or not. “For people who don’t notify the court that they have a claim by the deadline of Nov. 16, there may not be any coverage,” Jaime Jordan told Baptist Press. Jordan’s firm, Guenther, Jordan & Price serves as general counsel to the Southern Baptist Convention. “I advise churches, if they have now or have ever had a Boy Scout troop, that they should contact legal counsel to see if they need to file a prospective claim before Nov. 16,” Jordan urged. COURT: District of Delaware CASE NO.: 20-10343 PHONE: (866) 907-2721 WEBSITE: www.OfficialBSAclaims BAR DATE: Nov. 16, 2020 (5 p.m. Eastern) … [Read more...]

William Smith to be nominated as LBC 2VP

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message Staff Writer PINEVILLE, La. (LBM) – William Smith, pastor of Lakeshore Baptist Church in Monroe, will be nominated for the office of second vice president of the Louisiana Baptist Convention during the 2020 LBC Annual Meeting, Nov. 10, at Louisiana College’s Guinn Auditorium. Neil Everett, pastor of First Baptist Church in Calhoun, plans to nominate Smith for the position. Smith is the only announced candidate for the office. STATEMENT OF SUPPORT Everett said Smith has demonstrated a faithfulness to Christ and the Word of God while serving 43 years as pastor of the Lakeshore congregation. “He loves the church and has personified servant leadership,” Everett told the Baptist Message. “No matter the position, William takes his responsibilities seriously and serves with a humble, Christ-like spirit. It is an honor to nominate Brother William Smith to serve our Convention as second vice president.” BY THE NUMBERS The database of the Annual Church Profile shows that in 2019 Lakeshore Baptist Church contributed $38,237 for cooperative missions and ministries through the Cooperative Program, 8.99 percent of undesignated receipts totaling $425,024 from Sept. 1, 2019-Aug. 31, 2020. The … [Read more...]

Is God’s answer to our prayers the best?

By Stewart Holloway PINEVILLE, La. - If you have kids, you know that God often teaches you through them. Recently our oldest son Zach was holding his little brother Evan and said, “I prayed for a brother, and God gave me the best.” Any older brother may say that about his little brother, but this statement stood out to me because Evan is so unlike everyone else’s little brothers. Zach’s friends have brothers of the same age as Evan with whom they can talk and play. They can run around in the yard together, play video games together, and do all the other things elementary age siblings enjoy doing together. But, because of his disabilities, at seven years old, Evan is stalled out at around a year old. He can’t do anything like what the other brothers do, but that hasn’t stopped Zach from loving his brother, finding ways to play with his brother, and even talking to his brother. To hear Zach talk sometimes, you might think his brother was like everyone else’s. But it was Zach’s statement about God’s provision and answered prayer that caught my attention: “I prayed for a brother, and God gave me the best.” It was an honest, clear statement. Zach didn’t add something like “even though Evan has special needs;” no, he made the … [Read more...]

Love Life Amendment passes

By Baptist Message staff BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM) – On Tuesday, 62 percent of Louisiana voters said "yes on #1," the ballot measure known as the Love Life Amendment, which now adds language to the state constitution to prevent action that has taken place in 12 other states, In each of those cases, an activist state court discovered an inherent right to abortion not specifically stated in any of the respective constitutions. using creative interpretations of a general phrase such as "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The actual language of the constitutional amendment reads “To protect human life, nothing in this constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.” The amendment originated with overwhelming votes of approval in the Louisiana House and Senate in 2019. The LBC Executive Board endorsed the measure last year and months later messengers to the Louisiana Baptist Convention adopted a resolution in support of the constitutional change. Months of work by Louisiana Baptist leaders, state legislators, Louisiana Right to Life staff and other pro-life supporters resulted in the strong pro-life statement in the final tally. Will Hall, director of the LBC … [Read more...]

LC honors long relationship with city of Alexandria at annual Founder’s Day ceremonies

By Staff, Baptist Message PINEVILLE, La. (LBM) – Louisiana College honored its long-standing relationship with the city of Alexandria during the annual Founders Day celebration Oct. 29 by unveiling a historical marker in front of the building that bears the community’s name. During a special ceremony, Alexandria Mayor Jeff Hall and Chief of Staff Susan Broussard joined school leaders at Alexandria Hall, a building that houses administrative and staff offices and several academic departments. When it was constructed in 1920, the cities of Alexandria and Pineville jointly contributed $100,000 of the $325,000 needed to complete the project. “I think it’s important for us to always be mindful of the history, as well as people who have come before us,” LC President Rick Brewer said. “And that we stand on the shoulders, in a sense, of those who have come before us, who have paid the price, who have sacrificed.” Hall added that the college’s presence has made central Louisiana a better place to live and work. He referenced a 2018 study by the Louisiana Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (LAICU), which recorded that LC generated more than $35 million in goods and services, $13 million in new household … [Read more...]

The 2021 Annual Church Profile is coming

By Clark Palmer TIOGA, La. - Information matters. Numbers matter. I want my doctor to get and record the right numbers on my blood pressure, temperature, cholesterol and more. I want my banker to get and record accurate numbers on my deposits and withdrawals. I want the right number in my checkbook or money management app. I want the scoreboard to be accurate so that I can know how my team is doing. You get the idea. Numbers aren’t everything but they do matter.  Leaders on the associational and state level are helped by those numbers. Do we need to plant a new church in our community? Accurate numbers will help us see the real picture. Are there struggling churches who need to make some decisions about their future? Real numbers can help us move toward a wise path forward. Can we afford to start new programs and hire new leaders? And in what areas are they most needed?  What about fair representation? The number of messengers to national and state conventions are based on reported numbers.   As the new moderator for our association looking for a sense of where we are, I discovered that I’m not sure where we are because a lot of the information seems to be missing. I’ve since discovered that one-third of our churches … [Read more...]

David Jeffreys to be nominated as LBC 1VP

By Will Hall, Baptist Message executive editor ALEXANDRIA (LBM)— David Jeffreys, associate pastor of the Highland Baptist Church in New Iberia, will be nominated for first vice president of the Louisiana Baptist Convention during the 2020 annual meeting. David Denton, pastor of the Highland Baptist Church in New Iberia, will nominate Jeffreys and he sent an endorsing statement to the Baptist Message, Oct. 27, highlighting Jeffreys’s “years of ministry experience” and “wisdom” as well as his “heart for Louisiana Baptists.” The LBC annual meeting schedule has been abbreviated to a single day, Nov. 10, 12:45-5 p.m., in Guinn Auditorium on the campus of Louisiana College in Pineville. STATEMENT OF SUPPORT Denton noted that he has known Jeffreys since high school in Slidell, adding that they were roommates at Louisiana College. “David took his first ministry position as youth pastor while a student at Louisiana College and he has been serving the local church ever since,” Denton said. “I have been privileged to observe David in his role as associate pastor at Highland Baptist Church where we have served together for the last 14 years,” Denton added. “David has led with strong conviction at Highland and has modeled … [Read more...]

FBI awards Hammett with prestigious Director’s Community Leadership Award

By Staff, Baptist Message NEW ORLEANS, La. (LBM) – The Federal Bureau of Investigation recently presented Cassie Hammett, founder of The Hub: urban ministries in Shreveport, with its 2019 Director’s Community Leadership Award. According to an FBI news release, the agency’s New Orleans field office nominated Hammett for her efforts in fighting for victims of sex trafficking in the state of Louisiana. Hammett received the award during a special ceremony Oct. 2 in Shreveport. The FBI recognized Hammett as a “dynamic trailblazer” who has led the Hub to be one of the most valuable resources to the New Orleans division for human trafficking and the Shreveport Resident Agency Child Exploitation Task Force. “Receiving this award means more to me than can be expressed,” Hammett told the Baptist Message. “But for me, the honor lies in serving on the FBI human trafficking task force and getting the opportunity to work shoulder to shoulder with some of the most incredible law enforcement officers and FBI agents who are committed to saving lives on a daily basis. That, in addition to serving victims and showing them the love of Christ, are the true rewards.” This is the second year a Louisiana Baptist has received this … [Read more...]

Zeta is third hurricane, fifth major storm, to strike Louisiana in 2020

By Baptist Message staff NEW ORLEANS, La. (LBM) – Hurricane Zeta made landfall in Louisiana, Wednesday, the fifth major storm to do so in the state this year. Zeta came ashore around 4 p.m. with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph, just one mph short of Category 3 status. The storm made landfall in Cocodrie, a fishing village 30 miles south of Houma. More than 456,000 businesses and homes in the state remained in the dark around 2:30 p.m, Thursday. The National Weather Service office in New Orleans reported winds of 112 mph at Bayou Bienvenue, 101 mph at Shell Beach and 100 mph at LaPlace. The storm was responsible for at least one death in the state. New Orleans EMS’ Twitter account reported that emergency crews had responded to a report of an electrocution fatality in the city. In Terrytown, 25 residents of an apartment building were evacuated after part of the building collapsed, WDSU-TV in New Orleans reported. One person was being treated for injuries. Meanwhile, the New Orleans Advocate reported that two riverboats and two barges tied up at a marine salvage yard in Lafitte broke loose on the Barataria Bay. Salvage yard owner Tom Dinh was able to slow the two riverboats enough to pin them to a corner of the Leo Kerner … [Read more...]

Alaska Baptist Disaster Relief offers lifelines in Louisiana

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – University of Alaska-Anchorage Mosaic campus ministry director Scott Belmore was glued to his television screen in late August as he watched footage of the devastation caused by Hurricane Laura in his native state. Belmore, who previously served as the director of the Baptist Collegiate Ministry at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette from 2005 to 2013, wanted to do something to aid those impacted by the storm. So he contacted Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief officials to find out how he could help. By late October, Belmore and seven students from Mosaic (an Alaska Baptist Resource Network ministry that is similar to a BCM) packed their bags and traveled to Louisiana to serve as an Alaska Baptist Disaster Relief team. Throughout Oct. 18-25 they removed trees that had fallen on homes and cleared debris that was scattered across properties throughout Rapides Parish. But more importantly, they shared the hope found in Jesus with the 17 homeowners they encountered. Among those blessed by the Mosaic team were Rebekah and Jeremy Buckels, members of Calvary Baptist Church, Alexandria, who lost 30 trees to Hurricane Laura and then had two inches of … [Read more...]