BROWNSVILLE — When two older gentlemen decided to open an abandoned country store (formerly the J.B. Warren & Son Grocery) and turn it into a community restaurant in July of 2021, a few people were surprised.  After all, Turk Warren at age 98, and Ray Ellington, age 86 and a  member of Woodland Baptist Church in Haywood County had never owned or managed a restaurant.  However, this didn’t stop these

SPRINGFIELD — It was only a minor change, but it had a major impact at Springfield Baptist Church.  When the church hosted Vacation Bible School several weeks ago, pastor David Evans and the church leaders tweaked the program: They set up a system that allowed the teachers — instead of Evans — to talk directly to the children who had shown interest in making a profession of faith.  In several

  FRANKLIN — Joshua MacLeod had to travel all the way to an AIDS orphanage in Malawi to learn a very valuable lesson — music offers hope in the midst of hopelessness. MacLeod, founder of Instruments of Joy, shared his story during a recent webinar with Scott Shepherd, worship and music specialist and also partnership missions specialist with the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. MacLeod visited the orphanage in Malawi in

JONESBOROUGH — In Biblical times, the Lord often used an unlikely setting — prison — to do powerful things.   The same is true today.  Over the past several weeks, the Holy Spirit has been at work at the Washington County Detention Center, where 19 inmates have made professions of faith while participating in a ministry hosted by Strong Tower Baptist Church, Johnson City.  Ancel G. Presnell, Jr., pastor of

KNOXVILLE — Church revitalization can take all shapes and forms, a Knoxville Baptist pastor and director of missions affirmed.  “Church revitalization is not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach,” said Phil Young, director of missions for Knox County Association of Baptists. “Much depends upon the culture and context of that local church,” the DOM noted.  For some churches, an ‘adoption-style’ partnership is the best approach. For others, a more ‘organic’ approach is the