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TENNESSEE DR PLACED ON ALERT FOR HURRICANE DORIAN

Baptist and Reflector MOUNT JULIET — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers have been placed on alert status for possible deployment to Florida in response to Hurricane Dorian. As of Aug. 29, Hurricane Dorian was a Category 1 storm but is on course to be an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm if it makes landfall on the eastern coast of Florida early next week, according to the National Hurricane Center.

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UNION ALUMNI COUPLE USES ‘FAME’ TO SHARE FAITH

By Sarah Goff Union news office JACKSON — For Union alumni couple Ben and Juliana Wilson, 2019 has been a year of unexpected opportunities, from Ben competing on the “American Ninja Warrior” TV show to Juliana winning the Mrs. Tennessee United States crown and earning a top 10 finish in the recent 2019 Mrs. United States National Pageant in Las Vegas.  “This has been a crazy year, to kind of

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SPORTS OFFER OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE GOSPEL WITH KIDS

By Ashley Perham Baptist & Reflector intern NASHVILLE — As a boy, Jon Visser had dreamed of playing professional baseball.  He got his opportunity in the early 2000s in the Texas-Louisiana League, now called the Central League. But while he was traveling through Texas, God gave him a different dream. “While I was traveling around on the busses, I was thinking, ‘How can I serve God with my talents and

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UNWAVERING COMMITMENT TO COOPERATIVE PROGRAM ENABLES TENNESSEE BAPTISTS TO REACH MONUMENTAL PLATEAU

By David Dawson Baptist and Reflector [email protected] FRANKLIN — The oversized check was just a prop. The significance of the moment, however, was very real. During a recent ceremony at the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board’s Church Support Center in Franklin, TBMB president and executive director Randy C. Davis presented a Goliath-sized check to Augie Boto of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee. The amount was for $500,000,000, which represents the

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BROWNSVILLE BAPTIST CHURCH — TWO PASTORS IN 60 YEARS

By Ashley Perham Baptist & Reflector intern BROWNSVILLE — Brownsville Baptist Church, Brownsville, has had only two pastors in the last 60 years: H. K. Sorrell and Bob Connerley, who is celebrating 30 years at the church at the end of the month. “I don’t know how much that says about him and me, but it says a lot about the people here that they would put up with two

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KNOXVILLE CHURCH ‘DIES WITH DIGNITY’ TO HELP CHURCH PLANT

By Ashley Perham Baptist and Reflector intern KNOXVILLE — Hope Fellowship, Knoxville, started in 2016 as a church plant from Shoreline Church, Knoxville, with a vision to be a Christ-centered, multi-ethnic and generational church, saved by Jesus and changed by Jesus, according to Dominique Lee, pastor of Hope Fellowship. At the same time, Centerpointe Church, Knoxville, was making the difficult decision to “die with dignity,” said pastor Jim Millirons.

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PARKBURG BAPTIST SEES RESULTS OF CHURCH REVITALIZATION

By Ashley Perham Baptist & Reflector intern PINSON — Approximately 75-80 percent of churches are stagnant or in decline, and as many as 10 percent of Southern Baptist churches may cease to exist in the next 10 years unless fundamental changes are made, according to Steve Holt, church services director for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. The Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions and the Cooperative Program makes it possible for

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RURAL MEDICAL CLINIC IS ‘A GOD THING’

By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] SPEEDWELL — A rural medical clinic, supported in part by local Christians, many of whom are members of Baptist churches, is trying to make a difference in one of the state’s poorest counties in Appalachia. Claiborne County in northeast Tennessee, bordering the Kentucky state line, is impacted by poverty (according to IndexMundi, an international data portal), broken homes (50 percent of school-age

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PRAYER: MAKING A DIFFERENCE

By Carolyn Tomlin Contributing Writer, B&R It’s that time again when public and private schools start a new year. From preschools up through college level, students will be facing new challenges and opportunities. A thought that runs through the mind of all parents and families is this: will my child or loved one be in a safe environment? Will the teachers and administration create an environment where all children are

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SMALL CHURCH, BUT A MIGHTY GOD

Rural Wayne County church relies on faith to sponsor camp By Lonnie Wilkey [email protected] LINDEN — On paper, it doesn’t seem possible that a small country church that averages about 40 people on Sunday could sponsor a youth camp (at no cost) for about 50 people. And, members of Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Iron City will agree. They can’t, but God can, and He has proven it many

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