Online attendance, giving have surged; on-campus gatherings to resume in 2021 By Diana Chandler Baptist Press MEMPHIS — Impact Baptist Church & Ministries of Memphis has so thrived during the COVID-19 pandemic that pastor Michael Ellis Sr. sees no reason to resume onsite worship before 2021. “I get this call from pastors all the time asking me what we’re going to do, and I say, ‘Hey look, our attendance is
By Ashley Perham Baptist & Reflector LOUISVILLE — After 65 years in music ministry at 13 churches, David Hyers retired in June as the worship leader at Beech Grove Baptist Church, Louisville. Hyers, who attended Carson-Newman University in Jefferson City and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., spoke of the evidences of God’s work in his life on his last Sunday at Beech Grove. Hyers was 15 when he
By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] ORLANDO, Fla. — A new book on providing care for patients with Alzheimer’s Disease provides both a spouse’s perspective and a child’s viewpoint of caring for an aging parent. Alzheimer’s, Dementia. What Now?: Help and Hope for Caregivers, Family and Friends, co-authored by Nashville native Jim Henry and Deb Terry, addresses the challenges families face in dealing with Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia.
By Jay Barbier Youth specialist, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board Excitement, enthusiasm, exhaustion — that’s what I would experience on the fourth Wednesday morning every September. I would start typically around 3 a.m. The routine would be get up, get ready, and GO! It’s okay, coffee and sugar were waiting on me. This was my life in the trenches of youth pastoring every year. Usually I would bring my son and
By Kristen Early C-N news office JEFFERSON CITY — Called to the pulpit more than 60 years ago, pastor William L. “Dub” Swafford, 91, has served in nearly a dozen Baptist churches throughout Middle and East Tennessee. During much of that time, he used art to process the often demanding role of pastoring. “I’ve always drawn, from the time I was just small,” he said. “It interested me. I started
Baptist and Reflector HENDERSONVILLE — Since COVID-19 became a worldwide pandemic in March, many churches have had to either forgo baptisms or “step outside the box” to get them done. Such was the case at First Baptist Church, Hendersonville. “Like many, we have grown weary of all of the cancelations and postponements,” said senior pastor Bruce Chesser. “So, we have told our ministry team, ‘Stop focusing on what we cannot
By Bruce Chesser President, Tennessee Baptist Convention Senior pastor, First Baptist Church, Hendersonville It was with a great deal of prayer and discussion that a large group of Tennessee Baptists made the recent decision to cancel the 2020 meeting called “The Summit.” Well over 100 people were involved in the decision which involved the ministerial leadership of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, the directors of the TBMB, the officers of
By David Dawson Communications specialist, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board [email protected] It was a tough decision. For several weeks, my wife and I talked about it at great length. We prayed about it, sweated over it and, occasionally, I will admit, flip-flopped on it. In the end, though, we made our choice and held firm: We decided that our two boys — Jonah (fourth grade) and Luke (first grade) — would
Churches find new ways to serve families with school children during pandemic By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] FRANKLIN — Decisions by local school boards on whether to have in-person school or virtual learning are leaving many families scrambling to find ways to take care of their children and their educational needs. As a result, doors are opening for churches to make an impact in their community. “2020
Baptist and Reflector FRANKLIN — In the midst of a worldwide pandemic, Tennessee Baptists gave a record amount through the 2019-2020 Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions. As of Aug. 31, a total of $1,948,324 has been given from 1,202 churches (subject to final review of deposits on Aug. 31 and month-end closing). The previous record was set just a year ago when Tennessee Baptists gave $1,920,733 through the 2018-19 GOTM.
Online attendance, giving have surged; on-campus gatherings to resume in 2021 By Diana Chandler Baptist Press MEMPHIS — Impact Baptist Church & Ministries of Memphis
By Ashley Perham Baptist & Reflector LOUISVILLE — After 65 years in music ministry at 13 churches, David Hyers retired in June as the worship
By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] ORLANDO, Fla. — A new book on providing care for patients with Alzheimer’s Disease provides both a
By Jay Barbier Youth specialist, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board Excitement, enthusiasm, exhaustion — that’s what I would experience on the fourth Wednesday morning every September.
By Kristen Early C-N news office JEFFERSON CITY — Called to the pulpit more than 60 years ago, pastor William L. “Dub” Swafford, 91, has
Baptist and Reflector HENDERSONVILLE — Since COVID-19 became a worldwide pandemic in March, many churches have had to either forgo baptisms or “step outside the
By Bruce Chesser President, Tennessee Baptist Convention Senior pastor, First Baptist Church, Hendersonville It was with a great deal of prayer and discussion that a
By David Dawson Communications specialist, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board [email protected] It was a tough decision. For several weeks, my wife and I talked about it
Churches find new ways to serve families with school children during pandemic By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] FRANKLIN — Decisions by local
Baptist and Reflector FRANKLIN — In the midst of a worldwide pandemic, Tennessee Baptists gave a record amount through the 2019-2020 Golden Offering for Tennessee