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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

LBC seeks resolutions, nominees

ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) -- Louisiana Baptists are invited to recommend candidates for service on state convention boards and committees, and, are asked to submit resolutions for possible consideration by messengers at the 2020 Louisiana Baptist Convention. COMMITTEES The Louisiana Baptist Committee on Committees is conducting its work, Sept. 10, to nominate persons to serve on various state convention committees. Currently, 17 nominees are needed for service on committees, including: Credentials; Moral and Social Concerns; Nominations; Order of Business; and, Resolutions. Nominees for committees should be sent to Ray Swift, associate pastor of First Baptist Church in Lafayette, who is the Committee on Committees chair. Recommendations should be sent to him not later than Aug. 17 via email, ray.swift@fbclaf.org or through the U.S. Mail: Ray Swift, P. O. Box 3888., Lafayette, LA 70502. BOARDS The LBC Committee on Nominations is beginning its work to fill vacancies on state boards. At this point, 21 nominees are needed to serve on the LBC Executive Board and as trustees of Louisiana College, the Children’s Home and Family Ministries, the Baptist Message, and the Baptist Foundation. The Committee on Nominations chair … [Read more...]

Modie Phillips’ retirement turns the page on her story, ministry

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer LEESVILLE, La. (LBM) – Modie Phillips initially wanted only to console an emotional child whose mother had been deployed to Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, but God had other plans for her. What began as a simple act of kindness in 1991 quickly evolved into a ministry that has reached thousands in Leesville and Vernon Parish. Desiring to encourage children of servicemen and women, she organized a monthly food distribution drive for military families with the help of churches in the Vernon Baptist Association. It would eventually lead to the formation of Helping Hands Storefront Ministries in 1992. On Friday, July 31, after 28 years of faithful service, Phillips retired as the ministry’s long-time director. She is grateful for the opportunities God gave her to serve. “God just led the way all this time,” Phillips told the Baptist Message. “He has sent reminders for all these years that reminded me how much of a difference this ministry has made in this area. Even though we have all these ministries to help people, the main purpose has been to let them know God loves them and His Son is their hope for Heaven. God has blessed us much more than I ever could have … [Read more...]

Looking forward by looking back

By Chuck Kelley On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall near New Orleans, creating the greatest natural disaster in the history of the Unites States. The levees protecting the city were breached, and 70% of the city, including the campus of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, went underwater for weeks. The unprecedented devastation included thousands killed, tens of thousands displaced among all fifty states, countless businesses shuttered, no cell service for weeks, no power and no mail delivery for months. In the blink of an eye, life changed completely for the people of New Orleans and the nearby Gulf Coast. Today a far greater catastrophe has come. The Covid 19 virus has changed life completely for our nation and the entire planet. As of this writing, hundreds of thousands have been infected on every continent. Tens of thousands have died. There is not yet a cure or a vaccine. To limit its spread, public gatherings, sporting events, and activities as basic as children going to school and their parents going to work have been cancelled. A devastating economic impact is rapidly unfolding. This crisis affects us all, everyone in the whole world. As I look back on leading NOBTS through the Katrina … [Read more...]