Yes, it is still February and we could have more snow across Tennessee before Spring officially arrives, but it’s the time of year that hundreds of thousands of baseball fans look forward to — the official start of spring training. There’s something about baseball that mirrors life. If it didn’t exist, we’d never say: “He’s out in the field.” “He knocked it out of the park.” “I just wanted to
Paul Chitwood, president of our International Mission Board, preached at our church (Forest Hills Baptist, Nashville) last year and shared a shocking statistic. The number 157,690 flashed on the screens of our sanctuary representing the number of people around the world who die on an average day having never heard or believed the gospel. 157,690. Every day. Let that sink in. It’s hard to fathom. Even more difficult to grasp
JACKSON — Lostness in the world is the greatest problem Christians face, Victor Hou told a Union University audience Feb. 1 as part of the annual W.D. Powell Missions Lecture. “Despite wars, despite human trafficking, despite homelessness, crime, lots of other things, lostness is the only problem that will stay with us for eternity,” said Hou, who serves as associate vice president for global advance at the International Mission Board.
CHATTANOOGA — When the membership of Chamberlain Memorial Baptist Church in Chattanooga began to decline, the 30 or so remaining members contacted White Oak Baptist Church and pastor Tony Wilson eight years ago about a possible merger between the two congregations. Wilson was well acquainted with Chamberlain Memorial, having served as their youth minister nearly 30 years earlier. “I loved the people there and God worked in a sweet way,”
PIGEON FORGE — Pastor Rich Murray of Mountain View Baptist Church in Johnson City is bivocational and proud of it. “If it worked for (the Apostle) Paul, why wouldn’t it work for me?” he asked. Murray observed that Paul modeled what it meant to be bivocational. “There is nothing more biblical,” he affirmed. “I believe that to be anything else would be a demotion for me because I’m called to
My wife and daughter gave me a record player for Christmas a couple of years ago. I have it in my garage and recently I was listening to “Tones,” the 1986 debut album by ridiculously talented Austin guitar player Eric Johnson, and the thought hit me: there is a theological connection between Eric Johnson, my record collection, God and us. I currently have 191 albums in my record collection. Most
LINDEN — Change is inevitable in all areas of life and includes changes for individuals, businesses and even denominational organizations and churches, says seminary president Jeff Iorg. Iorg, president of Gateway Seminary in Ontario, Calif., and author of Leading Major Change in Your Organization, speaks from experience. “Even healthy organizations need major seasons of change,” he observed. Iorg made his observations via a Zoom meeting during the Tennessee Baptist Mission
COVINGTON — Pastors are not “supermen,” but individuals who struggle with anxiety, depression and other mental health challenges that often lead to ministerial burnout and occasionally suicide. “I found out this job’s hard for everybody,” Cliff Marion told a room full of pastors and other church ministers gathered for the first-ever Pastors Mental Health Forum. “I know that’s the way the people in this room are feeling and that ultimately
A decision regarding two requests from Southern Baptist messengers that would require SBC entities to release financial information similar to what is found on the IRS Form 990 was postponed until June. During today’s (Feb. 19) meeting in Nashville, the Committee on Convention Finances and Stewardship Development of the SBC Executive Committee board of trustees voted to delay addressing the two motions that came from the floor of the 2023
BUTLER — In upper East Tennessee, pastor Don Winters of Sugar Grove Baptist Church in Butler is lovingly referred to by some family and friends as the “crazy preacher who swam the ice mile” or “the Watauga Lake lunatic.” Winters takes it in stride but he has the last laugh. On Jan. 23, Winters became the oldest man in the world to swim an “ice mile” at the age of
Yes, it is still February and we could have more snow across Tennessee before Spring officially arrives, but it’s the time of year that hundreds
Paul Chitwood, president of our International Mission Board, preached at our church (Forest Hills Baptist, Nashville) last year and shared a shocking statistic. The number
JACKSON — Lostness in the world is the greatest problem Christians face, Victor Hou told a Union University audience Feb. 1 as part of the
CHATTANOOGA — When the membership of Chamberlain Memorial Baptist Church in Chattanooga began to decline, the 30 or so remaining members contacted White Oak Baptist
PIGEON FORGE — Pastor Rich Murray of Mountain View Baptist Church in Johnson City is bivocational and proud of it. “If it worked for (the
My wife and daughter gave me a record player for Christmas a couple of years ago. I have it in my garage and recently I
LINDEN — Change is inevitable in all areas of life and includes changes for individuals, businesses and even denominational organizations and churches, says seminary president
COVINGTON — Pastors are not “supermen,” but individuals who struggle with anxiety, depression and other mental health challenges that often lead to ministerial burnout and
A decision regarding two requests from Southern Baptist messengers that would require SBC entities to release financial information similar to what is found on the
BUTLER — In upper East Tennessee, pastor Don Winters of Sugar Grove Baptist Church in Butler is lovingly referred to by some family and friends
