LOUISVILLE, Ky. (KT) – Frank James, one of the organizers of the Multi-Language Evangelism Conference at Bethlehem Baptist Church last weekend, said it was like a slice of what heaven may look like.

MERIDIAN, Miss. — When Northcrest Baptist Church in Meridian, Mississippi, participated in Serve Tour Meridian in early 2022, they thought it would be a short-term mission project. But what began as a temporary outreach effort has transformed into a long-term ministry that continues to bless their community.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Midwestern Seminary welcomed more than 1,500 guests to campus on Monday and Tuesday, Sept. 23–24, for the 2024 For the Church National Conference, “Faithful: Serving the Most Beautiful People on Earth.”

The Black River, or Rio Negro, is one of the driving forces behind transportation and trade in the Northwest Amazon. However, when a drought reduced water levels to historic lows in October of 2023, barges carrying food, goods, and fuel could no longer make their way up the river, leaving parts of the Amazon without access to vital resources.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Southern Seminary hosted students from 20 states for the first Experiential Modular. These 8-week online courses bring students to campus for three days to engage face-to-face with their professors, connect with peers, and participate in campus activities.

PERRY, Fla. — As Hurricane Helene, a Category 4 storm, made landfall just after 11 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 26, in Taylor County, Florida Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are now on “active status,” preparing to respond quickly to deliver help, hope and healing to those impacted by the storm.

RICHMOND, Va. — International Mission Board President Paul Chitwood told trustees that with a few giving days left in the 2023-24 giving year, the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering was already the largest in the IMB’s history, with receipts currently showing more than $204 million given to date.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Southern Baptists’ compassion ministry Send Relief, alongside Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers from Florida and six other states, are activating response teams and prepping supplies to quickly deploy in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. This includes mobile kitchens, food, water, generators and cleanup supplies.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Lottie Moon’s home church hosted the International Mission Board’s Sending Celebration on Wednesday, Sept. 25. Rob Pochek, senior pastor of First Baptist Church Park Street, Charlottesville, told the 57 newly appointed missionaries, their families and friends that he couldn’t think of a more appropriate place to send them off to the nations than the place Lottie Moon first heeded God’s calling on her life. 

DACULA, Ga. — The Haven at Hebron, a 7,000-square-foot maternity home for homeless pregnant minors, is complete and will be able to receive residents as soon as licensing is finalized. Danette Fleming, who sits on the Board of Directors and is responsible for donor development, says that could take up to 90 days, and that she hopes to have residents in the home by the end of the year.

HARTWELL, Ga. — Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin, age 24, collapsed after making a hit in the first quarter of an NFL game against the Cincinnati Bengals in January 2023. The players on both teams, tens of thousands of fans in the stadium, and millions of people viewing the game on television watched in horror when Hamlin made the tackle, stood up and fell over on his back.

The words lamb, hyssop, blood, and outstretched arm have been spinning through my mind. Digging into the first Passover, puzzle pieces are falling into place as the people of Israel prepare to be freed from their slavery. God perfectly stitches the Scriptures of the Old Testament together with the New Testament into a beautiful tapestry. It is fascinating and amazing… when we are looking for it.

Alma Ruth (Stevens, Haskins) McCommon, 84, passed away September 23, 2024, in Lubbock, TX. She was born November 11, 1939, to Samuel Jefferson, Sr., and Thelma Ruth (West) Stevens, in Muskogee, OK. Samuel Jefferson Stevens, Jr., known as “Bud,” was born 8 years prior to Ruthie.

You may not even know what an ISP is unless you have a special needs child. ISP stands for Individual Support/Service Plan. An ISP meeting is held once a year to set goals, go over medical concerns, and just collect information so that anyone who supports the person with intellectual disabilities can take part in setting new goals and a plan to focus on those goals.

ROME, Ga. — Georgia Baptists responded enthusiastically to this years’ SPARK church-strengthening conferences, with more than 800 people attending the final event at West Rome Baptist Church on Sunday, Sept. 22.

Barna and Impact 360 concluded a series of Gen Z reports on Thursday, Sept. 12, with 'Leading Gen Z,' a simulcast highlighting their final set of conclusions, based on more than a decade of research.

GRAND SALINE, Texas — The man who gave Christian recording artist Chris Tomlin his first opportunity to lead worship at a concert has been called to pastor his first church at age 70. In fact, it’s the church both he and Tomlin grew up in, years apart. 

CLAYTON, Ga. — Georgia Baptist Women hosted their Fall retreat at Pinnacle Retreat Center in Clayton on Sept. 13-14. Nearly 250 women gathered for the weekend, whose theme was Unleashed: Women on Mission.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (KT) – Hershael York was one of the invited speakers to a Friday news conference organized by The Commonwealth Policy Center as a rebuttal to Gov. Andy Beshear’s recent executive order banning so-called conversion therapy. York, Dean of the School of Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, addressed what it means to be made in the image of God and to love your neighbor.

NEW ORLEANS — The “Abre Mis Ojos” conference (Spanish for “open my eyes”) gathered more than 700 guests from the Hispanic community at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary last weekend on Sept. 20-21. 

BOSTON — As the final Send Network Gathering of 2024 concluded in Boston, nearly 1,000 attendees left with a sense of urgency to focus on multiplication — making disciples who make disciples and planting churches that plant churches. The event took place last Monday and Tuesday, Sept. 16-17.

While Jesus preached a message of peace, New Testament Christians at times encountered difficult issues among fellow believers. With honesty, Luke describes a “sharp disagreement” between Paul and Barnabas about personnel issues for their next journey that led to the breakup of their missionary team.

If you own a toolbox, what would you say is the most critical piece in your assortment? The hammer must be considered because it can be used to build and tear down. For me, it is my cell phone. I do not have a “fix-it” bone in my body.

DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. — Beulah Church/Iglesia Beulah introduces new members at its quarterly church business meetings, and seven families came forward at the last one. Of the seven families that joined at that meeting, five were Hispanic.

NASHVILLE (BP) – The Baptist Faith and Message soon could be more difficult to amend. That’s a good thing, says the SBC messenger whose motion this summer in Indianapolis helped initiate the change.