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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Send Network Louisiana prayer gatherings to kick off May 30

By Baptist Message staff ALEXANDRIA, LA (LBM) – Prayer warriors from across the state are invited to gather online and ask God to move in the hearts of the lost in Louisiana every Thursday morning, starting May 30. Scheduled from 6:30-7 a.m. each week, the Send Network Louisiana prayer gatherings will be broadcast via Microsoft Teams and will focus on seeing 1 percent of the state’s population come to a relationship with Christ. The Louisiana Baptist partnership with the North American Mission Board has a God-sized vision to see His Kingdom expanded in Louisiana by one percent (about 28,000) over the next decade. Researchers estimate that 60 percent of 4,648,794 Louisianans are lost (or, 2,789,276). If successful, 28,875 Louisianans will be added to the Kingdom through a renewed culture of evangelism among Louisiana Baptists resulting in churches reaching new people with the Gospel. The goal of reaching 28,875 new people can be obtained with a combination of planting 231 new churches reaching 125 people with the Gospel. These salvations will be accomplished in a cooperative effort with already established Louisiana Baptist congregations. Send Network Louisiana church planting strategist Jacob Crawford will lead … [Read more...]

Calvary middle school students keep missions local

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – Instead of going to the beach or amusement park for spring break, middle school students from Calvary Baptist Church, Alexandria, chose to stay home for a mission “trip.” By the conclusion of their April 2-4 effort in Alexandria, the 25 sixth through eighth grade students, plus 10 adult leaders, were reminded they do not have to travel to another part of the United States or thousands of miles overseas to share the Gospel and show the love of Christ to others. “We talk about missions and a lot of our middle schoolers think it’s overseas,” CBC Middle School Minister Anthony Work told the Baptist Message. “But missions also are in our backyard. Our Jerusalem is right here in Central Louisiana. We brought to light that they can serve and pour out in those places that are familiar and need Jesus’ love too.” The team shopped for food items and supplies that they used to fill boxes for the Fostering Community, a local non-profit organization whose mission is “to improve the lives of children impacted by foster care through advocacy, resources, and support.” The students also toured and spruced up the CENLA Pregnancy Center building and grounds; … [Read more...]

SBC 2024: Law Amendment biggest issue in ‘24

By Will Hall, Baptist Message Executive Editor INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (LBM) -- One of the biggest issues Southern Baptists will address in 2024 is a constitutional change known as the Law Amendment. A two-thirds vote in Indianapolis would add a sixth element to Article III (which lists the qualifications for a church to send messengers to participate in the yearly business meeting) to further define that “only men” may serve “as any kind of pastor or elder” in a congregation that affiliates with the Southern Baptist Convention. This constitutional initiative was launched in 2022 by Mike Law, who is the pastor of Arlington Baptist Church, Arlington, Virginia. He said he was moved to act after the SBC Credentials Committee delayed a decision about disfellowshipping Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, for having ordained three female staff members as pastors in 2021. The Baptist Faith & Message 2000 states, “While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor/elder/overseer is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.” However, the committee said it could not act in 2022 “until clarity is provided regarding the use of the title ‘pastor’ for staff positions with different … [Read more...]

LBC EB highlights insurance crisis, evangelism growth

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer WOODWORTH, La. (LBM) – During the May 7 general session of the Louisiana Baptist Convention Executive Board, LBC Executive Director Steve Horn encouraged members to be passionate about sharing the Gospel. He also provided an update about efforts to resolve the church insurance crisis plaguing congregations of all denominations across the state. EVANGELISM MOVEMENT Horn said that since the Aug. 1, 2023, launch of Send Network Louisiana, the evangelistic growth initiative has produced 35 church planters, with two more headed to an assessment retreat in late May and an additional 29 potential planters in the assessment pipeline. An assessment retreat center has been established with Istrouma Baptist Church, Baton Rouge, that will allow for two retreats annually, with the goal of producing 12 candidates per retreat. The Louisiana Baptist partnership with the North American Mission Board has a God-sized vision to see His Kingdom expanded in Louisiana by one percent (about 28,000) over the next decade. Researchers estimate that 60 percent of 4,648,794 Louisianans are lost (about 2,789,276). If successful, 28,875 Louisianans will be added to the Kingdom through 231 new … [Read more...]

SBC 2024: President

By Will Hall, Baptist Message executive editor INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (LBM) - Six individuals have been announced as intended nominees for Southern Baptist Convention president. The following Annual Church Profile information is presented to allow readers to assess the evangelistic effectiveness of the individual’s home church (per capita baptisms) as well as the congregation’s financial commitment to the cooperative missions and ministries of Southern Baptists (Cooperative Program percentage of undesignated receipts). Finally, some personal information is provided about the candidate. For comparison, the average baptism to worship attendance ratio for the entire SBC is 1:18 (226,919 baptisms, 4,050,668 average worship attendance, 2024 ACP). Also, the Convention average CP percentage is 4.59 percent ($457,417,314 total Cooperative Program gifts for state and national causes, $9,962,910,482 combined undesignated receipts for all congregations, 2023 SBC Annual). SBC Bylaws, Article X “Election of Officers and Voting” provides a process for runoff elections: “If an officer does not receive a majority of votes cast on the first ballot, subsequent ballots shall carry the names of those who are included in the top 50 percent … [Read more...]