News

MAKING THEIR MARK IN MEMPHIS

One Faith Christian Center connects with inner city communities, sees many baptisms By David Dawson [email protected] MEMPHIS — It’s incredible what God can do with a small church that has a big vision. Barron Martin can attest to that. He is the lead pastor at One Faith Christian Center church, Memphis, and he has been blown away with the way the small church plant has been able to impact the community

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COUPLE LIVES BY FAITH WHILE WAITING FOR KIDNEY DONOR

By Lonnie Wilkey [email protected] JOHNSON CITY — When Randy Hommel steps to the pulpit each Sunday at Clark Street Baptist Church in Johnson City, he faces the same pressures and stresses as most every pastor in the country — meeting the needs of a congregation still dealing with  fears over COVID-19, as well as their own hurts and needs. A pastor for 21 years, Hommel is better equipped today more

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DR TEAMS CALLED TO ACTION AFTER ‘SALLY’

Baptist and Reflector FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist Mission Board disaster relief teams are being called on to assist in the recovery efforts from Hurricane Sally.  TBMB disaster relief specialist Wes Jones sent out an e-mail on Sept. 19 that alerted DR leaders that Florida has requested chain saw, tarping and flood recovery teams. Jones asked that DR leaders from those teams contact either him ([email protected]) or DR assistant Elizabeth Holmes ([email protected]) for

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SBC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE ADOPTS CP BUDGET CUT BY FIVE PERCENT DURING COVID

By Diana Chandler Baptist Press NASHVILLE — Decreased giving during the COVID-19 pandemic led the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee to adopt a Cooperative Program Allocation Budget Tuesday (Sept. 22) that is 5 percent less than the committee projected last February. During a special called meeting, the Executive Committee adopted a $186,875,000 CP allocation budget for the 2020-2021 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, after originally proposing a budget of

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PIERSON: EFFECTIVE PRAYER REQUIRES INTIMACY WITH GOD

By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] FLINTVILLE — Perhaps no one knows better than Don Pierson how desperately the United States needs to be intimately connected with God through prayer during this point in the nation’s history. In a nation filled with fear over COVID-19, increasing racial turmoil and divide and a country divided by politics, God is the only answer, said Don Pierson, pastor of Stewart’s Chapel

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TENNESCENE: SEP. 23

LEADERS Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, celebrated his fifth anniversary in September. Jones and his wife, Pam, are former Southern Baptist missionaries to Costa Rica, Belize and Guatemala. He also served as a director of missions in Iowa where he was heavily involved in disaster relief work. Since coming to Tennessee, TBC DR teams have responded to 78 disasters, which accounts for 32 percent

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MOUNTAINS & MAJESTY

Worship and friendship are the bedrock of pastors’ hiking trip on Appalachian Trail   By David Dawson Baptist and Reflector [email protected] FRANKLIN — With the overwhelming stress of the past few months beginning to take a toll, pastor David Simmerman decided he would heed the advice of a friend.

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TENNESSEE DR VOLUNTEERS RESPOND TO HURRICANE LAURA

Editor’s note: The story was updated on Sept. 21. By Lonnie Wilkey [email protected] WINNFIELD, La. — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are in action, ministering in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura. Volunteers began arriving over Labor Day weekend, with the first team stationed at First Baptist Church, Winnfield, La. On Sept. 19, the Tennessee Baptist DR operations moved to Philadelphia Baptist Church Horseshoe Drive, Alexandria, La.  The DR operation in this area

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UNION UNIVERSITY BANQUET ENCOURAGES WEST TENNESSEE PASTORS TO ‘STAND FAST’

Union University new office JACKSON — The labor of pastors as they seek to lead their congregations in a time of pandemic is not in vain, Ray Van Neste told a group of pastors and their wives at Union University on Sept. 8. Van Neste, dean of Union’s School of Theology and Missions, spoke as part of the West Tennessee Pastors and Wives Appreciation Banquet that drew more than 100

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CARSON-NEWMAN PRESIDENT SHARES HOW MISSION WILL DIRECT THE UNIVERSITY’S FUTURE

Carson-Newman news office JEFFERSON CITY — Carson-Newman University President Charles A. Fowler shared with students, faculty and staff how the University’s mission must become the prevalent navigational influence on the school’s future and determine the assessment of effectiveness as an institution.  The address came during this year’s Convocation ceremony, held at Burke-Tarr Stadium to allow for social distancing due to the pandemic. The annual ceremony celebrates the senior class and

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TENNESCENE: SEP. 23

LEADERS Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, celebrated his fifth anniversary in September. Jones and his wife, Pam, are former

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