CROSSVILLE — Search across the Southern Baptist Convention and you will find churches with pastors who have long tenures and even other ministers who have been at the same church for a number of years. In a society, however, where the average stay of a minister at a church is normally less than six or seven years, it would be hard pressed to find a church that matches Central Baptist
CHURCHES Williams Chapel Baptist Church, Springfield, will celebrate its 138th homecoming day on Sept. 22 at 11 a.m. with guest speaker Jon Fuqua. A special offering for the cemetery fund will be collected. LEADERS Bethany Missionary Baptist Church, Paris, recently called Mike Burney as pastor.
FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist disaster relief volunteers are accustomed to hard work and sweat. This week, there’s been plenty of both for a team from Forest Hills Baptist Church in Nashville. Traveling to Morgan City, La., to assist victims who are recovering from Hurricane Francine, the DR team is dealing with oppressive humidity while completing various tasks for homeowners in the area. Steve Brock, who is leading the team, said
FRANKLIN — Lonnie Wilkey’s tenure as editor of the Baptist and Reflector is coming to an end, but his columns will continue to be read for years to come. Wilkey, who has been with the B&R since 1988 and has served as editor since 1998, has put together a collection of his columns in a book titled Faith, Family and Life’s Lessons: Reflections of a Christian Journalist. Wilkey’s columns have
CORDOVA — Steve Gaines, senior pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova and a former SBC president, announced to the congregation on Sunday that he will be transitioning out of his role of senior pastor and into the role of “itinerate preacher.” Gaines, who has been at Bellevue for 19 years, was joined on stage by his wife, Donna, when he made the announcement. “Many years ago, the Lord spoke
NASHVILLE — The SBC Executive Committee says it has spent more than $12.1 million on the 2021-2022 Guidepost Solutions investigation and subsequent legal expenses dating back to the 2021 fiscal year. The release of the detailed financial information was the result of a motion adopted by messengers at this summer’s SBC Annual Meeting. “The EC is glad to respond to the motion referred to us from the 2024 Annual Meeting
NASHVILLE — Dozens of agenda items awaited discussion and action by SBC Executive Committee members at their fall meeting this week. The committee made short work of its many referrals and recommendations, including consequential ones like finding a new home for sexual abuse prevention in the SBC and releasing a total dollar amount for legal expenditures incurred by the EC since 2021. The EC dealt with all of its business
NASHVILLE — In an effort to help the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee rebound from ongoing financial struggles and growing legal expenses, the EC announced on Sept. 17 it was planning to sell its downtown Nashville building. The EC also reported this week during its meeting it had spent more than $12.1 million on sexual abuse investigation-related expenses since 2020. During the meeting, newly installed EC President and CEO Jeff
NASHVILLE — Speaking to the Executive Committee for the first time since being elected SBC president in June, Clint Pressley didn’t waste any time expressing his love for Southern Baptists on Sept. 17. Pressley — who noted he knew he wanted to be a “Baptist preacher” at the age of 16 — shared how he looks forward to highlighting and taking time to “reflect” on the good things the SBC
BRENTWOOD — This summer, as thousands of kids and students attended Lifeway camps across the country, camp staff challenged them to think more broadly about their role in God’s mission to make disciples of all nations, and campers responded by giving generously to Southern Baptist missions endeavors. Because of the faithful giving of kids, students and leaders this summer, Ben Mandrell, president and CEO of Lifeway Christian Resources, presented checks
CROSSVILLE — Search across the Southern Baptist Convention and you will find churches with pastors who have long tenures and even other ministers who have
CHURCHES Williams Chapel Baptist Church, Springfield, will celebrate its 138th homecoming day on Sept. 22 at 11 a.m. with guest speaker Jon Fuqua. A special
FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist disaster relief volunteers are accustomed to hard work and sweat. This week, there’s been plenty of both for a team from
FRANKLIN — Lonnie Wilkey’s tenure as editor of the Baptist and Reflector is coming to an end, but his columns will continue to be read
CORDOVA — Steve Gaines, senior pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova and a former SBC president, announced to the congregation on Sunday that he
NASHVILLE — The SBC Executive Committee says it has spent more than $12.1 million on the 2021-2022 Guidepost Solutions investigation and subsequent legal expenses dating
NASHVILLE — Dozens of agenda items awaited discussion and action by SBC Executive Committee members at their fall meeting this week. The committee made short
NASHVILLE — In an effort to help the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee rebound from ongoing financial struggles and growing legal expenses, the EC announced
NASHVILLE — Speaking to the Executive Committee for the first time since being elected SBC president in June, Clint Pressley didn’t waste any time expressing
BRENTWOOD — This summer, as thousands of kids and students attended Lifeway camps across the country, camp staff challenged them to think more broadly about