Two of our granddaughters received new bikes for Christmas. Our weather has not been very good since Christmas as it’s either been raining, windy, or just plain cold. This past weekend was a beautiful one.  So on Sunday afternoon, my husband Wayne loaded up two bikes and two granddaughters, Lottie who is six and Liza who is nine, and took them up to the elementary school to ride their new bikes on the track.

David George (1742-1810) spent much of his life as a refugee. He endured beatings, hunger, persecution, poverty, loneliness, harsh environments, and war. Yet by God’s grace he blazed a trail that thousands have followed. Escaping slavery in South Carolina following the American Revolution, George pioneered Black Baptist work in Novia Scotia, Canada for ten years before sailing to Sierra Leone in 1792 to becoming the first Baptist missionary to serve in Africa.

McDONOUGH, Ga. – Ray Gentry knows first-hand the crucial role local Baptist associations play in helping churches fulfill the Great Commission. That’s why Gentry is excited about a career shift that will allow him to devote his full attention to championing the cause of associations and the leaders who oversee them, helping them to work more closely together to spread the gospel.

NEW YORK (AP) — Among sermon writers, there is fascination – and unease – over the fast-expanding abilities of artificial-intelligence chatbots. For now, the evolving consensus among clergy is this: Yes, they can write a passably competent sermon. But no, they can’t replicate the passion of actual preaching.

This is a question I asked myself at the beginning of my first pastorate in the northern Bluegrass region of Kentucky.  As a brand new, wet-behind-the-ears pastor I found myself at a crossroads regarding weddings.  My wife, Joanna, and I had been befriended by a deacon and his wife who went out of their way to make us feel at home when we were both far from home.

CLEVELAND, Ga. – Truett McConnell University’s Hans Hut School of Business is partnering with a Texas company to provide scholarship funding for entrepreneurially minded business students, plus a Shark Tank-themed contest that allows them to compete for $10,000 in start-up funding a new business. Truett McConnell and Novel Ventures announced the partnership on Tuesday, providing details that include providing students with internships, mentoring opportunities with successful business leaders,  and expert collaboration on new business development and innovation.

CUMMING, Ga. – First Baptist Church Cumming was among 622 congregations in 46 countries that threw Night to Shine prom parties for more than 75,000 people with special needs on Friday. Described as an unforgettable prom night experience for people 14 years old and up, Night to Shine is organized by the Tim Tebow Foundation.

NEWNAN, Ga. – SouthCrest Church was among 622 congregations in 46 countries that threw Night to Shine prom parties for more than 75,000 people with special needs on Friday. Described as an unforgettable prom night experience for people 14 years old and up, Night to Shine is organized by the Tim Tebow Foundation.

RICHMOND HILL, Ga. – First Baptist Church Richmond Hill was among 622 congregations in 46 countries that threw Night to Shine prom parties for more than 75,000 people with special needs on Friday. Described as an unforgettable prom night experience for people 14 years old and up, Night to Shine is organized by the Tim Tebow Foundation.

EVANS, Ga. – Journey Community Church was among 622 congregations in 46 countries that threw Night to Shine prom parties for more than 75,000 people with special needs on Friday. Described as an unforgettable prom night experience for people 14 years old and up, Night to Shine is organized by the Tim Tebow Foundation.

ALBANY, Ga. – Byne Baptist Church was among 622 congregation in 46 countries that threw Night to Shine prom parties for more than 75,000 people with special needs on Friday. “We were blessed to see almost 200 guests and gain the support of over 500 volunteers, including six pastors from area churches,” said Byne Pastor Mark Jackson. “God has been doing amazing things in our small congregation. We are blessed.”

COLUMBUS, Ga. – The Columbus Baptist Association is calling for volunteers to take part in a repeat of last year’s highly successful evangelistic outreach that resulted in more than 100 salvation decisions in a single day. Associational Missionary Jimmy Blanton is inviting Georgia Baptists from across the state to take part in what’s being dubbed CrossOver SouthWest Columbus. He's hoping to have 300 volunteers going door-to-door sharing the gospel with local residents.

VILLA RICA, Ga. – There are many blessings that come with being a pastor, but when one has served a church for many years the blessings are frequently multiplied. Most churches have celebratory seasons and challenging seasons. John Crotts, a pastor in Sharpsburg, Georgia has written, “If a man only comes when things seem to be on the upswing and then leaves as the hard times begin, the church will probably develop wrong ideas about both the man and the church.” But the pastor who is steadfast, faithful, and loving will win the favor of the people and earn the right to be their shepherd.

KANSAS CITY, Mo—Midwestern Seminary partnered with 9Marks to host “a conference on evangelism” earlier this week, with sessions aimed at providing a biblical understanding and convictional urgency in the task of evangelism. Keynote speakers Jason Allen, Mark Dever, Mack Stiles, Brian McKanna, Geoff Chang, Zach Shlegel, and Brad Wheeler brought messages surrounding the doctrine of evangelism and the practice of gospel proclamation in the life of local churches.

NEW ORLEANS - James Thomas, church planter at Epic Church in New Orleans and a student at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and Leavell College, was moved by the timing of a New Orleans Baptist Theological Society chapel message calling on believers to pray for the city that coincided with a violent incident occurring nearby. Unknown to all in the chapel audience Tuesday, a shooting took place near the campus that claimed the life of one victim.

Although pastors are doing more to encourage racial reconciliation and churchgoers say their church is doing enough to be ethnically diverse, nearly half of churchgoers say their church needs to become more ethnically diverse. In a survey of American churchgoers, 49% say their church needs to become more ethnically diverse. At the same time, nearly 7 in 10 say their church is doing enough to be ethnically diverse.

MIAMI — Against a backdrop of Miami’s vast diversity and vibrancy, trustees with the North American Mission Board met to celebrate church planters and other missionaries who are reaching a region whose residents are, in some areas, nearly 60 percent foreign-born. 

HOBOKEN, Ga. – Sylvia Carol Kelley Waters, 78, of Hoboken passed away Monday afternoon at her residence after an extended illness. Born in Waycross, Ga., her parents were the late S.D. Kelley and Carolyn Russell Kelley.

GAINESVILLE, Ga. -- Former international missionary Evelyn Farrington Perry, 63, of Gainesville died from complications related to COVID-19 on Saturday. Evelyn was a loving wife, mother, and Grammie. She met the love of her life, Frank, at Wieuca Road Baptist Church. Both children of preachers and teachers, they knew quickly that they were soulmates.

RICHMOND, Va. – Highway engineers in Virginia designed a combined section of interstates 64 and 95 to curve gently eastward in downtown Richmond to protect a landmark that serves as a memorial to one of America’s greatest preachers – John Jasper. “You can’t tear down that church,” people insisted when the interstates were being designed in the late 1950s. “That’s John Jasper’s church.”

Do they eat cake in heaven?  That’s one of the things I’m pondering today.  My mom went to heaven three years ago this morning at 7 a.m.  Sometimes my brain spins with what’s going on up there.  The term heaven-iversary seems appropriate.  You have to say it a few times for it to get a rhythm.  It was the best day ever for her: the day she had lived and served the Lord for. 

What do you think of when you think of Valentine’s Day?  Honestly, my first date with my husband was on Valentine’s Day back in 1974. He took me to the Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey Circus. That, my friends, should have been my first clue as to what our life would look like.

ATLANTA – Georgia Baptists will gather at the Capitol on Thursday with other pro-life organizations for a rally celebrating the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Georgia Life Alliance, the state affiliate to the National Right to Life Committee, is organizing the event dubbed Together for Life.

I'll never forget what a seasoned fundraising consultant said to me soon after I took a job in the development office at a small Baptist college in the late 1980’s. "Son, always remember, inside of every college president is a scared little boy."

NEW ORLEANS - The voices of 1200 women from 15 states and 250 churches—a sold-out crowd—filled the chapel at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary as they gathered to praise, learn, and fellowship at the Abide Women’s Conference last weekend. Kelly Minter, Lifeway author, Bible teacher, and podcaster, headlined the third annual event that came days before the launch of her latest book, the 90-day devotional The Blessed Life.