Easter’s enduring grip on a 12-year-old boy
By Jim Burton PENSACOLA, Fla. (BP) -- The Easter service drew a packed crowd, so when 12-year-old Steve Davis entered the auditorium, the only seat he found was at the side of the platform. The crowd didn't intimidate Davis; he was the first to respond to the...
IMB’s Platt looks forward after ‘reset’
by David Roach RICHMOND, Va. (BP) -- Following an "organizational reset" that saw more than 1,100 International Mission Board personnel transition away from the board, President David Platt told a March 3 live stream audience he is ready to focus on the future. "I...
National WMU Appoints New Leadership Consultant
By WMU Communications (BIRMINGHAM, Ala.) – Feb. 11, 2016 – National Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU) has hired Claudia Johnson to develop training opportunities for Christian women’s leadership. Johnson has a wealth of experience in missions leadership, having served as...
Don’t wait to say ‘Send me’
by Kevin Ezell ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) -- Not long ago I had the privilege of visiting with 1,200 college students for the weekly meeting of The Salt Company, a ministry of Cornerstone Church in Ames, Iowa, near the campus of Iowa State University. Cornerstone was...
Refugees, churches & fear spotlighted in study
by Bob Smietana NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) -- When it comes to helping refugees, Protestant churches and their pastors are often separated by faith and fear, according to a new survey from LifeWay Research. Most pastors say Christians should lend a hand to refugees and...
What church planters want you to know
by Shane Pruitt GRAPEVINE, Texas -- What is a church planter? A simple definition of a church planter is one who plants (or starts) a new local church. That leads to the question, "What is a good definition for church?" The word "church" originally comes from the...
Revitalizing church through an outward focus
When members are personally evangelistic, churches can be revitalized By Ed Stetzer Church revitalization is a very real and important topic to many today because statistics indicate that the majority of churches are plateaued or declining. So, since the majority of...
EASTER: The cross — far more than jewelry
By Anthony L. Jordan OKLAHOMA CITY (BP) -- What would you think if people everywhere wore jewelry shaped or imprinted with an electric chair? Think of it -- beautiful and ornate jewelry made of gold or silver and adorned with diamonds or other precious stones. No,...
With all of these changes, is the BCI expanding or contracting?
By Tim Lubinus, BCI Executive Director/Treasurer Actually the Baptist Convention of Iowa (BCI) is moving forward aggressively in adding staff and ministries. I mentioned in an earlier post here that we had solid growth in 2015 and at the same time were able to more...
National CP 7.19% ahead of projection
by Baptist Press Staff NASHVILLE (BP) -- Year-to-date contributions to Southern Baptist Convention national and international missions and ministries received by the SBC Executive Committee are 7.19 percent above the year-to-date budgeted projection and 1.46 percent...
